Description

• CD# 1 (77:43) Igor Stravinsky: Petrushka (1911 version) • Paris, 8 May 1958 & Paris, 9 June 1955 Igor Stravinsky: Le Sacre du Printemps • Strasbourg, 17 June 1955 Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakoff: Le coq d’or • Paris, 8 May 1958
• CD# 2 (68:06) Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 in d minor, Op.125 • Paris, 6 or 8 Nov. 1958, with Maria Stader, sop., Helene Bouvier, alto, Libero de Luca, ten., Josef Greindl, bass
• CD# 3 (74:39) Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No.2 in D, Op. 36 • Paris, 3 May 1956 W. A. Mozart: Piano Con. No. 24 in c, K. 491 • Robert Casadesus, piano; Montreux, 22 Sept. 1958 Serge Prokofiev: Sym No.1, Op.25 ‘Classical’ • Paris, 8 May 1958
• CD# 4 (77:46) W. A. Mozart: Violin Con. No. 5 in A, K. 219, ‘Turkish’ • Annie Jodry, violin; Strasbourg, 17 June 1955 Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No.8 in F Major, Op.93 • Strasbourg, 17 June 1955 Paul Hindemith: Nobilissima Visione • Paris, 8 Nov. 1958
• CD# 5 (75:15) Claude Debussy: 3 Images • Paris, 3 May 1956 Maurice Ravel: Shéhérazade • G. Moysan, sop., Strasbourg, 13 June 1952 Claude Debussy: Jeux — Poème dansé • Paris, 9 June 1955 F. Couperin/D. Milhaud: La Sultane • Paris, 8 November 1958
• CD# 6 (79:22) Ottorino Respighi: Pines of Rome • Paris, 3 May 1956 Richard Strauss: Tod und Verklärung • Paris, 3 May 1956 Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No.7 in AMajor, Op. 92 • Strasbourg, 13 June 1952
• CD# 7 (72:50) P. I. Tchaikovsky: Symphony No.5 in e, Op.64 • Paris, 8 May 1958 Sir Edward Elgar: Variations on an Original Theme (‘Enigma’), Op.36 • Paris, 24 Sept. 1958
• CD# 8 (47:50) Richard Wagner: Flying Dutchman Overture • Paris, 9 June 1955 César Franck: Symphony in D Minor • Paris, 24 Sept. 1958.
• All above with the National Orchestra. Includes approx. 5 hours of previously unreleased material.

This set is released with the kind cooperation of Nancie Monteux-Barendse and The Pierre Monteux School for Conductors and Orchestra Musicians.

Sound restoration (2005): Kit Higginson. Extensive notes by conductor John Canarina. [Special! 8 CDs for the price of 6] (AAD) UPC # 017685-11822

Buzz: While this collection contains many works that Monteux recorded commercially, it also offers several that are new to his discography. Concerning the former, pride of place must go to the Beethoven symphonies. Nineteen years of sitting in the principal violist’s chair of the Colonne Orchestra resulted in multiple exposures to the standard repertoire, which Monteux, owing to his remarkable ear, came to know by heart. How much Monteux’s interpretations were influenced by those of Edouard Colonne and his various guest conductors is difficult to say. Nevertheless, one can say that his own personal bonhomie made him ideally suited to the even-numbered Beethoven symphonies, which are usually considered less “profound” than the odd-numbered ones. Certainly he captures perfectly the high spirits and bumptious humor of the Second Symphony, the impetuosity of the Seventh, the unbridled energy and unbuttoned humor of the Eighth, and the triumphant celebration of the brotherhood of mankind in the Ninth. Other notable interpretations here include Stravinsky’s Petrushka and Sacre, both of which he had premiered.