MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Minkus: Paquita / La Bayadere (ballets)

"Boris Spassov, an experienced conductor of ballet performance, handles the music of "La Bayadere" and "Paquita" magnificently (see also his recording of Minkus's "Don Quixote", and his recording of excerpts from various ballets titled "Pas de Deux"). Unlike the more famous recordings of these works by Richard Bonynge, this recording has Spassov handling the orchestra exactly as it would be for a performance. As a dancer, I know that Spassov's conducting of all of the music is first rate (so well in fact that one could use this recording for a live performance if it were needed). Typically in the west the music of Minkus is re-orchestrated (for example the colored up version of "La Bayadere" re-orchestrated by John Lanchbery for ABT and the Royal Ballet), and as a result it is these re-vamped versions that are recorded. But in this recording, the music is recorded in the complete original arrangements.

This is a wonderful recording of music of the under-rated Minkus (and a few others), a way to often neglected composer of some of the most famous works of ballet."
(Amazon.com)