Bluebeard¿s Castle op. 11: Opera in One Act

Editorial Reviews
Gramophone, March 2003
"…the perception and idiomatic accent of this performance are enough to place it in the front rank…"

Album Description
Question: Which two works came to fruition in 1911 (one written, the other premiered), were among.their respective composer's most personal compositions, involve landscape tone- a man and woman singing of love and loss and end with the single repeated word 'ewig...ewig'? OK, I'm bending the rules a little by quoting the German translation of one of the works but, still, it was a useful exercise listening to Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde and Bartók's Bluebeard's Castle in quick succession. The parallels certainly stand and rarely more so than on this thoughtfully moulded performance under Peter Eötvös, for my money one of today's leading Bartók interpreters.

This is very much a 'theatre of the mind' kind of performance… Cornelia Kallisch… more than compensates with a credible humanness and growing sense of horror, Listen to her gut-wrenching cry as Bluebeard, masterfully portrayed here by Peter Fried, opens the door to his torture chamber (Ludwig sounds quite inhibited by comparison), or to the elation she conveys when the fifth door reveals Bluebeard's 'spacious kingdom'; Suddenly, the concept 'opera' vanishes and you're standing alongside her,.awe-struck and intimidated.

Most operas rely on the musical properties of language but Bluebeard is built on them: another aspect of this performance worth singling out is the way Eötvös' phrasing is always attentive to the speech-like inflections of Bartók 's writing. He delves among the orchestra's inner voices - the middle and lower strings come off especially well- and saves his biggest gestures for the score's grandest moments, the Fifth Door and Judith's eventual incarceration being the most obvious testing points.

Tracks:

Overture To 'Tannhauser'
Domna, Pos Vos Ay Chausida
We Don't Merely Use Instruments, We Play On Them. And They Play On Us.
Hungarian Dance No.7
The Violin Is One Of The Most Tender And Beautiful Instruments Ever Invented.
Violin Concerto In D Major (Adagio)
But For A Long Time It Was Seen As The Instrument Of The Devil.
The Soldier's Tale: Triumphal March Of The Devil
The Manipulative Seductiveness Of The Gypsy Violin.
Csardas Music
The Violin And The Initiation Of Nature
The Four Seasons (Spring, Mvt 1)
Birds Are Again Evoked In The Second Concerto, Especially Music's Natural Favourite.
The Four Seasons (Summer, Mvt 1)
Like The Devil, The Violin Is A Master Of Disguise.
Old Viennese Dance No.3 'Schon Rosmarin'
The Menacing Sensuality Of Ravel's Tzigane: A Very Different Side Of The Violin:
Tzigane
Do We Now Have The True Measure Of This Instrument? Not Just Yet.
Caprice No.24
The Many Effects Of The String Tremolando: Brandenburg Concerto No.4 (Last Mvt)/From Joy To Fright/Quartettsatz In C Minor/The String Tremolo Practically Spells The World Agitato.
Variations On A Theme Of Frank Bridge (No.7)
Prokofiev's Tremolo In Romeo And Juliet Should Not Be Heard Just Before Bedtime.
Romeo And Juliet: Act IV
Vivaldi Use It To Illustrate The Shivering Of Travellers Crossing The Ice.
The Four Seasons (Winter, Mvt 1)
The Violin Muted
Clair De Lune
The Gentleness Of Muted Strings Persists Even When A Whole Orchestra Plays.
Piano Concerto No.21 In C Major, K.467 (Slow Mvt)
The Pizzicato Violin
Pizzicato Polka
In Prokofiev's Second Violin Concerto, The Accompaniment Is Pizzicato.
Violin Concerto No.2 In G Minor (Slow Mvt)
Varieties Of Pizzicato: Colas Breugnon (The People's Feast)/Now A Drier, Leaner, Hungrier Pizzicato. There's Not A Lot Of Comfort Here./Capriol Suite (Tordion)/The Use Of Pizzicato As 'Percussion'/Romeo And Juliet (Act I)/Mahler Used Pizzicato...
The Planets (Mars - The Bringer Of War)
The Technique Of Double-Stopping Enables The Violin To Play Duets With Itself./Sonata No.3 In C Major For Unaccompanied Violin (Fugue)/Now A Later Example Of The Same Technique
Hungarian Dance No.4
Double-Stopping Is A Standard Feature Of A Lot Of Folk Music.
The Four Seasons (Autumn, Mvt 1)
Now The Same Technique, But The Sound Might Have Come From Another World.
Bolero
Double-Stopping Can Only Approximate The Sound Of A Real Violin Duet.
Cadenza To The Violin Concerto By Brahms
Now Compare That With A Real Violin Duet.
Forty-Four Duos (No. 1: Teasing Song)
Another Duo By Bartok, Demonstrating The Violin's Rich Lower Register
Forty-Four Duos (No.2: Maypole Dance)
And Now What May Be The Most Beautiful Accompanied Violin Duet In History
Concerto In D Minor For Two Violins (Largo)
The Soul Of The Violin Is In Song; But What About This Weird Passage?
Violin Concerto No.1 In D Major (Mvt 2)
The Use Of Harmonies In The Orchestra Can Be Both Magical And Unsettling.
Symphony No.1 'Titan' (Mvt 1, Opening)
Tchaikovsky's Use Of Harmonics In The Sleeping Beauty Is Both Strange And Darling.
The Sleeping Beauty (Act II, No.15: Entr'Acte)
Ravel's Harmonics In Mother Goose Effect A Magical Transformation.
Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Beauty And The Beast)
Stravinsky's Harmonics In The Firebird Transport Us Almost Into Another World./The Firebird (Introduction)
The Natural Upper Notes Of The Violins Have A Unique Emotional 'Grab'.
Also Sprach Zarathustra (Of The Afterworldsmen)
Still In Their Upper Register, The Violins Unleash The Energy Of A Young Colt.
Variations On A Theme Of Frank Bridge (No. 4)
Elsewhere, Britten Uses The Same High Register To Create A Very Different Mood.
Four Sea Interludes (Dawn) From 'Peter Grimes'
To End This Outing With The Violins, A Charming Little Elfin Dance
Elfenreigen

Tracks:

Introduction To The Viola
Viola Concerto (Mvt 1)
Khatchaturian Gets A Very Different Sound From It: Fuller, Fruitier, More Exotic.
Gayane Suite No.1 (Armen's Solo)
Very Nearly The Whole Of The Violin's Upper Register Is Also Available To The Viola.
Passacaglia, Op.33b From 'Peter Grimes'
The Viola Can Bring A Special, Rich Twanginess To Pizzicato That The Violins Lack./Don Quixote/Berlioz Drew Sounds From It That Retain Their Metallic Strangeness Even Today.
Harold In Italy (Mvt 4)
The Muted Viola: Intimate, Gentle, Poignant In Dvork
Cypresses (No.9)
The Massed Violas Of The Modern Symphony Orchestra In Mahler
Symphony No.4 (Mvt 3)
The 'Period' Viola In Bach
Brandenburg Concerto No.6 (Last Mvt)
The Cello: A Voice Of Unique Nobility
Suite No.1 For Unaccompanied Cello (Prelude)
Brahms And The 'Soul' Of The Cello
Piano Concerto No.2 In B Flat Major (Mvt 3)
Most Orchestral Composers Tend To Emphasize The Cello's Lower Register.
Cantata 'Herz Und Mund Und Tat Und Leben', BWV 147 (Soprana Aria: Bereite Dir, Jesu)
In The Time Of Beethoven The Cello Remained As Fundamental As Ever.
Symphony No.3 'Eroica' (Finale)
But The Cello Is Not Condemned To Spend Its Life In The Basement.
Elfentanz, Op.39
Not Only In Recital Showpieces Like That Is The Cello Is Used In Its Highest Register.
The Protecting Veil (Opening)
A Cello With An Identity-Crisis: The Pizzicato Flamencan
Flamenco
Double-Stopping In The Lower Reaches Of The Cello's Range
Solo Suiet For Cello And Piano (Sardana)
It's In The Middle Register That The Cello Really Comes Into Its Own.
Oriental Dance, Op.2 No.2
It Was To The Cellos That Beethoven Gave Two Of His Most Famous Themes./Symphony No.5 (Mvt 2)/Still More Famous Than That Theme Is This One From The Ninth Symphony.
Symphony No.9 (Finale)
Introduction To The Double-Bass
The Carnival Of The Animals (The Elephant)
But The Double-Bass Can Be Intensely Expressive And Graceful.
Elegy No.1 In D Major
The Range Of The Double-Bass Is The Greatest Of All The String Instruments/Allegro Di Concerto, 'Alla Mendelssohn'/And It's Also Capable Of Very Considerable Virtuosity.
Capriccio Di Bravura
Double-Bass Solos In Orchestral Scores Are Rare But Often Memorable./Symphony No.1 'Titan' (Mvt 3)/In His Third Symphony Mahler Makes A Very Different Use Of The Instrument./Symphony No.3 (Mvt 1)
The Double-Bass Muted In Prokofiev/Lieutenant Kije Suite (Kije's Wedding)/In Another Work Prokofiev Uses The Double-Bass To Enhance The Winds./Romeo And Juliet (Act III)/And He Combines The Bass Clarinet With A Shivering Tremolo From The Double-Basses....
Symphony No.5 (Mvt 3)/So Much For The Strings/On Now To The Winds

