| 1. Virgen Morena |
| 2. Mente Rockera |
| 3. Pink Panther Theme |
| 4. Los Minusvalidos |
| 5. Piedras Rodantes |
| 6. Niño Sin Amor |
| 7. Dificil |
| 8. Cuando Tú No Estás |
| 9. Nostalgia |
| 10. Triste Canción |
| 11. Pobre Soñador |
| 12. Porre Sonados |
| 13. A.D.O. |
Sinfonico,El Tri,Wea Latina,Latin,Latin Music,Rock,Rock en Español
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Bella Tuscany: Music Inspired by Tuscany
Manufacturer: Telarc ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Similar Items:
ASIN: B000294RMQ Release Date: 2004-06-22 |
Tracks:
- O Mio Babino Caro - Erich Kunzel
- Quando M'en Vo' - Erich Kunzel
- Italiana - Jesus Lopez-Cobos
- Danza Rustica - Jesus Lopez-Cobos
- Sonate XIII - Empire Brass Quintet And Friends
- Allegro - Yolanda Kondonassis
- Allegro Non Molto - Yolanda Kondonassis
- The Nightengale - Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
- The Cuckoo - Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
- Siciliana - Angel Romero
- Che Gelida Manina - Fernando De La Mora
- Humming Chorus - May Festival Chorus
- Adagio - Angel Romero
- Allegro - Paul Patterson
- Di Provenza Il Mar, Il Suol - Erich Kunzel
- Intermezzo Sinfonico - Erich Kunzel
Customer Reviews:
Bella Bellisimo.......2007-07-07
Very nice collection of Italian classical repertoire.......2007-01-11
Beautiful.......2007-01-09
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Classics of the Silver Screen
Manufacturer: Telarc ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Similar Items:
ASIN: B000003CW7 Release Date: 1990-07-13 |
Tracks:
- Hot To Trot
- Ordinary People - Pachelbel
- The Witches Of Eastwick
- Eine kleine Nachtmusik Serenade In G Major, K.525: Amadeus & The Wiches Of Eastwick - Allegro
- Barry Lyndon
- My Geisha
- Somewhere In Time
- Moonstruck
- Raging Bull
- Who Framed Roger Rabbit? - Friska
- Driving Miss Daisy
- Elvira Madigan
- Diva
- Kramer Vs. Kramer
- Brief Encounter & More
- A Room With A View
- The Elephant Man & Platoon
Customer Reviews:
Kunzel A Consistent Winner.......2007-07-12
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Dreaming
Andre Rieu Manufacturer: Denon Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Similar Items:
ASIN: B00006LSPB Release Date: 2002-11-05 |
Tracks:
- Ballade
- My Heart Will Go On - Theme to 'Titanic'
- Sous Les Ciel De Paris (The Sky of Paris)
- Autumn in Venice
- Granada
- Marino Waltz
- Kirmesliebe
- Yeux Noires
- Send In the Clowns
- True Love
- Moon River from 'Breakfast at Tiffany's'
- Edelweiss from 'The Sound of Music'
- Lost Heroes
- The Blue Danube Waltz
- Greensleeves
- Adagio (Albinoni)
- Intermezzo (Mascagni)
- Lullaby (Brahms)
Customer Reviews:
The Most Beautiful Music In The World.......2007-06-25
beautiful universe where it is rather difficult to return to normal everyday life.
Dreaming with peace.......2007-02-10
Dreamy is how you feel.......2003-01-15
Too Dreamy.......2002-12-28
Same old soup warmed over.......2002-12-25
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Mascagni: Cavalleria Rusticana / Herbert von Karajan
Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Similar Items:
ASIN: B000031WYP Release Date: 2000-01-11 |
Tracks:
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Preludio - Siciliana
- Cavalleria Rusticana: O Lola ch'hai di latti la cammisa
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Tempo I
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Allegro giocoso
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Gli aranci olezzano
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Largo
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Dite, mamma Lucia...
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Il cavallo scalpita
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Beato voi, compar Alfio
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Regina coeli laetare
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Inneggiamo
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Voi lo saoete, o mamma
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Tu qui, Santuzza?
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Fior di giaggiolo
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Ah! lo vedi!
