Tchaikovsky: Hamlet - Fantasy overture, Op. 67

“At his best, Svetlanov was well-nigh unbeatable in Russian repertoire and this superbly shaped and vibrantly dramatic version of Hamlet is a real highlight: there's an incendiary intensity to climaxes but such imaginative playing quieter moments too. The performances throughout this enterprising programme are at a comparable level of inspiration.” International Record Review, May 2011

“Sleek and full-bodied, almost brazen, the performance is not so much a revelation as a confirmation of Nelsons' dynamism.” The Independent on Sunday, 28th June 2009

“The strings are good, but woodwind and brass - earthy, raw, plangent - give the necessary edge and soulful particularity.” The Observer, 28th June 2009

“The standard is set immediately, with the recurring “motto” theme on low clarinet carefully sculpted yet at the same time given room to breathe. Nelsons has clearly thought about the music carefully, and concentrates on bringing every phrase alive. At the same time, the players are given room to express themselves, and they rise to the challenge, with delicious woodwind playing and ripe brass, while the strings have an almost Mantovanian sheen in places.” The Telegraph, 25th June 2009 ****

“It is a measure of Nelsons's success that the CBSO sound as if they've been playing this music all their lives...the dividends are enormous when he turns to Hamlet, a superb performance, which develops from its low-key opening into something very scary without ever once tipping towards melodrama.” The Guardian, 24th July 2009 ***

“Right from the lugubrious opening clarinet solo, you can feel him nuancing with tender loving care, adding dynamic variations of his own in the manner of Mariss Jansons, and pacing the longer-term arguments to hit the climaxes in exactly the right places. Hamlet... makes a challenging companion: incisive on the attack, awesome with tam-tam as the ghost declaims, again attractively phrased by the woodwind in Ophelia's very Russian reverie.” BBC Music Magazine, September 2009 ****

“A high level of refinement is evident throughout these immaculately voiced performances.” Gramophone Magazine, October 2009

“What a good idea to couple Tchaikovsky's three fantasy overtures inspired by Shakespeare. José Serebrier writes an illuminating note on the genesis of each of the three, together with an analysis of their structure. He notes that once Tchaikovsky had established his concept of the fantasy overture in the first version of Romeo andJuliet in 1869 – slow introduction leading to alternating fast and slow sections, with slow coda – he used it again both in the 1812 Overture and Hamlet. The Tempest (1873) has similarly contrasting sections, but begins and ends with a gently evocative seascape, with shimmering arpeggios from strings divided in 13 parts.
It's typical of Serebrier's performance that he makes that effect sound so fresh and original. In many ways, early as it is, this is stylistically the most radical of the three overtures here, with sharp echoes of Berlioz in some of the woodwind effects. The clarity of Serebrier's performance, both in texture and in structure, helps to bring that out, as does a warm and analytical BIS recording.
Hamlet, dating from much later, is treated to a similarly fresh and dramatic reading, with Serebrier bringing out the yearningly Russian flavour of the lovely oboe theme representing Ophelia. He may not quite match the thrusting power of his mentor, Stokowski, but he's not far short, and brings out far more detail.
Serebrier is also meticulous in seeking to observe the dynamic markings in each score.
Those in The Tempest are nothing if not extravagant – up to a fortissimo of five fs in the final statement of the love theme – yet Serebrier graduates the extremes with great care. Highly recommended.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“Tchaikovsky’s Hamlet is well played. The orchestra is not opulent in sound, but its taut concentration is not in doubt...Though rather on the glowering side, temperamentally, and thus perfectly suited as symphonic poems or overtures, this unusual selection has been well put together. It’s worth a listen.” MusicWeb International, July 2012

“there's no mistaking here that [Dudamel's] is a special talent, of the kind that can really make a difference. The ensemble precision of these performances is outstanding, with hyper-accurate woodwind chording...In phrase after phrase in all these Shakespeare-inspired works, the musical response is direct, ultra-focused, and where lyrical passion is called for, beautifully memorable. These players know what their profession is about.” BBC Music Magazine, May 2011 ***

“I was immediately gripped by the score's drama [in 'Hamlet'], as propounded by Dudamel and his orchestra...This performance never allows the tension to die down and it is not lacking in atmosphere, even if said atmosphere is more Russian than Danish (This is not Dudamel's fault, I must add)...When conflict breaks out between the Montagues and the Capulets, there is considerable weight” International Record Review, May 2011

“Yoking together Tchaikovsky's three orchestral works that were inspired by Shakespeare makes unarguable sense, but it's a surprisingly rare combination on disc...The climaxes have a full-blooded excitement” The Guardian, 17th March 2011 ***

“There's a spookily brooding Symphonic Fantasy based on The Tempest, while the company's youthful cast brings a suitably enthused spirit to the Fantasy Overture, based on Romeo and Juliet. But it's the Fantasy Overture based on Hamlet that most impresses here: the prince's tortured soul clearly offers fertile parallels with Tchaikovsky's own troubled temperament.” The Independent, 4th March 2011 ****

“Performances are fervent and in every sense dynamic, requiring some adjustment of the volume switch to cope with extremes of pianissimo and fortissimo...Strings are full-blooded and lively in attack. Brass is fiery and manages to stay radiant rather than raucous.” The Observer, 6th March 2011

“mature, vividly coloured performances...Much of the playing generates the virile exuberance for which the orchestra is famous. Dudamel harnesses this energy productively and to well-defined dramatic ends, tempering it with warm sensibility and commendable lack of indulgence in Tchaikovsky’s more sentimental moments.” The Telegraph, 6th March 2011 ****

“ Dudamel’s handling of this material is refreshingly mature. The composer’s succulent melodies are never oversentimentalised or phrased in distractingly fancy ways: you hear no conductor’s ego strutting. Nor is the drama so heated in temperature that the music becomes screamingly neurotic...Intelligence, that’s what leaps out from this disc” The Times, 11th March 2011 ****