Search - Debussy, Bernstein :: Debussy: La Mer/ Images/ Prelude a L'Apres Midi D'un Faune

A curiosity piece

07/05/2000

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I'm mystified by the remarks of the previous reviewer: the works recorded here are concert standards, and the Santa Cecilia Orchestra is surely not new!--it's the orchestra of the world's oldest music conservatory and is made up of "professori", not music students. Am I listening to the same disk?I would say that Lenny gets a better performance than he deserves; all the swaying, pulling, shoving, and kneading of tempi make for a pukey sea trip indeed. Lenny's is the slow boat to China. As such it's a good deal better than the raw and scurried version he did for Columbia years back where the NY Phil sounded slightly out of tune. That issue didn't stay around long. The other works are far more even-handed and would be the reason to have this disk knocking around your collection, but make no mistake, it's all about Lenny and little about Debussy.The poor professori ride it out, but somehow I feel they're grateful to reach shore. Still, there's no denying old Rome's Santa Ceclia is as crack an outfit as it's always been...the only difference is that relatively recently it put up with the late Bernstein's head-spinning in the studio. In the old days these musicians would have yelled "Basta!, ignorante!" gotten up, and walked out. They were never this easy.For Debussy, the pinnacle of interpretation and execution remains Paul Paray and the Detroit SO on Mercury, for these works and everything else. Understandably, Amazon keeps Paray consistently available."

A Great Performance, but. . .

Shota Hanai | Torrance, CA | 06/26/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The performance of Lenny with the Santa Cecilia National Academy Orchestra is generally well played. When it comes of Le Mer though, I recommend you to buy elsewhere. Lenny with Santa Cecilia Orchestra is played rather slowly and gently. The first movement, compared to the one with the New York Phil, is more calming, but a bit lacking on the climax part. The final movement too, he and Santa Cecilia Orchestra is less thrilling. I don't really think it's a really bad idea to buy this CD, because overall it's beautiful. But I recommend you to buy the one when Lenny was with the New York Phil, when he was younger, or Karajan with the Berlin Phil, or Boulez with the Cleveland Orchestra. Lenny with New York Phil, and Charlie the Tuna (that's Boulez), I believe, especially plays with enthusiasm. The Prelude with Santa Cecilia is very smoothly played, and Images are played just fine too. This CD is not at all bad."