London Symphony Orchestra (1904-2004): The Centennial Set
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Performer: Laurent NaouriComposer: Carl Maria von Weber
Composer: Hector Berlioz
Composer: Ludwig van Beethoven
Composer: Franz [Vienna] Schubert
Composer: Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky
Composer: Antonin Dvorak
Composer: Igor Stravinsky
Composer: Alban Berg
Composer: Edward Elgar
Composer: Claude Debussy
Conductor: Arthur Nikisch
Conductor: Hamilton Harty
Conductor: Bruno Walter
Conductor: Josef Krips
Conductor: Pierre Monteux
Conductor: Istvan Kertesz
Conductor: Georg Solti
Conductor: Claudio Abbado
Conductor: André Previn
Edition: Music CD
Format: Box set
CD Release Date: 2005-01-18
Music Label: Andante
Soundtracks:
Music CD 1
- Oberon, overture to the opera
- King Lear Overture (Grande Ouverture du roi Lear), for orchestra, H. 53 (Op. 4)
- Coriolan Overture, Op. 62
- Symphony No. 6 in C major ('Little C Major'), D. 589: I. Adagio, Allegro
- Symphony No. 6 in C major ('Little C Major'), D. 589: II. Andante
- Symphony No. 6 in C major ('Little C Major'), D. 589: IV. Allegro moderato
- Romeo and Juliet, fantasy-overture for orchestra in B minor (3 versions)
- Symphony No. 8 in B minor ('Unfinished'), D. 759: I. Allegro moderato
- Symphony No. 8 in B minor ('Unfinished'), D. 759: II. Andante con moto
- Symphony No. 6 in D major, B. 112 (Op. 60) (first published as No. 1, Op. 58): I. Allegro non tanto
- Symphony No. 6 in D major, B. 112 (Op. 60) (first published as No. 1, Op. 58): II. Adagio
- Symphony No. 6 in D major, B. 112 (Op. 60) (first published as No. 1, Op. 58): III. Scherzo: Furiant (Presto)
- Symphony No. 6 in D major, B. 112 (Op. 60) (first published as No. 1, Op. 58): IV. Finale (Allegro con spirito)
- Petrushka, ballet (burlesque) in 4 scenes for orchestra (1911 version): Tableau I. The Shrovetide Fair. The Crowds. The Mountebank's
- Petrushka, ballet (burlesque) in 4 scenes for orchestra (1911 version): Tableau II. Petrouchka's Room
- Petrushka, ballet (burlesque) in 4 scenes for orchestra (1911 version): Tableau III. The Moor's Room. Dance of the Ballerina. Waltz
- Petrushka, ballet (burlesque) in 4 scenes for orchestra (1911 version): Tableau IV. The Shrovetide Fair (evening). Wet Nurses' Dance.
- Symphony No. 5 in E minor, Op. 64: I. Andante - Allegro con anima
- Symphony No. 5 in E minor, Op. 64: II. Andante cantabile, con alcuna licenza
- Symphony No. 5 in E minor, Op. 64: III. Valse - Allegro moderato
- Symphony No. 5 in E minor, Op. 64: IV. Finale - Andante maestoso; Allegro vivace
- Cockaigne Overture ('In London Town'), concert overture for orchestra & organ, Op. 40
- Jeux, ballet, L. 126
- Benvenuto Cellini, opera, H. 76a, Op. 23: Overture
- Benvenuto Cellini, opera, H. 76a, Op. 23: [Act 1, Tableau 1]. Trio
Music reviews of London Symphony Orchestra (1904-2004): The Centennial Set
Music Review: A Spectacular Collection of 100 Years of the LSO
Rating: 5 Stars
Not all the Andante boxed sets I've heard have been wonderful, indeed some (like the 'Falstaff' set) have been not very competitive at all. But this collection of performances by the London Symphony Orchestra is spectacularly good. It contains the orchestra's very earliest recording, under Nikisch, from 1914, and comes all the way forward to some 1990s performances under Colin Davis, Georg Solti and Michael Tilson Thomas. Since Amazon has not (as yet) listed the contents, I shall do so by speaking of each performance in order of its appearance on this 4CD set.
