An Early Spring

Editorial Reviews
Shining Times
As the enormous mounds of snow melt, and the bitter cold subsides, Fargoans joyously move into a season of growth and rebirth.

Product Description
"An Early Spring" is a refreshing mix of classical guitar, acoustic instruments and vocalists in a Renaissance-flavored collection of music from madrigals and Vivaldi to ballads by the Beatles and King Crimson. Songs include English folk songs, the Beatles' "Here Comes the Sun," King Crimson's magical "Moonchild," an instrumental Renaissance dance, two choral madrigals and a lively arrangement of the first movement of Vivaldi's "Spring" violin concerto for eight classical guitars, cello and harpsichord, and more. Greet spring with this sparkling eclectic collection!

An Early Spring

An Early Spring,Mike & Linda Coates

An Early Spring

Tracks:

Overture To 'Tannhauser'
Domna, Pos Vos Ay Chausida
We Don't Merely Use Instruments, We Play On Them. And They Play On Us.
Hungarian Dance No.7
The Violin Is One Of The Most Tender And Beautiful Instruments Ever Invented.
Violin Concerto In D Major (Adagio)
But For A Long Time It Was Seen As The Instrument Of The Devil.
The Soldier's Tale: Triumphal March Of The Devil
The Manipulative Seductiveness Of The Gypsy Violin.
Csardas Music
The Violin And The Initiation Of Nature
The Four Seasons (Spring, Mvt 1)
Birds Are Again Evoked In The Second Concerto, Especially Music's Natural Favourite.
The Four Seasons (Summer, Mvt 1)
Like The Devil, The Violin Is A Master Of Disguise.
Old Viennese Dance No.3 'Schon Rosmarin'
The Menacing Sensuality Of Ravel's Tzigane: A Very Different Side Of The Violin:
Tzigane
Do We Now Have The True Measure Of This Instrument? Not Just Yet.
Caprice No.24
The Many Effects Of The String Tremolando: Brandenburg Concerto No.4 (Last Mvt)/From Joy To Fright/Quartettsatz In C Minor/The String Tremolo Practically Spells The World Agitato.
Variations On A Theme Of Frank Bridge (No.7)
Prokofiev's Tremolo In Romeo And Juliet Should Not Be Heard Just Before Bedtime.
Romeo And Juliet: Act IV
Vivaldi Use It To Illustrate The Shivering Of Travellers Crossing The Ice.
The Four Seasons (Winter, Mvt 1)
The Violin Muted
Clair De Lune
The Gentleness Of Muted Strings Persists Even When A Whole Orchestra Plays.
Piano Concerto No.21 In C Major, K.467 (Slow Mvt)
The Pizzicato Violin
Pizzicato Polka
In Prokofiev's Second Violin Concerto, The Accompaniment Is Pizzicato.
Violin Concerto No.2 In G Minor (Slow Mvt)
Varieties Of Pizzicato: Colas Breugnon (The People's Feast)/Now A Drier, Leaner, Hungrier Pizzicato. There's Not A Lot Of Comfort Here./Capriol Suite (Tordion)/The Use Of Pizzicato As 'Percussion'/Romeo And Juliet (Act I)/Mahler Used Pizzicato...
The Planets (Mars - The Bringer Of War)
The Technique Of Double-Stopping Enables The Violin To Play Duets With Itself./Sonata No.3 In C Major For Unaccompanied Violin (Fugue)/Now A Later Example Of The Same Technique
Hungarian Dance No.4
Double-Stopping Is A Standard Feature Of A Lot Of Folk Music.
The Four Seasons (Autumn, Mvt 1)
Now The Same Technique, But The Sound Might Have Come From Another World.
Bolero
Double-Stopping Can Only Approximate The Sound Of A Real Violin Duet.
Cadenza To The Violin Concerto By Brahms
Now Compare That With A Real Violin Duet.
Forty-Four Duos (No. 1: Teasing Song)
Another Duo By Bartok, Demonstrating The Violin's Rich Lower Register
Forty-Four Duos (No.2: Maypole Dance)
And Now What May Be The Most Beautiful Accompanied Violin Duet In History
Concerto In D Minor For Two Violins (Largo)
The Soul Of The Violin Is In Song; But What About This Weird Passage?
Violin Concerto No.1 In D Major (Mvt 2)
The Use Of Harmonies In The Orchestra Can Be Both Magical And Unsettling.
Symphony No.1 'Titan' (Mvt 1, Opening)
Tchaikovsky's Use Of Harmonics In The Sleeping Beauty Is Both Strange And Darling.
The Sleeping Beauty (Act II, No.15: Entr'Acte)
Ravel's Harmonics In Mother Goose Effect A Magical Transformation.
Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Beauty And The Beast)
Stravinsky's Harmonics In The Firebird Transport Us Almost Into Another World./The Firebird (Introduction)
The Natural Upper Notes Of The Violins Have A Unique Emotional 'Grab'.
Also Sprach Zarathustra (Of The Afterworldsmen)
Still In Their Upper Register, The Violins Unleash The Energy Of A Young Colt.
Variations On A Theme Of Frank Bridge (No. 4)
Elsewhere, Britten Uses The Same High Register To Create A Very Different Mood.
Four Sea Interludes (Dawn) From 'Peter Grimes'
To End This Outing With The Violins, A Charming Little Elfin Dance
Elfenreigen

