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Berlioz: Overtures; Queen Mab Scherzo / Saint-Saens : Omphale's Spining Wheel , Op. 31

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Charles Munch (Artist) Format: Audio CD
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 12 ratings
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Track Listings

1 Le carnaval romain Overture, Op. 9
2 Overture
3 Overture
4 Les troyens, H. 133: Chasse royale et orage
5 Overture
6 Scherzo de la reine Mab
7 Le rouet d'Omphale, Op. 31

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Munch and Berlioz are like chocolate and peanut butter--they go great together. This disc is the finest collection of Berlioz overtures and short works available, and possibly the best ever recorded. Berlioz was music's ultimate neurotic: his music is quite simply hyper. It jumps, fidgets, and explodes with bursts of passion, all of it uniquely tuneful and magnificently scored. Charles Munch could lose himself in music like this; here he surrenders to the excitement of the moment and positively revels in the passages where all hell breaks loose. The Boston Symphony plays as if their lives depended on it, and the early-1960s sound hasn't dated a bit. --David Hurwitz

Product details

  • Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
  • Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.62 x 4.92 x 0.33 inches; 3.84 ounces
  • Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ Sony Classical
  • Original Release Date ‏ : ‎ 1993
  • Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour
  • Date First Available ‏ : ‎ December 8, 2006
  • Label ‏ : ‎ Sony Classical
  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B000003FCM
  • Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 12 ratings

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
12 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Jon Miller ('Kirk')
5.0 out of 5 stars I have heard some excellent Berlioz conductors, but none
Reviewed in the United States on June 29, 2013
better than Munch. They include Colin Davis, Adrian Boult, Alexander Gibson, Igor
Markevitch, Willem Van Otterloo, Bernard Haitink, Eduard Van Beinum, and Jean Martinon (see my reviews of Berlioz overtures by Boult and Gibson). But none
have bettered Munch in these overtures and excerpts from The Trojans and Romeo and Juliet. My father admired few composers after Schubert but excepted Berlioz (born only six years after Schubert), the Brahms first string quartet, and Gilbert and Sullivan. Both Roman Carnival and Beatrice and Benedict are sparkling, while Roman Carnival becomes duly riotous. The Royal Hunt and Storm from Les Troyens may be an even greater works. The former is a tone poem with a serene hunt genesis leading to a storm rivaling that in the Pastoral symphony. All are conducted with abundant intellectual discipline and emotional energy which remind me of Munch's Beethoven 7th symphony.
The Corsaire and Benevenuto Cellini are two of Berlioz's greatest overtures, especially the latter with its haunting downward chromatic theme. I would not be without Gibson (two separate cds), Boult (teamed with the complete Schumann symphonies) and Davis ( a lifetime devotee re-doing earlier Berlioz recordings
in his eighties), but Munch must be included in this Pantheon. The Saint Saens Spinning Wheel is a lovely filler in its own right.
3 people found this helpful
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I. Giles
5.0 out of 5 stars Quite simply, arguably the most exciting collection ever recorded
Reviewed in the United States on October 7, 2013
This collection of overtures and other short orchestral pieces by Berlioz comes from recordings made between 1957-61. The performances have always been thrilling but the sound of the original LP was this and aggressive on top, boomy at the bottom and lacking in depth of field. Even so, it was still a treasured LP at that time.

Since then it has appeared on CD and this particular issue has been remastered to very good effect indeed. This has tamed the treble, removed the boomy bass and increased the apparent depth of sound stage. It is now an altogether more enjoyable sonic experience.

The performances still thrill as they always did. This is Munch at white heat and his orchestra rise to the challenge of breakneck speeds with amazing articulation. There are certainly more sophisticated discs available of this repertoire now both in terms of sound and of subtleties of phrasing, but there are none to match this for electricity.

I would therefore suggest that, regardless of other discs collectors may own of these works, this disc has claim to be an almost obligatory addition.
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Joseph Kline PhD, MD, MBA
5.0 out of 5 stars Superb Munch/BSO/Berlioz! Must be part of every collection.
Reviewed in the United States on March 22, 2014
Munch was the consummate interpreter of the music of Hector Berlioz. This compilation of overtures is further proof. Although the Berlioz that comprises most of the disc was recorded between 1958 and 1961 (the Saint-Saens piece dates from 1957), the digital remastering is so successful that it obscures its age. Yes you can tell that the music wasn't recorded yesterday, but the interpretations and sound are so superb that the age just doesn't matter. And there isn't a weak overture in the entire disc. In fact, this could easily serve as a demonstration disc.

