New Forms

Amazon.com
For his debut album on Talkin' Loud/Polygram, Bristol, England's Roni Size keeps with the label's tradition of releasing grandiose, song-oriented dance albums. Size teams up with DJs Krust, Die, and Suv; MC Dynamite; and vocalist Onalee to weld the rough-and-ready sounds of British drum & bass to the soul vibes of their hometown. On New Forms, the jazz concepts laid out on his earlier singles are expanded into song form, with live instrumentation and full vocals. The album never fails to be interesting; there's serious musical credibility underlying every track, but New Forms, with its straightforward pop sensibilities, is clearly aimed at the listener. Fans of the Bristol sound will appreciate the "Watching Windows" and "Share the Fall" singles, whose subtle melancholy blends seamlessly with Size's trademark drum assaults. Despite its length (23 tracks spanning 140 minutes), New Forms remains perfectly balanced and eminently listenable. --Matthew Corwine

Product Description
Japanese Renewal Edition featuring Two Bonus Tracks. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

New Forms,Roni Size,Reprazent,Mercury / Universal,Dance Music,Pop,Popular Music,Rock/Pop

Average customer rating: Changed My Listening Amazing It was downhill from here for Roni Size Great Album Drum and Bass 101

New Forms Roni Size & Reprazent Manufacturer: Fontana Island ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Drum & Bass | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music General | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music General | Techno | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music Electronica | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music General | Dance Pop | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music General | Rock | Styles | Music Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music Similar Items: In the Mode Timeless Logical Progression, Level 1 Mysteries of Funk Modus Operandi ASIN: B000001EYA Release Date: 1997-10-28

Tracks:

1. Railing
2. Brown Paper Bag
3. New Forms
4. Let's Get It On
5. Digital
6. Matter Of Fact
7. Mad Cat
8. Heroes
9. Share The Fall (Full Vocal Mix)
10. Watching Windows
11. Beatbox
12. Morse Code
13. Destination

Tracks:

1. INtro
2. Hi-Potent
3. Trust Me
4. Change My Life
5. Share The Fall
6. Down
7. Jazz
8. Hot Stuff
9. Ballet Dance
10. Electricks

Amazon.com

For his debut album on Talkin' Loud/Polygram, Bristol, England's Roni Size keeps with the label's tradition of releasing grandiose, song-oriented dance albums. Size teams up with DJs Krust, Die, and Suv; MC Dynamite; and vocalist Onalee to weld the rough-and-ready sounds of British drum & bass to the soul vibes of their hometown. On New Forms, the jazz concepts laid out on his earlier singles are expanded into song form, with live instrumentation and full vocals. The album never fails to be interesting; there's serious musical credibility underlying every track, but New Forms, with its straightforward pop sensibilities, is clearly aimed at the listener. Fans of the Bristol sound will appreciate the "Watching Windows" and "Share the Fall" singles, whose subtle melancholy blends seamlessly with Size's trademark drum assaults. Despite its length (23 tracks spanning 140 minutes), New Forms remains perfectly balanced and eminently listenable. --Matthew Corwine

Album Details

Japanese Renewal Edition featuring Two Bonus Tracks.

Customer Reviews:

Changed My Listening.......2007-04-22

I first borrowed New Forms four years ago with a view to hearing more lush beats driven sounds like displayed in the #8 Heroes track, but without the vocals. On first album listen I didn't get it, the sound, or the form. Left alone for it to settle, on later reflection I realized I had just been taught how to listen to music anew.

Aside from the nice but deceptive sounding #1 Railing (no other track was as conventional) this album struck me after three long borrows, so I now recommend you this double bass jazz step manifesto.

Track wise, I found some parts to be cinematic - # 4 Lets Get It On, #6Matter Of Fact, #7 Mad Cat.
Other times like an epic score - #2 Brown Paper Bag.
I felt it had hype sounding manifesto lyrics like - #1Railing,(`Direct, believe me you ain't heard nothing yet!') #3 New Forms, #8 Heroes.
Into a formulated, and natural sounding blends of jazz step with eerie effects-#5Digital, # Mad Cat.
Killer buildups, and infinite ride through- #12 Morse code, and #13 Destination,
In my opinion very anti-pop, yet deserving of it's hype.
In short a new form.

Of all tunes most notably #6 Matter Of Fact, I found as the plethora point. A python of a song which sounds to me like an invite into the never ending openings of Roni sizes/reprezent Pandora's box. No preparation is enough for this one.

Some people have described Roni's album as a mantra- with its ever-cycling repetition of beats, which can never truly be absorbed by just a few listens. I think Roni Size's/Reprazent New Forms especially disc2 (Roni's own cerebral suite?) has the potential of a lifetime of listens. With the result that the rhythms may get under your skin in such a way that will leave you coming back for more like the track `Mad cat', and `Morse code', do to me ad infinite.
`Change my life' indeed. Leyman

Amazing.......2006-04-07

"New Forms" was, is, and always will be the best Drum N Bass album out there.

