Rossini - Opera Overtures [Halasz-Zagreb Festival Orchestra]

In my early years of compact disc buying, i bought a fair number of Naxos discs, the idea was that they were cheap, and i could get three for £15, instead of a single full priced disc for £15, that's three times the amount of discs!, it made perfect sense back in the early nineties, now because i almost exclusively buy second-hand, that now not a lot of difference, now i just go purely for the best version, plus over the years i've purged lots of iffy discs, so quite a number of those Naxos discs have fallen by the sword, this is one of those that remain, and regardless of the obscure Orchestra, these are scintillating accounts of the Overtures, been a regular in my Blog [28th August 2010 & 7th January 2013].

Michael Halasz is Hungarian, he's now 77, this recording comes from 1989, i must admit that on the whole i don't like the Naxos philosophy of artwork on their covers, and even the back inserts are not very inventive, however i've fallen in love with the music / performance on the disc.

On this listen i really enjoyed Overtures 1, 3 & 5-6, it's hard to pick a winner, but i think that The Silken Ladder just pips it, here's my thoughts on it,
5 The Silken Ladder [6:20] - Like quite a number of Rossini's Overtures, there's a long introduction, the thing takes time to really get going, with long oboe / woodwind lines, and chattering oboe later, before it explodes into full blown orchestral mode [1:54+], and even then the real heart of the piece keeps revealing itself like layers of an onion [2:22+], with excellent use of chattering oboes [2:28-2:42], the woodwind again have a dialogue back and forth [2:42-2:50], i guess Rossini likes to hand out each piece to a certain instrument, and in this Overture it's certainly the oboes, he repeats everything twice, also Rossini is an expert at rhythms, his Overtures are like well oiled machines!.

Various Composers - Italian Overtures / Intermezzi / Preludes [Gavazzeni-Orchestra Del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino]

This is my fourth listen to this disc, and my third to get in my Blog [17th November 2010 & 28th December 2011], it's an excellent little compendium of eight Italian Composers, and there's a tendency to delve into the less well known stuff, and that's very welcome indeed, it was good to familiarise myself with some of these 'unknown' pieces today.

Gianandrea Gavazzeni is Italian [1909-1996], mainly an Opera Conductor, which explains the pieces on this disc, he recorded this disc way back in 1957 and 1958, which explains the oldness of the recording, still excellent by the way, and in stereo, the front cover portrait is really excellent [by Leonardo Cendamo], a clear focused shot of Gavazzeni wearing a hat, nice light on his upturned face, love the lettering too, listing the Composers.

Well this recording is fairly old, it needs some more warmth / bass to it, a certain bloom i guess, but it's still amazing for something that's nearly sixty years old, on this listen it was Ponchielli's Waltz Of The Hours i liked the best, but i also thought tracks 2-5 & 8 were excellent too, and it's track 4 Catalini's La Wally Prelude that i found so endearing, it's actually the prelude to Act 4 of the Opera, it starts with shimmering low strings, probably violas, with ghostly high woodwinds [0:00-1:08], it's wonderfully mysterious music, an offstage solo trumpet joins in [1:08-1:35] the thing then returns to the opening again [1:36-2:02], the higher strings come in with harp, Catalani makes a real varied and atmospheric canvas, lighter music comes in, shimmering violins with flutes, and pizzicato lower strings with a tambourine [3:15-3:41], now that's some heady combination!, and very effective musically too, the music gets angry with the high violins [3:59+], and then dark clouds of brass come in [4:20+], with intense strings in the background, lots of tragedy here, Catalini can't help but bring the wonderful opening back again [5:28-6:05], this time subdued, as the music then takes on a more noble conclusion, woodwinds give some sort of coda [6:38+], the end is gentle and beautiful, it's really something worth getting to know, it will be a firm favourite every time you get to hear it.

Here's Gavazzeni playing this Prelude on YouTube.

Tchaikovsky - Capriccio Italien [Dutoit-Orchestre Symphonique De Montreal]

Here's a lovely disc of Tchaikovsky Overtures and Ballet music, a great introduction to the Composer, but much more too, it's a great way to collect some of his lets say 'war' music, with a generous 65 minutes of music, everything on here i so much enjoyed, even the 1812 Overture, which is in danger of become too well known and played, this disc makes me realise even more what a wealth of glorious tunes Tchaikovsky had inside of him, appeared in my Blog a few years back [25th December 2011].

