“Igor Stravinsky’s ‘L’Histoire du Soldat’—’The Soldier’s Tale’—was a small-scale stage work conceived between the time of the Russian Revolution and the end of World War I,” writes Lloyd Schwartz on Wednesday (1/2) at National Public Radio. “Stravinsky uses only seven musicians…. It’s an irresistible piece … full of marches, rags, a tango and an off-kilter waltz…. Various writers have adapted the libretto…. Jean Cocteau narrated a recording in which Peter Ustinov played the devil. Mime Marcel Marceau once appeared as the devil…. A new adaptation by Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters is hardly a radical revision. But with Waters himself narrating the story and reading all of the characters, it’s totally seductive. He’s an effortless narrator… his timing in the places where the narrative is woven into the music is just about flawless…. When I first heard about this recording, I was suspicious that it was going to be just a gimmick…. But Waters is surrounded by the terrific musicians of the Bridgehampton Chamber Music Festival, including Colin Jacobsen, one of the founding members of the popular string quartet Brooklyn Rider, playing the devilishly difficult solo violin part. This is a seriously enjoyable addition to the Stravinsky catalog.”
Posted January 4, 2019