Its not easy listening, its not very dancable, it is just pure music, and - I am afraid it sounds cheesy - it is really art. Its Jazzy, funky, very smooth, minimalistic, and its so subtle that you cannot express its quality in words.

Just let me tell you, you have to spend a little time on it - many songs are over 8 minutes long - but once you warm up to the album, you will listen to it over and over again, and you will find somthing new everytime you put it on.

This is as much 5 stars as it can get.

It was downhill from here for Roni Size.......2006-01-22

New Forms won the Mercury Prize in the most abundant year in techno music history. That year being 1997. The Mercury Prize is given to the top British album of the year (yes, beating out Radiohead's OK Computer), so obviously that must mean that New Forms is one of the all-time great albums electronica has to offer right? Barely. Although disc 1 has the highlights: "Brown Paper Bag", "Let's Get It On", and "Morse Code", disc 2 maybe the best drum-and-bass cd ever recorded: a consistent onslaught of vocal-less soundscapes that keep the listener interested. Although the songs were written by Roni Size, the songs on disc 2 have an improvisatory feel to them, there's even a track called "Jazz". Disc 2 is ingenius, it is like Roni Size has a whole drum-and-bass opera in his head. But Reprazant deserves a lot of credit as well; the touches they put on every song are subtle and satisfying. "Brown Paper Bag" might be the greatest drum-and-bass song ever recorded and is a touchstone of tempo changes and intensity. It is truly a breathtaking ride of a song. The filler on disc 1 prevent New Forms from being an absolute masterpiece, but still recommended. B+

Great Album.......2006-01-10

Funky, Jazzy, Hard Hittin' Classic DnB. Just outta curiousity though, from reading all the other DnB artist reviews around Amazon, How many "Kings Of Drum & Bass" are there? I've personally counted like 4-5 undisputed "Kings" Roni being one, but also Grooverider, who is a definate contender, also Goldie another heavy weight. Then you get into some of the other so called "Kings" like Dieselboy, don't get me wrong I loved Dungeoun Master and he's a great DJ, that's just it though, he's just a DJ. Roni is a true producer & a DJ as well. Hell, I'm a DJ that sometimes plays DnB, does that make me "King" of DnB? Hell NO!!! Roni's been around for quite a while now, he's always updating his sound, while never compromising, all of Roni's stuff is undenyably Roni. Andy C is another member of the DnB royal family, now he has produced some stuff, pretty good stuff even but he's still made his name a DJ. I personally think the crown is about to be passed to the new guys on the block "Pendulum". Until then though, ALL HAIL RONI SIZE!!!

Drum and Bass 101.......2006-01-04

i cant say enough about this album... this is the kind of album that requires and open mind, and time to spare.. it is truly a drum and bass journey through all forms of the derivative style we call "breakbeat". i wont go song for song here because as a whole i feel the album is a complete gem with something for anyone who truly appreciates that art of drum and bass. i bought this back in 97, and it still gets heavy rotation on my ipod. thealbum leans into different moods throughout making it an enjoyable experience. im a heavy listener of drum and bass. iwas in the party scene for 6 yrs and people still talk about how influentual this album is till this day... give it a shot, im my opinion, top 5 cds ive ever purchased....

Average customer rating:

New Forms in Jazz: Complete Capitol Recordings 1954-1955 Jimmy Giuffre Manufacturer: Fresh Sounds Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Cool Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music General | Jazz | Styles | Music Similar Items: Original Trio The Modern Jazz Quartet & Jimmy Giuffre: Complete Recordings Complete Fifties Recordings, Vol. 4: I Swing for You ASIN: B000GB6O6W Release Date: 2006-07-04

Tracks:

1. Do It!
2. All for You
3. I Only Have Eyes for You
4. Four Brothers
5. Sultana
6. Nutty Pine
7. Wrought of Iron
8. Someone to Watch Over Me
9. Ring-Tail Monkey
10. Iranic
11. Scintilla One
12. Finger Snapper
13. Lazy Tones
14. Scintilla Two
15. Chirpin' Time
16. This Is My Beloved
17. Leprechaun
18. Scintilla Three
19. Rethoric
20. Scintilla Four

Average customer rating:

Angel Connection Carol J. Spears Manufacturer: Heart In Hands ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | New Age | Styles | Music General | New Age | Indie Music | Stores | Music Similar Items: Crystal Harp:Divinely Inspired Music of Harp and Crystal Bowls Reiki Healing Attunement Heal Emotional-Mental-Physical-Spiritual Issues Reiki Psychic Attunement Open and Expand Your Psychic Abilities The Tranquil Harp: Improvisations for Relaxation, Meditation, Integration ASIN: B00015NHB8 Release Date: 2002-09-09

Tracks:

1. Angel Connection
2. Pachelbel"s Canon
3. Sanctuary
4. Medieval Medley (High Germany/A Solis Ortus Cardine Deus Meus)
5. Sweet Dreams
6. Ken-Ary Spirit
7. All Through the Night
8. Angel Connection Reprise

Album Description

As the resonating tones of the pure harp embrace you with gentle, loving music, embark on your own journey of deep healing through meditation and relaxation, with the harp strings as your angelic guide. Carol plays from her heart to yours, with an intuitive, compassionate understanding. She specifically selected these songs for their quality to connect you to your Inner Angels. Angel Connection CD, which is 66-minutes long, is perfect to use during alternative therapy treatments, such as Reiki, Massage, or hypnotherappy.

