Search - Michel Plasson, Orchestre du Capitole de Toulouse :: Faure: Pelleas et Melisande; Masques Et Bergamasques (Incidental Music)

Essence of Faure

Steve | Erie, PA | 03/09/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a terrific CD. If you like Faure, some of the pieces, like the Pelleas et Melisande Suite and Pavane, will duplicate other recordings you may have. The Pavane here is the orchestral version - no voices. But it's the less familiar pieces that make this recording so desirable. Masques et Bergamasques is a delight. But the real surprise is the winning and lovely incidental music to Shylock. Both of these suites feature a young and honey-voiced Nicolai Gedda in orchestrated versions of well known songs that Faure interspersed between the movements. Frederica von Stade sings Melisande's Song. Between the two, the singing doesn't get much better.



Michel Plasson and the Orchestre du Capitole de Toulouse play with Gallic lightness, elegant phrasing, and heart felt sentiment capturing the true essence of Faure's music.



The music on the 2nd CD is less interesting.



The sound is perhaps a bit old fashioned but not bad. With this recording it's the performances that count.

"

A master of French classical music

Eric S. Kim | Southern California | 03/25/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Not a lot of people in the world have an enthusiasm for French classical music, and I wonder why. Composers like Hector Berlioz, Maurice Durufle, and Claude Debussy are sometimes overlooked. Perhaps it's because people are accustomed to the epic sounds of Beethoven, R. Strauss, Stravinsky, Respighi, Vaughan Williams, Mussorgsky, and many others. I love these composers' works, but I do feel that some of the French composers aren't getting enough credit for their purely melodic music. Works like Symphonie Fantastique, La Mer, and The Sorcerer's Apprentice deserve the praise, but other pieces are described as underrated and should be much more popular than they are now. Now, if I were to bring up the name Gabriel Faure to a group of people instead of, say, Tchaikovsky or Chopin, they probably wouldn't know who I'm talking about. What a shame. Faure is one of those French composers who is continued to be overlooked by the general public. He was in fact a very influential composer due to his harmonic melodies. His Requiem and Pavane are his best known works.....or should I say his only known works. Well, luckily, this 2-CD set from EMI Classics will come in handy if you're willing to go deeper into Faure's works. It features both his short works and theatrical works. Pelleas et Melisande and Shylock are scores for theatrical plays; both of them feature different structures and genres, but they are equally delightful to listen to. The Masques et Bergamasques is a score for a "divertimento," and it includes the famous Pavane. It's also a delight to the ears, and I'm sure those who love French music will admire it after the first listening. The shorter works on the second CD are also something to look into. Ballade, Elegie, Berceuse, and Fantaisie feature a soloist (violin, piano, cello) and orchestra. They're less than fifteen minutes long, but they have a way of grabbing your attention and help you immerse yourself in the gentle orchestral sounds. Les Djinns and Caligula require a choir, as well as an orchestra. Both works are very enthralling. And finally, the Prelude to Faure's neglected opera called Penelope is really good. I have never heard the entire opera (recordings are rare), but I'm sure it's a great one.



Faure isn't as famous as Debussy, Saint-Saens, Berlioz, and even Dukas. I hope in the future, however, that Faure's works will grow increasingly popular, and that he will gain back his fame that he experienced back in the late 19th/early 20th century."