BOULEZ : Rituel · Eclat · Multiples (Ensemble InterContemporain · BBC Symphony Orchestra · Pierre Boulez) (1990) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Tracklist & Credits :

ANTON WEBERN : Complete Webern (Pierre Boulez) 6xCD Box-Set (2000) APE (tracks+.cue), lossless

Those who are familiar with Pierre Boulez's earlier "Complete Webern" on Sony will notice that his new Deutsche Grammophon edition contains six discs to Sony's three. That's because Sony only included works for which Webern assigned opus numbers, plus the composer's Schubert and Bach arrangements. DG fleshes out the picture with all of Webern's posthumously published music, mostly dating from his apprentice years. Virtually all of these recordings already have been available. Discs one through three are given over to orchestral, choral, and chamber works with Boulez leading the Berlin Philharmonic, BBC Singers, and the Ensemble Intercontemporain. Soprano Christiane Oelze's survey of Webern's lieder with voice and piano occupies disc four, with the addition of three unreleased songs set to poems by Ferdinand Avenarius. On disc five, the Emerson Quartet plays all the string trio and quartet works. The final disc brings together the cello and piano music, the four pieces Op. 7 for violin and piano, and the piano works. Gianluca Cascioli's traversals of both 1906 movements for piano were previously released, while Krystian Zimerman recorded two tiny pieces and the Op. 27 Piano Variations especially for this collection.

We first encounter Webern writing music in a style that resembles Brahms with a little Grieg mixed in for good measure. Soon his harmonic palette blossoms with chromatic complexity and takes a refined turn during studies with Arnold Schoenberg. Finally, Webern's singular voice emerges by way of pocket pieces whose ascetic contours sport asymmetrical rhythms, canonic lines that leapfrog from instrument to instrument, and rigorously organized pitches. There's no filler, no fat, and every note counts.
Sometimes it's hard to grasp such fleeting, fragile, and texturally exposed music in a single hearing. When I hear a Webern work in concert, for instance, it's usually over before it begins. Imagine passing a Joan Miró painting while riding a bicycle and you'll understand what I mean. You need to find quiet listening space and know that you can play a movement or even a whole piece more than once.
Performing Webern well demands the utmost in precision and concentration, yet without negating the music's passionate undercurrents. Boulez has lived with this music a long time, and the refinement of his latest interpretations beggar description. The sonic advantages of the DG recordings play no small part, in that fine-tuned dyanmic adjustments at quiet levels can be heard with no compromise. The conductor's tempos have broadened since his 1967-72 recordings in the aforementioned Sony set, and instrumental balances are smoother, more blended than before. Yet the ferocity and edginess of the earlier versions haven't been superceded. Nor is the elemental force and dynamism of Dohnanyi's superb Cleveland Webern readings surpassed here.
No qualms, though, concerning Christiane Oelze, who negotiates Webern's treacherous, leaping lines as if they were nursery rhymes. Similarly, the Emersons leave no little detail unscrutinized, and make a lean contrast to the more opulent, aristocratic Quartetto Italiano Webern recordings from the 1970s. I'm sorry the not-so-famous Cascioli wasn't brought back to record the piano works assigned to the better-known Zimerman, whose mincing, overwrought Variations lack the grace and eloquence of Peter Serkin's recent Koch version.
An excellent booklet includes an introduction by Boulez, numerous photos of Webern at work and play, an informative essay by Paul Griffiths, a comprehensive Webern timeline, and complete texts and translations. Whatever reservations one might harbor about this or that individual performance, it is unlikely that this set as a whole will be surpassed in the near future. It belongs in every serious music library, private or public. by Jed Distler

CD1
Passacaglia . 5 Movements op. 5
6 pieces op. 6 fuga
german dances Inm smmerwind

CD2
5 pieces for orchestra
3 orchestral songs . symphony op. 21
cantatas . variations op. 30

CD3
piano quintet . lieder
5 pieces op.10 + quartet op. 22
concerto op. 24

CD4
lieder

CD5
works for string quartet & string trio

CD6
works for solo piano, violin & piano, cello & piano
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BARTÓK : Boulez Conducts Bartók (2009) 8xCD BOX-SET / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

 CD1
Four Orchestral Pieces • Concerto for Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Orchestra

CD2
Dance Suite • Two Pictures
Hungarian Sketches • Divertimento
Chicago Symphony Orchestra

CD3
Piano Concerto Nrs 1-3
Zimmerman • Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Andsnes • Berliner Philharmonikér
Grimaud • London Symphony Orchestra

CD4
Concerto for Two Pianos, Percussion and Orchestra
Stefanovich • Aimard • Thomas • Percy
London Symphony Orchestra

Violin Concerto Nr. 1
Kremer • Berliner Philharmonikér

Violin Concerto Nr. 2
Bashmet • Berliner Philharmonikér

CD5
Violin Concerto Nr. 2
Rhapsodies for Violin and Orchestra Nr. 1 & 2
Shaham • Chicago Symphony Orchestra