Average customer rating: creativity!

Coleridge-Taylor: Perkinson - A Celebration Manufacturer: Cedille ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music Similar Items: Senku - Piano Music by Composers of African Descent Let Us Break Bread Together William Grant Still: Afro-American Symphony; In Memoriam; Africa (Symphonic Poem) Thelonious Monk Quartet with John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall Taking The Long Way ASIN: B000BUEGG8 Release Date: 2005-11-29

Album Description

This CD celebrates the life of innovative American composer Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson (1932-2004), whose accomplishments spanned the worlds of jazz, dance, pop, film, television, and classical music.

World premiere recordings of Perkinson's orchestral, chamber, and solo instrumental works showcase his distinctive blend of Baroque counterpoint; energetic, streamlined American Romanticism; elements of blues, spirituals, and black folk music; and a rhythmic ingenuity all his own.

Performances by the Chicago Sinfonietta and conductor Paul Freeman, Chicago's New Black Repertory Ensemble Quartet, and distinguished soloists.

Customer Reviews:

creativity!.......2007-01-13

I enjoy classical, chamber, vocal, and jazz on a high-end system. I found myself listening to this disk over and over again, and appreciating new nuances of creative writing each time. The music combines elements of jazz and chamber ensemble playing (think Haydn or Mozart), and while there are lots of melodic theme treatments, as in good chamber music, it is the creative use of rhythm and changes in rhythmic patterns that makes these works outstanding. Some pieces are reminiscent of Scott Joplin, while others presage John Adams, and all are uniquely satisfying. They are also well-performed, and the sound quality is superb.

Average customer rating:

New Forms Roni Size & Reprazent Manufacturer: Talkin' Loud/Mercury ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Drum & Bass | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music General | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music Electronica | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music ASIN: B000024SMJ Release Date: 1997-10-28

Tracks:

1. Railing
2. Brown Paper Bag
3. New Forms - Bahamadia, Roni Size & Reprazent, Roni Size
4. Let's Get It On
5. Digital
6. Matter of Fact
7. Mad Cat
8. Heroes
9. Share the Fall [Full Vocal Mix]
10. Watching Windows
11. Beatbox
12. Morse Code
13. Destination

Tracks:

1. Intro
2. Hi-Potent
3. Trust Me
4. Change My Life
5. Share the Fall
6. Down
7. Jazz
8. Hot Stuff
9. Ballet Dance
10. Electriks

Average customer rating:

Akhand Various Artists Manufacturer: Kosmic Music Inc ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | International | Styles | Music General | New Age | Styles | Music Meditation | New Age | Styles | Music General | New Age | Indie Music | Stores | Music Similar Items: Dhyana Mantra Moolamantra Vol. 2 JI Project Sacred Chants - Vol 1 Chakra Dhyana ASIN: B000CAKTSQ Release Date: 2005-04-26

Tracks:

1. ANO BHADRAH
2. NAMASTHE
3. GANESHA MANTRAM
4. SRI MAHAGANESHA PANCHARATHNAM
5. DIVINE VIBRATION [music interlude]
6. SARASWATHI GHANAPATAH
7. GURU STOTRAM
8. KANAKADHARA
9. SAMAVEDAM
10. NARAYANA SUKTAM
11. RUDRA
12. ARGALA STOTRAM
13. DAARIDRYADUKHA DAHANA STOTRAM
14. DIVINE VIBRATION [music interlude]
15. SHANTHI MANTRA
16. PRANNATH

Product Description

Akhand is a compilation of ancient Vedic chants manifesting the expression “One reality but many forms” in our lives. As Shiva and Vishnu are personified as Prosperity and Spirituality, the collection of chants and melodies from Southern Indian help us to recognize our duality before bringing them in accord with one another.

Average customer rating: A Comic-Opera Treasure! an obscure delight!

