Search - Ansermet, L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande :: Rimsky-Korsakov & Scheherazade & Ansermet

A must-have!

Hiram Gomez Pardo | Valencia, Venezuela | 09/06/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"
Ernest Ansermet was a mathematician before being conductor, and that skillfulness may be felt in every score he conducted. His devoted stubbornness for the Russian music was more than obvious.



It's far to be a secret that a work such scherezade has been so diffused and so used as musical curtain that literally has provoked in the great audiences (at least in my case) a serious case of auditory fatigue, and that has been a terrible impediment for the Opus.



To my mind only three notable conductors have been able to bring it back to this monumental orchestral fantasy, the Dionysian majesty and sensual taste; Ferenc Fricsay, Isaac Dobrowne and Ernest Ansermet, whose devoted efforts are still evident since the first bars.



So from any point of view and given the special feature given by this masterful conductor, this version still stands out as one the most sublime ever recorded.



Antar's performance still remains as one of the most extraordinary versions, just behind two insurmountable ones; Morton Gould performance and Hermann Scherchen.



A must-have.

"

Antar and Sheherazade: Together At Last!...

Sébastien Melmoth | Hôtel d'Alsace, PARIS | 12/21/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

".

This is the only disc extant which properly pairs Korsakov's two Orientalist symphonic suites Antar and Sheherazade.



Recorded in Geneva in 1954 and 1960 respectively, the orchestral timbres are superlative.

The first-chair soloists are very fine.



Disc made in Germany, the super-digital 96kHz 24-bit remastering is indeed remarkable; however, caveat: there is (naturally) a barely noticeable tape hiss from the original masters which to aficionados is no bother.



Approximate timings:



Antar, Op.9:

Ansermet/OSR: [31'00]

Järvi/GSO: [33'00]

Anichanov/PSSO: [28'00].



Sheherazade, Op. 35:

Ansermet/OSR: [43'00]

Gergiev/Kirov: [46'00].

.

Sheherazade

Rimsky-Korsakov: The Complete Symphonies; Russian Easter Festival Overture; Capriccio Espagnol [Germany]

Rimsky-Korsakow: Scheherazade: Borodin: Polowetzer Tänze

Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherezade; Tchaikovsky / Karajan

Rimsky-Korsakov: Antar; Russian Easter Festival

Rimsky-Korsakov: Symphonies No. 1 & No. 2 "Antar"

."

Scheherazade

Michael Krams | Philadelphia, PA, USA | 08/11/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"John Neumeier's ballet 'Nijinski' inspired me to search for the ultimate recording of Rimsky-Korsakov's music. I first watched the Hamburg ballet perform in the Kennedy center, and then again, in Hamburg: Breath-taking. Nijinski's story really is an account of what Neumeier has to say, the multi-identities of Nijinski compared and contrasted with Schostakovitch vs Rimski-Korsakov. When I now listen to Scheherazade I see the bright colours of the dancers flying across the stage.



This recording is something else. It has so much authenticity. Ansermet brings out the story by detailing the rhythmical structure of the different themes in a way nobody else does. The violin solo in the first movement appears disappointing at first, too fable, too thin, but wait for the violin solo at the beginning of the fourth movement, and then you understand that this is just what is needed to build the range of expression.



A good way to appreciate how special this recording is for you to sing along with it. Try to follow the preciseness of the rhythmical structures brought out by the trumpets: Dam, ba-da-dadada dadada dam..."