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Massenet: Werther (Diapason n°607)
Georges Thill
Symphonic Music - Released January 1, 1958 | Les Indispensables de Diapason
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Salieri : Tarare
Christophe Rousset
Classical - Released June 7, 2019 | Aparté
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5 de Diapason -
Gramophone Editor's Choice -
Choc de Classica
While Mozart was largely overlooked in the French capital, Antonio Salieri took on the reigns of the Académie Royale de Musique (Paris Opera), a fruitful collaboration that was completely broken up by the French Revolution. After the success of his work Les Danaïdes, composed for Paris in 1784, Salieri worked tirelessly with Beaumarchais, spurred on by the success and scandal of his Figaro, on a new project which would become Tarare. Beaumarchais moved himself shamelessly toward stardom, skillfully self-promoting and attending rehearsals so as to assure that the orchestra played pianissimo to emphasize the primacy of his verse during performances. Beaumarchais found that the music was too overwhelming to “embellish the lyrics”.Created one year after Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro (which was relatively well-received in Vienna before triumphing in Prague), Tarare was an immense success in Paris maintaining the status of the composer’s repertoire despite the political turmoil of the time before disappearing from view around 1826, thereon ceasing to be played. Beaumarchais’ words were immediately adapted into Italian by Lorenzo Da Ponte to be performed and met with equal success in Vienna. Tarare is half lyrical tragedy, half comic opera with a hint of orientalism.After resuscitating Les Danaïdes and Les Horaces, Christophe Rousset finished off his series of recordings dedicated to Salieri’s French operas for the Parisian public. Tarare is very much of its time, that of the Lumières, and used the power of art to challenge despotism in all its forms. Thanks to Christophe Rousset’s excellent delivery and lively direction, this recording enables one to judge the merits of the composition and the chasm that separates an honest and talented musician from a solitary and impassioned one like Mozart. © François Hudry/Qobuz
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Leclair: Scylla & Glaucus
Sébastien d'Hérin
Classical - Released November 27, 2015 | Alpha Classics
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Jacques Ibert : Œuvres pour vents
Clément Mao-Takacs
Chamber Music - Released June 3, 2014 | Timpani
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5 de Diapason -
4 étoiles Classica
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Bizet, Saint-Saëns, Massenet, Gounod, Verdi...
Anita Rachvelishvili
Opera Extracts - Released March 2, 2018 | Sony Classical
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5 Sterne Fono Forum Jazz
It's one of those fairy stories that the world of lyrical music likes to keep secret. Still an unknown and barely emerged from the La Scala Lyrical Academy, Georgian mezzo-soprano Anita Rachvelishvili was given the title role in Carmen by Baremboim, alongside Jonas Kaufman: an international career seemed to beckon for the young singer. And so here we will hear some of opera's great tunes, including, of course, the hits from Carmen, but also the two great arias from Samson et Dalila by Saint-Saëns, a pair from Verdi, a touch of Mascagni, some Rimski – less-frequently performed, it is true – and a rarity from his compatriot Dimitri Arakishvili (1873-1953) whose style is solidly anchored in the Russia of his day, with several, probably regional, twists. Since 2009, she has sung Carmen's role around three hundred times, and we can only hope that she never gets bogged down in it - and takes on Santuzza, Eboli, Dalil: in other words, the great characters of the dramatic mezzo repertoire. © SM/Qobuz
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Massenet: Orchestral Works
The Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Classical - Released October 9, 2020 | Naxos
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Jules Massenet’s numerous operas (notably Manon and Werther) have somewhat overshadowed his symphonic works, not to mention his oratorios and melodies. At the head of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, French conductor Jean-Luc Tingaud brings some of his forgotten manuscripts back to life.Visions is a symphonic poem modelled on works by Liszt – particularly his famous Preludes. It was inspired by his travels, as Massenet said himself: “The last hour of the day, in the high and sad solitudes of Simplon. The traveller there has fallen asleep, but his sleep is disturbed by visions that are calm or agitated, smiling or terrible. He wakes up. Around him it is night...he no longer dreams, he listens and thinks he hears a voice dear to his memory.”Brumaire was written for a historical drama commemorating Napoleon’s coup d'etat that ended the 'Directoire' period. The Overture for “Phaedra”, written at the Pasdeloup Orchestra’s request, is considered one of Massenet’s best instrumental works and has long been included in the symphonic repertoire. The incidental music for Les Erinnyes and his ballet Espada show Massenet’s appeal for exoticism – something that was fashionable at the time. This aspect of his music is still largely undiscovered. © François Hudry/Qobuz