Dittersdorf: Arcifanfano, King of Fools Manufacturer: Video Artists Int'l ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Dittersdorf | Dittersdorf, Karl Ditters | ( D ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music | Cantatas | Romances German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Operettas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Similar Items: Anna Russell Takes On... Nabucco & The Magic Flute Anna Russell Again? The Anna Russell Album Encore? Hansel and Gretel: An Opera Fantasy ASIN: B000003LIK Release Date: 1994-12-12

Tracks:

1. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Overture
2. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Chorus - We've Traveled Far (Semplicina, Gloriosa, Garbata, Sordidone, Malgoverno, Furibondo)
3. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Recitative - Approach! What Is Your Name, Sir? (Furibondo)
4. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Aria - With A Sword That Is Sterner Than Moses (Furibondo)
5. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Recitative - Unhappy Oddling (Gloriosa)
6. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Aria - My Fair Skin, My Bare Chin (Gloriosa)
7. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Recitative - Was Ever There Insanity (Sordidone)
8. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Aria - Snugly Hidden Safe From Prying (Sordidone)
9. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Recitative - Madness Beyond All Measure (Malgoverno)
10. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Aria - When The Purse Is Clinking (Malgoverno)
11. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Recitative - There, Like A Vapor (Semplicina)
12. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Aria - O Look So Woeful (Semplicina)
13. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Recitative - Such As She Seems To Be Frigid (Garbata)
14. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Aria - Let's Sing, Let's All Be Jolly (Garbata)
15. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Recitative - For All Types Of Confusion
16. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Aria - The Fierce One Lives Only For The Slaughter
17. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - I Beg You To Stop (Malgoverna, Gloriosa, Garbata)
18. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Aria - We Praise The Sun For Beauty (Malgoverna)
19. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - Bumpkin, Coarse-grained (Gloriosa, Garbata)
20. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Aria - If You Will Love Me, I Will Love You (Garbata)
21. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - No, They Cannot Persuade Me! (Gloriosa)
22. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Aria - Lovely Ladies, You Enjoying (Gloriosa)
23. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - Where's My Lover, Sweetheart (Sordidone)

Tracks:

1. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Aria - Sordidone, Be A Bunny
2. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - Are You Hiding? (Sordidone, Garbata)
3. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Duet - See Comely Phyllis Wander (Garbata, Sordidone)
4. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - Don't Come Near Me (Semplicina, Furibondo)
5. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Aria - The High And Mighty Lion (Furibondo)
6. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - Quiet At Last (Semplicina)
7. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Duet - Semplicina, Do You Hear Me? (Semplicina)
8. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Quartet - Ever More Bitter Shall Be My Raging (Gloriosa, Garbata, Malgoverno, Furibondo)
9. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - What Now? What New Forms Of Madness? (Gloriosa, Sordidone, Malgoverno, Furibondo)
10. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Chorus - Long Live King Arcifanfano (Semplicina, Gloriosa, Garbata, Sordidone, Malgoverno, Furibondo)
11. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - Earth, Our Dearest, Good And Nearest (Sordidone)
12. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - That His Sowing Yield A Growing (Malgoverno)
13. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - What Has The Fool Committed (Malgoverna, Gloriosa)
14. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - Ask Of Beauty, She Will Answer (Gloriosa)
15. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - Hop And Stop It! (Furibondo, Gloriosa)
16. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - All Of This Planet, I Cry To Each Man (Furibondo)
17. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - What's Unleashed These Dreadful Roars? (Garbata, Furibondo)
18. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - I'm Simple And I'm Candid (Garbata)
19. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - What Mischief And Load This Purse Is!
20. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - Goddess Bright As Morning
21. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - Mother Always Used To Tell Me (Sordidone, Semplicina)
22. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - What A Lot I Need What I Need Lot's Of! (Sordidone)
23. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - May He Not Come To Harm (Semplicina)
24. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - There's A Devil In A Ducat (Semplicina)
25. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - Gather, O Subjects, About Us (Gloriosa, Garbata, Semplicina)
26. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Duet - If You Marry Me (Semplicina)
27. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Chorus - With Curiosity All Aflame (Semplicina, Gloriosa, Garbata, Sordidone, Malgoverno, Furibondo)
28. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - Quiet, Please, We Implore You!
29. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Chorus - The Wise And The Mad Have Got One Word For Their Dwelling

Customer Reviews:

A Comic-Opera Treasure!.......2007-01-28

Dittersdorf is a sort of working-man's Mozart; in fact, this opera sounds similar to some of Mozart's early operas. But Mozart sought to break the rules and to explore new musical ideas; Dittersdorf is not an innovator...yet he is no less a master! This performance, too, is a materpiece of refined (not always!) comedy; the arias include some extremely difficult vocal leaps and trills, yet the primary joy is the witty verse. W.H. Auden (no less!) ramrodded this translation to English. And Anna Russell, famed for her "Analysis of Wagner's Ring Cycle" steals every scene she's in! Ad-libbing shamelessly, her introductory aria, all by itself, is worth more than the purchase price!

an obscure delight!.......2002-07-31

Eleanor Steber's image on the cover of this set caught my eye while rummaging through the cut-out bins of San Francisco on a recent opera whirlwind. What a lost treasure this performance is - recorded "LIVE" in NYC 1965! All the principles shine, their energy ebullient. Don't hesitate, buy it and smile before it disappears.

