| 1. Etc., Etc., Etc. |
| 2. Abomboro Quina |
| 3. Ya Me Libere |
| 4. Meidas De La Noche |
| 5. Camamori |
| 6. Sugar Sugar |
| 7. Falluco |
| 8. Falsia |
| 9. Tanto |
| 10. Bailando Elegua |
Editorial Reviews
Product Description
Originally Released in 1970.
With 39 reviews under me, I will dispense with the adjectives to try and describe each interpretation of each piece on this disc, and simply say that these performances have been recommended by almost everyone (professional critics included of course) since they appeared; get it and find out why.
Buy this album now. The music is truly exquisite. The performance is outstanding. The CD is a masterpiece. After one hearing of Lauridsen's "Lux Aeterna," I tell you the truth: I could not sleep the entire night. The music was with me all night, and it continues to resonate through my soul.
This recording displays Lauridsen at his best--the long-standing working relationship between the Los Angeles Master Chorale and the composer give these performances an authority and credibility which would be the envy of any group. The Chorale voices display a depth and maturity (particularly in the Bass and Alto sections) which I miss in college choirs, yet the control is perfect.
The works are recorded in the Sacred Heart Chapel of Loyola Marymount University--a very live acoustic, which contributes to the wonderful sense of blend and sonic depth in these pieces. This sonorous glory does have a price, however. The wonderful texts are quite frequently muddled a bit. The enunciation and diction are not as clear on this recording as one might have expected from this group. That is a small cavil, however--intonation and interpretation are flawless.
Buy this, put it in your CD player, turn it up, and enjoy it. If you love choral music, you need to own this disc.
It's interesting hearing the negative response coming from some classical musicians and fans. At times it can seem to roughly follow the stages of grief as proposed by Kubler-Ross. I'm a professional guitarist, and it's funny because it's almost identical to how guitarists react to hearing another guitarist, but with an big class-conscious overlay (all very civilized, of course). Think of the "guitarist screwing in a lightbulb" joke. To paraphrase and extrapolate on what someone might say upon hearing her improvisation:
1. Shock: Wow, he's good. Oh, and it's a woman!? And you say it's improvisation??
2. Denial: That can't possibly be improvisation. Classical musicians don't engage in that untidy process. What she's playing must be written out, and I can tell! Don't ask, I just know it.
3. Anger: This stuff is no good. Only permanent music is of value through the ages, and that's why classical music (and only the European kind) is better than any other music. Besides, I can't improvise, so I reject it - and only THOSE people engage in improvisation.
4. Depression: She can play all the classical music, and seemingly can improvise, or at least pass her stuff off as such. Not only that, she's getting attention and money, and we're not. Why is the world unfair?
5. Acceptance: (sort of) Well, I guess she's selling CD's, and is becoming successful. She is, I hate to admit it, a great player. Even if she is a faker. Of course, they're begging my Muffy to become artist-in-residence in Spoleto....
The other reviewer has a point when he says that she may be viewed as a curiosity. Because she's crossing genres, people may not know what to make of it, and this often causes reflexive hostility. As an improvisor, I would agree that it's hard to say that something is 100% improvised - players tend to have pet phrases and favorite general ideas they return to. But to me, Gabriela's playing is at the highest level of skill, beauty, and feeling, whether improvising or playing written pieces.
The music on this album was recorded entirely with a moog synthesizer although the sweeping and majestic sound of a mellotron with string setting pokes through the mix on occasion. As a big synthesizer fan, I thought it was interesting that the various settings on the moog were listed as "equipment" including things like oscillators and lowpass filters etc. This particular synthesizer was pretty versatile and a virtually infinite number of sounds could be generated, as is amply demonstrated by Isao on this album.
In addition to the works originally included on Snowflakes are Dancing, the last track was taken from his Firebird album (1976) and is another work composed largely on the moog synthesizer although other keyboards were used including a Fender electric piano and a Hohner Clavinet C.
The sound of this high performance CD is excellent and trust me, the changes in dynamics virtually leap out at you.
All in all, this is an excellent recording of electronic music by an excellent electronic composer. Highly recommended along with his 1976 adaptation of The Planets (by Gustav Holst).
This recording was made in the early 1970s; however, DGG has done a wonderful job of transferring them to the CD format--the sound is rich, lush and clear.
If you want to hear some beautiful compositions that are played most beautifully, buy this recording.
It was high time in any case that I had a complete set of these lovely works. My collection up to now had only stretched to 14 of them, but - I have to say it again - those 14 are enough to teach me the difference between fine performances and great ones. Barenboim's accounts should be easily good enough for most of us most of the time, and in addition to the Songs he throws in the Children's Pieces plus a few other short numbers that Mendelssohn, for reasons known principally to himself, chose not to publish. With one solitary exception, Barenboim's touch is affectionate, warm and beautiful, and is well served by the 1974 recording. Speeds adopted sound about right to me in general, and the interpretations offered are full of insight and loving care, and free from eccentricity or egotism. Barenboim can be powerful when he needs to be, but the requirement for power is very limited in what we have here, and the overall impression that the set leaves is rightly one of tact, sympathy and enthusiasm. My single regret concerns my own favourite of all the Songs - the Duetto op 38/6. Something goes quite unaccountably wrong here. I'd call the speed too fast in the first place, and I would have liked the pseudo-voices brought out more strongly against the arpeggio accompaniment, but the real affront to my sensibilities comes when the two voices sing forte in octaves, and Barenboim bangs out the melody in a bad-tempered and cacophonous way that reminds me of one of Kissin's off-days.
One botched effort out of 58 is not a bad ratio nevertheless. I can play the Duetto to my own satisfaction anyway, or I can listen to it on my old Turnabout LP played by Guiomar Novaes. Novaes seems to be all but forgotten these days, but she was a great player, recognised as such by no less than Debussy when she was a teenager. Her idea of the Duetto is slower than mine, indeed for an amateur like me the piece, which lies beautifully and naturally under the hands, seems practically to dictate its own speed. However it's not the tempo that makes the impression. In this piece as in many others starting with the very first of all the Songs, what transfixes me is the haughty and highlighted clarity of Novaes's melodic line and the magnificence of her left-hand tone. It also happens that in the disc that accompanies the biography of Serkin by Stephen Lehmann and Marion Faber there are two of the Songs in Novaes's selection - a solemn and gripping op 62/1 and a coruscating Spinning Song worthy of Horowitz or Cziffra for virtuosity. The point is simply this - there is an aura of greatness that surrounds the playing of Serkin and Novaes in practically anything they do. Admirable as he is, Barenboim is not quite in that league, although I don't consider the balance of advantage to be totally one-sided, and it may be that Barenboim actually makes a more appealing job of the Spring Song.
