This CD, an Arkiv
reissue with full booklet notes by James Harding, was originally
released in 1989. This is of course not the end of the story.
The performances, by the Philharmonia Orchestra on top form,
were recorded 22-23 April 1959 and released with UK numbering
HMV Mono ALP 1728/Stereo ASD 299, and in the US: CAPITOL Mono
G 7211/ Stereo SG7211. The narrator for Peter and the Wolf
on the original was Michael Flanders, of Flanders &
Swann fame. This was also re-issued on the HMV ‘Greensleeve’
label, with Britten’s ‘Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra’.
It would appear
that the ‘straight’ narration of Michael Flanders was considered
too old-fashioned by EMI, who recorded Jonathan Winters’ contribution
in 1989 and superimposed it on the old Philharmonia tape. Winters,
the ‘one man theatrical troupe’ has numerous comedic credits
to his name, and has an appropriately deep and expressive voice
for a narrator in this piece. I will freely admit that, in defending
Michael Flanders, the contribution of this LP to my entire formative
years is about as bad a case of bias as you will find. That
said; I prefer the narrator in Peter and the Wolf just
to tell the story, allowing the music and the imagination of
the listener to take front seat. I once saw Sir Michael Hordern
do it live, and he was excellent - knowing exactly what not
to do with the narrative. Jonathan Winters is given free
rein to do animal impersonations, vocal sound effects and the
like, not all of which have anything to do with the music at
all. My apologies to any teenagers who have grown up with this
particular version, but if you get the chance, try a ‘straight’
version as well if you can. Fans of the piece should also most
certainly get hold of a copy of the animated film version by
Suzie
Templeton, which does without any narration at all.
Given the difference
in recording dates between the orchestra and narrator, EMI did
a good job linking the two. If you didn’t know, you probably
wouldn’t notice. The Philharmonia, in stereo of course, sounds
as fresh as it ever did, with just a bit less gloss on the strings
than you might expect from a digital recording. The drums are
spectacular however, the instrumental solos wonderful as ever,
and my daughter was suitably unnerved by the menacing music
as the wolf prowls around and snaps at the bird.
Now we come to Carnival
of the Animals, which has also been messed around with.
Not content with leaving well alone, Ogden Nash’s humorous poems
on the piece have been added, the beginning of each track –
each animal, having a verse pasted in. I find this irritating
in the extreme. Perhaps someone should write some amusing texts
on each of Elgar’s Enigma Variations and see if that
raises our comprehension of the music by popping it between
the tracks. Grafting Nash’s verses onto Saint-Saëns’s music
– good as they are – misses the point entirely. The musical
sketches are just that, wonderful line drawings dashed off for
the entertainment of some friends. Garlanding them with anything
extra is tautologous nonsense, disrupting the poetry innate
in the music and the continuity between what are almost all
very short pieces. Yes, you say, but this is a CD for children,
who like this kind of thing. No, children like music, and they
like being read to – they don’t need to be patronised by having
musical descriptions of animals further pointed out by a big
gruff American. Part of the fun of the piece is the guessing
game you can play trying to identify the animals from the music,
and I resent having this element forcibly removed. With every
respect for Jonathan Winter’s undeniable talents, my request
to EMI would be to make a serious re-issue of these wonderful
recordings, Mr. Flanders included, as well as the original artwork
for the 1959 album. They can also revive the original sleeve
notes as well, if only because they were written by someone
called Leonard Duck.
Dominy Clements
Jonathan Winters
(story-teller)
[52:09]