Average customer rating: Of Abiding Interest Not enough Highly recommended Personal response is not always judgment Time to Reconsider

Sound Forms For Piano Manufacturer: New World Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Cage, John | ( C ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Nancarrow | Nancarrow, Conlon | ( N ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Canons | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Etudes | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Character Pieces | Short Forms | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music General | Sonatas | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Sonatas | Forms & Genres | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Keyboard | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music Similar Items: Piano Music Ben Johnston String Quartets ASIN: B0000030F0 Release Date: 1995-02-28

Tracks:

1. The Banshee
2. Aeolian Harp
3. Piano Piece (Paris 1924)
4. Sonatas And Interludes: Sonata I
5. Sonatas And Interludes: Sonata V
6. Sonatas And Interludes: Second Interlude
7. Sonatas And Interludes: Sonata X
8. Sonatas And Interludes: Sonata XII
9. Sonata For Microtonal Piano: Movement I
10. Sonata For Microtonal Piano: Movement II
11. Sonata For Microtonal Piano: Movement III
12. Sonata For Microtonal Piano: Movement IV
13. Studies For Player Piano: Study No.1
14. Studies For Player Piano: Study No.27
15. Studies For Player Piano: Study No.36

Amazon.com

Three important early pioneers of New Music make tremendous splashes on this anthology of works for the piano. Pianist Robert Miller opens the collection with three of Cowell's distinctive, swirling pieces, bowing the piano strings with a fury for sonic expansion. Miller also engages Cowell's unforgettable chord clusters, with their large, slamming intensity and rich resonance. He also takes on several of Cage's early Sonatas and Preludes for prepared piano and Nancarrow's influential, oddly virtuosic Studies for Player Piano, examining alterations in both pianistic tone and execution. Ben Johnston's lively, Cowell-inspired Sonata for Microtonal Piano rounds out this comprehensive overview of avant-garde 20th-century piano music. --Andrew Bartlett

Customer Reviews:

Of Abiding Interest.......2007-04-20

"Experimental" though they may be, the pieces on this CD meet one of the criteria for great music: they not only hold up on repeated listening, but can inspire additional insights. Cowell's work was almost an end in itself - there wasn't anywhere else to go in that direction, but it now seems inevitable that someone would play the piano in that way. The Cage pieces are delightful, enjoyable on the superficial level yet containing enough substance to maintain interest. The Johnston piece suffers in that the composer may have attempted to do too much at once - not only is it written in a highly complex microtonal scale, it dispenses with conventional sonata form. Either of these by themselves would have been enough. The Nancarrow pieces, representing a fraction of his writing for player piano, are astonishing and must be heard to be believed.

The liner notes are unusually extensive, although given the subject matter, a lesser treatment would not have sufficed - the novice is given a complete introduction to these works. Included is an essay on the history of the piano in America, outlines of each composer's life and work, and discussions of the individual pieces (with an additional one by Johnston himself).

The works presented here are not simply ideosyncratic exercises in oddity - they are profoundly approachable on many levels, and served as an inspiration to later composers. For example, the prepared piano is an indispensable component of Arvo Pärt's "Tabula Rasa."

Not enough.......2006-06-25

I fail to see how Messiaen had anything to do with this music, the American innovators/composers had their own language,a world apart from Europe,in gesture, in content, in source, in development/ Messiaen developed his own sense of rhythm from the East and the seriality of it. With impressive pieces as his "Chronochromie for orchestra" and his piano music was innovative with another content to pursue/ and here the only disappointment is that it is all excerpts except for the Johnston "Suite" a self-contained piece.
The prepared piano,is/was/ where you place nuts, bolts, wood-screws, erasers and pencils inbetween on the internal strings of a piano. It for the record was invented.suggested by Cowell, Cage merely perfected the instrument, and curious how there really is no literature for the instrument after Cage. The Sonatas and Interludes of Cage was a kind of summit for expression,an un-romanticized way, Cage was also interested in proportions,structure that had no dramatic telos somewhat anti-serial,third person, how durations come to inhabit spaces in a live situation. This music is traditionally very gorgeous,spacious and focused and the most beautiful music Cage ever wrote. Much of the prepared piano music had a dramatic purpose and was written for the Merce Cunningham Dance Company largely ignored in the early years of their existence by the "savy?" New York critics.(They also found painter Cy Twombly to be uninteresting) It was not until the Company and Cage was recognized elsewhere(Europe) is when the New York illiterate critics finely saw something innovative.
The Cowell pieces herein, as well are two small examples embark of the utilization of the extended piano, playing with the flesh of the hand on the inner strings of the piano,sometimes the pianist depresses the tones on the keyboard silently then harp like running fingers or plucking the strings, Clusters and percussive like gestures as well were utilized by Cowell. He played all this music also in Europe in the Twenties. I wish there was more that Johnston wrote for the piano, microtonal or otherwise, for the language of just intonation of different tuning systems ,utilizations of different scales all had incredible potential. Johnston also saw the creative paradigm of finding usable musical forms as "containers" for the timbres of just intonation unlike some other practicioners who merely "pour" it into well-known moribund forms as Harry Partch.It still reamins a problem for just intonation music to find equally innovative forms to equal the transfomration of timbre,and how we come to listen. Nancarrow is/was another neglected creator,only in his last years was his music known at all, and here you get small excerpts from the larger "Studies",the first to use musical automata the innovativeness is in rhythm only for tone manipulations and pitches are at a minimum,I really don't know if he could have gone atonal with this rhythmic discoveries.