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Oh! il Signore vi manda
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Comare Santa
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Intermezzo sinfonico
- Cavalleria Rusticana: A casa, a casa
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Viva il vino spumeggiante
- Cavalleria Rusticana: A voi tutti salute!
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Mamma, quel vino e generoso
Customer Reviews:
Makes a Masterpiece out of Cavalleria.......2006-04-22
Karajan's restrained, wagnerian-influenced aproach is the apropriate way to interpret this opera!
The problem lies with the execution of Karajan's(/Mascagni's? ) vision, which demands a very able tenor, with perfect italian and flexibility of a lyric tenor together with the long breath of a heldentenor.
Such a tenor was found - Carlo Bergonzi.
Another important decision is who shall sing the part of Santuzza.
I think that a dramatic soprano/mezzo is the most effective.
Mezzo-soprano Fiorenza Cossotto as Santuzza is an excellent choice.
She sings beautifully without ever yelling, crying or screaming, but still with a certain dramatic impact.
The fact that she's a mezzo and not a soprano is also an advantage, for there are many low notes which should have dramatic strength many sopranos don't posses.
Nevertheless, she has no problem with the high notes either, and she could have easily developed into a fine dramatic soprano, but then we would have lost the greatest mezzo of the century.
Still, I would love to find a recording of her portraying a wagnerian role.
The rest of the cast is good, Allegri and Martino have beautiful voices and Guelfi is an apropriately violent Alfio.
The Chorus and Orchestra of La-Scala are the best.
Is there anything more to ask for?
Beautiful opera, but recording volume too extreme..........2006-01-02
The volume extremes make it essentially impossible to listen to and enjoy. Listening in my car (a Jaguar XJ12), if the volume is loud enough to hear the softer portions, then when the louder portions arrive, I'm nearly scared into having an accident. I think my point is important to consider because nowadays about the only place you can listen to opera is in a car.
I'm online now to buy a different recording.
Wonderful...look no further.......2004-12-10
The singers, however, are paired with one of my favourite conductors of all time. Herbert von Karajan has been criticised for making his music "too beautiful". Well, for me there can be no such thing. His conducting here is typically sensitive and his devotion to the singers was just pure genius. The chorus is excellent and their hymn with Santuzza goes the full way in making the audience sympathetic to the circumstances leading to her drastic actions.
So we come to Santuzza. Fiorenza Cossotto is one of those singers who give it her all. You hear it in her voice. She can rise, soar and float her notes like a warm current as well as stop your world with her chest register. Naturally, she excels in both mezzo and soprano roles. Not to eclipse her esteemed art, I would concur that she is every bit as astounding as the great Simionato.
Allegri's Mama Lucia seems an improvement over all the others I've heard. Not a wobbly, fruity note in sight, yet not the sort of melo-drama to leave you feeling overindulged. Her "Aiutateci noi..." for example, feels genuinely 'winded'- like someone who has heard the sort of new to make her quietly sit down. To complete the female protagonists, Martino's Lola made me applaud the CD-player as if it were a live performance! There she came along, singing sweetly, only to be caught unawares...in other words, the vocal acting and singing were excellent. BUT it get's better. The exchange with Santuzza (and here Cossoto deserves even more high praise) builds to an electrifying tension that gets released in sheer genius: Martino's "Io me ne vado"! I dare you not to laugh at the cat-fight metaphor when you listen to it!!
Bergonzi has always been a reliable tenor for me...in fact, perhaps more than that. While I can't claim that he was particularly amazing, he was amazing nonetheless. His Turridu is faultless...I only wish I hadn't heard Bjorling! But these should not be reasons to under-rate a great singer. Once again, Bergonzi gives a wholly Italian and aesthetically appealing performance. Nowhere is this more apparent than the cavatina at the beginning.
Finally, Guelfi's Alfio, with his resonant, secure baritone, is simply dashing. He colours his voice superbly (e.g., "Io me ne vado").
