Search - Gioachino Rossini, Claudio Abbado, Chamber Orchestra of Europe :: Rossini: Overtures

Claudio Abbado seems to have lost much of his youthful fire as an interpreter. In the late '70s and throughout much of the '80s, he was a leading light in the great Rossini revival, conducting (and recording) magnificent productions of operas both familiar and rare. Although he continues to record prolifically, his recent work hasn't measured up to his earlier achievements. This disc is an exception. Working with a virtuoso band of players, he seems able to keep his now-habitual fussiness in check, and turn in performances of grace and sparkle. We can always hope that Abbado will somehow find a way to recapture the standard he sets here, and revive the qualities that made him such an exciting artist a couple of decades ago. --David Hurwitz