Tracks:

Introduction To The Viola
Viola Concerto (Mvt 1)
Khatchaturian Gets A Very Different Sound From It: Fuller, Fruitier, More Exotic.
Gayane Suite No.1 (Armen's Solo)
Very Nearly The Whole Of The Violin's Upper Register Is Also Available To The Viola.
Passacaglia, Op.33b From 'Peter Grimes'
The Viola Can Bring A Special, Rich Twanginess To Pizzicato That The Violins Lack./Don Quixote/Berlioz Drew Sounds From It That Retain Their Metallic Strangeness Even Today.
Harold In Italy (Mvt 4)
The Muted Viola: Intimate, Gentle, Poignant In Dvork
Cypresses (No.9)
The Massed Violas Of The Modern Symphony Orchestra In Mahler
Symphony No.4 (Mvt 3)
The 'Period' Viola In Bach
Brandenburg Concerto No.6 (Last Mvt)
The Cello: A Voice Of Unique Nobility
Suite No.1 For Unaccompanied Cello (Prelude)
Brahms And The 'Soul' Of The Cello
Piano Concerto No.2 In B Flat Major (Mvt 3)
Most Orchestral Composers Tend To Emphasize The Cello's Lower Register.
Cantata 'Herz Und Mund Und Tat Und Leben', BWV 147 (Soprana Aria: Bereite Dir, Jesu)
In The Time Of Beethoven The Cello Remained As Fundamental As Ever.
Symphony No.3 'Eroica' (Finale)
But The Cello Is Not Condemned To Spend Its Life In The Basement.
Elfentanz, Op.39
Not Only In Recital Showpieces Like That Is The Cello Is Used In Its Highest Register.
The Protecting Veil (Opening)
A Cello With An Identity-Crisis: The Pizzicato Flamencan
Flamenco
Double-Stopping In The Lower Reaches Of The Cello's Range
Solo Suiet For Cello And Piano (Sardana)
It's In The Middle Register That The Cello Really Comes Into Its Own.
Oriental Dance, Op.2 No.2
It Was To The Cellos That Beethoven Gave Two Of His Most Famous Themes./Symphony No.5 (Mvt 2)/Still More Famous Than That Theme Is This One From The Ninth Symphony.
Symphony No.9 (Finale)
Introduction To The Double-Bass
The Carnival Of The Animals (The Elephant)
But The Double-Bass Can Be Intensely Expressive And Graceful.
Elegy No.1 In D Major
The Range Of The Double-Bass Is The Greatest Of All The String Instruments/Allegro Di Concerto, 'Alla Mendelssohn'/And It's Also Capable Of Very Considerable Virtuosity.
Capriccio Di Bravura
Double-Bass Solos In Orchestral Scores Are Rare But Often Memorable./Symphony No.1 'Titan' (Mvt 3)/In His Third Symphony Mahler Makes A Very Different Use Of The Instrument./Symphony No.3 (Mvt 1)
The Double-Bass Muted In Prokofiev/Lieutenant Kije Suite (Kije's Wedding)/In Another Work Prokofiev Uses The Double-Bass To Enhance The Winds./Romeo And Juliet (Act III)/And He Combines The Bass Clarinet With A Shivering Tremolo From The Double-Basses....
Symphony No.5 (Mvt 3)/So Much For The Strings/On Now To The Winds

Tracks:

The Antiquity And Magic Of The Flute
Prelude A L'Apres-Midi D'Un Faune
The Versatility And Agility Of The Flute
Orchestral Suite No.2 In B Minor (Badinerie)
The Flute In Fifteenth-Century Spain
Sa'Dawi
Other Flutes: The Bass And Alto
Chamber Music No.II
The Piccolo - Aptly Named
La Naissance D'Osiris (Mvt 6)
From A Piccolo Of The Eighteenth Century To One Of Its Descendants In The Twentieth
Suite No.1 For Small Orchestra (Valse)
A Variety Of Techniques
Chamber Music No.II
Flutter-Tonguing. But Tchaikovsky Got There Eighty Years Before.
The Nutcracker (Act II, No.2: Scene)
From The Transverse To The Vertical: The Baroque Recorder
Recorded Suite In A Minor (Menuet II)
An Unfamiliar, Early Vision Of The Instrument
Naelden, Naelden
The Bachian Oboe
Cantata 'Ein Feste Burg Ist Unser Gott', BWV 80 (No.7: Duetto)
Introduction To The Cor Anglais Or 'English Born'
Symphony No.9 'From The New World' (Mvt 2)
The Loneliness Of The Cor Anglais
The Swan Of Tuonela
The Cor Anglais Joins The French Horn In Haydn.
Symphony No.22 'The Philosopher' (Opening)
Introduction To The Oboe D'Amore, Beloved Of Bach - But Also Of Ravel
Bolero
The Clarinet Family: Boxing The Compass, From The Depths Of The Bass Clarinet.../The Egyptian (Violence)/...To The Raucous And Squealy.../Taras Bulba (The Death Of Ostap)/...To The Shrill And Complaining...
Petrushka (No.8: Peasant With Bear)/...To The High Sprits Of A Playful Puppy./Symphonie Fantastique (Last Mvt)/And To The Downright Jazzy/Romeo And Juliet (Act II)
As The High Clarinets Tend To Be Loud, So The Bass Tends To Be Soft:
Gayane Suite No. 1 (Mvt 5)
The Bass Clarinet Is Used By Most Composers Mainly As A Colouring Agent.../Petrushka (No.4: The Blackamoor)/...But It Does Occasionally Get A Whole Tune To Itself./Iberia (Almeria).
The Range Of The Normal Clarinet Parts Goes Quite High...
The Snow Maiden (Scene 5: Melodrama)
...And Quite Low.
Peter And The Wolf (The Cat)
The Clarinet As Concerto Soloist
Clarinet Concerto In A Major (Rondo)
But That's Not The Instrument Mozart Wrote It For; This Is:
Clarinet Concerto In A Major (Rondo)
Introduction To The Saxophone
Hary Janos Suite (Mvt 4)
The Soprano Saxophone Has Quite A Different Feel To It.
L'Arlesienne Suite No.1 (Minuet)
The Little Sopranino Sax Goes Even Higher.
Bolero
The Most Famous Use Of The Saxophone Is In An Orchestration By Ravel.
Pictures At An Exhibition (The Old Castle)
The Saxophone Can Be Quite Contagiously Good-Humoured.
Sax-O-Phun
The Puffa-Puffa Image Of The Bassoon
Peter And The Wolf (Grandfather)
The Bachian Bassoon, In Accompanimental Mode
Cantata 'Weichet Nur, Betrubte Schatten' ('Wedding Cantata'), BWV 202 (Aria No.1)
Bizet Leaves The Puffa-Puffa Image Out, Allowing The Bassoon To Sing./Carmen Suite No.1 (Les Dragons D'Alcala)
And Ravel, Also In Spanish Mode, Does Likewise.
Bolero
The Bassoon As A Voice Of High Seriousness, Indeed Desolate Loneliness
Symphony No.3 (Opening)
The Eerie Bassoon In Its Highest Register
The Rite Of Spring (Opening)
Stravinsky Now Draws On Its Lowest Register, Lonely And Melancholy.
The Firebird Suite (1919, Berceuse)
The Bassoon As Concerto Soloist, Avoiding All Exaggeration
Bassoon Concerto In G Minor (Finale)
The Deep-Voiced Contra-Bassoon, As A Fairy-Tale Beast
Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Beauty And The Beast)
The French Horn Under Its Woodwind Hat
Wind Quintet, Op.43 (Last Mvt)
Now A More Prominent Role, In A Woodwind Quintet From An Earlier Era
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Op.100 No.5 (Mvt 2)
The Horn In Harmonious Blend With Strings In Another Quintet
Horn Quintet, K.407 (Finale)

Tracks:

The Trumpet As Virtuoso Soloist
Brandenburg Concerto No.2 (Last Mvt)
The Special Brillance Of Paired Trumpets
Concerto In C For Two Trumpets, RV537 (Mvt 1)
The Ceremonial Trumpet
Fanfare For The Common Man
Trumpets And Drums - An Incomparable Alliance
Messiah (The Trumpet Shall Sound)
The Versatility Of The Trumpet, From The Most Public To The Most Lonely
Piano Concerto In F (Slow Mvt)
The Trumpet As The Voice Of The City/An American In Paris/The Trumpet As Recruitment Officer/The Soldier's Tale (The March)/The Trumpet As Swaggerer
Carmen Suite No.2 (Habanera)
The Trumpet As The Voice Of Strength And Courage
Carmet Suite No.2 (Toreador's Song)
The Trumpet Muted/Petrushka (No.4: The Blackamoor)/Lieutenant Kije Suite (Opening)/The Trumpet As The Voice Of Weariness
Billy The Kid
The Trumpet As Character Actor
Pictures At An Exhibition (No.6)
The Trumpet As The Voice Of God
Mass In B Minor ('Et Exspecto')
The Birth Of The Trombone
Aenmerckt Nu Hier
The Birth Of The Brass As A Family
Canzon 12 In Double Echo
The Trombone In The Eighteenth Century
Trombone Concerto In B Flat Major (Finale)
The Tone Of The Tenor Trombone/Romance For Trombone And Organ/The Memorable Voice Of The Bass Trombone/Requiem (Mvt 2)/But The Bass Trombone Is More Than An Instrumental Bullfrog.
Hosannah
The Trombones Become Part Of The Orchestra.
Symphony No.5 (Finale)
The Wagnerian Trombone:/Overture To 'Tannhauser'
The Trombone As Caricaturist
Pulcinella (No.19: Vivo)
The Trombone As Raspberry/Concerto For Orchestra (Intermezzo)
The Horn And The Hunt
Horn Concerto No.4 In E Flat, K.495 (Finale)
The Challenging Horn Of The Baroque
Abaris Ou Les Boreades (Menuet)
The Scarcity Of First-Rate Players In Handel's Time
Walter Music (Minuet 1)
The Horn As Magician/The Firebird Suite (1919, Finale)
Horns And The Sound Of Nobility
Overture To 'Tannhauser' (Opening)
The Special Sound Of The Horn In Its Higher Register
Mass In B Minor ('Quoniam Tu Solus Sanctus')
The Trumpet-Like Sound Of Massed Horns
Symphony No.3 (Mvt 1, Opening)
The Tuba - Unfairly Maligned?
Symphony No.6 (Mvt 3)
The Tuba Perfectly Cast By Ravel
Pictures At An Exhibition (Bydlo)

Tracks:

Introduction. And We Begin With A Bang.
Fanfare For The Common Man/The Bass Drum On The Battlefields/Wellington's Victory, Op.91 (Opening)
At The Opposite Extreme Is The Triangle.
Piano Concerto No.1 In E Flat (Scherzo)
Categories Of Percussion: Tuned And Untuned. The Side Drum
Overture To 'La Gazza Ladra' - The Thieving Magpie (Opening)
The Side Drum In An Effective But Unexpected Role/Clarinet Concerto (Mvt 1)
The Tambourine. One Of The Oldest Instruments In The World
Den Hoboecken Dans
Even Older Is The Originally Oriental Gong.
Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Laideronette)
No Single Instrument Can Match The Gong In Evoking The Breaking Of Waves./Passacaglia, Op.33b From 'Peter Grimes'/But Gongs Don't Have To Be Struck To Be Effective.
Gymnopedie No.2
The Cymbals Are Generally Discovered Early In Life./The Sanguine Fan/And They Do More Than Clash Together Loudly. They Can Be Clashed Together Softly./Studio Example: But They Needn't Be Clashed Together At All/Studio Example: They Can Be Lightly...
Other Untuned Percussion Instruments Include The Whip.: Piano Concerto In G Major (Opening)/And Here Are No Fewer Than Twenty, Cracked By Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker (Act I, Scene 5)
More Versatile Than The Whip Are The Wood Blocks.../Studio Example/...Which Crop Up All Over The Place In Twentieth-Century American Music.
Rodeo (Hoe-Down)
Related To The Wood Blocks, By Sound, Are The Castanets./Jota Aragonesa/But The Castanets Were Also Used By Monteverdi Back In The Seventeenth Century.
Scherzi Musicali (Damigella Tutta Belle)
A Still Earlier Example From Fifteenth-Century Spain
Yo M'Enamori D'Un Aire
The Birth Of The Bongo
Symphonic Dances From 'West Side Story'
From The Streets Of New York To The Blacksmith's Shop/Il Trovatore ('Anvil Chorus')
Desert-Island Decibels: Grand Canyon Suite (On The Trail)/Arcana
From One Vegetable To Another: The Humble Squash, Or Marrow/Huapango
Onwards To The Tuned Percussion. First, The Timpani
Also Sprach Zarathustra (Introduction)
But The Drum Roll Can Be More Effectively Frightening Than The Big Bang.: Symphony No.2 'Resurrection' (Mvt 3)
Not One Drum Roll, But Many/Grand Canyon Suite (Sunrise)/Symphonie Fantastique (Last Mvt)
Taking Advantage Of Tunability
Music For Strings, Percussion And Celeste (Mvt 2)
The Russian Composer Rodion Shchedrin Takes A Downward Turn./Carmen Suite (Changing Of The Guard)/Tuned, Yes; But For The Truly Melodic We Must Look Elsewhere.
Introducing The Glockenspiel/Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)
Saint-Saens And The Xylophone
The Carnival Of The Animals (Fossils)
Ravel And The Xylophone
Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Laideronette)
Introducing The Marimba/Carmen Suite (First Intermezzo)
Introducing The Vibraphone
The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (Narange Dolce)
The Vibraphone Goes Russian.../Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)/...And Is Joined By The Marimba./Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)
Introducing The Hungarian Cimbalom
Folk Dances
The Cimbalom And The Symphony Orchestra
Hary Janos Suite (Mvt 3)
Introducing The Tubular Bells
Hary Janos Suite (Viennese Musical Clock)
A More 'Up-Front' Approach From Rodion Shchedrin
Carmen Suite (Introduction)
But The Bells Can Also Make The Sinister Even More Sinister./Symphony No.7 'Sinfonia Antartica' (Mvt 1)
Introducing The Celeste
The Nutcracker (Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy)
Magic, In The Use Of Collective Percussion
Miroirs (La Vallee Des Cloches)
Plucked Instruments: The 'Undercover Percussion'/Carmen Suite (Scene)
A Prime Case In Point Is The Harp, Irresistible To The Romantics./The Nutcracker (Act II, No.1: Scene)/The Non-Solo Harp As An Integral Part Of The Orchestra/Hungarian Rhapsody No.1
The Traditionally Subservient Role Of The Harpsichord In The Baroque Orchestra
Brandenburg Concerto No.2 (Slow Mvt)
The Piano: King Of The Tuned Percussion/Symphony No.3 'Organ' (Mvt 3)/And A Quarter Of A Century After That:
Petrushka (Russian Dance)
The Anti-Romantic Piano As An Integral Part Of The Orchestra
Music For Strings, Percussion And Celeste (Last Mvt)

