Fodder Song [CD-single]

Fodder Song [CD-single]

Track Listings

1. Words (Of the Dying)

2. Crawl

3. Fodder Song

4. Blind Head [*]

Tracks:

No.1 Arietta
No.2 Waltz
No.6 Norwegian Melody
No.5 Folk Melody
No.8 Canon
No.6 Elegy
No.7 Waltz
No.3 Melody
No.3 March Of The Trolls
No.4 Notturno
No.2 Gade
No.3 Illusion
No.6 Homesickness
No.6 Homeward
No.4 The Brook
No.5 Phantom
No.1 Sylph
No.5 Cradle Song
No.6 Wedding Day At Troldhaugen
No.4 Evening In The Mountains
No.3 At Your Feet
No.2 Summer Evening
No.6 Gone
No.7 Remembrances

Amazon.com

Grieg's 66 Lyric Pieces range from simple pretty tunes like the early "Arietta" that opens this disc to more extended pieces like the dashing "Wedding Day at Troldhaugen" to impressionistic miniature tone poems like the late "Summer Evening." Here, Andsnes plays 24 of them, well-chosen to cover a representative selection from the complete sets. He plays them beautifully, with a lovely tone, virtuoso polish when such is called for, as in the express ride of "March of the Trolls," and poetic depth of feeling, as in "The Brook," where in his interpretation you can almost smell the grass and see the light ripples of the water. Gilels's selection on DG, with minimum overlap, is still unmatched, but Andsnes's well-recorded recital is a source of endless pleasures. Of added interest, the recording was made at Grieg's home, now a museum, on his 1892 Steinway. --Dan Davis

Customer Reviews:

Andsnes the piano man.......2007-01-08

Just finished listening to the disc and very pleased - lots of light and airy works some towards the end are very *soft* with surprising CRESENDOS at the end to wake u up! Another super disc to add to the andsnes collection !

Sensitive modern pianism.......2006-01-19

Borrowing a phrase from the contemporary political philosopher Fukuyama a case can be made that the world of classical piano music has reached "the end of history". This notion is based on the often heard idea that it only takes two clicks to get superior performances of any piece worth recording at home and that this part of the universe has reached a state of completion. Add to that the ongoing decline in the appreciation of "classical" music and its economic repercussions and you end up thinking twice before advising your children to pursue a career in this field of employment.

Yet, while a catalog with Horowitz' Scarlatti, Gould's Bach, Kempff Schubert, Bolet's Liszt, Pollini's Chopin, Michelangeli's Schumann, Gieseking's Debussy, Schnabel's Beethoven, Casadesus' Ravel, Seeman's Mozart and Backhaus' Brahms has set historic standards that are hard to equal or surpass, a cd of standard regularly performed repertoire like this one refutes any fear that we have reached the day that the music died.

For starters, piano technique has significantly improved over the last 25 years. Likely due to the standards that the aforementioned pianists set, the next generation is of superior dexterity. While I grew up in times that Horowitz' performances of Liszt, his own Carmen Fantasy and Stars and Stripes transcriptions, and Gould's highly articulate light speed Bach were considered supernatural phenomena, these times are long past. And although the former's sense of tone and the latter's feel for counterpoint may not yet have found their match, most participants in any of the endless number of competitions have basic skills that are just as high and in many cases repertoires that are much wider.

Before coming to the review of this disc, one more personal side note. Since the piano is an instrument that anyone with two functional hands can master to such a degree that quite a number of masterpieces in the repertoire are within reach, I expect recordings to reflect technical mastery. As such, I do not belong to the group of those pianophiles who consider Fischer's Bach "acceptable", Cortot's Chopin "monumental" and Horowitz "live in Moscow" version of his standard Scriabin etude "earth shattering".

Thus we come to the present disc, which I consider a prime example of contemporary pianism. Playing on Grieg's own euphonic, but decidedly mellow piano, in the composer's own "piano room" that imposes significant sonic limitations on the resulting recording quality, his fellow country man Leif Ove Andsnes revisits his juxtaposition of the modern and the authentic that we encountered earlier in his superior Haydn piano concerto disc. While the orchestral part in that recording had clear "authentic" traits, the piano and its performance were truly 21st century. Especially in the light of earlier performances of these Grieg pieces by the likes of Gilels and Gavrilov, Andsnes approach is more restrained and, based on credible historic documentation that comes to use by oral history, less authentically romantic.

