This is a “desert island” set if ever there were one. Kubelik’s Slavonic Dances always have rated among the best, and still dazzle by virtue of their fleetness and almost savage intensity. On the whole, his recordings of the overtures and symphonic poems remain the finest available (better played and recorded than Kertesz’s, for example, good as they are). They also are outstandingly realistic and vivid sonically, though if you already own these recordings there’s no need to repurchase for this reason alone.
Kubelik especially lavished enormous care over the symphonic poems–music that when he recorded it was almost totally unknown. He captures the malevolence of The Water Goblin and the fairy tale atmosphere of The Golden Spinning Wheel like no one else. One curiosity: Kubelik substitutes snare drum for Dvorák’s indicated tambourine in the wedding scene from The Wood Dove, an odd habit that also characterizes his live New York Philharmonic Mahler Seventh. No matter; you won’t hear these works better done. The same goes for a marvelous Symphonic Variations and for dramatic readings of My Home, Carnival, Amid Nature, and Othello. A classic set, made even more attractive at the “trio” price. Don’t miss it. [6/22/2002]
