Great Opera Composers In Song

Vanne, o rosa fortunata, for voice & piano (6 ariette da camera)
Composed by Vincenzo Bellini
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
Bella Nice, che d'amore, for voice & piano (6 ariette da camera)
Composed by Vincenzo Bellini
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
Le crépuscule ("L'aube nait e la porte est close"), song for voice & piano
Composed by Gaetano Donizetti
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
Ah, rammenta, o bella Irene, cavatina for voice & piano
Composed by Gaetano Donizetti
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
La Chanson du fou, song for voice & piano (Vingt mélodies No. 12)
Composed by Georges Bizet
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
Ivan IV (Ivan the Terrible), opera in 5 acts (unfinished) Ouvre Ton Coeur
Composed by Georges Bizet
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
Les deux grenadiers ("Longtemps captifs chez le Russe"), song for voice & piano, WWV 60
Composed by Richard Wagner
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
Au rossignol, song for voice & piano
Composed by Charles Gounod
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
Envoi de fleurs, song for voice & piano
Composed by Charles Gounod
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
Où voulez-vous aller?, song for voice, piano & violin (or cello or flute or harmonium)
Composed by Charles Gounod
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
La lontananza, aria for tenor & piano (Péchés de vieillesse, book 1), QR iv/12
Composed by Gioachino Rossini
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
La Chanson du bébé ("Maman, le gros bébé t'appelle"), for voice & piano (Péchés de vieillesse, book 11), QR v/25
Composed by Gioachino Rossini
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
Ad una stella ("Bell'astro della terra"), song for voice & piano
Composed by Giuseppe Verdi
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
Lo spazzacamino ("Son d'aspetto brutto e nero"), song for voice & piano
Composed by Giuseppe Verdi
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
Élégie: O doux printemps d'autrefois, for voice & piano (from "Mélodies, Vol.1")
Composed by Jules Massenet
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda
Mattinata, song for voice & piano (or orchestra)
Composed by Ruggero Leoncavallo
with Jan Eyron, Nicolai Gedda

Great Opera Composers In Song,Vincenzo Bellini,Georges Bizet,Gaetano Donizetti,Charles Gounod,Ruggero Leoncavallo,Jules Massenet,Gioachino Rossini,Giuseppe Verdi,Richard Wagner,Jan Eyron,Nicolai Gedda,Bluebell Records,Art Song (General),Classical,Classical Music,French Romantic Opera,Opera,Opera / Operetta / Oratorio,Romantic Music for Voice and Keyboard,Solo Voice(s) and Small Ensemble,Vocal,Vocal Music

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Schubert: Greatest Hits

Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Mendelssohn: Greatest Hits
Liszt: Greatest Hits
Chopin: Greatest Hits
Beethoven: Greatest Hits
Debussy's Greatest Hits

ASIN: B000002A29
Release Date: 1994-08-09

Tracks:

Symphony No. 8 In B Minor 'Unfinished': Allegro moderato
Marche Militaire, Op. 51, No.1
Ave Maria
Serenade
Erlkonig
Rosamunde Overture
Impromptu In E-Flat Major, Op. 90, No. 2
Death And The Maiden String Quartet In D Minor: IV Presto
Moment Musical In F Minor Op. 94, No3
Trout Quintet For Piano & Strings In A Major: III Scherzo Presto
Symphony No. 9 In C Major 'The Great': I Andante - Allegro ma non troppo

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Mad about Baroque
The beauty of the songs brings tears to my eyes
Brilliant
Be Welcome then, great Sirs (and Mesdames).
Brilliant Purcell Disc

Essential Purcell
Henry Purcell , New College Choir Oxford , King's Consort , Robert King , Roy Goodman , Charles Daniels , John Mark Ainsley , James Bowman , Peter Buckoke , Jane Coe , Rogers Covey-Crump , Gillian Fisher , Michael George , Miles Golding , Jane Norman , Barbara Bonney , Mark Caudle , William Carter , King's Consort Choir , Helen Gough , Paul Nicholson , Angela East , Barry Guy , Tessa Bonner , Jerome Finnis , Rupert Bawden , Lucy Howard , Richard Campbell , Susan Addison , James O'Donnell , and Stephen Saunders
Manufacturer: Hyperion UK
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Purcell: Odes for St. Cecilia's Day - Music for Queen Mary / Taverner Consort
Purcell: The Fairy Queen
Purcell: Songs & Airs / Argenta, North, Boothby, Nicholson, Toll
Purcell: Dido and Aeneas / James, Lewis, Baker, Herincx
Purcell: Full Anthems & Organ Music

