Collectors confronted with yet another new recording of standard orchestra repertoire increasingly find themselves asking how many more versions of piece X do we need in an already crowded CD catalog, especially when most newcomers cannot hope to compare with the great recordings of yesteryear. But, every once a while something like this new Järvi/Stravinsky disc comes along and generates real excitement. Advances in recording technology always have been a justification for record companies to replace their old versions with new, and Telarc’s sensational DSD recording doesn’t disappoint in this area, being of a higher order than even its previously exalted efforts. You’ll have to turn up the volume on this one, but then the sound coalesces into a solid 3-dimensional image with tangible impact, from the clearly localized piano, to the floating woodwinds, and down to the powerful yet miraculously clean bass drum thwacks.
Even better, the performances are right up there with the sound. Paavo Järvi conducts Petrouchka with impetuous energy and a high rhythmic potency supported by buoyant, sharply accented and rhythmically alert playing from all sections of the Cincinnati Symphony. Michael Chertock’s clever, whimsical pianism gives vivid life to the hapless marionette, while the Cincinnati winds offer highly colorful characterizations of their own.
Järvi’s Firebird suite also flows along with bracing energy and an irresistible momentum. Listen to how the Cincinnati brass ripple and roar in the Infernal Dance, one of the more exciting versions on disc (although George Szell’s stunning Cleveland performance remains unsurpassed for enthralling virtuosity). Järvi’s light and bouncy rendition of Scherzo à la Russe forms an ideal bridge between the two larger works. This is fabulous music-making, translated with unerring fidelity to your listening room. So what if it’s war-horse repertoire? This is one great disc! [3/14/2003]