This is for me a first choice.
wangerian verismo.......2004-07-20
The Best Cavalleria Rusticana Recording Ever!.......2003-10-18
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Sinfonico, Vol. 2
El Tri Manufacturer: Warner Music Latina ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Similar Items:
ASIN: B00005NG3T Release Date: 2007-03-02 |
Tracks:
- San Juanico
- El Blues De La Llanta
- Oye Cantinero
- Perdedor
- Nunca Digas Que No
- Ya Estamos Hartos
- Millones De Ninos
- Todo Me Sale Mal
- Parece Facil
- Esclavo Del Rocanrol
- Negro Como Tu Conciencia
- Amnesia
- La Raza Mas Chida
Customer Reviews:
Classic El Tri.......2001-11-22
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Puccini: Messa di Gloria/Preludio Sinfonico/Crisantemi - Roberto Alagna, Thomas Hampson, Antonio Pappano, London Symphony Orchestra & Chorus
Manufacturer: EMI Classics ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Similar Items:
ASIN: B000GEU6E0 Release Date: 2006-08-01 |
Tracks:
- Preludio Sinfonico
- Kyrie
- Gloria In Excelsis Deo- Et In Terra Pax - Laudamus Te
- Gratias Agiumus Tibi
- Gloria in Excelsis Deo - Dominus Deus, Rex Coelestis
- Qui Tolis Peccata Mundi -
- Quoniam Tu Solus Sanctus
- Cum Sancto Spiritu In Gloria Dei Patris - Gloria In Excelsis Deo Credo
- Credo In Unum Deum
- Et Incarnatus Est
- Crucifixus Etiam Pro Nobis
- Et Resurrexit Tertia Die - Et In Spiritum Sanctum
- Et In Unam Sanctam Catholicam -
- Et Exspecto Resurrectionem - Et Vitam Venturi Saeculi
- Sanctus, Sanctus Sanctus. Dominus Deus Sabaoth
- Benedictus Qui Venit In Nomine Domini
- Agnus Dei
- For String Orchestra
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Karajan Forever: The Greatest Classical Hits
Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Similar Items:
ASIN: B00008CLNO Release Date: 2003-06-10 |
Tracks:
- Spring - Michel Schwalbe
- Adagio In G Minor For Strings And Organ - Leon Spierer
- Valese
- Menuetto
- Morning Mood
- Valse Triste
- Symphony No. 40 In G Minor, K. 550 (Molto Allegro)
- Symphony No. 9 'From The New World' In E Minor
- Intermezzo
- 'Carmen' Suite, Prelude I (Allegro Giocoso)
- Bolero (Conclusion)
- 'The Sleeping Beauty', Valse
- 'La Traviata', Prelude To Act III
- Symphony No. 3 'Organ', In C Minor (Finale) - Pierre Cochereau
Tracks:
- 'Also Sprach Zarathustra' (Introduction)
- 'Cavalleria Rusticana', Intermezzo Sinfonico - Wolfgang Meyer
- Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (Allegro)
- Swan Lake, Suite Op. 20, Scene 1 (Swan Theme) - Michel Schwalbe
- An Der Schonen, Blauen Donau
- Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 In G Major (1rst Movement)
- Meditation - Michel Schwalbe
- Badinerie From Suite No. 2 In B Minor - Karlheinz Zoeller
- Barcarolle From 'La Gaiete Parisienne'
- Piano Concerto No. 1 In B Flat Minor (Ex. 1rst Movement) - Lazar Berman
- Adagietto From Symphony No. 5
- Symphonie Classique (Finale. Molto Vivace)
- Dance Of Teh Blessed Spirits From 'Orpheus And Eurydice - Karlheinz Zoeller
- Danse De La Fee Dragee
- Valse Des Fleurs
Customer Reviews:
Classical music CD for everyone.......2007-01-09
Quality, and a superb selection of masterpieces.
A must have for classical music lovers, and for everyone who wants to get introduced to classical music.
... in a nutshell.......2006-09-08
It also contains probably the best short essay on what Herbert von Karajan was all about by Axel Bruggemann, that I have ever read. A CD or two of the "Adagio" set by this conductor (also on DG) may be a nice supplement too, otherwise you can't really go wrong with this two-disc set at a fairly affordable price.