Tracks:

The Antiquity And Magic Of The Flute
Prelude A L'Apres-Midi D'Un Faune
The Versatility And Agility Of The Flute
Orchestral Suite No.2 In B Minor (Badinerie)
The Flute In Fifteenth-Century Spain
Sa'Dawi
Other Flutes: The Bass And Alto
Chamber Music No.II
The Piccolo - Aptly Named
La Naissance D'Osiris (Mvt 6)
From A Piccolo Of The Eighteenth Century To One Of Its Descendants In The Twentieth
Suite No.1 For Small Orchestra (Valse)
A Variety Of Techniques
Chamber Music No.II
Flutter-Tonguing. But Tchaikovsky Got There Eighty Years Before.
The Nutcracker (Act II, No.2: Scene)
From The Transverse To The Vertical: The Baroque Recorder
Recorded Suite In A Minor (Menuet II)
An Unfamiliar, Early Vision Of The Instrument
Naelden, Naelden
The Bachian Oboe
Cantata 'Ein Feste Burg Ist Unser Gott', BWV 80 (No.7: Duetto)
Introduction To The Cor Anglais Or 'English Born'
Symphony No.9 'From The New World' (Mvt 2)
The Loneliness Of The Cor Anglais
The Swan Of Tuonela
The Cor Anglais Joins The French Horn In Haydn.
Symphony No.22 'The Philosopher' (Opening)
Introduction To The Oboe D'Amore, Beloved Of Bach - But Also Of Ravel
Bolero
The Clarinet Family: Boxing The Compass, From The Depths Of The Bass Clarinet.../The Egyptian (Violence)/...To The Raucous And Squealy.../Taras Bulba (The Death Of Ostap)/...To The Shrill And Complaining...
Petrushka (No.8: Peasant With Bear)/...To The High Sprits Of A Playful Puppy./Symphonie Fantastique (Last Mvt)/And To The Downright Jazzy/Romeo And Juliet (Act II)
As The High Clarinets Tend To Be Loud, So The Bass Tends To Be Soft:
Gayane Suite No. 1 (Mvt 5)
The Bass Clarinet Is Used By Most Composers Mainly As A Colouring Agent.../Petrushka (No.4: The Blackamoor)/...But It Does Occasionally Get A Whole Tune To Itself./Iberia (Almeria).
The Range Of The Normal Clarinet Parts Goes Quite High...
The Snow Maiden (Scene 5: Melodrama)
...And Quite Low.
Peter And The Wolf (The Cat)
The Clarinet As Concerto Soloist
Clarinet Concerto In A Major (Rondo)
But That's Not The Instrument Mozart Wrote It For; This Is:
Clarinet Concerto In A Major (Rondo)
Introduction To The Saxophone
Hary Janos Suite (Mvt 4)
The Soprano Saxophone Has Quite A Different Feel To It.
L'Arlesienne Suite No.1 (Minuet)
The Little Sopranino Sax Goes Even Higher.
Bolero
The Most Famous Use Of The Saxophone Is In An Orchestration By Ravel.
Pictures At An Exhibition (The Old Castle)
The Saxophone Can Be Quite Contagiously Good-Humoured.
Sax-O-Phun
The Puffa-Puffa Image Of The Bassoon
Peter And The Wolf (Grandfather)
The Bachian Bassoon, In Accompanimental Mode
Cantata 'Weichet Nur, Betrubte Schatten' ('Wedding Cantata'), BWV 202 (Aria No.1)
Bizet Leaves The Puffa-Puffa Image Out, Allowing The Bassoon To Sing./Carmen Suite No.1 (Les Dragons D'Alcala)
And Ravel, Also In Spanish Mode, Does Likewise.
Bolero
The Bassoon As A Voice Of High Seriousness, Indeed Desolate Loneliness
Symphony No.3 (Opening)
The Eerie Bassoon In Its Highest Register
The Rite Of Spring (Opening)
Stravinsky Now Draws On Its Lowest Register, Lonely And Melancholy.
The Firebird Suite (1919, Berceuse)
The Bassoon As Concerto Soloist, Avoiding All Exaggeration
Bassoon Concerto In G Minor (Finale)
The Deep-Voiced Contra-Bassoon, As A Fairy-Tale Beast
Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Beauty And The Beast)
The French Horn Under Its Woodwind Hat
Wind Quintet, Op.43 (Last Mvt)
Now A More Prominent Role, In A Woodwind Quintet From An Earlier Era
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Op.100 No.5 (Mvt 2)
The Horn In Harmonious Blend With Strings In Another Quintet
Horn Quintet, K.407 (Finale)

Tracks:

The Trumpet As Virtuoso Soloist
Brandenburg Concerto No.2 (Last Mvt)
The Special Brillance Of Paired Trumpets
Concerto In C For Two Trumpets, RV537 (Mvt 1)
The Ceremonial Trumpet
Fanfare For The Common Man
Trumpets And Drums - An Incomparable Alliance
Messiah (The Trumpet Shall Sound)
The Versatility Of The Trumpet, From The Most Public To The Most Lonely
Piano Concerto In F (Slow Mvt)
The Trumpet As The Voice Of The City/An American In Paris/The Trumpet As Recruitment Officer/The Soldier's Tale (The March)/The Trumpet As Swaggerer
Carmen Suite No.2 (Habanera)
The Trumpet As The Voice Of Strength And Courage
Carmet Suite No.2 (Toreador's Song)
The Trumpet Muted/Petrushka (No.4: The Blackamoor)/Lieutenant Kije Suite (Opening)/The Trumpet As The Voice Of Weariness
Billy The Kid
The Trumpet As Character Actor
Pictures At An Exhibition (No.6)
The Trumpet As The Voice Of God
Mass In B Minor ('Et Exspecto')
The Birth Of The Trombone
Aenmerckt Nu Hier
The Birth Of The Brass As A Family
Canzon 12 In Double Echo
The Trombone In The Eighteenth Century
Trombone Concerto In B Flat Major (Finale)
The Tone Of The Tenor Trombone/Romance For Trombone And Organ/The Memorable Voice Of The Bass Trombone/Requiem (Mvt 2)/But The Bass Trombone Is More Than An Instrumental Bullfrog.
Hosannah
The Trombones Become Part Of The Orchestra.
Symphony No.5 (Finale)
The Wagnerian Trombone:/Overture To 'Tannhauser'
The Trombone As Caricaturist
Pulcinella (No.19: Vivo)
The Trombone As Raspberry/Concerto For Orchestra (Intermezzo)
The Horn And The Hunt
Horn Concerto No.4 In E Flat, K.495 (Finale)
The Challenging Horn Of The Baroque
Abaris Ou Les Boreades (Menuet)
The Scarcity Of First-Rate Players In Handel's Time
Walter Music (Minuet 1)
The Horn As Magician/The Firebird Suite (1919, Finale)
Horns And The Sound Of Nobility
Overture To 'Tannhauser' (Opening)
The Special Sound Of The Horn In Its Higher Register
Mass In B Minor ('Quoniam Tu Solus Sanctus')
The Trumpet-Like Sound Of Massed Horns
Symphony No.3 (Mvt 1, Opening)
The Tuba - Unfairly Maligned?
Symphony No.6 (Mvt 3)
The Tuba Perfectly Cast By Ravel
Pictures At An Exhibition (Bydlo)

Tracks:

Introduction. And We Begin With A Bang.
Fanfare For The Common Man/The Bass Drum On The Battlefields/Wellington's Victory, Op.91 (Opening)
At The Opposite Extreme Is The Triangle.
Piano Concerto No.1 In E Flat (Scherzo)
Categories Of Percussion: Tuned And Untuned. The Side Drum
Overture To 'La Gazza Ladra' - The Thieving Magpie (Opening)
The Side Drum In An Effective But Unexpected Role/Clarinet Concerto (Mvt 1)
The Tambourine. One Of The Oldest Instruments In The World
Den Hoboecken Dans
Even Older Is The Originally Oriental Gong.
Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Laideronette)
No Single Instrument Can Match The Gong In Evoking The Breaking Of Waves./Passacaglia, Op.33b From 'Peter Grimes'/But Gongs Don't Have To Be Struck To Be Effective.
Gymnopedie No.2
The Cymbals Are Generally Discovered Early In Life./The Sanguine Fan/And They Do More Than Clash Together Loudly. They Can Be Clashed Together Softly./Studio Example: But They Needn't Be Clashed Together At All/Studio Example: They Can Be Lightly...
Other Untuned Percussion Instruments Include The Whip.: Piano Concerto In G Major (Opening)/And Here Are No Fewer Than Twenty, Cracked By Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker (Act I, Scene 5)
More Versatile Than The Whip Are The Wood Blocks.../Studio Example/...Which Crop Up All Over The Place In Twentieth-Century American Music.
Rodeo (Hoe-Down)
Related To The Wood Blocks, By Sound, Are The Castanets./Jota Aragonesa/But The Castanets Were Also Used By Monteverdi Back In The Seventeenth Century.
Scherzi Musicali (Damigella Tutta Belle)
A Still Earlier Example From Fifteenth-Century Spain
Yo M'Enamori D'Un Aire
The Birth Of The Bongo
Symphonic Dances From 'West Side Story'
From The Streets Of New York To The Blacksmith's Shop/Il Trovatore ('Anvil Chorus')
Desert-Island Decibels: Grand Canyon Suite (On The Trail)/Arcana
From One Vegetable To Another: The Humble Squash, Or Marrow/Huapango
Onwards To The Tuned Percussion. First, The Timpani
Also Sprach Zarathustra (Introduction)
But The Drum Roll Can Be More Effectively Frightening Than The Big Bang.: Symphony No.2 'Resurrection' (Mvt 3)
Not One Drum Roll, But Many/Grand Canyon Suite (Sunrise)/Symphonie Fantastique (Last Mvt)
Taking Advantage Of Tunability
Music For Strings, Percussion And Celeste (Mvt 2)
The Russian Composer Rodion Shchedrin Takes A Downward Turn./Carmen Suite (Changing Of The Guard)/Tuned, Yes; But For The Truly Melodic We Must Look Elsewhere.
Introducing The Glockenspiel/Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)
Saint-Saens And The Xylophone
The Carnival Of The Animals (Fossils)
Ravel And The Xylophone
Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Laideronette)
Introducing The Marimba/Carmen Suite (First Intermezzo)
Introducing The Vibraphone
The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (Narange Dolce)
The Vibraphone Goes Russian.../Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)/...And Is Joined By The Marimba./Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)
Introducing The Hungarian Cimbalom
Folk Dances
The Cimbalom And The Symphony Orchestra
Hary Janos Suite (Mvt 3)
Introducing The Tubular Bells
Hary Janos Suite (Viennese Musical Clock)
A More 'Up-Front' Approach From Rodion Shchedrin
Carmen Suite (Introduction)
But The Bells Can Also Make The Sinister Even More Sinister./Symphony No.7 'Sinfonia Antartica' (Mvt 1)
Introducing The Celeste
The Nutcracker (Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy)
Magic, In The Use Of Collective Percussion
Miroirs (La Vallee Des Cloches)
Plucked Instruments: The 'Undercover Percussion'/Carmen Suite (Scene)
A Prime Case In Point Is The Harp, Irresistible To The Romantics./The Nutcracker (Act II, No.1: Scene)/The Non-Solo Harp As An Integral Part Of The Orchestra/Hungarian Rhapsody No.1
The Traditionally Subservient Role Of The Harpsichord In The Baroque Orchestra
Brandenburg Concerto No.2 (Slow Mvt)
The Piano: King Of The Tuned Percussion/Symphony No.3 'Organ' (Mvt 3)/And A Quarter Of A Century After That:
Petrushka (Russian Dance)
The Anti-Romantic Piano As An Integral Part Of The Orchestra
Music For Strings, Percussion And Celeste (Last Mvt)

Tracks:

Keyboard Instruments In The Orchestra - The Most Powerful Of Them All:
Symphony No.3 'Organ' (Finale)
But Things In Handel's Day Were Very Different.
Organ Concerto In B Flat, Op.4 No.3 (Last Mvt)
The Organ Is Difficult To Classify.
An Unexpected, Organ-related Guest
Concerto Pour Zampogna (Last Mvt)
Peasant-Fancying... And A Touch Of The Roaming Cowboy
Les Miserables (Drink With Me)
Outside Artefacts And The Power Of Association
Mahler's Sleighbells
Symphony No.4 (Opening)
A Roll-Call Of Some Unusual Guests/The Typewriter/Parade
Chains, And More/Integrales/An American In Paris/Sandpaper Ballet
Purpose-Built Oddities: Wind Machines/Symphony No.7 'Sinfonia Antartica' (Opening)
Don Quixote (Variation VIII)
National Calling Cards: The Guitar For Spain/Concierto De Aranjuez (Finale)
And The Guitar's Poor American Relative, The Banjo/Washington Breakdown
And Poorer Still, The Mouth Organ/The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (Packing Up)
The Balalaika For Russia/Romeo And Juliet (Act II: No.14)
The Maracas For Mexico/The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (El Desayuno)
The Bongos And Congas And A Whole Wealth Of Other Drums For Africa And Central America/Studio Example
The Sitar Of India/Evening Raga: Bhapoli
The Accordion For France (Especially Paris)/Paris Canaille
The Zither For Vienna/The Third Man (Theme)
The Cimbalom For Hungary/Folk Dances
The Guitar As An Integral Part Of The Orchestra/Rondena
There Are Whole Orchestras Of Balalaikas./Sveit Mesiats
The Effect Of The Wordless Human Voice, Used Purely As An Instrument/Symphony No.7 'Sinfonia Antartica' (Mvt 1)
Nocturnes
Instruments And the Imitation Of Nature. The Clarinet As Cuckoo
The Carnival Of The Animals (The Cuckoo)
The Flute As An All-purpose Aviary
The Carnival Of The Animals (The Aviary)
The Oboe As Duck
Peter And The Wolf (The Duck)
The Recording Of Reality. Does It Work As Well?
The Pines Of Rome (The Pines Of The Janiculum)
The Recording Of Reality Electronically Reborn In New Guises
Cantus Articus - Concerto For Birds And Orchesra (Mvt 2)
Beethoven Turns Avian: Cuckoo, Nightingale, And Quail
Symphony No.6 'Pastoral' (Andante Molto Mosso)
Some Improbable Casting: The Violin As Braying Donkey
The Carnival Of The Animals (Persons With Long Ears)
A Truly Orchestral Hee-haw To Be Reckoned With
Overture To 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'
A Thunderstorm In A Million
Symphony No.6 'Pastoral (Allegro-Allegretto)
the Instrumental Depiction Of A Silent World
The Carnival Of The Animals (The Aquarium)
Saint-Saens' Menagerie Takes A Curtain Call.
The Carnival Of The Animals (Finale)

Tracks:

The Grouping Of Instrumental Families. An Additive Approach. First, Two Violins
Forty-Four Duos (No.4)
A Great Contrast, Of Both Pitch And Character: Violin And Viola
Duo For Violin And Viola In B Flat Major, K.424 (Finale, Vars 1 & 2)/Studio Example
Arrival Of The Standard String Trio: Violin, Viola, And Cello
String Trio In B Flat (Menuetto)
The String Quartet: Two Violins, Viola, And Cello
String Quartet In F, Op.18 No.1 (Mvt 3)
The String Quintet - When The Extra Instrument Is A Second Viola
String Quartet No.5 In D, K.593 (Adagio)
The String Quintet - When The Extra Instrument Is A Second Cello
String Quintet In C (Mvt 3)
The String Sextet: Two Violins, Two Violas, And Two Cellos
String Sextet In B Flat (Mvt 2)
The String Octet: The Standard String Quaret Times Two
Octet In E Flat, Op.20 (Mvt 1)
Double The String Octet: A Fully Fledged String Orchestra
String Symphony No.2 (Finale)
The Massed Strings Of A Symphony Orchestra
Fantasia On A Theme Of Thomas Tallis
Contrasts Of Pitch And Instrumental 'Colour' In The Woodwind Section
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Op.100 No.5 (Theme)
In The First Variation It's The Horn That Gets The Lion's Share.
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 1
In Variation Two The Torch Is Handed To The Bassoon.
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 2
In Variation Three The Oboe Leads.
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 3
Variation Four: Conversation Before Returning To A Solo-dominated Texture
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 4
And Variation Five is Dominated By The Clarinet.
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 5
The Next To Be Featured Is The Virtuoso Flute.
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 6
Individual Farewells And A Closing Chorus
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 7
A Mixed Group: Clarinet, Bassoon, Horn, String Quartet, And Double-Bass
Octet In F (Mvt 3)
The Early Classical Symphony Orchestra Of Haydn And Mozart
Symphony No.29 In A, K.201 (Finale)
Strings, Wind, But No Brass. What Haydn And Mozart Never Knew
Canzon 28
Beethoven's Fifth: Two Horns, Two Trumpets, And Three Trombones Join The Team.
Symphony No.5 (Finale)
From Beethoven To The Massive Orchestras Of Berlioz, Wagner, And Mahler
Beethoven Changed The Face Of The Symphony And The Orchestra Forever
Symphoy No.6 'Tragic' (Mvt 1)
The Cult Of Orchestral Elephantiasis Reaches Its Peak.
Symphony No.1 'Gothic' (VI: Te Ergo Quaesumus)
When Large Doesn't Necessarily Mean Loud: Debussy
Images (Gigues)
A Crisis Of Confidence; The Orchestra's Survival Hangs In The Balance, But It Still Develops. The Ondes Martenot:
Turangalila Symphony (Chant D'amour 1)
The Advent Of The 'Early Music' Movement Brings A New Vitality And Freshness.
Balle De Xerxes (Gavotte En Rondeau)
Computer And Synthesiser: Friends Or Foes?
Concerto In D Minor For Two Violins (Largo)
A Speculative Look Ahead/Mass In B Minor ('Dona Nobis Pacem')

Customer Reviews:

Instruments of the Orchestra - Great Reference Material!.......2007-04-04

This set lends itself to greatly enhancing one's knowledge of the orchestra, instruments in it, and their usage. I am a huge music buff, and I still picked up a great deal I previously did not know. I highly recommend this for all who wish to understand the origin of music, as well as the processes that are employed to create music!

