Edward Gardner - Holst: The Planets/Strauss: Also Sprach Zarathustra

For its very first album on Chandos, the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain devotes its characteristic energy and musical mastery to an explosive program that transcends daily life and eathly experience. It is helped by the enthusiastic, encouraging and experienced baton of Edward Gardner as well as by the sumptuous yet detailed acoustic of Symphony Hall, Birmingham, all fully revealed in this surround-sound recording.

Their performance of Strauss's Also sprach Zarathustra and Holst's The Planets is already a point of reference in the U.K. after the immensely successful Prom concert that preceded the recording. The concert's five-star review in The Daily Telegraph praised in partuclar the orchestra's ""great attack and complete absence of anything routine," while The Guardian emphasized the great performance of the orchestra in this ""graceful and evocative program," especially the ""depth and richenss of sound that belied their youth." This unique album is a first milestone in what promises to be a superb discography for the National Youth Orchestra.

RICHARD STRAUSS

Also sprach Zarathustra, Op.30 TrV 176 (1895-96)

Sehr breit - Immer breiter –

'Von den Hinterweltlern'. Weniger breit - Mäßig langsam, mit Andacht - Sehr breit –

'Von der großen Sehnsucht'. Bewegter - Früheres Zeitmaß (mäßig langsam) –

'Von den Freuden - und Leidenschaften'. Bewegt - Noch bewegter, sehr leidenschaftlich - Etwas breiter werden –

'Das Grablied'. Etwas ruhiger - Immer ruhiger –

'Von der Wissenschaft'. Sehr langsam - Schnell - Etwas labhafter - Sehr langsam - Etwas weniger langsam - Doppelt so schnell –

'Der Genesende'. Energisch - Allmählich etwas bewegter - Immer bewegter - Immer schneller –

'Das Tanzlied'. [ ] - Zart bewegt - Mit labhaftem Schwung - Leicht und elastisch - Sehr bewegt –

'Das Nachtwandlerlied'. [ ] - Langsam - Immer ruhiger - Immer langsamer - Noch langsamer

GUSTAV HOLST

The Planets, Op.32, H 125 (1914-17)

Mars, the Bringer of War. Allegro

Venus, the Bringer of Peace. Adagio - Andante - Animato - Meno mosso - Largo - Animato - Largo –

Mercury, the Winged Messenger. Vivace

Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity. Allegro giocoso - Più mosso - Tempo I - Andante maestoso - Tempo I –

Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age. Adagio - Poco animato - Tempo I - Animato - [A tempo I] –

Uranus, the Magician. Allegro - Lento - Allegro – Largo

Nepture. the Mystic. Andante - Allegretto

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