The Best of Shostakovich, featuring the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Czecho-Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra & others. Naxos 8.556684
- Conductors: Kuchar, Theodore; Lyndon-Gee, Christopher; Slovak, Ladislav
- Orchestra(s): CSR Symphony Orchestra, Bratislava; New Zealand Symphony Orchestra; Ukraine National Symphony Orchestra
- Ensemble(s): Eder Quartet; Stockholm Arts Trio
- Artist(s): Michael Houstoun
“Naxos's Shostakovich recordings by Ladislav Slovak have the ring of authenticity” – Classic CD. And Classic CD are absolutely correct. Ladislav Slovak was present, as a young assistant conductor in Leningrad, at the rehearsals when Shostakovich prepared the world premiére performances of his symphonies. The complete cycle of symphonies received praise from around the world, the Fifth Symphony described in Classic CD as an “excellently gripping performance”. Many of the famous moments from his four most frequently performed symphonies are included in this ideal introduction to his music.
The disc also contains some Shostakovich ‘lollipops’, including the Romance from the film The Gadfly, a piece which shot to prominence as the background to the long running TV series, Riley Ace of Spies.
Shostakovich is at the present enjoying considerable popularity in the concert hall, largely due to the never ending tours being made by East European orchestras. This disc aims to capture the ‘purple’ patches from his vast output. Naxos is certainly not alone in the Shostakovich highlight disc market, but few offer such a comprehensive view of his music.
User Review
"This is an excellent sampling of the music of one of the greatest composers of the twentieth century, displaying a wide range of emotion, from the enthusiasm of the first selection, the Festive Overture, to the soaring lyrical beauty of the Romance (track 5), to the poetry of the andante movement of the Piano Concerto No. 2 (track 9), to the slow, deep, intensity of the Largo movement of the Piano Trio No. 2 (track 13), very movingly performed by the Stockholm Arts Trio.
At the same time that the various musical selections exhibit Shostakovich's range and diversity, they are nonetheless arranged in such a way that the listener doesn't experience any unpleasant impact from the sudden change in tempo that occurs, for example, when the Romance in track 5 ends, and the very next selection is the highly energetic allegro movement from the Symphony No. 10. Rather, the feeling is one of stimulation and excitement as one moves, from one selection to the next, through the wonderful variety of Shostakovich's compositions.
The quality of the musicianship on every track is first rate, including the selections played by the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine and its talented conductor, Theodore Kuchar. The andante movemont of the Piano Concerto No. 2 is a slice of musical heaven, played wonderfully by pianist Michael Houston and the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. There is power, intensity, tenderness, subtlety, and great beauty in the wonderful performances on this very reasonably priced CD. The sound engineering is also first rate, with crystal clear sound and excellent balance of the instruments." Classicalfan