Mussorgsky: Boris Godunov

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Customer reviews

review by: adalard date: 2009-06-03 rating:
Emphatically Karajan's 'Boris Godunov'
This sumptuous recording comes with a number of provisos, some of which have been alluded to by previous reviewers. br / br /Most importantly, perhaps, from a textual point of view, this is the Rimsky-Korsakov version of Mussorgsky's only complete opera. Rimsky-Korsakov's work on Mussorgsky's scores tends to polarise opinions in the musical world, though it has to be said that had he not re-orchestrated them and arranged for their performance and publication after Mussorgsky's death, we might not know them now - or at least they might be only a recent discovery. `Boris Godunov' was not a resounding success at the Imperial Opera and only returned to the Russian stage after Rimsky-Korsakov rescored it and altered some of the harmonies; that is not to say, of course, that Rimsky-Korsakov's versions of his friend's works should hold the stage now, where performing versions of the originals exist or completions that more faithfully represent Mussorgsky's iconoclastic intentions. Rimsky-Korsakov himself was under no illusions about the merits and role of his interventions in this music: "I had not destroyed the old form, I had not painted out the old frescoes forever. If ever the conclusion is arrived at that the original is better, worthier than my revision, mine will be discarded and Boris Godunov will be performed according to the original score."* br / br /Rimsky-Korsakov's alterations do lend the score an impressive richness and opulence: you only have to compare his with the original version of the polonaise, the scoring thinner and brassier in Mussorgsky's score, sumptuous and burnished in tone in this recording. Of course, Karajan was renowned for the smoothness and sheer beauty of sound he could conjure from an orchestra (and in the studio); this recording is no different. As much as Rimsky-Korsakov's orchestration, I think Karajan's `sound' in this opera is at odds with Mussorgsky's original intentions. Here the work becomes `Grand Opera' in the Meyerbeerian tradition: and on its own terms it IS impressive - sample, for instance, the coronation scene with the massive choral forces and the `cathedral' bells thundering out with impressive (and completely inauthentic) force. There were always elements of `Grand Opera' in parts of Mussorgsky's original score, particularly in the set pieces like the coronation scene, but Karajan emphasises this at the expense of the character and originality of Mussorgsky's writing. br / br /First and foremost, I think this is "Karajan's Boris", more so than Rimsky-Korsakov's or Mussorgsky's. It is recommendable therefore primarily for fans of this controversial conductor. The cast is strong and, as far as I am aware, this is the only time Vishnevskaya set down a recording of Marina's role on disc; for that reason too, you may want to consider this set. br / br /If you want Mussorgsky's `Boris Godunov', however, for me this recording is clearly out of the running. Gergiev's impressive 5-disc set on Philips contains the original version, with the scene outside St Basil's cathedral and the second version, which Mussorgsky was forced to write to include a female role and which therefore includes the scenes with Dmitry in Poland. Both versions are complete. It is well-recorded and performed, though I don't feel either Boris is among the best I have heard. As a further supplement, there is the old Soviet recording under Fedoseyev, in (for my tastes) over-bright stereo but with a deeply moving and thoughtful reading of the title role from Alexander Vedernikov; this was also released by Philips, but sadly seems to have been deleted now - it is worth keeping an eye out for, either through Marketplace sellers or as a future reissue. br / br /Gergiev: Mussorgsky: Boris Godounov br / br /(* quote from: Rimsky-Korsakov, "My Musical Life") br /

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review by: Osvaldo Colarusso date: 2008-06-21 rating:
Boris by one criminal version
If you yet insist in hear this masterpiece in these criminal "revision" by Korsakow , this is not the the best recording.The singers are good but the conductor think that it is Puccini.But if you want to know Boris in the way the author wrote, you must hear the recordings of Gergiev, Abbado, Fedoseyev , Tchakarow....Hearing this "soft" version you will hear less than the half of one of the most...


review by: date: 2008-03-20 rating:
The best Rimsky version
Go check out the reviews on the American site for a full ventilation and make your own mind up - suffice to say that this is the best version as orchestrated by by Rimsky. br / br /Never mind all that! If you love opera and/or choral music, you simply cannot do without Modest Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov! Buy it, you'll never regret it! br / br /Don't be put-off by other people not liking this recording or this review - they probably love themselves more than the music!

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