ASIN: B000002ZDU
Release Date: 1995-04-10

Tracks:

Complete Odes And Welcome Songs Vol. 5: Welcome, Welcome Glorious Morn. Symphony And Opening Chorus
Complete Odes And Welcome Songs Vol. 3: Be Welcome Then, Great Sir
Complete Secular Solo Songs Vol.1: Oh, Fair Cedaria
The Choir Of The King's Consort: Hear My Prayer, O Lord
Great Baroque Arias: When I Am Laid In Earth ('Dido's Lament')
Complete Anthems And Services Vol.1: Let Mine Eyes Run Down With Tears (Part 1)
Complete Odes And Welcome Songs Vol.4: The Sparrow And The Gentle Dove
Complete Secular Solo Songs Vol.1: If Music Be The Food Of Love (First Setting)
Complete Anthems And Services Vol.5: Rejoice In The Lord Always ('The Bell Anthem')
Complete Anthems And Services Vol.3: Hosanna To The Highest
Complete Anthems And Services Vol.7: Thou Knowest, Lord, The Secrets Of Our Hearts
Mr. Henry Purcell's Most Admirable Composures: Fairest Isle, All Isles Excelling
Complete Odes And Welcome Songs Vol.6: Mark, How Readily Each Pliant String
Complete Odes And Welcome Songs Vol.8: Sound The Trumpet
Complete Secular Solo Songs Vol.3: She Loves And She Confesses Too
Complete Odes And Welcome Songs Vol.8: O How Blest Is The Isle
Complete Anthems And Services Vol.3: Remember Not, Lord, Our Offences
Complete Anthems And Services Vol. 11: An Evening Hymn
Complete Church Music Vol.2: Vouchsafe, O Lord, To Keep Us This Day
Complete Odes And Welcome Songs Vol.2: With Rapture Of Delight... Hail Bright Cecilia

Amazon.com essential recording

The "Essential" Purcell? Well, you could get a bunch of critics to argue about that for a few days, but in the meantime, here is a sampler of highlights from the King's Consort's three admirable Purcell series: the Complete Odes and Welcome Songs, Complete Anthems and Services, and Complete Secular Solo Songs. There are, of course, some of Purcell's most-performed pieces (which probably are "essential"): Dido's Lament from Dido and Aeneas, "Sound the trumpet" from Come, ye sons of Art, Rejoice in the Lord alway (the "Bell Anthem," named for the string figure at the opening that sounds like pealing bells), the gently patriotic "Fairest isle, all isles excelling" (sung by a miscast James Bowman), and a selection from the funeral music for Queen Mary. There are also some delightful surprises--particularly among the little-known secular songs and church music. The plaintive "O fair Cedaria" gets a lovely performance by Barbara Bonney (a singer not usually associated with Purcell); tenor Rogers Covey-Crump (possibly the ideal high tenor for Purcell) sings the enchanting "If music be the food of love"; the church anthems "Let mine eyes run down with tears" and "Remember not, O Lord, our offences" have some startling harmonies as daring as any Monteverdi ever wrote. If you're unfamiliar with Purcell, this reasonably priced disc is a good place to start exploring without a big initial investment. --Matthew Westphal

Customer Reviews:

Mad about Baroque.......2007-02-12

This is a terrific CD. The music is breathtaking. Just buy IT !!!!!

The beauty of the songs brings tears to my eyes.......2002-08-21

Absolutely beautiful baroque music! The arrangament, singing and instrumentation is superb. It is too bad that Henry Purcell is not as widely known as Bach, because he should be recognized equally well."The Sparrow and the Gentle dove" is alone worth the price of the album! I can not stop playing it!

Brilliant.......2001-10-31

Like in his renditions of Handel's oratorios, Robert King manages to bring a freshness and strenght to Purcell's music that I had seldom heard before. This CD also features some of the best performers of early music in the world. My favourite tracks are Oh, Fair Cedaria, sung by the multi-talented Barbara Bonney; Dido's Lament from Dido and Aeneas, sung by Gillian Fisher; She Loves and she Confesses too, sung by the wonderful Susan Gritton; and Welcome, Welcome Glorious Morn, sung by Rogers Covey-Crump. The only track I didn't find absolutely wonderful is Fairest Isle, sung here by James Bowman. Don't get me wrong, I generally love Mr Bowman, I think that his performance in Mr Purcell's Most Admirable Composures (also conducted by Robert King) makes it another essential Purcell recording; but I find that Fairest Isle was much better done elsewhere, particularly by Christopher Hogwood and Barbara Bonney.