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Massenet: Thérèse
Alain Altinoglu
Classical - Released April 9, 2013 | Bru Zane
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Révérence de l'Avant-Scène Opéra -
4 étoiles Classica
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Ravel: Orchestral Works
John Wilson
Classical - Released January 28, 2022 | Chandos
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A conductor, arranger and musicologist, John Wilson is also a leading specialist in musical theatre, which he successfully directs in the UK. In 2018, he re-formed the Sinfonia of London, a studio orchestra that was in its prime back in the 1950s and recorded music for famous films such as Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo with a score by Bernard Herrmann. Today, as ever, the Sinfonia of London is comprised of the best instrumentalists in the British capital.Exceptionally meticulous, John Wilson always stays close to the source of the works he directs, as can be seen in the ballet Ma Mère l’Oye and the greatly received Boléro by Maurice Ravel (which sounds superb with the incessantly slow tempo that gives it an almost menacing grandeur). His take on these two works form part of a contemporary edition, and the final result is subtle and full of finesse.Wilson’s meticulousness is particularly suited to Ravel’s music, conducted here with plenty of flourish and grace whilst still maintaining that je-ne-sais-quoi that the French composer is known for. The incredibly talented musicians that form the Sinfonia of London allow the conductor to explore even the most minute of nuances. The sensuality of the music can sometimes be a little strange, perhaps even convoluted at times, but it all feels so typical of Ravel. A special mention also goes to the sound technicians at the Chandos label who do an incredible job of reproducing every tiny detail. This collection demonstrates just how nuanced music can be. © François Hudry/Qobuz
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Ravel: L'Œuvre pour piano
Philippe Bianconi
Solo Piano - Released September 15, 2023 | La Dolce Volta
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Ravel's piano works include some of the most popular keyboard pieces of the 20th century, so pianist Philippe Bianconi has plenty of competition for this double-album complete cycle. Of course, one advantage of the complete set is that it can include the less common pieces like Ravel's musical impressions of Borodin and Chabrier and the Menuet en Ut dièse mineur ("Minuet in C sharp minor"). These lesser-known works, mostly miniatures, fit Bianconi's style beautifully; he is a precise, concise player who brings out Ravel's considerable rhythmic subtlety. His Ravel performances tap into a long French tradition stretching back to Robert Casadesus and his wife, Gaby, who was one of Bianconi's teachers. Imbued with the French conservatory values of clarity and restraint, Bianconi sacrifices mood for clean execution. In Le Tombeau de Couperin, he is wonderful, one of the very best available, catching the ways Ravel stretches the Baroque rhythms in a really uncanny way. Many pianists can handle the technical challenges of Gaspard de la nuit these days, but few can seem as effortless while doing so. In music that depends more on extramusical references, such as the four-hand Ma mère l'Oye (recorded with Clément Lefebvre), some listeners may want a bit more color, while others will find Bianconi's approach bracing and fresh, with an evocative Miroirs. Sample several different works. Most listeners will agree that the La Dolce Volta label's sound, from the Grande Salle at the Metz Arsenal, is ideal for the music and the music-making here.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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Ravel, Schumann: String Quartets
Leonkoro Quartet
Chamber Music - Released September 1, 2023 | Mirare
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David & Jonathas
Gaétan Jarry
Classical - Released June 9, 2023 | Château de Versailles Spectacles
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Alkan: Character Pieces & Grotesqueries
Mark Viner
Classical - Released November 24, 2023 | Piano Classics
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Ravel: In Search of Lost Dance
Linos Piano Trio
Classical - Released April 7, 2023 | CAvi-music
