COMPOSERS: Tchaikovsky
LABELS: Melodiya
WORKS: Manfred; Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture; The Tempest; Serenade in C; Capriccio italien
PERFORMER: USSR SO/Evgeny Svetlanov
CATALOGUE NO: 74321 34164 2 ADD 1967/70
Svetlanov’s muscular style suits Manfred down to the ground, and this is a riveting reading of a work which can easily ramble. The recording is good for its time, and the playing is committed, characterful, and very Russian. The Tempest has the same intensity and drive, but the other performances are routine. Svetlanov seems particularly out of sorts in a tame and lightweight Romeo and Juliet, and the excitement at the end of the Capriccio italien comes too late to redeem it. Martin Cotton
Tchaikovsky: Manfred; Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture; The Tempest; Serenade in C; Capriccio italien
Svetlanov’s muscular style suits Manfred down to the ground, and this is a riveting reading of a work which can easily ramble. The recording is good for its time, and the playing is committed, characterful, and very Russian. The Tempest has the same intensity and drive, but the other performances are routine. Svetlanov seems particularly out of sorts in a tame and lightweight Romeo and Juliet, and the excitement at the end of the Capriccio italien comes too late to redeem it. Martin Cotton
Our rating
5
Published: January 20, 2012 at 2:37 pm