Symphonie fantastique

"No one could write for brass more blazingly than Berlioz, and his skillful handling of the woodwinds is even more apparent when heard with early Romantic timbres. The ultimate pleasure of this disc, though, is found in the cohesion, agility, and passion of the group's playing, and Roth's confident leadership comes through in his precision and alert attention to details. Highly recommended".

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"I 1830 komponerede franskmanden Hector Berlioz sin skelsættende "Symphonie fantastique" - og ... lyt ... til den medrivende musik, for når den bliver spillet, som det er tilfældet på denne skive, hvor Daniel Barenboim dirigerer sine " sammenbragte børn" i det jødisk-arabiskspanske West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, må man simpelthen overgive sig ... Romantik, der virkelig rusker op i sjælen".

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"Daniel Barenboims nyudsendte fortolkning ... har på mange måder den tydelighed, der skal til, for at man kan følge Berlioz' program. Strygerne er fokuserede, afsnittene velformede og velklingende ... Til gengæld er der også en nøgternhed, der ikke ligner Barenboims normale bredde ... langt fra den romantiske klangpoesi, man også forbinder Berlioz og for den sags skyld Barenboim med".

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"Farvemagien i den ultimative orkesterklassiker, Berlioz' 'Fantastiske symfoni' om en ung mands opiumsmareridt, har de dejligt styr på. Den hårdtarbejdende Barenboim viser også, at han har fundet en delikat balance mellem det inderligt personlige og det umiddelbart pirrende i sit unge mellemøstlige orkesterfællesskab".

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"Det lyder ret fantastisk. Vel er orkestret en smule for tungt, for moderne til Berlioz' elskede Symphonie fantastique ... Alligevel ligner pladen faktisk filharmonikernes bedste indspilning af værket nogensinde. Sir Simon Rattle dirigerer utrolig klart".

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"Berliner Filharmonikerne spiller Berlioz' smidige romantik med imponerende præcision. Der er ikke et tidspunkt, hvor musikken halter, er usammenhængende eller klinger mat. Simon Rattle kender sine musikere, og det er nogle helt fantastisk fine og varierede klanglige nuancer, han er i stand til at fremmane ... Men når det gælder Berlioz' helt specielle klangakrobatik fra 1830, er det perfekte ikke nødvendigvis at foretrække ... noget af den friske vildskab bliver pæn og dannet i hænderne på Rattle".

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"This superb recording further confirms, if it were necessary, that performing such music with contemporary instruments, but strings and no vibrato anywhere is far more than an exercise in scholarship. What the result may lack in weight and density is more than made up for by the gain in clarity and élan. François-Xavier Roth is particularly attentive to the latter, not stinting on the sforzandos".

"Vurdering: Tipp" - "Yannick Nézet-Séguins sensationelle Aufnahme ... Zügig ist sein Berlioz, immer schlank im ton, bleibt kontrolliert, wo andere Dirigenten stoltze Forte-Orgien abfeiern".

"This is the first and probably the most adventurous - the quintessential deliriously Romantic symphony, hard to cramp within a chamber orchestra's delicate confines. Yet Ticciati manages this to great effect, not least because the SCO remains one of the world's great chamber ensembles, with precision playing and clear, detailed articulation few can equal".

"Vurdering: Empfehlung des Monats" - "Daniel Barenboim, dem Meister spontan-romantischen Musizierens. Berlioz' Sinfonie wird unter seinen Händen zum gewaltigen Tongemälde".

"Vurdering: BBC music instrumental choice" - "Mariss Janson's interpretation is distinctive enough to stand alone on this disc, which captures the immediacy of a live performance by the excellent Munich orchestra in vividly recorded sound".

"For both of these, Murano is your man. Music lovers who know his playing of Messiaen's Vingt regards will have no doubts about his technique; the present disc demonstrates his ability to identify with the imaginative world of the 19th century's most incandescent musicians".

"Eine Aufführung der 'Symphonie fantastique', in der sich nicht alles um die Schwarze Romantik dreht ... So ist es in diesen Konzertmitschnitt unter Philippe Jordan. Der hält die Musik im Fluss, präsentiert sie duftig und leicht, angelehnt an das Klangideal der historisierenden Aufführungspraxis, hält sich bei der Dramatik aber zurück ... Ein 'Fantastique' also, die man nicht unbedingt kennen muss. So rückt die 'Zugabe' in den Fokus: Das ... Monodrame lyrique 'Lélio' ... Dank Jordans duftig-leichtem Verständnis scheinen die Sätze nur so vorbeizuschweben, was hier aber stellenweise gar nicht falsch ist".

"Fabulous live recording of Berlioz's symphony and its sequel work. Captivating performances from orchestra, soloists and narrator under conductor Philippe Jordan".

"Valery Gergiev has plenty of insights ... The playing from the London Symphony Orchestra is, as so often, exceptionally refined, yet very much alive and full of colour".

"Immerseel is off the boil in both works".

"Simon Rattle, it turns out, isn't merely routine. Partly responsible are the superb Berlin players ... In more natural French than Janet Baker's classic performance, and more heroically intense than Jennifer Larmore's new recording ... it's a welcome coupling".

"Schon nach dem ersten Abhören sitzt man etwas ratlos vor den Lautsprechern. Denn vor den Feuer der Partitur, von ihren fast schon naturalistischen Schilderungen oder ganz technisch: von Berlioz' hoher Kunst der Instrumentation scheint jede Spur zu fehlen ... Mit Qualität hat das dann nichts mehr zu tun".

"His reading is somewhat monumental, but not cripplingly slow ... and beautifully detailed ... excellent playing and recording still gives this disc a respectable place in a crowded market".