“All Straussians will be intrigued by this latest release from Manfred Honeck and his marvellous Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra of orchestral suites from what many would regard as the greatest of the composer's fifteen operas - Elektra and Der Rosenkavalier… Honeck has already demonstrated his mastery of the Strauss idiom in his previous fine accounts of some of the tone poems for both the Reference Recordings and Exton labels so the bar is set very high for any new release in this series.… Honeck and Ille have carried out what was surely a challenging task with considerable skill and fashioned a coherent and gripping single-movement piece lasting 33'39” that convincingly encapsulates both the dramatic power of Strauss's music and the crux of the original blood soaked tragedy.… the incredible richness of the scoring and the complexity of the composer's harmonic vocabulary also provide a marvellous showcase for the remarkable virtuosity of the Pittsburgh musicians who unflinchingly rise to the challenge with incisive playing that generates scorching levels of visceral excitement.… Der Rosenkavalier has always been the horn player's opera par excellence, something the magnificent horn section of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra confirm at the opening of the suite, while a few bars later they deliver Strauss's orgasmic whoopings with thrilling relish. Honeck's subtly nuanced use of rubato and portamento in Ochs's waltz has the natural feel that one would expect from a conductor with his Viennese training and experience as a former member of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, but the way he has communicated this style to his players is nothing short of miraculous.… Thanks to the efforts of the Soundmirror team the opulence, spaciousness and vividness of the recording quality of this hybrid SACD (5.1 surround, stereo SACD and CD stereo) is all that one could wish for.” —Graham Williams, HRAudio.net
Labels: ElektraRosenkavalier, Graham Williams, HRAudio.net, Manfred Honeck, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Review, Strauss