Search - Sergey Prokofiev, Michael Tilson Thomas, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra :: Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet

Fantastic

Prescott Cunningham Moore | 08/04/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Michael Tilson Thomas is truly one of the great living conductors. The things he has been doing with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra for a decade now have been wonderful. This is one of the conductor's earliest collaborations with RCA Victor in selections from Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. Although other reviews have summed up most of my feelings on this CD, I do just want to emphasize MTT's musical vision in creating his own suite. The performance is incisive, dramatic, forceful, and thoroughly pleasing. As always, the SFSO plays with totally conviction and total faith in their music director. As one of the leading Russian experts of today, MTT has created here a fantastic disc."

Reissue of a much-praised MTT debut

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 06/26/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"At 78 min., this is much more generous than other collections that pair Prokofiev's two Suites from Romeo and Juliet. The angry reviewer below is mistaken to accuse Tilson Thomas of composing any transitions of his own devising--he only placed portions of the ballet in dramatic sequence (Prokofiev's suites are in no particular order). This was MTT's first recording with RCA as music director in San Francisco, and when it was released in 1996, the U.S. reviews were rapturous.



Not so the British. The Gramophone grumbled about 'slick efficiency' and 'stickiness.' I think that's not true. The only problems that keep this recording from the highest rank, as far as my ears tell me, are first, the recorded sound. Though wide-ranging and dynamic, the original release tended to be coarse and thuddy (I don't own the reissue at mid-price, but perhaps something has been done to correct this).



The second and more important reservation isn't MTT's fault. Great conductors have already preceded him. Ancerl, Mravinsky, and Mitropoulos are among the old maestros who made outstanding versions of excerpts from the ballet. Among moderns we have had sonic blockbusters from Salonen and Abbado, both of whom dig into the score as MTT does not, and both of whom benefit from the astounding viruosity of the Berlin Phil. As for the complete ballet, versions by Lorin Maazel with the Cleveland Orch. on Decca and Gergiev with the Kirov Orch. on Philips stand out. MTT has a lighter touch than all of the above, which isn't necessarily a bad thing--his avoidance of shmaltz is admirable to me.



In fact, there are stretches here that sound just as good as the best. I can see why other listeners give this recording five stars; in light of so many great ones, I settled for four."

The best available version of this music, hands down.

Miles D. Moore | Alexandria, VA USA | 05/19/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"When Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony released their version of Prokofiev's "Romeo and Juliet" a decade ago, critics hailed it as the gold standard among all recorded versions of this music. Even now, there seems no reason to revise that opinion. Choosing from among several available suites prepared by Prokofiev himself, Tilson Thomas shaped a version that is both dramatically and musically complete. He and his orchestra do full justice to the bittersweet lyricism and astonishing emotional range of Prokofiev's music. Especially at its mid-range price, this CD is a must for anyone who loves Prokofiev."