Search - Camille Saint-Saens, Seiji Ozawa, Orchestre National de France :: Saint-Saëns: Symphony No. 3 "Organ"; Phaeton; Le Rouet d'Omphale

Excellent Bargain

J. Buxton | Waltham, MA United States | 04/24/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is probably the best version of this symphony available for the price. It is a real bargain. Ozawa's natural feeling for the French composers is evident, particularly in the second movement adagio. It is a warm performance, but also full of drive and excitement. The impact of the organ entrance in the final movement is undeniable, and the final chord at the end lingers and reverberates for several seconds. The Penguin Guide claims this recording is in the "demonstration class", but I don't really agree. The sound is a bit recessed in the first three movements and I actually found myself having to turn up the volume a few time to hear some detail. The clarity of the recording is good, but not in the demonstration class. On this point, compare to Levine's excellent recording with the BPO on the DG label or the Dutoit/Montreal recording for Decca. The Levine in particular is a spectacular recording and performance fully worthy of being a "demonstration" disc. Along with Levine and Dutoit I would also recommend the Paray version on Mercury and the all time classic recording (in my view), the Munch/Boston Symphony recording on RCA from the 1950's which really trumps them all. Having said all that, if you are looking for a bargain version, this one is a fine choice. The two symphonic poems are well done."

Heroic

M. Friedman | New York Area | 01/27/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Camille Saint Saens emerged as a composer of note at a time when French music was sadly short of musical heroes. The great age of Lully, Couperin and Rameau was over, and the days of Debussy, Ravel, Satie and others was yet to come.Saint Saens' music had a profound impact on the generation that followed, creating an appetite for French composers in France, and demonstrating that a Frenchman could write substantial orchetral music to stand alongside the great German Romantic composers. Ironically, however, Saint Saens' compositional approach sounds quite German to my ears.Nevertheless, the Organ Symphony is a French idiom -- the other great composer of the form was Charles-Marie Widor -- and the combination of German-style orchestration in a fundamentally French context results in some great music. Moreover, this music is considerably more tuneful [though not necessarilly BETTER] than what most of Saint Saens' German counterparts were doing at the time.The sound quality of this disc is first-rate and the performance is suitably heroic -- Saint Saens was, after all, France's premier 19th century musical hero. My only complaint is that, in his portrayal of the composer's verve and elan, Ozawa seems to have misplaced some of the subtleties in Le Rouet D'Omphale.Despite that sligtht impefection [and it is slight], it's a marvellous disc."