Jack Gibbons, The New London Orchestra, Ronald Corp - Milhaud - Le carnaval d'Aix / L'apotheose de Moliere / Le boeuf sur le toit (1992)

Among the most adaptive and flexible -- some might say eclectic and facile -- of composers, Darius Milhaud was well-equipped to provide stage and ballet music that could set any scene and change moods at a moment's notice. His vivid scores, however, are most often heard today in concert, and without scenarios in hand, some imagination is required to understand how effective these works may have been for the stage. Taken at face value, Le carnaval d'Aix seems like an episodic piano concerto, L'apothéose de Molière a mediocre neo-Baroque pastiche, and Le carnaval de Londres a modern music hall rehash of John Gay's The Beggar's Opera. One may simply enjoy these pieces for their charming melodies and orchestral colors, and regard them as quaint souvenirs of the theater, if not especially daring or exciting works. Only the scandalous Le boeuf sur le toit sounds truly characteristic of its composer, with its jaunty, Brazilian-styled tunes, pungent polytonality, and peculiar blending of lyricism and irreverence. Along with La création du monde, this ballet cemented Milhaud's reputation as an iconoclast and remains one of his most significant and entertaining works. The New London Orchestra, conducted by Ronald Corp, performs Milhaud's music with abundant energy and color, and Hyperion offers good sound.