Nothing is out of place
here. The mix makes for a perfect fit
- almost too predictable as a collection.
The accent is Russian - firmly rooted
in display and melody. The catalogues
are full of technical display pieces
often for violin. Without melodic interest
they are arid and unmemorable except
to the player and listeners who are
fellow players. Both Rimsky and Borodin
blend the merely breathtaking with succulent
lyrical material.
The Capriccio
ranges from gaudy-rowdy, with
plenty of foreground instrumental detail,
to the trembling poetry of the Variazioni
section; unusually Mercury track
the Capriccio into five segments. Dorati
does not stint on the colour and solos
are assertive - try the violin in Scena
e canto gitano (tr. 4). He sets
a brisk pace for King Dodon in his
Palace (the first movement of the
suite from Le Coq d'Or)
and I thought he was a little too
brisk and matter of fact in the Queen
Shemakha movement; no complaints
though about the gorgeous cor anglais
solo. Overall I prefer Ormandy's version
on Sony though technically it does not
sound as good. Dorati's Russian
Easter Festival is sculpted,
vivid and gorgeous (try 4.29 for enthralling
magic). Finally we leave Rimsky and
move to Borodin. The orchestra is joined
by the LSO Chorus for the Polovtsian
Dances. The piquant rhythmic
material receives caring attention (6.32)
adding a buoyancy to the well loved
big tunes. These are again taken rather
quickly (8:02) but the performance is
exultant. The chorus sing in English.
The recording remains
spectacular in that sensationally close-up
Mercury way. The presentation is good
and the detailed sound is unfailingly
engaging.
Rob Barnett