CD6
Bluebeard's Castle
Norman + Polgár • Chicago Symphony Orchestra

CD7
Cantata Profana • The Wooden Prince
Aler • Tomlinson
Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus

CD8
The Miraculus Mandarin
Music for Strings, Percussion and celesta
Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus

SCHOENBERG : Piano Concerto; Klavierstücke, Op. 11 & Op. 19, BERG : Sonata, Op. 1, WEBERN : Variations, Op. 27 (Uchida-Boulez) (2001) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Arnold Schoenberg *
Concerto For Piano, Op. 42 = Klavierkonzert = Concerto Pour Piano (19:50)

Anton Webern
Variations, Op 27 (7:57)

Arnold Schoenberg
Drei Klavierstücke, Op. 11 = Three Piano Pieces = Trois Pièces Pour Piano (13:57)
Sechs Kleine Klavierstücke, Op. 19 = Six Little Piano Pieces = Six Petites Pièces Pour Piano (7:42)

Alban Berg
Piano Sonata, Op. 1 = Klaviersonate = Sonate Pour Piano 12:57

Piano [Steinway & Sons] – Mitsuko Uchida
Conductor – Pierre Boulez *

ALBAN BERG : The Alban Berg Collection (Abbado, Levine, Boulez ...) 8CD (2003) APE (image+.cue), lossless

 CD 1:
Three Pieces For Orchestra Op. 6 / Three Pieces From The "Lyric Suite" / Violin Concerto "To The Memory Of An Angel" (64 Mins)

CD 2:
Chamber Concerto / Piano Sonata / Four Pieces For Clarinet And Piano Op. 5 / Adagio For Violin, Clarinet And Piano (From Chamber Concerto) / Wein, Weib Und Cesang (Transcr.) (75 Mins)

CD 3:
Lyric Suite For String Quartet / String Quartet Op. 3 / Seven Early Songs (With Piano) / Schliesse Mir Die Augen Beide / An Leukon / 4 Lieder Op. 2 (75 Mins)

CD4:
Seven Early Songs (With Orchestra) / Altenberg-Lieder / Der Wein / "Lulu" Suite (73 Mins)

CD 5:
Lulu: Prologue, Act I (61Mins)

CD 6:
Lulu: Act II (53 Mins)

CD 7:
Lulu: Act III / Wozzeck: Act I, Scene 1-3 (79 Mins)

CD 8:
Wozzeck: Act I, Scene 4-5 / Act II - III (66 Mins)
Credits :
Baritone Vocals – Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (pistas: 3-19 to 3-22)
Clarinet – Sabine Meyer (pistas: 2-5 to 2-8, 2-9)
Conductor – Claudio Abbado (pistas: 1-1 to 1-6, 4-1 to 4-7, 4-8 to 4-13, 4-14 to 4-18, 7-15 to 7-17, 8-1 to 8-13), James Levine (pistas: 1-7 to 1-8), Pierre Boulez (pistas: 2-1 to 2-3), Pierre Boulez (pistas: 5-1 to 5-12, 6-1 to 6-10, 7-1 to 7-14)
Ensemble – Ensemble Intercontemporain (pistas: 2-1 to 2-3)
Mezzo-soprano Vocals – Anne Sofie von Otter (pistas: 3-9 to 3-15, 4-1 to 4-7, 4-13)
Orchestra – Orchestre National De L'Opéra De Paris (pistas: 5-1 to 5-12, 6-1 to 6-10, 7-1 to 7-14), The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (pistas: 1-7 to 1-8), Wiener Philharmoniker (pistas: 1-1 to 1-6, 4-1 to 4-7, 4-8 to 4-13, 4-14 to 4-18, 7-15 to 7-17, 8-1 to 8-13)
Piano – Aribert Reimann (pistas: 3-19 to 3-22), Bengt Forsberg (pistas: 3-9 to 3-15), Daniel Barenboim (pistas: 2-1 to 2-3, 2-4), Geoffrey Parsons (pistas: 3-16 to 3-18), Oleg Maisenberg (pistas: 2-5 to 2-8, 2-9)
Soprano Vocals – Juliane Banse (pistas: 4-8 to 4-12, 4-16, 4-18), Margaret Marshall (pistas: 3-16 to 3-18)
Strings – LaSalle Quartet (pistas: 3-1 to 3-8)
Violin – Gidon Kremer (pistas: 2-9), Pinchas Zukerman (pistas: 2-1 to 2-3)

GYÖRGY LIGETI : Clear or Cloudy (Complete Recordings on Deutsche Grammophon) 4xCD (2006) APE (image+.cue), lossless

