Louis HÉROLD (1791-1833)
Zampa Overture [8:15]
François-Adrien BOIELDIEU (1775-1834)
Le Calife de Bagdad Overture [7:34]
Franz von SUPPÉ (1819-1895)
Leichte Kavallerie Overture [7:05]
Michail GLINKA (1804-1857)
A Life for the Tsar Overture [8:26]
Ruslan and Ludmila Overture [5:30]
Camille SAINT-SAËNS (1835-1921)
Danse Macabre [6:25]
Carl Maria von WEBER (1786-1826)
Euryanthe Overture [8:31]
Invitation to the Dance (arr. Berlioz) [9:07]
Johannes BRAHMS (1833-1897)
Academic Festival Overture [9:21]
Richard WAGNER (1813-1883)
Tristan und Isolde Prelude and Liebestod [17:48]
Der Fliegende Holländer Overture [10:056]
Die Walküre The Ride of the Valkyries [5:57]
Gioachino ROSSINI (1792-1868)
Il barbiere di Siviglia Overture [7:07]
Otto NICOLAI (1810-1849)
Die lustigen Weiben von Windsor Overture [8:08]
Paul DUKAS (1865-1935)
L’apprenti sorcier [11:39]
Johann STRAUSS II (1825-1899)
Die Fledermaus Overture [8:38]
L’Orchestre de l’Association des Concerts Colonne; Nederlands Philharmonisch Orkest Amsterdam; L’Orchestre du Théâtre de l’Opéra, Paris/Pierre Dervaux
rec. Paris, 1957-1961
GUILD GHCD2416/7 [73:25+66:11]
Zampa Overture [8:15]
François-Adrien BOIELDIEU (1775-1834)
Le Calife de Bagdad Overture [7:34]
Franz von SUPPÉ (1819-1895)
Leichte Kavallerie Overture [7:05]
Michail GLINKA (1804-1857)
A Life for the Tsar Overture [8:26]
Ruslan and Ludmila Overture [5:30]
Camille SAINT-SAËNS (1835-1921)
Danse Macabre [6:25]
Carl Maria von WEBER (1786-1826)
Euryanthe Overture [8:31]
Invitation to the Dance (arr. Berlioz) [9:07]
Johannes BRAHMS (1833-1897)
Academic Festival Overture [9:21]
Richard WAGNER (1813-1883)
Tristan und Isolde Prelude and Liebestod [17:48]
Der Fliegende Holländer Overture [10:056]
Die Walküre The Ride of the Valkyries [5:57]
Gioachino ROSSINI (1792-1868)
Il barbiere di Siviglia Overture [7:07]
Otto NICOLAI (1810-1849)
Die lustigen Weiben von Windsor Overture [8:08]
Paul DUKAS (1865-1935)
L’apprenti sorcier [11:39]
Johann STRAUSS II (1825-1899)
Die Fledermaus Overture [8:38]
L’Orchestre de l’Association des Concerts Colonne; Nederlands Philharmonisch Orkest Amsterdam; L’Orchestre du Théâtre de l’Opéra, Paris/Pierre Dervaux
rec. Paris, 1957-1961
GUILD GHCD2416/7 [73:25+66:11]
The name of Pierre Dervaux (1917-1992) is perhaps not
one which is as familiar with younger collectors as it might be. Most of
his working life was spent in France with a variety of orchestras and opera
companies as well as teaching conducting. His currently available recordings,
often deriving from broadcasts, include many French operas and operettas.
Of these the most important is Poulenc’s
Dialogues des Carmélites of which he conducted the first performance
in France and of which this is the first recording. Although he also conducted
many recordings of concertos with distinguished soloists his international
reputation was nonetheless limited. Like such figures as Hans Swarowsky,
George Hurst or Rudolf Schwarz he was perhaps more a musician’s musician
than an idol of the international public. It is good to have an opportunity
to assess his merits further.
Much of the music on these discs was more commonly found in concerts and on record in the first half of the twentieth century. For instance opportunities to hear the Overture to Zampa or Le Calife de Bagdad, let alone the rest of those operas, are rare. The performances of these and the rest of the programme are not the most polished imaginable, and the recordings are variable and sometimes poor, but everything is well considered and nothing is taken for granted. Even such a warhorse as the Overture to Die Fledermaus is made to sound individual without resort to gimmicks or over-stylisation. The Wagner extracts suggest a conductor very obviously at home in the theatre, and the Overture to Ruslan and Ludmila is taken at an unusually steady speed and gains much by it. It would be an exaggeration to suggest that there are major musical revelations here, but the listener soon develops a confidence in the imagination and musicianship of the conductor. I suspect that with front-rank orchestras and more rehearsal the results could have been even better, but there is enough here to demonstrate that Pierre Dervaux was an excellent musician, a real professional and an artist whose other recordings are worth looking out for.
The presentation is helpful and the discs are well filled, making them a useful and intriguing introduction to the work of the conductor. It would be good if it could be followed by some of his broadcast performances, especially of the unfamiliar French music of which he was an expert.
John Sheppard
Much of the music on these discs was more commonly found in concerts and on record in the first half of the twentieth century. For instance opportunities to hear the Overture to Zampa or Le Calife de Bagdad, let alone the rest of those operas, are rare. The performances of these and the rest of the programme are not the most polished imaginable, and the recordings are variable and sometimes poor, but everything is well considered and nothing is taken for granted. Even such a warhorse as the Overture to Die Fledermaus is made to sound individual without resort to gimmicks or over-stylisation. The Wagner extracts suggest a conductor very obviously at home in the theatre, and the Overture to Ruslan and Ludmila is taken at an unusually steady speed and gains much by it. It would be an exaggeration to suggest that there are major musical revelations here, but the listener soon develops a confidence in the imagination and musicianship of the conductor. I suspect that with front-rank orchestras and more rehearsal the results could have been even better, but there is enough here to demonstrate that Pierre Dervaux was an excellent musician, a real professional and an artist whose other recordings are worth looking out for.
The presentation is helpful and the discs are well filled, making them a useful and intriguing introduction to the work of the conductor. It would be good if it could be followed by some of his broadcast performances, especially of the unfamiliar French music of which he was an expert.
John Sheppard
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