Holst's The Planets

[brunumb]

I find this post rather boring. Bernstein's is a classic. Steinberg can't touch Bernstein.

I'm sorry I couldn't write a more exciting review.  Bernstein's was only the second recording of this work that disappointed me on first and second listening.  The first was Dutoit, and although I rarely get rid of CDs once I have bought them, that one I did.

Other CD versions in my collection that I like better than Bernstein are:
Saint Louis SO/Susskind
Vienna PO/Karajan
Atlanta SO/Levi
BBC SO/ Davis
Philharmonia/Gardiner
(LPO/Herrmann is too eccentric to really compare)

On LP I have:
LPO/Solti
Bournemouth SO/Hurst

The Hurst has had some pretty good reviews but hadn't made it onto CD until very recently.  It is now available as a CD-R from Amazon.

I haven't listened to most of them in quite a while and would love to get them out see how my opinions may have changed over time.  Unfortunately most of my music is inaccessible at the moment.  Who knows, Bernstein may yet make it onto the list.

[Mirror Image]

I'm sorry I couldn't write a more exciting review.  Bernstein's was only the second recording of this work that disappointed me on first and second listening.  The first was Dutoit, and although I rarely get rid of CDs once I have bought them, that one I did.

Other CD versions in my collection that I like better than Bernstein are:
Saint Louis SO/Susskind
Vienna PO/Karajan
Atlanta SO/Levi
BBC SO/ Davis
Philharmonia/Gardiner
(LPO/Herrmann is too eccentric to really compare)

On LP I have:
LPO/Solti
Bournemouth SO/Hurst

The Hurst has had some pretty good reviews but hadn't made it onto CD until very recently.  It is now available as a CD-R from Amazon.

I haven't listened to most of them in quite a while and would love to get them out see how my opinions may have changed over time.  Unfortunately most of my music is inaccessible at the moment.  Who knows, Bernstein may yet make it onto the list.

It's surprising to hear someone who doesn't like Bernstein's Planets, but stranger things have happened. I never have liked many of Karel Ancerl recordings and he's praised to the hills on this forum. To each their own. Yes, the Levi/ASO recording is another one that doesn't get mentioned enough. My Dad, who collects Holst, really likes this performance as well.

[Elgarian]

Based on the comments in this thread I bought a copy of the NYPO/Bernstein recording.  What a surprise.  Mars was the bringer of drums, Venus the bringer of slumber and Jupiter the bringer of porridge.  I found it all rather boring.  I still prefer the Steinberg by a mile, or even kilometre.

It always feels extraordinary when a performance that bedazzles us turns out to bore someone else to tears, but really it isn't surprising. We all approach these things with different expectations, different hopes, and different backgrounds of listening experience. I, for example, was shocked by my lack of response to what have long been acclaimed as great recordings of the Planets, Dutoit and Steinberg being particularly notable examples of what turns me off. Similarly, it's particularly weird to read that you found Bernstein's Venus so snoozeworthy, because out of all the Venuses I've listened to, Bernstein's was the only one that didn't seem like a steady plodding journey into the Land of Nod.

And herein lie the dangers of making recommendations for someone else. All one can do is try to describe what one hears, and hope for the best. And to reiterate what I said earlier: thank goodness there are so many different takes available that everyone is sure to be able to find a version that suits.

[DavidRoss]

Please note, Alan, that several Amazon UK Marketplace sellers have this at nice prices:

[Karl Henning]

Mmm, Jimmy and the Chicago band . . . .

And one of these days, I'll listen to that Steinberg/BSO account, and hear for my own self . . . .

[Karl Henning]

Mmm, Jimmy and the Chicago band . . . .

And one of these days, I'll listen to that Steinberg/BSO account, and hear for my own self . . . .

Well, there I've done it: one copy of each of these to arrive by transatlantic dinghy.

[Elgarian]

Please note, Alan, that several Amazon UK Marketplace sellers have this at nice prices:

Thanks Dave. I've over-listened to the Planets in recent weeks and am giving it a break, but yes, thanks. Noted for the future.

