Prom 7: 20.07.16 - Faure, Stravinsky and Poulenc

[jayne lee wilson]

Each to their own, of course, but Christopher Dingle, in September's BBC MM, which has just dropped through the letter box, doesn't think much to the new Suzuki release.
Only two stars for performance and three for recording.

Amongst other things, he claims that the edges of the rhythms have been smoothed; he also says that the recording gives the sense of space, but that of an aircraft hangar, with the orchestra down the other end.

I truly dread to think of what he was listening on...!
In 24/96 at least (played as WAVE files in JRiver or Audirvana), it sounds just about the exact opposite of the above description - crisp, opentextured and immediate, without overemphasis, as do most Tapiola Sinfonietta productions, whether on BIS or CPO.

David Gutman in the Gramophone, 7/2016: "Balances are carefully considered throughout, the microphones brought quite close in an ample acoustic".
That's pretty accurate. His main reservations in a broadly positive review were that the "vibrato-lite" sonority might seem too "pristine" or "squeaky-clean" to some, missing a certain "charm and rusticity", or enough "sense of transformation" in the Apollo apothéose . He added that Stravinsky might have delighted in this aspect of the recording!
For me it's a model of beauty, clarity and purity. Airy but physically in touch with the listener, with a lovely springy resilience. Suzuki does pace things carefully and grades dynamics very subtly too, so the finale of Pulcinella has quicker more excited attack than the toccata and so on. Just listening to it again now and, even in a world seemingly awash with superb new releases, this one stands out.