David Bowie Narrates Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf" | Benjamin Britten, Sergey Prokofiev, ... |...

David Bowie Narrates Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf" | Benjamin Britten, Sergey Prokofiev, ... | Great for pre-schoolers

classical music:

David Bowie Narrat...

	David Bowie Narrates Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf" Benjamin Britten, Sergey Prokofiev, ... RCA, 1992 average customer review:based on 15 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

David Bowie tells us a fearful story

Prokofiev here produces a rare and fresh musical story for children. A young boy decides one day to push the gate at the bottom of the garden and move into the big wild world and its dangers, a wolf and a cat. The boy is followed by his friend the duck and meets his other friend the bird who is saved by a split-hair chance from the teeth of the cat by Peter's cry of alarm. All dangers in the world are not from the deep forest. But a far worse danger comes from there : the wolf. If Peter is saved by his grandfather who takes him home, the duck is less lucky and ends up in the wolf's stomach. But Peter is looking after things with the help of the bird and they catch the wolf that is then taken to the zoo by the hunters. We are not always saved from dangers by big strong armed men, but mostly by our courage and inventive imagination. And the music tells us to be creative.

This tale is perfectly served by David Bowie's both deep and volatile voice that finds here a brand new field of artistic achievement and multiplies the music's real dramatic dimension, like a confidential story told to the listeners in their deepest ears as if he were an elfish fairy any kid would believe to be true and safe, in a word friendly.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU

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Great for pre-schoolers

My 3 1/2 year old son loves to listen to classical music on the radio. I bought this CD for him for Christmas, and it has him transfixed. Bowie's narration is excellent, and the changed ending (though it may offend purists) is much better for the preschool set. Peter and the Wolf is nicely complemented by the Nutcracker. Highly recommened for parents to share with their children.

At least RCA kept it in print!

Having first had this album on green vinyl no less back in 1977/8 I was not at all suprised to learn that Mr. Bowie had narrated such a classic opera in fact I was very pleased and would listen to it often.

Having played in the public school orchestras for over ten years back then it was also a shot in the arm to know that (at that time) a young teenager could not only identify with classical music and a leading pop idol of the times. Now at the age of forty and with my own children I find it an interesting way for my own to learn about classical music, the Philadelphia Orchestra (5 Stars to them) and Eugene Ormandy (10 stars to him).

As far as the previous review goes don't be dismayed because the ending was changed to siut the narrators needs or whatever, this is hardly as back-handed as what Disney studios has been doing for the past 20 odd years and making much more money doing it.

Buy this if you like the story, the narrator, the conductor or the orchestra, your children (if you have any, and not a prerequisit) will love it and you will too when you share this recording. Not often a fan of cheap RCA records, but at least they kept this one in print.

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A casual observation

Just wanted to point out that Peter and the Wolf is NOT and opera.