Echt Russian
Ralph Moore | Bishop's Stortford, UK | 10/04/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I have always loved this recording and fail to understand why some critics have been so sniffy about it. The sound has been cleaned up very attractively; the bathroom acoustic has been tamed and it is now far less boxy. It is a wholly authentic, energised performance featuring a great Russian cast, orchestra and conductor; the music fairly leaps out of the speakers and the performers understand perfectly the idiom required: nothing too refined or precious but earthy and abandoned. The cast is the best that could be assembled by the Bolshoi in the late 60's and that is really good: the stentorian Atlantov, ringing of voice, veteran singers Ivan Petrov and Artur Eisen reminding us what real Russian basses sound like, and Obratsova rising to poetic heights in Konchakovna's haunting cavatina. OK, Tugarinova has a touch of the steam-whistle about her voice but it's a true, powerful soprano. The chorus sing lustily and really bring their music alive. This set makes first rate entertainment of Borodin's sprawling, incomplete work and in a field not especially well served by recordings this version stands head and shoulders above the rest."
A Thrilling Prince Igor With Really Good Sound
V. Stasov | 03/29/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Mark Ermler was a great Russian conductor in the lineage of Golovanov, Melik-Pashaeyev, and Boris Khaikin, with whom he studied. His dramatic flair shines through in this exciting performance of Prince Igor, with some of the Bolshoi's most radiant stars. Artur Eisen, Ivan Petrov, Elena Obraztsova, Vladimir Atlantov, and Alexander Vedernikov were among the cream of the crop of the post-Stalin generation of singers. Their voices are all gorgeous, expressive and exceptional, exemplary representatives of the Soviet era in the 1960's.
This Melodiya release vastly improves on the sound heard on the Chant du Monde release of the same performance. Gone are the boxiness and echo - the singing and orchestra are clear and clean.
Vladimir Atlantov, the Russian answer to Mario Del Monaco, is more tasteful than usual in his singing. The duet with Elena Obraztsova is stunning; her voice is at its most beautiful throughout the recording. Act II, with its love duet and the Polovstian dances is the crown jewel of this performance.
If you're interested, there is a film of Prince Igor, available on Kultur DVD, with actors lip-synching some very fine singing. This is one of several admirable Soviet opera films. It is valuable for preserving Fokine's original choreography. Other interesting representatives of this genre are a marvelous Tsar's Bride, with fantastic singing, acting and cinematography, wonderfully conducted by Evgeny Svetlanov and Vishnevksaya in Shostakovich's Katerina Ismailova.
Mark Ermler's Eugen Onegin is available on DVD - a splendid performance with excellent singing. He died in 2002, the last in the line of brilliant Russian conductors."