Berlioz was legendary as an orchestrator. With the talents of Charles Munch, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and as great a recording as RCA ever made (with John Pfeiffer as producer), this is a disc for the ages. If you enjoy the music of Berlioz, then this remastering belongs on your top shelf. Great recordings come and go from the catalogue without reason. Don't wait!
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Huntley Dent
5.0 out of 5 stars An essential disc of Berlioz overtures, white-hot in Munch's hands
Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2010
Any lover of Berlioz probably knows already that this RCA compilation contains the total output of overtures recorded by Munch and the BSO. There's nothing remotely out of the way, no Waverley or King Lear, no Francs Juges or Rob Roy. More's the pity, since Munch's white-hot readings are a shot in the arm after so many cautious, routine performances, including those by Dutoit on Decca and the latter-day Colin Davis on RCA. The only serious competition comes from a CD, now out of print, made by Davis as a younger conductor for Philips; that collection has now been absorbed into one of the box sets assembled by Philips, and it does include more unusual selections.

Berlioz was the greatest writer of concert overtures after Beethoven, on a par with Weber, and I'm baffled why we don't have a raft of competing versions. Be that as it may, fanciers of his output know that they can seek out single performances (such as Beecham's stereo Le corsaire or his mono Les francs juges) that equal or surpass Munch. There's also the sad fact that without remastering, the sound on this disc is a bit thin and scrappy. One also has to admit that Munch didn't exactly have the BSO playing in top form, so there's more than a little sloppiness in the strings and some careless wind solos. What counts most is here, however-- the conductor's total conviction. By comparison, contemporary conductors sound almost placid.
One person found this helpful
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J. Roseman
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful!
Reviewed in the United States on February 8, 2008
If you want the best example of these overtures, this is the one to go with. It doesn't get better than Munch/BSO with Berlioz!!!
One person found this helpful
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Matt Adkins
3.0 out of 5 stars Fine disc, probably not "desert island" material...
Reviewed in the United States on September 9, 2007
A really fine recording...I bought it as part of a search for "Le Rouet D'omphale (Omphale's Spinning Wheel) from Camille Saint-Saens, which is used as background music during the original radio productions of The Shadow (see  The Shadow Scrapbook (Harvest/HBJ Book) ) and was very pleasantly suprised by the Berlioz recordings, particulary the piece from "Les Troyens" (track 4)
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Hiram Gòmez Pardo Venezuela
5.0 out of 5 stars As good as it gets!
Reviewed in the United States on July 5, 2005
These Berlioz overtures will never find a best performer than Munch: This Alsatian conductor had that sublime taste, eloquence, absolute domain of the thematic material, presence and hard to find conviction as any other conductor previous or later.

Besides, if you have an Orchestra of such level as the Boston Symphony in those ages, how can you loose?.

Magnificent performances and the best made rendition for Berlioz music.
3 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

I. Giles
5.0 out of 5 stars Quite simply, arguably the most exciting collection ever recorded
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 7, 2013
Verified Purchase
This collection of overtures and other short orchestral pieces by Berlioz comes from recordings made between 1957-61. The performances have always been thrilling but the sound of the original LP was this and aggressive on top, boomy at the bottom and lacking in depth of field. Even so, it was still a treasured LP at that time.

Since then it has appeared on CD and this particular issue has been remastered to very good effect indeed. This has tamed the treble, removed the boomy bass and increased the apparent depth of sound stage. It is now an altogether more enjoyable sonic experience.

The performances still thrill as they always did. This is Munch at white heat and his orchestra rise to the challenge of breakneck speeds with amazing articulation. There are certainly more sophisticated discs available of this repertoire now both in terms of sound and of subtleties of phrasing, but there are none to match this for electricity.

I would therefore suggest that, regardless of other discs collectors may own of these works, this disc has claim to be an almost obligatory addition.
3 people found this helpful
 Report