Debussy's Corner

[Josquin13]

I agree with Mandryka, the "Pelléas et Mélisande" from Serge Baudo (originally on Eurodisc, then later on RCA) is one of the finest in the catalogue, & arguably the best modern recording of the opera.  As much as I admire Abbado, Dutoit, Haitink, & Boulez in Debussy, they're no match for Baudo & his all French cast in this score, IMO.  I haven't heard Armin Jordan's Pelléas, but did hear him conduct "La Mer" in concert years ago, and it was excellent, so I'm not surprised to hear that his Pelléas is very good.

[asin]B00000E6F3[/asin]
[asin]B0000252CX[/asin]

Among older mono recordings of the opera, conductor Andre Cluytens' Pelléas with soprano Victoria de los Angeles as Mélisande is a special favorite (as she's probably my favorite Mélisande).  Ernst Ansermet's Pelléas is very fine, too.

[asin]B000003XKK[/asin]
https://www.amazon.com/Debussy-Pell%C3%A9as-M%C3%A9lisande-Vol-1/dp/B004B5VT4G/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1526334003&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=debussy++pelleas+cluytens

[asin]B002ZIAC76[/asin]

I confess I'm not quite as big a fan of the famous EMI References recording from conductor Roger Désormière.

https://www.amazon.com/Debussy-Pelleas-Melisande-Claude/dp/B000EF5MHW/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1526334448&sr=1-1&keywords=debussy++pelleas+roger
https://www.amazon.com/Pelleas-Melisande-Melodies-Claude-Debussy/dp/B000026GCZ/ref=sr_1_2?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1526334448&sr=1-2&keywords=debussy++pelleas+roger

I've yet to hear the Pelleas recording by Debussy's friend, conductor Désiré-Émile Ingelbrecht, but would like to:

https://www.amazon.com/Debussy-Melisande-Suzanne-Danco-soprano/dp/B009GG4B8G/ref=pd_sbs_15_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B009GG4B8G&pd_rd_r=KDPGZ0ZZ6F5G8H4367XZ&pd_rd_w=Y8yNl&pd_rd_wg=bz010&psc=1&refRID=KDPGZ0ZZ6F5G8H4367XZ

EDIT: One very notable Pelléas et Mélisande that I forgot to mention on my list of favorites yesterday is the 1953 recording from conductor, Jean Fournet, on Phillips:
https://www.amazon.com/Debussy-Pelleas-Melisande-Maurane/dp/B00000E51A/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1526409836&sr=1-1&keywords=pelleas+et+melisande+jean+fournet
http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/album.jsp?album_id=150065

[Moonfish]

Hmm, it sounds like one needs to check out the Baudo performance of "Pelléas et Mélisande" with all these glowing recommendations!

[San Antone]

... the "Pelleas et Melisande" from Serge Baudo ... is one of the finest in the catalogue.  Among older mono recordings of the opera, conductor Andre Cluytens' Pelleas with soprano Victoria de los Angeles as Melisande is a special favorite.  Ernst Ansermet's Pelleas is very fine, too.

I confess I'm not quite as big a fan of the famous EMI References recording from conductor Roger Desormiere.  I've yet to hear the Pelleas recording by Debussy's friend, conductor Desire-Emile Ingelbrecht, but would like to:

One could say I am a P&M nut.  I own all those recordings that you mention and a few others.  But the ones I come back to the most are the Robert Wilson DVD (Michael Boder, Conductor; Jean-Sébastien Bou, Pelléas; Mélisande is sung by Maria Bayo), Boulez and Abbado.  Ansermet is among the best, as well, imo.

I don't think one can talk about this opera without mentioning Karajan.  His recording was one that drew deserved attention to the opera and I think encouraged other conductors to take it up.  And despite using an international cast devoid of any native French singers (American Richard Stilwell as Pelléas; Frederica von Stade as Mélisande; Belgian José van Dam as Golaud; and Italian Ruggero Raimondi as Arkel) they are very good and his Berlin Philharmonic was at their best in this work.

My most recent recording is this DVD:

Staged in Essen's Aalto Theatre, this pioneering work of early modern times was a landmark. 'Conductor Stefan Soltesz knows how to highlight these sensualists Debussy colours, let melody blossom, enthral with the magic of sound. And when these seraphic tones ring out from a stage flooded with light, we cannot help but leave the world far behind', wrote the critics. The consummately precise staging by veteran stage director Nikolaus Lehnhoff has a cast to match these wondrous sounds. The characters seem to float through the scenes, bringing to the stage the unspeakable, the negation and extinction of their feelings, showing the people of this story in inescapable solitude. This production stars the young South African baritone Jacques Imbrailo as Pelléas and Michaela Selinger as Melisande, as well as Vincent Le Texier and Doris Soffel.

