Symphonic Syntheses by Stokowski

"The opening track sets the tone of the album. It will come as no surprise that Stokowski's view of Das Rheingold's final scene is gutsy and spectacular - out-Wagnering Wagner. The conductor's enriched brass and percussion heighten Wagner's colouring. The Bournemouth players must have had so much fun recording its sweep and grandeur, and the vivid evocations of the rainbow bridge across the valley of the Rhine. Throughout this album, they are backed by excellent engineered sound."
(MusicWeb Recording of the Month Oct 2007)

When Leopold Stokowski began his conducting career, the music of Wagner featured in his very first concert and was to remain close to his heart for the rest of his life. In those early days, particularly through gramophone records, he introduced Wagner to a wide public with extended orchestral excerpts woven together as richly conceived tone poems and given the title "Symphonic Syntheses". In these performances by José Serebrier and the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, these tone poems have a unique sumptuousness of sound and for those who love this evocative music gloriously played, there is much here that will ravish the ear. - The Leopold Stokowski Society