Karajan Forever: The "Eternal" Classical Music Album.......2005-09-26
The second disc opens with a masterful version of the powerfully evocative Also Sprach Zarathustra by Richard Strauss, another Austrian composer Karajan championed. The Swan Theme from Swan Lake is on here, as well as the Viennese Waltz favorite On the Beautiful Blue Danube- something I didn't know Karajan even conducted. But being Austrian, I'm not surprised. Karajan even conducted Johann Strauss' Die Fledermaus as well as other waltzes. Back to Baroque, he continues with the Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 by Bach and the gorgeous and somewhat gloomy Dance of the Blessed Spirits from Orpheus and Eurydice by Gluck. The CD ends with the elegant and beautiful Waltz of the Flowers from Tchaikovsky's Nutracker. This is a must have for fans of classical music, as a lot of favorites are on here.
Meditation!.......2003-07-20
Herbert VonKarajan was the conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic from 1955 until his demise in 1989. His vision & helmsmanship of this magnificent orchestra have literally changed the way a whole generation heard music.
In this 2 CD collection, DG has kind of done a Greatest Hits. Everything from the Four Seasons by Vivaldi to Opera Overtures, Ballet Themes and Piano Concertos. There is truly something for everyone on this CD, but being an opera fan, 2 of my favorites are on disc 2. The Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana and the Meditation from Thais. This music simply transports the listener to another place and time. The Philharmonic is so in sync- so one that it is hard to believe how huge they really are. I can wholeheartedly recommend this CD without reservation. And it's a steal at $... for 2 new CDs. For more information on this CD & others in a line paying tribute to Maestro VonKarajan, go to his website: karajan.org
Enjoy!
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Nicolas Flagello: Piano Concerto No. 1; Dante's Farewell; Concerto Sinfonico
Manufacturer: Naxos American ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Similar Items:
ASIN: B000FGGKIU Release Date: 2006-06-20 |
Customer Reviews:
Great music, variable performances........2006-12-06
The performances range from Williams, Rankovich, and the Ukrainians' stellar to a fairly scrappy Concerto Sinfonico. Dante's Farewell, despite a superb musically- and textually-sensitive soloist (Susan Gonzalez) falls short, due I think to nothing more complicated than bad microphone placement (Gonzalez sounds too far forward and the orchestra too flat).
Still, one of my discs of the year.
"A" Material from Flagello.......2006-08-07
The low price and interesting sounding program that originally attracted me to this disc did not prepare me for the high quality of the music's content, the vitality and commitment of the performances, and the sweet fullness of the recorded sound. There's an odd bonus of a painting by Flagello on the cover depicting the Amalfi Coast that looks eerily like the view of Toledo by El Greco.
The 29-minute Piano Concerto No. 1 has a pleasing similarity to the soundworld of Sam Barber's (much later) Piano Concerto, only Barber's is more dissonant. Flagello wrote two more piano concertos after this one, and, good as they are, they are not nearly so striking as his first. And this is a student composition, Flagello's first large-scale work. If most college degree requirement music aims at presenting forward looking musical ideas within a traditional, accessible context, this little baby must have knocked his professors' socks off. Bold, confident writing for the piano is combined with a sureness of hand in the orchestration that is nothing short of remarkable. Serbian/American pianist Tatjana Rankovich has already recorded Flagello's 2nd and 3rd concertos and some of his solo piano music. Her playing in this recording is mostly exemplary, although I could have wished for a bit better articulation in some runs about 11 minutes into the piece. And that horn solo in the second movement could have been a bit more in tune. Quibbles, really; pay no attention to my whining.
The second piece, the 14-minute "Dante's Farewell" for Soprano and Orchestra, is a tightly packed setting of a portion of an English-language monologue by Joseph Tusiani about Dante leaving his wife for his final trip to Rome, never to return. The dread and resignation mixed with moments of transcendent beauty are reminiscent of Mahler's final "Lied von der Erde," "The Farewell." Susan Gonzalez, who sang the premiere, is a bit too closely mic'd for my complete comfort and winds up sounding a bit harsh at times, but she's spot on in interpretation. The NRSO, Ukraine, under J.M. Williams gives us a scintillating performance of Anthony Sbordini's idiomatic orchestration produced from Flagello's short score.
