AllMovie

Something of an anomaly in the EuroArts catalogue of orchestral performances, this release actually weaves together two parts. The first half incorporates an engaging hour-long documentary on the history of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, written and directed by Arthur Spirk -- with appearances by noted giants of European classical music, including Claudio Abbado, Ernest Ansermet, Fereno Fricsay, Wilhelm Furtwängler, Herbert von Karajan, Rudolf Kempe, Rafael Kubelík, Yehudi Menuhin, Sabine Meyer, Victor de Sabata, Arturo Toscanini, and innumerable others. The second half of the disc offers an hour-long symphony by the Lucerne Ensemble, conducted by Abbado and recorded live during the summer of 2003, with interpretations of two compositions by Claude Debussy: Le Mer and a suite from Le Martyre de Saint Sébastien.