Borodin: Prince Igor [Highlights] [CD]

There are purists who scoff at highlights recordings of operas. But my experience is that when there is an opera that I'm not familiar with, it sometimes helps to hear the highlights first and make a judgment about its overall quality in order to decide whether to spend the sometimes huge cost of obtaining the complete opera. As it happens, I have a full recording of Borodin's 'Prince Igor,' but I also have become a fan of Theodore Kuchar and the orchestra he records with so often, the National Radio Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine. And I knew that there are some fabulous voices coming out of Ukraine these days. Hence this recording. And what a delight it is!

The highlights included here are the Overture, Galitsky's first act aria, the Dance of the Polovtsian Maidens from Act II, Konchakovna's Act II aria, Vladimir's Act II Cavatina, Igor's Act II aria, the choral version of the Polovtsian Dances (different, and more effective, than the all-orchestral version we tend to hear) and then the Polovtsian March from Act III. This totals about fifty minutes. The CD is then filled out with an excellent performance of Borodin's 'In the Steppes of Central Asia.'

I must say that the singers here do not disappoint; both the chorus and the various soloists are excellent. Galitsky is sung by Taras Shtonda, a bass whose voice has enough ping (deriving from his fast vibrato) to give the evil Galitsky a bit of a nasty edge (appropriately so). Konchakovna's exotic sounding Cavatina is sung by the wonderful rich-voiced contralto Angelina Shvachka. Prince Vladimir, her lover, is sung by the 23-year-old tenor, Dmytro Popov. He is headed for big things, I suspect. His caressing tone in the softer portions of the aria is very pleasing. The title role is sung by bass-baritone Mykola Koval, the most established member of the cast; he's been singing at the Ukraine National Opera for more than twenty years. His melancholic aria is sung with dramatic thrust, but there is an incipient wobble in the voice. The orchestra and chorus give us exciting and characterful performances of the orchestral and choral sections.

The transliterated Russian words of the arias and their English translations are included in the booklet. There is also a fairly detailed synopsis provided.

I suspect this would be a good buy for someone who is not familiar with Borodin's opera or for someone who knows some of the music but doesn't want to invest in a full recording. (Naxos some time ago also released a historic 1950s recording from the Bolshoi of the full opera on 3 CDs . It is in mono, of course, but is a fine account for relatively modest cost.)

Scott Morrison

Borodin's PRINCE IGOR is a large, grand spectacle of Russian opera in the tradition of BORIS GODOUNOV. The robust overture is known to concert goers and the melodies of its Polovtsian Dances would be among classical music's better known tunes. Today the opera is largely unknown outside of Russia except by those who own the complete versions of the work (EMI and Sony both include the work in their catalogues). For those who would like a sampling of the opera, this disc from Naxos fits the bill. It includes the overture, the dance scenes with chorus (a treat for those only familiar with the orchestral renditions), the Polovtsian march, and a sampling of arias, one each for tenor, mezzo, baritone, and bass.

If the expression that water only makes us thirst for wine is true, then this disc is the water that makes a listener thirsty for the wine of a complete recording, with the soloists of this set, its orchestra and chorus. We get a sense that all involved are familiar with the opera. The Ukraine National Radio Symphony under Theodore Kuchar's direction has a fulsome sound that is appropriate for the music. The soloists seem at home with the music they perform as well. My only objection is that some of the great choral scenes of this opera are not included on the disc, perhaps in place of "In the Steppes of Central Asia" which concludes the recording, but since we hear a fine rendition of the work, it's not a major criticism.

This recording is thrilling, especially with the pace, volume, the raw energy of both choir and orchestra. I'm going to give away my cd's which include a namby-pamby American or European version of these exciting dances. This recording proves that you need Russian ensembles to really get the most out of Russian music. This is the way Borodin's music should be heard. I've been listening to inferior recordings of it for fifty plus years. Perhaps Naxos will release this version of Prince Igor in its entirety....