Sergei Prokofiev - Alexander Nevsky; Lieutenant Kijé; Scythian Suite (Claudio Abbado)

Information

Composer: Sergei Prokofiev

• (01-07) Alexander Nevsky, Op. 78
• (08-11) Skythische Suite, Op. 20
• (12-16) Lieutenant Kijé, Op. 60

London Symphony Chorus & Orchestra (1-7)
Chicago Symphony Orchestra (8-16)
Claudio Abbado, conductor

Date: 1977 (8-16), 1979 (1-7)
Label: Deutsche Grammophon
https://www.deutschegrammophon.com/en/cat/4474192

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Review

ARTISTIC QUALITY: 10 / SOUND QUALITY: 10

Forget the movie, Abbado’s Alexander Nevsky is more vivid than anything you’ll see on the screen. With gutsy singing from the London Symphony Chorus, a fine alto solo from Obratsova in “The Field of the Dead,” and terrifying sonorities in The Crusaders in Pskov, this really is the best version available. Abbado pulls out all the stops for the thrilling Battle on the Ice–in the movie the music for this sequence isn’t continuous, and in Temirkanov’s version of the complete file score they resort to battle noises to fill in the gaps just when the action reaches a peak of frenzy. Prokofiev stitches the various bits together brilliantly in the cantata, and the moment where the two sides collide finds Abbado, for once, going complete crazy and letting all hell break loose from the assembled forces. It’s pulverizing.

The couplings are equally enjoyable. Lieutenant Kijé is colorful and just about perfectly played. No one invests the music with as much character as Ormandy on Sony, but there’s nothing to complain about here. The Scythian Suite is, hands down, the finest version available–those Chicago brass in The Enemy God (second movement) have to be heard to be believed (sound clip). The third movement (Night) has a wonderful, velvety atmosphere, while the final crescendo will blow your speakers to bits and scare the hell out of your neighbors. This is surely one of Abbado’s greatest (and loudest) records. Incidentally, on the back of the tray card “Lieutenant” is spelled “Leutnant.” Oy vey.

-- David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday

More reviews:
https://www.gramophone.co.uk/review/prokofiev-alexander-nevsky-lt-kij%C3%A9-suite
https://www.amazon.com/Prokofiev-Alexander-Nevsky-Lieutenant-Scythian/dp/B000001GQC

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Sergei Prokofiev (23 April, 1891–March 5, 1953) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor. As the creator of acknowledged masterpieces across numerous genres, he was one of the major composers of the 20th century. Prokofiev wrote seven completed operas, seven symphonies, eight ballets, five piano concertos, two violin concertos, a cello concerto, a symphony-concerto for cello and orchestra, and nine completed piano sonatas, many of which are widely known and heard. He also enjoyed personal and artistic support from a new generation of Russian performers, notably Sviatoslav Richter and Mstislav Rostropovich.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergei_Prokofiev

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Claudio Abbado (26 June 1933 – 20 January 2014) was an Italian conductor. One of the most celebrated and respected conductors of the 20th century, he served as music director of the La Scala opera house in Milan (1969-1986), principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra (1979-1987), principal guest conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (1982-1985), music director of the Vienna State Opera  (1986-1991), and principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra (1989-2002). Abbado performed a wide range of Romantic works and recorded extensively for a variety of labels.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claudio_Abbado

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