Mendelssohn Overtures

Record and Artist Details

Composer or Director: Felix Mendelssohn

Genre:

Orchestral

Label: Deutsche Grammophon

Media Format: CD or Download

Media Runtime: 74

Mastering:

Stereo
DDD

Catalogue Number: 423 104-2GH

Tracks:

Composition Artist Credit
(Die) Schöne Melusine Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
(A) Midsummer Night's Dream, Movement: Overture, Op. 21 Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
(The) Hebrides, 'Fingal's Cave' Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
Meeresstille und glückliche Fahrt, 'Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage' Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
Overture for wind instruments Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
Trumpet Overture Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
Ruy Blas Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra

Composer or Director: Felix Mendelssohn

Label: Deutsche Grammophon

Media Format: Cassette

Media Runtime: 0

Mastering:

Stereo
DDD

Catalogue Number: 423 104-4GH

Tracks:

Composition Artist Credit
(Die) Schöne Melusine Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
(A) Midsummer Night's Dream, Movement: Overture, Op. 21 Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
(The) Hebrides, 'Fingal's Cave' Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
Meeresstille und glückliche Fahrt, 'Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage' Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
Overture for wind instruments Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
Trumpet Overture Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
Ruy Blas Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra

Composer or Director: Felix Mendelssohn

Label: Deutsche Grammophon

Media Format: Vinyl

Media Runtime: 0

Mastering:

Stereo
DDD

Catalogue Number: 423 104-1GH

Tracks:

Composition Artist Credit
(Die) Schöne Melusine Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
(A) Midsummer Night's Dream, Movement: Overture, Op. 21 Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
(The) Hebrides, 'Fingal's Cave' Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
Meeresstille und glückliche Fahrt, 'Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage' Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
Overture for wind instruments Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
Trumpet Overture Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
Ruy Blas Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
Claudio Abbado, Conductor
Felix Mendelssohn, Composer
London Symphony Orchestra
Claudio Abbado has shown himself to be a sympathetic conductor of Mendelssohn's music since his earliest days in the recording studios, and his recent set of the complete symphonies was a very worthy tribute to the great composer. Those who have invested in that set may feel slightly aggrieved that if they wish to investigate the two unusual items on the new disc they can only do so by duplicating three performances they have already, but in other respects this set of overtures admirably fills a gap in the catalogues.
Mendelssohn's opus numbers can be confusing, for despite its late numbering the Trumpet Overture is an early work, written in the same year as the Midsummer Night's Dream Overture. Though it is an outgoing, vivacious piece, neatly constructed and attractively scored, it does rather lack the extraordinarily high quality of invention Mendelssohn showed in his best teenage works. The Overture for wind instruments was written still earlier and dates from 1824. Here a mellifluous introduction is followed by a bright and breezy main section appropriate enough for the overture's intended function as outdoor music. These two works suit Abbado's Mendelssohn style admirably, since he usually opts for a very positive, extrovert manner rather than a romantic, more yielding approach. The Midsummer Night's Dream Overture is taken pretty quickly at times, but it is not at all hard-driven—there is more a feeling of quicksilver or fleetness of foot. Ruy Blas is superbly played by the LSO, with a taut directness which brings out the overture's dramatic nature very effectively, and there is a good contrast made between the placid and more vigorous elements of Die schone Melusine. In The Hebrides Abbado's style does in fact undergo a change, for he adopts a perfectly justifiable slow basic tempo and there is a lingering, reflective quality in his use of phrase. There is a slight difference in acoustic between the various recordings, since no less than four different locations were used, but the quality is uniformly excellent.'

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