These songs aren't only beautiful, they're also poignant, sweet and unpretentious. I think that it will be very clear to anyone who listens to this recording that Mr Purcell was one of the finest composers that ever lived.

Be Welcome then, great Sirs (and Mesdames)........2001-10-20

If anyone has benefitted from the reversion in the last three or so decades to period instruments and historical reconstruction, it is Henry Purcell. Before, he was merely great, the peerless word-setter in the English language, a virtuoso of boundless range, a professional composer whose offical commissions were always imbued with personality and invention. But period instrumentation has added to this a greater depth, an other-worldly texture of sound. With his intricate, multi-part vocal writing, his preference for low, rumbling instruments such as the bass viol and the strange and remarkable theorbo, as well as his often sombre and low-key subject matter and treatment, Purcell creates a round, glowing, humming sound as pregnantly full as dub reggae.

This has an extraordinary effect on the listener. Whereas Bach, with his mathematical abstractions, sounds universal and timeless, Purcell's music takes the listener back 300 years, back to different ways of thinking about, feeling about and addressing things we still think etc. about today - death, love, friendship. The emotion is timeless, but the music's beauty is alien, THEIRS, hence its preciousness.

A lot of intelligence has gone into the unity of this compilation, beginning with two Welcomes (to the dawn and to the listener, in this case a King), and ending with thoughts of evening, death and a Baroque 'Thank you for the music'. These are bright, fanfare-like works, but the predominant mood is slow, ruminative, quiet. The selection covers the wide range of Purcell's oeuvre, from opera and funeral marches to secular songs and odes, and includes his most famous vocal works - Dido's Lament from Dido and Aeneas, sung by Gillian Fisher, and never more evocative of pagan loss and death; the massive 'Bell Anthem', with its ingenious opening symphony and joyful antiphon; and a miraculously serene 'Evening Hymn', Dido's opposite, death indicating hope, the treble voice swirling over the heavy ground bass like the soul released from the inert body.

it might seem quixotic to choose highlights from an exemplary collection of highlights, but the entry of the strings washing over the serene repetition of 'Be Welcome then, great Sir' always makes my heart stop still, while the musical picture of 'Bold Honour', the 'noisy Nothing, stalking shade', blocking the poet's amorous intentions in 'She loves and confesses too', adds a chilling hint of life's transience to a bouyantly bawdy song.

Brilliant Purcell Disc .......2000-11-30

With this album director and Purcell expert Robert King provides the listener with an excellent introduction to the composer's vocal works. The pieces presented here were taken from Mr. King's recordings of 'The Complete Odes and Welcome Songs', 'The Complete Anthems and Services', 'The Complete Secular Solo Songs' and diverse anthology discs. King, his wonderful soloists and musicians do the brilliance of Purcell's music fully justice. Whether he was commissioned by royalty, the church or theatre, Purcell shone in all areas. This disc certainly demonstrates the variety and originality of his craft, not to speak of his uncanny ability of setting words to music.

An outstanding Purcell offering. With a beautiful perfomance by Barbara Bonney of 'Oh, fair Cedaria'. Susan Gritton is equally captivating in 'She loves and she confesses too'. Gillian Fisher's rendition of the famous 'Dido's Lament' is haunting and poignant. Further an intelligent and brilliant 'Hosanna to the highest' by Michael George. James Bowman and Michael Chance sparkle in the countertenor duet 'Sound the trumpet' (from 'Come Ye sons of Art away'). And I should not forget to mention the joyous, luminous performance of the beautiful 'Bell Anthem'. To name but a few favourites, only James Bowman's 'Fairest Isle' was a disappointment.

Those who are familiar with Purcell's music will get an excellent disc with some of his most beloved works. If you are new to Purcell, this is, as already said a great introduction. Which might be the incentive to further explorations of Purcell.

by stardustraven

Average customer rating:

Totally infectious
Surprisingingly enjoyable stuff

Shostakovich: Waltzes

Manufacturer: Delos Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

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Shostakovich: The Jazz Album
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Shostakovich: Cheryomushki, The Bolt, The Gadfly (The Dance Album)
Jazz Suites 1 & 2

ASIN: B00001IVR2
Release Date: 1999-08-31

Tracks:

Shostakovich Waltzes

Customer Reviews:

Totally infectious.......2003-01-07

Shostakovich is mostly known for his serious works, his symphonies and string quartets, however he wrote a large number of film, incidental, and ballet music. This CD compiles many of his waltzes and some other pieces from these. While this is mainly what could be considered "light" music, many of the pieces have wonderful melodies and coloful orchestrations.