For the final work on the CD, the 23-minute Concerto Sinfonico for Sax Quartet and Orchestra, Naxos switches to the Rutgers SO under Kynan Johns. Their strings are occasionally a little weak when exposed, but they deliver a convincing, full-bodied performance nonetheless of this long dark Nachtmusik of the soul. Flagello uses the sax quartet as Ralph Vaughan-Williams might, leaving the jazz ethos far behind and concentrating on exploiting their timbre in a completely classical context, where they sound ominous but luminous.
Sometimes it's hard to choose from the "trunkload" of titles available in Naxos' American Classics series of CDs. This should be an easy one to say "yes" to.
Gorgeous stuff.......2006-07-25
By the way, if you don't have any of Williams' other recordings on Naxos be sure to check them out - he is one of the top interpreters of American 20th C. music around. I would love to hear him conducting some of the top-tier American orchestras.
Flagello's "Film-Noir" Concerto.......2006-06-30
Producer Walter Simmons has arranged the program in chronological order, starting with Flagello's graduation piece, his Piano Concerto No. 1 (1950), played here by Tatjana Rankovich (keyboard) and the National Radio Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine, who, by the way, grasp Flagello's big-muscled Gotham-City idiom like natives to the subway and skyscrapers born. The Ukrainians have the benefit, both in the Concerto and in "Dante's Farewell" (1962), of an American conductor, John McLaughlin Williams, who also seems to have imbibed Flagello into his bones and marrow. Flagello understood what a Twentieth Century neo-romantic piano concerto in the manner of Rachmaninov or Prokofiev is supposed to do: make big, cinematic gestures and "tell a conflict-story" musically. Flagello's Concerto does just this, especially in its large-scale opening movement. Only twenty-two when he composed the work, the Flagello the novice composer naturally exhibits what critics like to call influences. I hear the Russian keyboard composers, certainly, but I also hear Ernest Bloch (Concerto Symphonique) and Alexander Scriabin (Divine Poem), the latter especially in a trumpet-solo about halfway through the movement. An imbalance between the first movement, which clocks in at fifteen minutes, and the two others, which together do not quite add up to fifteen minutes, mars the Concerto, but in an odd way this flaw actually vindicates the first movement. Having drawn listeners into his persuasive esthetic "duration," he then lets them down a bit by failing to sustain the grandness of his architecture. One wants more from the finale than one gets; one wants what one gets in spades in the first movement. It is exciting music throughout even so.
"Dante's Farewell" (1962) is a cantata of sorts for soprano and orchestra, unperformed in Flagello's lifetime and left by him in piano short-score only. For the purpose of the present recording, composer Anthony Sbordini, thoroughly steeped in Flagello's sense of instrumentation, has orchestrated the score. The cantata sets a poem concerning the Thirteenth-Century Florentine poet's flight-in-exile from his native city, where a rival political faction had seized the polity and was exercising its power of vendetta on various notables. The winners, it seems, write not only the history books, but also the residence permits. "Dante's Farewell" has something in common with vocal-orchestral works by Gian Carlo Menotti, Charles Koechlin, and Flagello's older New York compatriot Vittorio Giannini; what Flagello has fashioned corresponds to a hybrid of dramatic "scena" in the Eighteenth-Century manner and symphonic poem in the Nineteenth Century manner. An ambitious soprano might make a stunner of a concert-program by pairing "Dante's Farewell" with Menotti's "Orfeo," Koechlin's "Sommeil de Canope," or Giannini's "Medead." The musical language of "Dante's Farewell" resembles that of the last: it is heavily chromatic and expressionist in idiom although it is not quite so rabid or strenuous a work as "Medead." Vocal soloist Susan Gonzalez does a fine job of enunciating the words. The Ukrainians again play in good form.
