Stravinsky/Ramuz: The Soldier's Tale & Dumbarton Oaks – Northern Chamber Orchestra, Naxos (CD)

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Product Details

• UPC: 730099466226
• Catalogue Number: 8.553662
• Brand/Label: Naxos
• Composer/Author: Igor Stravinsky / Charles-Ferdinand Ramuz (English version by Michael Flanders and Kitty Black)
• Performers: David Timson (Narrator) · Benjamin Soames (The Soldier) · Jonathan Keeble (The Devil)
• Ensemble: Northern Chamber Orchestra
• Conductor: Nicholas Ward
• Release Year: 1998
• Genre: Classical – Theatre Music/Spoken Word with Orchestra
• Country of Producing: European Union (EU)

Product Features

• Format: Audio CD, DDD (fully digital recording), Stereo
• Total playing time: 76:08 (The Soldier's Tale: 60:54 · Concerto in E flat "Dumbarton Oaks": 15:05)
• English-language spoken narration and dialogue with chamber ensemble
• Cover artwork: Impressions of a production of The Soldier's Tale, Royal Festival Hall, London (1968), by Simone Erni

Overview

The Soldier's Tale was written in 1918, right as the First World War was ending, and Stravinsky's deliberately reduced forces here — seven instruments instead of a full orchestra — feel like a direct response to wartime scarcity as much as an artistic choice. The story itself, a soldier who trades his violin (and effectively his soul) to the Devil, gets told through a mix of narration, spoken dialogue, and Stravinsky's angular, jazz-inflected score, presented here in the well-regarded English adaptation by Michael Flanders and Kitty Black. David Timson's narration carries the storytelling load, while Benjamin Soames and Jonathan Keeble bring real character to the Soldier and the Devil without overplaying either role. The disc adds Stravinsky's Concerto in E flat, "Dumbarton Oaks," a lighter neoclassical work that offers a good contrast — pure instrumental writing after the narrated main event. Nicholas Ward and the Northern Chamber Orchestra keep both scores lean and rhythmically alert, which is exactly what this music needs. A genuinely engaging way to experience one of Stravinsky's most theatrically inventive works complete, in English, on disc.

Interesting Facts

• The Soldier's Tale was composed in 1918 with deliberately minimal instrumental forces — seven players total — partly a practical response to wartime touring conditions.
• The work is considered one of the earliest classical pieces to directly absorb the influence of jazz, particularly audible in its rhythmic writing.
• This recording uses the well-known English adaptation by Michael Flanders (later famous as half of the comedy duo Flanders and Swann) and Kitty Black.
• "Dumbarton Oaks" takes its name from the Washington D.C. estate where it was commissioned and first performed, for the 30th wedding anniversary of its patrons.
• The narration and dialogue were recorded separately from the orchestral music, at different sessions in 1995, 1996, and 1998, before being combined into the final production.

Track Listing

The Soldier's Tale (60:54) — Tracks 1–30 Concerto in E flat, "Dumbarton Oaks" (15:05) — Tracks 31–33

(Complete detailed tracklist available in the accompanying booklet)

Publishers

Naxos, part of the Naxos Music Group, recorded at Studio 7, Broadcasting House, Manchester (producer Andrew Walton, K&A Productions; sound engineers Andrew Groves and Harold Barnes; music notes Keith Anderson). Publishers: Chester Music Limited and Schott & Co. Ltd.

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