Donald Satz wrote:

>Stuart Karow wrote:
>
>>I would be interested in what you think of Kuijken's Seasons recording
>>since I think its budget priced.  Initially, I passed-up the recording
>>when I had read a very mixed review of the CD.
>
>I'm enjoying Kuijken's Seasons very much.  Criticisms of this performance
>have tended to be along the lines that it is too "light" and does not
>sufficiently represent the drama of the work.  ...
>
>The most recent review of this re-issue at budget price was critical of
>"slowish speeds, unattractive tenor and bass soloists, and the absence of
>texts or even title-translations in the booklet".  I didn't have a problem
>with the absence of text, particularly since I can get the text out of
>another cd booklet.  The slowish speeds were something I didn't even
>notice.  As for the male soloists, I found the bass excellent and the tenor
>fairly good.  So, I can't agree with these criticisms expressed in the
>October Gramophone.

I tend to think that Kuijken doesn't get very good press in the
English-speaking music review periodicals.  I'm not sure why, other than
that he represents a somewhat different, perhaps less "flashy", way of
Historically Informed Performance.  This is similar to criticisms I've read
of people such as Gustav Leonhardt, with whom the Kuijkens have had a long
collegial relationship in music making.  I wouldn't say this is is peculiar
to English media such as Gramophone, as I've also heard very favorable
reviews of Kuijken's work on the BBC.

For me, it has certainly been enlightening to have an email friend in
the UK who's a close friend of Sigiswald Kuijken, and has sometimes passed
along impressions of concerts, recordings and such.  Not to mention passing
along some of his own thoughts (secondhand, of course) but which has given
me added appreciation of his musicianship.

But I've also been somewhat entertained by the saucy comments this
friend has for other HIP musicians, particularly other English ones such
as Norrington or Gardiner.  Some of this, I believe, reflects what SK
himself has implied about the interpretative approaches of many English
HIP musicians.  And my friend has *very* little nice to say about other
conductors such as Savall and Christie.  This hasn't stopped me from
obtaining their recordings, however.

What does this tell me? That there's plenty of room for diversity, even in
the so-called monolithic world of HIP.  And it's certainly not without its
personality conflicts.  But in the end, a record review/criticism can't be
taken in a vacuum, without some appreciation of the reviewer's own tastes
and prejudices.  Only then can one (speaking for myself) decide whether to
trust the review.  That's why, for example, many of the reviews I've seen
in American Record Guide over the years only spurred me to do the opposite
of what was recommended.

Bill H.