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Editorial Reviews

With a balanced program of popular orchestral suites presented in stupendous sound, Mark Ermler and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra couldn't miss with this 2009 compilation, and neither can newcomers to classical music looking for a great first CD. This album of the two suites from Georges Bizet's opera, Carmen, combined with the two suites from Edvard Grieg's incidental music for the Ibsen play, Peer Gynt, presents classics that many listeners will recognize instantly, and the release in the Royal Philharmonic's Masterworks cost-cutter line makes the package a practical item for beginners. In terms of the interpretations, Ermler draws highly expressive playing from the orchestra, and the energy and fire that are so necessary in the Carmen suites are nicely contrasted by the pastoral lyricism and brooding darkness of Peer Gynt, demonstrating the wide range of the album's moods and offering listeners a broad sampling of the Royal Philharmonic's varied timbres. Originally recorded in 2001 in extraordinarily vivid and spacious sound, with the Grieg suites previously released on a separate album, the recordings suffer nothing from age, and the depth, detail, and colors of the orchestral sound are truly exceptional, surprisingly close in quality to many later audiophile recordings. So even though the budget price and inexpensive appearance of this disc may make it seem a dubious investment, it is worth a try to discover its surprisingly excellent contents. Blair Sanderson, All Music Guide

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