Some of my favorite waltzes include the one from Return of Maxim, the one from Golden Hills, and the one from The First Echelon (aka Waltz #2 from the 2nd Jazz Suite). Beyond the waltzes there are some other pieces, including the famous Polka from The Age of Gold and Folk Festival (Spanish Dance) from The Gadfly.

The only caveat is that some of the pieces don't reference their original source (rather they are listed as being from various ballet suites, when they in fact come from The Limpid Stream and other sources), but this is a very minor complaint. The performance and sound is wonderful, and unless you are one who can't stand this sort of compilation, it gets my highest recommendation.

Surprisingingly enjoyable stuff.......1999-10-04

After years of my hearing and not thinking very much of Shastakovich's symphonies, this Delos delight came as a total surprise. Containing just under an hour of mostly waltzes mixed with some polkas, a galop, and even setting of "Tahiti Trot" (inspired by "Tea for Two" of all things), this concert gives us a rare chance to hear a good deal of music this composer wrote for films seldom if ever seen outside of Russia as well as some more familiar stuff from his ballets. Not one really great piece, nor not really boring one. Just a boxful of what Thomas Beecham used to call "Bonbons" from a very unexpected source. Lots of fun from Delos.

Average customer rating:

Available at retailers for about $18
A classic compilation
A dis-service to Joplin
Unique
Great set

Scott Joplin: His Complete Works

Manufacturer: Bescol
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Waltzes | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

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General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Vocal Jazz General | Vocal Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

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Complete Piano Music of Scott Joplin
Entertainer: Classic Ragtime from Rare Piano Rolls
Joplin: Treemonisha
King of the Ragtime Writers
Scott Joplin: Piano Rags

ASIN: B000001RR2
Release Date: 1994-07-19

Tracks:

Please Say You Will - Richard Zimmerman
A Picture Of Her Face - Richard Zimmerman
The Great Crush Collision March - Richard Zimmerman
Harmony Club Waltz - Richard Zimmerman
Combination March - Richard Zimmerman
Original Rags - Richard Zimmerman
Maple Leaf Rag - Richard Zimmerman
Swipesy - Cake Walk - Richard Zimmerman
Sunflower Slow Drag - Richard Zimmerman
Peacherine Rag - Richard Zimmerman
Augustan Club Waltz - Richard Zimmerman
The Easy Winners - Richard Zimmerman
Cleopha - Richard Zimmerman
The Strenuous Life - Richard Zimmerman
I Am Thinking Of My Pickanniny Days - Richard Zimmerman
The Ragtime Dance - Richard Zimmerman
A Breeze From Alabama - Richard Zimmerman
Elite Syncopations - Richard Zimmerman

Tracks:

March Majestic - S. Joplin
The Entertainer - S. Joplin
Something Doing - S. Joplin
Weeping Willow - S. Joplin
Little Black Baby - S. Joplin
Palm Leaf Rag - S. Joplin
The Favorite - S. Joplin
The Sycamore - S. Joplin
The Cascades - S. Joplin
The Chrysanthemum - S. Joplin
Rosebud March - S. Joplin
Bethena - S. Joplin
Leola - S. Joplin
Sarah Dear - S. Joplin
Binks Waltz - S. Joplin
Eugenia - S. Joplin
Antoinette - S. Joplin
Snoring Sampson - S. Joplin

Tracks:

Gladiolus Rag - S. Joplin
Searchlight Rag - S. Joplin
The Nonpareil (None to Equal) - S. Joplin
When Your Hair Is Like The Snow - S. Joplin
Rose Leaf Rag - S. Joplin
Heliotrope Bouquet - S. Joplin
School Of Ragtime - S. Joplin
Fig Leaf Rag - S. Joplin
Sugar Cane - S. Joplin
Pine Apple Rag - S. Joplin
Wall Street Rag - S. Joplin
Solace - S. Joplin
Pleasant Moments - S. Joplin
Country Club - S. Joplin
Paragon Rag - S. Joplin
Euphonic Sounds - S. Joplin
Stoptime Rag - S. Joplin
Felicity Rag - S. Joplin

Tracks:

Highlights From Treemonisha - Richard Zimmerman
A Real Slow Drag - Richard Zimmerman
Prelude To Act 3 - Richard Zimmerman
Frolic Of The Bears - Richard Zimmerman
Lovin' Babe - Richard Zimmerman
Scott Joplin's New Rag - Richard Zimmerman
Kismet Rag - Richard Zimmerman
Magnetic Rag - Richard Zimmerman
Reflection Rag - Richard Zimmerman
Silver Swan Rag - Richard Zimmerman
Lily Queen - Richard Zimmerman
Sensation - Richard Zimmerman

Customer Reviews:

Available at retailers for about $18.......2006-12-21

Excellent collection - but there are re-sellers listed here that are selling this for as much $50 or $60. Yikes, most major retailers are selling this complete set for $18 - so beware.

A classic compilation.......2006-10-07

This collection is one of my most treasured possessions. (My father gave me the original 5-album set in the 70's when it was originally released on vinyl.)

This is the definitive collection of Scott Joplin's work. Richard Zimmerman provides wonderful performances that accurately reflect Joplin's intentions. (As evidence beyond my personal opinion, I submit the recent releases of digital recordings made from Joplin's piano rolls.)

A few points to consider regarding negative comments you may encounter in other reviews:
* This is a digital recording from an analog master. Lack of quality in the recording does not imply a lackluster performance.
* This is a complete collection. Some similarity is due to Joplin re-exploring melodic themes. But some is due to the fact that these are "rags". One might as well complain that all 50's doo-wop (or all 70's disco) sounds the same.
* Many pieces of the period exhibit formal musical structures, such as the marches of John Phillips Sousa. (Both Sousa and Joplin performed at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis.) Actually, Joplin is responsible for extending the formal boundaries of ragtime to concert waltzes (Bethena) and opera (A Guest of Honor, Treemonisha)
* This is probably one of the few collections which will include selections from "Treemonisha". It is my understanding that after the initial release, one of Joplin's descendants made a copyright claim that was upheld in court. (I presume the issue was that Joplin had to finance "Treemonisha" himself, and therefore the customary performance clearances did not cover those selections.)

For ragtime students and enthusiasts, this is a "must-have" collection at a very affordable price.

A dis-service to Joplin.......2006-02-01

Sadly, the only virtue this set possesses is completeness.

The pianist does not play Joplin's pieces "as written", the piano is of poor quality, and not properly in tune.

This is emphatically NOT the set to buy. A far better set, beautifully annotated and well played on a good concert grand piano, is the complete works played by Guido Nielsen on the Basta Label.

This set is a dis-service to Joplin and his music. He deserves better, and gets it elsewhere.

Unique .......2004-10-19

I have several cd sets of Joplin's music: Rifkin, Arpo, Nielsen, and Zimmerman. All have their excellent qualities. What sets Zimmerman's set apart is the inclusion of excerpts from Joplin's opera, Treemonisha---especially "A Real Slow Drag." Why the other sets do not include excerpts from Treemonisha, I don't know---because they are some of his most beautiful and joyful pieces of music. Of course, you can hear the orchestrated version of Treemonisha in the Houston Grand Opera recording, and it is spectacular. But Zimmerman's piano version, especially of "A Real Slow Drag," is not to be missed.

Great set.......2001-10-16

I guess this will be a rather one sided review. I have been a fan of Scott Joplin since I first learned to play a piano.

I was shocked to see that one reviewer thought it all sounded the same. How silly. All of Frank Sinatra's music sounds like Frank Sinatra. All of Led Zeppelin sounds like Led Zeppelin. So, if the songs were drastically different, I would question if the same author composed them. As it is, though, each song on this set is fantastic!!

I don't know that I have heard of Richard Zimmerman, and I was a little leary as to what I would be getting, I certainly was impressed. Without a doubt the best renditions of "Weeping Willow" and "Bethena" I have heard, and at least a dozen songs I didn't know Joplin wrote.

Customer Reviews:

Exceptional sound and knowing interpretation.......2006-03-01

Jose Serebrier assisted Stokowski in their days with the American Symphony Orchestra, the memory and motivation for the coductor to record his mentor's version of "Pictures At An Exhibition" in up to date 21st century sound, coupled with a number of other Stoki specialties.

Aside from the more Russian sounding "Pictures", what I enjoyed most here were "Night on Bald Mountain", the "Khovanshchina" conglomeration and the symphonic synthesis on "Boris Godunov". This adds up to about 40 minutes of exciting Russian music delivered with gusto in great sound.

