Less please...

 

I try, but to no avail.

Granados' orchestral music has been rather hit and miss. I think Dante is a pure loss for me; I just don't find much in it to grab onto.

I would think the Cantos Populares Españoles would be more immediately appealing, for I enjoy the exoticism of Nationalistic music, but the orchestrated version didn't do much for me either. Perhaps they are too Impressionistic for my liking.

The La Maya y el RuiSeñor contains more of Granados' late-Romantic wanderings and the Intermezzo more of the lumbering Spanish airiness.

None of this is aided by the blowsy, tubby sound afforded the Gran Canaria ensemble. At the very least, Adrian Leaper explores rare literature such as this, also found on various recordings on ASV and Arte Nova.

 

A review from 2024


This Alto Records reissue, taken from the 2001 original on ASV, performs orchestral works from Spanish composer Enrique Granados.



I have tried to like the symphonic poem Dante, first hearing it on Naxos, but its Wagnerian moodiness doesn’t reach me. Chromatic and wander-y, even the appearance of a soprano at its end is too little too late in its 30-minutes, although Herrera has a good voice for the role.



I have also had trouble taking a liking to his orchestrated dances, here with five from Granados’ Cantos Populares Españoles. They are airy are and delicate, but rarely give the listener much meat. Ferrer’s orchestration is properly colourful, however, but most feel lumbering over snappy or piquant.



The two excerpts from Goyescas follow a similar tread, with the RuiSeñor song conjuring some of the early late-Romanticism. It doesn’t help the Gran Canaria PO sounds tubby and overly grand, providing little relief for this exotic music.


All in all, I would go for the 3CD orchestral set of Granados on Naxos instead of this one. The main appeal here is the rare, orchestrated version of these Spanish dances, even if hearing them isn’t going to change the world.

 

Listen on YouTube

 

Works
Dante (31.02)
Cantos Populares Españoles (24.05)
Goyescas: La Maya y el RuiSeñor (9.06)
Goyescas: Intermezzo (5.03)

Performers
Frances Lucey, soprano
Nancy Fabiola Herrera, mezzo-soprano
Gran Canaria Philharmonic Orchestra
Adrian Leaper, conductor

Label: Alto Records
Year: 2001 / 2017
Total Timing: 69.20

 

 

 

This one is a big pass, aside for hearing the orchestrated version of Granados' piano works, still something which is not a necessity.

Some who like the airy wanderings of the composer's latte-Romantic music might find some to enjoy here, though.

 

 

 

 

 

Find more Granados recordings HERE!