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

On this CD:

1. Concerto for Orchestra, for orchestra, Sz. 116, BB 127
Composed by Bela Bartok
Performed by Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra
Conducted by Sir Andrew Davis

2. Music for Strings, Percussion, & Celesta, Sz. 106, BB 114
Composed by Bela Bartok
Performed by Toronto Symphony Orchestra
Conducted by Jukka-Pekka Saraste

Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta, Music, Bela Bartok, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Sir Andrew Davis, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, 20th/21st Century Orchestral Music, Classical, Classical Composers, Classical Music, Concerto, Concerto for Orchestra, Orchestral, Orchestral & Symphonic
Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta; Hungarian Sketches
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 stars if it weren't for Solti
  • Essential Recordings
  • Only Boulez/Chicago gets 5 Stars
  • Reiner Is Great In The Music Of Bela Bartok, RCA Deserves Praise For The Sound
  • Too much hissing
 Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta; Hungarian Sketches

Manufacturer: RCA
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

GeneralGeneral | Bartók, Béla | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
General ContemporaryGeneral Contemporary | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
$7.99 and Under$7.99 and Under | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
All Classical Music BlowoutAll Classical Music Blowout | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
Bartók, BélaBartók, Béla | ( B ) | Composers, A-Z | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
InstrumentalInstrumental | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
Classical MusicClassical Music | The Sony BMG Masterworks Store | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music
Similar Items:
  1. Stravinsky: Rite Of Spring, Fireworks, Petrouchka / Ozawa, Tilson Thomas, Chicago Symphony
  2. Shostakovich: Symphonies no 5 and 9 / Haitink
  3. Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition
  4. Dvorák: Cello Concerto; Tchaikovsky / Karajan, Rostropovich,
  5. Haydn: The London Symphonies, Vol. 1

ASIN: B000003FEJ
Release Date: 1993-08-10

Tracks:

  1. Concerto For Orchestra: Introduzione: Andante non troppo; Allegra vivace
  2. Concerto For Orchestra: Giuoco delle coppie: Allegretto scherzando
  3. Concerto For Orchestra: Elegia: Andante non troppo
  4. Concerto For Orchestra: Intermezzo interrotto: Allegretto
  5. Concerto For Orchestra: Finale: Pesante; Presto
  6. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta: Andante tranquillo
  7. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta: Allegro
  8. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta: Adagio
  9. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta: Allegro molto
  10. Hungarian Sketches: An Evening In The Village
  11. Hungarian Sketches: Bear Dance
  12. Hungarian Sketches: Melody
  13. Hungarian Sketches: Slighty Tipsy
  14. Hungarian Sketches: Swineherd's Dance

Amazon.com essential recording

Since its release on LP in the mid-1950s, Fritz Reiner's rendition of the Concerto for Orchestra has stood as the standard against which all other recordings of the work are measured. Even after all these years, the recording remains just as convincing and authoritative. Reiner's superb control of his orchestra and of Bartók's rhythms and textures is still unsurpassed, even by dozens of subsequent conductors in the digital age. Likewise, the Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta shows just what an incredible ensemble the Chicago Symphony was under Reiner's direction. This umpteenth reissue, in RCA's Living Stereo series, promises to be the one to have, its sonics noticeably improved over the earlier CD release in 1989. --David Vernier

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars 5 stars if it weren't for Solti.......2007-06-06

First of all let me say that if you are unfamiliar with Concerto for Orchestra you will not be dissapointed with this recording. The interpretation is lively and dynamic with the understanding and pathos that is needed for a well rounded interpretation. The only reason I give it 4 stars is because I am familiar with the recording of the Chicago Symphony under Solti. The Solti recording of the next generation Chicago Symphony has the same dynamism and drama but has much greater nuance. Solti simply makes music come to life in certain phrases that is seemingly overlooked by Reiner. However this recording is usually available at cheaper prices (especially used).

5 out of 5 stars Essential Recordings.......2007-03-27

Fritz Reiner was the driving force behind Bela Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra. Reiner and Bartok had been friends for over 40 years having met as piano students at the Budapest Academy. The composer had been in the United States since 1940 and the separation from his beloved Hungary combined with his ill health made the transition unhappy and he had no will to compose. Agatha Fassett's book Bela Bartok: The American Years recounts the composer's life during this time and, since Ms. Fassett knew Bartok's wife, her portrait of the composer is first hand. Maestro Reiner convinced Serge Koussevitsky in 1943 to commission the work and conducted the premiere in December of that year. The Concerto for Orchestra became Bartok's most popular work.

This recording with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra was made in 1955 and I do not think that a finer one has been recorded. The details of Bartok's score come through and the balance is perfect, allowing us a true live performance and the quality of the recording really comes through during quieter moments. Reiner's intimate knowledge of the score and his control are apparent in this recording. This is also true for the recording of Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta and Hungarian Sketches from 1958. Both works are beautifully played with great precision that lacks nothing for the feel of the music. The Hungarian Sketches are marvelously stylish, bringing out the nature of the music.

These recordings are essential and have certainly lost nothing since they were made in the 1950's. Rather than have any distortions the transfer to CD has been carried out with great success so the original sound is even better.


4 out of 5 stars Only Boulez/Chicago gets 5 Stars.......2006-09-17

Sorry Reiner fans.
3 things I do not like about this recording that keeps it at a 4 star level.
First i do not like "iron rod" style conducting. Musicality is thrown out to justify percision and disipline. I do not like Reiner's style
Secondly is the record quality is poor, especially compared to Boulez/DG
Third is the screechy instruments tonality in some of Reiner's band winds.
For Bartok I look to Boulez/Chicaho, Skrowaczewski/Minnesota and Dorati/Detroit. Ivan Fischer has also done some nice recordings on Philips, but NOT his CfO, which is a dud. I also have issues with Boulez's CfO with the New York.

5 out of 5 stars Reiner Is Great In The Music Of Bela Bartok, RCA Deserves Praise For The Sound.......2006-09-09

Just a mention that this is a review of the RCA 'Living Stereo' release, not the later SACD compatible version. RCA was famous for it's ground-breaking work in the mid-to-late fifties when it came to vivid, immersive stereo sound and it's reputation lives to this day. I'm not sure if the reviewer below is experienced in vintage classical recordings predating the digital era. Yes, they contain some tape hiss but it's really insignificant to what value the performances themselves have and the soundstage is very vibrant. I have personally listened to recordings from Solti on DECCA, Jansons on EMI and Fischer on Philips in these fine works by Bartok and none have come close to the passionate intensity of the interpretations or the wonderful recorded sound that these Reiner versions capture.

Reiner's account of the Concerto for Orchestra, one of the most famous 20th-century orchestral works, is on everyone's list as truly exceptional. The Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta receives just the kind of wicked, eerie, powerhouse performance that will make you a fan of Bartok for life and this piece in particular.

If you're going to own one Bela Bartok CD, this is one of the best choices on the market today. After you've ingrained this music into your mind, time for the Miraculous Mandarin, the Piano Concertos and the String Quartets to follow.