Charles Dutoit is Swiss, he's now 78, this disc was recorded in 1986, though is a reissue of an earlier disc, the front booklet cover is a painting [by Christian Sell], showing the Franco-Prussian war, i don't usually like paintings as front covers of dics, but this is an excellent one, showing sharp detail, there's a certain diagonal top left to bottom right line of attack in the picture, the lettering is great too, though i have somewhat of an issue with promoting '1812' over the other works on the disc.

On this listen i was really impressed with Capriccio Italien, not an Overture as such, it's really a Fantasy, it was composed from a trip that Tchaikovsky took to Rome, and seeing a Carnival, but there's certainly elements of military and marching to the whole thing, its opening trumpet / brass fanfare is excellent [0:00-0:41], sharp and strong and noble, almost a call to arms, and then right after comes a march like beat by the horns / lower brass, while the strings play an ominous tune of their own [0:42-2:07], it's has an excellent 'beat' to it, one of the best things in the piece, it's when the opening fanfare comes back in more glory [2:55-3:11], and now the strings are creating the march, with the woodwind the melody [3:19-3:56], and then comes the carnival music [4:16+], a lot happier and fun, but still has that element of military march about it, after a theme as such, Tchaikovsky creates variations of it, each one seemingly more sparkling than the rest [5:02+], trumpets and glockenspiel, there's a certain waltz about the thing too, Tchaikovsky revels in the glockenspiel [6:12+], and the music has a real sparkle about it, there's also a certain degree of Spanish Flamenco to the central section [7:22+], where also a strong waltz comes into play, but the ominous opening vibes come back [9:41+], towards the end there's brilliant string and brass playing, quick and sharp [11:12+], eventually leading onto a majestic statement of the carnival tune [13:07+], at the end you might think it's going to break out into the 1812 Overture, a lovely kaleidoscope of sounds.

Here's Jurowski conducting this piece on YouTube.

Tchaikovsky - Marche Slave [Dutoit-Orchestre Symphonique De Montreal] 

A lovely selection of Tchaikovsky pieces, getting away from the obvious Symphonies and Concertos, yes it includes the old warhorse 1812, but the rest of the programme is inspired, especially Capriccio Italien and Marche Slave, i love these pieces, and it's superb the way Tchaikovsky has welded the different themes into a gorgeous rousing Rondo, with each section coming in again and again, each time seemingly more lyrical / stately than the last, it's spun out for nearly 11 minutes on this recording, which is a nice length, it's so good to hear this again.

Charles Dutoit is Swiss, he's now 76, he recorded these works in 1985, and this Ovation disc makes a nice reissue, the front cover features a painting by Christian Sell called 'Attack by Prussian Uhlans, the Franco-Prussian War', a nicely sharp reproduction of the painting, very well done, and even though not the same war as used for the musical piece, visually it's appropriate for the Marche Slave on the disc.

The Marche Slave was a commision Tchaikovsky received in aid of a concert for the Red Cross Society in aid of wounded Serbian soldiers, and of course it's full of military themes, very patriotic, and includes the Russian national anthem 'God Save The Tsar', 

Here's Mikhail Pletnev conducting the Marche Slave on YouTube.

Rossini - Opera Overtures [Halasz- Zagreb Festival Orchestra] 

Rossini wrote some scintillating Overtures, he also composed some rubbish to tack on the end of them called Operas!, yes i love his Overtures, but hate his Operas, this disc represents the first disc of Rossini's Overtures i ever bought, way back in 1992, and even though it's with a minor Orchestra, and a fairly unknown Conductor, i find this disc to be one of the best things that Naxos has ever done, Halasz really gets the rhythms right, he sounds like a Rossini expert, other discs i have tried can sound a bit flat and ordinary by comparison [but Chailly is also very good], not a disc i would be attracted to now, the front cover is naff, what were Naxos thinking!, but the music inside is so good.

Michael Halasz is Hungarian, he's now 74, and he made this recording in 1989, like i said above, the front booklet picture is poor, i'm not keen on paintings, and Naxos are certainly defective in this area, they need to employ some people to look at bettering their visual department, though i do see improvements slowly coming.

