Debussy: Orchestral Music | George Pieterson, Claude Debussy, ...

Debussy: Orchestral Music | George Pieterson, Claude Debussy, ... | Fantastic set

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Debussy: Orchestra...

	Debussy: Orchestral Music George Pieterson, Claude Debussy, ... Philips, 1994 average customer review:based on 17 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Bernard Haitink's recordings of the Nocturnes and Jeux were hailed as among the finest available when initially issued. That LP provided rather short measure. Now you can get all of Debussy's most important orchestral music on two CDs for the price of one, and if the remaining performances don't quite reach the exalted level of the Nocturnes and Jeux, they come so close as to make no difference. Haitink was not a very assertive conductor (and he's gotten less so with age), but he was fortunate to have one of the world's best orchestras at the tip of his baton, and their recordings were a true collaborative effort. Their approach works particularly well for Debussy. --David Hurwitz

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Great

True, Haitink is not a "ZIP! ZING! POW! conductor" like David A. FLetcher mentioned in his review (I thought it was funny put, so I wanted to quote it), but he sure knows how to let the music do the speaking.

These are not "impressionistic" readings and I'm glad they're not, although the orchestra sounds warm and round, a little "cosy" if you like, but that's fine, I love the sound.
The playing is accurate and flexible and I think Haitink's "Images" is one of the best recordings I heard of this work, next with Boulez' excellent recording on DG.

The "Prelude a l'apres midi.." is a bit on the slow side and some nice details you'll hear in Boulez' recordings (Sony and DG) are somewhat underplayed...or not very good recorded?, but the mood and sound are great.

I think the sound of the RCO and Philips analogue recording are superb and do great justice to Debussy's musical universe.
Boulez might be more idiomatic, his recordings are the standard for me, but the warmer sound of the RCO with Haitink on Philips is something special indeed.

Excellent disc.

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Fantastic set

This set is wonderful for anyone who is looking to get acquainted with Debussy, as well as anyone looking for new interpretations of his famous orchestral work. This 2 disk contains my favorite rendering of the majestic "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun", as well as my favorite recording of the three Nocturnes and "Images". These three pieces are improved by the warm and luminous, yet vague ("impressionistic") sound of this recording.

The harp dances sound wonderful. So does the clarinet rhapsodie. The soloist has wonderful tone.

Elsewhere, the audio quality is my only complaint about this set - "La Mer", being as it is a highly dense, orchestrated piece of work, would benefit from added clarity and higher audio fidelity, but the version here is still very good. The other piece that suffers from the overly reverberant, slightly muddy sound is "Berceuse Heroique", an amazing and powerful shorter piece, summarizing whole years of life in a blur of 5 minutes... here, unfortunately, the louder moments turn into incoherent chaos.

All of the playing is fantastic, the intonation is great... I've never heard this music so expressive.

Highly recommended for definitive versions of "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun", "Nocturnes" and "Images". Everything else is good as well. 4.5 stars.

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Beautiful music

I can't get enough of these discs; the sound is superb! A fabulous journey into the "impressionist" art of Debussy.

great collection

The first concert I ever saw in the Kimmel Center was Valery Gergiev conducting the Philadelphia Orchestra playing La mer, Prelude de l'apres-midi d'un faune, and a Schubert symphony. The orchestra was under-rehearsed, but I remember being transfixed during both Debussy pieces (and I think Gergiev received quite a standing ovation). There is something special about Debussy's orchestral music that few other composers (Ravel, perhaps) can match.

The individual performances in this collection are not mindblowingly brilliant, but as a whole, this collection is quite satisfying. The Concertgebouw Orchestra plays well, as usual, and it's helped by great recording quality (voted Gramophone Magazine's best engineered recording in 1980). If you want more unique performances of individual pieces, look at Munch (for example), but if you want a well-played, comprehensive collection, get this CD. It's one of my favorites.

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Comfy Debussy, for when you don't want to be seduced

I am a little miffed for believing the reviewers here about this Philips two-fer. I would have assumed that Haitink, the maestro of middle-of-the-road, would give us comfortable, well-balanced, plain-faced Debussy, not sparkling, enchanting Debussy. As it turns out, that assumption was right. These Seventies recordings, some in excellent sound (Jeux and Trois Noctournes in particular), are lusciously played. But attentive as Haitink is, there is no seductiveness to the music.

I'm not being all that critical: in the wrong hands Debussy's gossamer textures and irregular rhythms get sea-sick and swoony. Haitink is sober all the way, his La Mer too much so, and also his Prelude to the Afternoon of a Fuan. The two most famous readings in this set, Jeux and the Nocturns, benefit from Haitink's modesty. By keeping the rhythm steady and being scrupulous about orchestral blend, both works sound beautiful without becoming luxuriant or slippery.

Nothing in Haitink's hands sounds like Ravel, and that's a high compliment. For that reason, I will keep this set. I don't need to be enchanted every day.

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