Stravinsky: Rite of Spring

[Greta]

Excellent! Thanks, Topaz. So the most recent winner was the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra with Yoel Levi?! WTF?! Has anyone heard this?

Yes!!! It was actually the first Rite I ever heard and I still love it. I even put a little review at Amazon which is rare for me...

http://www.amazon.com/Stravinsky-Rite-Spring-Pulcinella-Suite/dp/B000003CXF/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1206246553&sr=8-1

It is seriously a very good recording. The orchestral playing is pretty phenomenal, the sheer sound and technical performance of the ensemble is top there among my Rites thus far. The interpretation is straightforward with a lot of verve and punch, though I think others find a bit more musically in the more mysterious quieter moments. Very worth hearing though!!

Gosh, there are so many Rites all with a lot of their own merits, but these I have enjoyed returning to:

Bernstein/Israel Phil
Gergiev/Kirov
Salonen/Philharmonia
Maazel/Cleveland

My current favorite is Dorati's sizzling early 80s recording with Detroit though. Just a little nasty when need be, irresistible drive throughout, love that one.

[hautbois]

Salonen/Philharmonia

It seems that almost everyone has this on their list, so my taste has slight credibility after all. 

Howard

[Greta]

It seems that almost everyone has this on their list, so my taste has slight credibility after all. 

Howard

That's a fun one. Whereas his new recording seems overmanicured, the older one feels spontaneous and fresh, plowing into the contrasting moods with fervor and a dash of irreverence and humor, with some wild tempi and ideas. Good stuff. And so is the Symphony in Three Movements on it as well.

[Topaz]

If anyone is interested, Rob Cowan's top recommendation, Junge Deutsche Philharmonie, will be played in full on Radio 3's "Classical Selection" programme on 24 March at about 11.20 am.

[MDL]

That's a fun one. Whereas his new recording seems overmanicured, the older one feels spontaneous and fresh, plowing into the contrasting moods with fervor and a dash of irreverence and humor, with some wild tempi and ideas. Good stuff. And so is the Symphony in Three Movements on it as well.

I heard Salonen and the Philharmonia live in the Free Trade Hall in Manchester in 1989 and was blown away by them. That was the first time I'd heard the Rite in the flesh. I bought their recording a year or so later, but I don't think it wears as well as the best Rites. Still, quite a radical and interesting performance.

[FredT]

Buy this:

http://www.amazon.com/Works-Igor-Stravinsky-Donald-Gramm/dp/B000PTYUQG/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1206380457&sr=8-1

All the Stravinsky you'll ever need! Cheers!

[Hector]

If anyone is interested, Rob Cowan's top recommendation, Junge Deutsche Philharmonie, will be played in full on Radio 3's "Classical Selection" programme on 24 March at about 11.20 am.

I missed this, unfortunately.

Interesting recommendations at the end of Rob Cowan's review that must have reflected the opinions of  many posters.

However, the small excerpt from Markevitch reminded me why this is a great recorded performance and why I must get it on CD.

[M forever]

Somebody mentioned Haitink. I love his LPO recording but I never heard his BPO remake, which seems to have vanished without trace. Has anyone heard it and is it any good?

I went to the concert when they recorded that (not live, but the next day "in studio" in the Philharmonie). It was basically very good, very solid, very massive, the BP have always brought a lot of weight and depth of sound to this piece when they played it. But beyond that, the performance wasn't particularly "memorable" nor did it contain much detail "insights" (Haitink is not one to highlight stuff out of context anyway). It was very well played, but the performance didn't really have much athmosphere. Just very professionally executed notes. I never really felt the urge to hear the disc. I think I also have the Firebird with that combination, but I can't remember if I ever actually listened to it...

[MDL]

I think I also have the Firebird with that combination, but I can't remember if I ever actually listened to it...

So either a) it didn't make any impression or b) you have far too many CDs!

[Moldyoldie]

My favorite in the "balls out blow you against the back wall" category is Dorati/Detroit SO/London.

My favorite change-up is the heretofore not mentioned Rozhdestvensky/London SO/Nimbus -- very expansive and very spaciously recorded.  Kick up the volume and the room is filled with orchestral color and bliss!

[snyprrr]

No SpringRite Thread??

Anyhow, it haaaas been literally decades since I listened to this music, so, it was with great surprise I saw this EMI/Rattle 2cd with 4 ballets.