The Bournemouth Symphony hardly play like understated Englishmen in this recording, which will tear a hole in your speaker or knock some dishes off the shelves if you aren't careful with your volume or subwoofer controls when you first play this thing.

This 5.0 SACD is the real thing right from the first few notes of "Night On Bald Mountain" that begin the program. On my 5.1 surround sound system it about knocked down the walls of my house. It brings new definition to the term "demonstration recording"!

Not long ago I wrote a review of Stoki's last remaining CD of his version of "Pictures At An Exhibition" in his own orchestration and scoring. Stoki dropped two of the French paintings and made everything else sound Russian by emphasizing low strings and deemphasizing brilliant brass. Serebrier carried the memory of his mentor's work forward in this recroding, which is destined to wind up on some "best sounding CD of the year" lists.

Pictures, as a Revelation.......2005-11-12

This recording of "Pictures at an Exhibition" came on the radio today as I was waking up. I had not heard the Stokowski orchestration before (is it true that the principal clarinet of the Philadelphia Orchestra was his ghost orchestrator?) and it was a revelation. The tried-and-true Ravel instrumentation will never be replaced, but this is a "Pictures" from a distinctly different corner of the hall, and a welcome departure. Serebrier and Bournemouth perform with exemplary precision and freshness, digging in where Stokowski's excesses can withstand some enthusiastic wrangling. If you love this Mussorgsky and want to hear it with new ears, here's your chance.

Average customer rating:

Peaceful and calming for parents and children
Very Moving For the Soul Touches the heart
Breathtakingly Beautiful, but not for the musical snob...

The Mozart Variations

Manufacturer: Windham Hill Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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The Bach Variations: A Windham Hill Sampler
Adagio: A Windham Hill Collection
Different Mozart
Prayer: A Windham Hill Collection
The Impressionists: A Windham Hill Sampler

ASIN: B00000JH87
Release Date: 2000-04-04

Tracks:

The Magic Flute: 'So Must We Two Forever Part?'
4 Variations On Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
Theme From Symphony #40 -
Menuett #6
Exsultate Jubilate
Et In Carnatus Est - Mass In C Minor-
Adagio From The Piano Concerto #23
Allegro From The Serenade No. 13 'Eine Kleine Nachtmusic'
Adagio
Bird Catcher's Song (Der Vogelsanger) From The Magic Flute-
Motet 'Ave Verum Corpus' -
Allegretto
Andante From Sonata in F -
Adagio From The 'Dissonant' Quartet In C -

Amazon.com

Stately and subdued, Mozart Variations joins The Impressionists and Bach Variations as interpretive projects involving Windham Hill artists and a gathering of guest performers. The disc's overall mood is largely reverential, though its periodic departures from tradition are surprisingly successful. Mike Marshall's mandolin-driven "Allegro from the Serenade #13 'Eine Kleine Nachtmusic'" is a dignified charmer, and William Coulter's Celtic embellishments give "Theme from Symphony #40" a lively, unexpected spin. John Lee Sanders engineers perhaps the album's biggest left turn by applying a restrained soprano saxophone to "Et In Carnatus Est (from Mass in C Minor)." Arrangements that most effectively intertwine classical and contemporary influences: a lovely rendering of "Menuett #6" by pianist Liz Story and Paul McCandless's adaptation of "Motet 'Ave Verum Corpus'" for wind instruments and acoustic guitar. --Terry Wood

Customer Reviews:

Peaceful and calming for parents and children.......2001-03-15

We picked this up after sampling several of the cuts here at Amazon. We were interested in a way to introduce our 1+/- year old to classical music and add to our drive and naptime repertoire. We couldn't be happier with this CD. The variations reflect the enormous talent and creativity of those arranging and performing on the CD and underscore how timeless music can be! If you like Classical, Jazz, NewAge or Eclectic, this will fit well in your collection!

Very Moving For the Soul Touches the heart.......2000-07-24

I recommend This Album for everybody

Breathtakingly Beautiful, but not for the musical snob..........2000-05-13

Mark my words. This is one of the most beautiful recordings I have ever heard. This is NOT new age, so don't let the label fool you. These are thoughtful variations of some of the most recognized Mozart pieces performed by some of the best contemporary musicians on earth. Most are virtually unrecognizable except for the famously faithful themes running throughout. Lots of historic Windham Hill stable musicians are represented here, along with some hugely talented "guest" artists. The Turtle Island String Quartet, Liz Story, Mike Marshall, Paul McCandless and Michael Manring bring their usual excitement to everything they play, but my favorite piece has to be "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" by the L.A. Guitar Quartet. If their interpretation of this early Mozart doodle fails to draw an eye mist or a lung gasp, then you must be dead! This is too good to languish at the bottom of the Amazon pit. Buy this and live a little.

