Igor Markevitch Tschaikovsky

Alexander Glazunov was a committed romanticist and a master orchestrator. Both these qualities are at the forefront in this release. The melodies are rich and moving, with a hint of melancholy; the soloist and orchestra are well balanced, the cello never buried in a wash of orchestral sound; and structure of these single movement works renders them complete and satisfying.

Les Noces is a screaming, shrieking, flat-out masterpiece. Leonard Bernstein himself has referred to it as Stravinsky's greatest work, and listening to this incendiary performance, it's awfully hard to disagree. Scored for voices, four pianos, and percussion, the work provided the inspiration for the entire career of Orff (of Carmina Burana fame), but it's so much better as sheer music than anything Orff wrote. And what a cast! The pianists for this performance include Martha Argerich, Krystian Zimerman, Cyprien Katsaris, and Homero Francesch, four certified virtuoso performers, while the singers of the English Bach Festival Chorus really cover themselves with glory in both works. A stunner.