Nevertheless I have only 14 of the Songs from Novaes, and all of two from Serkin, in somewhat antiquated sound at that. Barenboim gives me all 48 plus some bonus extras, played with love and appreciation of the soul of this beautiful and affecting music. This is a set I am going to be returning to for solace and balm to the spirit, I can tell already. The recorded sound is not wondrous, but it's good 1974 quality. The liner note is from the distinguished pen of Joan Chissell, but I can't say it seems to me to amount to much. Moreover she nails her colours to the mast with the ringing challenge `No 19th-century composer exceeded Mendelssohn in respect for Classical tradition, and such ordered modes of expression as fugue...' I dispute this strenuously. Not only are Mendelssohn's fugues not his best or most professional work, as Tovey makes very clear, they are inferior in respect for classical precedent and thoroughness of workmanship to Schumann's, as the same sage also points out. Besides which Brahms was a musical scholar of minute and profound learning, particularly steeped in the great German musical tradition, to an extent that Mendelssohn never rivalled. What Mendelssohn can claim is to be sui generis, what he does best he does better than anyone, and some of his most intimate musical thoughts are to be found in the Songs Without Words. For the pleasure and comfort they bring me I thank Mendelssohn's shade and the loving and expert guidance of Barenboim.
The Songs without words conform ostensibly, a great stylistic and conceptual unity. It could not be other way, noticing the fact John Field was essentially the grandfather of the nocturnes for piano and Chopin the most expressive and intimate explorer of the human soul, Mendelssohn had all those variables in mind and decided to create a portrait album. As other artists as Liszt and Goethe the exerted fascination after being in Venice would work out as febrile inspiration. Every little page of this kaleidoscopic reflects different state anima; they are structured and interweaved similarly respect Robert Schumann with his Carnival or Childhood scenes; with profound lyric and evocative accent, destined to recreate the tourist memory. He achieved then to make a voluminous album of feelings but without that marked introspective mood of Frederic Chopin, for instance.
Daniel Barenboim decided to record these ebb tide piano pieces with personal conviction and lyric imagination. The result was simply refulgent and deeply inspiring.
Is Argerich really defiling Chopin, as so many might suggest? I don't think so. Actually, I think that she succeeds brilliantly in making these pieces seem like just what they were in their time - groundbreaking.
Chopin experienced the thrill of treading into unknown waters, exploring obscure and uncharted parts of the human psyche, and bringing it all up to the surface with the utmost concision. I cannot imagine how proud Chopin must have felt to have produced such a creation from his own pen. And it is extreme music - extremely rich, extremely stark, extremely happy, extremely sad, extremely advanced, extremely conservative. To Chopin's contemporaries, they seemed to come from nowhere, like a bolt of lightning. A soundscape as blindingly intense as the F-sharp minor Prelude still seems more like the music of another planet (to borrow a comment from Arrau about Debussy). Is it not appropriate, then, for Argerich to play them with the appropriate extremes of volume, of tempo, of warmth and coolness?
Yes, I'm biased. Yes, there are some wrong notes in the B-flat minor Prelude (which certainly don't detract from the seemingly infinite power displayed) and there a few other places where newer editions, the Jan Ekier in particular, have made Chopin's intentions more clear. But the combination of burning, passionate music and burning, passionate pianist is unmatched. When it stops thrilling me, then I'll know I'm dead.
The first of the two piano concertos on this disc is Prokofiev's third, and it's undoubtedly one of the best of either Argerich's or Abbado's respective careers. The performance ebbs and flows naturally with note-perfect precision and vibrant (but never overstated), colorful dynamics. Argerich has a keen understanding of any composer's more playful sensibilities, which is why her intuition has always been especially keen when interpreting repertoire works that express such wit by the likes of Prokofiev. Cliché as it is, the only complaint that one could direct at this recording is that it's too short - after three thrilling, relatively brief movements, one is left breathless, but wanting even more. If a better performance of this work has been committed to disc, I'm not familiar with it. Argerich's 1998 recording (paired with Dutoit) is good but nowhere close to this, and the Prokofiev/Coppola recording available from Naxos suffers from the age and deterioration of its' source; given such a poor recording, many aspects of that terrific performance are impossible to evaluate.
The recording of the Ravel piano concerto is almost as thrilling as that of the Prokofiev concerto, and for all the same reasons. Both pianist and orchestra tackle the amusing inventions that Ravel invested in this remarkable piece. The three part form of the second movement is especially well navigated, something that can't be said of many other performances of this composition.
The expanded storage capacity of the CD format permits another recording in addition to the two of the original Prokofiev/Ravel LP: Argerich's amazing 1974 performance of Ravel's "Gaspard de la nuit." If any recording presents this composition as the one of the most difficult of the standard repertoire and Argerich as one of the finest pianists of her generation, it's this one. Both technically and expressively, it is almost incomparably superb, only surpassed by Pogorelich's brilliant equivalent. Argerich exhibits a curious insight pertaining to Ravel's unique, macabre adaptation of Bertrand's poem, and her execution of what Ravel called a "caricature of romanticism" does this insight justice. The speed and tonal color produced in her performance of the infamously difficult "Scarbo" movement is almost inhuman, and must be heard to be believed. This recording was originally released on LP along with numerous other excellent Ravel solo piano works such as "Valses nobles et sentimentales" and "Sonatine." Most of those other recordings are available on different DG compilations, and the inclusion of "Gaspard" succeeding the two concertos on this disc feels appropriate.
It should be mentioned that DG might regain some of its' straying audience if the label chose to reissue DVDs of the many excellent live performances and music videos that it released over the course of it's long and storied existence, instead of so many pointless, worthless, pretentious albums by pop star morons-turned-fake classicists like Sting and Elvis Costello. The music videos for this disc's recording of "Gaspard de la nuit" were especially interesting - curious little films that capably presented symbolist iconography related to the source material as well as video footage of Argerich's light-speed fingers. I've seen enough of these videos in poor quality on YouTube to know that a sufficient number of them exist to pad out a DVD that any sighted Argerich fan would be willing to view, and probably pay for.
Like most of the discs in DG's "The Originals" reissue series, the remastering of these recordings is adequate, but hardly exceptional. The original recordings of the concertos were a bit too bright (almost harsh), and the remastered versions fix this while rendering the soft passages a bit too subdued. Overall, this is a fair trade-off. At the cut price, you can't possibly go wrong with this phenomenal release.
I can only second everyone else's high praise for the Prokofiev and Ravel concertos, which are spellbinding, as well as for her Gaspard de la Nuit, which is staggeringly virtuosic and original. Abbado conducts with gusto and style, if not the greatest nuance, and only the somewhat dated sonics detract (marginally) from a recording that has remained in print for forty years.
Both sound and interpretation of Gaspard de la nuit do not match the recording by Alexandre Tharaud (Ravel: l'oeuvre pur piano). Still I wholeheartedly recommend this album.
CD
Hornpipes and Fireworks Oveurture tempi, legato and orchestration is full of warmth and energy. A true chiara scuro interpretation. Fabulous!!!!
Honestly, however, when I first listened to Fountains, I was not impressed. The orchestral playing was of course first-rate but I thought the music was boring and restless with no clear direction. After a day or so, I decided to listen to it again, reasoning that it was I who was wrong. I did and I liked it. Not as exciting as Pines(the whole work) and Pines of the Appian Way, but it is still a good piece wonderfully performed, just sit and listen to everything.
Even after its inception 175 years ago, the "Symphonie Fantastique" is regarded as a milestone not just in classical music but in all areas of music. Considering the time period in which it was created, the music, ideas and concept were way ahead anything else that was being done (except for maybe Beethoven who had died only three years before Berlioz completed this work).
