Gilbert & Sullivan: The Gondoliers; Cello Concerto (2008)

This version of The Gondoliers is one of nine recordings of the most popular Gilbert and Sullivan operettas that Malcolm Sargent made in the late '50s and early '60s with the chorus of the Glyndebourne Festival and the Pro Arte Orchestra. Sargent's conducting and the orchestra's playing are unfailingly graceful and gently witty. The Gondoliers is one of Sullivan's most sophisticated scores (and the last of his collaborations with Gilbert to be counted a success), and the elegance of Sargent's approach is for the most part ... Read More

This version of The Gondoliers is one of nine recordings of the most popular Gilbert and Sullivan operettas that Malcolm Sargent made in the late '50s and early '60s with the chorus of the Glyndebourne Festival and the Pro Arte Orchestra. Sargent's conducting and the orchestra's playing are unfailingly graceful and gently witty. The Gondoliers is one of Sullivan's most sophisticated scores (and the last of his collaborations with Gilbert to be counted a success), and the elegance of Sargent's approach is for the most part appropriate, but his restraint keeps this version from attaining the sublime loopiness that characterizes the most memorable Gilbert and Sullivan performances. His reading is generally on the slow side, and the patter songs, particularly "In a contemplative fashion," don't have the exhilarating urgency needed to make their full impact. The musicality of the reading, though, and the quality of most of the singing, makes this a recording that Gilbert and Sullivan aficionados may well... Read Less