Tracks:

Keyboard Instruments In The Orchestra - The Most Powerful Of Them All:
Symphony No.3 'Organ' (Finale)
But Things In Handel's Day Were Very Different.
Organ Concerto In B Flat, Op.4 No.3 (Last Mvt)
The Organ Is Difficult To Classify.
An Unexpected, Organ-related Guest
Concerto Pour Zampogna (Last Mvt)
Peasant-Fancying... And A Touch Of The Roaming Cowboy
Les Miserables (Drink With Me)
Outside Artefacts And The Power Of Association
Mahler's Sleighbells
Symphony No.4 (Opening)
A Roll-Call Of Some Unusual Guests/The Typewriter/Parade
Chains, And More/Integrales/An American In Paris/Sandpaper Ballet
Purpose-Built Oddities: Wind Machines/Symphony No.7 'Sinfonia Antartica' (Opening)
Don Quixote (Variation VIII)
National Calling Cards: The Guitar For Spain/Concierto De Aranjuez (Finale)
And The Guitar's Poor American Relative, The Banjo/Washington Breakdown
And Poorer Still, The Mouth Organ/The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (Packing Up)
The Balalaika For Russia/Romeo And Juliet (Act II: No.14)
The Maracas For Mexico/The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (El Desayuno)
The Bongos And Congas And A Whole Wealth Of Other Drums For Africa And Central America/Studio Example
The Sitar Of India/Evening Raga: Bhapoli
The Accordion For France (Especially Paris)/Paris Canaille
The Zither For Vienna/The Third Man (Theme)
The Cimbalom For Hungary/Folk Dances
The Guitar As An Integral Part Of The Orchestra/Rondena
There Are Whole Orchestras Of Balalaikas./Sveit Mesiats
The Effect Of The Wordless Human Voice, Used Purely As An Instrument/Symphony No.7 'Sinfonia Antartica' (Mvt 1)
Nocturnes
Instruments And the Imitation Of Nature. The Clarinet As Cuckoo
The Carnival Of The Animals (The Cuckoo)
The Flute As An All-purpose Aviary
The Carnival Of The Animals (The Aviary)
The Oboe As Duck
Peter And The Wolf (The Duck)
The Recording Of Reality. Does It Work As Well?
The Pines Of Rome (The Pines Of The Janiculum)
The Recording Of Reality Electronically Reborn In New Guises
Cantus Articus - Concerto For Birds And Orchesra (Mvt 2)
Beethoven Turns Avian: Cuckoo, Nightingale, And Quail
Symphony No.6 'Pastoral' (Andante Molto Mosso)
Some Improbable Casting: The Violin As Braying Donkey
The Carnival Of The Animals (Persons With Long Ears)
A Truly Orchestral Hee-haw To Be Reckoned With
Overture To 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'
A Thunderstorm In A Million
Symphony No.6 'Pastoral (Allegro-Allegretto)
the Instrumental Depiction Of A Silent World
The Carnival Of The Animals (The Aquarium)
Saint-Saens' Menagerie Takes A Curtain Call.
The Carnival Of The Animals (Finale)

Tracks:

The Grouping Of Instrumental Families. An Additive Approach. First, Two Violins
Forty-Four Duos (No.4)
A Great Contrast, Of Both Pitch And Character: Violin And Viola
Duo For Violin And Viola In B Flat Major, K.424 (Finale, Vars 1 & 2)/Studio Example
Arrival Of The Standard String Trio: Violin, Viola, And Cello
String Trio In B Flat (Menuetto)
The String Quartet: Two Violins, Viola, And Cello
String Quartet In F, Op.18 No.1 (Mvt 3)
The String Quintet - When The Extra Instrument Is A Second Viola
String Quartet No.5 In D, K.593 (Adagio)
The String Quintet - When The Extra Instrument Is A Second Cello
String Quintet In C (Mvt 3)
The String Sextet: Two Violins, Two Violas, And Two Cellos
String Sextet In B Flat (Mvt 2)
The String Octet: The Standard String Quaret Times Two
Octet In E Flat, Op.20 (Mvt 1)
Double The String Octet: A Fully Fledged String Orchestra
String Symphony No.2 (Finale)
The Massed Strings Of A Symphony Orchestra
Fantasia On A Theme Of Thomas Tallis
Contrasts Of Pitch And Instrumental 'Colour' In The Woodwind Section
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Op.100 No.5 (Theme)
In The First Variation It's The Horn That Gets The Lion's Share.
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 1
In Variation Two The Torch Is Handed To The Bassoon.
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 2
In Variation Three The Oboe Leads.
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 3
Variation Four: Conversation Before Returning To A Solo-dominated Texture
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 4
And Variation Five is Dominated By The Clarinet.
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 5
The Next To Be Featured Is The Virtuoso Flute.
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 6
Individual Farewells And A Closing Chorus
Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 7
A Mixed Group: Clarinet, Bassoon, Horn, String Quartet, And Double-Bass
Octet In F (Mvt 3)
The Early Classical Symphony Orchestra Of Haydn And Mozart
Symphony No.29 In A, K.201 (Finale)
Strings, Wind, But No Brass. What Haydn And Mozart Never Knew
Canzon 28
Beethoven's Fifth: Two Horns, Two Trumpets, And Three Trombones Join The Team.
Symphony No.5 (Finale)
From Beethoven To The Massive Orchestras Of Berlioz, Wagner, And Mahler
Beethoven Changed The Face Of The Symphony And The Orchestra Forever
Symphoy No.6 'Tragic' (Mvt 1)
The Cult Of Orchestral Elephantiasis Reaches Its Peak.
Symphony No.1 'Gothic' (VI: Te Ergo Quaesumus)
When Large Doesn't Necessarily Mean Loud: Debussy
Images (Gigues)
A Crisis Of Confidence; The Orchestra's Survival Hangs In The Balance, But It Still Develops. The Ondes Martenot:
Turangalila Symphony (Chant D'amour 1)
The Advent Of The 'Early Music' Movement Brings A New Vitality And Freshness.
Balle De Xerxes (Gavotte En Rondeau)
Computer And Synthesiser: Friends Or Foes?
Concerto In D Minor For Two Violins (Largo)
A Speculative Look Ahead/Mass In B Minor ('Dona Nobis Pacem')

Customer Reviews:

Instruments of the Orchestra - Great Reference Material!.......2007-04-04

This set lends itself to greatly enhancing one's knowledge of the orchestra, instruments in it, and their usage. I am a huge music buff, and I still picked up a great deal I previously did not know. I highly recommend this for all who wish to understand the origin of music, as well as the processes that are employed to create music!

Beginner or Expert.......2007-03-12

This CD is excellent for the beginner or expert! To be able to haear the instrumets separately and then together really provides a good education. and/or refresher. The book thaty comes with the CD is alomost worth the price by itself!

Very Informative and Enjoyable.......2006-11-20

Whether you're a music novice or pro, "The instruments of the Orchestra" is a very worthwhile purchase. The 7 CDs, with a total of 8 hours, are expertly narrated by Jeremy Siepmann. He's a great speaker, very much like the late Leonard Bernstein was. Mr. Siepmann takes you on an unforgetable musical journey covering the origins and use of the various orchestral instruments throughout musical history. The balance between his narration and a wealth of musical examples, which range from snippets to entire movements, is superb. The comprehensive enclosed booklet is excellent and faithfully follows the 7 CDs in content. Even with my 40+ years of music training I still learned new things from this wonderful collection. Considering the excellence of the content, and a cost that translates to about $5 per disc, this collection is a great value. Grab it, you won't regret that you did. Five solid stars!

Frank's view.......2006-08-19

This boxed set of CD's with booklet achieved all I had hoped that it would. There are good samples of individual instruments and well done commentary on each. The only drawback was that some of the samples were too brief and could have been longer, hoiwever I guess this fits in with time constraints of the medium. It has given me a lot of clues as to future purchases of CD's for listening to individual instruments. Altogeth a satisfactory purchase and a welcome addition to my collection.

Excellent Intro for Those Not Familiar with the Orchestra.......2003-11-08

I've listened to classical music for years and am interested in composition. I bought this CD set to learn how an orchestra and its instruments work. I thought the CDs would be a nice but boring lecture. They aren't! Not only are they FUN but they are informative as well. I learned a huge amount from each CD and couldn't wait to listen to the next one.