The concept behind "Symphonie Fantastique" is an extraordinary one. A young musician falls in love with a beautiful woman but can't have her. So he poisons himself with opium in hopes of killing his pain (and himself). Instead of dying, the musician falls into a hallucinegenic sleep in which he has surrealistic dreams - all of which involve the woman in question. The beloved one is represented by a simple yet haunting theme which is heard in numerous variations throughout the work's five movements. Although, the symphony does not have any words, it isn't difficult to picture the scenery in which each movement takes place and it's also not difficult to sense the intrusion when the beloved's theme occurs each time throughout the work. The first movement sets the pace for the entire work with a majestic Beethoven-like theme along with the aforementioned theme of the beloved. The second movement depicts a giant ballroom with a danceable Strauss-like waltz interupted by the same theme. The third movement takes place in an outdoor countryside and is an overall pleasant piece. The beloved's theme here sounds like a rude intrusion in contrast to the calmness. The fourth movement, "March to the Scaffold", is a dynamic tour-de-force in which the troubled musician imagines he is being executed for killing his beloved. Finally, the last movement, "Dream of the Witches Sabbath", is a hellish nightmare in which the musician imagines he's dead in hell surrounded by witches, demons and evil spirits (this was before heavy metal). The chilling haunting quality of the music is perfectly executed. Its use of violins bowing the strings with the opposite end of the bow is especially affective in creating the bone-rattling goulish sounds heard towards the end of the movement.
Indeed, as mentioned above, Berlioz's "Symphonie Fantastique" was way ahead of its time when it was created. In a strange way, it does include elements of psychedelic music (the hallucinegenic theme of the work), prog (the fact that the five movements do indeed form a cohesive whole) and metal (the musical depiction of demonic things). And this was way back in the early 19th century.
On this disc, Leonard Bernstein not only does a flawless job at presenting this work, he also gives an excellent illustration of it in his discussion "Berlioz Takes A Trip" which is heard on Track 6 of this CD. Here, Bernstein dissects the piece musically and conceptually, allowing the listener to take a peek into Berlioz's obsessive mad genius. The remastered sound quality is also amazing giving the entire work a fresh clarity.
So there you have it, the first fruits of Psychedelic Prog-Metal all rolled into one musical work created 175 years ago by a brilliant composer by the name of Hector Berlioz.
Definitely a Symphonie Fantastique.
Originally Released in 1970.
Etc., etc., etc.,Celia Cruz,Fania,Latin
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Bernstein Century - Copland: Appalachian Spring, Rodeo, etc / Bernstein, New York PO
Manufacturer: Sony ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD  Ballets
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ASIN: B0000029XG Release Date: 1997-10-28 |
Tracks:
- Appalachian Spring: Very Slowly
- Appalachian Spring: Allegro
- Appalachian Spring: Moderato
- Appalachian Spring: Fast
- Appalachian Spring: Subito Allegro
- Appalachian Spring: As At First (Slowly)
- Appalachian Spring: Doppio movimento
- Appalachian Spring: Moderato - Coda
- Rodeo: Buckaroo Holiday - Allegro con spirito
- Rodeo: Corral Nocturne - Moderato
- Rodeo: aturday Night Waltz - Introduction - Slow Waltz
- Rodeo: Hoe-Down - Allegro
- Billy The Kid: Introduction. The Open Prairie
- Billy The Kid: Street In A Frontier Town
- Billy The Kid: Mexican Dance And Finale
- Billy The Kid: Prairie Night (Card Game At Night)
- Billy The Kid: Gun Battle
- Billy The Kid: Celbration (After Billy's Capture)
- Billy The Kid: Billy's Death
- Billy The Kid: The Open Prairie Again
- Fanfare for the Common Man: Molto deliberato
Amazon.com essential recording
Happy is the composer who has an advocate as passionate and talented as Leonard Bernstein. These Copland performances have been the preferred versions since they were first issued--better even than the composer's own, later recordings. Originally they were spread over two discs, but thanks to the extended playing time of the compact disc, you can now get all three great Copland ballets together, along with the ever popular Fanfare for the Common Man. Bernstein brings to this music the right sharpness of rhythm but also a typically open-hearted warmth. He coaxes a virtuoso response from the New York Philharmonic, which knows this music as well (or better) than anyone. Self- recommending. --David HurwitzCustomer Reviews:
What more could one ask for?.......2007-06-27
Definitive Is Right.......2007-02-27
Definitive Recordings of Copland's Popular Ballet Scores From Bernstein, NYPO.......2007-02-11
American Music at its Highest .......2007-02-04
With 39 reviews under me, I will dispense with the adjectives to try and describe each interpretation of each piece on this disc, and simply say that these performances have been recommended by almost everyone (professional critics included of course) since they appeared; get it and find out why.
The best of Copland.......2007-01-09
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Lauridsen: Lux Aeterna, etc. / Salamunovich, Los Angeles Master Chorale
M. Lauridsen Manufacturer: Rubeda Canis Musica ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Lauridsen
| Lauridsen, Morten
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ASIN: B000006OF1 Release Date: 1998-05-19 |
Tracks:
- Introitus - Lux Aeterna
- In Te, Domine, Speravi - Lux Aeterna
- O Nata Lux - Lux Aeterna
- Veni, Sancte Spiritus - Lux Aeterna
- Agnus Dei - Lus Aeterna - Lux Aeterna
- En Une Seule Fleur - Les Chansons Des Roses
- Contre Qui, Rose - Les Chansons Des Roses
- De Ton Reve Trop Plein - Les Chansons Des Roses
- La Rose Complete - Les Chansons Des Roses
- Dirait - On - Les Chansons Des Roses
- Ave Maria - Ave Maria
- MID WINTER SONGS: Lament For Pasiphae - M. LAURIDSEN
- MID WINTER SONGS: Like Snow - M. LAURIDSEN
- MID WINTER SONGS: She Tells Her Love While Half Asleep - M. LAURIDSEN
- MID WINTER SONGS: Mid-Winter Waking - M. LAURIDSEN
- MID WINTER SONGS: Intercession In Late October - M. LAURIDSEN
- O Magnum Mysterium - O Magnum Mysterium
Amazon.com
Modern choral music for amateur singers may be America's biggest musical underground. That's the only explanation of why Grammy-nominated composer Morten Lauridsen can claim that his works are some of the most often-performed new pieces in years, although few among the East Coast intelligentsia have ever heard of him. Like the similarly popular John Rutter, Lauridsen inhabits an extremely conservative style directed simply and single-mindedly at showing off the beauty of choral singing while it illustrates inspiring texts. Unlike many of his fellow neo-Romantic conservatives, Lauridsen displays a brand of conservatism that is completely convincing and sincere. His music also has range, from the spellbindingly rapturous Lux aeterna to his playful settings of Rilke's poems about the beauty and thorniness of roses in Les chansons des roses. There is, moreover, a Coplandesque streak heard in his Mid-Winter Songs, which are settings of poems by Robert Graves. Though the Los Angeles Master Chorale has a suitably red-blooded sound, the music would be better served with more precise diction. --David Patrick StearnsCustomer Reviews:
Review of Lauridsen: Lux Aeterna/Salamunovich, Los Angeles Master Chorale.......2007-05-13
So beautiful that it hurts........2007-04-27
Buy this album now. The music is truly exquisite. The performance is outstanding. The CD is a masterpiece. After one hearing of Lauridsen's "Lux Aeterna," I tell you the truth: I could not sleep the entire night. The music was with me all night, and it continues to resonate through my soul.
