16.02.19 - Berlioz 5 essential works in must-have recordings

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

9.30
As part of Berlioz 150 Jeremy Sams chooses his five essential works by the composer in must-have recordings and explains why we need to hear them.


I wonder which he will choose. I content myself with the Philips Colin Davis boxset (even though it does contain the same recording of Romeo & Juliet twice).

I suspect we might get that Unfantastic recording of the Fantastic Symphony, which appears to set out to do the exact opposite of all other versions.

[Barbirollians]

Which one is that ?

Symphonie Fantastique - I imagine it could be the classic of classics the Concertgebouw/Davis I might go for my first recording the Abbado

Romeo and Juliet - I have what I think is thought to be the wrong Davis the VPO one my favourite is the Monteux although the playing is not up to modern standards it has a great emotional charge to my ears

Harold in Italy another oldie Menuhin/Davis

Les Troyens I love the LSO/Davis though I have not heard the Wilson

Les Nuits d'Ete - ( how did I omit this ) for all the charms of Crespin , Steber etc it must be Baker/Barbirolli though I will go for my HMV Classics coupling of the Ravel with the Boult conducted Wesendonck Lieder too .

Never really got into the other big choral works .

[Stanfordian]

Here are my five nominations as Berlioz's greatest works:

1) I believe the Symphonie Fantastique is maybe his greatest work. Having said all that, having heard it many times in recently years over-exposure has set in and I'm currently having a break from it. The recordings that I most admire are from Colin Davis with Concertgebouw on Decca, Robin Ticciati with Scottish Chamber Orchestra on Linn, Charles Munch on Linn and Charles Munch with Boston SO on RCA Victor.

2) A few months ago at Deutsche Oper, Berlin I enjoyed a production of Roméo et Juliette in a revival of choreographer Sasha Waltz’s celebrated ballet version. Outstanding is the recently released live recorded conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas with by San Francisco Symphony on SFS Media.

3) In 2014 I loved the cinema streaming of Terry Gilliam’s English National Opera production of Benvenuto Cellini. A film of Terry Gilliam’s production from Rotterdam under Mark Elder available on a Naxos DVD/Blu-ray

4) There is the outstanding recording of Les Troyens opera in five acts conducted by John Nelsons and Orchestre philharmonique de Strasbourg with Joyce DiDonato as Didon recorded live in 2017 at Salle Érasme, Strasbourg on Erato (4 CD & highlights DVD).

5) The song cycle Les Nuits d’été especially in the 1963 Geneva recording sung by Régine Crespin and L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande under Ernest Ansermet on Decca.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I recall Stravinsky's reaction when an orchestra manager - believing he was being exceptionally generous to an esteemed composer - offered him all of five rehearsals for a concert of his works.

"Five???!!!"

OK - here goes:

Les Troyens; LSO/Davis
the "Requiem"; Lewis/FRSO/Inbal
Damnation of Faust; ditto
Romeo et Juliette; OR&R/JEGgers
Les Nuits d'Ete; Baker/NPO/Barbirolli (the release with Baker singing more Berlioz with Gibson)


My next five would be:

Symphonie Fantastique; LCP/Norrington
Harold en Italie; Causse/OR&R/JEGgers
L'Enfance du Christ;
Beatrice et Benedict; Baker et al/LSO/Davis
Te Deum; Lewis/FRSO/Inbal

(and if the latter were coupled with the Requiem, I'd pop in JEGger's recording of the orchestral songs).


My next five ... (contd ad inf ... )

[mathias broucek]

At number one, I’d put the Memoires...

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

At number one, I’d put the Memoires...

Ah ... but whose recording? (And a translation [Newman's with vibrato; Cairns' Steinway], or a HIPP version in French?)

[vinteuil]

.

... well, ignoring the ridiculous 'five' limit, my starter recommendations wd include :

Harold en Italie : Primrose/Munch

Damnation of Faust : Inbal

Benvenuto Cellini : Norrington

Les Troyens : Nelson

Roméo et Juliette : Monteux/LSO

Symphonie Fantastique : F-X Roth/les Siècles

l' Enfance du Christ : J-E Gardiner

Grande Messe des Morts : McCreesh

plus many different takes on les Nuits d' été





.

[vinteuil]

Ah ... but whose recording? (And a translation [Newman's with vibrato; Cairns' Steinway], or a HIPP version in French?)

... here's an attractive edition:

https://www.abebooks.co.uk/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=22558423472&searchurl=tn%3Dmemoires%26sortby%3D1%26an%3Dberlioz&cm_sp=snippet-_-srp1-_-title1

[zola]

I'm betting that this BAL will be a 'twofer', since Record Review is only two hours long this week ( Berlioz special weekend ) and I doubt AMcG could stand to only have an hour of waffle to himself.

[cloughie]

1 Sym Fant PCO Argenta
2 Harold in Italy IPO Mehta
3 Nuits d’ete Crespin SRO Ansermet
4 Romeo & Juliet BSO Munch
5 King Lear Ov RPO Beecham

[Barbirollians]

I recall Stravinsky's reaction when an orchestra manager - believing he was being exceptionally generous to an esteemed composer - offered him all of five rehearsals for a concert of his works.

"Five???!!!"

OK - here goes:

Les Troyens; LSO/Davis
the "Requiem"; Lewis/FRSO/Inbal
Damnation of Faust; ditto
Romeo et Juliette; OR&R/JEGgers
Les Nuits d'Ete; Baker/NPO/Barbirolli (the release with Baker singing more Berlioz with Gibson)


My next five would be:

Symphonie Fantastique; LCP/Norrington
Harold en Italie; Causse/OR&R/JEGgers
L'Enfance du Christ;
Beatrice et Benedict; Baker et al/LSO/Davis
Te Deum; Lewis/FRSO/Inbal

(and if the latter were coupled with the Requiem, I'd pop in JEGger's recording of the orchestral songs).


My next five ... (contd ad inf ... )

I think that Symphonie Fantastique recording is one of Norrington's best records. Un Bal is particularly fine.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I think that Symphonie Fantastique recording is one of Norrington's best records. Un Bal is particularly fine.

I agree - the Marche au Supplice is a little slow (RN's reasons for his chosen tempo are flawed: I don't know any Timpanist who couldn't perform a one-handed setuplet rhythm faster than the speed he choses) but it doesn't half take on a sense of inexorable doom as a result!

[visualnickmos]

I think that Symphonie Fantastique recording is one of Norrington's best records. Un Bal is particularly fine.

Yes - and the more recordings of Norrington that I hear, and familiarise myself with, my admiration of his art increases tremendously.

[BBMmk2]

Goodness! Hard choice! One work by Berlioz which I think won’t be included, is his Symphonie Funébre et Triomphale. A rather neglected work,which should be better known.

[greenilex]

There is too much of Ferney’s “inexorable doom” about just now...that particular dream, of the March to the Scaffold, seems to be coming true.

Which is why I shall be out with the school kids on Friday. Wonder if the choir schools are involved?