Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 2 and Other Orchestral Works

On this CD:

1. Symphony No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 17 "Little Russian", Op.17
Composed by Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky
Performed by London Symphony Orchestra
Conducted by Geoffrey Simon

2. Serenade (for Nikolai Rubinstein's name-day), for small orchestra in D major
Composed by Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky
Performed by London Symphony Orchestra
Conducted by Geoffrey Simon

3. Mazeppa, opera The Battle Of Poltava
Composed by Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky
Performed by London Symphony Orchestra
Conducted by Geoffrey Simon

4. Mazeppa, opera Cossack Dance
Composed by Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky
Performed by London Symphony Orchestra
Conducted by Geoffrey Simon

5. Festival Overture on the Danish National Hymn, for orchestra in D major, Op. 15
Composed by Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky
Performed by London Symphony Orchestra
Conducted by Geoffrey Simon

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
This is a disc for Tchaikovsky specialists. Geoffrey Simon performs the original, unrevised version of the Second Symphony, which is very different in the first movement, less so elsewhere. There's little doubt that the composer's final thoughts were the best, particularly as regards the finale, but as a change of pace for the Tchaikovsky lover, this disc (and its interesting couplings) can be recommended. --David Hurwitz

Tracks:

A Night On Bare Mountain
Entr'Acte To Act IV Of Khovanshchina
Symphonic Synthesis Of Boris Godunov
Promenade
Gnomus
Promenade
Il Vecchio Castello
Bydlo
Promenade
Ballet De Poussins Dans Leurs Coques
Samuel Goldberg And Schmuyle
Catacombs - Sepulchrum Romanum; Con Mortuis In Lingua Mortua
La Cabane Sur Des Pattes De Poule
La Grande Porte De Kiev
Solitude, Op.73, No.6
Humoresque, Op.10, No.2
Traditional Slavic Christmas Music

Customer Reviews:

FOR A HIGH CHOLESTEROL ORCHESTRAL DIET.......2006-11-17

Comparing the arrangements of Pictures at an Exhibition by Ravel and Stokowski is a fascinating exercise. They both seem so characteristic of the two arrangers. The cool French aesthete (though with his own hidden daemons just like Mussorgsky) paints with precision but with impressionist or even post-impressionist hues. Here is Monet, Cezanne or, in the bolder pieces, even van Gogh. The Londoner who liked to assume the persona of some sort of Slavic shaman/maestro is given to bolder, brasher colours - Kandinsky perhaps? Both are masters of the orchestra. Both remain true to the essentially Russian spirit of Mussorgsky - perhaps even more so in the case of Stokowski. Which perhaps explains why he developed the bizarre suspicion that the two 'French' pieces in the Suite - Tuileries and the Limoges Marketplace - were by Rimsky Korsakov and therefore left them out altogether. Maybe it was because Ravel had, naturally, succeeded in making them sound so French in his earlier version. For the rest, Stokowski is more than up for the grotesqueries of the Gnome, the deep Russian darkness of the catacombs, the wildness of Baba Yaga and the splendours of the Great Gate. But it is Ravel who gets closer to the heart of the old castle and Bydlo.

As for the performance, Serebrier was the Sorcerer's Apprentice, having been Stoky's assistant for some years, and he elicits truly Stokowskian sounds from the Bournemouth Symphony whose strings almost (but not quite) approach the velvety richness of the Master's Philadelphians.

The rest of their programme is equally rich fare. The orchestration of Night on the Bare Mountain, made famous in Disney's Fantasia, seems to me far superior to Rimsky Korsakov's and (un-PC though it is to say it) even to Mussorgksy's own. Serebrier rightly brings out the OTT string glissandi and biting brass. The Symphonic Synthesis of Boris is a cousin to the similar syntheses Stokowski made from Tristan and Parsifal and, like them, provides a rewarding distillation of the opera's music in purely orchestral garb. Here, Stoky seems to stay closer to Mussorgsky's original sound than Rimsky or Shostakovich. The disc ends with a trio of Beechamesque lollipops, all predictably gorgeous, especially Stokowski's own Traditional Slavic Christmas Music where his youthful experience as an organist seems to come through in the tiered orchestration.

