[SACD-R][OF] Micahel Tilson Thomas, Boston Symphony Orchestra - Igor Stravinsky / Игорь Стравинский: Le Roi des Etoiles, Le Sacre du Printemps - 1972/2015 (Orchestral, Choral)

Reviews from HRAudio.net:

By Graham Williams:
With this release PENTATONE demonstrate once again how their remarkable re-masterings of these 1970s Deutsche Grammophon quadraphonic tapes to multi-channel SACD can breathe new life into 40 year-old recordings with spectacular results.
Michael Tilson Thomas has long been a champion of Stravinsky’s works as his many recordings of them testify and though there are countless fine versions of Stravinsky’s iconic ballet ‘Le Sacre du Printemps’ (The Rite of Spring) in the catalogue, this one shows that when an exceptionally talented and confident 28 year old conductor is put before a superbly drilled world-class orchestra the results can be electrifying.
The bassoon solo of the Part I introduction, beautifully played by Sherman Walt, is quite slow, with the long opening note unusually sustained, but it immediately establishes what Stravinsky described as ‘the mystery of the physical world in Spring.’ As the work progresses MTT quickly builds up forward momentum and the ‘Danses des Adolescentes’ and ‘Jeu du Rapt’ are, thanks to the incisive playing of the Boston Symphony, as barbaric as one could wish for. Following a marvellously atmospheric start to Part II the pounding eleven chords that open the ‘Glorification de L’ Élue’ are delivered with tremendous ferocity and MTT skilfully racks up the tension as the ballet proceeds to its eventual frenetic close.
The 4.0 channel recording captures the huge tam-tam crashes and earth-shattering drum beats that appear throughout the work with a vividness and power rarely experienced on many more recent recordings, while no praise can be too high for the orchestra’s magnificent brass playing.
Though the almost cavernous acoustic of Symphony Hall, Boston certainly presents challenges to both the conductor and the recording team, they are for the most part overcome brilliantly, and thanks to the skills of Thomas Mowrey (producer) and Günter Hermanns (balance engineer) many details emerge with unexpected clarity while the overall impact of the sound is thrilling.
The fill-up is the short but remarkable cantata ‘Le Roi des Étoiles” that was composed around the same time as Stravinsky was working on ‘Le Sacre du Printemps’ (1911-12). It is a setting of ‘Zvezdoliki’ (literally ‘Starface’), a text by the Russian symbolist poet Konstantin Balmont and is dedicated to Debussy who greatly admired it. Scored for male chorus and large orchestra, that includes a celesta and two harps, the influence of both Debussy and especially Scriabin in its harmonic language is clear. Surprisingly it had to wait until 1939 to receive its first performance. It is enthusiastically performed by the Men’s Chorus of the New England Conservatory Choir who seem undaunted by its rhythmic and harmonic complexities while the reverberant Boston acoustic adds to the sonic magic of this fascinating piece. It is a pity that PENTATONE could not have re-printed the text of the cantata in the liner notes that accompany this SACD, especially as they were included with the original LP release. Stravinsky, however, was more concerned with the sounds of the words rather than their meaning so perhaps this is no great loss.
It should be pointed out that this disc contains only what was on the original LP release in 1972 so a total playing time of 39′ 41” does seem rather short measure these days for a full-price issue. But quantity does not replace quality, and to have these two performances in such fine high resolution sound is, in my opinion, worth the cost in spite of the disc’s brevity.