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What could be more appropriate than to hear a performance by one of Russia's great Ballet Orchestras? There is also some irony, as this Ballet company rejected Prokofiev's proposed Ballet in 1934. The 1990 orchesta aquit themselves well. The ballet is presented as it is danced. This has lead some critics to complain that there is less depth of interpreation that in some other recordings. What is true is that there is no added weight of interpretation here to make up for the lack of the visual spectacle of the dancers.
I find that this approach works well. This is a thoroughly romantic performance with an added edge of Russian grit. The sound is good, but perhaps a little shrill in the upper registers. A few instruments are partly muted the mix: for example the mandolins in the Dance With Mandolins, Disc 1 Track 23. However it is a satisfying sound overall.
The uncompromisingly balletic approach works excellently from Act 1 Scene 2 to Act 3 scene 2. However it is a little less satisfying at either end of the Ballet, most tellingly at its conclusion. At this point, which culminates in Juliet's death, a greater emotional palette would have been appropriate. As it is the last few scenes have an oddly stoney faced resilience to them, almost an out of place truimphalism. However, for three quarters of the performance there are few causes for complaint. Act 1 scene 2, with its succession of dances at different tempos is especially well executed, bar the muting of the mandolins, as mentioned above.
All in All a fine set which will appeal to listeners who prefer to add a little interpretation of their own while listening, rather than have every emotion imposed on them by the conductor.
What stands out about this reading is that Gergiev, an extremely intelligent thinker about the long line, handles the rise and fall of the ballet so that it doesn't peak too early, doesn't turn cloying, and never exhausts the listener (he's spoken to all these points in interviews, although the subject was Mahler). Each number is exciting, but it takes its place in a very satisfying overall scheme. No other reading that I know of is so successful on that front, not even Gergiev's remake. Prokofiev's music is scintillating, and it never lets up, but Gergiev balances the lesser climaxes with the greater ones. I apologize for sounding so abstract when the score is luscious, romantic, and swooningly gorgeous. Yet I think anyone who listens for it will notice how beautifully Gergiev has structured the performance. It's welcome in both his readings that he avoids vulgarity and luridness, always a temptation in this crowd-pleasing music.
I used to complain that the sound from Philips, as recorded in St. Petersburg, was a bit rough and coarse. The latest remstering has taken care of that, but you won't mistake the recording as a sonic blockbuster. It doesn't need to be. On its own, this is an early indication that Gergiev deserves his superstar status.
Romeo and Juliet
Valery Gergiev
Kirov Orchestra, Leningrad
(Philips - complete ballet on 2 CD's - DDD + remastered)
I have had the original CD version of this great performance for many years and am pleased that they have now released it in a 24-bit transfer, which no doubt will make it even more special. This is a spectacular performance and I highly recommend it to you. This version deserves a Sixth Star!
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