1 out of 5 stars Too much hissing.......2006-08-24

After reading so many positive reviews, I was very exited when I recieved this cd in the mail. I popped it in my bose wave radio, turned it up to 85, and listened to the most annoying hissing sound I've ever heard coming from my system. I regret purchasing this cd.
Instruments of the Orchestra
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Instruments of the Orchestra - Great Reference Material!
  • Beginner or Expert
  • Very Informative and Enjoyable
  • Frank's view
  • Excellent Intro for Those Not Familiar with the Orchestra
 Instruments of the Orchestra
Various Artists
Manufacturer: Naxos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

GeneralGeneral | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
Hungarian National Philharmonic OrchestraHungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra | ( H ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
London Philharmonic OrchestraLondon Philharmonic Orchestra | ( L ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
Moscow Philharmonic OrchestraMoscow Philharmonic Orchestra | ( M ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
National Philharmonic Orchestra LondonNational Philharmonic Orchestra London | ( N ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Rap & Hip-Hop | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Soundtracks | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Instructional | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music
Blowout Box SetsBlowout Box Sets | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
More Titles at Least 20% OffMore Titles at Least 20% Off | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
All Classical Music BlowoutAll Classical Music Blowout | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
Hungarian National Philharmonic OrchestraHungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra | ( H ) | Performers, A-Z | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
London Philharmonic OrchestraLondon Philharmonic Orchestra | ( L ) | Performers, A-Z | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
Moscow Philharmonic OrchestraMoscow Philharmonic Orchestra | ( M ) | Performers, A-Z | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
National Philharmonic Orchestra LondonNational Philharmonic Orchestra London | ( N ) | Performers, A-Z | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
InstrumentalInstrumental | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
Similar Items:
  1. Britten: Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra Op34; Simple Symphony Op4
  2. The Life and Works of Ludwig van Beethoven
  3. What to Listen for in Music
  4. Study of Orchestration, Third Edition
  5. The Life and Works of Frédéric Chopin

ASIN: B00006O0NT
Release Date: 2002-12-03

Tracks:

  1. Overture To 'Tannhauser'
  2. Domna, Pos Vos Ay Chausida
  3. We Don't Merely Use Instruments, We Play On Them. And They Play On Us.
  4. Hungarian Dance No.7
  5. The Violin Is One Of The Most Tender And Beautiful Instruments Ever Invented.
  6. Violin Concerto In D Major (Adagio)
  7. But For A Long Time It Was Seen As The Instrument Of The Devil.
  8. The Soldier's Tale: Triumphal March Of The Devil
  9. The Manipulative Seductiveness Of The Gypsy Violin.
  10. Csardas Music
  11. The Violin And The Initiation Of Nature
  12. The Four Seasons (Spring, Mvt 1)
  13. Birds Are Again Evoked In The Second Concerto, Especially Music's Natural Favourite.
  14. The Four Seasons (Summer, Mvt 1)
  15. Like The Devil, The Violin Is A Master Of Disguise.
  16. Old Viennese Dance No.3 'Schon Rosmarin'
  17. The Menacing Sensuality Of Ravel's Tzigane: A Very Different Side Of The Violin:
  18. Tzigane
  19. Do We Now Have The True Measure Of This Instrument? Not Just Yet.
  20. Caprice No.24
  21. 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.
  22. Variations On A Theme Of Frank Bridge (No.7)
  23. Prokofiev's Tremolo In Romeo And Juliet Should Not Be Heard Just Before Bedtime.
  24. Romeo And Juliet: Act IV
  25. Vivaldi Use It To Illustrate The Shivering Of Travellers Crossing The Ice.
  26. The Four Seasons (Winter, Mvt 1)
  27. The Violin Muted
  28. Clair De Lune
  29. The Gentleness Of Muted Strings Persists Even When A Whole Orchestra Plays.
  30. Piano Concerto No.21 In C Major, K.467 (Slow Mvt)
  31. The Pizzicato Violin
  32. Pizzicato Polka
  33. In Prokofiev's Second Violin Concerto, The Accompaniment Is Pizzicato.
  34. Violin Concerto No.2 In G Minor (Slow Mvt)
  35. 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...
  36. The Planets (Mars - The Bringer Of War)
  37. 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
  38. Hungarian Dance No.4
  39. Double-Stopping Is A Standard Feature Of A Lot Of Folk Music.
  40. The Four Seasons (Autumn, Mvt 1)
  41. Now The Same Technique, But The Sound Might Have Come From Another World.
  42. Bolero
  43. Double-Stopping Can Only Approximate The Sound Of A Real Violin Duet.
  44. Cadenza To The Violin Concerto By Brahms
  45. Now Compare That With A Real Violin Duet.
  46. Forty-Four Duos (No. 1: Teasing Song)
  47. Another Duo By Bartok, Demonstrating The Violin's Rich Lower Register
  48. Forty-Four Duos (No.2: Maypole Dance)
  49. And Now What May Be The Most Beautiful Accompanied Violin Duet In History
  50. Concerto In D Minor For Two Violins (Largo)
  51. The Soul Of The Violin Is In Song; But What About This Weird Passage?
  52. Violin Concerto No.1 In D Major (Mvt 2)
  53. The Use Of Harmonies In The Orchestra Can Be Both Magical And Unsettling.
  54. Symphony No.1 'Titan' (Mvt 1, Opening)
  55. Tchaikovsky's Use Of Harmonics In The Sleeping Beauty Is Both Strange And Darling.
  56. The Sleeping Beauty (Act II, No.15: Entr'Acte)
  57. Ravel's Harmonics In Mother Goose Effect A Magical Transformation.
  58. Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Beauty And The Beast)
  59. Stravinsky's Harmonics In The Firebird Transport Us Almost Into Another World./The Firebird (Introduction)
  60. The Natural Upper Notes Of The Violins Have A Unique Emotional 'Grab'.
  61. Also Sprach Zarathustra (Of The Afterworldsmen)
  62. Still In Their Upper Register, The Violins Unleash The Energy Of A Young Colt.
  63. Variations On A Theme Of Frank Bridge (No. 4)
  64. Elsewhere, Britten Uses The Same High Register To Create A Very Different Mood.
  65. Four Sea Interludes (Dawn) From 'Peter Grimes'
  66. To End This Outing With The Violins, A Charming Little Elfin Dance
  67. Elfenreigen

Tracks:

  1. Introduction To The Viola
  2. Viola Concerto (Mvt 1)
  3. Khatchaturian Gets A Very Different Sound From It: Fuller, Fruitier, More Exotic.
  4. Gayane Suite No.1 (Armen's Solo)
  5. Very Nearly The Whole Of The Violin's Upper Register Is Also Available To The Viola.
  6. Passacaglia, Op.33b From 'Peter Grimes'
  7. 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.
  8. Harold In Italy (Mvt 4)
  9. The Muted Viola: Intimate, Gentle, Poignant In Dvork
  10. Cypresses (No.9)
  11. The Massed Violas Of The Modern Symphony Orchestra In Mahler
  12. Symphony No.4 (Mvt 3)
  13. The 'Period' Viola In Bach
  14. Brandenburg Concerto No.6 (Last Mvt)
  15. The Cello: A Voice Of Unique Nobility
  16. Suite No.1 For Unaccompanied Cello (Prelude)
  17. Brahms And The 'Soul' Of The Cello
  18. Piano Concerto No.2 In B Flat Major (Mvt 3)
  19. Most Orchestral Composers Tend To Emphasize The Cello's Lower Register.
  20. Cantata 'Herz Und Mund Und Tat Und Leben', BWV 147 (Soprana Aria: Bereite Dir, Jesu)
  21. In The Time Of Beethoven The Cello Remained As Fundamental As Ever.
  22. Symphony No.3 'Eroica' (Finale)
  23. But The Cello Is Not Condemned To Spend Its Life In The Basement.
  24. Elfentanz, Op.39
  25. Not Only In Recital Showpieces Like That Is The Cello Is Used In Its Highest Register.
  26. The Protecting Veil (Opening)
  27. A Cello With An Identity-Crisis: The Pizzicato Flamencan
  28. Flamenco
  29. Double-Stopping In The Lower Reaches Of The Cello's Range
  30. Solo Suiet For Cello And Piano (Sardana)
  31. It's In The Middle Register That The Cello Really Comes Into Its Own.
  32. Oriental Dance, Op.2 No.2
  33. 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.
  34. Symphony No.9 (Finale)
  35. Introduction To The Double-Bass
  36. The Carnival Of The Animals (The Elephant)
  37. But The Double-Bass Can Be Intensely Expressive And Graceful.
  38. Elegy No.1 In D Major
  39. 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.
  40. Capriccio Di Bravura
  41. 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)
  42. 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....
  43. Symphony No.5 (Mvt 3)/So Much For The Strings/On Now To The Winds