The narrator and writer is a great speaker and holds your attention well. He is definitely knowledgeable. He provides musical examples for each point he makes, so you get to "hear" what he just talked about. I'd say the CDs are about 65% music and 35% narration. You'll learn about the range of instruments, some history, different ways to play them, how they sound, and how they are used in the orchestra. This CD set was a great learning experience and is sold at such a low price!

I recommend this CD for those who want to learn about classical music and those who know about it but are interested in learning more about the inner workings of an orchestra. You'll learn much useful information. For instance, the Rite of Spring (with that eerie start) is written for bassoon! I never knew a bassoon could sound like that but now I do.

Tracks:

Introduction Et Variation Sur L'Air 'Que Ne Suis-Je FougereI' Op.26 - Sor
Cinq Preludes Pour Guitare No.4 - Villa-Lobos
Variations Sur Un Theme De Django Reinhardt - Brouwer
Die Post - Schubert
Cinq Preludes Pour Guitare No.2 - Villa-Lobos
Cancion Del Emperador - Narvaez
Pavanas - Sanz
Quartet No.7 III. Adagio Cantabile Sostenuto For Violin, Viola, Cello & Gutar - Paganini
Studio In A Major, Op.6 No.12 Andante - Sor
Lagrima - Tarrega
Granada, Op.47 No.1 - Albeniz
Danza - Moreno-Torroba
Baden Jazz Suite 'Hommage A Baden Powell' III. Berceuse - Jirmal
When The Fire Burns Low - Towner
A Song Of Early Spring - Arr. Takemitsu

Tracks:

Danza Espanola - Granados
Douze Etudes Pour Guitare No.8 Modere - Villa-Lobos
Reverie, Op.53 No.1 Andante Sostenuto - Coste
Lecon In E Major, Op.31 No.23 Mouvment De Priere Religieuse - Sor
Cinq PreludesPour Guitare No.1 - Villa-Lobos
Andante Extrait De La Fantasie Symphonique De L'Auteur, Op.38 - Coste
Nocturno - Moreno-Torroba
7 Diferenias Sobre 'Guardame Las Vacas' - Narvaez
Cinq Preludes Pour Guitare No.5 - Villa-Lobos
Quartet No.1 In A Minor II. Andantino For Violin, Cello & Guitar - Paganini
El Testmento D' Amelia - Folksong Of Catalan/Arr. Lobet
Terzetto In D Major 1. Allegro For Violin, Cell & Guitar - Paganini
Valse In E Major - Sor
Cinq Preludes Pour Guitare Ne.3 - Villa-Lobos
Londonderry Air - Arr. Takemitsu

Customer Reviews:

I rate this a perfect 10 **********.......2006-02-25

A Classical guitarist and collector of the genre, I can only rave about this cd. I purchased several of these cd's for my close friends and family. The two Paganini pieces are awsome.
Hopefully, Denon will produce more of the same. This time they supply the names of their artists. Well Done! Bravo!

Average customer rating:

Wonderful, but just SOME of the very best of Nicolai Gedda
Excellent compilation
Nicolai Gedda . . . the 4th tenor

The Very Best of Nicolai Gedda
Nicolai Gedda , Adolphe Adam , Ludwig van Beethoven , Vincenzo Bellini , Hector Berlioz , Georges Bizet , Gaetano Donizetti , Friedrich von Flotow , Mikhail Glinka , and Karl Goldmark
Manufacturer: EMI Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

French | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Italian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Russian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Operettas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

The Very Best of Alfredo Kraus
The Very Best of Franco Corelli
Nicolai Gedda - French and Russian Arias & Songs
The Very Best of Giuseppe di Stefano
The Very Best of Beniamino Gigli

ASIN: B0000A1WP3
Release Date: 2003-09-02

Tracks:

Pourquoi Me Reveiller
Instant Charmant...En Ferment Les Yeux
L'Amour, L'Amour!...Ah! Leve-Toi Soleil
Une Heure Encore...La Gloire Etait Ma Seule Idole
Va, Pour Kleinzach!
Zurga, Quand Tous Deux...Au Fond Du Temple Saint
A Cette Voix...Je Crois Entendre Encore
La Fluer Que Tu M'Avais Jetee
Mes Amis, Ecoutez L'Histoire
Elle Ne Croyait Pas Dans Sa Candeur Naive
Asile Hereditaire - Ambrosian Opera Chorus
Quanto E Bella
Una Furtiva Lagrima
Fra Poco A Me Ricovero
Prendi: L'Anel Ti Dono
Di' Tu Se Fedele
La Donna E Mobile
Donna Non Vidi Mai

Tracks:

Il Mio Tesoro
Dies Bildnis Ist Bezaubernd Schon
Ach, So Fromm
In Fernem Land
Magische Tone
Kuda, Kuda, Kuda Vi Udalilis (Lenski's Aria)
Dimitri! Tsaryevich! Dimitri!
Souvenir
O Moonlight Night
At The Ball
Don Juan's Serenade
O Cease Thy Singing, Maiden Fair
How Fair This Spot
Adelaide Op. 46
Heimliche Aufforderung, Op. 27, No. 3
Strandchen, Op. 17, No. 2
Als Flotter Geist...Ja, Das Alles Auf Ehr'
Gern Hab' Ich Die Frau'n Gekusst
Dein Ist Mein Ganzes Herz

