Search - Tchaikovsky :: Tchaikovsky: 1812 Overture with Chorus; Voyevoda; Sleeping Beauty; Moscow Cantata

Incredible!

Chris Johnson | 05/31/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Cutting to the chase, this is quite simply the best version of the 1812 Overture I have EVER heard. It's so good that this CD would be a steal if that was the only selection on it."

A Tchaikovsky potpourri with two rare items in spectacular

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 01/17/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Audiophiles in the mid-Nineties became keenly aware of Delos and its "Virtual Reality 2" sonics, among the clearest and most dynamic on the market, especially in surruond sound. This 1995 Tchaikovsky collection employs the inevitable 1812 Over. to loosen the listener's back fillings, but it also includes two rare works: the tone poem Voyevode and Moscow, a brief cantata for the coronation of Czar Alexander III. Tchaikovsky called the former a "symphonic ballad" because he based it on a dramatic Pushkin poem of love, betrayal, and revenge. It lasts 11 min., and typically, Tchaikovsky was insecure about the worth of the piece. He hated the premiere so much that he ripped up the conducting score on the spot. He wasn't entiely wrong.



Musically, Litton is too mild-manered for Tchaikovsky. The two familiar works, 1812 and a random election of excerpts from Sleeping Beauty, are slack and routine, despite the gorgeous sonics. Voyevode comes off better because one has barely heard it before. It is orchestrated and moves like prime Tchaikovsky, but the musical ideas themselves are second-rate. A lyrical love scene in the middle is the high point. Moscow is tossed-off music for a forgotten official occasion, but its choral parts are lovely and beautifully sung here by the Dallas Sym. chorus.



In all, my impression, as with other recordings form this source, is that Delos makes this recording worth owning for the luscious sound while litton takes half hte fun back with his underwhelming conducting. Four stars is being generous."

WOW

Richard J. Mudd | 05/07/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The 1812 Festival Overture With Chorus; The Sleeping Beauty; The Voyevoda Symphonic Ballad; and The Moscow Coronation Cantata With The Dallas Symphony Orchestra And The Dallas Symphony Chorus and Andrew Litton all on one CD -- WOW! What more can I say!"