Tracks:

  1. The Antiquity And Magic Of The Flute
  2. Prelude A L'Apres-Midi D'Un Faune
  3. The Versatility And Agility Of The Flute
  4. Orchestral Suite No.2 In B Minor (Badinerie)
  5. The Flute In Fifteenth-Century Spain
  6. Sa'Dawi
  7. Other Flutes: The Bass And Alto
  8. Chamber Music No.II
  9. The Piccolo - Aptly Named
  10. La Naissance D'Osiris (Mvt 6)
  11. From A Piccolo Of The Eighteenth Century To One Of Its Descendants In The Twentieth
  12. Suite No.1 For Small Orchestra (Valse)
  13. A Variety Of Techniques
  14. Chamber Music No.II
  15. Flutter-Tonguing. But Tchaikovsky Got There Eighty Years Before.
  16. The Nutcracker (Act II, No.2: Scene)
  17. From The Transverse To The Vertical: The Baroque Recorder
  18. Recorded Suite In A Minor (Menuet II)
  19. An Unfamiliar, Early Vision Of The Instrument
  20. Naelden, Naelden
  21. The Bachian Oboe
  22. Cantata 'Ein Feste Burg Ist Unser Gott', BWV 80 (No.7: Duetto)
  23. Introduction To The Cor Anglais Or 'English Born'
  24. Symphony No.9 'From The New World' (Mvt 2)
  25. The Loneliness Of The Cor Anglais
  26. The Swan Of Tuonela
  27. The Cor Anglais Joins The French Horn In Haydn.
  28. Symphony No.22 'The Philosopher' (Opening)
  29. Introduction To The Oboe D'Amore, Beloved Of Bach - But Also Of Ravel
  30. Bolero
  31. 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...
  32. 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)
  33. As The High Clarinets Tend To Be Loud, So The Bass Tends To Be Soft:
  34. Gayane Suite No. 1 (Mvt 5)
  35. 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).
  36. The Range Of The Normal Clarinet Parts Goes Quite High...
  37. The Snow Maiden (Scene 5: Melodrama)
  38. ...And Quite Low.
  39. Peter And The Wolf (The Cat)
  40. The Clarinet As Concerto Soloist
  41. Clarinet Concerto In A Major (Rondo)
  42. But That's Not The Instrument Mozart Wrote It For; This Is:
  43. Clarinet Concerto In A Major (Rondo)
  44. Introduction To The Saxophone
  45. Hary Janos Suite (Mvt 4)
  46. The Soprano Saxophone Has Quite A Different Feel To It.
  47. L'Arlesienne Suite No.1 (Minuet)
  48. The Little Sopranino Sax Goes Even Higher.
  49. Bolero
  50. The Most Famous Use Of The Saxophone Is In An Orchestration By Ravel.
  51. Pictures At An Exhibition (The Old Castle)
  52. The Saxophone Can Be Quite Contagiously Good-Humoured.
  53. Sax-O-Phun
  54. The Puffa-Puffa Image Of The Bassoon
  55. Peter And The Wolf (Grandfather)
  56. The Bachian Bassoon, In Accompanimental Mode
  57. Cantata 'Weichet Nur, Betrubte Schatten' ('Wedding Cantata'), BWV 202 (Aria No.1)
  58. Bizet Leaves The Puffa-Puffa Image Out, Allowing The Bassoon To Sing./Carmen Suite No.1 (Les Dragons D'Alcala)
  59. And Ravel, Also In Spanish Mode, Does Likewise.
  60. Bolero
  61. The Bassoon As A Voice Of High Seriousness, Indeed Desolate Loneliness
  62. Symphony No.3 (Opening)
  63. The Eerie Bassoon In Its Highest Register
  64. The Rite Of Spring (Opening)
  65. Stravinsky Now Draws On Its Lowest Register, Lonely And Melancholy.
  66. The Firebird Suite (1919, Berceuse)
  67. The Bassoon As Concerto Soloist, Avoiding All Exaggeration
  68. Bassoon Concerto In G Minor (Finale)
  69. The Deep-Voiced Contra-Bassoon, As A Fairy-Tale Beast
  70. Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Beauty And The Beast)
  71. The French Horn Under Its Woodwind Hat
  72. Wind Quintet, Op.43 (Last Mvt)
  73. Now A More Prominent Role, In A Woodwind Quintet From An Earlier Era
  74. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Op.100 No.5 (Mvt 2)
  75. The Horn In Harmonious Blend With Strings In Another Quintet
  76. Horn Quintet, K.407 (Finale)

Tracks:

  1. The Trumpet As Virtuoso Soloist
  2. Brandenburg Concerto No.2 (Last Mvt)
  3. The Special Brillance Of Paired Trumpets
  4. Concerto In C For Two Trumpets, RV537 (Mvt 1)
  5. The Ceremonial Trumpet
  6. Fanfare For The Common Man
  7. Trumpets And Drums - An Incomparable Alliance
  8. Messiah (The Trumpet Shall Sound)
  9. The Versatility Of The Trumpet, From The Most Public To The Most Lonely
  10. Piano Concerto In F (Slow Mvt)
  11. 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
  12. Carmen Suite No.2 (Habanera)
  13. The Trumpet As The Voice Of Strength And Courage
  14. Carmet Suite No.2 (Toreador's Song)
  15. The Trumpet Muted/Petrushka (No.4: The Blackamoor)/Lieutenant Kije Suite (Opening)/The Trumpet As The Voice Of Weariness
  16. Billy The Kid
  17. The Trumpet As Character Actor
  18. Pictures At An Exhibition (No.6)
  19. The Trumpet As The Voice Of God
  20. Mass In B Minor ('Et Exspecto')
  21. The Birth Of The Trombone
  22. Aenmerckt Nu Hier
  23. The Birth Of The Brass As A Family
  24. Canzon 12 In Double Echo
  25. The Trombone In The Eighteenth Century
  26. Trombone Concerto In B Flat Major (Finale)
  27. 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.
  28. Hosannah
  29. The Trombones Become Part Of The Orchestra.
  30. Symphony No.5 (Finale)
  31. The Wagnerian Trombone:/Overture To 'Tannhauser'
  32. The Trombone As Caricaturist
  33. Pulcinella (No.19: Vivo)
  34. The Trombone As Raspberry/Concerto For Orchestra (Intermezzo)
  35. The Horn And The Hunt
  36. Horn Concerto No.4 In E Flat, K.495 (Finale)
  37. The Challenging Horn Of The Baroque
  38. Abaris Ou Les Boreades (Menuet)
  39. The Scarcity Of First-Rate Players In Handel's Time
  40. Walter Music (Minuet 1)
  41. The Horn As Magician/The Firebird Suite (1919, Finale)
  42. Horns And The Sound Of Nobility
  43. Overture To 'Tannhauser' (Opening)
  44. The Special Sound Of The Horn In Its Higher Register
  45. Mass In B Minor ('Quoniam Tu Solus Sanctus')
  46. The Trumpet-Like Sound Of Massed Horns
  47. Symphony No.3 (Mvt 1, Opening)
  48. The Tuba - Unfairly Maligned?
  49. Symphony No.6 (Mvt 3)
  50. The Tuba Perfectly Cast By Ravel
  51. Pictures At An Exhibition (Bydlo)

Tracks:

  1. Introduction. And We Begin With A Bang.
  2. Fanfare For The Common Man/The Bass Drum On The Battlefields/Wellington's Victory, Op.91 (Opening)
  3. At The Opposite Extreme Is The Triangle.
  4. Piano Concerto No.1 In E Flat (Scherzo)
  5. Categories Of Percussion: Tuned And Untuned. The Side Drum
  6. Overture To 'La Gazza Ladra' - The Thieving Magpie (Opening)
  7. The Side Drum In An Effective But Unexpected Role/Clarinet Concerto (Mvt 1)
  8. The Tambourine. One Of The Oldest Instruments In The World
  9. Den Hoboecken Dans
  10. Even Older Is The Originally Oriental Gong.
  11. Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Laideronette)
  12. 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.
  13. Gymnopedie No.2
  14. 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...
  15. 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)
  16. More Versatile Than The Whip Are The Wood Blocks.../Studio Example/...Which Crop Up All Over The Place In Twentieth-Century American Music.
  17. Rodeo (Hoe-Down)
  18. 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.
  19. Scherzi Musicali (Damigella Tutta Belle)
  20. A Still Earlier Example From Fifteenth-Century Spain
  21. Yo M'Enamori D'Un Aire
  22. The Birth Of The Bongo
  23. Symphonic Dances From 'West Side Story'
  24. From The Streets Of New York To The Blacksmith's Shop/Il Trovatore ('Anvil Chorus')
  25. Desert-Island Decibels: Grand Canyon Suite (On The Trail)/Arcana
  26. From One Vegetable To Another: The Humble Squash, Or Marrow/Huapango
  27. Onwards To The Tuned Percussion. First, The Timpani
  28. Also Sprach Zarathustra (Introduction)
  29. But The Drum Roll Can Be More Effectively Frightening Than The Big Bang.: Symphony No.2 'Resurrection' (Mvt 3)
  30. Not One Drum Roll, But Many/Grand Canyon Suite (Sunrise)/Symphonie Fantastique (Last Mvt)
  31. Taking Advantage Of Tunability
  32. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celeste (Mvt 2)
  33. 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.
  34. Introducing The Glockenspiel/Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)
  35. Saint-Saens And The Xylophone
  36. The Carnival Of The Animals (Fossils)
  37. Ravel And The Xylophone
  38. Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Laideronette)
  39. Introducing The Marimba/Carmen Suite (First Intermezzo)
  40. Introducing The Vibraphone
  41. The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (Narange Dolce)
  42. The Vibraphone Goes Russian.../Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)/...And Is Joined By The Marimba./Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)
  43. Introducing The Hungarian Cimbalom
  44. Folk Dances
  45. The Cimbalom And The Symphony Orchestra
  46. Hary Janos Suite (Mvt 3)
  47. Introducing The Tubular Bells
  48. Hary Janos Suite (Viennese Musical Clock)
  49. A More 'Up-Front' Approach From Rodion Shchedrin
  50. Carmen Suite (Introduction)
  51. But The Bells Can Also Make The Sinister Even More Sinister./Symphony No.7 'Sinfonia Antartica' (Mvt 1)
  52. Introducing The Celeste
  53. The Nutcracker (Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy)
  54. Magic, In The Use Of Collective Percussion
  55. Miroirs (La Vallee Des Cloches)
  56. Plucked Instruments: The 'Undercover Percussion'/Carmen Suite (Scene)
  57. 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
  58. The Traditionally Subservient Role Of The Harpsichord In The Baroque Orchestra
  59. Brandenburg Concerto No.2 (Slow Mvt)
  60. The Piano: King Of The Tuned Percussion/Symphony No.3 'Organ' (Mvt 3)/And A Quarter Of A Century After That:
  61. Petrushka (Russian Dance)
  62. The Anti-Romantic Piano As An Integral Part Of The Orchestra
  63. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celeste (Last Mvt)

Tracks:

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

Tracks:

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

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars 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!

5 out of 5 stars 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!

5 out of 5 stars 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!

3 out of 5 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.

5 out of 5 stars 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: Concerto for Orchestra; etc. [Hybrid SACD]
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • tedious...
  • A Peerless Recording
  • dschlvr
  • There and then, here and now
  • The Gold Standard for these Bartók works.
 Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; etc. [Hybrid SACD]
Bela Bartok , and Fritz Reiner
Manufacturer: RCA
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

GeneralGeneral | Bartók, Béla | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
General ContemporaryGeneral Contemporary | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
Classical MusicClassical Music | The Sony BMG Masterworks Store | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music
Similar Items:
  1. Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition, A Night on Bald Mountain, and Other Russian Showpieces [Hybrid SACD]
  2. Richard Strauss: Also sprach Zarathustra; Ein Heldenleben [Hybrid SACD]
  3. Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade; Stravinsky: Song of the Nightingale [Hybrid SACD]
  4. Ravel: Daphnis et Chloe [Hybrid SACD]
  5. Respighi: Pines of Rome; Fountains of Rome; Debussy: La mer [Hybrid SACD]

ASIN: B0002TKFQS
Release Date: 2004-09-14

Tracks:

  1. Introduzione: Andante Non Troppo; Allegro Vivace
  2. Giuoco Delle Coppie: Allegretto Scherzando
  3. Elegia: Andante Non Troppo
  4. Intermezzo Interrotto: Allegretto
  5. Finale: Pesante; Presto
  6. Andante Tranquillo
  7. Allegro
  8. Adagio
  9. Allegro Molto
  10. An Evening In The Village
  11. Bear Dance
  12. Melody
  13. Slightly Tipsy
  14. Swineherd's Dance

Customer Reviews:

1 out of 5 stars tedious..........2006-11-10

I just could not comprehend why many music lovers love Bartok--
his music might be intellectual, but to me it's boring!

5 out of 5 stars A Peerless Recording.......2006-04-30

I loved the previous issue of this recording, but this one is even clearer, which is some praise, since the previous issue was a brilliant pressing of a brilliant recording. I never tire of Reiner's performance.

There is no other recording of these pieces that approaches this one - absolutely none (not even Leinsdorf's version). Not only is this Reiner disc the best Bartok recording ever made, but it is one of the best classical recordings ever made... truly a desert island disc.

Only a cretin wouldn't buy this record. ;)

5 out of 5 stars dschlvr.......2005-07-31

What a great step up from the previous release.
There some details that have come out in this recording that I really enjoy.
In many ways, a truly revalatory recording.
A lover of Bartok should not be without it.

5 out of 5 stars There and then, here and now.......2005-06-18

Many years ago I knew someone who had often heard Fritz Reiner conduct the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in concerts (a pleasure I am sorry to say I never experienced). Reiner's conducting style, he said, was at the opposite extreme from the histrionics of (for instance) Leonard Bernstein. On the podium, Reiner exhibited no baton waving, choreographic body language, or ecstatic or pained facial expressions. In fact, said my acquaintance, if you were seated directly behind Reiner you might not see him move at all for long stretches! Such was his rapport with the orchestra that no show-biz gestures were necessary, not to mention foreign to his temperament.

The performances he led of the two major works on this disc suggest what he was able to achieve when he conducted music that suited him. (His recordings of Richard Strauss are in the same category.) Reiner surely had an affinity with Bartok (partly, perhaps, because Reiner too was originally Hungarian).

There are recordings that make you think, "What a superb orchestra!" There are others that elicit accolades for the interpretation or the sound quality. And then there are a very few -- the best -- that make you forget about things like those while you're listening, and if you have any thought it's simply, "What great music this is."

Reiner's Bartok falls into that rarefied category, and I can think of no higher praise.

The Concerto is probably the most popular and most frequently performed 20th century piece of orchestral music. Like anything that is played and recorded often, it can seem to be too much of a good thing. To Reiner and his Chicagoans of the 1950s, it was relatively new music, and the fact that it had not yet become standard repertory may have been one reason they were able to project it so vividly: there was no routine to fall into.

It would be absurd to say that listening to this recording was like hearing the Concerto and the Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta for the first time. Nevertheless, I was more conscious than ever of the strangeness mixed with the beauty, the exoticism coupled with the power.

Technically, the recording is not one marvel but two. First was the original recording team from RCA, who must have been geniuses. Not only did they record these performances in two channels (the Concerto) and three channels (the Music for Strings etc.) before there was any commercially established way of reproducing multiple channels in playback, but they also must have used what was then state-of-the-art mikes and tape recorders.

