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In the Forum: Musical Discussions
In the Thread: Best recording I heard in 2004.
Post Subject: gergievPosted by amperidian on: 7/3/2007
Very interesting point about Gergiev.  I do not dispute it.  I just know that at present time some of the work released by him is very pleasing to me. That does not limit me to only listening to what Gergiev is doing.  For example he has released his version of Sheherezade on philips label but I also have (and enjoy) a less "enunciated" version by Serebrier on reference recordings label, although maybe only 2/10 times at this point.

I still have a long way to go in classical music, to understand and appreciate works presented in a coherent, understated manner which (unlike many audio examples) do not seek to impress or WOW the listener.  I am beginning to find out that such works are more rewarding in the long run, after the initial WOW wears off ... when these works become just an item on the shelf.  That's where Geza Anda and Pascal Roge have provided me with invaluable gems.

As for Russian opera cast ... nothing really special these days.  The real stength of Russian opera singers has always been in the baritone range and occasionally in the tenor range also, but very rarely have they produced anything special in the female repertoire (contralto, soprano, mezzo-soprano). 

Speaking of impressive technical skill ... I just listened to Cecilia Bartoli's Vivaldi Album released under decca label.  Although very proficient in the technical area, to me it sounds very much like she is missing the whole point of Vivaldi's music.  I am not a huge fan of mezzo-soprano anyways, and I much rather prefer Marie-Nicole Lemieux (contralto) singing in Vivaldi's Orlando Furioso opera released under the naive label or Deborah York (soprano) singing in the Antonio Vivaldi Complete Sacred Music set released under hyperion label.  These two examples, to me at least, bring me much closer to what I think Vivaldi originally intended for his music to sound like ... even though they don't WOW me like Batoli tries to.

I think your point is valid nonetheless ... but I am still going to hear Gergiev in the fall when he's due to arrive in Toronto along with the rest of the community

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