Walt Disney's Fantasia Remasterd Original Soundtr

Composers: Amilcare Ponchielli, Franz Schubert, Igor Stravinsky, Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven, Modest Mussorgsky, Paul Dukas, Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky Conductors: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestras: Philadelphia Orchestra

1 Toccata and Fugue, for organ in D minor, BWV 565 (BC J37) Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach Length: 09:25 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra 2 Nutcracker, suite from the ballet, Op. 71a - (Nutcracker Suite, Op. 71a: Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy) Composer: Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky Length: 02:36 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra 3 Nutcracker, suite from the ballet, Op. 71a - (Nutcracker Suite, Op. 71a: Chinese Dance) Composer: Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky Length: 01:03 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra 4 Nutcracker, suite from the ballet, Op. 71a - (Nutcracker Suite, Op. 71a: Dance of the Reed Flutes) Composer: Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky Length: 01:49 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra 5 Nutcracker, suite from the ballet, Op. 71a - (Nutcracker Suite, Op. 71a: Arabian Dance) Composer: Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky Length: 03:15 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra 6 Nutcracker, suite from the ballet, Op. 71a - (Nutcracker Suite, Op. 71a: Russian Dance) Composer: Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky Length: 01:07 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra 7 Nutcracker, suite from the ballet, Op. 71a - (Nutcracker Suite, Op. 71a: Waltz of the Flowers) Composer: Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky Length: 04:28 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra 8 The Sorcerer's Apprentice (L'apprenti sorcier), symphonic scherzo for orchestra Composer: Paul Dukas Length: 09:19 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra 9 Le Sacre du printemps (The Rite of Spring), ballet in 2 parts for orchestra Composer: Igor Stravinsky Length: 22:28 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra 10 Symphony No. 6 in F major ("Pastoral"), Op. 68 - (Symphony No. 6 (Pastoral) Op. 68: I Allegro Ma Non Troppo) Composer: Ludwig van Beethoven Length: 04:39 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra 11 Symphony No. 6 in F major ("Pastoral"), Op. 68 - (Symphony No. 6 (Pastoral) Op. 68: II Andante Molto Mosso) Composer: Ludwig van Beethoven Length: 06:25 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra 12 Symphony No. 6 in F major ("Pastoral"), Op. 68 - (Symphony No. 6 (Pastoral) Op. 68: III Allegro/IV Allegro/V Allegretto) Composer: Ludwig van Beethoven Length: 10:58 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra 13 La Gioconda, opera in 4 acts - (Dance of the Hours) Composer: Amilcare Ponchielli Length: 12:15 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra 14 Night on Bald Mountain (Noch' na Lïsoy gore), symphonic poem, edited by Stokowski Composer: Modest Mussorgsky Length: 07:25 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra 15 Ellens Gesang III ("Ave Maria"), song for voice & piano, D. 839 (Op. 52/6) Composer: Franz Schubert Length: 6:26 Performers: Philadelphia Orchestra (Orchestra) Conductor: Leopold Stakowski, Leopold Stokowski Orchestra/Ensemble: Philadelphia Orchestra

Leopold Strokowski's 1940 recordings with the Philadelphia Orchestra for the movie Fantasia were landmarks on several counts. Apart from attempting to bring classical music to the masses in the theater, the soundtrack album -- which came out on LP in the 1950s -- was one of the earliest stereo recordings, featuring some of the most enjoyable high-fidelity sound of the period and boasting impeccable performances (even if the pieces were mostly re-edited and shortened). Apart from his reputation as a fiercely independent musical personality, Stokowski was also a showman with very few peers, and his careful yet extroverted performances of these pieces (including Stravinsky's "The Rite of Spring" and the summary of Beethoven's "Pastorale Symphony") introduced many listeners not blessed with classical music educations to these pieces for the first time. (As the film wasn't a success on its initial release, there weren't millions of such listeners, but at least many tens of thousands.) The performances on Fantasia retain their luster in the modern era, with sound clean enough that they do not need to be considered "historical" recordings. The recordings are also infinitely preferable to the mid-'80s attempt to re-score Fantasia with a modern orchestra and modern sound -- not only did the latter fall considerably short of what people expected, but the interpretations were flaccid and dull by comparison with the originals. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi

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