The second marvel is the SACD remastering, which was clearly done by sound engineers who knew their business and who used only the original channels, not adding synthetic rear channels. The result is that 50 years drop away, and you are there and then. Or, thanks to the realization of Bartok's scores that you are hearing, in some wondrous dreamscape beyond place and time.

What great music this is.

5 out of 5 stars The Gold Standard for these Bartók works........2004-12-30

I suppose I could well have waited a few more days, until the turn of the New Year, to be able to say "Now, 50 years later, Bartók's Concerto for Orchestra as it must have sounded to the engineers in the studio." After all, this "classic of all classics" does date from 1955. (The other two works on the album have recording dates from 1958, and I sure don't plan to wait *that* long for a silver anniversary!) Actually, I have been listening to this hybrid SACD release for at least a few weeks now, but it was only this past weekend that I had my first opportunity to listen directly to the SACD layer; previous hearings were of the "redbook" CD layer only.

So, I'm jumping the gun as regards the 50 year celebration, but for good reason. The newly-mastered DSD sound from the analog master tapes, as heard in the SACD layer, are enough of an improvement over the redbook CD sound to justify my impatience. And the redbook CD layer is already excellent as it is!

At this late date, there is little left to be said about how significant these performances are. By now, anyone interested in these Bartók works probably already knows that Fritz Reiner had two things in his favor in these performances that make them as authoritative as they are: His close personal friendship with the composer, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in one of its most glorious periods, almost without equal (thanks of course to Reiner). Not always apparent (particularly in some of the many earlier releases of this work in less than excellent sound in years past) was the contribution of the RCA engineers in those very early days of stereo. But it all comes together, in sound better than ever thought possible, thanks to DSD (Direct Stream Digital) processing of the original analog master tapes and SACD technology for converting the sound back to analog, giving us the nearest thing to "perfect analog"; the closest possible replica of the original tapes.

The Concerto for Orchestra is, by far, Bartók's best-known and most popular work, immediately accessible in a way that many of his other mature works are not. (His very earliest works, such as "Kossuth" and the "Orchestral Suite No. 1," written largely in the style of Richard Strauss before he began his studies of Hungarian and Rumanian folk music, are also immediately accessible, if hardly of the quality of his mature works.) Reiner, being as close to Bartók as he was, knew this work "inside and out" and committed a performance for the ages in this session. He of course was also aware of the reason why Bartók chose to parodize the "invasion" theme from Shostakovich's 7th Symphony in the fourth movement of the Concerto, and plays this loopy parody, complete with its growling trombone raspberries, for all it is worth. But the work is of course much more than this oft-mentioned parody, and Reiner's interpretation is as good as any, and now - with DSD/SACD technology - fully competitive to versions recorded decades later.

If the Concerto for Orchestra is Bartók's most popular and accessible work, then Music for Strings, Percussion and Celeste ("MfSPC") is probably his greatest masterpiece in respect to incorporating his studies and usage of Magyar folk music into "serious" works. Here, Reiner and his Chicagoans are, if anything, even better than in the Concerto. Their execution of the work has a hair-raising "snap" that many other performances fail to achieve, and the sound - three years newer (1958) than the session at which the Concerto had been recorded - is even better.

The final work on the album is his Hungarian Sketches, again exhibiting the results of his musicological studies as incorporated into a unique personal style. It - like the MfSPC - was recorded in 1958 sessions, but, like that work, sounds as if it had been recorded just yesterday. For those coming upon this work for the first time, don't expect to hear ersatz "ethnic" music in the vein of Liszt and, say, Enescu. Not that assimilating the five movements is in any way difficult, but it is really only in the final movement ("Swineherd's Dance") where the music approximates what we generally tend to think of as "Hungarian folk music." But clearly tinged with the unique piquancy that was Bartók.

This is an album that always had been famous for its performances. Now, fifty years after the fact, thanks to DSD/SACD technology, it can also be appreciated for having the sound quality that had been there all the time on the original master tapes, but never quite realized with this level of perfection in its earlier reincarnations.

An essential album if ever there were one!

Bob Zeidler
Bartok: Concerto for orchestra
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • A composer Bernstein forgot, but plays beautifully here
  • Generally Unconvicing, But a Nice Coupling
  • Bartok and Bernstein
  • Lenny is at his best!
 Bartok: Concerto for orchestra

Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

GeneralGeneral | Bartók, Béla | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
General ContemporaryGeneral Contemporary | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
Classical MusicClassical Music | The Sony BMG Masterworks Store | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music
Similar Items:
  1. Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 5 & 9
  2. Ives: Symphony No. 2 & Symphony No. 3/Bernstein Discusses Charles Ives
  3. Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra (Cambridge Music Handbooks)
  4. Bernstein: Prelude, Fugue and Riffs
  5. Bela Bartok - Concerto for Orchestra: The Masterworks Library (Boosey & Hawkes Masterworks Library)

ASIN: B00000FCKV
Release Date: 1998-11-24

Tracks:

  1. Concerto For Orchestra: I. (Introduzione). Andante Non Troppo
  2. Concerto For Orchestra: II. (Giuoco Delle Coppie). Allegretto Scherzando
  3. Concerto For Orchestra: III. (Elegia). Andante, Non Troppo
  4. Concerto For Orchestra: IV. (Intermezzo Interrotto). Allegretto
  5. Concerto For Orchestra: V. (Finale). Pesante - Presto
  6. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta: I. Andante Tranquillo
  7. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta: II. Allegro
  8. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta: III. Adagio
  9. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta: IV. Allegro Molto

Amazon.com

The 1959 Concerto for Orchestra was one of Bernstein's first recordings as music director of the New York Philharmonic. It's still worthy of comparison with the classic 1954 Reiner recording considered standard by most critics. Bernstein gets the orchestra inside the music, expressing the range of Bartók's emotional world from the spookily mysterious opening to the hilarity of the intermezzo to the joyous finale. This performance makes the piece sound less conservative than it sometimes does--a decided plus. The orchestra plays extremely well, with fine work from its legendary first-chair players. Music for Strings, Percussion, and Cello, recorded two years later, is similarly effective. This coupling was previously available in a "Royal Edition," and if you have that, you don't need to replace it. But this latest mastering sounds fine for its age. --Leslie Gerber

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars A composer Bernstein forgot, but plays beautifully here.......2005-12-18

It's odd that Bernstein, a champion of tonal modernism, didn't feel closer to Bartok. In his later career, after the mid-Sixties, he recorded nothing of his music. These two rollicking recordings from 1959 (Concerto for Orchestra) and 1961 (Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta) are more heart-on-sleeve than any other I've heard. The often elusive emotions and cool distancing one feels in the Concerto for Orchestra, usually played for shallow virtuosity, here turn into fiery extroversion, wit, and bumptiousness. The piece becomes first cousin to Petrushka. The NY Phil. sounds glorious and committed; the sonics are only limited in the loudest climaxes, when things get a bit screechy. Bartok didn't want to be held close to anyone's bosom, but if you want to anyway, this is the performance for you. (One wonders, by the way, if the young LB was present when his mentor Koussevitzky premiered the work in Boston.)

The MFSP&C is an intricate puzzle piece that benefits from precise, even analytical conducting a la Boulez. Bernstein has no interest in that--the opening hollow tones of the strings in canon are romantically shaped for eerie loneliness. The two fast movement are played with thrilling extroversion, the paino quite close and the percussion flailing away. You'd have to have a heart of stone to resist--although the composer might well have.





3 out of 5 stars Generally Unconvicing, But a Nice Coupling.......2001-12-25

If you don't listen to, and review, serious music for a living, comparing and contrasting tens of versions of each major composition--and how many can do that?--you invariably lock into your favorite recording of any giving piece. This tends to "groove" your ears and musical soul. For almost 50 years, the gold standard for this Concerto has been Reiner and the Chicago, and for listeners of my age--I've had the Reiner for 30 years--we have worn our vinyl RCAs flat in our love for this music. Reiner was Bartok's friend from their student in Budapest and later became the powerful proponent--and authoritative interpreter--of Bartok's work.