Excellent.......2007-04-06
Great CD.......2007-02-17
Glorious, but not Perfection.......2007-01-20
This recording displays Lauridsen at his best--the long-standing working relationship between the Los Angeles Master Chorale and the composer give these performances an authority and credibility which would be the envy of any group. The Chorale voices display a depth and maturity (particularly in the Bass and Alto sections) which I miss in college choirs, yet the control is perfect.
The works are recorded in the Sacred Heart Chapel of Loyola Marymount University--a very live acoustic, which contributes to the wonderful sense of blend and sonic depth in these pieces. This sonorous glory does have a price, however. The wonderful texts are quite frequently muddled a bit. The enunciation and diction are not as clear on this recording as one might have expected from this group. That is a small cavil, however--intonation and interpretation are flawless.
Buy this, put it in your CD player, turn it up, and enjoy it. If you love choral music, you need to own this disc.
![Gabriela Montero plays Chopin, Falla, Ginestera, etc. [Includes Bonus CD]](http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/I/318Z5GZATKL.jpg)
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Gabriela Montero plays Chopin, Falla, Ginestera, etc. [Includes Bonus CD]
Manufacturer: EMI Classics ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Waltzes
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ASIN: B0009VK0LO Release Date: 2005-09-13 |
Tracks:
- Moment Musical In E Mino Op. 12 No. 4
- Prelude In G Op.32 No.5
- Etude-Tableau In D Op.39 No.9
- Prelude in D Flat Op.17 No.3
- Prelude In E Flat Minor Op.16 No.4
- Prelude In G Op.13 No.3
- Etude in C Sharp Minor Op.42 No.5
- La Vida Breve: First Spanish Dance - Manuel De Falla
- Goyescas: Quejas O La Maya Y El Ruisenor
- Danza Del Viejo Boyero
- Danza De La Moza Donosa
- Danza Del Gaucho Matrero
- Nocturne In D Flat Op.27 No.2
- Fantaisie-Impromptu In C Sharp Minor Op.66
- Mephisto Waltz No.1
Tracks:
- On Rachmaniov: Vocalise
- On The Theme From Bach 'Goldberg Variations'
- On Chopin: Nocturne In D Flat
- On Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No.2
- Inspired By Scriabin
- On Duermete Mi Nino
- In The Style Of Tango
- On Granados: 'Quejas O La Maya El Ruisenor'
- In The Style Of Bach
- On Chopin: Prelude In A
- 'Improvisation in Blue (Gabriela Montero)'
- 'Song for Natalia and Isabella (Gabriela Montero)'
Customer Reviews:
Gabriela Montero CDs.......2007-06-12
Non-professional Review.......2007-03-27
Absolutely Magnificent!.......2007-03-09
Improvisations Unbelievable!.......2007-01-26
A beautiful breath of fresh air!.......2007-01-20
It's interesting hearing the negative response coming from some classical musicians and fans. At times it can seem to roughly follow the stages of grief as proposed by Kubler-Ross. I'm a professional guitarist, and it's funny because it's almost identical to how guitarists react to hearing another guitarist, but with an big class-conscious overlay (all very civilized, of course). Think of the "guitarist screwing in a lightbulb" joke. To paraphrase and extrapolate on what someone might say upon hearing her improvisation:
1. Shock: Wow, he's good. Oh, and it's a woman!? And you say it's improvisation??
2. Denial: That can't possibly be improvisation. Classical musicians don't engage in that untidy process. What she's playing must be written out, and I can tell! Don't ask, I just know it.
3. Anger: This stuff is no good. Only permanent music is of value through the ages, and that's why classical music (and only the European kind) is better than any other music. Besides, I can't improvise, so I reject it - and only THOSE people engage in improvisation.
4. Depression: She can play all the classical music, and seemingly can improvise, or at least pass her stuff off as such. Not only that, she's getting attention and money, and we're not. Why is the world unfair?
5. Acceptance: (sort of) Well, I guess she's selling CD's, and is becoming successful. She is, I hate to admit it, a great player. Even if she is a faker. Of course, they're begging my Muffy to become artist-in-residence in Spoleto....
The other reviewer has a point when he says that she may be viewed as a curiosity. Because she's crossing genres, people may not know what to make of it, and this often causes reflexive hostility. As an improvisor, I would agree that it's hard to say that something is 100% improvised - players tend to have pet phrases and favorite general ideas they return to. But to me, Gabriela's playing is at the highest level of skill, beauty, and feeling, whether improvising or playing written pieces.
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Debussy: Snowflakes Are Dancing, Prelude, etc / Tomita
Manufacturer: RCA ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Preludes
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ASIN: B00003OP6X Release Date: 2000-01-10 |
Tracks:
- Children's Corner, No.4: Snowflakes Are Dancing
- Reverie
- Estampes, No.3: Gardens In The Rain
- Suite bergamasque, No.3: Clair De Lune
- Arabesque No. 1
- Preludes, Book I, No.10: The Engulfed Cathedral
- Suite bergamasque, No.4: Passepied
- Preludes, Book I, No.8: The Girl With The Flaxen Hair
- Children's Corner, No.6: Golliwog's Cakewalk
- Preludes, Book I, No.6: Footprints In The Snow
- Prelude To The Afternoon Of A Faun
Amazon.com
Back in the '70s, the rapid development of synthesizers and electronic keyboards had a huge impact on popular music, with Isao Tomita among the leading exponents of multimedia, surround-sound events associated in Western Europe with such very different musicians as Rick Wakeman and Jean-Michel Jarre. The present disc has less grandiose aims, being a well-balanced selection of, to quote the original liner notes, "Virtuoso electronic performances of Debussy's beautiful tone paintings." It's easy to scoff at the concept behind Tomita's approach--take some of the most poetic music around and give it the consistency of aural cotton wool--yet there's no denying the skill with which he translates Debussy's soundworld, preserving the harmonic interest of the piano originals and bringing out many subtleties of texture. Inevitably the slower numbers come off best--"Clair de Lune" or "Reverie" could easily become chill-out favorites. "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun," however, is not so much a travesty as a vaporization of the orchestral masterpiece. A mixed bag, but with enough musical interest to make Tomita's "sound clouds" of more than just curiosity value. --Richard WhitehouseCustomer Reviews:
Another great electronic adaptation of classical music by Isao Tomita.......2007-06-02
The music on this album was recorded entirely with a moog synthesizer although the sweeping and majestic sound of a mellotron with string setting pokes through the mix on occasion. As a big synthesizer fan, I thought it was interesting that the various settings on the moog were listed as "equipment" including things like oscillators and lowpass filters etc. This particular synthesizer was pretty versatile and a virtually infinite number of sounds could be generated, as is amply demonstrated by Isao on this album.
In addition to the works originally included on Snowflakes are Dancing, the last track was taken from his Firebird album (1976) and is another work composed largely on the moog synthesizer although other keyboards were used including a Fender electric piano and a Hohner Clavinet C.
The sound of this high performance CD is excellent and trust me, the changes in dynamics virtually leap out at you.
All in all, this is an excellent recording of electronic music by an excellent electronic composer. Highly recommended along with his 1976 adaptation of The Planets (by Gustav Holst).