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The highlight of this release by the Linos Piano Trio will be apparent after just a few moments of sampling: the sound of the instruments is unique. This is a historically oriented recording, something that is not as strange for Ravel as it used to be, but this one is unique, and it made classical best-seller lists in the summer of 2023. Actually, it is not a historical performance but almost a historical reconstruction of how Ravel might have heard his Piano Trio in A minor in his head; the group uses an 1882 Érard concert grand that was similar to what Ravel had at home, and the violinist and cellist use gut strings (with a varying ratio of wound vs. plain). The effect is magical. There is none of the sharp attack from the usual Steinway, overpowering the other instruments unless drastic measures are taken. Instead, the delicate piano and the instruments together offer a night scene, a gentle sky full of stars that is ideally suited to the extramusical content of the trio, its folk and Malay influences. One might raise all kinds of objections here. The need for transcriptions of Le tombeau de Couperin and the Pavane pour une infante défunte, as opposed to playing trios by other composers this way, isn't totally clear, and the meaning of the grammatically awkward title In Search of Lost Dance, referring to Ravel's World War I experiences, is a bit hard to unpack; in fact, Ravel's major composition of this period was precisely a suite of dances, but all one can say is that the proof is in the listening. Ravel's Piano Trio has never sounded like this before, and the group is magnificently recorded by Germany's Südwestrundfunk at its Baden-Baden studios. Listen and be amazed.© James Manheim /TiVo
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Ravel: Complete Orchestral Works
Yuja Wang
Classical - Released April 8, 2016 | Deutsche Grammophon (DG)
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Maurice Ravel's orchestral works are universally regarded as models of the art of orchestration, and this 4-CD box set from Deutsche Grammophon presents them complete, in stupendous live performances by Lionel Bringuier and the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich. These recordings, made between 2014 and 2015, capture every aspect of Ravel's genius, from the colorful transcriptions of his piano pieces to works composed specifically for orchestra. While the ever-popular Boléro is a textbook example of how to use tone colors for a cumulative effect, such lavish pieces as the ballets Daphnis et Chloé and La Valse are sumptuous in their lush textures and vibrant sonorities. Bringuier is an enthusiastic advocate for Ravel's music, and his expertise is apparent in his meticulous interpretations and in the precision of the musicians, who play with rhythmic accuracy and polished execution. Featured soloists in these performances are the virtuoso pianist Yuja Wang, who is exciting in the Piano Concerto in G major and the Piano Concerto for the Left Hand in D major, and violinist Ray Chen, who delivers a compelling reading of Tzigane. In the remaining selections, the Tonhalle shines with brilliant luster, and Deutsche Grammophon's reproduction is first-rate, with its depth, detail, and dynamic range approaching audiophile quality.© TiVo
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Poétiques de l'instant II: Ravel & Mantovani
Quatuor Voce
Classical - Released June 9, 2023 | Alpha Classics
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Hahn: Piano Music - Poèmes & Valses
Pavel Kolesnikov
Classical - Released June 3, 2022 | Hyperion
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Ravel: Ma Mère l'Oye, Tombeau de Couperin, Shéhérazade
Les Siècles
Symphonic Music - Released April 13, 2018 | harmonia mundi
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5 Sterne Fono Forum Klassik
Recording Ravel's music on period instruments is the kind of thing that might raise a smile... until you realise just how much the production of instruments has changed in less than a hundred years: it's the return of catgut strings, skin drum heads, the French basson (and not the German system bassoon which is used across all the world's orchestras today), shaper tips, trumpets and trombones of French manufacture. At the head of his orchestra Les Siècles, François-Xavier Roth gives a new, orthodox, historically-informed version of Ma Mère l’oye (complete ballet), the Tombeau de Couperin and Shéhérazade, the long-neglected "ouverture de féérie" [Fairy Overture] which is pure Ravel. This return to the roots is clearly easier and more straightforwardly authentic for this period of music history, because, unlike earlier works, we possess recordings which date back to the 1920s, and even earlier, which can tell us about the style, the colours, the phrasing and the tempo. But it isn't enough just to have all this historical information to hand to make something interesting. What makes this record thrilling is that all the musicians in the Siècles are excellent, and François-Xavier Roth is a talented artist himself, who knows this music inside out. At which point, his complete recording of Stravinsky's Firebird has already struck us with its quality. This rediscovery of Ravel resounds with clarity and finesse; it is a feast of well-defined timbres which cuts against the "beautiful sound" which prevails in orchestras around the world today. © François Hudry/Qobuz