One thing jazz musicians who cross over into classical music (Benny Goodman, Wynton Marsalis), or vice versa (Andre Previn), teach us is that, for ANY music, Ellington has the last word: "It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing." All great conductors swing. (Listen to how Reiner swings this concerto, or John Barbirolli swings--yes, swings--the Mahler 9th, and your ears will change forever.) Bernstein, who knew jazz idiom intimately, almost intuitively, usually swings with the best. But in this early recording, he mostly plods, with a metronomic mediocrity that defies any expectation.

Bernstein had clearly listened to, and adopted aspects of, Reiner's authoritative version--in passages of the first and fifth movement, tempi and section articulation seem to duplicate Reiner's, note for note. (I have a recollection, which I cannot document, that Reiner played the Concero according to, or very close to, the timings expressly prescribed by the meticulous Bartok.) I recognize that the flaw may be my ears and what they're accustomed to, but for me, with few exceptions, the Bernstein drags throughout and, as such, sounds lackluster and ponderous.

The main exception is in the presto finale, which is played at an absolutely blistering pace and is quite stirring. As I listened, I imagined the bows of the string players beginning to smoke, then bursting into flames, then entire string sections igniting. That hot. These are Bernstein's most impressive moments on this disc--and he also brings the orchestra nicely to a crescendo, always a strongpoint for melodramatic Lenny.

The Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celeste is a packaging bonus, however, which in the era of the CD, has become the standard coupling for the Concerto. The Music for Strings is played, to my mind and ears, to a much higher standard.

In all, however, I would pass on this CD and opt for the Reiner. Even if you're collecting Bartok, many superior recordings (particularly if you do not HAVE to have digital) of this music--including the Antal Dorati and Ferenc Fricsay--remain in the catalogue at a low budget price.

5 out of 5 stars Bartok and Bernstein.......2001-05-22

Bernstein was a great Bartok conductor. The music sizzles and becomes alive with an intensity that grips the listener. These towering monuments of 20th music by one of the greatest composers of the millenium are conducted with a wide range of expression, color, and emotional power by one of the great condutors of the century-- This CD is a must for the serious listener.

5 out of 5 stars Lenny is at his best!.......2000-06-19

This is one of the first recordings Bernstein made as Music Director of the New York Philharmonic. Though he was never able, in my opinion, to get a consistent level in each recording as what say George Szell and his Clevelanders, this recordings is well done. The recorded sound is excellent. The concerto was recorded at the St. George Hotel in Brooklyn. The Strings, Percussion, and Celesta is probably the best recording available today. The playing is very precise, even more than Boulez's recording with the CSO. For anyone who enjoys this music, buy it today!
Bartók: The Miraculous Mandarin; Hungarian Sketches: Suite No. 1
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Bartok--Young and Old
  • Astounding performances and rich in its selections
  • Astonishing value!
 Bartók: The Miraculous Mandarin; Hungarian Sketches: Suite No. 1

Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

GeneralGeneral | Bartók, Béla | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
SuitesSuites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
Ballets & DancesBallets & Dances | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
General ModernGeneral Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
General ContemporaryGeneral Contemporary | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
PianoPiano | Keyboard | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
Detroit Symphony OrchestraDetroit Symphony Orchestra | ( D ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
The Decca Records StoreThe Decca Records Store | Specialty Stores | Music
Similar Items:
  1. Hindemith: Orchestral Works

ASIN: B0000042DM
Release Date: 1997-10-14

Tracks:

  1. The Miraculous Mandarin, Op.19: Allegro - Curtain
  2. The Miraculous Mandarin, Op.19: First Decoy Game: Moderato
  3. The Miraculous Mandarin, Op.19: Second Decoy Game
  4. The Miraculous Mandarin, Op.19: Third Decoy Game (Sostenuto)
  5. The Miraculous Mandarin, Op.19: Maestoso
  6. The Miraculous Mandarin, Op.19: Allegro
  7. The Miraculous Mandarin, Op.19: Sempre vivo
  8. The Miraculous Mandarin, Op.19: Adagio
  9. The Miraculous Mandarin, Op.19: Agitato
  10. The Miraculous Mandarin, Op.19: Molto moderato
  11. The Miraculous Mandarin, Op.19: Piu mosso
  12. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta: I. Andante tranquillo
  13. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta: II. Allegro
  14. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta: III. Adagio
  15. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta: IV. Allegro molto
  16. Hungarian Sketches: I. An Evening In The Village: Lento Rubato
  17. Hungarian Sketches: II. Bear Dance: Allegro vivace
  18. Hungarian Sketches: III. Melody: Andante
  19. Hungarian Sketches: IV. Slightly Tipsy: Allegretto rubato
  20. Hungarian Sketches: V. Swineherd's Dance: Allegro molto

Tracks:

  1. Rhapsody For Piano And Orchestra, Op. 1 - Bela Bartok
  2. Suite No. 1, Op. 3: I. Allegro vivace - Bela Bartok
  3. Suite No. 1, Op. 3: II. Poco adagio - Bela Bartok
  4. Suite No. 1, Op. 3: III. Presto - Bela Bartok
  5. Suite No. 1, Op. 3: IV. Moderato - Bela Bartok
  6. Suite No. 1, Op. 3: V. Molto vivace - Bela Bartok
  7. Two Pictures, Op. 10: I. In Full Flower - Bela Bartok
  8. Two Pictures, Op. 10: II. Village Dance - Bela Bartok

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Bartok--Young and Old .......2007-03-31

This disc brilliantly contrasts the mature, maverick Bartok with the younger, more traditional (but no less inspired) composer. Surprisingly, the earlier works hold up quite well, and still bear Bartok's distinct stamp and color--which is certainly not the case for many great composers (Stravinsky's early symphony, for example). Dorati is among the greatest interpreters of Bartok's music, and his version of the Mandarin is astounding, as expected. Full of fire, atmosphere, and passages of eerie beauty. His Music for Percussion and Strings is also amazing, though I actually prefer his version on Mercury with the London SO (coupled with his rare ballet, The Wooden Prince--better sound, too). But this is a small quibble, and the performance is spirited and inspired.

But I feel I really have to pitch the two largely unknown early works, the Rhapsody for Piano & Orch., Op.1 and the Suite No.1 for Orchestra, Op.3. The Rhapsody is a pungent, virtuostic piece, somewhat similar to Strauss' early Burleske, though with a more Hungarian lilt to it. It also complements his Violin Rhapsodies, though this piece is more squarely in the tradition of Liszt, Dohnanyi, and Kodaly. Why this is not more performed I will never know--it would be a sure crowd pleaser (particularly for those who are unfamiliar and unenthusiastic about his idiom).

However, my favorite piece of all is the remarkably inventive Suite, which overflows with Romantic Nationalism in a vein that skirts Dvorak and the Russians, though sounds nothing at all like them. The first movement opens up with a Straussian march, heroic, even a bit pompous, though orchestrated with glitter and fireworks. The second movement is all grim, Hungarian atmosphere, and indeed, the ominous drumbeat with muffled trumpets is quoted in the Concerto for Orchestra so many years later (or so I believe, maybe he didn't mean it?). Indeed, this piece is itself a kind of Concerto for Orchestra, as the orchestra is kept very busy embellishing his folk-like melodies. A dashing scherzo follows, and then a haunting slow movement which again sounds very nationalistic, a kind of piece Bartok would never write again. Even less Bartokian is the festive finale, which sounds a lot like Smetana--though it's completely captivating in its own, derivative way. In short, the Suite is a work of genius, if a slightly immature one; but that doesn't stop me from listening to it over and over again. Sadly, I don't have a recording of his Second Orchestral Suite...is there a Dorati version floating around somewhere?

