Holst: The Planets
£6.22
- Mars, the Bringer Of War
- Venus, the Bringer Of Peace
- Mercury, the Winged Messenger
- Jupiter, the Bringer Of Jollity
- Saturn, the Bringer Of Old Age
- Uranus, the Magician
- Neptune, the Mystic
Pure excellence! - I work as a hi-fi and home theater products reviewer in a Norwegian magazine. I use this CD a lot in my work, mainly because of its stunning dynamics. With the right system it will sound amazing and powerful! But if your stereo can t handle the dynamics (this one is made to play loud!), it will sound muddy, with the horns section blending in with the strings! The bass instruments will sound forced with small speakers. As most classical music, this recording deserves a big system.Trivia: I have heard that right before this recording, one of the tuba players was fired. He was furious, and therefore one of the tubas sounds angrier than normal.
Buy this one! - I have owned quite a few recordings of the Planets. I remember taking one back to the shop because the recording was unacceptable. This CD will not disappoint. Truly amazing digital recording, particularly like me you want to feel the organ bass vibrating in your living room. The performance is excellent. You could do a lot worse than buy this CD!
SOUNDS FINE TO ME - Most reviews I have read of this disc seem pretty pleased with both performance and recording. On the other hand I think we should take note of the review that finds fault with the balance -- to me reviews are useful if they show independent judgment, not if they support my preconceptions which are quite strong enough not to need reinforcing. What this account definitely is is vivid. The orchestral detail is very clear, but if I ask myself whether this is quite how The Planets sounds in the concert hall, then I m not so sure. I like it this way, but this is not a piece where I am hard to please the way I am about performances of the Viennese classics or Ravel or Sibelius or Elgar or Walton. In general this is a very effective reading of The Planets. The tempi sound about right to me, no doubt because they are much what I am used to, and the playing and orchestral discipline are superb. This is the only disc of The Planets that I own or plan to own because it s not a work I m fussy about, but connoisseurs may want to consider whether the effectiveness has been slightly overmanipulated by the recording technicians.
Not as good as the LPO s rendition - Mars is spoilt by too much brassiness in the horns section. Mixing is poor, with the trumpet and trombone sections getting too much attention from the misplaced mikes. I can t understand why people call this a reference recording - it s rubbish. Get the old LPO recording. It s much better and more balanced.
The Planets Magic Captured on Audio CD - This CD is the reference CD for The Planets and represents sonic engineering perfection as its best. I have lived with this CD for nearly 15 years, and never tire of it. This truly remarkable recording has captured just about as much audio information as it is possible to hear on CD, and the added benefit of a committed performance from both orchestra and conductor make it a real pleasure to listen to. So far no recording has captured as much detail as this one, there are many other Planets CD s ............. but this is still No.1 in my book. Munt1