Prelude to a Kiss

Record and Artist Details

Composer or Director: Leonard Bernstein, Charles-François Gounod, Federico Moreno Torroba, Franz Lehár, Duke Ellington, Carlos Gardel, Giuseppe Verdi

Label: Decca

Media Format: CD or Download

Media Runtime: 61

Mastering:

DDD

Catalogue Number: 460 793-2DH

Tracks:

Composition Artist Credit
West Side Story, Movement: Prologue Leonard Bernstein, Composer
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Daniel Barenboim, Conductor
Leonard Bernstein, Composer
Plácido Domingo, Tenor
Renée Fleming, Soprano
West Side Story, Movement: Tonight (Balcony scene) Leonard Bernstein, Composer
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Daniel Barenboim, Conductor
Leonard Bernstein, Composer
Plácido Domingo, Tenor
Renée Fleming, Soprano
West Side Story, Movement: Tonight (Quintet) Leonard Bernstein, Composer
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Daniel Barenboim, Conductor
Leonard Bernstein, Composer
Plácido Domingo, Tenor
Renée Fleming, Soprano
West Side Story, Movement: ~ Leonard Bernstein, Composer
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Daniel Barenboim, Conductor
Leonard Bernstein, Composer
Plácido Domingo, Tenor
Renée Fleming, Soprano
Faust, Movement: ~ Charles-François Gounod, Composer
Charles-François Gounod, Composer
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Daniel Barenboim, Conductor
Plácido Domingo, Tenor
Renée Fleming, Soprano
El día que me quieras Carlos Gardel, Composer
Carlos Gardel, Composer
Daniel Barenboim, Piano
Plácido Domingo, Tenor
Quisiera verte no verte! Federico Moreno Torroba, Composer
Daniel Barenboim, Piano
Federico Moreno Torroba, Composer
Plácido Domingo, Tenor
Jota castellana Federico Moreno Torroba, Composer
Daniel Barenboim, Piano
Federico Moreno Torroba, Composer
Plácido Domingo, Tenor
Otello, Movement: ~ Giuseppe Verdi, Composer
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Daniel Barenboim, Conductor
Giuseppe Verdi, Composer
Plácido Domingo, Tenor
Renée Fleming, Soprano
In a Sentimental Mood Duke Ellington, Composer
Daniel Barenboim, Piano
Duke Ellington, Composer
Renée Fleming, Soprano
Do nothin' till you hear from me Duke Ellington, Composer
Daniel Barenboim, Piano
Duke Ellington, Composer
Renée Fleming, Soprano
Prelude to a Kiss Duke Ellington, Composer
Daniel Barenboim, Piano
Duke Ellington, Composer
Renée Fleming, Soprano
(Das) Land des Lächelns, 'Land of Smiles', Movement: Dein ist mein ganzes Herz! (You are my heart's delight) Franz Lehár, Composer
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Daniel Barenboim, Conductor
Franz Lehár, Composer
Plácido Domingo, Tenor
(Die) Lustige Witwe, '(The) Merry Widow', Movement: Lippen schweigen (Hanna, Danilo) Franz Lehár, Composer
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Daniel Barenboim, Conductor
Franz Lehár, Composer
Plácido Domingo, Tenor
Renée Fleming, Soprano
This should be a winner, ‘should’ signifying with some confidence a prediction and, with rather less, a sense of deserving. Here are two of the best and most justly admired singers of our time, the one young and pretty, the other a handsome veteran. Both are in fine voice, and just as the youth of the one is never betrayed by immaturity of style or uncertainty of technique, so the age of the other is at no point suggested by worn tone or recourse to anything other than scrupulous singing. They are accompanied in their solos by one of the century’s great pianists, who also, in the other items, conducts one of the world’s best orchestras. Their programme is varied, cleverly chosen to be both reassuring and unexpected; it is also good value yet leaves one wanting more rather than less.
What, then, are these hesitations as to ‘should’ meaning ‘ought’? They arise, but only mildly, in the first group of solos, which is Domingo’s. The first of his songs, the one by Carlos Gardel, seems commonplace in melody as in all things else; but never mind, it is not unpleasant. The love duet from Otello begins rather fomally on Domingo’s part and soon (and unusually for him) intonation comes into question (as indeed it did for a while in the Faust duet). At Desdemona’s entry an uneasy feeling occurs that what, in Fleming’s singing of Marguerite’s part in the Faust, had been the virtue of a live, intelligent response, here becomes an (intelligently) imposed expressiveness marring the beauty of the serene vocal line. Her solo group, coming immediately after, links backward and makes one wonder how far the style appropriate to Ellington has been allowed to influence the singing of Verdi. And – this is advanced somewhat diffidently – despite the assured and seemingly idiomatic performances, heretical promptings suggest that these songs of the Duke’s are not really so very good after all.
The programme ends with the waltz from Die Lustige Witwe, in time to which we lilt happily and rather wish for an encore. 60 minutes earlier, it began with the inspired surprise choice of West Side Story, a mini-suite in which the brash, violent street music alternates with achingly tender love-songs. This is fine, with Fleming’s sumptuous voice at its most beautiful; obviously it is not the ‘kid sound’ which Bernstein originally wanted, but in extracts this matters less. Then in the Garden scene from Faust they create a rapturous sense of something old and familiar made fresh and young again. For this alone I would want to have the recording, and of course there is much else. Its provenance is not entirely clear: described as ‘recorded live’, it has no applause, and the songs, with piano accompaniment, were recorded separately in the studio. More might have been revealed by one of those chatty introductory notes with behind-the-scenes stories of Renee, Placido and Danny: its absence is highly commendable.'

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