And so I was very excited to listen to TROS, seeing as I'm coming off a Varese/Xenakis binge (yea,... not really 'coming off', haha!!). Well,... POW!!,... this recording seems spectacular! I gotta tell ya, coming to this music from the other direction (backwards from Varese/Xenakis), TROS is the most awesome music  think I've ever heard!

Of course I remember the music, but I've never listened to it with my 'new' ears. I just can't believe how Modern it sounds, and how much it reminds me of Xenakis and Varese.

Anyhow, I'm only writing this because of the Rattle. As this is the only recording I have to go on at the moment (I had Karajan a loooong time ago,... and maybe the Stravinsky/CBS), I'm really curious as to what you all think. I've heard about Monteaux (sic) and,... is it Dorati??,... and Boulez.

Some have said that the Rattle is a bit polite, or not as 'pow' as some. Seeing as I was blown away by this recording, are there better?

So, what do you think?

[karlhenning]

(. . . waits for someone to use the red in tooth and claw metaphor . . . .)

[Scarpia]

Monteux is interesting because he conducted the premier and presumably knows how it actually sounded when first performed.  I think the technical ability of his ensemble (Paris Conservatory) is not ideal (perhaps historically accurate) and I would not put it as my favorite account.  I can list a few exceptional ones, including the Markevitch/Philharmonia (the stereo EMI recording), Boulez/NY Philharmonic (Sony) and there was a Mehta/LAPO that I had on LP that was superb, hard to find on CD.  Boulez/Cleveland on DG was good but struck me as a bit clinical.  (Karajan/BPO is bizarre, the first is probably the better of the two.)  I had a Rattle/BPO as the soundtrack of a weird film, which I did not enjoy at all.  I have a lot of Sacres on CD that I have not listened to yet because I don't like to listen to the piece too often.

[Que]

No SpringRite Thread??

Well, what do you think?

"Le Sacre" inpired the most memorable of GMG members, like...

Sean:  Thoughts on the Rite of spring

           The Rite of spring and juxtaposition over architectonics

and Eric: Questioning The Greatness of 'The Rite of Spring'

Stuff of legends!

Q

[mjwal]

I have three preferences,two of which have already been mentioned by other perceptive contributors  : Ancerl/Czech Phil, Markevich/Suisse Romande, the first characterful with a thrilling clarity and swing, the second grimly dark and relentless. The third is the first I ever possessed (on LP), Dorati/Minneapolis, a renowned Wilma Fine Mercury recording in its day which in memory is savagely piercing and percussive - haven't tried that old LP for a while, probably a lot of pop, crackle and snap now...but am just downloading it from here: http://www.filesonic.com/folder/1930151
- which also offers a few other Rites (the litotes of the month).

[karlhenning]

"Le Sacre" inpired the most memorable of GMG members, like...

Sean:  Thoughts on the Rite of spring

           The Rite of spring and juxtaposition over architectonics

and Eric: Questioning The Greatness of 'The Rite of Spring'

Stuff of legends!

Q

Ah, the good old days!

[snyprrr]

Is the Muti good or bad? I don't understand the Amazon reviewers. They say he is the loudest and most brutal?

What might be an 'outrageous' version? I don't even know what I mean by that,... over the top?

btw- I really did enjoy the sound quality of the Rattle. Is there always going to be a compromise between internal clarity, and the risk of 'clinical'-ness?

Yeeesh,... I don't know how to express myself here.

[karlhenning]

btw- I really did enjoy the sound quality of the Rattle. Is there always going to be a compromise between internal clarity, and the risk of 'clinical'-ness?

If the Rattle is clinical, then it is clearly an entirely virtuous thing.

[DavidW]

Given Stravinsky's philosophy regarding performance practice, and his own approach to his music a clinical performance would be Historically Informed if you will.

[Scarpia]

Is the Muti good or bad? I don't understand the Amazon reviewers. They say he is the loudest and most brutal?

What might be an 'outrageous' version? I don't even know what I mean by that,... over the top?

btw- I really did enjoy the sound quality of the Rattle. Is there always going to be a compromise between internal clarity, and the risk of 'clinical'-ness?

Yeeesh,... I don't know how to express myself here.

I think the "brutality" of the Rite of Spring is over-emphasized.  What Stravinsky was going for was the primacy of rhythm in aboriginal music.  So a good performance is one which emphasizes the rhythmic vitality of the score with vivid dynamics, but without exaggerated "brutal" outbursts. 

I think Boulez is the ideal Rite of Spring interpreter, but I prefer the NYP recording because DG's sound is to "clinical," i.e., it sounds like each instrument is playing into its own little microphone, without an adequate feeling of the sound stage.