Highly recommended.......2003-05-16

This is, without doubt, one of the finest recordings of American experimental music ever issued, performed with loving care by the late, great Robert Miller except for Nancarrow's studies. The excellent notes by Charles Hamm should prepare listeners unfamiliar with this musical universe for what they are going to hear.

Although there is a logical connection between the works that imaginative juxtaposition on the disc enhances, Cowell, Cage, Johnston, and Nancarrow arrive at their musical conclusions from completely different directions. This disc is a tribute to the nonuniformity of American experimental music.

Listeners should spend some time at their local music libraries familiarizing themselves with the scores, just to see how the composers get these startling results.

Personal response is not always judgment.......2003-04-29

I have my reservations concerning pure sonority, or intellectual game, or a combination of both as a basis for composition. But I also have reservations about what so many composers have done "on the keys" with sonority and intellectual game - or is it just plain "thinking" or "intuition" or "composition lessions"? Most of it, in any era, is either dismissed or lost, or never comes to light at all (never more true than now).

If one does not share Messiaen's religious viewpoint, his wonderful music can get (let's be gentle) tedious; it certainly borders on the pretentious at times (I know he wasn't that way personally); some might say blasphemous. But what is really his most accessible music besides the romantic and programmatic Quartet for the End.... (with those intellectualized rhythms based on a very personal reading of Indian tala)? All those bird (and bird as the spirit) pieces! Talk about (wonderful) gimmicks!

I guess the reviewer above shares Messiaen's heart/soul and therefore responds fully to the "Vingt Regards." (I like it, too.) But I assume that "new music" for him has to have a postromantic sensibility or surface attraction; has he read criticism/reviews, back to the 18th century, and not seen the pattern of nonacceptance of the new, whether it be sonic, intellectual or both? (Beethoven was "a madman," Berlioz a ringmaster at a noisy circus, et al.)

It's okay if the above reviewer doesn't like the music. The Cowell pieces are novelties, to be sure, but pretty darn important ones - and fun. Cage is in a non-Western place, so take it or leave it (or leave it and listen). Nancarrow's studies are a case of doing one thing, but doing it very well and for most of a lifetime. Those pieces are rhythmically shattering, defying all dance-rhythm expectations - not bad for a player piano. And, finally, my friend Ben Johnston's Sonata; about as radical a microtonal piece as he ever wrote (what is it, 77 nonidentical pitches?) with its interchangeable movements. In its original ordering, I wonder if an openminded ear can hear this without experiencing an expressionistic personal crisis unfolding. Just plain postwar beautiful!
There's room for all of it in this great big CD world....

Time to Reconsider.......2002-01-26

This may not be the place to take on the dominant themes of classical music in the 20th Century, but it is available. These works are imaginative (at least in conception if not execution), radical, and were undeniably shocking to the less-jaded audiences at the times of their first performances. But their limitations are profound. They are all short, mostly under 5 minutes, although some form parts of larger works. Their emotional ranges are narrow, or I would go so far as to say, nonexistent. In the most positive light, they are mere exercises in heretofore unheard sonorities, awaiting future composers who will employ their ideas in the production of new masterpieces. But they are presented as if they are already those masterpieces themselves. This is a grave misconception, and reveals a total misunderstanding of what music, and not just "classical" music, is about. Great music, as all great art, has the power to change our conception of the world. On the emotional plane, it has the power to move us without necessarily resorting to manipulation. The pieces recorded here, for the most part, lack "soul," they are "square" (in spite of their originality) because their challenge to us is purely on the intellectual level. They abandon melody, harmony, rhythm, consonance, and conventional methods of playing merely to showcase clever ideas.

Should one be interested in hearing a truly radical approach to the piano, Messiaen's "Vingt Regards Sur l'Enfant Jesus" may be of value. This is a cohesive whole comprising over two hours of music, with vast emotional range and variety. It develops and explores disparate themes within a unified totality. The astonishing sound effects (all produced in the mundane manner of striking the piano keys with the fingers) exist as necessary expressions of larger ideas, not as ends in themselves. If Messiaen abandons any of the previous conventions of classical composition, it is not as a clever gimmick, but because that was the best way to express the work's themes. The result is that the music is freed of convention, rather than simply lashing out against it. The Austbo performance on Naxos is highly recommended.

