Registered in the 60s, this album is a true pillar of the Bartokian discography. He proudly shows the golden age of analogue stereo for Decca: the aim of producing a continent of sound sensations that pass before reproducing an acoustic performance: color effects, matter and space exist in themselves, without realistic reference. In this case, the London Symphony Orchestra has a fabric here, roundness (in particular strings), a lushness that certainly does not know him in concert ... and that does justice to the splendours still post Romantic orchestration Bartok. Istvan Kertesz, if he had died accidentally, probably would have been one of the great conductors of the second half of the twentieth century. If it has not reached full maturity in the "big" book, he left some major testimonies in Mozart and Schubert, along with his compatriot Bartok. The London Symphony Orchestra, trained in Russian and Czech music, Bartok also practiced with Solti and Dorati. It is perfectly comfortable to follow in his Kertesz crescendi to create climates it inspires. Walter Berry here is a role that fits him like a glove, which does not happen often. More pathetic than tragic, it is implied and does not feel any shortage. Christa Ludwig is immense. Its magnificent mezzo the medium and serious warm, with a nice extension in acute enabling it to address some dramatic soprano roles, and her quivering composition give the role of Judith extraordinary dimensions. One can imagine that the young wife of Bluebeard is less mature, less control, but what splendor ...