 Deutsche Grammophon's budget-priced, four-CD collection of all the works by György Ligeti in its catalog has many things to commend it, beginning with the title. Clear or Cloudy is a profoundly astute description of the composer's career, encompassing both the great sound clouds of his micropolyphonic work of the 1960s, such as Atmosphères, Volumina, Lux aeterna, and Lontano, and the crystalline clarity of his early years, demonstrated in Six Bagatelles for wind quintet and his first String Quartet, as well as in his Etudes pour piano and Piano Concerto from his final period.
The performances here are extraordinary, and some are legendary. In Volumina, Gerd Zacher wrings an incredible variety of sonic possibilities from the organ and shapes them into a chilling aural experience. Aventures and Nouvelles Aventures, with singers Jane Manning, Mary Thomas, and William Pearson and the Ensemble InterContemporain, led by Pierre Boulez, are especially assured, and lead the listener on a frightening, comic, cryptic emotional roller coaster ride. The radiant performances of Atmosphères and Lontano by Claudio Abbado and the Vienna Philharmonic make the most of the scores' glistening mysteries.
If this were intended as a survey of Ligeti's career, one could quibble over the omissions -- the Requiem; the Trio for horn, violin, and piano; and the fact that there are only two of the piano etudes -- but given the fact that it is a reissue of everything Deutsche Grammophon happened to have in its archive, it is a remarkably comprehensive and representative collection that offers a broad and detailed view of the composer's output. It's an ideal introduction to Ligeti for anyone coming to his remarkable work for the first time, and it is also expansive and diverse enough to interest those who are already fans. The set contains over five hours of music, and the program booklet includes an insightful essay by Paul Griffiths. Surprisingly, for a collection coming from so many recorded sources, the sound is consistently excellent, with the appropriate ambience and presence for the various works. by Stephen Eddins
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ANTON WEBERN : Complete Works Opp. 1-31 / Das Gesamtwerk / L'Oeuvre Intégrale (Pierre Boulez) (1991) 3xCD / APE (image+.cue), lossless

 

FRANK ZAPPA / PIERRE BOULEZ - Boulez Conducts Zappa : The Perfect Stranger (1984) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Having recorded some works with a large orchestra in January 1983, in January 1984, Frank Zappa arranged for some of his chamber works to be performed by Pierre Boulez's Ensemble InterContemporain, a 16-piece group. "The Perfect Stranger," "Naval Aviation In Art?," and "Dupree's Paradise" were given this treatment, and the four remaining tracks are the product of Zappa's music synthesizer, the Synclavier. As usual, Zappa's "serious" works are rhythmically interesting and make for challenging listening. Originally released on LP on the classical Angel/EMI label, this album was reissued on CD on Zappa's Barking Pumpkin label in 1992, at which time he resequenced it. by William Ruhlmann

PIERRE BOULEZ – Boulez Conducts Stravinsky (2010) 6xCD BOX-SET | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

The years have seen Pierre Boulez record for CBS, Erato, EMI, and Philips, among other labels, but his most consistent and critically praised work has appeared on Deutsche Grammophon, where he has conducted the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Berlin Philharmonic, and his own Ensemble InterContemporain in many successful performances. These ensembles are heard on this trimline, six-CD box set of Igor Stravinsky's major works, which brings together Boulez's recordings of L'oiseau de feu, Petrushka, Le Sacre du printemps, L'histoire du Soldat, the symphonies, concertos, and other works, recorded between 1980 and 1996. As one of the leading champions of modernism, first as a composer and essayist, then as a prominent conductor, Boulez is regarded as an authority on Stravinsky's oeuvre, and it is difficult to imagine many conductors who have a better understanding of the technical and stylistic issues that affect performances. Boulez is also famous for his precision and meticulousness, which make the details stand out clearly in the rhythmically complex and texturally dense orchestral scores of the ballets, and yet seem so delicate and exact in the concertos and pieces for smaller ensembles. That Boulez has inspired a devoted international following is beyond question, so this collection of some of his finest recordings will appeal to his admirers and the wider circle of Stravinsky fans. Blair Sanderson  

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WAGNER : Der Ring des Nibelungen (Pierre Boulez) 12xCD Box-Set (2006) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Although not the most controversial of postwar Bayreuth Rings -- Georg Solti and Peter Hall's retro-Romantic Ring with naked Rhine maidens wins that prize -- Pierre Boulez and Patrice Chéreau's post-industrial revolution Ring as metaphor for the decline and fall of capitalism is certainly the second most controversial postwar Bayreuth Ring. But more controversial than Chéreau's dramatic conception was Boulez's musical execution. With startlingly clear textures, spectacularly bright colors, and stunningly light tempos, Boulez' obtains a Wagner sound like no other. And for those with ears to hear, it works. Wagner's music doesn't have to be murky to be metaphysical or massive to be overwhelmingly moving and Boulez gets playing from the too-often turgid Bayreuth Festival Orchestra that makes the music crackle and blaze with musical and dramatic meaning. But perhaps most surprisingly, the best thing about this Ring is the singing, or, rather, the singing-acting. From Donald McIntyre's bigger than life but deeply human Wotan to Gwyneth Jones heartbreakingly beautiful Brünnhilde, the leads are magnificently convincing both as singers and as actors. And while Peter Hoffmann's Siegmund and Manfred Jung's Siegfried were less well received at the time, their performances, while perhaps too earnest, are still quite effective in their roles. Philips' 1981 sound is very live -- much of the stage action is plainly audible -- but this only adds to the verisimilitude of the recording. While not for everybody, the Boulez Ring has to be heard by anyone who loves the work.  by James Leonard  
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