On this listen it was actually track 6 'The Italian Girl In Algiers' i like the best, not my usual favourite, what keeps Halasz's interpretations fresh maybe his slightly fast speeds, keeping the rhythms moving, there's a nice propulsion going on, the sound might be somewhat reverberant, but it's still involving, i like the nice ring of the percussion, i feel Halasz gets the staccato / legato right, lazy blurs here, but then precise and crisp snaps there, Rossini has so many 'layers' to each of his Overtures, like wheels in the workings of a watch, different speeds and even different directions, but they all work together to make music, the opening is all low string pizzicato and oboe Soloist [0:00-0:46], and of course each of his Overtures 'explode' at some point [1:46-2:18], with whistling flutes, but like Rossini is, he has a further 'explosion' as if the other was just an introduction [2:18-3:00], and now we're really going!, everyone in the orchestra is so busy, but Rossini has that way of ending sections, as if they were merely designed to bring in the real music, and we seem to come to the 'real start' again [3:07+], this is the genius of Rossini's music, and the piccolos chatter away [3:22-3:28 & 3:42-3:48], the woodwind make it an almost birdsong chorus, the build up to some of these explosions is so well paced, it's like Rossini's purposely tying you up, and then releasing you to get that feeling of being set free!, the piccolos are certainly central to his ideas here, and the chattering away of the bassoons in the background are nicely audible enough, the four loud cracks from the percussion are exciting [5:00-5:08], a nice reverberant noise, and the loud busyness by the whole orchestra [5:31-5:54] is so exciting all over again, of course Rossini is repetitive, playing sections all over again, and in this recording they seem to get more and more faster and louder the second time around, building up to a nice frenzied ending, and i love the frantic strings [7:43-7:46], in the accompanying YouTube video below, Marriner only takes maybe 20 seconds longer, and yet he sounds so pedantic in certain sections!, no wonder Halasz sounds so thrilling, it's a breathtaking performance taken at some terrific motoring speeds.

Here's Neville Marriner conducting 'The Italian Girl In Algiers' on YouTube.

Beethoven - Overtures [Harding-Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen] 

The first time i played this disc, it concerned me that Harding pushed his orchestra so hard, these are certainly hard driven readings / interpretations, now i've got used to it, i even find the intensity thrilling, also Harding can be a bit clinical in stops and starts, but there's no dismissing his approach and professionalism, i'm sure he's thought long and hard about the results he wanted, the only thing that caused me concern on this listening, is the sharp sound, where's the warmth?, it sounds like a disc without any bass, it's a shame as everything else seems right, i think he took a page out of the historic performance book, lithe clean textures, fast tempos, maybe a thinner string sound, lots of nice brass, a nice heady mixture, this is a nice regular in my Blog, and this appeared only six months ago [12th May 2012 & 28th April 2011].

Daniel Harding is English, he's now 37 years old, he recorded this disc in 1999 at the young age of 23, his youthful exuberance really shows, the front cover photograph [by Ranald Mackechnie] is a great shot, a well composed portrait, i just love that pose, a serious look on the face, and hands clasped, the background is very interesting also, a white wall and trees beyond, and a small potted tree is the perfect addition, also the lettering is very well laid out, i like the way 'Overtures' is set apart in dark grey, the whole thing works on many levels.

Well this was a thrilling disc, the two Overtures i immensely enjoyed were Coriolan and Egmont, and Coriolan is all a Beethoven piece should be, real drama, phenomenal ideas, and a real sense of universal purpose, Karajan & Jochum [two favourites of mine] play the piece at the 9 minute mark, while Bruggen hits 7:17, much more nearer Harding's 7:22, so you can see which field of play he gravitates toward, the opening war like theme is played in the key of C Minor, Harding plays the opening hammer blows very clinically exacting [0:00-0:28], and straight after the speeds are thrillingly lithe, strong use of the timpani, Harding presents Beethoven as Heavy Metal to a degree, strong rhythms, lean string textures, and those timpani are really hit [2:01-2:04], sounds like the guy is having real fun [Stefan Rapp], the more lyrical theme is in E Flat Major, and these two themes intertwine like a dialogue, i love the way Beethoven welds the two themes together expertly, and the constant hammer blows are tremendous, only in the closing coda pages could Harding have slowed down things more and given us something more tender, as i believe it represents Coriolan's death, there could have been more pathos, but Harding gives it to us fairly straight and matter of fact, nevertheless there's so much here to enjoy, Beethoven sounds so involving.