Average customer rating:

Magnificent performances of a singular composer.

Delius: Orchestral Works

Manufacturer: Teldec
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

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Frederick Delius: Orchestral Works
In a Summer Garden: The Music of Delius
Delius: Orchestral Works
Delius: On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring
Delius: Florida Suite RTvi/1; Pieces RTvi/19

ASIN: B00005MO9Y
Release Date: 2002-02-19

Tracks:

Paris: The Song Of A Great City
In A Summer Garden
Brigg Fair: An English Rhapsody
The Walk To The Paradise Garden
Two Pieces For Small Orchestra: On Hearing From The First Cuckoo In Spring
Two Pieces For Small Orchestra: Summer Night On The River

Customer Reviews:

Magnificent performances of a singular composer........2004-05-04

Frederick Delius (1862-1934) is often called an "English impressionist," a term which implies that he can be lumped together with Debussy or Ravel. But just as Debussy isn't Ravel and Ravel isn't Debussy, Delius is an artist unlike any other.

He has never been a world-renowned figure, and his music doesn't have the power or universality of Beethoven or Mozart, but for those who love Delius, he is one of the sublime creators in the history of music. I, for one, love his music, and these exemplary performances of some of his best-known works present this singular creative mind at his very best.

Delius has some superficial similarities to Debussy and Ravel, but his highly personal harmonic thinking and his penchant for subtle but pronounced melodies make his music among the most accessible and rewarding of any in the classical repertory. The titles of his pieces, from "In a Summer Garden" to "On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring," demonstrate his preoccupation with beauty and the evocation of nature. His work is subdued, quietly passionate, and immediate in its rewards. In Delius, refinement rather than hysteria is the defining element.

Tracks:

Overture
Lento, Ma Non Troppo
Gaily, But Not Quick
Cantilena
Vivace
Miss Melanie
Raf March Past
Very Slow
Maestoso; Alla Marcia Funebre
Fairly Slowly, But Evenly Flowing In Strict Time
Allegretto Rubato
Overture, Op.52
Fantasia On 'Greensleeves'
Country Dance: Allegretto E Leggiero
Burlesco: Allegro
Adagio
Sarabande: Maestoso
Bourree: Vivace
Rondo In A Flat
Allegro
Lento Moderato
Con Brio

Tracks:

March
Plymouth Hoe (A Nautical Overture)
Nelson's Column, Trafalgar Square
Tower Hill
The Horse Guards, Whitehall
Rotten Row
Covent Garden
Westminster
Knightsbridge March
No.1 Wheatly Processional
No.2 Constant Billy
No.4 Jockie To The Fair
No.5 Ladies Of Pleasure
No.6 Princess Royal
Malltraeth (Pastorale)
Cemaes (Scherzo)
March Of The Bowmen
City Of Lincoln March
Overture, Op.3
Londonderry Air

Tracks:

The Devil's Galop
Sailing By
High Adventure
The Watermill
Loch Laggan
Psalm 23 - CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL CHOIR
Southern Rhapsody
Ecce Homo - CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL CHOIR
Girls In Grey
Halcyon Days
March Glorious
An English Overture
Spitfire Prelude And Fugue
Carry On Suite
Carry On Up The Khyber
Andante Expressivo
The Dam Busters March
Tarka The Otter
The African Queen

Tracks:

Caramba
Two Interlinked French Melodies
Kanikani
Preambule
Barcarolle
Provencale
By The Sleepy Lagoon
A L'ombre D'un Buissonet
Triste Est Le ciel
Allons Gay
A Mountain Tune
Tambourin
Passepied
Sarabande
Farandole
Petite Promenade
Andante/Medium Beguine
Song Dance
Fado
Kolo
In The French Countryside
Carpet Dance
Slow Waltz
End Titles

Tracks:

Miniature Overture (Help!)
March (When I'm 64)
Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy (Can't Buy Me Love)
Arabian Dance (It's For You)
Chinese Dance (Ticket To Ride)
Dance Of The Reed Flutes (She Loves You)
Waltz Of The Flowers (From Me To You)
Pas De Deux (All My Loving)
Sarabande
The Reception
The Orgy (Rondo)
Danza Gaya
Scene 1
Malaguena (Vivace)
Habanera (Moderato)
Tango (Vivace)
The Hiring Fair
Carousing
Round Dance
Pas De Deux
Hornpipe
March
Doll's Dance
Round Dance
Bobby Shaftoe
The Keel Row
The 98th Jacks Listed!

