P. I. Tchaikovsky; M. Mussorgsky; A. Borodin - Orchestral Works (Leopold Stokowski)

Information

Composer: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky; Modest Mussorgsky; Alexander Borodin

1. Tchaikovsky - 1812 Overture, Op. 49
2. Mussorgsky - Night on the Bare Mountain (orch. Leopold Stokowski)
3. Borodin -  Prince Igor, opera: Polovtsian Dances
4. Mussorgsky - Boris Godunov (Symphonic Synthesis by Leopold Stokowski)
5. Tchaikovsky - March slave, Op. 31

The Band of the Grenadier Guards (1)
Chorus of the Welsh National Opera (1, 3)
Royal Philharmonic Chorus & Orchestra (1, 3)
London Symphony Orchestra (2, 5)
Orchestre de la Suisse Romande (4)
Leopold Stokowski, conductor

Date: 1967 (2, 5), 1968 (4), 1969 (1, 3)
Label: Decca

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Review

"... The 1812 is typical Stokowski, full of wonderful effects like the Russian Anthem suddenly ushered in at the close of the piece and the dying away of the bells. The main piece of interest on this CD, however, does not fit the category, and is the most interesting. Stokowski staged Boris Godunov in part in Philadelphia. It is said that this opera was perhaps Stokowski's favorite. He made an orchestral symphonic synthesis which he first recorded in 1936. You have to remember that much of Stokowski wanted to introduce new at a time when a lot of it was more obscure than new. This was why he wrote the Bach transcriptions. With the recording process also at his hand, Stokowski was able to introduce countless number of people to Mussorgsky's opera. I love this opera (my personal favorite is Clauddio Abbado with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra on Sony) and think that being introduced to it through Stokowski didn't hurt at all."

-- Robert Stumpf II © 1995, Classical Net

More reviews:
http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2014/Nov14/Phase4_pt7.htm
http://www.amazon.com/Tchaikovsky-Mussorgsky-Stokowski-Symphonic-Polovtsian/dp/B000004262

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Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (25 April/7 May 1840 – 25 October/6 November 1893) was a Russian composer who wrote some of the most popular music in the classical repertoire. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Despite his many popular successes, Tchaikovsky's life was punctuated by personal crises and depression. His homosexuality considered a major factor. Tchaikovsky wrote many works that are popular with the classical music public, including his three ballets, six symphonies, Piano Concerto No. 1 and Violin Concerto.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyotr_Ilyich_Tchaikovsky

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Modest Mussorgsky (21 March [O.S. 9 March] 1839 – 28 March [O.S. 16 March] 1881) was a Russian composer, one of the group known as The Five. He was an innovator of Russian music in the romantic period, striving to achieve a uniquely Russian musical identity, often in deliberate defiance of the established conventions of Western music. Many of his works were inspired by Russian history, Russian folklore, and other nationalist themes. For many years Mussorgsky's works were mainly known in versions revised or completed by other composers, but some of the original scores are now also available.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modest_Mussorgsky

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Alexander Borodin (12 November 1833 – 27 February 1887) was a Russian Romantic composer of Georgian origin, as well as a doctor and a chemist.  He was one of the prominent 19th-century group of composers known as The Mighty Handful, or The Five. Borodin is best known for his symphonies, his two string quartets, the tone poem 'In the Steppes of Central Asia' and his opera 'Prince Igor'. A notable advocate of women's rights, Borodin was a promoter of education in Russia and founded the School of Medicine for Women in Saint Petersburg. As a chemist, he is best known for his work in organic synthesis.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Borodin

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Leopold Stokowski (18 April 1882 – 13 September 1977) was a British conductor of Polish and Irish descent. One of the leading conductors of the early and mid-20th Century, he is best known for his long association with the Philadelphia Orchestra and for appearing in the film Fantasia. He was especially noted for his free-hand conducting style that spurned the traditional baton and for obtaining a characteristically sumptuous sound from the orchestras he directed. Stokowski made his official conducting debut in 1909 and continued making recordings until June 1977, a few months before his death at the age of 95.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leopold_Stokowski

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