Maybe this disc will not tax the listener's intellect overmuch, but it will provide him with enormous dollops of orchestral pleasure. And at a budget price.

Not much Stokowski there........2005-12-28

Compare to Stokowski's own interpretation, I just wonder how Serebrier change these intense transcriptions into dull, flat, and boring experience. His speed is so mechanical, and wash a lot of drama out of the work. If you don't want to be Stokowski, fine, but remember this is Mussorgsky, not Bach-Stokowski.

Although no one can be like Stokowski himself, Bamert still trying hard to sound like Stokowski in these transcriptions. Serebrier, on the other hand, trying to offer his own view. Pitifully, he falls far behind Stokowski.

One good thing about this recording is its wonderful sound. Rozhdestvensky did show us how harsh sound can ruin Stokowski's Pictures at an Exhibition. The good sound quality here makes the Pictures at an Exhibition still a valuable viewpoint. Ironically , it is the superb recording reveal how flat the interpretaions of Boris Godunov, A Night on Bare Mountain, and Entr'acte to ActIV of Khovanshchina are.

If you don't have Stokowski's own interpretion on your collection, I would like to stop you from buying this recording because of lack of the Stoki's excitement here. If you looking for a Stoki-like modern recording of Mussorgsky-Stokowski, I would recommend Bamert on Chandos over this. However, if you already have Stoki's own interpretion, Serebrier can still offer a different viewpoint of these transcriptions.

Some additional information..
A similiar viewpoint of Stokowski's Mussorgsky can also be found in Oliver Knussen's interpretation. The DG issue with a better orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, and probabily better sound effect, too. The sound there is more tense.

A Naxos Triumph!.......2005-10-25

For half the price of at least two competing labels that I know of, you can have this recording of Stokowski's most beloved transciptions. I bought this release mainly for the "Symphonic Synthesis" which Stokowski created to bring more popularity to the massive complete opera. You get 24 minutes of shimmering sound, competing with anything in the symphonic genre. In fact everything sounds great on this disc. Meastro Serebrier,(a protege and life long friend of Stokowski) the Bournemouth Symphony, and the engineers are all in top form and dedicated. It is interesting to compare the differences of the Stokowski arrangements. He comes off more horrific than Rimsky-Korsakov on "Night on Bare Mountain", just have a listen to those exagerated screeches of brass. In "Pictures" Stokowski in his own words stated he wanted to take Ravels French out of the work and give it a more Russian feel. Balance, tempo, and detail in specific passages of each picture may or may not achieve this. I do think his version is more spacious overall, and less congested in the concluding "Great Gate of Kiev". Stokowski eliminates two annoying pictures stating he didn't think the composer wrote them in the score anyway! Recall that Rimsky-Korsakov's original piano version included them. Were they genuine? Three miniature bonus works are included. Most interesting is the Stokowski composition "Tradional Slavic Christmas Music" based on Slavic themes, is brief leaving one wanting for more.

Leopold, Leopold, Leopold.......2005-10-20

One of my favorite episodes of BUGS BUNNY (perhaps my only favorite, I was never a big LOONEY TOONS fan) has Bugs getting in trouble while singing the song "April Showers" in the presence of an opera star. The man finds the rabbit annoying, and Bugs being Bugs decides to get the best of him. On an evening when the buffoon is singing, Bugs dons a wig that resembles the hair style of a great conductor, a caricature of Leopold Stokowski. As soon as Bugs enters the area everyone is all a buzz because Leopold has arrived. Bugs grabs the baton and begins conducting. I was probably twelve or thirteen at the time, and I felt rather sophisticated because I knew who Leopold was other than one of the husbands of Gloria Vanderbilt.

Stokowski was one of the most famous conductors of his day, and he was a well known musical arranger as well. His day was a time when symphony orchestras had regular arrangers who transcribed famous keyboard pieces for orchestra. They somewhat fell out of fashion in the 1970's but today there seems to be a renewed interest in some of transcriptions, recognizing the contributions of the musical arrangers. This release by Naxos has some of Stokowski's arrangements of some of Mussorgsky's music as well as a few pieces by Tchaikovsky and an arrangement of Slavic Christmas music.

