March 2007
I have not heard Gisčle Ben-Dor in any of the so-called standard repertory, but her recorded performances of music of such composers as Ginastera and Revueltas on Koch, with the LSO, the Israel Chamber Orchestra, the English Chamber Orchestra and her own Santa Barbara SO, have been knockouts. This particular pairing gives us both of these substantial and fascinating ballet scores in their entirety -- nearly 40 minutes for Panambí, 33 minutes for Estancia -- instead of the very brief concert suites usually offered. This provides an utterly different impression, in respect to proportion, dramatic flow and the young Ginasteras all-round imaginativeness and sheer communicative power. There is no competing or alternative version of this pairing, but even if there were a dozen this one would still be irresistible. Since the substantial original annotation is included (the sung and spoken texts for Estancia are not, but are easily accessed on the Naxos website), the value of this package has not diminished; only its price has, and thats yet another reason to be thankful it was Naxos that made this praiseworthy rescue. GO BACK TO: |