Although billed as “The Nutcracker Suite”, Yuri Temirkanov’s version of the popular ballet score actually presents an extended selection of excerpts, including most of the good stuff left out of the traditional suite–the magnificent transformation scene, the battle with the mouse king, and a few other delicious tidbits. It’s all played stupendously, including (to cite just two examples) an excitingly frantic Trepak and a beautifully flowing Waltz of the Flowers. I was also very impressed by the colorful and very cleanly recorded toy instruments in the battle sequence. Of course there are a million recordings of this music, but there’s no question that this half hour of extracts can compete with the very best of them.
As for the remainder of the program, there’s no particular reason why these two additional pieces belong with The Nutcracker save for the generic theme of “Fairy Tale”; but they are delightful and just as well played. Kijé is lively and extremely colorful, with especially atmospheric offstage trumpet calls. The Dukas also is very brilliantly played, and precisely too (this is a very difficult work to handle rhythmically). Temirkanov shows himself aptly sensitive to the music’s cinematic narrative, whipping the orchestra to a fine fury and then slamming on the brakes at the climactic return of the sorcerer with a rhetorical flourish. It’s all great fun, very well recorded. If you like the program, don’t hesitate.
