“Manfred Honeck’s ‘Elektra Symphonic Drama’ (co-written by Manfred Honeck and Tomáš Ille) absolutely lifts the lid and shows you how much sensuous and sumptuous music there’s in this opera already, which otherwise looks and sounds, on experiencing in toto or in the opera house, so very, very – indeed totally – different from Strauss’ later operas. Here, Elektra seems like the natural lede for Rosenkavalier – which incidentally, and unfathomably upon first hearing – was the opera that, in 1911, immediately followed Elektra (1909) in Strauss’ operatic output.… And speaking of Rosenkavalier: Honeck and his sublimely playing Pittsburgh band add the Artur Rodzinski arrangement of the Suite from that opera to close out this disc that is a must for any Strauss-lover. Just terrific! The sound on this Reference Recordings SACD is smashingly vivid, something that is true for the whole lot of their wonderful recordings of the last few years.” —Jens F. Laurson, Forbes
Labels: Best of 2016, ElektraRosenkavalier, Forbes, Jens F. Laurson, Manfred Honeck, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Strauss