This isn't the time or place to discuss the merits of transcribing piano pieces for orchestra. Suffice it to say that some work -- Ravel's Mussorgsky's Pictures -- and some don't -- Glazunov's Schumann's Carnaval. In this recording of 12 of Debussy's Preludes orchestrated by Colin Matthews, it doesn't work. Although Matthews is clearly trying his hardest to both be faithful to and to transcend the original, in the end his transcriptions are well made but wrongheaded. Matthews' scoring lacks the clarity and brilliance of ...
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This isn't the time or place to discuss the merits of transcribing piano pieces for orchestra. Suffice it to say that some work -- Ravel's Mussorgsky's Pictures -- and some don't -- Glazunov's Schumann's Carnaval. In this recording of 12 of Debussy's Preludes orchestrated by Colin Matthews, it doesn't work. Although Matthews is clearly trying his hardest to both be faithful to and to transcend the original, in the end his transcriptions are well made but wrongheaded. Matthews' scoring lacks the clarity and brilliance of Debussy's music: his textures are too thick, his colors are too gaudy, his rhythms are too heavy. In Matthews' hands, Debussy's Preludes sound less like the work of an André Caplet and more like the work of a Michel Legrand -- not a change for the better.Of course, part of the responsibility must rest on the shoulders of the performers, in this case, Mark Elder leading the Hallé of Manchester. Even in the performance of Debussy's La Mer that opens the disc, Elder and the Hallé sound too...
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