Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra & Zdenek Kosler - R. Strauss: Also sprach Zarathustra - Salome's Dance (1988/2014) [24/44]

Also sprach Zarathustra (Thus spoke Zarathustra), a tone poem after Friedrich Nietzsche, was written in 1896, during the period Strauss spent as conductor at the opera in his native city of Munich. It is based on the rhapsodic expression of Nietzsche's highly personal philosophy; Strauss makes use of an unusually large orchestra, deployed in the most varied way. In this recording, the orchestra shows a high degree of brilliance.

„Strauss 'career as the most important German opera composer of his time took some radical turns. His first successful operas, Salome and Elektra, were decadent and lurid sex-and-violence tales based on the Bible (via Oscar Wilde) and Greek myth. From there, always relishing startling the public, Strauss veered 180 degrees to Der Rosenkavalier, a silvery, perfumed comedy set in Mozart's time. The Marschallin, an older woman (35! gasp!) who philosophically accepts her young lover's crush on an even younger woman, is a role most every diva yearns to make her own, culminating in a lush, bittersweet three-soprano finale to die for. Strauss paints this upper-class milieu by weaving elegant, opulent waltzes through his score; these have become favorite orchestral show-off pieces, as you'll hear in Zdenek Kosler's richly ebullient reading. (Also on this disc, there's a bit of Salome, her over-the-top 'Dance of the Seven Veils.“)“ (Gavin Borchert, Wondering Sound)

Tracklist:

Also sprach Zarathustra Op. 30
1. I. Prelude 01:49
2. II. Of the Afterworldsmen 03:06
3. III. Of the Great Longing 01:59
4. IV. Of Joys and Passions 02:10
5. V. The Funeral 02:25
6. VI. Song of Science 04:08
7. VII. The Convalescent 05:34
8. VIII. The Dance Song 04:11
9. IX. The Night Song 03:49
10. X. The Night-Wanderer's Song 04:05

11. Salome's Dance, TrV 215a 09:45
12. Der Rosenkavalier, Op. 59, TrV 227: Waltz Sequence No. 1 12:05

Personnel:
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra
Zdeněk Košler, conductor

Recorded at the Reduta Hall in Bratislava from 18th to 20th October, 1988 and on 23rd January, 1989

2xHD Mastering: René Laflamme and Anne-Marie Sylvestre
2xHD Executive Producer: André Perry