Beginner or Expert.......2007-03-12

This CD is excellent for the beginner or expert! To be able to haear the instrumets separately and then together really provides a good education. and/or refresher. The book thaty comes with the CD is alomost worth the price by itself!

Very Informative and Enjoyable.......2006-11-20

Whether you're a music novice or pro, "The instruments of the Orchestra" is a very worthwhile purchase. The 7 CDs, with a total of 8 hours, are expertly narrated by Jeremy Siepmann. He's a great speaker, very much like the late Leonard Bernstein was. Mr. Siepmann takes you on an unforgetable musical journey covering the origins and use of the various orchestral instruments throughout musical history. The balance between his narration and a wealth of musical examples, which range from snippets to entire movements, is superb. The comprehensive enclosed booklet is excellent and faithfully follows the 7 CDs in content. Even with my 40+ years of music training I still learned new things from this wonderful collection. Considering the excellence of the content, and a cost that translates to about $5 per disc, this collection is a great value. Grab it, you won't regret that you did. Five solid stars!

Frank's view.......2006-08-19

This boxed set of CD's with booklet achieved all I had hoped that it would. There are good samples of individual instruments and well done commentary on each. The only drawback was that some of the samples were too brief and could have been longer, hoiwever I guess this fits in with time constraints of the medium. It has given me a lot of clues as to future purchases of CD's for listening to individual instruments. Altogeth a satisfactory purchase and a welcome addition to my collection.

Excellent Intro for Those Not Familiar with the Orchestra.......2003-11-08

I've listened to classical music for years and am interested in composition. I bought this CD set to learn how an orchestra and its instruments work. I thought the CDs would be a nice but boring lecture. They aren't! Not only are they FUN but they are informative as well. I learned a huge amount from each CD and couldn't wait to listen to the next one.

The narrator and writer is a great speaker and holds your attention well. He is definitely knowledgeable. He provides musical examples for each point he makes, so you get to "hear" what he just talked about. I'd say the CDs are about 65% music and 35% narration. You'll learn about the range of instruments, some history, different ways to play them, how they sound, and how they are used in the orchestra. This CD set was a great learning experience and is sold at such a low price!

I recommend this CD for those who want to learn about classical music and those who know about it but are interested in learning more about the inner workings of an orchestra. You'll learn much useful information. For instance, the Rite of Spring (with that eerie start) is written for bassoon! I never knew a bassoon could sound like that but now I do.

The one complaint I have is the last CD. This deals with the orchestra. I wanted more of a tour of how the orchestra has been used through history up to the present. Instead, it was a tour of how different groups of instruments sound. I thought it could have been better. The other 6 CDs are excellent.

Bartók: Bluebeard's Castle
Average customer rating:

The Quintessential Bluebeard's Castle

Excellent recording of a forgotten gem

"It Was a Dark and Rainy Night............."

A riveting live performance--the best Bluebeard in forty years

A dark and brooding masterpiece

Bartók: Bluebeard's Castle

Manufacturer: Angel Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Bartók, Béla | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
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Szymanowski: Harnasie; Orchestral Songs

ASIN: B000002RWP
Release Date: 1996-10-22

Tracks:

Bluebeard's Castle, Op.11: Opera in Act.l Libretto: Bela Balazs. Prologue and Opening
Bluebeard's Castle, Op.11: Opera in Act.l Libretto: Bela Balazs. First Door-The Torture Chamber
Bluebeard's Castle, Op.11: Opera in Act.l Libretto: Bela Balazs. Second Door-The Armoury
Bluebeard's Castle, Op.11: Opera in Act.l Libretto: Bela Balazs. Third Door-The Treasury
Bluebeard's Castle, Op.11: Opera in Act.l Libretto: Bela Balazs. Fourth Door-The Secret Garden
Bluebeard's Castle, Op.11: Opera in Act.l Libretto: Bela Balazs. Fifth Door-Bluebeard's Kingdom
Bluebeard's Castle, Op.11: Opera in Act.l Libretto: Bela Balazs. Sixth Door-Tears
Bluebeard's Castle, Op.11: Opera in Act.l Libretto: Bela Balazs. Seventh Door-Bluebeard's Former...

Customer Reviews:

The Quintessential Bluebeard's Castle.......2007-05-20

There is a magic in Bela Bartók's one act opera 'A kékszakkallú Herceg Vára' (Duke Bluebeard's Castle) that is difficult to describe. The work is for very large orchestra, mezzo soprano and bass and while it contains about as much drama as any Wagnerian opera, Bartok succeeded in intensifying this brief opus in one act and in doing so he created a masterpiece of what opera is all about - the marriage of music and drama, neither of which could equally stand alone. Concert versions are as thrilling as staged versions: it is the orchestra that paints the scenery and creates the atmosphere for this chilling story.

Bluebeard enters his castle with his newest bride, Judith. The castle is dark and dank, and when Judith spies a series of doors, her curiosity results in her pleading with Bluebeard to open each door despite Bluebeard's warning that she may not want to know what lies behind each portal. Judith begs him and one by one Bluebeard opens each door: the orchestra describes what is new to Judith's eyes - the torture chamber, the armory, the treasury, the secret garden, Bluebeard's kingdom, the door to the lake of tears, and the final door opens through which pass the spirits of the previously murdered wives of Bluebeard. Judith's curiosity has determined her own destiny.

There are several very fine recordings of this work, but no matter the previous favorite of any listener new to this 1996 recording of a live performance with Bernard Haitink conducting the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra with Anne Sofie von Otter as Judith and John Tomlinson as Bluebeard, this recording seems to be the zenith. Haitink brings out all of the Technicolor nuances of the openings of each door while keeping the brooding atmosphere of the castle's interior a stable platform for the magnificent, completely committed performances by von Otter and Tomlinson. The result is breathtaking, a bravura performance in which the kudos are equally shared among the singers the orchestra and the conductor. It is a masterpiece of creation, of performance, and of recording art. Grady Harp, May 07

Excellent recording of a forgotten gem.......2007-03-29

Bluebeard's Castle is not exactly one of Bartok's better known works, and it is even rarer to see it performed in person. I had the honor of seeing it just recently, and was so entranced by the dark tale that I had to get the recording too. This is an excellent performance of the one act opera. The opera is short, and very compact, and it has one of the tightest, most intense scores of any opera I know. The story is very dark, definitely not for the faint of heart, and is most reminiscent of the gothic tales of Edgar Allen Poe. I recommend it to anyone who is a fan of Bartok, as it represents some of his most sophisticated and rich music. It is more melodic, I think, than some of his later stuff, though not as accessible as Concerto for Orchestra. Still, this version does it justice, and I really enjoy listening to it!

"It Was a Dark and Rainy Night.............".......2006-07-10

I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself!....ahem, on to the review.

This recording is quite simply one of the most spectacular opera recordings of the last decade. Ms von Otter's Judith is, like nearly everything she has done, exquisite--superlative, finely nuanced, and immensely moving.. John Tomlinson's Bluebeard is damned fine, indeed, ranking with the best. And the Berlin Philharmonic.........well, they're the Berlin Philharmonic! Polished, refined, working and magnificently playing together with real bite, and also with the silveryest sheen on the strings imaginable. The honorable Mr. Haitink, as is his tradition, draws from them a magnificently interpreted and played rendition of this complex and wonderful score, and the technicians have captured all this in absolutely breathtaking sound for a live performance. All around, this recording gets top rating in all categories. It belongs in any opera lover's collection. I love this recording........and yet, I still go back to the old Ludwig/Berry/Kertesz recording on Decca from the 60's and I am not really sure why. Perhaps because I "grew up" with this recording or something.......somehow it seems "right". Truth to tell, they both should be in one's collection--one for historic performance's sake, and one for being a monumental performance by today's artists in modern sound. Enjoy them both, they're each excellent and truly worthy of your shelf-space. ~operabruin

A riveting live performance--the best Bluebeard in forty years.......2006-05-18

For the past four decades no one has surpassed Kertesz's classic Bluebeard's Castle on Decca, a miracle of perfect casting, great conducting, and demonstration-quality sound that thrills time after time. What Haitink gives us in this live concert from 1996 is the next best thing: a committed, very musical performance, rather on the gloomy side, that makes its mark through the virtuosity of the Berlin Phill, Haitink's insights, and above all the impassioned Judith of von Otter, surely the best singer in the role since Christa Ludwig. For anyone who loves this early masterpiece of Bartok's, here is an unmissable recording.

