Search - Stravinsky, Salonen, Philharmonia Orchestra :: Stravinsky - Petrushka · Orpheus / Salonen

Salonen and Stravinsky: Early Interactions

Grady Harp | Los Angeles, CA United States | 04/23/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"By this time Esa-Pekka Salonen is enjoying a reputation as one the finest conductors on the podium today of the works of Igor Stravinsky. His clarity of reading of inner voices, his sensitivity to color and rhythms so inherent in his own compositions, and his keen musicality serve him well in bringing a freshness to Stravinsky's now standard works.



Recorded in 1991 and 1992 with The London Philharmonia Orchestra, this CD reveals the earlier thoughts of Salonen about these two works. Naturally his current performances contain even more depth and polish, especially as he conducts his own fine Los Angeles Philharmonic, yet these performances still are some of the best available on recording. He finds all the interior motivations of the ballet 'Petrushka (1947 version)', and while some of the antics and plights of the characters may seem a bit subdued here, the story still is propelled by a strong arching look at the ballet score as a whole.



Salonen continues to bring new luster to the lesser-known works of Stravinsky, as he does here with the incandescent 'Orpheus' ballet. As the fine program notes included in this CD point out 'Orpheus represents a high point in Stravinsky's neo-classical period, classical models being evident not only in his choice of subject matter but also in the character of the music: consciously restrained, coolly austere in both form and musical language, and remote from Romantic emotionalism'. Salonen conducts a wholly transparent performance that is a model of restraint and superb playing form his various solo desks. Highly recommended. Grady Harp, April 06"

A spiky, humorless Petrushka, but a dynamic Orpheus

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 01/07/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The five stars go to Salonen's Orpheus, one of Stravinsky's coolest formalist ballets. He aimed at "white music" to match Balanchine's "white ballet" (i.e., a ballet without plot or dramatic episodes) and succeeded so well that Orpheus often sounds bleached and faceless, with long stretches of neo-classical muttering. Not under Salonen, though. His Orpheus doesn't need the visual support of dancers--it's alive from the inside, always moving, rhythmically quirky. The Philharmonia plays with lots of dynamic shading and is caught in an excellent recording, fairly close up.



Orpheus dates from 1947, the same year that Stravinsky revised Petrushka for copyright reasons, making it leaner but otherwise not significantly altering the music itself. Salonen's spiky reading is at times plodding and colorless. He offers some quick change-ups, vaguely reminiscent of his much better Le Sacre, yet at other times he lapses into slow, slack rhythms. At heart Salonen is a tough modernist, and perhaps Petrushka's Shrovetide merriment and melodrama just don't suit him. Anyway, it's a serviceable performance but no match for the superlative Orpheus. Three stars."