A Dorati/Respighi classic, in up-to-date hybrid SACD format.
Bob Zeidler | Charlton, MA United States | 12/03/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Antal Dorati, Ottorino Respighi's music and I go back a long way, all the way to Dorati's mid-50s Mercury Living Presence monophonic LP of Respighi's first two parts of his Roman Trilogy ("The Fountains of Rome" and "The Pines of Rome") with the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra. Over time, I managed to collect all of Dorati's Respighi (adding up to a total of 4 albums), first on mono LP and then on stereo LP, up to and including this Philharmonia Hungarica performance of the full suite of "Ancient Dances and Airs for Lute" (by this time, in stereo only).
For reasons that escape me (probably a temporary change in musical tastes in the interim), I hadn't yet duplicated any of these on CD when they were released on this medium. For this particular work on CD, I had been in sort of a "limp along" mode for some years, with a recording by Seiji Ozawa and the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Dorati and the Philharmonia Hungarica - particularly in this remastering that includes 2- and 3-channel SACD as well as the conventional CD signal that had itself been superbly remastered by Wilma Cozart Fine not all that long ago - makes it easy for me to retire that Ozawa recording.
Where Ozawa is downright flaccid interpretation-wise (despite the excellent BSO forces), Dorati's reading is rhythmically incisive where need be, warmly glowing elsewhere (in the slower sections), and beautifully luminous throughout. (Interestingly, a comparison of timings suggests otherwise: Ozawa's reading is nearly 3 minutes shorter than Dorati's, but limp nonetheless. The "tale of the tape" is often not the full picture.)
As is probably well-known, the Philharmonia Hungarica was comprised of Hungarian emigrés who escaped (most without their instruments) following the 1956 Soviet invasion. Dorati was their spiritual godfather from the outset, polishing the group into a virtuoso ensemble. (This pairing was to later record the complete symphonies of Haydn on the Decca label, a traversal that is still a milestone in classical music recording history.) This group plays as fine as any in these relatively small-scaled works (based on Italian and French lute music from the 17th and early 18th centuries), and of course is led by one of the greatest Respighi interpreters of all time.
The sound, dating from 1958 recording sessions, is fully up to the very high standards that Mercury established with its Living Presence series, perhaps the most uniformly excellent set of analog master tapes ever put together by a single label. In fact, the CD layer sound is significantly better than that on the Ozawa/BSO recording, despite the latter being some 2 decades newer. And, while the "ordinary" CD layer, with its fresh mastering by Mrs. Fine, is remarkable for its clarity, I have now had an opportunity to assess the DSD transfer from the analog master tapes to the SACD medium. In a word, it is stunning! One would never know that these sessions were from nearly a half-century ago! While the original source tapes were of course analog, they were of the highest possible analog, and the DSD reproduction of them is like "being there." Or at least like being in the studio with the engineers as they listened to the original sessions.
The playing time, at 54:32, is on the short side. Perhaps there would have been sufficient space to include either "The Birds" or "Brazilian Impressions" (other Respighi works that Dorati championed); perhaps not. Regardless, this hybrid SACD is very highly recommended.
Bob Zeidler"
BEWARE!
Canzone | California | 10/13/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Not of the CD, but of Amazon's "warning" that you need
SACD equipment. Unless you want the SACD sound layer, you can play this hybrid CD on any player. As to the CD itself, I think this is by far the best recording of these delightful works. This disc was stunning when first released, and still is. The sound is better than a lot of recent digital recordings, and Dorati "owned" this music at the time. This is one of those timeless recordings that have had few detractors over the years, with good reason. Highly recommended."
