I
suspect that if you were invited to choose the most popular
and tuneful short items of nineteenth century ballet music many
if not all of these would be on your list. Even if you feel,
when listening to it, that the selection would be improved by
adding a few less hackneyed items – perhaps part of Beethoven’s
“The Creatures of Prometheus” or Sullivan’s “Victoria and Merrie
England” – that would contradict the disc’s clear intention
of choosing only the most familiar of excerpts from the most
familiar of ballets. The only exception to this is the “Dance
of the Hours”, which is rarely performed as a ballet outside
the opera - although a production by Opera North a few years
ago omitted it without any harm, and indeed some gain, to the
effect of the opera. I would imagine that it is included here
essentially because of its popularity as a purely orchestral
work.
The
performances are generally more characteristic of the concert
hall than of the theatre, but there is much to be said for the
flexibility and care over texture that this implies when no
dancers are visible and when at one point five waltzes follow
each other in quick succession. Their variety of character prevents
monotony – but only just. The orchestra is apparently made up
of professionals from various Milan orchestras. Their performances
are lively and competent without being remarkable. I found the
recording uncomfortable, at times a little dry and fierce whilst
not achieving the characteristic dryness of a theatre acoustic.
All
this may sound somewhat grudging of praise, and that would be
a pity as essentially this is a disc that does exactly what
it says on the box – it contains “a feast of great themes from
the world of ballet music all on one disc”. If that is what
you want, and you accept performances and recordings that have
been exceeded elsewhere, but possibly not all on one disc, then
this is the disc for you.
John Sheppard
National Ballet Orchestra/Pietro Garda