Here's Carlos Kleiber conducting the Coriolan Overture on YouTube.

Beethoven - Overtures [Jochum-Bamberg Symphony Orchestra] 

Playing this disc makes me realize more than ever, that Beethoven truly reigns supreme among Composers, Chopin spoke Polish and French, Schubert and Bach spoke German, Ravel and Debussy spoke French, but Beethoven speaks a universal language, i couldn't help thinking how Beethoven transcends even music in his efforts to express his ideas, he's so revolutionary, at once you know you're in the presence of a master when you hear Beethoven, listening to his Symphonies are one major thing, but his Overtures are 'mini Symphonies' in a sense, they are teeming with life, the same as a drop of pond water almost has it's own world within it, yes i was astounded today, if ever i think that Schubert, Chopin, Brahms etc, are biting at the heels of Beethoven, then a disc like this is a reality check that they're not in the same league.

Eugen Jochum is German, 1902-1987, he recorded this disc at the end of his life in 1985, this disc comes from the RCA Classical Navigator series, some are excellent, and others are visually average, this one's ok, they show a map and an event that happened relating to the music.

All of these Overtures were so good, the genius of Beethoven truly shines through, the best two were Egmont and Coriolan, and it's this Coriolan Overture that i found so revolutionary, and it really got me going, .

Here's Christian Thielemann conducting the Coriolan Overture on YouTube.

Wagner - Overtures & Orchestral Music [Jansons-Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra] 

Not that long ago Wagner's music used to be a closed book to me, i'm not an Opera lover, even though i do find Arias very nice, Wagner epitomises everything that i don't like in Opera, very looong works, the singing almost descends down into speech, unbelievable storylines, and even the purely instrumental music isn't conveniently presented as proper Overtures at the start of every Opera, and yet, he's a great Orchestrator, i'm sure he could of made some wonderful Symphonies, so this was actually the first disc i bought [back in 2007] that was wholly dedicated to his music, so what a pleasant surprise to really get into some of this stuff, since then i have bought other collections too, but his still remains on the fringes of my collection.

Mariss Jansons is Latvian, he is now 69 years old, he made this recording in 1991, the front cover portrait of Jansons is by Rory Carnegie, a white background, and nice shadows behind him, good pose, nice colours, the black lettering is nice.

Well i found all of these 8 pieces almost equally as good as each other, it was hard to pick a 'winner', but certainly tracks 1, 4, 6 & 8 maybe just pip the others, and i guess it's the Tannhauser Overture that i found full of the real essence of Wagner, it's the longest piece on this disc, starting out with a solemn nobility by the lower woodwinds and horns [0:00-0:56], before branching out into the cello's and strings, it  truly starts to blossom [1:52+], and unfolds into a glorious fanfare on the trombones, underpinned by excited violins playing high in the treble [2:08-2:58] it's truly glorious stuff, those strings continue to come back like waves, sometimes high, sometimes low, but they're so contagious!, in the middle of the piece it goes off on a tangent, lighter music that gives a welcome respite from the darkness of the opening, but it sounds like something that Weber or Suppe would write, not Wagner at his best, the opening music comes back [10:35+], this time with very busy but light violins, and again the music froths up to a crescendo [12:15-13:42], the brass really do pull out all the stops in majesty, a lovely piece of music. 

Here's Georg Solti conducting the Tannhauser Overture on YouTube.

Various Composers - Overtures & Intermezzi [Varviso-Staatskapelle Dresden] 

What an excellently compiled disc this is, a really well chosen programme, a lovely mix of different composers, and some very well chosen works, this is not like some compilations by Karajan / Marriner etc, that bring together a bunch of different performances recorded at different times, but this is a planned recital, all recorded together for this disc especially, some real thought has gone into it, the works were composed roughly around the same time, the first half of the disc is dedicated to Italian Composers, and the second half to French Composers, i love the way it mixes some very well known works, with some rarer items, the end product is more than the sum of its parts.