Is there something like "the importance of being authentic"? Based on the movement that initially tried to ban all professional musicians from performing baroque music, there certainly is. Nobody will argue that it is of importance to have a good understanding of the performance practices of a particular era. Yet, the mere fact that Bach is still performed worldwide more than 2.5 centuries after his death clearly refutes the notion that his music could only be appreciated within a certain set of parameters. Leaving aside the great dichotomy between the fervor with which the "authentics" have defended "the rules" and the clarity and precision with which they were committed to paper centuries ago, there is no convincing argument that a contemporary should not be able to enjoy Gould's Bach on the piano over Leonhardt's "authentic" performances on the harpsichord.

Released of the shackles of authenticity, aware of the historical record, and fluent in Grieg's lingo from early childhood Andsnes has made a both highly sensitive and textually very accurate reading of the Norwegian's small scale character pieces. Helped by a technique, that is at least as good as all of the luminaries that I mentioned in the second paragraph, this recording shows the virtues of the "less is more" approach. Previous reviewers have harped on the Gilels comparison. While I admire the late Russian lion's performances, I greatly prefer Andsness. Although, Gilels could play fast and slow, soft and loud I considered his technique often of the lazy kind. Especially when it came to use of the sustain pedal he often chose to correct with his right foot, that what he preferred his hands/fingers to save energy on. While some consider this over-pedaling to be an essential part of the romantic mysticism, I am glad that the new generation of pianists does no longer need it to suggest fluency.

Limiting the use of the right pedal often leads to a much better characterization of a composer's sonic signature and this recording is no exception. While it is clear that Grieg was aware of contemporaries like Schumann, Brahms, Chopin and Liszt, Andsnes like no other "nails" the Norwegian's own distinctive voice. What results is a restrained, yet highly sensitive and intimate reading. While the room limits the clarity in the louder passages, it does provide a historically correct context for these lyric pieces.

Andsnes, without a doubt, is one of the stars of the next generation. While mediocre clowns like Lang Lang may entertain the circus crowds, it is comforting to know that musicians like the young Norwegian will keep the eternal flame alive and are likely to add chapters to an as of yet never ending history.

Suspicious Reviewer.......2005-10-19

I am sure Emil Gilels' recording cannot be surpassed but why not get both? After all, there isn't much of overlap.

By the way, I can't help questioning the intention of one of the reviewers named Dag Johansen. He is proactively reviewing most of Andsnes' CDs and giving them very poor rating. In fact, all he is reviewing are Andsnes', no other.
I don't mind that if it is truly his honest opinion but there's something fishy here... why does he keep buying Andsnes' CDs if he hates his playing so much? It's as if he is trying to damage the artist's reputation... Shady....

I have not actully heard this CD or any of Andsnes'. Just felt I needed to report on this.

A great pianist?.......2005-02-27

To be called a great pianist doesn't necessarily mean you are a great pianist. What on earth is great with this pianist? I actually don't know. Neither do a lot of people with whom I've talked. Several Norwegian pianists play these lyric pieces of Grieg better than Andsnes. His playing is actually boring. He is not telling me anything. Well, he sure has tremendous technique, brilliant understanding of form, he dress correct, smile at you from behind the piano and so forth, but at the same time he totally lack the creative force that is so important in piano-playing. Yes, his playing is utterly smooth, correct and nice, but unfortunately lack the mysterious extra, this personal touch we always look for in classical music. Never the less he is called great! What kind of great is this! Some say he is a new Horowitz. Well, it must be a Horowitz without a heart and musical imagination - a perfect piano machine. Or perhaps I've missed the point. I really don't know. One thing I know for sure; Andsnes is not a great pianist. I'm sorry.

A voyage to the coast of Norway!.......2003-05-09

I never truly understood Grieg until Leif ove Andsnes revealed him. The notturno was especially touching!

Average customer rating:

Grieg: Lyric Pieces (Selection)

Manufacturer: Naxos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Dances | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Waltzes | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Canons | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Airs | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Tracks:

Arietta, Op. 12, No. 1: Arietta
Halling (Norwegian Dance), Op. 38, No. 4: Halling (Norwegian Dance)
Melodie, Op. 38, No. 3: Melodie
Melodie, Op. 47, No. 3: Melodie
Halling (Norwegian Dance), Op. 47, No. 4: Halling (Norwegian Dance)
Years Of Youth: Fra ungdomsdagene
Canon, Op. 38, No. 8: Canon
Smatrold (Puck), Op. 71, No. 3: Smatrold (Puck)
Walzer, Op. 38, No. 7: Walzer
Matrosernes opsang (Sailor's Song), Op. 68, No. 1: Matrosernes opsang (Sailor's Song)
Springtanz, Op. 38, No. 5: Springtanz
Halling (Norwegian Dance), Op. 71, No. 5: Halling (Norwegian Dance)
Volksweise (Folk-Song), Op. 38, No. 2: Volksweise (Folk-Song)
Elegie, Op. 38, No. 6: Elegie
Gangar (Norwegian March), Op. 54, No. 2: Gangar (Norwegian March)
Der var engang (Once Upon A Time), Op. 71, No. 1: Der var engang (Once Upon A Time)
Einsamer Wanderer (Solitary Wanderer), Op. 43, No. 2: Einsamer Wanderer (Solitary Wanderer)
Elverdans (Elves' Dance), Op. 12, No. 4: Elverdans (Elves' Dance)
Vals, Op. 12, No. 2: Vals
Folkewise (Folk-Song), Op.12, No. 5: Folkewise (Folk-Song)
Skovstilhed (Peace Of The Wood), Op. 71, No. 4: Skovstilhed (Peace Of The Wood)
Stambogsblad (Album-Leaf), Op. 12, No. 7: Stambogsblad (Album-Leaf)
Valse-Impromptu, Op. 47, No. 1: Valse-Impromptu
Forbi (Gone), Op. 71, No. 6: Forbi (Gone)
Sie tanzt (She Dances), Op. 57, No. 1: Sie tanzt (She Dances)
Albumblatt (Album-Leaf), Op.47, No.2: Albumblatt (Album-Leaf)
Sommeraften (Summer Evening), Op. 71, No. 2: Sommeraften (Summer Evening)
For dine foedder (At Your Feet), Op. 68, No. 3: For dine foedder (At Your Feet)
Valse mncolique, Op. 68, No. 6: Valse melancolique
Efterklang (Remembrance), Op. 71, No. 7: Efterklang (Remembrance)

Average customer rating:

Fodder Song
Controlled Bleeding
Manufacturer: Wax Trax Record
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Rock | Styles | Music

General | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Tracks:

Words (Of the Dying)
Crawl
Fodder Song
Blind Head [*]

Grieg: Lyric Pieces; Peer Gynt Suite No. 2

Average customer rating:

Grieg: Lyric Pieces; Peer Gynt Suite No. 2

Manufacturer: Naxos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Dances | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Waltzes | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Canons | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Airs | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
ASIN: B0000272SE
Release Date: 2000-10-05

Tracks:

Halling (Norwegian Dance), Op. 38, No. 4
Melodie, Op. 38, No. 3
Halling (Norwegian Dance), Op. 47, No. 4
Canon, Op. 38, No. 8
Smatrold (Puck), Op. 71, No. 3
Walzer, Op. 38, No. 7
Matrosernes opsang (Sailor's Song), Op. 68, No. 1
Halling (Norwegian Dance), Op. 71, No. 5
Volksweise (Folk Song), Op. 38, No. 2
Elegie, Op. 38, No. 6
Ganger (Norwegian March), Op. 54, No. 2
Einsamer Wanderer (Solitary Wanderer), Op. 43, No. 2
Elverdans (Elves' Dance), Op. 12, No. 4
Vals, Op. 12, No. 2
Folkevise (Folk Song), Op. 12, No. 5
Skovstilhed (Peace of the Wood), Op. 71, No. 4
Stambogsblad (Album-Leaf), Op. 12, No. 7
Valse-Impromptu, Op. 47, No. 1
Forbi (Gone), Op. 71, No. 6
Sie tanzt (She Dances), Op. 57, No. 5
Albumblatt (Album-Leaf), Op. 47, No. 2
Sommeraften (Summer Evening), Op. 71, No. 2
For dine fodder (At Your Feet), Op. 68, No. 3
Valse melancolique, Op. 68, No. 6
Ingrid's Lament
Arabian Dance
Peer Gynt's Homecoming
Solveig's Song

Average customer rating:

Grieg: Lyrische Stücke

Manufacturer: MD&G Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Waltzes | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Canons | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Airs | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
ASIN: B0002TTX20
Release Date: 2004-11-23

Tracks:

In My Native Country
Gade
Homesickness
Homeward
Watchman's Song
Cradle Song
Waltz
Folksong
Elegy
Melody
Norwegian Melody
Melody
Summer Evening
Canon
Sylphe
At Your Feet
Butterfly
Notturno
Phantom
Gone
Arietta
Remembrances

Live and Unplugged to Benefit the Purple Rose Theatre

Average customer rating:

Jeff As You Probably Never Knew Him
Anything William Shatner can do, Jeff Daniels can do better (in a desperate attempt to raise money)

