Aside from the fact that there'd be two discs rather than one and that the price would therefore be doubled, is there any reason why Paavo Järvi's recording of Prokofiev's Romeo et Juliette with the Cincinnati Symphony should be just of the three concert suites and not of the whole full-evening ballet? Certainly it's not the fault of the music. Romeo et Juliette is probably his best dramatic work; arguably his best orchestral work; and absolutely his most lyrical, emotional, and deeply moving work. Certainly it's not the playing. With its powerful brass, its voluptuous violins, its colorful woodwinds, and its precise and powerful percussion, the Cincinnati Symphony has never sounded better. Certainly it's not the conducting. Järvi control of the ensemble is complete, his tempos, his balances, and his phrasing are ideal and -- best of all -- his conducting lets the music dance and his interpretation lets it sing. And surely it's not the sound. Telarc's digital recording is as close to real as any recording ever made. The only thing that could improve this recording would be more of it. But as it stands, this is the finest recording of the Suites From Romeo et Juliette ever made.
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