Juxtaposing these two
wonderful ballets is always instructive;
there’s just a couple of years, at most,
between their completion, yet Stravinsky
travelled an enormous distance in his
musical development in that short period.
Firebird emerges clearly from
the world of Rimsky-Korsakov, even using
Russian folk material introduced to
Stravinsky by the older composer. By
the time Petrushka emerged, he
was pressing forward into the harmonic,
rhythmic and orchestral world of The
Rite of Spring.
Yes, the two major
works here are over-represented in the
catalogue. But this issue is a bit special;
David Zinman is a conductor with an
exceptionally fine ear for orchestral
sonority, and is at his absolute best
in this sort of repertoire. That, allied
to the exceptional sound quality achieved
by the Telarc engineers, makes this
a stunningly memorable sonic experience.
So many wondrous details
come pouring out of the Firebird
score; the timpani’s tattoo towards
the end of Kastchei’s Infernal Dance;
the delicate string harmonics in the
reprise of the Berceuse melody; the
little trickles of harp tone as the
finale gathers momentum; and so many
more delights for the ear. Yet this
is not one of those ‘demonstration’
discs, for the orchestral balance has
a truthfulness about it that makes the
clarity that much more beguiling. And
the big moments are really huge, with
bass drum strokes approaching the conclusion
that nearly caused my speakers to have
a nervous breakdown!
Zinman’s pacing of
Firebird is also outstanding.
He hits tempi which have the quality
of seeming natural and inevitable, and
he has that irreplaceable quality for
Stravinsky conductors, an unerring sense
of pulse.
The same qualities
illuminate Petrushka too, enhanced
by the greater subtlety of the later
work. This is the first time I have
heard the Baltimore Symphony on disc,
but they rise to the challenge of these
showpieces marvellously well. Zinman
proves to be the ideal interpreter,
achieving a chamber music intimacy for
the ‘indoor’ scenes – Petrushka alone
in his cell, the Moor in his attempting
to seduce the Ballerina – and a teeming
vigour for the fairground episodes.
The conclusion is perfectly achieved,
with a real sense of shock and disintegration,
though perhaps the dropped tambourine
- which the composer asks for - is a
little too loud, for this can all too
easily sound like an unfortunate accident
in the percussion section!
The spectacular early
work Fireworks completes this
outstanding bargain. If you want a coupling
of these two great ballets, you’ll find
it hard to beat this one.
Gwyn Parry-Jones
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra/David Zinman 
