Exceptionally natural SACD sonics grace this appealing program of French orchestral classics. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice is a tremendously difficult piece to play, particularly rhythmically, but the Strasbourg orchestra under Marc Albrecht sounds absolutely world-class here, and he paces the piece perfectly. The Ravel also has all of the necessary magical atmosphere. Laideronette, Empress of the Pagodas, with scintillating percussion, dances brilliantly, while the diaphanous string textures of the concluding Fairy Garden leave the most pleasant impression.
It was enterprising to include Koechlin’s Bandar-log in this collection; it’s an odd piece, part funny, part serious, with its mockery of impressionism, dodecaphony, and Baroque fugal writing, all amid a riot of jungle colors. It’s also another atrociously difficult work to play, and you could argue that it works best in the context of the composer’s other “Jungle Book” tone poems. This is a very good performance, but next to the others on the disc it sounds a touch cautious at the climaxes, the trumpets and percussion not quite letting go as Koechlin’s score suggests they should. Still, this a very, very minor point, and I can recommend this fine collection with complete confidence. [10/7/2010]
