Tchaikovsky Orchestral Works
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Label: Chandos
Magazine Review Date: 7/1997
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 68
Mastering:
DDD
Catalogue Number: CHAN9514
Tracks:
| Composition | Artist Credit |
|---|---|
| Suite No. 4, 'Mozartiana' |
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer
Detroit Symphony Orchestra Neeme Järvi, Conductor Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer |
| (The) Seasons |
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer
Detroit Symphony Orchestra Neeme Järvi, Conductor Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer |
Author: Edward Greenfield
The special delight here is the orchestration of Tchaikovsky’s piano suite, The Seasons. It was made at the height of the Second World War by the soviet conductor, Alexander Gauk, presumably for a ballet, though the notes are unenlightening in this respect. What matters is that in all 12 numbers Gauk devises characteristically Tchaikovskian sounds, adding colour and atmosphere. The instrumental colouring enhances the contrasting character of each movement, reinforcing each evocative title, “By the fireside” (January), “Shrovetide Festival” (February) and so on. So, taking an obvious enough cue, the flute intensifies the melodic line in the “Song of the lark” (March), while in the fanfares of “The hunt” (September) the brass writing has distant echoes of the Fourth Symphony. Most magical of all is the “Barcarolle” (June), with sensuous string writing and a brief part for the celesta, bringing Nutcracker associations.
The Seasons suite is almost twice as long as the coupling, the Suite No. 4, Mozartiana, which Jarvi has already recorded for Chandos with the Philharmonia, as a coupling for Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto. If the Detroit recording is a degree less transparent, the performance, like the acoustic, is even warmer, aptly Tchaikovskian even more than it is elegantly Mozartian, with the soaring melody of the Preghiera third movement (as arranged from Mozart’s Ave verum corpus), made lovingly expressive rather than classically restrained. The long set of variations which makes up the finale is then given a strong and beefy performance, bringing out the jollity in these often trivial variations. In the long, penultimate Adagio variation Emmanuelle Boisvert then rightly treats the elaborate violin solo in the most romantic way. Usefully, each variation is given a separate CD track. The Detroit strings may not quite match those of the Philharmonia in refinement, but this makes a warm and attractive coupling to The Seasons.'
The Seasons suite is almost twice as long as the coupling, the Suite No. 4, Mozartiana, which Jarvi has already recorded for Chandos with the Philharmonia, as a coupling for Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto. If the Detroit recording is a degree less transparent, the performance, like the acoustic, is even warmer, aptly Tchaikovskian even more than it is elegantly Mozartian, with the soaring melody of the Preghiera third movement (as arranged from Mozart’s Ave verum corpus), made lovingly expressive rather than classically restrained. The long set of variations which makes up the finale is then given a strong and beefy performance, bringing out the jollity in these often trivial variations. In the long, penultimate Adagio variation Emmanuelle Boisvert then rightly treats the elaborate violin solo in the most romantic way. Usefully, each variation is given a separate CD track. The Detroit strings may not quite match those of the Philharmonia in refinement, but this makes a warm and attractive coupling to The Seasons.'
Tchaikovsky Orchestral Works
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