But I haven't had a chance to sit down and watch it in entirety.

[Josquin13]

What I like about Baudo's conducting is that he finds more human feeling in Debussy's score than other digital era conductors (Dutoit, Boulez, Haitink, etc.).  He doesn't overly modernize the score.  Right from the opening overture, the emotional content is more palpable in Baudo's reading than with other modern conductors (though Abbado gets closest).  In comparison, Dutoit is cooly detached in this overture (though I'm normally a fan of Dutoit's Debussy--finding his Nocturnes, for example, to be among the finest & most insightful readings I've heard).  Critic Jeffrey Sarver at MusicWebInternational writes that Dutoit's Pelléas is as "dry as dust" and "completely analytical and free of poetic nuance".  (Nevertheless, I'd say it has its place!)

I can't find Baudo's opera recording on You Tube, but did find him conducting Marius Constant's Suite from Pelléas, played by the Czech Philharmonic.  It is a gentle, nuanced, and detailed reading, and should give people some idea about why I like Baudo's conducting of the opera (& other music by Debussy):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-egazHf7aQ

With that said, of course there are many things I enjoy about the other modern era recordings--such as the textural clarity of Boulez's reading on DG (I've not heard his early CBS reading), Anne-Sofie von Otter's Mélisande for Haitink (she's excellent in French music, for example: https://www.amazon.com/Anne-Sofie-von-Otter-Chanson/dp/B000001GRC/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1526405027&sr=1-1&keywords=von+otter+french+songs), the amplitude and warmth of the Vienna strings for Abbado and his greater sense of drama, yet attention to delicate shadings, etc..  I even find Dutoit's ultra cool reading to be of great value--as an alternative view of the opera--since Dutoit has essentially stripped the opera of its romantic gestures and mannerisms, firmly placing the score in the 20th century.  Indeed, my 5 favorite Debussy conductors of the modern era are Dutoit, Abbado, Boulez, Haitink, and Baudo (though Baudo's Pelléas is admittedly from the late analogue era--1978). 

(The only other conductor I might put in their league, based upon his Ravel, is Eliahu Inbal.  But unfortunately Inbal didn't record much Debussy, & he has recently retired from conducting.  Yan Pascal Tortelier can be good too, but generally speaking, I don't find his Debussy to be quite as interesting as those 5.  Admittedly, I need to get to know Armin Jordan's Debussy better than I do.)

[Josquin13]

One notable Pelléas et Mélisande that I forgot to mention on my list of favorites yesterday is the 1953 recording from conductor, Jean Fournet, which was recorded around the same time as Ansermet's, & is well worth hearing.  Among conductors that worked (& recorded) into the digital era, Jean Fournet was, I believe, along with Manuel Rosenthal, the last surviving link with Debussy & Ravel and the great French tradition.

[asin]B00000E51A[/asin]

http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/album.jsp?album_id=150065

[Mirror Image]

Hmm, it sounds like one needs to check out the Baudo performance of "Pelléas et Mélisande" with all these glowing recommendations!

YES! I haven't finished listening to this performance, but what I've heard thus far has been exquisite.

[kyjo]

A fantastic recent discovery of mine was Debussy's early-ish Fantaisie for Piano and Orchestra. Why isn't this work played/discussed more often? It's absolutely gorgeous! I listened to this excellent recording:

[asin]B005OZDXNC[/asin]

[milk]

I'm quite interested in this one...I'm waiting for some reviews here or elsewhere...anyone?

[Ainsi la nuit]

I'm quite interested in this one...I'm waiting for some reviews here or elsewhere...anyone?

Very enjoyable recording! The Violin Sonata in particular was quite a revelation for me, but the rest of the performances are equally arresting. Recommended!

[milk]

Very enjoyable recording! The Violin Sonata in particular was quite a revelation for me, but the rest of the performances are equally arresting. Recommended!

Thanks!

[SurprisedByBeauty]

I'm quite interested in this one...I'm waiting for some reviews here or elsewhere...anyone?

Very good recordings - with some of my favorite musicians - of repertoire that I very, very rarely warm up to.

[milk]

Very good recordings - with some of my favorite musicians - of repertoire that I very, very rarely warm up to.

I'm very glad I bought this.