The disc concludes with the most haunting, atmospheric, intense account of the oft-recorded Two Pictures, Op.10 I have ever heard. The sheer longing of the opening melody is almost unbearable. I also love how Dorati brings out the Debussyian sheen of the orchestra in this piece. We hear Bartok's distinct voice for the first time in the second "picture," which smacks of the sardonic humor of the Mandarin.

A wonderful, bargain of a disc that should not be missed, no matter how many Mandarins you have in your collection.

5 out of 5 stars Astounding performances and rich in its selections.......2006-04-17

There is no doubt that from start to finish, on both CD's
(there are 2) every performance is extremely strong
and the audio is incredible.

The weak spot, of this release, however, is the lack
of continuity between the numbers, considering that
some of them are very differnet from each other,
such as from one composition to the next, there is
a noticeable change in mood, and musical point of view,
which distracts from the enjoyment experience.

As such, my pick on this set is unquestionable the
"Miraculous Mandarin" which is incredible in the skill
shown by the musicians and by the man leading the group
in playing and showing a cohesive musical message.

The loudness of "Miraculous Mandarin" slams the listener
like a hurricane that's never been felt before....which
is an experience that most music fans will have difficulty
achieving anywhere else.

The other pieces, on their own, are simply perfect and
gems that only the composer's, the genius Bela Bartok,
could have crafted.

5 out of 5 stars Astonishing value!.......2006-03-09

If I wanted to represent Bartok in my classical CD collection with multiple popular works, this would be my CD of choice. A two-CD set, these well-known Bartok compositions are perfectly rendered. Add to that fact that the engineering/sound is just great and there you have it.

I'll let you do your own researching about the composer and his respective works but I will say that there's not a bad cut on either CD of this set. There is a mixing of three different orchestras and conductors on this recording but they all mesh right in, all superb.

What more can I say? It's an awesome set -- buy it!
Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra / Fricsay
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Authentic Bartok.
 Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra / Fricsay

Manufacturer: Polygram Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

GeneralGeneral | Bartók, Béla | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
General ContemporaryGeneral Contemporary | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000001GQV
Release Date: 1997-01-28

Tracks:

  1. Concerto For Orchestra Sz 116: 1. (Introduzione). Andante non troppo - Allegro vivace
  2. Concerto For Orchestra Sz 116: 2. (Giuoco delle coppie). Allegretto scherzando
  3. Concerto For Orchestra Sz 116: 3. (Elegia). Andante, non troppo
  4. Concerto For Orchestra Sz 116: 4. (Intermezzo interrotto). Allegretto
  5. Concerto For Orchestra Sz 116: 5. (Finale). Pesante - Presto
  6. Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta Sz 106: 1. Andante tranquillo
  7. Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta Sz 106: 2. Allegro
  8. Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta Sz 106: 3. Adagio
  9. Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta Sz 106: 4. Allegro molto

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Authentic Bartok........1999-09-24

This collection of pieces by Bartok is conducted by his Hungarian compatriot, Ferenc Fricsay. Fricsay, a student of Bartok while at the Franz Liszt Academy, has a unique understanding of his music and really brings it alive. This version of the Concerto for Orchestra is recognised as a classic - with hungarian authenticity and a superbly executed performance, this is an electric experience. The Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta is a personal favourite - if you've never heard Bartok before start off with this version. The sound is mono (recorded in the mid/late 50's) but this doesn't detract from the enjoyment of listening to these pieces played by a master.
Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Bartok straight from the fridge
  • A disappointment.
  • Orchestral Brilliance!
  • Bartok experts agree
 Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta

Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

GeneralGeneral | Bartók, Béla | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
General ContemporaryGeneral Contemporary | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
Classical MusicClassical Music | The Sony BMG Masterworks Store | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music
Similar Items:
  1. Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta; Hungarian Sketches
  2. Debussy: Nocturnes; La Damoiselle élue; Le Martyre de Saint Sébastien
  3. Bartók: Piano Concertos Nos. 1-3
  4. Olivier Messiaen: Turangalîla-Symphonie; Quatuor pour la fin du temps
  5. Debussy: Images/Prelude a l'Apres-Midi d'un Faune/La Mer

ASIN: B0000029R4
Release Date: 1996-11-19

Tracks:

  1. Concerto For Orchestra: I. (Introduzione). Andante non troppo
  2. Concerto For Orchestra: II. (Giuco delle coppie). Allegro scherzando
  3. Concerto For Orchestra: III. (Elegia). Andante, non troppo
  4. Concerto For Orchestra: IV. (Intermezzo interrotto). Allegretto
  5. Concerto For Orchestra: V. (Finale). Pesante - Presto
  6. Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta: I. Andante tranquillo
  7. Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta: II. Allegro
  8. Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta: III. Adagio
  9. Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta: IV. Allegro molto

Amazon.com

Here are two outstanding performances of Bartók's greatest orchestral works. The creepy first and third movements of the Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta appeared as mood music in Stanley Kubrick's The Shining (remember the "river of blood" scenes?), but the other two movements are full of healthy Hungarian dance rhythms. The Concerto for Orchestra was Bartók's last completed work, and it instantly became his most popular. Esa-Pekka Salonen and his Angelenos treat the music with extreme virtuosity--the tempo of the finale, in particular, is amazing. Moreover, Sony has captured this evocative and colorful music in sound of extraordinary range and depth. There's a bass-drum thwack in the first movement of Music that might blow up your system if you're not careful. Great stuff. --David Hurwitz

Customer Reviews:

3 out of 5 stars Bartok straight from the fridge.......2007-02-21

Salonen is enough of a technician and such a cool modernist that this analytical, semi-frozen dissection of the Concerto for Orchestra must be intentional. If you don't think Bartok should be lusty, humorous, touching, or emotionally intense, this is the recording for you. Sony supplies ultra-detailed sound in keeping with the ssurgery being performed on stage. I don't find that the LA Phil. plays with any exceptional brilliance--listen for comparison to recordings from Solti, Bernstein, Karajan, et al. if you want to hear real brilliance.

The Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta suits Salonen's approach far better, since it is a complex puzzle piece with many overlapping lines that need untangling. He does that extremely well, and the detailed sonics give us a clear x-ray of the score. Again, there are more colorful and vibrant readings (from Reiner, Bernstein, Levine, and Harnoncourt, to mention four I happen to like a great deal), but none is as crystal clear as Salonen's--I could hear every ping of the celesta no matter how many insturments it was competing with. A fair rating would be four or five stars for this work on its own.

5 out of 5 stars A disappointment........2006-06-22

I was eager to give this disc a spin, having other Salonen/L.A. recordings on my shelf that I completely enjoy. This one is not going to join them unfortunately. There is somethine not quite right. Perhaps more than one thing. It is like the engineer is simply pointing a spotlight here (on the trombones) or there (on the trumpets). But there is not a very good overall flow of each individual movement. It sounds like it was put together with a different section from different orchestras.

There is no question that the Los Angeles Philharmonic has risen to new challenges under Salonen, so this recording is to me a big disappointment. At various times here, one is even reminded of mid-American orchestras where the brass so overpowers all of the rest of the musicians that there is no balance. Also, it seemed that Salonen highlighted various smaller aspects of the score at times to the detriment of the overall structure.

Yes there is incredible sonic power here. You will have to crank the volume up just to hear the opening of the first movement of the Concerto, but then your have to adjust it downward later to avoid loosing your window paines.

There is incredible virtuosity (I'm told) in the last movement of the Concerto, but the recorded sound on this CD does not really pick it up very well, it just sounds blurry. I've heard analog recordings with more clarity.

