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Editorial Reviews

What is the organizing principle underlying the selection of music and performances on this disc? That all the pieces are by Igor Stravinsky? Certainly, but given the enormous breadth of Stravinsky's works, yoking together the suite from his very, very "Russian Firebird" ballet with the suite from his very, very Pergolesi "Pulcinella" ballet plus his very, very Rimsky-Korsakov "Scherzo fantastique" and his very, very "Cubist Suites for small orchestra" does seem fairly arbitrary. That all the pieces are conducted by Pierre Boulez? Surely, but given the immense range of Boulez's Stravinsky recordings, joining together his 1967 BBC Symphony recording of the "Firebird Suite" with his 1975 New York Philharmonic recordings of the "Pulcinella Suite" and the "Scherzo fantastique," plus his 1980 Ensemble InterContemporain recording of the two little suites, does appear fairly random.

The only real organizing principle underlying this disc is how superb the music is and how superlative the performances are. Whether pseudo-Rimsky-Korsakov or pastiche Pergolesi, Igor Stravinsky was a wonderfully inventive and individualistic composer whose music sounds most like Stravinsky when he's re-writing another composer's music. No matter the work or orchestra, Pierre Boulez is a poised and polished conductor whose performances here are lucid, balanced, and, surprisingly, consistently rhythmically exhilarating. Columbia's original 1967 London recording was a bit distant, its original 1975 New York recordings were a little close, and Erato's original 1980 Paris recording was just about ideal, and this 2005 remastering preserves them all admirably. James Leonard, All Music Guide

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