Maurice Ravel, AndrA© Previn, Pamela Henen Stephen, Anne-Marie Owens, London Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Juanita Lascarro, Mark Tucker, Jacqueline Miura David Wilson-Johnson, Mary Plazas, Robert Lloyd, Rinat Shaham Elizabeth Futral - Ravel - L'enfant et les SortilA¨ges A· Ma MA¨re l'Oye / LSO A· Previn

Don't be fooled by this disc's cartoonish cover. With its libretto by Colette and music by Ravel at his witty, jazzy peak,L'Enfant et les Sortilèges is hardly kiddie stuff, even if it is about a wicked child who has an epiphany when the inanimate objects he abuses begin talking back. It's an ideal CD opera, since it demands a fantastical staging that's best left to the imagination, and this new recording is among the best available. Surely, it's sassier, broader, and funnier than Previn's well-received previous recording; since making that recording, the conductor revitalized his jazz career and it shows in the new performance, which also has some sterling vocalism in three different roles by the woefully underrecorded soprano Elizabeth Futral. Also, the engineering has superb depth of field, revealing numerous, often unheard details in Ravel's most multifaceted score. Its main competition is also on Deutsche Grammophon: Lorin Maazel's scintillating, well-sung recording in a two-disc, midpriced set that contains Ravel's other opera, L'Heure Espagnole. It's a good deal, but those who only want L'Enfant can pay less money overall and also get Previn's good-but-not-great Ma Mère l'Oye (a similarly playful twist on children's literature). --David Patrick Stearns Amazon.com essential recording

Ravel - meet Verdi?

This is NOT a review of the recording - it is a review of the booklet accompanying the CD - nearly every other page of the booklet is the libretto of Verdi's "Falstaff" - which means a good chunk of the program notes for the Ravel are NOT included! September 27, 2006

Sorry but Mr PREVIN is quite off the tracks

He has a beethovenian approach of the score which is quite a contradiction. Broad tempos, large orchestra, big sound.

Everything is technically perfect but we are very far from RAVEL. In addition, the french diction of the singers is very poor.

What a difference with his EMI recording of the 80's which is a real gem.

The reference is obviously Ansermet but let's not forget BOUR (mono sound) & JORDAN (stereo sound). March 25, 2006

Excellent

I know L'enfant... almost as well as I know my name, and I don't even speak French. When compared to the many versions that I already have, it ranks second only to the version I remember from my childhood. Pairing L'enfant et les Sortileges with the Mother Goose Ballet was inspired. This CD would provide a wonderful introduction to opera and classical music in general to the young and those who are untested in classical music. There is one fault. I hate the cover art. I like Chuck Jones, He has made some great cartoons and created some memorable illustations however this misses target completely. It is as if he only listened to a small part of the opera and hastily threw something together to meet a deadline. None of the magic has been conveyed. There is so much more that could have been done. This may seem like a trifle to most but being a fanatic about L'enfant et les Sortiles as well as a graphic designer this was a disappointment. Apart from that The recording was great as was the performance. Very enjoyable September 18, 1999

Musical magic

At long last there is a set of the two Ravel operas that will be a welcome addition to any collection of French music, Ravel's works, opera, whatever sub-category you can name. Both are on Deutsche Grammophon label, both feature the London Symphony Orchestra under Andre Previn, and both have covers by cartoonist Chuck Jones that belie the value of what lies within. (457 590-2) is a charming work (literally) about a young boy who so maltreats his room, possessions and local animals that they all decide to counterattack. Usually done as a ballet with singers to the side, special effects (animated furniture and even a living math textbook) and the Dance dominate what the eye sees in a full production. But as with most good opera scores (we will debate the adjective at some other time), the music alone is enough to keep our attention as long as we follow the text for at least the first hearing. The lament of the Shepherds and Shepherdesses is among the loveliest moments in all opera, as is the very end when one word convinces the animals to spare the child. Pamela Helen Stephan makes the "Enfant" believable enough musically, although her voice is a bit too mature-sounding. Perhaps the Fire of Elizabeth Futral could use a bit more (forgive this) pyrotechnics, but she and the rest of the large cast are just fine in their roles of objects and animals. The filler offering on this disc, in the expanded orchestral version suffers by comparison with most competitive recordings; but thematically the producers could not have chosen a better companion piece. The second work, < L'Heure Espagnole> (457 590-2) begins very promisingly with the ticking of clocks. And indeed the plot is really quite funny what with grandfather clocks being carried up and down a flight of stairs, with and without amorous wooers hidden inside them. At first hearing, I planned to write how Chaucerian the whole thing was until I found the characters summing the whole thing up with a reference to Boccaccio! The problem on a recording is that the music follows French speaking patterns and there is simply not that much musically that will encourage repeated hearings. But I do urge local vocal groups to get a good English translation and do a staged production of this work as part of an evening's concert. It will be "a regular riot" as Jackie Gleason used to say. Again, the that fills out the CD has been far better treated on other recordings. September 11, 1999

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