Live and Unplugged to Benefit the Purple Rose Theatre
Jeff Daniels
Manufacturer: Harvest Productions
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Folk | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Grandfather's Hat
One Meat Ball
Escanaba in da Moonlight
This Old Road
The Squid and the Whale (Special Edition)

ASIN: B000CA3564
Release Date: 2004-12-07

Tracks:

If William Shatner Can, I Can Too
Lifelong Tiger Fan Blues
Momma Never Left Her Oldest Boy Alone
Dirty Harry Blues
Kathy
If I Weren't So Stupid, You Wouldn't Be So Smart
Blue Valiant
You Can Drink an Ugly Girl Pretty
State Trooper
If You're Comin'
Recreational Vehicle
Michigan, My Michigan

Customer Reviews:

Jeff As You Probably Never Knew Him.......2007-01-09

I bought this CD about a week after I saw him perform live. No condemnation, but stage presence and audience interaction don't quite make it to a plastic disc. His "whiskey voice" (no aspersions meant), great guitar picking, and subtle humor make for great listening. But listen in the safety of your own abode or a parked motor vehicle (driving and listening to this puts you and others at risk when you can't help laughing). Support for small-town local theater (the Purple Rose) is added incentive.

Anything William Shatner can do, Jeff Daniels can do better (in a desperate attempt to raise money).......2006-08-20

This week I went to see Jeff Daniels in concert at the Big Tent Chautauqua south of Bayfield, Wisconsin. The actor, best known for his roles in "Terms of Endearment" and "Dumb & Dumber" (although the Jeff Daniel's movies on my shelf would be "The Purple Rose of Cairo," "Gettysburg," and "Gods & Generals"), has been writing songs for over thirty years, never professing to be a professional singer-song writer but insisting instead that his songs are his diary. If Jeff Daniels makes a movie where Clint Eastwood blows him away in the end, then he writes a song ("The Dirty Harry Blues"). If he goes out on a first date with the woman who will become his wife, then he writes a song about that too ("Kathy"). You will find that those two examples pretty much encompass the complete spectrum of Daniels' songwriting skills because the first is funny and the second is sweet.

As the title clearly indicates, "Live and Unplugged to Benefit the Purple Rose Theatre" was recorded live at the Purple Rose Theater in Chelsea, Michigan in December and January 2003-2004 with all proceeds from the CD going to the theater. Daniels is the founder and executive director of the not-for-profit regional professional theater company and was coaxed into being pushed on stage with his guitar to see if people would be willing to pay to see what would happen next. Daniels initially dismissed the idea as something William Shatner would do (think "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" rather than "Star Trek"), which engendered the song "If William Shatner Can, I Can Too" that starts off this enjoyable album of a dozen songs.

The most out of date song is obviously "The Lifelong Tiger Fan Blues," seeing as how Detroit has the best record in baseball this season. Daniels sings about his marriage in "If I Weren't So Stupid, You Wouldn't Be So Smart," and was motivated by his objection to a sign in a bar to come up with "You Can Drink An Ugly Girl Pretty." An encounter with a "State Trooper" engenders a song as well. On the more serious side Daniels has a song about his parents ("Momma Never Left Her Oldest Boy Alone"), his first car ("Blue Valiant"), and a cover of a song about the state in which he lives ("Michigan, My Michigan," the unofficial state song of Michigan, with lyrics written to the tune of "Tannenbaum, O Tannenbaum" by Winifred Lee Brent after the Battle of Fredericksburg during the Civil War). The one song that does not really fit into those categories would be "If You're Comin'," an anti-war song written in opposition to "those who wrap their reasons for going to war around a higher power."

Vehicle," which makes perfect sense since the true story is clearly inspired by Arlo Guthrie's "Alice's Restaurant." That is one of the songs that have clearly evolved over the years (Daniels updates "If William Shatner Can, I Can Too" nowadays to make a palatable hit on Paris Hilton, admittedly an easy target but a most deserving one as well). Having catalogued his repertoire, Daniels is also able to tell us when and where he wrote each of these songs, and in the back of the booklet makes some brief comments on each of the songs.

It really is time for Daniels to cut another CD, because his repertoire is considerably more than the dozen tracks presented here. He only did four of these tracks in his concert ("If William Shatner Can, I Can Too," "The Dirty Harry Blues," "If You're Coming," and "Recreational Vehicle"), and there were easily that many songs that I heard Daniels perform live that I would like to be able to hear again whenever I want. There were several times during the evening's performance that my sides hurt I was laughing so hard, and half of the songs that had us in hysterics are not to be found here. I want those songs, Jeff.