Customer Rating: 
Summary: La Mer is one of my all-time favorites
Comment: There is nothing quite like Dutoit's handling of some of Debussy's timeless masterpieces. All have enormous strength and have clear sound quality. The piece that gives me the shivers the most is La Mer. It has the perfect oceanic feeling that some other conductors forget about. I can just imagine the stormy sea letting out its dangerous but majestic fury when listening to the third movement. Images for Orchestra and Printemps are also fabulous. Highly recommended for those who are interested in impressionistic music.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Wonderful
Comment: Charles Dutoit does so pretty wonderful things with this Debussy set and his orchestra is in top-notch form. Dutoit handles these works well, bringing delicacy of phrasing, sweeping crescendos, and awesome sonics. Rarely does can an orchestra sound calm, quiet, even serene AND loud, dramatic, and forceful. La Mer is particularly striking in Dutoit's hands. Decca's crystal clear sound makes this set even more attractive. Highly recommended.
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Great interpretations, but the recorded sound is ok
Comment: Charles Dutoit does so pretty wonderful things with this Debussy set and his orchestra is in top notch form. However, the reason I gave this CD set only 4 starts is because the recorded sound less much to be desired. The cd sound is very "echo"y, it sounds like the orchestra is playing in a cave, not a concert hall. If that doesn't bother you then go for this set. As for me, I want Debussy with a little clearer of a sound.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Ravishing Debussy from a master of French music
Comment: Most of Dutoit's Debussy recordings were released at the beginning of the 1990s and are of the same very high standard of his Ravel and Poulenc recordings, and it is good to have the best-known of them reissued on a well-documented 2-CD bargain set. The sound quality is fantastic. This set comes into competition with Haitink's excellent Philips Duo set, and choice between the two sets will probably be determined by the minor works included. The Haitink set has long been the first recommendation in this repertoire, and the analogue sound is excellent, if not as spectacular as that of the Dutoit set. It should be noted, however, that those who buy the Dutoit set along with Martinon's "Orchestral Works II" set on EMI's Double Forte label will have obtained virtually all of Debussy's orchestral compositions and transcriptions all for not too many dead presidents.
|