CD1: Nikisch led the orchestra, of course using the old acoustic recording technique, in a historically interesting performance of Weber's Oberon Overture. It is in execrable sound but still one can hear why people revered Nikisch; he shapes and molds the performance beautifully. And it also shows that as far back as 1914 there was an artful application of vibrato (and, alas, rather annoying portamenti) in the string-playing, lest anyone think, as some apparently do, that string vibrato is a more recent thing. This is followed (1935) by the Berlioz's King Lear Overture led by a conductor we don't often associate with that composer, Hamilton Harty. Because of its form, 'Le Roi Lear' is hard to hold together, but Harty shows himself to be a fine Berliozian. We get a warm, dramatic and cohesive 'Coriolan' Overture by Bruno Walter (1938). From 1948 we have Josef Krips leading Schubert's 6th Symphony and I swear they sound like the Vienna Philharmonic of that period, with a warm bloom in the violins and a lightness of spirit that one doesn't hear in the earlier performances. CD1 is finished by what for me is one of the really great performances I've ever heard of Tchaikovsky's 'Romeo and Juliet' Overture, led by Pierre Monteux (1963). There is backbone and lucidity in this performance, something sometimes missing in this hyper-romantic score. The wind playing is magnificent.
CD2: This is given over, rightly, to two marvelous performances, both recorded September 1, 1966 in Royal Albert Hall by István Kertész. Schubert's 'Unfinished' Symphony is given a dark, lustrous performance; Dvorák's rarely heard Sixth Symphony is, in contrast, as light and wistful a reading as one is ever likely to hear. These two performances, as far as I know never released, are worthy of being placed in the pantheon of great performances of these two works. Stunning playing. It is important to recall that this was the point at which the orchestra had really begun to be considered the greatest in England, and for good reason. Kertész was only the music director for three years but he really brought the orchestra along and it was in exceptional shape when taken over by its next music director, André Previn.
CD3: This CD is devoted to a conductor who was never the LSO's music director but one who had a close relationship with it: Georg Solti. And the two performances here--both recorded the same day in 1994 at the Salzburg Festival--are electrifying. The complete 'Petrushka' features razor-sharp rhythmic ensemble, clarity of texture and, something sometimes not associated with Solti, a romantic, if melancholy, tinge to the tenderer moments of this marvelous score. This is easily the equal of well-regarded recordings by Rattle, Bernstein, Chailly and the composer himself. And it is followed by the echt-Romantic 'Fifth Symphony' by Tchaikovsky. Anyone who thinks Solti couldn't conduct Russian music should take a listen to this and the Petrushka. Any doubts they might have had will evaporate. The amazing thing about the Tchaikovsky is that it is an almost classic performance; he does not give in to the temptation to slobber over the most expressive passages. The orchestra plays like gods; this is perhaps the most virtuosic playing in this set (although there are others that are right up there: the Berg, Berlioz (C. Davis), the Dvorák).
CD4: An astoundingly effective 'Three Pieces for Orchestra' by Berg, conducted with absolute precision coupled with romantic and yet lucid style by Claudio Abbado (rec. 1970, prev. released on DG). (I have been a latecomer to that band of music-lovers who admire Abbado, but that has changed for me over the past year or so. This performance cements my feeling that he is one of the great conductors of our age.) The LSO play for him as if possessed. This is followed by a bit of a letdown, the Elgar 'Cockaigne' Overure, led by André Previn (rec. 1975). I've heard commercial recordings of Previn leading the LSO that rocked my world, but this one remains a bit earthbound. And, I'm sorry to say, much the same happened with Debussy's 'Jeux' (a score I adore) led by Michael Tilson Thomas. The filigree and delicacy is there but the rhythmic precision and emotional heart seem to be a bit lacking. (Somewhat surprisingly, given his reputation as a bit of a stick, Bernard Haitink's recording with the Concertgebouw remains my favorite.) Finally, there are two selections from a live performance of Berlioz's 'Benvenuto Cellini'---the Overture and the Act I trio (with G. Sabbatini, E. Futral, L. Naouri) (rec. 1999). There is, of course, no greater Berlioz conductor currently before the public. Colin Davis has played and recorded most of Berlioz's oeuvre with this orchestra; the LSO has the style in its bones at this point. And this performance is incandescent. (The sound for this selection alone is a bit treble-shy, but that can be easily fixed at playback.)
This set comes with an elaborate program book, hardbound, that contains essays by a number of people associated with the orchestra, as well as interviews with LSO players going back forty or more years. This is definitely a keeper. I am always a little leery of compilation sets like this one, but the high level of artistry and presentation are maintained except as noted above.
4CDs: TT=ca.5 hrs
Scott Morrison
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