Search - Britten, Simon Rattle :: Britten [Box Set]

Rattle can't best Britten himself, and the War Requiem isn't

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 04/06/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"At Amazon Marketplace this 5-CD box set of Britten is a stone bargain, but frankly, I would hold off. There's no denying that Rattle has been a dedicated interpreter of Britten, which takes courage given that the composer's own recordings on Decca remain definitive. All but a few are in excellent sound, and the latest repackaging is also at budget price on the used market. Since I know both sets, prospective buyers may want a bit more detail.



Rattle is strikingly good at the dozen or so occasional pieces like the American and Canadian Carnival Overtures, the Young Person's Guide, and so on, up to the more substantial orchestral work, Sinfonia da Requiem. There are song cycle recordings with Ian Bostridge, and although I dislike his voice, it must be admitted that many others are allergic to Peter Pears' equally idiosyncratic timbre. the edge must go to pears, however, for his supreme artistry. It's true that he was not young anymore when he recorded the Serenade, Nocturnes, and Les Illuminations song cycles, so Bostridge is in far fresher voice, if that must be a deciding factor.



The other major work here is the War Requiem, and one might expect a horse race, even if Britten's premiere recording is a legend. Other conductors have had a triumph with this work, including Carlo Maria Giulini (on BBC Legends) and Rostropovich (no commercial recording, sadly). but Rattle, working with outstanding vocal soloists (Robert Tear, Thomas Allen, Elisabeth Soderstrom), never strikes fire. Everything feels too restrained and worked out. If he had surpassed Richard Hickox among the English rivals on disc, I could have leaned in favor of this box set. as it stands, why buy a miscellany of small pieces when you can separately purchase so many truly great recordings?"