Average customer rating:

Many worthy versions, at a good price

Voice Of Mozart
Various Artists
Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Voice of Puccini
The Voice of Verdi
The Voice of Opera
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ASIN: B00005UWKX
Release Date: 2002-01-15

Tracks:

The Magic Flute, K 620: Der Vogelfanger Bin Ich Ja - Mikael Melbye
The Magic Flute, K 620: Dies Bildnis Ist Bezaubernd Schon - Peter Schreier
The Magic Flute, K 620: Der Holle Rache Kocht In Meinem Herze - Luciana Serra
The Magic Flute, K 620: O Isis Und Osiris - Kurt Moll
The Magic Flute, K 620: Pa-Pa-Pa-Pa-Pa-Pa-Papagena - Cecilia Bartoli
The Abduction From The Seraglio, K 384: Welche Wonne, Welche Lust - Kathleen Battle
Il Re Pastore, K208: L'amero, Saro Costante - Angela Maria Blasi
Idomeneo, Re Di Creta, K366: Se Il Padre Perdei - Barbara Hendricks
Cosi Fan Tutte, K588: Soave Sia Il Vento - Jose Van Dam
La Clemenza Di Tito, K621: Ah, Perdona Al Primo Affetto - Lucia Popp
Don Giovanni, K527: Notte E Giorno Faticar - Gilles Cachemaille
Don Giovanni, K527: Madamina, Il Catalogo E Questo - Wladimiro Ganzarolli
Don Giovanni, K527: Ah! Fuggi Il Traditor! - Della Jones
Don Giovanni, K527: Dalla Sua Pace (k540a, Vienna Version) - Stuart Burrows
Don Giovanni, K527: Finch'han Dal Vino - Bryn Terfel
Don Giovanni, K527: Deh, Vieni Alla Finestra - Ingvar Wixell
Don Giovanni, K527: Il Mio Tesoro Intanto - Stuart Burrows
Don Giovanni, K527: Mi Tradi Quell'alma Ingrata (Vienna Version) - Dame Kiri Te Kanawa
Don Giovanni, K527: Don Giovanni, A Cenar Teco - Kristinn Sigmundsson

Tracks:

The Marriage Of Figaro, K492: Se Vuol Ballare, Signor Contino - Jose Van Dam
The Marriage Of Figaro, K492: Non So Piu - Teresa Berganza
The Marriage Of Figaro, K492: Non Piu Andrai - Samuel Ramey
The Marriage Of Figaro, K492: Voi Che Sapete - Frederica Von Stade
The Marriage Of Figaro, K492: Che Soave Zeffiretto - Lucia Popp
The Marriage Of Figaro, K492: Deh Vieni, Non Tardar - Cecilia Bartoli
Das Kinderspiel, K598 - Dalton Baldwin
Die Alte, K517 - Dalton Baldwin
Mass In C Minor, K427: Kyrie - Arleen Auger
Kommet Her, Ihr Frechen Sunder, K146 (317b) - Ann Murray
Mass In C Minor, K427: Gloria - The Winchester Cathedral Choir
Ave Verum Corpus In D, K618 - James Vivian
Vesperae Solennes De Confessore K339: Laudate Dominum - Emma Kirkby
Exsultate, Jubilate K165: Alleluia - Leontyne Price
Requiem In D Minor, K626: Intoitus - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Requiem In D Minor, K626: Dies Irae - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Requiem In D Minor, K626: Tuba Mirum - Robert Loyd
Requiem In D Minor, K626: Confutatis - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Requiem In D Minor, K626: Lacrimosa - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Customer Reviews:

Many worthy versions, at a good price.......2003-07-15

There are arguments aplenty about whether a listener can really appreciate an opera when its "Greatest Hits" are extracted. That argument applies in spades on a disc such as this, which goes for the big, big guns from some of the most delightful vocal music ever composed.

Nevertheless, there are many fine singers in here. This is no second-string collection of unknowns from Eastern Europe, though one of my favorite Mozart interpreters, Thomas Allen, is missing. And some of the versions included are relatively weak. But as a very reasonably priced introduction to Mozart's vocal music, this is quite listenable. Good tunes, good playing, usually fine singing, and a logical sequence makes this a tasty intro at a tasty price.

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