Albums of Debussy's orchestral works are a dime-a-dozen these days, but ATMA has presented a refreshingly different program here. The program on this CD consists entirely of Debussy's music as orchestrated by other musicians. And a fine roster of arrangers they are: Ravel, Ansermet, Caplet, Büsser, and Stokowski. These arrangements have been recorded often before, but it's good to have them together on one disc.
The Quebec Symphony Orchestra under Yoav Talmi's baton play with great polish and elegance and ATMA's engineering captures all of this perfectly. Here and there I have quibbles. The Petite Suite drags a bit; the Stokowski arrangement of Claire de lune is played without the hedonistic abandon the Maestro himself brought to it. But really these are minor complaints and this album is pure delight. Paray and Cluytens have also recorded some of this material and are worth seeking out. But for one stop shopping, you can't beat this album.