A dark and brooding masterpiece.......2004-01-14

Full disclosure: this is one of my favorite operas. My first exposure was the early recording with Boulez and Troyanos (still available), and I've heard a number of others, but this one must now take first place. One strength is that the spoken prologue is included by Sandor Eles, speaking in the original Hungarian. As he reaches the end of his introduction, delivered in delicately creepy Boris Karloff style, the opening music quietly begins, setting an ominous tone for everything that is to follow.

Anne Sofie von Otter is magnificent as Judith. (Some may find her voice too light for the part, although I didn't.) The combination of innocence and increasing desperation is pretty terrifying, thanks to her vocal and dramatic skills. John Tomlinson makes a marvelous Bluebeard, singing to Judith with an almost reassuring warmth. Some may prefer a "rougher" Bluebeard, but I enjoyed the effect of his voice masking his real intentions -- until the shocking conclusion.

Haitink's characteristic understatement works extremely well here, as he encourages the Berlin Philharmonic to ever more sinister heights. This is very much an opera that requires a brilliant orchestra in addition to its two stars, and here the Berlin ensemble just sounds terrific. One of the work's highlights is especially well done, when Judith opens the fifth door that reveals "all of Bluebeard's kingdom." The blaze of orchestral playing here is just spine-tingling.

The sound quality is excellent -- recorded live -- and fittingly caps a project that does a grand job communicating Bartok's dark intentions.

Bartók: Duke Bluebeard's Castle / Kertész, Ludwig, Berry
Average customer rating:

One of the GREATEST Recordings Ever Made.

Hauntingly Beautiful

Brilliantly sung "Bluebeard's Castle"

OPENING DOORS

Spell-Binding!

Bartók: Duke Bluebeard's Castle / Kertész, Ludwig, Berry

Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta; Hungarian Sketches

ASIN: B00001IVQX
Release Date: 1999-09-14

Tracks:

Duke Bluebeard's Castle BB 62 (Op.11): Opening
DOORS: Door 1
DOORS: Door 2
DOORS: Door 3
DOORS: Door 4
DOORS: Door 5
DOORS: Door 6
DOORS: Door 7

Amazon.com

Bartók's lone opera has fared well on disc, and the Kertész is one of the best, even if it lacks the full bite and snap of singers emoting in their native language. Ludwig, a mezzo Judith, is convincing as a loving bride wishing to share her husband's innermost secrets, and Berry is a patient Bluebeard, saddened by her inevitable consignment to oblivion behind the seventh door. They capture the private, intimate horrors at the core of the story. Kertész conducts brilliantly, drawing full, warm sounds from the LSO aided by Decca's spectacular demonstration-quality engineering. Doráti (on Mercury, also with great sound but with native singers) may get closer to the spirit of Bartók's sharp-edged score, but Kertész is in the same league. --Dan Davis

Customer Reviews:

One of the GREATEST Recordings Ever Made........2007-07-09

Decca Records....The very name seems to bring warm thoughts and feelings to one's body and mind...

What a "richer" place the world is, because of Decca, RCA, EMI (and of course, also, Philips, Deutsche Grammophone, and Columbia Records). These companies pioneered sound (and recordings) for us, and through their efforts, we have, currently, little silver discs (formerly, of course, Shiny Black LP's), that document and preserve both their technical achievements and those of the artists/participants of these recordings.

So, "Thank You Very Much" of course deserves to go to these companies for making our lives so much richer.

The Review...

One of these Pioneering Achievements, make no doubt about it, is this Magnificent recording of Bela Bartok's lone opera, Duke Bluebeard's Castle (A kékszakkallú Herceg Vára). The sonic achievement of this recording, for clearness, spaciousness, and simply breadth and range will amaze you if you are not famaliar already with it. This recording will probably forever stand as one of the greatest achievements in sound ever done, as it has from it's release right up until today. There is one KnockOut rival*, but it DOES NOT replace it! (see below)

If you are unfamiliar with this work, you are in for a REAL TREAT. If you do not understand it, that's ok, wait a couple days, and play it again! (I'm sure you know how this works, if you have experience with Classical Music and Opera).

Christa Ludwig, let's face it, was simply one of the towering dramatic sopranos of the 20th century, bar none. Her then husband, at the time of this recording, Walter Berry, was a baritone who also certainly held his own on the stages throughout Europe for many many years, and those in America, also, though to a lesser degree.

This opera is a very psychologically powerful work, as is Richard Strauss' "Elektra"........both of them grip one and take you to places that, while you are uncomfortable with it, you willingly allow yourself to be taken there. Both of these operas seem to have a "magnetism" that you cannot shake loose until the final bar/resolve of the work.

Istvan Kertesz, unfortunately, did not live long enough to become "golden" in the eyes of the public like Bohm, Maazel, or Levine, etc., so few know of him today. He was simply one of the most gifted conductors of his time, as was Michael Tilson Thomas. This man immediately takes control over his forces, and Bartok's "blue-black" score, and brings it up to the point that you are mesmerized or locked into it and are not willing to pull yourself out of it. This is powerful music.

Ludwig, of all the people to tackle this role, has NEVER been overshadowed by Anyone Else's performance or rendition of Judith. The shining sense of innocence of the world comes with her into the dark, damp and hopelessly depressing castle. As the doors open, she traverses the "darknesses" that they each hold, and becomes a "world wise" and weary woman as the last door closes into total blackness. Crista Ludwig makes you believe this is a real girl taking this journey, and you believe her progression as she makes the trip to the end, hanging on to her every breath. Few can do this type of role where you have the stage "to yourself" for the duration of an opera and you don't "flag" at any point.

The same can be said for Walter Berry's Duke Bluebeard. His baritone is just captivating. His voice, rich and dark, just draws you in, willingly. You hang onto his every word, and like Judith, you "have to know more".

At the end of this hour's passing, you find that you are astounded that you have been so deeply engrossed or enveloped by this story. So many times I have sat afterwards and wondered "What would a three act version of this opera have been like?"

I realize I have, again, rambled on. Sometimes, when you're wound up in something, it's not possible to express what you want to convey in short clipped sentences. This is a "felt"(as much as any other aspect of it) work.

Trust my judgement from listening to many recordings of this special work over the years (since the 60's) this recording needs to be on your shelves FIRST before any other recording of it. ~operabruin

*That said, I will now make a comment on the rival recording. The EMI release with Anne Sophie von Otter, John Tomlinson, and Bernard Haitink also belongs on your shelves, if you can justify owning two versions of this great great work. (I have 7 recordings of it, and consider all 7 of them viable in one form or another). (see my review of this recording on Amazon here, for more information.) It does not "knock out" the Kertesz recording just reviewed, but it "BELONGS BESIDE IT."

Hauntingly Beautiful.......2007-01-25

I normally don't seek out an experience that is dark and disturbing. Now, this is a dark opera, to be sure, but I am astonished at what a beautiful and powerful opera it is. The music is perfect - the chords, the way the melody supports the vocal lines, the mood that is so perfectly established. This is essentially a psychological tale, in fact the prologue asks us to ponder if this is a story of within (psychological) or without. It is the story of a man who begs his wife not to dig too deep, but she can't help it, she continues to push, until... it is too late. The singing is fantastic. The orchestra playing is lush, the sound quality first rate. Now that I have heard this piece I think the biggest tragedy is that Bartok didn't write more operas. He shows tremendous compositional skill and a great sense of how to unfold the drama that I feel sometimes composers miss. Get your hands on this CD.

Brilliantly sung "Bluebeard's Castle".......2006-04-14

.
Source: Studio recording made in Kingsway Hall, London, November 1965.

Sound: State of the art analogue stereo that received high praise when it was issued in 1966. The second digital remastering, done in 1999, has been very successful. More acute ears than mine have noted the sound of the occasional tape join and some slight hiss. I do not go searching for such things and I certainly have not heard them on my copy.

Text: The work is performed in Hungarian as "A Kekszkallu herceg vara." [Sorry about the forms of the vowels, but Amazon has not been accepting my properly spelled foreign words recently.] The 28-line spoken verse prologue has not been recorded.