[vandermolen]

Went for a walk on the Sussex Downs on Sunday which ended up on the coast in Eastbourne. Of course I had 'La Mer' going through my head before remembering that Debussy had completed the work at the Grand Hotel, Eastbourne! 

[Mirror Image]

A fantastic recent discovery of mine was Debussy's early-ish Fantaisie for Piano and Orchestra. Why isn't this work played/discussed more often? It's absolutely gorgeous! I listened to this excellent recording:

[asin]B005OZDXNC[/asin]

That's a good question. From what I understand, the premiere of the work didn't actually take place until after Debussy's death (in 1919 I believe). The reason as to why it hasn't been popular or performed very often perhaps stems from the fact that Debussy himself withdrew the work, so it has this feeling of 'against the composer wishes' attached to it perhaps. As for my own opinion of the work, I think it's quite good, but hardly a milestone in the composer's oeuvre. I seldom listen to it as I feel there are other orchestral pieces of his that I greatly prefer of Fantasie, but, to be honest, I don't listen to much of Debusssy's orchestral music aside from Jeux (his orchestral masterpiece, IMHO) or Nocturnes. I do listen to La Mer and Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune on occasion.

[Mirror Image]

I'm very glad I bought this.

Yes, that's a fine recording of Debussy's late sonatas. It took me a second time around to fully appreciate these particular performances. I'm not sure if you've heard this recording yet or not, but do let me know what you think of the performances. A highlight for me was the Faust/Melnikov performance, but, to be fair, everything was incredibly performed. I like how this program intersperses solo piano works with the sonatas.

[Brian]

This Harmonia Mundi series - jewel case, digipak, some kind of special format presentation? Curious because of the stylized graphic designs across all the covers.

[milk]

Yes, that's a fine recording of Debussy's late sonatas. It took me a second time around to fully appreciate these particular performances. I'm not sure if you've heard this recording yet or not, but do let me know what you think of the performances. A highlight for me was the Faust/Melnikov performance, but, to be fair, everything was incredibly performed. I like how this program intersperses solo piano works with the sonatas.

I'm not sure I have anything deep to say about this but I really like it. I have a big problem with very "romantic" sounding playing. I have to listen to this again to say exactly what I'm hearing but this pleases me in a way that many modern recordings don't. Do they use less vibrato? I like the contours of the playing on the Faust but I think in the cello too. They find something to say or a fresh feeling, especially on the Faust

By the way, I also like this release a lot. OK, I'm not sure if it compares well to the ones people cherish like Jacobs. Maybe it's not quite up to that level but the sound of the piano really stands out for me here so it's a kind of aesthetic I like. I mean the way the piano is recorded; HM does a great job. I've been noticing recently that some pianos sound better than others. Recently I deleted Craig Sheppard's recordings from my list because of the sound of the piano.

[Mirror Image]

This Harmonia Mundi series - jewel case, digipak, some kind of special format presentation? Curious because of the stylized graphic designs across all the covers.

Cardboard clamshells with elongated booklets and CD sleeves (w/ design or variation of the design) and just a gorgeous presentation on all of them.

[Mirror Image]

I'm not sure I have anything deep to say about this but I really like it. I have a big problem with very "romantic" sounding playing. I have to listen to this again to say exactly what I'm hearing but this pleases me in a way that many modern recordings don't. Do they use less vibrato? I like the contours of the playing on the Faust but I think in the cello too. They find something to say or a fresh feeling, especially on the Faust

By the way, I also like this release a lot. OK, I'm not sure if it compares well to the ones people cherish like Jacobs. Maybe it's not quite up to that level but the sound of the piano really stands out for me here so it's a kind of aesthetic I like. I mean the way the piano is recorded; HM does a great job. I've been noticing recently that some pianos sound better than others. Recently I deleted Craig Sheppard's recordings from my list because of the sound of the piano.

I can only nod my head in agreement. I can't really find anything bad to say about any of the afore mentioned performances. Muraro does a fine job, indeed. The next recording of the Études on my to hear list is Jan Michiels' recording on Fuga Libera, which Rafael (ritter) highly recommended.

[milk]

I can only nod my head in agreement. I can't really find anything bad to say about any of the afore mentioned performances. Muraro does a fine job, indeed. The next recording of the Études on my to hear list is Jan Michiels' recording on Fuga Libera, which Rafael (ritter) highly recommended.

If I'm not mistaken, he uses a period piano on that? I have it in my collection I think. Please let me know if you think it's special after you listen. Now that I'm streaming, I'm having trouble focusing on what to listen to.