- Audio CD (Jan 12 2007)
- Number of Discs: 1
- Label: EMI Classics
- ASIN: B00000GCAB
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #74,864 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
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Product Details |
Track Listings
| 1. 'Peer Gynt' - Incidental Music: Wedding March |
| 2. 'Peer Gynt' - Incidental Music: Ingrid's Lament |
| 3. 'Peer Gynt' - Incidental Music: In The Hall Of The Mountain King |
| 4. 'Peer Gynt' - Incidental Music: Morning |
| 5. 'Peer Gynt' - Incidental Music: Ase's Death |
| 6. 'Peer Gynt' - Incidental Music: Arabian Dance |
| 7. 'Peer Gynt' - Incidental Music: Solveig's Song |
| 8. 'Peer Gynt' - Incidental Music: Anitra's Dance |
| 9. 'Peer Gynt' - Incidental Music: Return of Peer Gynt - Storm Scene |
| 10. 'Peer Gynt' - Incidental Music: Solveig's Lullaby |
| 11. Symphonic Dance, Op.64 No.2 |
| 12. Concert Overture 'In Autumn', Op.11 |
| 13. An Old Norwegian Folksong With Variations, Op.51 |
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Customer Reviews
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Well deserves its rosette award.,
By
This review is from: Peer Gynt/Symphonic Dance 2/Fo (Audio CD)
Beecham's recording of Grieg's Peer Gynt incidental music has been one of his most frequently reissued items since its first 1957 release. Purists and fuss-budgets might cavil at the vocal items being sung in German and the omission of two of the twelve items from the complete score, but there are enough merits to make this preferable to all other versions. The inimitable swagger, the tenderness, the beauty of phrasing, and the finely judged balancing of orchestral textures that Beecham could achieve are everywhere to be heard. Other Grieg works conducted by Beecham, less well-known, have been added, to provide 76 minutes of listening. Digital remastering has enhanced and clarified the stereo originals. This is one of the few CDs to receive a rosette in the prestigious Penguin Guide To Compact Discs.
5.0 out of 5 stars
A CLASS ACT,
By
This review is from: Peer Gynt/Symphonic Dance 2/Fo (Audio CD)
Much as I dislike the word, it's simplest to use it - Beecham had class. I do not believe I can even think of anything he ever did badly, or anything that is lacking in grace and elegance. There is strength there too, and obviously a touch (or more than just a touch) of arrogance. He was no great enthusiast for Bach, Beethoven or Brahms, and it's hard not to suspect that this was at least partly because these gardens of the muses were particularly well-tended by so many others. He was impatient and easily exasperated by Bruckner and Vaughan Williams, and I have to confess so am I. That left a great deal for Beecham to outshine all others in, and here he is outshining them all in Grieg's Peer Gynt. It does not seem to me that Grieg is even remotely equal to the theme of Ibsen's Peer Gynt, which I believe rivals the story of Faust itself in its contemplation of the issues of love, death and redemption. Grieg does not have the 'size' for that. What he is able to do is embroider the theme with musical numbers that are by turns picturesque, sentimental and sometimes even deeply felt beyond mere sentiment. It is a kind of music that called up Beecham's special wizardry in particular. The opening wedding march has the familiar Beecham swagger, the trolls in the Hall of the Mountain King are almost worthy of Peter Jackson, the hackneyed Morning breaks like the first morning, and Ase's death strikes a deeper note. Here the composer actually does get somewhere close, in a simplified way, to the complex tenderness and pathos of the scene where Gynt eases the worn-out old woman out of this world. The orchestral tone Beecham obtains near the end, and the exquisite timing of the final chords, are things worth getting this disc for on their own. Ilse Hollweg as Solveig is quite outstanding in the famous Solveig's Song and in the final lullaby. For its time the recorded quality is quite extraordinarily good. Beecham was particularly adept at obtaining good recordings, by what combination of personal magnetism and outright intimidation I don't know although it's probably easy to guess. There is a fine little selection of makeweights bringing the playing time of the set to an hour and a quarter.
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the best of the series,
By
This review is from: Peer Gynt/Symphonic Dance 2/Fo (Audio CD)
These performances are so good they actually made me reconsider the music. Prior to hearing Beecham's recording the only Grieg that I found really enjoyable were his lyric pieces played by Emil Gilels - and frankly I wondered how much of that could be attributed to Gilels. Modern versions of his orchestral music always felt a little empty and, inevitably, failed to inspire repeated listenings. This recording is so alive, vibrant and emotionally communicative that it's now a firm and much listened to favourite. Also the sound quality is hard to believe - over forty years old and it sounds better than almost all modern orchestral recordings - lots of detail and a lifelike warm tone. The recent remastering process used by EMI seems to work its wonders best with these 50's and 60's analog recordings. Anyway, this is the sort of CD I'd like to buy as a present for a good friend - just fantastic music making.
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