Overall, this is an interesting disc. The arrangement of "Night on Bald Mountain" is not as fulsome as the more familiar Rimsky-Korsakov orchestration, but the differences in the two do illustrate the interesting tidbits on the score. The same can be said for his orchestration of "Pictures at an Exhibition." The Ravel orchestration, today's performance standard, has more power, and perhaps because of its familiarity more of an appeal, but some of Stokowski's arrangements have a smoother sound which seems to be in keeping with an art gallery exhibit. His orchestral arrangement of music from BORIS GODUNOV plays like a symphonic poem and does capture the mood of the work.

Listeners will find this recording both interesting, enjoyable, and since the "Bald Mountain" arrangement is the same as the arrangement used in FANTASIA, perhaps a bit nostalgic. It will also give people a new appreciation of Mussorgsky as a composer. Maybe Naxos can release another Stokowski transcription disc with his arrangements of Bach's music.

Extraordinary recording by the Bournemouth Symphony and José Serebrier.......2005-08-28

This is one of the most extraordinary recordings of the decade, as announced by Felipe Marsans in his review in Diario Las Americas. The sound of this demonstration recording is spectacular! The performances are extraordinary, inspired,
magnificent from the opening track (Night on Bold Mountain) to the unexpected final track: an "original" work by Leopold Stokowski, based on a known ancient Christmas tune. The little Tchaikovsky item is something to make the listener cry, as is the Entre'Acte from Mussorgsky's opera Khovantchina. The Boris
is a masterpiece, and the performance is incredible in every sense. The Stokowski orchestration of Pictures at an Exhibition, quite different from Ravel's and more Russian and tru to the original, will blow you off the room. I can't wait for the multy-channel versions to be released, on SACD and DVD Audio.
Extraordinary!
Stephen Bradbury
Oxford, UK

Average customer rating:

The Best of the Classical Masterpieces

Manufacturer: Madacy Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 2 and Other Orchestral Works

Average customer rating:

Tchaikovsky's Other Symphony

Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 2 and Other Orchestral Works

Manufacturer: Chandos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000000ASF
Release Date: 1994-07-26

Tracks:

Symphony No.2 In C Minor, Op.17 'Little Russian': l. Andante sostenuto - Allegro comodo - Andante sostenuto
Symphony No.2 In C Minor, Op.17 'Little Russian': ll. Andantino marziale, quasi moderato
Symphony No.2 In C Minor, Op.17 'Little Russian': lll. Scherzo And Trio. Allegro molto vivace
Symphony No.2 In C Minor, Op.17 'Little Russian': lV. Finale. Moderato assai - Allegro vivo - Presto
Serenade For Nikolai Rubinstein's Saint's Day
Mazeppa: The Battle Of Poltava
Mazeppa: Cossack Dance
Festival Overture On The Danish National Anthem Op.15

Amazon.com

This is a disc for Tchaikovsky specialists. Geoffrey Simon performs the original, unrevised version of the Second Symphony, which is very different in the first movement, less so elsewhere. There's little doubt that the composer's final thoughts were the best, particularly as regards the finale, but as a change of pace for the Tchaikovsky lover, this disc (and its interesting couplings) can be recommended. --David Hurwitz

Customer Reviews:

Tchaikovsky's Other Symphony.......2006-04-29

This is not Tchaikovsky's Second Symphony as many prefer, but that is hardly grounds for dismissal of this forceful and brass-filled first take by the Russian master of the Romantic Symphony.

This earlier 1872 version is missing one of the secondary themes in the first movement and has more repetition in the finales of the 1st and 4th movements. (The 2nd and 3rd movements are mostly unaltered.)

The surprising benefit is that the lesser amount of musical material leads to strength of focus in how Tchaikovsky reuses the ideas he already has. Repetition is at the heart of this work (both versions) and seldom does Tchaikovsky use it to greater effect.

The recording itself is of good, clear sound quality. Geoffrey Simon and the London Symphony seem to put forth their best efforts.

Give this a listen, especially if you enjoy great Russian Romantic-era music with lots of pizzaz and bombast.