Average customer rating:

Dancing with Henry: New Discoveries in the Music of Henry Cowell Manufacturer: Mode ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Ballets | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music Dances | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music Quintets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music Trios | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Ballets & Dances | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General | Keyboard | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music Percussion | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music Similar Items: Lou Harrison: Concerto for Violin and Percussion Orchestra; Concerto for Organ with Percussion Orchestra Henry Cowell: Instrumental, Chamber and Vocal Music, Vol. 1 Henry Cowell: Persian Set Piano Music ASIN: B00005QK1F Release Date: 2001-10-23

Tracks:

1. Suite For Small Orchestra: Largo
2. Suite For Small Orchestra: Chorale (Lento Cantabile)
3. Suite For Small Orchestra: Vivo
4. Heroic Dance
5. Sound Form No. 1
6. Ritournelle (Larghetto) From 'Marriage At The Eiffel Tower'
7. Reel No. 2
8. Dance Of Sport
9. Two Ritournelles From 'Marriage At The Eiffel Tower': Andante
10. Two Ritournelles From 'Marriage At The Eiffel Tower': Allegretto
11. Suite For Woodwind Quintet: Allegretto - Henry Cowell, The Cowell Quintet
12. Suite For Woodwind Quintet: Allegro - Henry Cowell, The Cowell Quintet
13. Suite For Woodwind Quintet: Adagio Cantabile - Henry Cowell, The Cowell Quintet
14. Suite For Woodwind Quintet: Allegretto Con Moto - Henry Cowell, The Cowell Quintet
15. Four Combinations For Three Instruments: Allegretto - Henry Cowell, Picasso Ensemble
16. Four Combinations For Three Instruments: Largo - Henry Cowell, Picasso Ensemble
17. Four Combinations For Three Instruments: Allegro - Henry Cowell, Picasso Ensemble
18. Four Combinations For Three Instruments: Largo - Henry Cowell, Picasso Ensemble
19. Ritournelle
20. Atlantis: Introduction
21. Atlantis: The Shooting Of The Moon Arrows
22. Atlantis: The Weeping Of The Arsete Of The Moon
23. Atlantis: Birth Of The Sea Soul
24. Atlantis: Temptation Of The Sea Soul By Monster
25. Atlantis: Pleasure Dance Of The Sea Soul
26. Atlantis: Withdrawal Of The Sea Soul To The Sea
27. Atlantis: Combat Between Sea And Earth Monsters
28. Atlantis: The Triumph Of The Sea Monster

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Beniamino Gigli: A Life in Words and Music Manufacturer: Naxos ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Boito, Arrigo | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Donizetti | Donizetti, Gaetano | ( D ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Flotow | Flotow, Friedrich von | ( F ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Gounod | Gounod, Charles | ( G ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Lalo, Edouard | ( L ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Mascagni | Mascagni, Pietro | ( M ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Massenet | Massenet, Jules | ( M ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Meyerbeer | Meyerbeer, Giacomo | ( M ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Ponchielli | Ponchielli, Amilcare | ( P ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Puccini | Puccini, Giacomo | ( P ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Sullivan | Sullivan, Arthur | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music All Works by Verdi | Verdi, Giuseppe | ( V ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music Requiems | Forms & Genres | Early Music | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music General Contemporary | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Chamber Music | Forms & Genres | Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Vocal & Song | Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music Gigli, Beniamino | ( G ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music General | Classical | Styles | Music General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music Romances | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Boito, Arrigo | A to B | Featured Composers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Catalani, Alfredo | C to G | Featured Composers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Donizetti, Gaetano | C to G | Featured Composers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Giordano, Umberto | C to G | Featured Composers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Gounod, Charles | C to G | Featured Composers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Cottrau, Teodoro | C to G | Featured Composers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Flotow, Friedrich von | C to G | Featured Composers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Curtis, Ernesto de | C to G | Featured Composers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Mascagni, Pietro | M to P | Featured Composers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Massenet, Jules | M to P | Featured Composers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Meyerbeer, Giacomo | M to P | Featured Composers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Ponchielli, Amilcare | M to P | Featured Composers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Puccini, Giacomo | M to P | Featured Composers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Lalo, Edward | H to L | Featured Composers, A-Z | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music French | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Italian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music Requiems | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music General | Soundtracks | Styles | Music General | Instructional | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music ASIN: B0001N9ZES Release Date: 2004-05-18

Tracks:

1. 'I Was Born With A Voice And Very Little Else...'
2. Family Background
3. Gigli's Stage Debut And Poverty-Stricken Start
4. Puccini: 'O Soave Fanciulla' From La Boheme - Maria Zamboni
5. Service In The Household Of Countess Spannocchi
6. Donizetti: 'Spirto Gentil' From La Favoria
7. Colonel Delfino, And Giovanno Zerri's Legal Agreement
8. Cannio: O Surdato 'Nnammurato
9. A Hospital Visit And Scholarship
10. Mascabni: 'Ah! Ritrovarla Nella Sua Capanna' From Lodoletta
11. Gigli Graduates And Makes His Debut; He Goes For The High B Flat
12. Puccini: 'E Lucevan Le Stelle' From Tosca
13. Marriage, Rome And A Tuor To Spain
14. Mascagni: 'Apri La Tua Finestra! From Iris
15. A Letter From Fred Gaisberg Of HMV
16. Mascagni: 'Mamma, Quel Vino E Generoso' From Cavalleria Rusticana
17. Gigli Conquers South America, And Recieves An Offer From The Met
18. Metropolitan Opera Debut In Mefistofele
19. BoitoL 'Giunto Sul Passo Estremo' From Mefistofele