Documentation: Libretto in Hungarian joined with the standard, very loose, English singing translation by Christopher Hassall. Brief memoir on the origin of this recording. Short record of a conversation between Kertesz and Ludwig in which the conductor provides his interpretation of some aspects of the story. Track list shows timings.

Format: One disk - eight tracks; 59:30.

Cast: Bluebeard - Walter Berry; Judith - Christa Ludwig. Conductor: Istvan Kertesz with the London Symphony Orchestra.

In 1911, the thirty year-old Bartok began setting the libretto of "A Kekszkallu herceg vara" ["Duke Bluebeard's Castle"] by his friend, Bela Balasz. It was not performed until 1918. Because it is performed in opera houses and involves two people singing over an orchestra, the piece is casually lumped into the category of opera. To me, though, an opera is a sung drama or comedy--and "Duke Bluebeard's Castle" most assuredly is neither. It is at most a ritual, or perhaps no more than a mere reverie.

Just as Beethoven did a century earlier with "Fidelio," Bartok came to opera as a man of the concert platform, not of the theater. He provided little or no real drama for his singers; their characters have neither choice nor conflict. All the drama, all the color of the work, and Bartok crammed in a great deal of both, are to be found in his orchestra. The orchestra embarks on a impressive tonal voyage, but the singers merely utter their symbolic words on pitch.

And the symbolism? Well, let's face it, even for 1918 the symbols were absurdly simple-minded. Their simplicity, however, does not make them unambiguous. Here is how Kertesz is quoted: This "Bluebeard story is quite different from the fairy tale. The point is that all the blood is his blood. It means his suffering. Everything happens in the imagination". Being clearly on Bluebeard's side, he goes on to say that Judith is "horrible to him. She does not want him; she just wants to open his doors." Ludwig, naturally, is quoted as holding quite a different view.

Christa Ludwig and her then husband, Walter Berry were operatic aristocracy. They sing brilliantly here, particularly in light of the thin stuff provided by Bartok. That is not a matter of debate. Do they sing authentically? I haven't the slightest idea. The good, grey Gramophone Magazine says they lack the "texture and tang of native Hungarian singers". That may be so, although I can only wonder if a London-based English reviewer is any better judge than I am on the point.

The orchestra sounds terrific. Kertesz's approach is a little more subtle and inner-directed than is to be found in other recordings I have heard which are given more to the boom and bang approach.

On the whole, this is an excellent and classic recording. I can't vouch for its authenticity but I can assure you that it will give any sympathetic listener a full hour of pleasure.

Five stars.

(For those who find this work particularly appealing, I suggest that it might be worth your while to look into Korngold's much-underrated Twentieth Century masterpiece, "Die Tote Stadt," which traverses some of the same territory.)

OPENING DOORS.......2004-11-11

For 1965 the sound-quality on this disc is quite extraordinarily good - it would be that in 2004 - and Decca have every right to be proud of it. Everyone concerned has a right to be proud of the performance too. Ludwig and Berry are not only in superb voice, they seem to me to have penetrated to the heart of this dark and wonderful allegory. In the discussion that forms part of the liner-note Ludwig interrupts at one point to disagree with a certain view of Judith that she hears being expressed. No harm in that - this particular story is full of mystery. Only so much certainty is possible, and the ambiguity is essential to its power and magic.

For any music-lover struggling with Bartok - say with the quartets or the first piano concerto - this, or maybe the better-known violin concerto, would be the doors through which I would suggest approaching him. Purely at the musical level the idiom is modern without being forbidding or particularly challenging. Indeed the orchestration in Bluebeard is among the most thrilling I have ever heard, and Kertesz and the LSO (then at its very peak) do it proud. This is a short drama - a story like this can only be stretched out for a finite length - and the dark and sinister sense of fear and foreboding must never relax in performance, nor do they in this performance. The story is a powerfully convincing one to me, and I do not know how many of my own sex I can speak for, although I suspect it's most of us. In my view, which is a totally impressionistic and unscientific one as far as this is concerned, a man has a mental and emotional hinterland that nobody should try to trespass on. `Nobody' means not wife, not parent, not child, not the closest friend. It is irrespective of the most intense love that may be involved, and it can come up against an equally deep-seated female urge to know the man in her life as deeply as she can. It will not, in many cases, involve anything particularly dark, dramatic or seeming to demand secrecy, but I sense rightly or wrongly that it is a basic part of the male psyche. What this whole story dramatises with intense effect is the self-destructive power of the clash between these basic male and female tendencies. Bluebeard and Judith are not individuals in my view but types, and nowhere could provide a more atmospheric background for this modern morality-play than the seemingly `transylvanian' castle where Bluebeard and Judith open the doors that should perhaps not have been opened.

It all lasts not quite an hour, and far from leaving me emotionally drained as I might have expected it left me even exhilarated by the sheer truthfulness of it, to say nothing of the quite wonderful music and the quite wonderful way it is enacted. The English version of the libretto struck me as slightly odd with its stilted idiom, thou's thine's and similar nonsense until I saw who it was by - Christopher Hassall, the man who killed Walton's Troilus and Cressida at birth or before. I suppose he was responsible for the English version of the stage-directions too, as I took leave of the drama with the wives of Bluebeard progressing along a beam of `moonshine'. As well as the main liner-note, Decca have understandably and very helpfully included a technical leaflet on the recording technology which, as I have said, is something they are very entitled to preen themselves on. I only wondered why with so much top technology at their disposal they could not have got the leaflet to fit the box a bit more exactly.

Spell-Binding!.......2003-09-16

I am not a Bartok fan. I generally do not listen to Bartok. Neither have I listened to any other Bluebeard - this is the only one I have. The only reason I bought this set is that I heard it was good and since I managed to get a dirt cheap price for the set, why not try and listen. I was pleasantly surprised. Once I started listening, I was spell-bound!! The music is good. But even more importantly, the singing is superb!! It's unbelievable how good Christa ludwig and Walter Berry are. In fact, even if the music did not sound nice (which is not the case), just listening to Christa Ludwig and Walter Berry vocalizing would be worth the purchase. The two of them have such gorgeous voices that I could just sit there and listen to them all day long. Furthermore, both singers sing with a lot of dramatic sense and make this experience a really thrilling one. I've had experiences where I listen to a favorite piece by a mediocre performer, and I simply get bored even though the music is nice because the performers spoils the piece. Similarly, there are pieces which I am not too enthusiastic about, but some performers imbue them with so much beauty, power and life that I become fanatic about these pieces. This recording is one of those that fall into the latter category. It goes to show that the performers matter a lot!! And this is a fantastic performance which I highly recommend to all. It is worthy of being in the Decca Legends series. To borrow the quote on the cover (which is completely accurate in this case), "Astonishingly evocative and full of atmosphere ... Must count as one of Decca's great operatic recordings .. This is a thrilling recording of a great work. Gramophone." Don't just believe it, experience it yourself!!

Average customer rating:

An overrated conductor and wobbly Slavic singers
A most powerful and authentic performance

Bártok: Bluebeard's Castle

Manufacturer: Philips
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Mercury Living Presence - You Are There - The True Story of a Legendary Label

ASIN: B0000057LX
Release Date: 1992-10-13

Tracks:

Bluebeard's Castle: Opening
Bluebeard's Castle: Door 1
Bluebeard's Castle: Door 2
Bluebeard's Castle: Door 3
Bluebeard's Castle: Door 4
Bluebeard's Castle: Door 5
Bluebeard's Castle: Door 6
Bluebeard's Castle: Door 7
Wozzeck, Three Excerpts: Act I, Scenes 2 And 3 - Helga Pilarczyk
Wozzeck, Three Excerpts: Act III, Scene 1 - Helga Pilarczyk
Wozzeck, Three Excerpts: Act III, Scenes 4 And 5 - Helga Pilarczyk

Customer Reviews:

An overrated conductor and wobbly Slavic singers.......2006-05-18

The reviewer below has gone overboard. Dorati's conducting here is, if anything, a bit stodgy, and his two Hungarian singers sound wobbly and artistically provincial. The whole enterprise sounds good on paper, given Dorati's credentials, but he made a career of lowering expectations. The sonics have the high-treble sting familiar from Wilma Fine's engineering for Mercury. All in all, I would rank this set well below those from Kertesz, Haitink, and Fricsay, to mention three of the best.

A most powerful and authentic performance.......2002-05-23

This is the most powerfully conducted Bluebeard among the several versions that I have heard, one of unequalled dramatic thrust and intensity. Dorati, who, as a young man in Budapest, was a pupil of Bartok, brings out the Hungarian folksong based rhythms and colors of this music instead of, as other interpreters tend to do, soften or smooth them out (perhaps in order to create a more overtly dream like atmosphere), which robs the music of its considerable dramatic force. The singers, though lacking the vocal beauty of those in some other recordings, are both native Hungarians, and moreover, the Bluebeard in this recording was tutored in the role by Bartok himself. Arguably then, the singing here, along with the conducting, possesses the most stylistic authority of all the versions currently available.
Finally, the recorded sound is crystal clear and dynamic, thus enhancing the qualities of Dorati's performance.
If you are a lover of Bartok, this is an essential purchase.

