Sergey Prokofiev, Claude Debussy, Kent Nagano, Patrick Stewart, Orchestre de l'OpA©ra de Lyon - Prokofiev - Peter and the Wolf / Narrated by Patrick Stewart A· Opera de Lyon A· Nagano

Solid Recording

First, I have to say that I disagree with several reviews here complaining about the audio quality or mixing. This is well recorded and well mixed. I can only imagine that the problems reported are some combination of equipment used and/or people have just gotten used to the heavy dynamic compression used on radio broadcasts and prevalent on most contemporary pop albums. I detected no audible distortion from recroding on the CD. I actually felt that the the audio engineers were on the conservative side with this recording.

In fact, conservative very much describes this recording as a whole. Nagano and the orchestra were very safe with their interpretation. I did not find anything to be objectionable, but I also did not feel that any risks were taken either. Stewart's reading also was on the conservative side, though I would not categorize it as bland. My main complaint would be that the included album literature was on the limited side. Yes the text to Peter and the Wolf is there, but there is not much else. December 13, 2007

Peter and the Wolf

Delightful...I was given the records at the age of 4 and was delighted that they are out in CD's bought them for all my grandchildren and one mfor me too. October 18, 2007

The story has ben SANITIZED!!!!

Excuse me, I'm a fan of animal rights and all, but to change a classic story line to appease current popular opinion is disgusting!
What's next? The wicked witch gets probation beacause she really didn't mean to kill Snow White with the poisoned apple? August 16, 2007

Poor mixing and limited emotional range on narration

The orchestra plays beautifully, but it is painfully obvious that they recorded their part separate from the narration. Patrick Steward sounds as if he is in a different room with his back to the microphone. Also, even though I am a Patrick Stewart fan, I find his narration entirely too serious and stayed. He reads it more like an essay than a fun story for children. December 16, 2005

Delightful performances

Perhaps I have the advantage of having a wonderful stereo system, but I do not experience the peaks and distortions that others claim on my CD of this wonderful recording. The only thing I noticed is that my volume had to be raised a bit more than usual, but there was no problem with that. Your mileage may vary, as they say, but this overall is a great piece to have.

The first piece on this disc is Sergei Prokofiev's 'Peter and the Wolf', a musical tale written for children. 'Peter and the Wolf' was written by Prokofiev, but is derivative of an older tale.

This is really a way to introduce children to the orchestra (and was a way for Prokofiev to keep his compositions going at a time in Stalinist Russia when music was legally required to be simple and understandable). The main characters include a bird (flute), duck (oboe), cat (clarinet), Peter's grandfather (bassoon), the wolf (a trio of French horns), hunters (percussion mostly, the timpani and bass drum, but also involves woodwinds), and Peter himself (the strings sections of the orchestra).

Patrick Stewart reads the narration of the story, read over the music and in gaps prepared by Prokofiev. The strains of Peter's theme and the other animals are familiar to children all over the world, and have been for generations, as this piece has been very popular, even serving as the inspiration for a Walt Disney production of the same theme, featuring Prokofiev's music. I must confess that it is a bit hard not to visualise Captain Picard narrating this piece; on the other hand, given the nature of the Star Trek character, this is very much in keeping as something Picard might do.

The second piece on this recording is Claude Debussy's 'The Toy Box', a ballet for children. This is also a well-known piece, though perhaps not as well known at the first. It does not feature narration, and is meant largely to introduce the ballet to children. Debussy wrote several pieces for children or evocative of children, some under the inspiration of his daughter.

This is not difficult music by any means, but the Ochrestre de L'Opera de Lyon under the direction of Kent Nagano have produced a superb musical performance of both pieces. This should be a delight to children and to adults.
October 21, 2005

More reviews at Amazon.com ...