Stravinsky • Kelly-Marie Murphy
Stravinsky: Pulcinella; The Fairy’s Kiss – Divertimento; Kelly-Marie Murphy: Curiosity, Genius, and the Search For Petula Clark
Toronto Symphony Orchestra/Gustavo Gimeno et al
Harmonia Mundi HMM905384 75 mins
Clip: Stravinsky – Pulcinella, ballet with song in one act, K034 - I. Ouverture. Allegro moderato
Everything on this album is so fine and focused, so let me get the only caveat out of the way. Gustavo Gimeno writes in the booklet note that he has ‘always been attracted to pieces that are very popular in suite form but rarely presented in their entirety’ – then goes and gives us, yes, the complete Pulcinella ballet, but only the divertimento from The Fairy’s Kiss. So the question is would it have been better to have the whole of Stravinsky’s very piquant and loving homage to Tchaikovsky instead of Curiosity, Genius, and the Search for Petula Clark, by Canadian composer Kelly-Marie Murphy?
Frankly, yes, though the Toronto Symphony Orchestra needs to honour its commission. Murphy’s take on Glenn Gould hearing ‘Pet’ on a road journey is entertaining enough, but a tad stop-start – and without the instrumental precision we find at every point in the two Stravinsky scores. This is perhaps the most sheerly lovely Pulcinella I’ve heard, slightly romanticised with a full-orchestral richness rather than the spring of a chamber ensemble. But to match the beautifully recorded artistry of the woodwind especially, Gimeno has gone for full-bodied operatic voices rather than a Pergolesi-and-friends authenticity (which of course wasn’t Stravinsky’s intention either). Appleby and Welton are splendid; Leonard, despite a hint of flatness right at the top, is excellent with the texts. The wind and horns continue to excel in the enchantment of the Andersen-based fairy tale, suggesting that Gimeno and his Canadians might tackle the three Tchaikovsky ballets. Complete, of course. David Nice