[Karl Henning]

Knowing when you need a break = wisdom

[Elgarian]

Knowing when you need a break = wisdom

OK, I think five minutes is long enough. Now, which is the quickest way to Amazon Marketplace?



[Just kidding.]

[Karl Henning]

. . . Now, which is the quickest way to Amazon Marketplace?

You found your answer . . . in The Shed.

[brunumb]

It always feels extraordinary when a performance that bedazzles us turns out to bore someone else to tears, but really it isn't surprising. We all approach these things with different expectations, different hopes, and different backgrounds of listening experience.

So true.  I think that perhaps imprinting may have a lot to do with it.  In the days when I only had a single recording of a work to listen to frequently, if it left a favourable impression then it became the yardstick for how the work 'should' sound.  My first disc of The Planets was the Steinberg.  Similarly, the rapid descent at the very end of the first movement of the Mahler 2nd in my LSO/Solti recording became the norm.  When I heard other conductors take it much more slowly it sounded perverse.  It took a lot of listening to many recordings for many years to overcome.

Last night I tried listening to the Bernstein again.  Admittedly it was late, and I was tired, but I did doze off during Venus    Today I will have another listen to Jupiter which particularly disappointed me the first time around.  It's hard for me to describe what I don't like, but Bernstein makes it all sound a bit 'mannered'.

I must add that I listened to the Mackerras 'Mars' via the link in one of the posts here and liked it very much.

[Karl Henning]

You meant "doze off," but I admit: I really like the image of "dose off"!

[brunumb]

You meant "doze off," but I admit: I really like the image of "dose off"!

Oops!  And me a stickler for correct spelling no less.  Thanks.

[Karl Henning]

No worries, mate! We all make slips, and it's just that my eye has a habit of picking things out (not that this absolutely prevents any of my own slips, mind) . . . and I've learnt to appreciate the more amusing of the typos! : )

[eyeresist]

Last night I listened to the Svetlanov/Philharmonia recording of the Planets, rereleased on Brilliant. It's not a first choice, but it's interesting.

The least impressive movement is Mars. It's not awful, but doesn't grab you in the way the best performances do.

After this things pick up. Svetlanov is known for his flowingly romantic style, and with this approach the music seemed different to how I usually hear it. For perhaps the first time I was very conscious of the depth to which Holst drew on his late Romatic predecessors, including (which surprised me) Tchaikovsky. In Mercury I noted the influence of Tchaik's Nutcracker and 4th symphony scherzo. (Nutcracker should not really be such a surprise - I consider it an underrated masterclass in orchestration, just as the Planets later proved to be.)
The ending of Saturn was notable moving here.

Sadly, the very ending was spoiled by the singing; during the movement the choir are alright, but in the last repeated phrase there is one soprano with a keening sound that grates - no etheriality here, I'm afraid.

The timings on the case are amusingly inaccurate - Jupiter is given as 5:46, which would make it the fastest in history! According to Media Player, Svet's times are:

Mars    8.51
Venus   8.29
Mercury 4.16
Jupiter 8.48
Saturn  9.53
Uranus  5.45
Neptune 9.34

[Elgarian]

Thanks for your thoughts, and the detailed description.

[brunumb]

I have just listened to this recording a couple of times and enjoyed it immensely.  Mars opens a little tentatively, but Karajan racks up the tension pretty quickly and it just gets better and better.  Everything sounds right, the VPO is great, and this now goes to near the top of the list.

Another disc I was able to access was the BBC SO/Andrew Davis one.  Listening to the 'deal breakers', Mars and Jupiter, left me with the impression that it was just a bit too lightweight.

After listening to the Bernstein again, I'm still left cold.

[Mirror Image]

After listening to the Bernstein again, I'm still left cold.

Then go warm up next to a heater...

[Elgarian]

After listening to the Bernstein again, I'm still left cold.

Perhaps because Bernstein has perfectly expressed the idea that Neptune is a very long way from the Sun ...?

[Karl Henning]

Brrr