A classic!.......2007-05-12
clair de lune again.......2007-05-07
Synthesizers are Dancing.......2007-03-28
A seminal work that stands the test of time.......2006-08-03
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Mendelssohn: Songs Without Words, etc.
Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General
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ASIN: B000001GYC Release Date: 1997-04-15 |
Tracks:
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 19: No. 1 In E Major - Andante con moto
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 19: No. 2 In A Minor - Andante espressivo
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 19: No. 3 In A Major 'Hunting Song' - Molto allegro e vivace
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 19: No. 4 in A Major - Moderato
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 19: No. 5 In F Sharp Minor - Piano agitato
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 19: No. 6 In G Minor 'Venetian Gondola Song' - Andante sostenuto
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 30: No. 1 In E Flat Major - Andante espressivo
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 30: No. 2 In B Flat Minor - Allegro di molto
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 30: No. 3 In E Major - Adagio non troppo
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 30: No. 4 In B Minor - Agitato e con fuoco
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 30: No. 5 In D Major - Andante grazioso
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 30: No. 6 In F Sharp Minor 'Venetian Gondola Song' - Allegretto tranquillo
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 38: No. 1 In E Flat Major - Con moto
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 38: No. 2 In C Minor - Allegro non troppo
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 38: No. 3 In E Major - Presto e molto vivace
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 38: No. 4 In A Major - Andante
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 38: No. 5 In A Minor - Agitato
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 38: No. 6 In A Flat Major - Andante con moto
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 53: No. 1 In A Flat Major - Andante con moto
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 53: No. 2 In E Flat Major - Allegro non troppo
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 53: No. 3 In G Minor - Presto agitato
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 53: No. 4 In F Major - Adagio
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 53: No. 5 In A Minor 'Folksong' - Allegro con fuoco
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 53: No. 6 In A Major - Molto allegro, vivace
Tracks:
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 62: No. 1 In G Major - Andante espressivo
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 62: No. 2 In B Flat Major - Allegro con fuoco
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 62: No. 3 In E Minor 'Funeral March' - Andante maestoso
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 62: No. 4 In G Major - Allegro con anima
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 62: No. 5 In A Minor 'Venetian Gondola Song' - Andante con moto
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 62: No. 6 In A Major 'Spring Song' - Allegretto grazioso
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 67: No. 1 in E Flat Major - Andante
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 67: No. 2 In F Sharp Minor - Allegro leggiero
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 67: No. 3 In B Flat Major - Andante tranquillo
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 67: No. 4 In C Major 'Spinning Song' - Presto
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 67: No. 5 In B Minor - Moderato
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 67: No. 6 In E Major 'Wiegenlied' - Allegretto non troppo
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 85: No. 1 In F Major - Andante espressivo
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 85: No. 2 In A Minor - Allegro agitato
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 85: No. 3 In E Flat Major - Presto
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 85: No. 4 In D Major - Andante sostenuto
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 85: No. 5 In A Major - Allegretto
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 85: No. 6 In B Flat Major - Allegretto con moto
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 102: No. 1 In E Minor - Andante, un poco agitato
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 102: No. 2 In D Major - Adagio
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 102: No. 3 In C Major - Presto
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 102: No. 4 In G Minor - Un poco agitato, ma andante
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 102: No. 5 In A Major - Allegro vivace
- Lieder ohne Worte op. 102: No. 6 In C Major - Andante
- Kinderstucke op. 72: Allegro non troppo
- Kinderstucke op. 72: Andante sostenuto
- Kinderstucke op. 72: Allegretto
- Kinderstucke op. 72: Andante con moto
- Kinderstucke op. 72: Allegro assai
- Kinderstucke op. 72: Vivace
- Gondellied: Allegretto non troppo
- 2 Klavierstucke: Andante cantabile
- 2 Klavierstucke: Presto agitato
- Albumblatt op. 117: Allegro
Customer Reviews:
FORGOTTEN (BY ME) BEAUTIES.......2007-05-14
This recording was made in the early 1970s; however, DGG has done a wonderful job of transferring them to the CD format--the sound is rich, lush and clear.
If you want to hear some beautiful compositions that are played most beautifully, buy this recording.
MENDELSSOHN'S 48.......2006-09-01
It was high time in any case that I had a complete set of these lovely works. My collection up to now had only stretched to 14 of them, but - I have to say it again - those 14 are enough to teach me the difference between fine performances and great ones. Barenboim's accounts should be easily good enough for most of us most of the time, and in addition to the Songs he throws in the Children's Pieces plus a few other short numbers that Mendelssohn, for reasons known principally to himself, chose not to publish. With one solitary exception, Barenboim's touch is affectionate, warm and beautiful, and is well served by the 1974 recording. Speeds adopted sound about right to me in general, and the interpretations offered are full of insight and loving care, and free from eccentricity or egotism. Barenboim can be powerful when he needs to be, but the requirement for power is very limited in what we have here, and the overall impression that the set leaves is rightly one of tact, sympathy and enthusiasm. My single regret concerns my own favourite of all the Songs - the Duetto op 38/6. Something goes quite unaccountably wrong here. I'd call the speed too fast in the first place, and I would have liked the pseudo-voices brought out more strongly against the arpeggio accompaniment, but the real affront to my sensibilities comes when the two voices sing forte in octaves, and Barenboim bangs out the melody in a bad-tempered and cacophonous way that reminds me of one of Kissin's off-days.
One botched effort out of 58 is not a bad ratio nevertheless. I can play the Duetto to my own satisfaction anyway, or I can listen to it on my old Turnabout LP played by Guiomar Novaes. Novaes seems to be all but forgotten these days, but she was a great player, recognised as such by no less than Debussy when she was a teenager. Her idea of the Duetto is slower than mine, indeed for an amateur like me the piece, which lies beautifully and naturally under the hands, seems practically to dictate its own speed. However it's not the tempo that makes the impression. In this piece as in many others starting with the very first of all the Songs, what transfixes me is the haughty and highlighted clarity of Novaes's melodic line and the magnificence of her left-hand tone. It also happens that in the disc that accompanies the biography of Serkin by Stephen Lehmann and Marion Faber there are two of the Songs in Novaes's selection - a solemn and gripping op 62/1 and a coruscating Spinning Song worthy of Horowitz or Cziffra for virtuosity. The point is simply this - there is an aura of greatness that surrounds the playing of Serkin and Novaes in practically anything they do. Admirable as he is, Barenboim is not quite in that league, although I don't consider the balance of advantage to be totally one-sided, and it may be that Barenboim actually makes a more appealing job of the Spring Song.
Nevertheless I have only 14 of the Songs from Novaes, and all of two from Serkin, in somewhat antiquated sound at that. Barenboim gives me all 48 plus some bonus extras, played with love and appreciation of the soul of this beautiful and affecting music. This is a set I am going to be returning to for solace and balm to the spirit, I can tell already. The recorded sound is not wondrous, but it's good 1974 quality. The liner note is from the distinguished pen of Joan Chissell, but I can't say it seems to me to amount to much. Moreover she nails her colours to the mast with the ringing challenge `No 19th-century composer exceeded Mendelssohn in respect for Classical tradition, and such ordered modes of expression as fugue...' I dispute this strenuously. Not only are Mendelssohn's fugues not his best or most professional work, as Tovey makes very clear, they are inferior in respect for classical precedent and thoroughness of workmanship to Schumann's, as the same sage also points out. Besides which Brahms was a musical scholar of minute and profound learning, particularly steeped in the great German musical tradition, to an extent that Mendelssohn never rivalled. What Mendelssohn can claim is to be sui generis, what he does best he does better than anyone, and some of his most intimate musical thoughts are to be found in the Songs Without Words. For the pleasure and comfort they bring me I thank Mendelssohn's shade and the loving and expert guidance of Barenboim.
