The Snow Maiden & Christmas Eve Suites / etc

"This is an appealing and highly recommendable issue."
(MusicWeb July 2006)

"As ever, the BIS engineers offer sound of demonstration quality, making this a welcome supplement to the set of symphonies."
(Gramophone Sept 2006)

"The standard of playing recorded here is a tribute to both conductor and orchestra, and Rimsky's colourful orchestration always gives opportunities both corporate and individual. Ensemble is particularly disciplined, and the subtle and sensitive BIS engineering is absolutely at the service of the music in allowing the dynamic range to make its mark at either end of the spectrum. In Bakels's hands rhythmic vitality and melodic richness are found side by side, allowing the composer to be heard at the height of his considerable powers in conjuring the magical worlds of his three operas: Pan Voyevode, Christmas Eve and The Snow Maiden. There are memorable themes and gorgeous sounds at every turn."
(MUSICWEB - Recordings of the Year 2006)

While Rimsky-Korsakov nowadays is mainly known for orchestral works such as Sheherazade (BIS-CD-1377), Capriccio Espagnol and The Flight of the Bumle-Bee (both on BIS-CD-1387), a large part of his oeuvre consists of works for the stage, in which his imaginative and colourful orchestration contributed greatly to the dramatic effect. The present disc, last of a four-part survey of Rimsky-Korsakov's orchestral works, contains music mainly intended for the opera house: three suites from the operas The Snow Maiden, Pan Voyevoda and Christmas Eve are complemented by the overture to the opera The Tsar's Bride and the Overture on Russian Themes. (The latter is the one piece of pure concert music on the programme, but even here we find an operatic connection: its opening features the 'Slava' ('Glory') theme that Mussorgsky used for the coronation scene in Boris Godunov.) Previous releases in this series have been roundly praised by the reviewers not only for the 'overwhelming' commitment and 'very musical partnership' of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra and Kees Bakels, but also for the recordings themselves: 'Sonically these performances remain in a class of their own. The brilliance and realism are simply breathtaking, with a full dynamic range, ideal depth and breadth of soundstage, firm bass, open highs, and a panoramic splendor unrivaled on disc' wrote the critic of web site Classics Today.