Tracks:

1. The Critics' Verdict, And More Performances
2. Donizetti: 'Tombe Degl'avi Miei' From Lacuia Di Lammermoor
3. Gigli's Fate Becomes Entwined With Caruso's
4. Giordano: 'Un Di All'azzurri Spazio' From Andrea Chenier
5. Who Will Be Caruso's Sucessor
6. Verdi: 'De'miei Bollenti Spiriti' From La Travita
7. Life Forms A Regular Pattern, And Gigli Learns To Sing In Foreign Languages
8. Lalo: 'Vainement, Ma Bien Aimee' From Le Roi d'Ys
9. Manon At The Met
10. Massenet: 'O Dolce Incanto' From Manon
11. Catalani's Loreley
12. Catalani: 'Nel Verde Maggio' From Loreley
13. Summer In Italy, Then Back To New York And Some Physical Training
14. Gounod: 'Ah! Ne Furis Pas Encore!' From Romeo Et Juliette
15. Honorary Captain Of The NYPD
16. Meyerbeer: 'O Paradiso' From L'Africaine
17. Flourishing Finances And Professional Rivalries
18. Crushin Remarks; The Attraction Of Radio
19. Sullivan: The Lost Chord
20. A New Decade, And The Honour Of Playing Nemorino At The Met
21. Donizetti: 'Quanto E Bella' From L'elisir D'amore

Tracks:

1. Debuts In Paris And London, And London's Critical Reception
2. Flotow: 'M'Appari' (Ach! So Fromm) From Marta (Martha)
3. Crisis: The Death Of Gigli's Mother, And Tension At The Met
4. Departure From The Met
5. America's Loss Is Europe's Gain
6. Speech: Gigli In An Interview At The Savoy Hotel, London
7. Cherished London Reviews
8. Leoncavallo: 'No. Pagliaccio Non Son!' From Pagliacci
9. Recording Reflects The Drama
10. Leoncavallo: 'Suvvia, Cosi Terrible' From Pagliacci
11. Touring, Gigli's Working Relationships, And A New Turn Of Events
12. De Curtis: Non Ti Scordar Di Me
13. Film Popularity, Hitler And Goebbels, And The Caracalla Tradition
14. Puccini: 'Che Gelida Manina' From La Boheme
15. Voice Expert John Steane's Recommendation
16. Puccini: 'O Soave Fanciulla' From La Boheme
17. A New Recording Of Tosca
18. Puccini: 'Recondita Armonia' From Tosca
19. Patience And Hard Work Produce A Perfect Set Of Master Recordings
20. Puccini: 'E Lucevan Le Stelle' From Tosca
21. Verdi: 'Ingemisco' From The Requiem
22. Verdi: 'Ingemisco' From The Requiem
23. The Recording Of Madama Butterfly
24. Puccini: Closing Moments Of Act I, Madama Butterfly

Tracks:

1. War Keeps Gigli In Italy
2. Introductory Speech To Cavalleria Rusticana By Mascagni
3. Translation Of The Speech
4. Mascani: 'Mamma, Quel Vino E Generoso' From Cavalleria Rusticana
5. More Role Debuts, Gigli's Wartime Films, And Andrea Chenier
6. Giordano: 'Un Di All'azzurro Spazio' From Andrea Chenier
7. John Steane's Verdict
8. Giordano: 'Come Un Bel Di Di Maggio' From Andrea Chenier
9. Rome Opera House Ralies Wartime Spirits
10. Verdi: 'Teco Is Sto - Gran Dio' From Un Ballo In Maschera
11. Verdi: 'Non Sai Tu Che Se L'anima Mia' From Un Ballo In Maschera
12. Verdi: 'Oh, Qual Soave Brivido' From Un Ballo In Maschera
13. Gigli's Political Affliations
14. Verdi: 'Celeste Aida' From Aida
15. Postwar Italy: An HMV Manager's Report
16. Verdi: 'Pur Ti Riveggo, Mia Dolce Aida' From Aida
17. Covent Garden With Rina, Then A Tour Of Britain And Ireland
18. Speech Given By Gigli After A Concert At The Royal Albert Hall
19. The Final Phase - And No Thoughts Of Retirement
20. Di Veroli: Ritorna Amore
21. A Last Visit To The USA
22. Cottrau: Santa Lucia
23. Gigli's Death, His Obituaries, And His Place In The Tenor Lineage
24. Meyerbeer: 'O Paradiso' From L'Africaine

Album Review:

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6. Pinocchio [Original recording remastered]
7. Please
8. Real Talk [Explicit Lyrics]
9. Relapse
10. Shake [CD-single]

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