...is an opulent tone poem written in 1908 in the style which came to fulfilment in Gliere's Ilya Murometz symphony. It's available as the coupling for his Symphony No.1 on a bargain-priced Naxos reissue of a Marco Polo original - and very good it is too in this performance. The CD is worth getting for this piece alone.
Yes, indeed. I bought the Naxos Glière symphonies years ago and totally agree re The Sirens. I wonder how it compares to the other versions that were/are available (e.g. Gauk on YT, or Esipov as an mp3 download via Amazon).
I have the recordings by Gauk, Esipov, and Gunzenhauser, and also a radio broadcast recording of a performance by Sirenko with the Ukrainian NSO.
There seem to be two distinct timings on these.
Gauk - 13:16
Gunzenhauser - 13:37
Sirenko - 16:50
Esipov - 17:05
As we know, the tempo markings by Gliere for his 3rd Symphony are slower than common performance practice. Only the Farberman recording takes it at such a slow pace. So, it is usually performed at a faster clip than Gliere indicated (and often cut as well).
I don't know if any of these recordings have been cut. Personally, I enjoy the Esipov recording best. It has a greater sense of mystery and atmosphere to me. But then, I like Farberman's 3rd for much the same reason. The audio quality of the Gauk, from the old Melodiya LP, is not up to today's standard, of course. The Gunzenhauser on Naxos is just a retread of the Marco Polo, which is still available. The Sirenko is a live recording (complete with coughing), and the Ukrainian NSO is not as good as the Moscow RTVSO under Esipov.
So, to my taste, the Gunzenhauser and the Esipov are the two better choices, depending on your preference for tempi.
The Gunzenhauser is a retread of the Marco Polo? Not a reissue and repackaging? (The latter's still being available might be explainable by one's being available (only) in some places, and the other in others. Or, left hand, right hand, not knowing, &c, &c. ... or I could just be mistaken.
Or, Marco Polo recording of The Sirens: Currently Not Available On CD (http://www.naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=8.220349), which explains a bit.
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Never mind. Answered my own question. Downloaded the backcover PDFs of both from Naxos.com. "Recorded at the Concert Hall... ... May 1985" in both cases. Timings to within 5 seconds of each other. Well... ok, retread, reissue, same thing...
Both the Naxos and the Marco Polo are available on Amazon, Eric. The Marco Polo is being sold as new, not used. So far as I can tell, it is the same recording.
Is retread not the appropriate word, as far as you are concerned? What word would you prefer? I certainly do not want to use improper words.
Geez!
Sincere apologies for my mood, moodiness and grump... :(
(Also by "retread" I rather did think you meant "well, out he goes to the studio for another performance with practically the same results"- "tread"ing the same territory, that is. :)
Gunzenhauser _is_ still alive anycase though, isn't he? I was a bit surprised to find out e.g. that Karol Stryja wasn't.)
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Amphissa, thanks for the short overview of those versions.
I think the Gunzenhauser performance probably suits my taste. Thank you, Naxos!