Portraits at exhibition!.......2006-04-09
The Songs without words conform ostensibly, a great stylistic and conceptual unity. It could not be other way, noticing the fact John Field was essentially the grandfather of the nocturnes for piano and Chopin the most expressive and intimate explorer of the human soul, Mendelssohn had all those variables in mind and decided to create a portrait album. As other artists as Liszt and Goethe the exerted fascination after being in Venice would work out as febrile inspiration. Every little page of this kaleidoscopic reflects different state anima; they are structured and interweaved similarly respect Robert Schumann with his Carnival or Childhood scenes; with profound lyric and evocative accent, destined to recreate the tourist memory. He achieved then to make a voluminous album of feelings but without that marked introspective mood of Frederic Chopin, for instance.
Daniel Barenboim decided to record these ebb tide piano pieces with personal conviction and lyric imagination. The result was simply refulgent and deeply inspiring.
Second-tier Mendelssohn and Boringboim to boot.......2002-10-21
Excellent!.......2002-02-18
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Chopin: 26 Préludes, etc / Martha Argerich
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ASIN: B000001GEC Release Date: 1991-06-14 |
Tracks:
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 1 C-dur: Agitato
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 2 a-moll: Lento
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 3 G-dur: Vivace
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 4 e-moll: Largo
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 5 D-dur: Allegro molto
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 6 h-moll: Lento assai
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 7 A-dur: Andantino
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 8 fis-moll: Molto agitato
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 9 E-dur: Largo
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 10 cis-moll: Allegro molto
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 11 H-dur: Vivace
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 12 gis-moll: Presto
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 13 Fis-dur: Lento
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 14 es-moll: Allegro
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 15 Des-dur: Sostenuto
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 16 b-moll: Presto con fuoco
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 17 As-dur: Allegretto
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 18 f-moll: Allegro molto
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 19 Es-dur: Vivace
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 20 c-moll: Largo
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 21 B-dur: Cantabile
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 22 g-moll: Molto agitato
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 23 F-dur: Moderato
- 24 Preludes Op. 28: No. 24 d-mall: Allegro appassionato
- Prelude cis-moll Op. 45: Sostenuto
- Prelude As-dur Op. post.: Presto
- Mazurkas Op. 59: No. 1 a-moll: Moderato
- Mazurkas Op. 59: No. 2 As-dur: Allegretto
- Mazurkas Op. 59: No. 3 fis-moll: Vivace
- Scherzo cis-moll Op. 39: Presto con fuoco
Customer Reviews:
Little attention to detail and nuance.......2007-04-01
Absolutly wonderful!!!!!!!!!!!!!.......2005-09-09
The Preludes as a Lightning Bolt.......2005-04-17
Is Argerich really defiling Chopin, as so many might suggest? I don't think so. Actually, I think that she succeeds brilliantly in making these pieces seem like just what they were in their time - groundbreaking.
Chopin experienced the thrill of treading into unknown waters, exploring obscure and uncharted parts of the human psyche, and bringing it all up to the surface with the utmost concision. I cannot imagine how proud Chopin must have felt to have produced such a creation from his own pen. And it is extreme music - extremely rich, extremely stark, extremely happy, extremely sad, extremely advanced, extremely conservative. To Chopin's contemporaries, they seemed to come from nowhere, like a bolt of lightning. A soundscape as blindingly intense as the F-sharp minor Prelude still seems more like the music of another planet (to borrow a comment from Arrau about Debussy). Is it not appropriate, then, for Argerich to play them with the appropriate extremes of volume, of tempo, of warmth and coolness?
Yes, I'm biased. Yes, there are some wrong notes in the B-flat minor Prelude (which certainly don't detract from the seemingly infinite power displayed) and there a few other places where newer editions, the Jan Ekier in particular, have made Chopin's intentions more clear. But the combination of burning, passionate music and burning, passionate pianist is unmatched. When it stops thrilling me, then I'll know I'm dead.
Lixo total.......2004-12-15
Sound quality and performance.......2004-09-24
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Prokofiev, Ravel: Piano Concertos, etc / Martha Argerich
Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Ravel, Maurice
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ASIN: B000001GQQ Release Date: 1996-05-14 |
Tracks:
- Konzert fur Klavier und Orchester Nr.3 C-dur op.26: 1. Andante - Allegro
- Konzert fur Klavier und Orchester Nr.3 C-dur op.26: 2. Thema. Andantino - Variations I. L'istesso Tempo - Var.2.Allegro - Var.3. - Allegro moderato - Var.4.Andantino meditativo - Var.5.Allegro giusto - Thema.L'istesso tempo
- Konzert fur Klavier und Orchester Nr.3 C-dur op.26: 3. Allegro ma non troppo
- Konzert fur Klavier und Orchester G-dur - In G Major: 1. Allegramente
- Konzert fur Klavier und Orchester G-dur - In G Major: 2. Adagio assai
- Konzert fur Klavier und Orchester G-dur - In G Major: 3. Presto
- Gaspard de la nuit - Trois poemes pour piano d'apres Aloysius Bertrand: 1. Ondine. Lent
- Gaspard de la nuit - Trois poemes pour piano d'apres Aloysius Bertrand: 2. Le Gibet. Tres lent
- Gaspard de la nuit - Trois poemes pour piano d'apres Aloysius Bertrand: 3. Scarbo, Modere
Amazon.com essential recording
This is the original Prokofiev/Ravel concerto coupling as it appeared on LP; the Prokofiev has also been coupled with the Tchaikovsky First Concerto. I prefer this edition since superb performances of the Ravel are less common. The young (1967) Martha Argerich plays the Prokofiev for maximum brilliance but leavens the Ravel with the composer's ironic lyricism. It's very effective. The bonus is one of the greatest performances of the Ravel piano suite ever recorded, but it leaves me wondering what will happen to the remainder of the original LP. All those solo Ravel pieces should be in the catalog; as Argerich plays them, they offer a primer on what keyboard color is all about. --Leslie GerberCustomer Reviews:
treasured.......2007-06-05
Easily one of the finest releases of the Deutsche Grammophon catalog.......2007-05-24
The first of the two piano concertos on this disc is Prokofiev's third, and it's undoubtedly one of the best of either Argerich's or Abbado's respective careers. The performance ebbs and flows naturally with note-perfect precision and vibrant (but never overstated), colorful dynamics. Argerich has a keen understanding of any composer's more playful sensibilities, which is why her intuition has always been especially keen when interpreting repertoire works that express such wit by the likes of Prokofiev. Cliché as it is, the only complaint that one could direct at this recording is that it's too short - after three thrilling, relatively brief movements, one is left breathless, but wanting even more. If a better performance of this work has been committed to disc, I'm not familiar with it. Argerich's 1998 recording (paired with Dutoit) is good but nowhere close to this, and the Prokofiev/Coppola recording available from Naxos suffers from the age and deterioration of its' source; given such a poor recording, many aspects of that terrific performance are impossible to evaluate.