Silvio Varviso is a Swiss Conductor, he was born in 1924, and died nearly 6 years ago in 2006, he recorded this disc in 1983, the front cover picture [by Vulvio Roiter] is strange, i think it's of a mummer at the Carnival of Venice, yes Venice does get snow, but i don't think at Easter when the Carnival is, i guess this is a bird man, it's actually a really good shot, i like the lace wings, the black of the guy in stark contrast to the white of the snow, the lettering is excellent also, listing all the Composers, a great idea visually.

There was so much good stuff on here, one after another i was wowed at the inventiveness of so many great Composers, the military / brass in the Rossini Thieving Magpie, the Ponchielli Dance Of The Hours is a favourite of mine on this disc, and the different sections are thrilling, the Mascagni Intermezzi is something i would love to have played at my funeral!, and the Saint-Saens Bacchanale is full of Eastern flair and wonder, but very surprisingly the piece that really got to me was the Puccini Intermezzo from Manon Lescaut, a piece that on previous listenings hadn't truly caught my attention, it starts off very low key, almost like a String Quartet, Cello and Viola playing a duet, but when it opens up [1:15-1:48], the whole thing explodes into a sad refrain that only Puccini knows how to do, and then the strings swoon [1:48+], it's a glorious moment, Puccini really knows how to tug those heartstrings, and also he knows how to brings the piece down into a lovely refrain after a forte [3:04+], and even further along there's a cherishable moment of denouement on the refrained violins [3:29-3:46], Puccini certainly knows how to bring things to a close, the closing thoughts of this short piece are expertly done [4:01+], wow! a nice new favourite.

Here's Pablo Varela conducting Puccini's Manon Lescaut Intermezzo on YouTube.

Wagner - Overtures & Orchestral Music [Sinopoli-Staatskapelle Dresden] 

I am not someone who can listen my way through a 2 or 3 hour Opera, too much filler, too much talky bits, but when you strip an Opera Composer like Wagner away from his Operas, you end up with some exciting orchestral music, if only Wagner had decided to become a Symphonist like Mahler!, what you end up with is chunks of things, mainly his Overtures and Preludes, now i don't claim to listen to Wagner extensively, but the more i listen to him, the more i enjoy this 'vocal-less' stuff.

Giuseppe Sinopoli is Italian, he died of a heart attack roughly 11 years ago, while conducting Verdi's Aida, he is very much an Opera Conductor, he has a penchant for slow speeds and luxurious textures, he recorded this disc in 1995, the front cover photo [by Ludwig Schirmer] is of Sinopoli standing in the Staatskapelle Dresden Concert Hall, empty of people, you can feel the grandeur of the building, one thing it doesn't show is a good view of the ceiling, and the chandelier in the middle, quite impressive, there's a nice orange glow to the whole thing, and it gives off a sense of scale with the rows of seats, very orderly.

The two pieces i really enjoyed here were Das Liebesverbot Overture [The Ban On Love], and the Tannhauser Overture, the first is unknown to me, and it's good to listen to something new, what else has Wagner got secreted away in the middle of some Opera?, ultimately i find it's this new piece that takes first prize, it lasts nearly 9 minutes long here, it sounds like some trifle from Johann Strauss, or the fizz from an Offenbach Overture, it's great fun, it comes from an early Opera from Wagner, that was a resounding flop, it shows Wagner in a lighter jovial mood, he got more serious in his later works, so it's a shock to the system if you've never heard it before, from Wagner's pen it truly sounds comical and a send up joke at first, the thunderous Polka at the beginning is ingenious [0:05-0:38], and of course it keeps coming around again and again, after some more serious music tries to take over, it keeps inching its way back in, and goes full blast on its silly bubbly-ness, just listen to the frivolity of the high woodwind, especially the piccolo, it's like a marching band on helium! [3:32-3:47], the snaps and whipcracks are great too, near the end there's a trumpet fanfare chorus [6:32-6:40], Wagner throws all sorts of stuff into the mixing bowl, and it finishes with an exhilarating ending, getting faster and faster, i especially like the very end, three abrupt loud stops [8:38-8:47], something Beethoven would do after an Overture, it's a real clown of a piece.

Here's Daniel Harding conducting the Das Liebesverbot Overture on YouTube.