The cynosure of this program must be the Concerto Sinfonico, a score that proves that non-serial music can be as effectively haunted and surreal as anything by Schoenberg or Berg in their respective avant-garde moods. Other composers have written concerted works for the saxophone. Ingolf Dahl and Henry Brant both honored the instrument. Fewer have composed for saxophone quartet and orchestra, but this daunting task Flagello undertook at the end of his life while heroically resisting the onset of a dementia-producing affliction. A masterly work on a large scale, the Concerto Sinfonico achieves the effective balance among its three movements of which the Piano Concerto No. 1 falls short. The adjective "symphonic" in this score's Italianate title accurately describes it: this is more a symphony with soloists than a standard display concerto. (It nevertheless calls for devilishly accomplished solo players.) The first movement had me thinking, as I listened to it, of early 1950s "films-noirs," with their paranoid scenes of nocturnal big-city pursuit down seedy alleyways in Skid Row. Flagello has assimilated jazz-syncopations and jazz-like melody into this complex, contrapuntal, and constantly emotionally shifting movement. In the 1960s, they would have compared this music to the nightmare of a bad acid trip. The four saxophones constitute a single "super-soloist" whose raucous and reedy instrumental color contrasts strongly with the monochrome of the string-and-tympani-dominated orchestral background. (There are also a few woodwinds, but I do not think that my ears detected any brass; to extend the cinematic metaphor, imagine that this is indeed a black-and-white "tough guy" film with only the doomed protagonist appearing in subdued sepia-like color.) The middle movement offers some relief from the high tension, only to yield again to the atmosphere of a lethal chase in the fury-goaded finale. The members of the New Hudson Saxophone Quartet join with the Rutgers Symphony Orchestra, once more under the commanding baton of Maestro Williams.
The Concerto Sinfonico is a real "find." If I were a classical-music disc jockey, I would program it during the ten-to-midnight slot on a Saturday late evening, sandwiching it between (let us say) George Rochberg's equally maniacal Second Symphony and Miklos Rosza's paranoid score for "The Lost Weekend." I might read some paragraphs from Franz Kafka in between just to ratchet up the Angst. As Naxos has been restoring to circulation some CDs from the discontinued Koch line of American music, maybe its powers will see their way to reissuing Flagello's Martin Luther King Requiem. That would be nice for music-lovers. But buy this disc now!
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Puccini - Messa di Gloria / Alagna, Hampson, Pappano
Manufacturer: EMI Classics ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Similar Items:
ASIN: B00005KGZQ Release Date: 2001-09-11 |
Tracks:
- Andante Mosso
- Kyrie
- Gloria: Gloria In Excelsis Deo - In Terra Pax - Laudamus Te
- Gratias Agimus Tibi
- Gloria In Excelsis Deo - Dominus Deus, Rex Coelestis
- Qui Tollis Peccata Mundi -
- Quoniam Tu Solus Sanctus
- Cum Sancto Spiritu In Gloria Dei Patri - Gloria In Excelsis Deo
- Credo In Unum Deum
- Et Incarnatus Est
- Crucifixus Etiam Pro Nobis
- Et Resurrexit Tertia Die - Et In Spiritum SAnctum
- Et Unam Sanctam Catholicam
- Et Expecto Resurrectionem - Et Vitam Venturi Saeculi
- Sanctus Dominus Deus Sabaoth
- Benedictus Qui Venit In Nomine Domini
- Agnus Dei
- Crustantemi For String Orchestra (Andante Mesto)
Amazon.com
Roberto Alagna and Antonio Pappano are two-thirds of the EMI triumvirate (corresponding member, Angela Gheorghiu), which has done well by Puccini on previous discs. Although this one steps outside the operatic canon into the lesser margins of the composer's output, it's all done so eloquently you forget how undistinguished the material sometimes is. Pappano and the London Symphony Orchestra are clearly in the middle of a love affair and seem to understand each other's every move. Alagna sails through his three sections, making slightly heavy weather of the "Gratias with worrying signs of a widening vibrato, but happy enough in the oddly amiable Agnus Dei" duet with Thomas Hampson. Ffor a good example of the current all-round health of the LSO after several years of conservative core-repertory craft under its chief conductor, Colin Davis, listen to how beautifully the strings phrase the enlarged string quartet movement Crisantemi, which, together with the Preludio sinfonico, makes a welcome filler. --Michael WhiteCustomer Reviews:
A New Addition to My Favorites List.......2007-02-19
Close but no bass.......2005-08-20
Astounding!.......2002-07-21
A GLORIOUS ALBUM.......2001-12-23
Often described as the London Symphony Orchestra's "secret weapon," conductor Antonio Pappano is a sublime interpreter of Puccini. Soloists for this album could not be more splendid - tenor Robert Alagna, and vaunted baritone Thomas Hampson.
