Tchaikovsky: Sym. No. 4; 1812 Overture; Marche Slave

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Eugene Ormandy's great Tchaikovsky recordings were all made for Sony (then CBS), and this performance of the Fourth Symphony and other goodies features his typically lush, Romantic string sonority, along with a few orchestral retouchings, particularly at the very end. Generations of music lovers grew up on these performances, and hearing them again (in much better sound and at budget price) is like meeting an old friend after a long absence. --David Hurwitz

Tracks:

Symphony No. 4 In F Minor, Op. 36: I. Adante sostenuto; Moderato con anima in movimento di valse; Moderato assai, quasi andante; Allegero vivo
Symphony No. 4 In F Minor, Op. 36: II. Andantino In modo di canzona
Symphony No. 4 In F Minor, Op. 36: Scherzo: Pizzicato ostinato; Allegro
Symphony No. 4 In F Minor, Op. 36: IV. Finale: Allegro con fuoco
1812 Overture, Op.49
Marche Slave, Op. 31

Amazon.com

Eugene Ormandy's great Tchaikovsky recordings were all made for Sony (then CBS), and this performance of the Fourth Symphony and other goodies features his typically lush, Romantic string sonority, along with a few orchestral retouchings, particularly at the very end. Generations of music lovers grew up on these performances, and hearing them again (in much better sound and at budget price) is like meeting an old friend after a long absence. --David Hurwitz

Customer Reviews:

Great renditions of some of Tchaikovsky's best.......2006-08-19

This recording is a wonderful mix of one of his most notable symphonies, along with the two shorter pieces that are most widely known. Symphony No.4 is good, but not great; buy this album for "1812" and "Slavic March."

"1812" is moving and spirited; a choral introduction replaces the more traditional instrumental, and although it is in English, it works very well with the spirit of the piece. Throughout, the tempo is spirited, the music compelling, and of course, the cannons appropriately bombastic.

"Slavic March" is not nearly as well known as "1812," but this recording shows it deserves equal attention as a great short work, capturing the essence of the great Russian musical traditions.

snore city.......2006-06-01

If you want to fall asleep to some really lush strings, absurdly slow tempi and almost in audible brass, then buy this recording. When I was in high school, I remember returning my copy of the vinyl of this performance of the 4th symphony by Ormandy, and purchasing the glorious Munch/Boston performance (available currently only from BMG Japanese Victor, as an import).
I purchased this CD thinking that, as I had aged and presumably become more tolerant of diversity and interpretation, that somehow I had grown to appreciate ORMANDY'S UNIQUENESS. Nope, it's still too slow and tedious. Ormandy does to tempi what Bernstein did but, without the creativity and passion.Save your money. buy almost anyone else's 4th Symphony.

never a dull moment with this music .......2006-01-14

Never a dull moment with this music.

Driving a Cadillac on tranquilizers.......2005-11-08

David Hurwitz may think this recording is like meeting an old friend, but I lived thorugh the Ormandy era, and to me this CD is like remembering an old nap. Ormandy readings are reliable, shapeless, without imaginaiton or even the desire for imaginaiton. They just sit there, and meanwhile his glorious orchestra--at least Ormandy had that to his credit--made Cadillac sounds for a driver on tranquilizers. I guess the other reviewers here are enamored of the sounds and don't care that Tchaikovsky is a much more vital, incisive, and even wilder composer than Ormandy registers.

Ormandy's Tchaikovsky 4 is still one of the best.......2005-09-01

Recorded in the 1960s for Columbia, Ormandy's Tchaikovsky 4 is still one of the best. The Philadelphia Orchestra had played under Ormandy for 25 years when this was recorded, and the rapport between them shows. Ormandy takes moderate tempos, and never drives the dramatic passages of I and IV the way some conductors: Beecham (EMI), Bernstein (Sony) do. Instead, Ormandy lets the music unfold naturally, and steps back for the more dramatic moments, just letting the music speak for itself.
The Philadelphia Orchestra is excellent in every department, especially the strings, but the woodwinds and brass too: they SING, and are never harsh or strident.

The accompanying works, MARCHE SLAVE and OVERTURE 1812 make nice discmates, but I'm not as fond of Ormandy's 1812 as some are. The Mormon Tabernacle Choir opens with their own version of "God save the Czar" sung in English, and the Philadelphia Orchestra plays beautifully, but I am not as convinced by their playing of the closing hymn and coda as in some recordings; I prefer Dorati/Detroit (London) or Haitink/Concertgebouw (Philips, perhaps hard to find presently). Marche Slave is better than Ormandy's later remake for RCA, but most listeners would buy this for Symphony 4 rather than the discmates.

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