Saint-Saëns: The Complete Works for Piano and Orchestra | 
| Creators: Camille Saint-saëns, Sakari Oramo, City Of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Stephen Hough
Label: Hyperion
Category: Music
List Price: £30.99
Buy New: £24.98
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Rating:  5 reviews
Sales Rank: 2837
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 2
Running Time: 155 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 4.7 x 0.4
UPC: 034571173313
EAN: 0034571173313
ASIN: B00005NUPA
Release Date: September 3, 2001
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours
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| Tracks:
Disc 1
| • | Piano Concerto No. 1 in D major, Op. 17 | | • | Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 22 | | • | Piano Concerto No. 3 in E flat major, Op. 29 | | • | Wedding Cake Valse-Caprice for piano and strings, Op. 76 |
Disc 2
| • | Piano Concerto No. 4 in C minor, Op. 44 | | • | Piano Concerto No. 5 in F major, Op. 103 | | • | Rapsodie d'Auvergne, Op. 73 | | • | Allegro appassionato, op. 70 | | • | Africa, Op. 89 |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.co.uk Review
Stephen Hough's recording of Saint-Saëns' piano concertos comes as no surprise: he is our leading champion of once-lost pianistic causes--Scharwenka, Sauer and Mompou being among the composers he has brilliantly committed to disc. For all his fame, Saint-Saëns is a harder cause to champion than any of the above, since his music really is at times mere padding. But what those who deride him fail to see is that the Muse also frequently perched on his shoulder, most notably in the Fourth Concerto with its lovely set of variations. They also miss the central point about his art, which reflected a rigorously anti-Romantic stance: "Art is intended to create beauty and character," he wrote. "Feeling only comes afterwards, and art can very well do without it." As the author of Hyperion's excellent liner-note rightly observes, it's ironic that Saint-Saëns ' anti-emotionality should have damned him in the eyes of critics, when Stravinsky's similar stance earned him accolades. Stephen Hough brings his customary grace and precision to bear in these unexpectedly interesting works, ably abetted by Sakari Oramo in the pit. Sometimes the composer paints intimate tone-pictures, sometimes he evokes vast waterscapes, but at all times Hough keeps you alert and on the edge of your seat. --Michael Church
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| Customer Reviews:
 spirited, elegant... Saint-Saens! October 25, 2008
a nice guy (Cairo, Egypt)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
It is hard to imagine a more sympathetic, nor indeed high spirited, homage to Saint-Saens than this marvellous recording. All five of the piano concertos have something to recommend them and I am glad that they are finally being appreciated on their own grounds. Long neglected, Concertos 1, 3, 4 and 5 are marvellous pieces, full of fun, elegance and poise. The recording itself is in a real class of its own, and this is a very worthy 'sister' of Hough's recent recording of Rachmaninoff's concertos.
Also present here are some smaller pieces, a little like Mozart's one movement rondos. Here, as in the Concertos, Mozart's presence can be felt. However it is the synthesis of Mozart's light orchestration and masterful musical development with Stravinsky's neo-classical tendancies (without the edgy harmonies), mixed with one or two surprises such as a chorus of gamelans, that makes this CD full of just about everything that is worth while having in music.
Highly recommended!
 Do you want this music? July 19, 2008
fair and (sussex, uk)
3 out of 6 found this review helpful
There is no doubt that these are brilliant performances. But the question in my mind is how much do you want three discs of this music? The works are well crafted, certainly, and I suppose they do sparkle. There is often invention that is both surprising and delightful. But after a while one wishes for a bit more of the "red meat" of truly great romantic repertoire. I have something of a soft spot for Saint Saens but discovering his works can be a bit of a mixed experience - sometimes joyful and sometimes almost cringing (at a particularly banal tune, for example). In the end I am not sorry I bought these records and will return to them with pleasure in some moods. But there are byroads of the repertoire that I have mined with more consistently satisfying results than I have here.
Another triumph for Stephen Hough! September 14, 2006
A. B. Smith (Rutland, U.K.)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
If you enjoyed his Rachmaninov set you will certainly enjoy this. It is Stephen Hough at his brilliant best, and is a delight from start to finish. Hopefully it will help to rehabilitate these delightful but neglected concertos.
Music to lift the spirits December 22, 2001
A. D. Lewis (Blackwood, S. Wales)
15 out of 15 found this review helpful
These recordings are an unqualified success. Hough plays with complete understanding, allowing these works to sparkle and shine. He avoids bombast and in so doing, brings out the real strengths of these concertos.One thinks of Ravel rather than Liszt. And what a fine series they are! There is craftsmanship, refinement, colour, wit, and tenderness in all works. The 2nd and 4th are well known, but the first is a new delight for me, with a quite remarkable second movement. And why the 3rd has so often been dismissed as the weakest of the set is a mystery when it is heard in a performance as compelling as this. Full marks to Hyperion, Stephen Hough, Sakari Oramo and the CBSO. Anyone familiar with these concertos will delight in these new performances, and those investigating them for the first time are fortunate indeed! The concertos come with four short pieces for piano and orchestra, all well crafted and beautifully executed.
Sparkling performances by a master pianist September 20, 2001
mscott7449@hotmail.com (Belfast, N Ireland)
12 out of 12 found this review helpful
Like many lovers of the romantic French repertoire, I have been eagerly anticipating this release for some time. Hough amazes yet again with his effervescent touch and dazzling virtuosity - indeed, he seems to toss off these gems of the concerto repertoire with such nonchalant ease. How do his interpretations compare with the other leaders in the field, namely Roge, Collard and Biret? Consider all other versions well and truly trounced. Oramo and his merry band provide sterling support with a perfect feel for this music and a marvellous balance, thanks yet again to the Hyperion team. Without reservation, this is a great recording by one of the greatest pianists around. One expects accolades galore in days to come - take note, Gramophone!
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