Search - Haydn, Jeffrey Tate, English Chamber Orchestra :: Haydn: Symphonies 99 & 101 "Clock"

Excellent Haydn with a small band

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 06/05/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The talented Jeffrey Tate has onducted extensively n the U.S. without making much of an impact, his usual place being the opera pit. He was also an expert keyboard player at the outset of his career and has a good feeling for the classical style. All his virtues shine thourgh in the set of Haydn's London symphonies that he made for EMI. Now divided into groups of two or three on budget lines, Tate's versions keep pace with the best from Colin Davis, Daniel Barenboim (he's lighter and feer than either), and Neville Marriner.



The English Chamber Orchestra is certainly the equal of Marriner's Academy of St. Martin in the Fields. Their playing is alert and lively; the woodwinds are also nicely highlighted. In both Sym. 88 and 101 Tate's tempos are moderate. He traffics in no period performance oddities, despite the smaller number of musicians. This is essentially the style of Beecham's Haydn but taken down to scale and sped up just a notch. As such, it is very good of its kind, much to be preferred to the leaden efforts of Jochum on DG, so often recommended by Brit crits. (This CD, along with ost of the other London symphonies from Tate, are sold very cheaply here on Amazon Marketplace.)"