Leoš Janáček - Opera Suites Vol. 1 (Peter Breiner)

Information

Composer: Leoš Janáček

1. Jenůfa (arr. Peter Breiner): I. Night is already falling
2. Jenůfa (arr. Peter Breiner): II. All are getting married - Every couple must get over its problems
3. Jenůfa (arr. Peter Breiner): III. Are you feeling sad, Jenufa
4. Jenůfa (arr. Peter Breiner): IV. Far and wide
5. Jenůfa (arr. Peter Breiner): V. May God grant you a good day
6. Jenůfa (arr. Peter Breiner): VI. They've all left - Now you leave too!
7. The Excursions of Mr. Brouček (arr. Peter Breiner): I. Matthew Broucek
8. The Excursions of Mr. Brouček (arr. Peter Breiner): II. There is the Moon
9. The Excursions of Mr. Brouček (arr. Peter Breiner): III. Waltzes and other dances
10. The Excursions of Mr. Brouček (arr. Peter Breiner): IV. Visitor from Earth
11. The Excursions of Mr. Brouček (arr. Peter Breiner): V. Those who are the warriors of God

Vesa-Matti Leppänen, violin (1-6)
New Zealand Symphony Orchestra
Peter Breiner, conductor

Date: 2009
Label: Naxos
http://www.naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=8.570555

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Review

ARTISTIC QUALITY: 7 / SOUND QUALITY: 8

Janácek fans will be salivating at the prospect of a new series of suites from his operas, of which this release is billed as Volume 1. Of course, some very good ones already exist, whether José Serebrier’s arrangement of music from The Makropulos Case, or Frantisek Jílek’s excellent suites from Fate, The Cunning LIttle Vixen, and From the House of the Dead. Janácek’s operatic music is so fascinatingly mobile, visceral in its emotional impact, and direct in expression that even when it consists of little more than ostinatos and tune-fragments it’s interesting to listen to on its own, and thus far we have had no suite from his first great opera, Jenufa.

In the event, Peter Breiner’s arrangement is only partially successful. Some of his choices are puzzling. For example, he avoids using the endings of the first two acts, which could have helped in concluding a couple of the suite’s six movements. Despite freely mixing episodes from different parts of the opera (combining the preludes to the second and third acts works particularly well), he hasn’t avoided that “stop and start” quality produced by building to a climax and then cutting off abruptly. He doesn’t touch Kostelnicka’s “murder” monologue, a wonderful chunk of intense music with its own natural form. And his orchestral retouching sometimes fails to convince. Doubling the melody of Steva’s recruiting song with a glockenspiel is tacky–more like one of John Lanchbery’s Minkus ballet adaptations.

This is less of a problem in the Broucek suite. This opera, as we already know from the existing arrangement, contains tons of tuneful, gorgeous, continuous music, and Breiner’s 40 minutes quite successfully captures most of the highlights. More problematic, however, is his conducting. In the Jenufa suite his tempos tend to be stiff and stodgy, the response of the orchestra lacking in both dynamic range and sheer intensity. Again, the music from Broucek comes off better, perhaps because it’s at once more colorful and less emotionally heated, as befits a comic opera. So this disc is only a partial success; I hope the series continues under a more exciting conductor, and that Breiner sticks to Janácek’s original intentions (texturally) to the extent possible.

-- David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday

More reviews:
http://www.gramophone.co.uk/review/jan%C3%A1cek-orchestral-suites-from-the-operas-no-1
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2009/Apr09/Janacek_suites_8570555.htm
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2009/May09/Janacek_suites_8570555.htm
http://www.classicalcdreview.com/8570556.html
http://www.allmusic.com/album/jan%C3%A1cek-orchestral-suites-from-the-operas-vol-1-mw0001865831
https://www.naxos.com/reviews/reviewslist.asp?catalogueid=8.570555&languageid=EN
http://www.amazon.com/Janacek-Orchestral-Suites-Excursions-Broucek/dp/B001NZA0C4

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Leoš Janáček (3 July 1854 – 12 August 1928) was a Czech composer, musical theorist, folklorist, publicist and teacher. He was inspired by Moravian and other Slavic folk music to create an original, modern musical style. Much of Janáček's work displays great originality and individuality. Janáček belongs to a wave of twentieth-century composers who sought greater realism and greater connection with everyday life, combined with a more all-encompassing use of musical resources. Janáček is considered one of the most important Czech composers, along with Antonín Dvořák and Bedřich Smetana.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo%C5%A1_Jan%C3%A1%C4%8Dek

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Peter Breiner (born July 3, 1957 in Humenné) is a Slovak pianist, conductor, and composer. He studied at the Conservatory in Košice and the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava, graduated in 1982. Breiner has recorded over 150 albums as conductors and pianist, and is well known for his arrangements of popular music. His triple CD "Janacek Operatic Suites", released on Naxos label, was one of the Top Ten Classical CDs of 2009, according to the Chicago Tribune. Breiner also has a career as a television personality, with a talk show on Slovenská televízia, and is a passionate soccer player.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Breiner

http://peterbreiner.com/web/home.aspx

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