Conductor and singing super stars are a dynamic trio who have rendered an incomparable recording, richly textured with dramatic voice.
Early but by no means lesser Puccini.......2001-10-17
It certainly doesn't hurt that the young Puccini has such an ardent and sympathetic champion as Antonio Pappano. As he proved in the recording of 'La Rondine' he conducted, he has the gift of making 'minor' Puccini sound like major Puccini. He is the finest conductor this composer has had in at least 20 years, and is well on his way to genuine greatness. He has a very strong rapport with the London Symphony Orchestra, and is that rare conductor who can keep a tight rein on proceedings without damping expression or individuality. Not only am I eager to hear his upcoming 'Tosca' recording with Angela Gheorghiu and Roberto Alagna, I cannot wait to hear him conduct purely symphonic, non-vocal repertory.
It is no surprise that one of Puccini's first compositions was a mass, since he came from a very long line of church composers. The 'Messa di Gloria' is a somewhat grandiose misnomer for this piece - Puccini himself referred to it as the 'Messa di Quatro Voce' ('Mass for Four Voices'). While I admit to being no expert, I think this is one of the 'lightest' settings of the mass I have ever heard. The overall feeling is of tenderness (especially in the 'Kyrie') warmth, and cheerfulness, although there are some moments of high drama in the 'Credo'. I also noticed that the 'Sanctus' is a bit more subdued than in other composers' settings. Obviously, Verdi is a major influence here. At its climax, the 'Gloria' sounds like a lighter, jollier version of the 'Dies irae' from his 'Requiem'. The 'Qui tollis' reminds one of first of the 'Miserere' and then 'Va, pensiero', and the bass choral part with horns that begins 'Et expecto resurrectionem' is identical to the opening chords of 'Rigoletto'. And Puccini later recycled melodies from this work into some of his operas - the 'Kyrie' into 'Edgar' and the 'Agnus Dei' into the 'Madrigal' in 'Manon Lescaut'. I do think that the 'Agnus Dei', and the work as a whole, ends a bit abruptly. Still, I think the 'Messa di Gloria' deserves more performances, and I hope to sing it myself one day.
The London Symphony Chorus does a splendid job. Roberto Alagna and Thomas Hampson also do fine work in their solos and the 'Agnus Dei' duet, Alagna's melancholy heroism contrasting with Hampson's sweet elegance. However, I think Alagna's approach is a bit heavy for the cheerier sentiments of this piece, notably 'Gratias agimus tibi', and it might have worked even better with a brighter, more lightweight tone. He is also not entirely comfortable with some of the upward and downward octave leaps, and I suspect a few small things (including some minor mispronunciations) could have been corrected with more recording time. Perhaps I am being overly picky about what is basically a very good performance, but because I have such a high opinion of Alagna, especially under his 'musical brother' Pappano, I expect to be dazzled.
Even more valuable than the mass itself are the two 'bookends' which the rival recording on Erato does not include. It does not hurt that Pappano works some major wonders with the LSO string section. The 'Preludio Sinfonico', which is actually the loveliest work on the disc, is a deeply moving piece of nostalgia, and this team brings out all its sweetness and warmth. It reminds me a little of the intermezzo from 'Cavalleria Rusticana' at the beginning, but there are also echoes of the 'Lohengrin' overture, and the liner notes suggest Massenet's 'Esclarmonde', which I am not familiar with. The main melody, however, is definitely Puccini. Only the rather abrupt buildup to and letdown from the climax might possibly signal this as a student work, and Pappano softens the edges of this to the point where it isn't that noticeable. 'Cristantemi' is the most 'mature' selection on the disc, very dark and melancholy. It was written when Puccini was 32 (he claimed in one night), as an elegy for a man he admired. And we have another theme that gets recycled into 'Manon Lescaut', this one for the dying Manon in Act IV. Although this final version is for string orchestra, Pappano gives it the grace and delicacy of the string quartet it originally was.
The documentation includes an essay on the works, full texts (although the line 'sub Pontio Pilato' is missing from 'Crucifixus') and translations, all in French and German as well as English, plus photos of Alagna and Hampson. Unfortunately no biographies of any of the artists, and the cover photograph isn't entirely flattering to Pappano, who is actually quite a nice-looking fellow.