Bartók: Bluebeard's Castle [Hybrid SACD]

Average customer rating:

Very nice!

Bartók: Bluebeard's Castle [Hybrid SACD]

Manufacturer: Philips
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B0000AKNJJ
Release Date: 2004-01-13

Customer Reviews:

Very nice!.......2006-09-04

I like this recording. The orchestra sounds great (love the keyboard xylophone) and Laszló's singing is superb. But Ildikó's vibrato is really irritating. It kind of sounds like she's being strangled - which I guess you could say is a nice touch, but I'd prefer the singing to be more fresh and a little more dramatic from the female rôle.

Bartok: Bluebeard's Castle/Cantata Profana

Average customer rating:

Great Conducting, Problematic Text & Singers
Unique and valuable but a non-starter

Bartok: Bluebeard's Castle/Cantata Profana
Bela Bartok , Ferenc Fricsay , and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau/Martha Topper
Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

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Cantatas | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B000031WYH
Release Date: 2001-02-13

Tracks:

Wir sind am Ziele
Dies ist also Blaubarts Feste
Grobe schweigende Turen
Weh! - Was siehst Du?
Was siehst Du?
Sieh nur den Schatz!
Ach! Blumenpracht!
Ah! - Sieh so weit die Blicke reichen
Weibes stilles Wasser seh ich
Schau die fruher'n Frauen alle
Fruh am Morgen kam die erste
Cantana profana: Wunder hort ihr sagen - Radio-Symphonie-Orchester-Berlin
Cantana profana: Lange harrt der Alte - Radio-Symphonie-Orchester-Berlin
Cantana profana: Wunder ward euch kund heut' - Radio-Symphonie-Orchester-Berlin

Customer Reviews:

Great Conducting, Problematic Text & Singers.......2005-06-01

Ferenc Fricsay (pronounced, I am told, fair-entz free-shoy) was a superb Bartok conductor. I have long harbored a slight preference for his mono DG recordings of Concerto For Orchestra and the Music For Strings, Percussion & Celesta over the more celebrated stereo RCA accounts by Fritz Reiner and the Chicago Symphony (of course, I keep both!). So I was REALLY looking forward to hearing Fricsay's way with Bartok's operatic masterpiece "Bluebeard's Castle" and the composer's most significant choral work "Cantata Profana." And in terms of conducting, there is little here to disappoint: these are wonderfully impassioned, extremely detailed accounts in good 1957 stereo sound (Bluebeard) and decent 1951 mono (Cantata).

So, where are the problems? For me, this Bluebeard is just a little disappointing because: 1) there are some unfortunate cuts in the score and the spoken prologue is omitted, 2) it's sung in German instead of Hungarian, and 3) the vocal casting is less than ideal. Let me try to explain, point by point.

Bluebeard's Castle, in my view, ranks with Debussy's Pelleas et Melisande as one of the two great modern opera masterpieces of the early 20th Century. And, curiously, I feel that both actually work more satisfactorily through listening at home than in the opera house (I have seen both works staged, and somehow they fell short of what I imagined in my own mind). While Bluebeard owes a debt to Wagner, the Richard Strauss of "Elektra," and the vocal declamation of Mussorgsky, it is nevertheless a very original and unique work. Bartok's own idiom, based on a parlando-rubato tradition in Hungarian folk music, is filled with a fateful, almost ballad-like allegory about individual loneliness and the dark consequences of peering too insistently into another person's soul. Bartok's music, while impassioned, is also saturated with ambiguity and ambivalence. So interpreting it effectively is a pretty tricky business.

For me, it works best when the ENTIRE score is used (there's not a single wasted note in Bartok's music). That includes the bard's spoken prologue, which provides listeners with valuable information on just what Bartok and his librettist Bela Balasz are going to portray. Example: "Once upon a time ... the phrase is old, and yet it gives my rhyme the tempting of a half-open door ... Enter! A realm waits you that without you cannot come into being; the realm of myth! Still thinking of your lives? There find them with New meanings, for our story is about you, Ladies and Gentleman."

The rhythms and inflections of Bartok's opera are so inextricably entwined with the Hungarian language that I find it EXTREMELY odd that a Hungarian conductor like Fricsay preferred to perform it in a German translation. And that peculiarity is only magnified by the Bluebeard of baritone Fischer-Dieskau and the Judith of mezzo-soprano Hertha Topper. F-D is, of course, a great singer, and he's in fine voice here. But his diction is SO Germanic (with all those rolled r's and spitting sibilants), and frankly he shouts and bellows more than he sings. It's an extremely exaggerated reading of a character that needs subtlety and ambiguity to be sympathetic. Hertha Topper is quite engrossing, despite a slight wobble. But Fricsay's command of the score is absolute: hundreds of tiny details leap out and grab your attention (e.g., the little harp quivers in the Lake of Tears), and the orchestral playing is magnificent. However, due to the shortcomings noted, I think this performance is more of a supplement than a core selection.

The first-ever studio Bluebeard, recorded in 1953 for the Bartok LP label, was given absolutely complete and in Hungarian. Although in mono, the engineering (by the composer's son Peter Bartok) is one of the glories of the LP era (terrific sound that's better than almost ANYTHING from Mercury or RCA). The fine, subtly under-played Bluebeard of bass Endre Koreh and the attractive Judith of soprano Judith Hellwig are major assets (the speaking role of the Bard in the prologue is given by Erno Lorsy). Another real plus is the great leadership of Austro-Czech conducter Walter Susskind with a first-class pickup orchestra called the New Symphony of London. Susskind's pacing is just about perfect, and he's every bit as detailed as Fricsay. Susskind's Bluebeard (I've owned it on LP for over 30 years) remains my recommendation for the best studio recording, and it's now available on CD for $17 directly from Bartok Records on the internet.

But there is one other recording that, in some respects, bests all the others. It's a "live" 1951 performance with the Budapest Radio Orchestra, led by Hungarian conductor Georges Sebastian (1903-1989) and formerly available on an Arlecchino CD (see my review). It has the great basso profundo Mihaly Szekely as Bluebeard (Bartok's favorite in the role), for whom Bartok actually transposed down the tessitura and slightly re-orchestrated the work in a revised edition (this performance was its European premiere). Szekely's Bluebeard is simply magnificent: straightforwardly noble, gorgeously sung, and tragically sympathetic. The Judith is mezzo Klara Palanky, long regarded in Hungary as the last century's greatest exponent of the role. She is plaintive, sensitive, and in fine voice (though she ducks the High C "Ah!" at the opening of the 5th Door). Sebastian leads a performance in good mono sound that is painted in broader strokes than Fricsay's but which is no less impressive in its cumulative force (like Fricsay and most other conductors, Sebastian omits the spoken prologue). If you can find it, this is a Bluebeard that any Bartok lover will enjoy hearing.

Strangely, I'm not as bothered by the Cantata Profana being in mono and also sung in German. The orchestral power of Fricsay's reading is simply overwhelming, and Helmut Krebs is the best tenor I have ever heard in this role.

For Fricsay's inspired conducting in Bluebeard and the outstanding account of the Cantata, this CD is recommended. But there is more to this opera than we are given here, and Bartok's operatic masterpiece is heard more fully in the versions conducted by Susskind & Sebastian. There are other good recordings (e.g., Dorati & Kertesz), but these are the three I prefer to hear.

Jeff Lipscomb

Unique and valuable but a non-starter.......2001-12-31

Attention fellow listeners: these notable performances are all sung in German, not Hungarian as Bartók originally intended. Although the late and exceptionally talented maestro Fricsay was himself Hungarian and Bartók's music champion, those two works didn't enjoy any popularity outside his home country at the time he recorded them. Therefore, he was obviously trying to do his best in order to reach a larger audience in Germany back in the 50's and 60's.

The original LP, which contained only the opera, received continental Europe's most prestigious classical music prize and set new standards for subsequent recordings of this masterpiece. It is very well performed and recorded, with the closing pages achingly beautiful and poetic in Dieskau's voice, an also distinctive if less inspired Judith in Topper's voice, plus an extremely idiomatic orchestra under Fricsay. The recording's atmosphere, depth and body were well preserved in this immaculate remastering -- and rightly so. Needless to say, much the same goes for the splendid Cantata, if technically less impressive as a recording.

Now, to be fair, listening to Bartók's music in German is like listening to Wagner in Italian or Verdi in French: it really doesn't work. The Cantata suffers even more than the opera with this Teutonic treatment, the words not fitting the melodic lines, the diction alien to the music. Anyway, if you are a Dieskau fan, you just can't miss it, his wonderful voice was at its golden apex at the time.

