Strauss - Don Quixote [Maisky & Zimmermann/ Mehta-Berliner Philharmoniker]I bought this disc mainly for the Dvorak coupling, but also with an eye on the Strauss work too, i must admit that i haven't listened to Don Quixote nearly as much, it's still a work i'm coming to terms with, and still learning to appreciate, so on this hearing it was good that some things fell into place, plus the fact that the work is nicely cued into individual variations/tracks, it means it's easier to know where you're at, and what variation you're on.
The two variations that hit home this time were variation 2 'The Battle With The Sheep', and variation 7 'The Ride Through The Air', both are extremely atmospheric, the bleating of the sheep comes from the brass [track 9, 0:19-1:20], annoyed at first, they become agitated, and then really frightened [1:05-1:07], it's clever the way Strauss makes the brass sound like sheep, the ride through the air uses a wind machine, with flutes and piccolos making up a storm [track 14, 0:00-1:14], and the brass adding to the spectacle, with the rolling timpani in the background, the piece gets more darker at [0:40+], as the brass growl more, again a very descriptive use of the orchestra, i need to develop a further love of some of the other variations, a work which i'm beginning to understand and appreciate.