The recording of the Ravel piano concerto is almost as thrilling as that of the Prokofiev concerto, and for all the same reasons. Both pianist and orchestra tackle the amusing inventions that Ravel invested in this remarkable piece. The three part form of the second movement is especially well navigated, something that can't be said of many other performances of this composition.
The expanded storage capacity of the CD format permits another recording in addition to the two of the original Prokofiev/Ravel LP: Argerich's amazing 1974 performance of Ravel's "Gaspard de la nuit." If any recording presents this composition as the one of the most difficult of the standard repertoire and Argerich as one of the finest pianists of her generation, it's this one. Both technically and expressively, it is almost incomparably superb, only surpassed by Pogorelich's brilliant equivalent. Argerich exhibits a curious insight pertaining to Ravel's unique, macabre adaptation of Bertrand's poem, and her execution of what Ravel called a "caricature of romanticism" does this insight justice. The speed and tonal color produced in her performance of the infamously difficult "Scarbo" movement is almost inhuman, and must be heard to be believed. This recording was originally released on LP along with numerous other excellent Ravel solo piano works such as "Valses nobles et sentimentales" and "Sonatine." Most of those other recordings are available on different DG compilations, and the inclusion of "Gaspard" succeeding the two concertos on this disc feels appropriate.
It should be mentioned that DG might regain some of its' straying audience if the label chose to reissue DVDs of the many excellent live performances and music videos that it released over the course of it's long and storied existence, instead of so many pointless, worthless, pretentious albums by pop star morons-turned-fake classicists like Sting and Elvis Costello. The music videos for this disc's recording of "Gaspard de la nuit" were especially interesting - curious little films that capably presented symbolist iconography related to the source material as well as video footage of Argerich's light-speed fingers. I've seen enough of these videos in poor quality on YouTube to know that a sufficient number of them exist to pad out a DVD that any sighted Argerich fan would be willing to view, and probably pay for.
Like most of the discs in DG's "The Originals" reissue series, the remastering of these recordings is adequate, but hardly exceptional. The original recordings of the concertos were a bit too bright (almost harsh), and the remastered versions fix this while rendering the soft passages a bit too subdued. Overall, this is a fair trade-off. At the cut price, you can't possibly go wrong with this phenomenal release.
Miraculous!.......2007-05-12
The young Argerich--fresh and completely without affectation.......2007-02-25
I can only second everyone else's high praise for the Prokofiev and Ravel concertos, which are spellbinding, as well as for her Gaspard de la Nuit, which is staggeringly virtuosic and original. Abbado conducts with gusto and style, if not the greatest nuance, and only the somewhat dated sonics detract (marginally) from a recording that has remained in print for forty years.
Beautiful rendition.......2007-01-03
Both sound and interpretation of Gaspard de la nuit do not match the recording by Alexandre Tharaud (Ravel: l'oeuvre pur piano). Still I wholeheartedly recommend this album.
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Greatest Hits HANDEL ~ Water Music, Largo, etc..
George Frideric Handel , Raymond Leppard , André Rieu , Eugene Ormandy , Hartmut Haenchen , Pierre Boulez , Charles Groves , Richard P. Condie , Edita Gruberova , Wynton Marsalis , Igor Kipnis , English Chamber Orchestra , Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach Chamber Orchestra , and Albert de Klerk Manufacturer: Sony ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Handel
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ASIN: B000002A25 Release Date: 1994-08-09 |
Tracks:
- Solomon: Arrival Of The Queen Of Sheba
- Water Music Suite No. 1 (Excerpts): Allegro - Andante - Allegro Da Capo
- Water Music Suite No. 1 (Excerpts): Air
- Water Music Suite No.1 (Excerpts): Minuet
- Water Music Suite No. 1 (Excerpts): Bourree
- Water Music Suite No. 1 (Excerpts): Hornpipe
- Largo From Xerxes
- Music For The Royal Fireworks (Excerpts): Overture
- La Rejouissance, Allegro
- The Harmonious Blacksmith: (Air And Variations In E Major From Suite No. 5)
- Let The Bright Seraphim From Samson
- Suite No. 11 For Harpsichord: Sarabande
- Water Music Suite No. 2: Without Tempo Indication
- Water Music Suite No. 2: Alla Hornpipe
- Water Music Suite No. 2: Minuet
- Water Music Suite No. 2: Lentement
- Water Music Suite No. 2: Bourree
- Minuet From Berenice
- Organ Concerto No. 13 In F Major, 'The Cuckoo And The Nightingale': II. Allegro
- Judas Maccabaeus: See, The Conqu'ring Hero Come
- Ode For The Birthday Of Queen Anne: Eternal Source Of Light Divine
- Messiah: Hallelujah Chorus
Customer Reviews:
Handel's Greatest Hits.......2007-02-26
CD
Music for feel joy and peace..........2006-11-03
All Handel's Greatest Hits are not created equal........2004-02-25
Hornpipes and Fireworks Oveurture tempi, legato and orchestration is full of warmth and energy. A true chiara scuro interpretation. Fabulous!!!!
Could use more oratorical works, but nice intro to Handel.......2001-08-08
Could use more oratorical works, but nice intro to Handel.......2001-08-08
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Respighi: Pines of Rome, etc
Manufacturer: RCA ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Respighi
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ASIN: B000003FUG Release Date: 1995-04-11 |
Tracks:
- La Mer: From Dawn Till Noon On The Sea
- La Mer: Play Of The Waves
- La Mer: Dialogue Of The Wind And The Sea
- Fountains Of Rome: The Fountain Of Valle Giulia At Dawn
- Fountains Of Rome: The Triton Fountain At Morning
- Fountains Of Rome: The Fountain Of Trevi At Midday
- Fountains Of Rome: The Villa Medici Fountain At Sunset
- Pines Of Rome: The Pines Of The Villa Borghese
- Pines Of Rome: Pines Near A Catacomb
- Pines Of Rome: The Pines Of The Janiculum
- Pines Of Rome: The Pines Of The Appian Way
Amazon.com
Whichever other Respighi tone poem recordings you ultimately purchase, you MUST own this one. Since the early `60s it has been the standard by which all others have been judged, and in terms of both sound and performance, it has never really been surpassed. The final march of Pines is simply incredible: thundering bass drum, crashing cymbals and gongs, bellowing brass--nobody since has brought the whole thing off with the same combination of excitement and discipline. The performance of La Mer has similar virtues. Fritz Reiner was a podium tyrant, but a tremendous musician all the same. This may be his finest recording. --David HurwitzCustomer Reviews:
A classic.......2007-06-19
The Triumph of Chicago .......2005-07-20
Honestly, however, when I first listened to Fountains, I was not impressed. The orchestral playing was of course first-rate but I thought the music was boring and restless with no clear direction. After a day or so, I decided to listen to it again, reasoning that it was I who was wrong. I did and I liked it. Not as exciting as Pines(the whole work) and Pines of the Appian Way, but it is still a good piece wonderfully performed, just sit and listen to everything.