Incidentally, I bought this CD from the German Amazon virtual store long ago when it wasn't available anywhere else, and still love it dearly. If you are new to this repertoire, though, try the famous Kertesz's Bluebeard first, with Walter Berry and his real-life wife Christa Ludwig in the leading roles, or Sir Georg Solti's magnificent set with Sylvia Sass and Kolos Kováts among other (in my opinion, less compelling and inspired) performances still available right here at Amazon.

Bluebeards Castle op. 11: Opera in One Act

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Bluebeards Castle op. 11: Opera in One Act

Manufacturer: Hanssler Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Hungarian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Operettas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Classical | Indie Music | Stores | Music
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ASIN: B0000A0V3J
Release Date: 2003-05-01

Album Description

Question: Which two works came to fruition in 1911 (one written, the other premiered), were among.their respective composer's most personal compositions, involve landscape tone- a man and woman singing of love and loss and end with the single repeated word 'ewig...ewig'? OK, I'm bending the rules a little by quoting the German translation of one of the works but, still, it was a useful exercise listening to Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde and Bartók's Bluebeard's Castle in quick succession. The parallels certainly stand and rarely more so than on this thoughtfully moulded performance under Peter Eötvös, for my money one of today's leading Bartók interpreters.

…Some readers will remain faithful to Kertesz (a classic of its kind) or to Hairink,whose EMI Bluebeard is singularly moving, and yet the perception and idiomatic accent of this performance are enough to place it in the front rank…

Béla Bartók: Bluebeard's Castle - Jessye Norman / László Polgár / Chicago Symphony Orchestra / Pierre Boulez
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"Stones of Sorrow"

Eh

Great singers have walked this path before you

Brilliant Bluebeard

The Ingredients are here but........

Béla Bartók: Bluebeard's Castle - Jessye Norman / László Polgár / Chicago Symphony Orchestra / Pierre Boulez

Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Bartók, Béla | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
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Hungarian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
Norman, Jessye | Divas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
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ASIN: B000009CMO
Release Date: 1998-07-14

Tracks:

Bluebeard's Castle: Prologue: 'The Tale Is Old'
Bluebeard's Castle: Judith: 'Is This Really Bluebeard's Castle?'
Bluebeard's Castle: Judith: 'Ah, I See Seven Great Shut Doorways'
Bluebeard's Castle: First Door - Judith: 'Woe!'
Bluebeard's Castle: Second Door - Bluebeard: 'What Seest Thou?'
Bluebeard's Castle: Third Door - Judith: 'Mountains Of Gold!'
Bluebeard's Castle: Fourth Door - Judith: 'Ah! Lovely Flowers!'
Bluebeard's Castle: Fifth Door - Bluebeard: 'Look, My Castle Gleams And Brightens'
Bluebeard's Castle: Sixth Door - Judith: 'I Can See A Sheet Of Water'
Bluebeard's Castle: Bluebeard: The Last Of My Doors Must Stay Shut'
Bluebeard's Castle: Judith: 'Now I Know It All Bluebeard'
Bluebeard's Castle: Bluebeard: 'Hearts That I Have Loved And Cherished'

Amazon.com essential recording

But for one thing, this has the makings of a classic. Pierre Boulez's recent Bartok recordings with the Chicago orchestra have been standard-setting. And Jessye Norman couldn't be better equipped, vocally and dramatically, to sing Judith. She doesn't disappoint: Her grand temperament suits her character's aggressively curious nature while her increasingly dark lower range is put to good use in conveying the awe and horror of what she finds while probing her husband's past. Polgar is also alert to the dramatic turns of Bluebeard. However, Boulez seems a bit less involved--less coloristically attuned to the score than in past Bartok recordings. But this CD is still of great interest. --David Patrick Stearns

Customer Reviews:

"Stones of Sorrow".......2006-10-01

The best way to explain this great work is to listen to it as Bartok's orchestral music interprets the theme behind each door. Judith asks, "Why no windows? No sweet daylight?" None of these questions needs to be answered because the music answers everything. Bluebeard's reference to Judith's father and warnings about proceeding further are close parallels to Jean Cocteau's Beast in his poetic film La Belle et la Bete. There must be a relationship between the two magical works. Appropriately Philip Glass converted Cocteau's film into an opera in the 1990s. As for the doors, Bluebeard warns, "None must see what is behind them"; but we will hear what is behind them in the most remarkable orchestral music imaginable. This opera is one of those uncanny works that seems never to have been performed or heard before the next time you listen to it. Like Poe's House of Usher, the castle seems sentient. Judith says, "I heard your castle sighing" and "Look, the walls are bleeding." Bluebeard agrees: "Stones of sorrow thrill with rapture." Much of the ambience of Bartok's opera depends on the Hungarian language as rendered by Jessye Norman and Laszlo Polgar.

Eh.......2006-09-04

You can do better than this recording.

The ups: The orchestra sounds better in this recording than any other recording out there. Laszló sounds wonderful (though he's better in a different recording).

The downs: Pacing is satisfactory. The orchestra moves sluggishly due to Bou-Bou's self-indulgence (sometimes I like it, but other times it's just stupid). Jessye's singing sounds lethargic, flabby, and overweight..but why am I not surprised about that? Also, her Hungarian diction is just about on par with that of Florence Foster Jenkins. :D

Great singers have walked this path before you.......2005-09-29

Boulez conducts a cool reading without a trace of Hungarian passion or gothic melodrama, both of which are prominent in any really fine performance. His soloists are vocally suited to their parts, but Norman applies her usual generic grand aloofness and plush vocalism to a role that calls for vulnerability and awe changing to horror, while Polgar simply isn't a major artist in any way.

Bluebeard's Castle has attracted magnificent interpretations over the years, and the fact that great singers like Fischer-Dieskau, Walter Berry, Christa Ludwig, Samuel Ramey, and Anne Sophie von Otter have given their all makes this version, despite its good qualities, pretty unnecessary.

Brilliant Bluebeard.......2003-11-12

The Boulez recording of Bluebeard's Castle could well just have become my favourite opera recording! Boulez extracts wonderfull playing from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Bartok's score is terrifically intense. Laszlo Polgar's rich dark voice is a revelation in the title role, however, for me it is Jessye Norman's magesterial performance as Judith which makes the set. The role of Judith makes great use of the glorious, velvety lower range of Norman's voice, yet she is still able to rise to the challenge of the high c of amazement at the fifth door! Fabulous.

The Ingredients are here but...............2002-05-31

All of the elements needed to recreate Bela Bartok's only opera "Bluebeard's Castle" are on this recording - the magician Pierre Boulez, the mighty Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the lustrous Jessye Norman, and the authentic Hungarian Bass Laszlo Polgar. Boulez does draw out superlative playing from the CSO, Norman spins her silvery mezzo effortlessly, and Polgar treats us to the perfectly enunciated Hungarian text. But something remains very cool in this sinister tale of the depths of the human psyche and the dark side of love. Individually all performers are superb, but it is the passion of ensemble that is missing. True, we may hear more detail in Bartok's lushly romantic score, but Norman especially leaves us uninvolved in her bland exploration of the mystery of Judith and her Bluebeard.
A good alternative version, but not the definitive one.

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The Art of Janos Ferencsik Vol. 2

Manufacturer: Arlecchino
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

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Hungarian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Cantatas | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00000DMOY
Release Date: 1996-10-03

Bartok: Orchestral Works; Bluebeard's Castle

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Dorati's MLP Bartok is Back

Bartok: Orchestral Works; Bluebeard's Castle

Manufacturer: Philips
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Release Date: 2004-11-09

Customer Reviews:

Dorati's MLP Bartok is Back.......2005-06-08

Those familiar with my reviews on Amazon know of my great love for the Mercury Living Presence series. Equally great is my disgust that so many of these brilliant recordings have been deleted in the last few years! Thankfully, some of these legendary performances are resurfacing as SACD hybrids. However, they are unfortunately now being sold at full-price, despite a competing Living Stereo hybrid series on RCA/BMG being available at midline. In spite of the added expense, I hope this MLP reissue trend will continue, and maybe we'll even see a few items receiving their CD debut in this series.

These Bartok performances by the great Antal Dorati are nothing short of definitive, and have always been among my favorite MLP offerings. While three of these recordings continue to be available in their original CD incarnations -- the Violin Concerto with Menuhin, Miraculous Mandarin and Wooden Prince discs -- the remaining two discs of material have been out-of-print for some time. However, with this box set Dorati's classic Concerto for Orchestra, and Bluebeard's Castle albums are deservedly restored to the catalog. Even better is the fact that the 5CD box sets being reissued have been reasonably priced, however they are not SACD Hybrids. This set and three others (see my reviews) have a total cost cheaper than the original single issue CDs! Once again, Mercury Living Presence lives!

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