Evening star., 1952-09-14
TurntobIe Talk:

and Melisande?"
''Pelleas" is an opera quite
unlike any other. Set to a won-
derful poem by Maurice Maeter-
linck, who wrote "The Blue
Bird" it spins a long. continu-
Gus web out of which it is prac-
tically impossible to pull an aria
here, another there. The voices
sometimes float over the or
chestral sound. sometimes they
mingle in it; they are usually
conversational. not operatic.
The plot is dreamlike: so is the
sound-a dream the hearer is
unlikely to forget.
It Is, in brief, music to marvel
at. Unfortunately, one rarely
hears it. Stage performances
aren't very accessible - they're
seldom much closer than Paris.
The recourse is records. Vic
tor recently issued an LIP revival
Of a long admired recording led
by Roger DeSormiere of the
Paris Opera. The recording was,
and is, artistic and historic.
Now London has come forth
even more boldly with a brand
new performance. It can be
predicted. I think, that it will
recruit even more disciples.
Ansermet Conducts
"Pelleas" is made Of the same
stuff as Debussy's more familiar
music (it has actual La Mer"-
like passageS)-plus voices. It
Is mastery tone-painting. Lon
don's achievement is in enabling
clearer apprehension of the
glories Of Debussy's irridescent
score.
Ernest Ansermet is the con-
ductor-a better DebuSsy inter-
prefer there is not. Suzanne
Danco. a fine soprano. Is Mel
isande. and the other singers
are good. Ansermet's Orchestra
de la Suisse Romande does its
job nobly. d.
There is room for argument
on the singing. Danco's pro-
lection does not match the
haunting, childlike innocence
of Irene Joachim's IN the older
set. Neither can the capabili-
ties Of Danco's colleagues efface
the memory of their earlier
counterparts. But there can be
no argument on the total aural
impact; London's inevitably is
greater.
London's effort runs to four
records; Victor's took three.
But the aural difference Is
worth the monetary one.
There are instances where
aural impact is less persuasive.
A new version of Sibelius' first
symphony may be a case In
point.
Anthony Collins, an English
man. is the conductor. and the
effort again is London's. The
orchestra is the London SYM
phony. Collins evidently is a
man of direct expression. When
Sibelius writes loud" he plays
loud; when the direction is
soft" he plays that way, too
literally. This recording is one
Of the most spectacular DEM
onstrations of loud and soft,
fast and slow orchestral play
ing (also trumpeting, drum
beating and triangle tinkling)
in memory. The sound, in fact,
is magnificent.
The question is whether a
little more regard for subtle
ties might not produce a more
WCdl db4C 4CSuAt. / 11klO 11kyOC14
turning back to StokoWski on
this one, despite all the London
splendor.
George Sell is another forth
right parsonage. He always,
however, keeps himself firmly
disciplined. A sound, sturdy
perusal of Dvorak's New
World" symphony is his latest
recorded essay with the Cleve-
land Orchestra. The reading is
less spectacular than Mercury's
recent issue by Kubelik. but it
is on a similar level of per-
suasion. Colunbia's recording,
somewhat more modest In deci-.
bels. is in the best current tradi-s
ton. And it's the best yet from.
Cleveland d
$50 ~
Great lengths aren't inevitable
on LIP. Decca is proving this
with its enterprising 1O-inch
$4,000" series, which for a mod