Search - Sergey Prokofiev, Andre Previn, London Symphony Orchestra :: Prokofiev: Cinderella; 'Classical' Symphony

Let's go to the ball and have a nice nap

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 07/16/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"In the Sixties when I first heard Stokowski's riveting suite from Prokofiev's Cinderella, I was eager to hear the whole ballet. The first complete version that emerged here was this one from Previn and the London Sym., who were then in their Seventies honeymoon phase.



But I was disappointed--there's too much careful conducting, not enough mystery and drama, and little magic. The LSO plays beautifully, and EMI's recording, if not exactly dynamic, is fine. Later I acquired the version from Ashkenazy on Decca, which is both more exciting and better recorded. Since then we've had a so-so reading from Pletnev on DG, but after forty years, I'm still waiting for the complete set that recaptures the whimsy and enchantment of Stokowski's excepts (you can still find them and hear for yourself.)



P.S. Jan.2010-- In retrospect I was a little mean to this perfectly nice Cinderella, which can be had for pennies on the Brilliant label, coupled with Romeo and Juliet. Previn conforms to the milder British taste in ballet conducting. There's also a riveting Rozhdestvensky reading that is my current first choice, and by a long shot."