Search - Emile Waldteufel, Alfred Walter :: Waldteufel: Famous Waltzes

EXCELLENT PERFORMANCES AT BUDGET PRICE

Gary | 07/19/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Until now, Waldteufel's music has been largely understated, probably because it is not considered serious music and also that there's no one to keep alive the tradition of performing his music (which is probably also due to the first reason) as the Vienna Philharmonic have been doing with Johann Strauss' waltzes. This recording by the Slovak State Philharmonic (Kosice), with Alfred Walter conducting, brings together some of the most popular of Waldteufel's compositions, the most famous being the "Skater's Waltz"; the tempo, on the whole, is well paced, however I prefer Anton Paulik's rendition with the Vienna State Opera Orchestra on the Vanguard label. Two other well know pieces are on here, Estudiantina and the Espana Waltz (after Chabrier). For a relatively, young orchestra, the Kosice play extremely well. And Alfred Walter has the appropriate skills to bring out the right rhythm. What's more exciting (a little mysterious, even) about this recording is that every track on this CD is directly transferred from Marco Polo's Waldteufel series. But this CD costs half as much as the ones under the name, Marco Polo; I know that Naxos and Marco Polo are affiliated, but that still doesn't help me explain the price difference. Hence, this should be an extra incentive for you to go and get this CD!"