99.00 PLN

SACD Multi-CH HDCD:

Nr kat.: CKD226
Label  : Linn Records

ARTYZM / JAKOŚĆ TECHNICZNA - 10/10!

Benjamin Britten studied with Frank Bridge as a boy. The Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge is an early work with a high personal definition. Britten moved to the USA in 1939 with Peter Pears where he wrote Les Illuminations. He later returned to the UK and, partly stimulated by Purcell, started to concentrate on English verse. He wrote the Serenade for Tenor, Horn & Strings in 1943. The Scottish Ensemble is a dynamic group of 12 string players with outstanding violinist Clio Gould as Artistic Director. The group undertakes varied radio and television broadcasts, and makes regular live recordings for BBC Radio 3. The group's film work includes the 1999 release Orphans and the award-winning film and album of Follow the Moonstone. Toby Spence is a world-class tenor renowned for his operatic roles as well as on the concert platform. Toby Spence has established strong links with both English National Opera and the Paris Opera. He will perform with both companies in 2005 as well as at the Wigmore Hall with the Scottish Ensemble. He will be touring with Emmanuelle Haim and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra in February 2005; he will be tenor soloist in the Missa Solemnis with Joseph Swensen and the SCO in May; and reprising his acclaimed Tamino in the Magic Flute at ENO in September and October 2005. Martin Owen, Principal Horn of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, is widely regarded as one of the country's leading players appearing as both guest principal horn with many London Orchestras, and those further afield, including the Berlin Philharmonic and Chamber Orchestra of Europe, and soloist / chamber musician in some of the leading music festivals around the world. Also available: Linn CKD 215 - Ravel & Shostakovich Linn CKD 095 - Shostakovich Chamber Symphony Linn CKD 085 - Tavener Tears of the Angels The sound is excellent, the playing consistently sympathetic. A good stimulating listen” Gramophone on CKD 215!“ “The Scottish Ensemble is thoroughly committed and convincing” BBC Music Magazine -------------

This is an outstanding disc, particularly a showcase for the talents of tenor Toby Spence and the excellent players of the Scottish Ensemble. I don't think that these works have ever been better sung, interpretively or technically. Spence has a truly lovely voice, with a sweet, open top very unlike the constricted, reedy timbre of so many English tenors, Robert Tear and Peter Pears (wonderful though he was artistically) among them. His lower register is warm, almost baritonal in quality, and this makes his voice a uniquely flexible instrument ideally suited to the wide-ranging demands that Britten makes on it. In Les Illuminations, the lively numbers such as Villes have tremendous bravura, while the more reflective pieces--especially Being Beauteous--flow with effortless lyricism. The punchy accompaniments of Clio Gould's Scottish Ensemble keep the music moving as effortlessly as Spence sings it. If anything, the Serenade is even better. Horn player Martin Owen has a big tone, in the best English tradition, and he's rightly given absolute equality with the voice in a realistic acoustic. This makes his exchanges with Spence in a movement such as Nocturne absolutely thrilling, while the Blake setting in Elegy, the emotional heart of the work, is aptly haunting in its melancholy, and truly moving. These are simply spectacular performances in every respect, modern reference versions to set next to Britten's own. The Frank Bridge Variations are a bit less impressive, not just because Britten's own performance is so fine, but because the Scottish Ensemble is a touch small in tone to give Funeral March the weight that it ideally needs, even given Gould's take-no-prisoner's approach. Her slashing rhythms and rapid tempos certainly dazzle, but the Aria Italiana makes an even better (and funnier) impression at a less frantic pace, with a bit more affection and rubato in its phrases. Still, it's a performance of a piece with the others, a good bonus between the vocal items, which remain the disc's highlights and principal attraction. Given sonics that are state-of-the-art in both stereo and multi-channel sound, the result is essential listening for all Britten fans. [3/14/2005] --David Hurwitz ====================================== Linn CKD 226 "Britten Les Illuminations" by the Scottish Ensemble reviewed by audiophile magazine Sound Stage Named PŁYTA WYRÓŻNIONA TYTUŁEM: Best Multichannel SACD of the Year
Musical Performance * * * * * / Recording Quality * * * * * / Overall Enjoyment * * * * * The three remarkable compositions on this disc were penned between 1937 and 1943, when the precocious young composer was in his late 20s. They have in common the energy of youth and the wisdom of early maturity. The Variations, which on this disc comes as an interlude between the two vocal works, was the earliest, composed for Boyd Neel and his famous string orchestra. The latest to be written was the well-known Serenade. This incredible work was written for Britten’s lifelong partner, tenor Peter Pears, and the horn virtuoso Dennis Brain. Its texts are drawn from the best English poetry pertaining to the night, verse by Charles Cotton, William Blake, Alfred Lord Tennyson, John Keats, and Ben Johnson. All of these pieces have been recorded with Britten conducting. The composer was an inordinately fine, sensitive maestro. As good as his readings are, the ones on this SACD stand head and shoulders alongside them. You know something special is coming from the opening fanfare of Les Illuminations: precise, virtuoso, and yet thoroughly musical. When Toby Spence makes his first entrance, interest heightens. What a wonderful voice this young man has. Unlike the instruments of most English tenors, his voice is open at the top, and is radiant and secure, capable of stentorian, ringing passages or the quietest intimacy. In the Serenade, horn player Martin Owen, an artist of equal talent, joins him for a performance that glows with lyricism and crackles with drama. The recorded sound is large and full, with singular presence and detail. The center channel is not used, this being a 4.0 recording, but the phantom center image is so stable that no one will miss it. The rear channels provide precisely the right amount of ambience. If you know these works, rush to hear them in fresh and vibrant performances, if you do not, buy this disc for an incredible new experience. It captures a recording session where absolutely everything went right. Sound Stage Hi Fi Choice

The Scottish Ensemble produces a recording of 'massive range of dynamics and colours'
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HighFidelityReview.com
Toby Spence is simply mesmerizing
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Gramophone
the music positively glitters
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BBCi
dramatic and evocative performances
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The Sunday Times

Owen's playing is a luxury for the ear
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Inverness Courier
immaculate and beautifully round-toned horn-playing
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ClassicsToday.com

essential listening for all Britten fans
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The Sunday Telegraph
a disc that no Brittten enthusiast should overlook
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Independent on Sunday

An irresistable recording
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The Daily Telegraph
plenty of chamber-like transparency to the text
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The Herald
spectacularly well performed and recorded
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The Sunday Herald
a breathtaking array of intense, precision playing
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Atlanta Audio Society
a beautifully honed, rich sounding, dynamic ensemble
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Musicweb-International.com
this disc [is] in a class of its own
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Music Week
a richly coloured performance of Les Illuminations
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The Guardian
a robustness and sense of adventure
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BBC Music Magazine

spacious, warm sound
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The Scotsman
this disc screams "go out and buy me"
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Soundstage.com

Named Best Multichannel SACD of the Year
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Classic FM

This is 21st-century Britten
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ClassicalCDReview.com
first rate performances and stunning sonics
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International Record Review
how they glitter
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