5 out of 5 stars Orchestral Brilliance!.......2002-05-31

Sometimes it takes a live performance of a composer's work to send us back to our trusty CD collection in an attempt to extend the thrill of what we have just heard. This is the case with turning to these perfomances of Bartok's two great orchestral masterworks - the Concerto for Orchestra and Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta as bountifully conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen and the LA Philharmonic. The event that started it all was hearing the LA Opera production of Bartok's "Bluebeard's Castle", a profoundly moving work in which the orchestra is the main character, albeit ably joined by Bass and Mezzo. Driving home I was left wondering if all of the lush writing for the orchestra in that opera was equalled by Bartok's other works. The answer is "most assuredly". This CD is not only wondrously performed, the sound engineering is superb. The LA Phil plays passionately and intelligently for Salonen. Bartok and Salonen make a perfect fit and we await his Miraculous Madarin performances this fall. This CD is in this listener's opinion the best recording available for finesse, for insights, and for the lush palletes of color that Bartok paints. Even on a car stero system this recording is breathtaking!

5 out of 5 stars Bartok experts agree.......2000-06-21

I had a recent conversation with renouned Bartok expert Ben Suchoff (check out books on Bartok--he wrote most of them), and we indeed discussed recordings of the concerto for orchestra. He expressed that his favorite was this one. I myself am very passionate about this performance of the Concerto, and I'm developing a growing respect for Salonen's work with LA. Ben, however, had not heard Slatkin's, Boulez's, or Blomstedt's. I think Slatkin's is the most intelligent interpretation, in terms of playing what Bartok would want and not what simply suits the conductor's fancy. St. Louis performs it flawlessly, as well--the best brass I've heard in a recording of the Concerto, save perhaps Mehta's with Berlin. Slatkin also includes the original ending, which is nice, and I prefer that ending. Unfortunately Slatkin's is no longer in print, so we should petition BMG. In sum, I certainly don't think you could go wrong with this performance, and your purchase would be backed by an endorsement from the top Bartok scholar.
Bartok: Concerto for Orchestra, Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta, etc.
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • Exciting!
 Bartok: Concerto for Orchestra, Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta, etc.
Solti , and Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Manufacturer: Decca/Universal
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
The Decca Records StoreThe Decca Records Store | Specialty Stores | Music
Similar Items:
  1. Stravinsky Conducts Stravinsky: Petrouchka/ Le Sacre du Printemps

ASIN: B000068Q5U
Release Date: 2002-05-31

Tracks:

  1. Concerto For Orchestra
  2. Dance Suite
  3. Hungarian Sketches
  4. Romanian Folk Dances
  5. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta
  6. Divertimento
  7. The Miraculous Mandarin - Suite

Album Details

This Decca Double Decker Release Offers World Class Performances and Recordings of Bela Bartok's Most Famous Orchestral Works. Having Received Grammy Awards Many Times for his Bartok Recordings (Some of which have Been Reincarnated and Are Reissued Here), George Solti is Recognized as One of the Composers Foremost Interpreters. The Chicago Symphony Sounds as Mighty and Intensely Responsive as Ever; And Decca's Sonics Are Simply Spectacular with Remarkable Clarity and Depth. This is Bartok for the Ages.

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Exciting!.......2005-09-06

I've heard a few different recordings of both the Concerto for Orchestra and Dance Suite by Bartok (and I've also played both of them in an orchestra.) In my opinion, this particular recording, while not the greatest ever, stands out from others because of the intense vigor which is always present, whether simmering beneath the mysterious opening melodies of the Concerto for Orchestra, or the gargantuan glissandos in the Dance Suite. Solti, like Bartok, was Hungarian (and he actually studied piano under him at the Budapest conservatory [which I was fortunate to visit this past summer],) so I think he captures the rustic flavor of the pieces very well, instead of just glossing over the less pretty aspects of the pieces as some orchestras are wont to do. All in all, a record that definitely has you dancing in some places, and staring into space in awe of eternity in others. Part of that is Bartok, and part of it is Solti.
If you haven't heard the Concerto for Orchestra, it's one of the masterpieces of Contemporary Classical music. It's nigh near impossible to describe music in words, so just give it a listen. If you've heard it before, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by this presentation.
Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Gorgeous sound and music
 Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta

Manufacturer: Polygram Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

GeneralGeneral | Bartók, Béla | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
Dutoit, LaurenceDutoit, Laurence | ( D ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
General ContemporaryGeneral Contemporary | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
Similar Items:
  1. Stravinsky: Pétrouchka; Le Chant du rossignol
  2. Respighi: Pini di Roma/Feste Romane/Fontane di Roma

ASIN: B00000E3QN
Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

  1. Concerto For Orchestra - I. Introduzione
  2. Concerto For Orchestra - II. Giuoco Delle Coppie
  3. Concerto For Orchestra - III. Elegia
  4. Concerto For Orchestra - IV. Intermezzo Interrotto
  5. Concerto For Orchestra - V. Finale
  6. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta - I. Andante Tranquillo
  7. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta - II. Allegro
  8. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta - III. Adagio
  9. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta - IV. Allegro Molto

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Gorgeous sound and music.......2006-09-25

The music for strings, percussion, and celesta is one of my favorite pieces. This recording is gorgeous with a wonderful tense pacing. Should be part of every collection.
Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; Music for Strings
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • Karajan's Bartok--pinpoint accuracy and no rough edges
 Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; Music for Strings

Manufacturer: EMI Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

GeneralGeneral | Bartók, Béla | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
General ModernGeneral Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
General ContemporaryGeneral Contemporary | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
Berlin Philharmonic OrchestraBerlin Philharmonic Orchestra | ( B ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
ASIN: B0009K2YTQ
Release Date: 2005-08-16

Tracks:

  1. I. Introduzione: Andante Non Troppo/Allegro Vivace
  2. II. Giuoco Delle Coppie: Allegretto Scherzando
  3. III. Elegia: Andante Non Troppo
  4. IV. Intermezzo Interrotto: Allegretto
  5. V. Finale: Pesante/Presto
  6. I. Andante Tranquillo
  7. II. Allegro
  8. III. Adagio
  9. IV. Allegro Molto

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Karajan's Bartok--pinpoint accuracy and no rough edges.......2006-05-21

Karajan took a narrow view of Bartok's output, giving us only two works, the Concerto for Orchestra and the Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta, but he was devoted enough to record each three times (once with the Philharmonia in the Fifties, twice with the Berlin Phil. in the Sixties and after.) There is also a concert broadxast of the Third Piano Concerto with Geza Anda from Salzburg.

Critics were not generally pleased with Karajan's ultra-controlled, somewhat bloodless way with Bartok, which seemed far removed from folkloric Hungary--the Gramophone spoke of "Berlin cream sauce" being poured over the music. Certainly there are no rough edges anywhere in these readings, which EMI has remastered in vivid sound, with strikingly wide stereo separation in the MFSP&C in keeping with the composer's precise direcitons about how the musicians are to be placed onstage.

Anyone who wants tangy, angular Bartok won't be happy, but as compensation we get really astonishing virtuosity from the Berliners; the strings' ability to handle Bartok's presto passagework in the finale of the Concerto and the second movement of the MFSP&C is unequalled in my experience. Most listeners will fall back on the familiar recommendaiton of Reiner or Solti in this music, but Karajan provides thrills and a perspective all his own.

Music Track:

  1. Beethoven: Sonatas for Fortepiano, Op. 2
  2. Belgian Violin School
  3. Beniamino Gigli
  4. Beniamino Gigli: Buenos Aires & Rio de Janeiro
  5. Cantus Selecti [Import]
  6. Caplet: Mélodies
  7. Caruso Sungs Italian Opera
  8. Celebration
  9. Concertgebouw Series: Grace Moore; Rio Ginster; Betty van den Bosch
  10. Contrastes (Reis)

Music Track

music track

Recommended Music:

Ladies of the 1980's

Oregon Composers

Schubert: String Quartet No.15

Music: Portable EFO Show

Telestic Disfracture

Roots'N Roll

Sing Dance Play

Stephan: Liebeszauber

Tales From the Crypt

Oye... Cumbia Caliente

Sublime

Revive O Chorinho II [Import]

Nachschlag/Refill [EP]

Hindemith: Concerto for Orchestra, Op.38; Violin Concerto

London Is the Place for Me