Only this Respighi and nothing else........2004-04-05
Very Justified Label of "Benchmark".......2004-02-23
And of course, the Chicago Symphony, whom you can just argue is the greatest American orchestra ever, puts in another terrific performance, as you would definately expect them to. The legendary Fritz Reiner was conductor of the CSO from 1951 to 1962, a golden period in the orchestra's history. Heiner was certainly a demanding leader, and it showed whenever recording sessions took place. A perfectionalist, he wanted control over all aspects and made sure himself that he received satisfactory results.
In the program booklet that comes with this CD, an excellent account is included of downtown Chicago's Orchestra Hall on October 24, 1959, when Reiner led his ensemble to a tremendous performance of Respighi's Pines and Fountains of Rome. The article is a very interesting read on the details of the recording session.
Now, as for the CD itself, the aged recording would of course raise the attention of the listening. While technology has definately surpassed what had been available back then, the sound is however very acceptable. This album indeed still remains one for the ages.
I want to be buried with this CD!.......2003-07-21
Another moment is at 3:34. There is an A in the second trumpet that is never heard for whatever reason, but on this version it is so intense that it will part your hair. There is no subtleness to the finale in this one. It is pure, raw power. I have performed this piece several times and while nothing can ever compare to being in the middle of this tidal wave of sounds all around you, this CD (at a proper, near-deafening level) can evoke those same sensations.
The Catacomb movement is frightening. The offstage trumpet solo is as gorgeous as they come with perfect muted string accompaniment. When the character changes right after the solo, the low brass hold down a beautiful pp with the subtle tam tam hits making it all the more eerie. Then...THE crescendo. The trombones take over with a sound unlike just about anything you'll hear on record. The strings are never buried either. Much of what makes this such a phenominal recording is the perfect balances that bring life to Respighi's brilliant coloration. Remember, this is before multitracking. They played and the mics picked up what was played. God, orchestras should sound this good today.
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Bernstein Century - Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique, etc.
Manufacturer: Sony ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD All Works by Berlioz
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ASIN: B00000J27R Release Date: 1999-05-18 |
Tracks:
- Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14 (Episode de la vie d'un artiste): I. Reveries - Passions
- Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14 (Episode de la vie d'un artiste): II. Un bal
- Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14 (Episode de la vie d'un artiste): III. Scene aux champs
- Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14 (Episode de la vie d'un artiste): IV. Marche au supplice
- Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14 (Episode de la vie d'un artiste): V. Songe d'une nuit du Sabbat
- 'Berlioz Takes A Trip': Leonard Bernstein Explores The Symphonie Fantastique With Musical Illustrations By The New York Philharmonic
Amazon.com
Track 6 features Bernstein's narrated tour through this eccentric, groundbreaking symphonic masterpiece. Sadly, the conductor's pithy analogy between Berlioz's musical depiction of opium-inspired visions and the dangers of a contemporary trip ("brilliance without glory") remains as timely now as it was in 1968. Brilliance and glory, however, characterize the conductor's 1963 recording, reissued here for the first time on CD. The orchestral execution is not as fluid or well-oiled as it would be for Bernstein's 1968 remake, but slightly closer micing reveals a wealth of color, nuance, and dynamic differentiation absent from the original LP. Passages leap from your speakers with sparkling clarity. The conductor illuminates the composer's innovative orchestral combinations with a kind of urgency that lapses into bombast only in the frenzied final measures. And why not? An absorbing, excellently remastered release. --Jed DistlerCustomer Reviews:
Excellent.......2007-07-13
speedy and great service.......2007-01-19
Fantastic "Symphonie Fantastique"........2005-03-05
Even after its inception 175 years ago, the "Symphonie Fantastique" is regarded as a milestone not just in classical music but in all areas of music. Considering the time period in which it was created, the music, ideas and concept were way ahead anything else that was being done (except for maybe Beethoven who had died only three years before Berlioz completed this work).
The concept behind "Symphonie Fantastique" is an extraordinary one. A young musician falls in love with a beautiful woman but can't have her. So he poisons himself with opium in hopes of killing his pain (and himself). Instead of dying, the musician falls into a hallucinegenic sleep in which he has surrealistic dreams - all of which involve the woman in question. The beloved one is represented by a simple yet haunting theme which is heard in numerous variations throughout the work's five movements. Although, the symphony does not have any words, it isn't difficult to picture the scenery in which each movement takes place and it's also not difficult to sense the intrusion when the beloved's theme occurs each time throughout the work. The first movement sets the pace for the entire work with a majestic Beethoven-like theme along with the aforementioned theme of the beloved. The second movement depicts a giant ballroom with a danceable Strauss-like waltz interupted by the same theme. The third movement takes place in an outdoor countryside and is an overall pleasant piece. The beloved's theme here sounds like a rude intrusion in contrast to the calmness. The fourth movement, "March to the Scaffold", is a dynamic tour-de-force in which the troubled musician imagines he is being executed for killing his beloved. Finally, the last movement, "Dream of the Witches Sabbath", is a hellish nightmare in which the musician imagines he's dead in hell surrounded by witches, demons and evil spirits (this was before heavy metal). The chilling haunting quality of the music is perfectly executed. Its use of violins bowing the strings with the opposite end of the bow is especially affective in creating the bone-rattling goulish sounds heard towards the end of the movement.
Indeed, as mentioned above, Berlioz's "Symphonie Fantastique" was way ahead of its time when it was created. In a strange way, it does include elements of psychedelic music (the hallucinegenic theme of the work), prog (the fact that the five movements do indeed form a cohesive whole) and metal (the musical depiction of demonic things). And this was way back in the early 19th century.
On this disc, Leonard Bernstein not only does a flawless job at presenting this work, he also gives an excellent illustration of it in his discussion "Berlioz Takes A Trip" which is heard on Track 6 of this CD. Here, Bernstein dissects the piece musically and conceptually, allowing the listener to take a peek into Berlioz's obsessive mad genius. The remastered sound quality is also amazing giving the entire work a fresh clarity.
So there you have it, the first fruits of Psychedelic Prog-Metal all rolled into one musical work created 175 years ago by a brilliant composer by the name of Hector Berlioz.
Definitely a Symphonie Fantastique.
Awesome!.......2004-01-12
Those taking music appreciation, this is a MUST BUY! Enjoy your trip... without being drugged of course.
Berlioz Takes A Trip.......2003-10-29
The March 5, 1968, performance in Philharmonic Hall (now Avery Fischer Hall) of the amazing 1830 composition (completed only three years after the death of Beethoven) has remained a milestone. Seldom did Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic succeed in giving such a definite, exciting performance. The orchestra plays with great precision and intensity throughout the five-movement work, capturing all the nuances and passion of this incredible piece.
Originally, Columbia issued the LP verison of this recording with a small disc that included Berlioz's lecture, which had been adapted from his "Young People's Concert" on CBS. This is clearly Bernstein at his best, both as lecturer and as conductor.
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- Exitos a los Sonideros
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- Exitos de los Grandes en Bachata
- Generaciones
- Gracias Manzanero
- Gracias Simón
- Guerra De Bandas: Banda Sta. Fe Vs. La 5ta Banda
- J&N Típico
- La Candela [Import]
- La Imagen de San Judas [Explicit Lyrics]
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