Unfortunately, I will forever have an association with this music and this CD that I hope no one else will ever have - it is what I was listening to when I found out about the destruction of the World Trade Center. But music has extraordinary healing power, and this CD is playing a major part in my emotional recovery, particularly the sweet, yearning strings of the 'Preludio Sinfonico'. For this, I will always be grateful to Maestro Pappano and his forces, and, of course, to Giacomo Puccini.
Average customer rating:
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Romantic Adagio: Karajan
Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Similar Items:
ASIN: B000001GS6 Release Date: 1997-01-28 |
Tracks:
- Cavalleria Rusticana: Intermezzo sinfonico
- The Tales Of Hoffmann: Barcarolle
- Romeo And Juliet: Love Theme
- Les Sylphides: Nocturne
- Eine kleine Nachtmusik: Romance
- Vltava (The Moldau)
- Scheherazade: The Young Prince And The Young Princess
- Coppelia: Ballad
- From Holberg's Time: Sarabande
- Serenade For String Orchestra: Moderato
- Carmen: Entr'acte III
- Tristan And Isolde: Isoldes Liebestod - Wagner
Customer Reviews:
The Best Of Karajan At A Cheap Price! Wow!.......2005-08-15
The music included here is the moving and very Italianate Intermezzo from the opera Cavalleria Rusticana by Mascagni. Karajan really delivers here and is a fine first track to begin with. It's followed by the elegantly-executed Barcarolle, complete with nocturnal and watery modes from the Offenbach opera, The Tales of Hoffman. The Love Theme from the Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture by Tchaikovsky is priceless music and Tchaikovsky really steps up the emotional impact of the work. More charming and genteel phrasing is used in the music for the ballet Les Sylphides, with music from Chopin arranged for orchestra and for the Romanza in Mozart's Eine Kleine Nachtmusik.
I have never heard the true "Moldau" by Smetana until I heard it here. Under Karajan's baton, the river comes alive and the journey is much more compelling. The theme for the Young Prince and Princess from Rimsky-Korsakov's "Scheherazade" is simply gorgeous, full of romantic Russian-ism. Karajan takes us to the time of Holberg in Grieg's Holberg Suite in a fine interpretation of the Sarabande. Karajan conducting Dvorak's String Serenade in E major is noble. The final tracks are perhaps the most musically masterful, eventhough all the previous pieces were well-executed even if they are not bigger in scope. The Carmen music- Overture and Preludes are remarkable. Karajan is in fine form and the music is crisp, powerful and colorful. Karajan knew Carmen. How this proudly Austrian man knew how to bring out the magnetism of a French piece like Carmen is beyond me. He in fact conduced the best Carmen performances at the Salzburg Festival, the ones with Grace Bumbry and Jon Vickers in the late 60's.
Finally, the last piece is the Liebestod, the Finale from Wagner's great opera Tristan and Isolde. Now, if anything, get this cheap album for that !! You have not heard the Liebestod until you've heard it conducted by Karajan. In this recording, he is already a seasoned conductor with years of experience since his young conductor days in the 30's and 40's. Judging ffrom the cover in which his hair is white and his face is wrinkled I can discern this is a probably an 80's recording when he was in his old age (because Karajan began seriously recording for labels in the 80's most people assumed he was always white-haired). His interpretation of the Liebestod is powerful, and deeply spiritual, withou sounding affected or melodramatic. He is in full control of the music. He knew Wagner through the music. Isolde's final aria has been likened to an orgasm or to a spiritual transformation by music scholars. Karajan brings out every bit of this theory in his rendition. A young Karajan conducting the Liebestod is harder to find, but its probably preferable to go with this version since by this time he knew the Liebestod inside and out. It's breathtaking and climatic. It's the best piece of music ever and the best of Karajan's repertoire.
WONDERFUL COLLECTION................2002-03-13
MUSIC WRITTEN. HERBERT VON KARAJAN IS AT HIS USUAL BEST. THIS IS A GREAT CD TO READ BY OR JUST SIT AND LISTEN TOO. I HIGHLY
RECOMMEND IT...
Enchanting!.......2001-01-11
A music lover's dream.......2000-04-30
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