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Ravel, Dutilleux & Debussy
Quatuor Hermès
Quartets - Released January 26, 2018 | La Dolce Volta
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5 Sterne Fono Forum Klassik
Two years after its very well received recording of three Schumann quartets, Quatuor Hermès – created about ten years ago – is turning its attention to three staple French masterpieces: Ravel and Debussy’s quartets (two iconic figures of their − relatively young − generation who have been coupled on disc again and again, but who would complain?) surrounding Dutilleux’s quartet Ainsi la nuit (Thus the Night). Three very unique quartets, as each of their composers only wrote a single one. For the record, Debussy’s quartet still belongs to the 19th century as it was composed in 1893 in a language formally borrowing from Franck (even if the chord progressions already feel like classic Debussy), while Ravel’s inaugurates the 20th century in 1903 with Faurean notes in abundance… On the other hand, Dutilleux waited to achieve maturity (1976) to write his. An inescapable monument of 20th French chamber repertoire, played with finesse and transparency by Quatuor Hermès, cementing their place among the elite quartets of our time. © SM/Qobuz
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Debussy, Attahir, Ravel
Quatuor Arod
Classical - Released October 27, 2023 | Warner Classics
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The Quatuor Arod has demonstrated versatility in its catalog thus far, devoting albums in a range running from Mendelssohn to the Second Viennese School. The same versatility is present on this release. True, the Debussy String Quartet, Op. 10, and the Ravel String Quartet in F major are cut from the same cloth; Ravel modeled his quartet on Debussy's, but these works require a multiplicity of voices, with Debussy striving to infuse his new coloristic thinking into an arch-classical form. Sample the intense finale of Ravel's quartet for a taste of the sharp profiles this young group brings to each movement. Perhaps the biggest draw here is a work by a composer, Benjamin Attahir, of whom most listeners outside France will be unaware. His five-movement quartet Al' Asr, he says, "is the afternoon prayer. I tried to transcribe musically the atmosphere of this specific moment of the day. Raw light, overwhelming heat, iridescence of the air in contact with the surface of the ground -- so many images that accompanied me when writing this piece." It also refers to a brief verse from the Quran. The work successfully merges these specific references with the formal quartet structure, including a final fugue that marks a new take on the Romantic usage of this form to signify spiritual transcendence. There is much to ponder on this release, which continues to promise great things from its performers.© James Manheim /TiVo
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Debussy & Ravel: String Quartets
Jerusalem Quartet
Classical - Released April 20, 2018 | harmonia mundi
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The French label harmonia mundi has pulled out all the stops for the 2018 commemoration of the centenary of the death of Claude Debussy, by asking their "house" artists to record the works of the great French composer. Cultural ambassadors for Israel (not always an easy job), the Jerusalem Quartet was created in 1996 and quickly became known as one of the foremost ensembles of the genre, thanks to the power of their playing, the warmth of their performances, and a particularly dense and sensual instrumental colour. Their recordings – thirteen albums for the harmonia mundi label – regularly win awards and critical acclaim in the press. This new recording of the quartets by Debussy and Ravel (a now-classic pairing which seems to have decreed that the two bodies of work will be joined at the hip, even though their authors neither wanted nor observed such a kinship) clearly towers above an already-ample discography. Velvety sounds, dreamy poetry (a marvellous Andantino from Debussy's Quartet), unbridled wildness and youthful energy are all brought into this subtly-treated party, where flowery sentiments mingle as in a novel by Marcel Proust. © François Hudry/Qobuz
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