Search - Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky, Riccardo Muti :: Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade; Tchaikovsky: 1812 Overture

Bargain Rimsky!

R. K. Green | Bethesda, MD | 09/29/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Scheherazade is a guilty pleasure of mine--so long as it is played by a great orchestra with a conductor who keeps the schmaltz to a minimum. I have been captivated by three versions of the musical depiction of the famous story teller: Tilson-Thomas with the San Francisco at a live concert, Kondrashin's recording with the Concertgebow, and this.



Muti moves the piece along beatifully, with rhythms that are pliable but not distended. The playing of the soloists is heavenly. Norman Carol's violin solos are wonderful, but to me the real highlight is the playing of the wind principals, especially the oboe (Richard Woodhams?).



The EMI recording is also marvelous--but then again, EMI records from the 70s and early 80s consistently sound wonderful. For less than seven bucks, this is hard to beat."

A very intense take on Scheherazade

King Lemuel | Puyallup, WA | 04/08/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Early stereo recordings of Scheherazade were used to WOW the folks back in the late 1950s and early 1960s into trading in their old mono phonographs for the new fangled stereophonic play back equipment. All the bells and whistles are in this piece from beautiful melodies and sentimentality to some very powerful (rattle the dishes in the cupboard) and exciting orchestral romps.



There must be at least a dozen very good recordings of this piece including Muti's. The quality and intensity of Muti/PO's recorded sound reminded me more of the Phase 4 or perhaps the Sheffield Lab's recordings rather than your typical classical.



I was also reminded of the Gergiev/Kirov recent release. Both of these CDs are very intense and more frantic than the others I have heard. The dynamic range is more like a classic rock or pop tune than a classical recording. If you do purchase this CD, I would recommend a comparison recording. A notch or two below in intensity is the Kirill Kondrashin Concertgebouw recording. Even a little more laid back is the Ernest Ansermet/L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande recording from c. 1960 that has been released, in great remastered sound, in the Decca Legends series.

"

Absolutely Beautiful!

Randee Krymer | San Diego, CA | 10/28/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This recording has made me fall in love with Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazede! Just astounding music, performed wonderfully, great quality recording. I recommend this CD to ANYONE. It puts me in a great mood every time I listen to it...there just aren't enough good things to say about this recording. Buy it! You won't find a better deal on good music anywhere!"