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From: greg@olivee.UUCP (Greg Paley)
Newsgroups: net.audio,net.music.classical
Subject: More CD Reviews
Message-ID: <320@olivee.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 12-Apr-85 12:09:55 EST
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Posted: Fri Apr 12 12:09:55 1985
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Here are my impressions of several CD's I've had chance to
listen to carefully lately.  I listened to these on my
home system, which consists of Magnavox 3040 player, Hafler
110 preamp, Hafler 220 power amp, Vandersteen 2C speakers.

Copland: Fanfare for the Common Man; Appalachian Spring; Rodeo
		Atlanta Symphony/Louis Lane, cond.  TELARC

		I had no idea that Atlanta had an orchestra of
		this caliber.  The exposed brass is particularly
		impressive.  I found these to be lovely performances.
		The sound makes a good case for CD - a sense of
		effortlessness in the climaxes and complete lack
		of breakup or distortion in the mixed brass and
		percussion sections.  I am pleased and impressed
		by the natural, "un-hyped" quality of the sound,
		although the spectacular element in terms of
		frequency and dynamic extremes is all there.  
		Good depth and reproduction of ambient information.

Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet (excerpts)
		Philadelphia Orchestra/Riccardo Muti, cond.  EMI

		Although spectacular in terms of frequency response
		and dynamic range, I found this very fatiguing to
		listen to.  I love hearing the brass snarls so
		clearly, but found the strings unbearably steely.
		In general, the sound is very "close up" with
		little depth or spaciousness.  It's certainly a
		long way from the turgid, whipped-cream sonorities
		to be heard from this orchestra on CBS under the
		late Eugene Ormandy.  Part of the "fierceness" of
		the sound is undoubtedly due to Muti's interpretation
		which is "whipped up" for surface excitement at the
		expense of the beauty and lyricism that are also in
		this score.  My first recommendation, for sound and
		performance, is of the complete ballet by the
		Cleveland Symphony under Lorin Maazel, preferably
		on English Decca pressings (although now that they
		are all being pressed by Polygram in Holland, the
		newest batch of U.S. London pressings may be the
		same).

Debussy: La Mer; Nocturnes
		London Symphony Orchestra/Andre Previn, cond.

		The London Symphony lives up to its reputation as
		one of the very finest orchestras in the world.
		There is a palpable sense of inner communication
		between the individual players and sections that
		allows a seamless continuity of line.  Previn's
		direction is well-balanced and technically secure -
		the fact that he "lets" the orchestra play this
		will says more for him than would appear on the
		surface.  The performance does not have the 
		incandescent quality of the old Toscanini/NBC,
		nor the extraordinary clarity of the inner musical
		strands that Michael Tilsson Thomas' with the
		Philharmonia (available on a CBS CD).  The sound
		has good depth and clarity, and the quietness of
		CD is marvelous in the many quiet passages 
		(particularly with playing of such beauty as is
		heard here).  However, tape hiss and surface noise
		notwithstanding, the sound does not eclipse or
		even fully approach that heard with the same
		orchestra, conductor, producer and hall in the
		1977 recording of Britten's "Four Sea Interludes"
		from "Peter Grimes" on an EMI analogue LP.

Mozart: Requiem
		Margaret Price/Trudeliese Schmidt/Francesco Araiza/
		Theo Adam/Dresden Staatskapelle/Peter Schreier, cond.
		PHILIPS

		An excellent performance of the "traditional"
		(with Sussmayr additions) form of the work.  Schreier
		paces the work effectively, and his direction brings
		out the individual lines of the choral parts with
		an unsurpassed clarity, without sacrificing the
		necessary unanaimity and coherence.  The soloists
		are, with the possible exception of Theo Adam
		(worn voice, but still very expressive), as good as
		any I've ever heard.  Solo voices and much of the
		choir are beautifully reproduced (it's particularly
		a joy to hear the strength and solidity of the
		tenor section).  The orchestra sounds somewhat dull 
		and recessed by comparison, although it's by no means 
		poorly reproduced.  There is the kind of depth and
		naturalness that resembles what I've heard on many
		Telarc recordings, indicating that Philips has 
		probably used a relatively simple mike setup.  I
		read a "joke" in the West German "Audio" magazine
		that recordings made in East Germany are all the
		better because they can't afford the hundred mikes
		often used in the west.

	
	- Greg Paley