Customer Reviews:

Wonderful, but just SOME of the very best of Nicolai Gedda.......2005-07-03

This is but a subset of the glorious recorded singing by Nicolai Gedda; however, it is a good sampler of the repertoire that made him legendary. And, at least a couple of the tracks ("Asile Hereditaire" and Lenski's aria) seem to be his best recordings of those particular works. Gedda is a member of a small circle of famed tenors noted for disciplined and artistic vocal production. He could find and consistently produce the "ping" we all love to hear. And, that was necessarily accompanied by flawless breath control. He holds the last note of the rousing "Hereditaire" for approximately eleven seconds! Onward! Ho! The emotion and delicate treatment he showed in Lenski's aria is a high-water mark. I can not imagine it being done better.

I first heard him in a recording of La Boheme (with Freni) in 1975 and have heard him in person both in Faust (1976) and in recital (1981). Whether on stage or in recording, Gedda is remarkable and consistent. If you are new to opera or are younger and addicted to the stars of today (and some of them are very good too), you should hear Gedda. It will raise your definition for what it takes to be a great tenor. Go find a recording of Fritz Wunderlich too.

Excellent compilation.......2005-01-30

Beautiful, easy lyric tenor; also great diction and phrasing -- a good example to any tenor on how this rep. should be sung.

Nicolai Gedda . . . the 4th tenor.......2004-06-13

Those of you who know the three tenors should look into this incredibly versatile singer. The first time I heard this remarkable tenor sing was from a recording of Mozart's Magic Flute. From then on I became an avid fan. This recording highlights how Gedda could go from singing lyric repertoire, to the bigger and more difficult French and Bel Canto and even tackling Russian and operetta. Any aspiring tenor and dedicated opera fan would do well to own this CD set.

Average customer rating:

Great vocal virtuosity
Confuzzled
An American Composer of Art Song
more German than Rorem
delightful art songs

Ned Rorem: Selected Songs
Ned Rorem , and Carole Farley
Manufacturer: Naxos American
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

4-for-3 Classical | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music

4-for-3 All Music | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Susan Graham - Songs of Ned Rorem
Rorem: The End of Summer, Book of Hours, Bright Music
Rorem: Three Symphonies
Rorem: Flute Concerto; Violin Concerto
Songs by Roger Quilter

ASIN: B00005QISU
Release Date: 2001-11-20

Tracks:

The Waking
Root Cellar
My Papa's Waltz
I Strolled Across An Open Field
Memory
Orchids
The Serpent
Night Crow
Snake
Lilltel Elegy
The Nightingale
Nantucket
Lullaby Of The Woman Of The Mountain
Love In A Life
What If Some Little Pain...
Visits To St. Elizabeth's
Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening
Spring
See How They Love Me
Now Sleeps The Crimson Petal
I Am Rose
Ask Me No More
Far-Far-Away
Early In The Morning
Alleluia
Such Beauty As Hurts To Behold
Sally's Smile
Youth, Day, Old Age, And Night
O You Whom I Often And Silently Come
Full Of Life Now
As Adam Early In The Morning
Are You The New Person?

Customer Reviews:

Great vocal virtuosity.......2005-04-07

This is a great recording, by two great artists. Carole Farley is the ideal singer for Ned Rorem's songs. She spell out every
word and every nuance, giving each song and every poem their full character. The songs are a revelation. I recommend this recording without hesitation.
Christoph (Berlin, Germany)

Confuzzled.......2004-01-03

While these song are GREAT...I cannot get over Carole Farley; her voice is so affected (kind of like a sprechstimme; overly dramatic...). I love the fact that Rorem himself is playing the piano, and as a singer, the catalogue of songs is good to have...but cant say I could ever manage getting over Farley's affectation. There are far superior recordings out there.

An American Composer of Art Song.......2003-04-02

American popular song, whether standards, show tunes,jazz, blues, or rock, is one of our country's most visible artistic achievements. American classical (or Art) songs are much less known. Ned Rorem (b. 1923) is probably the greatest American composer in this unfamiliar medium. Rorem is sometimes dubbed the "American Schubert."

This disc features 32 of Ned Rorem's songs for voice and piano. Soprano Carole Farley is the accomplished singer, and Ned Rorem himself plays the piano. The disc is special because it features settings of the works of American poets. The CD begins with 9 settings of poems by the mid-twentieth century poet, Theodore Roethke, and concludes with settings of 5 poems by Walt Whitman. The disc also includes settings of poems by William Carlos Williams, Gertrude Stein, and Paul Goodman, among others. Thus the disc combines in a special way American creative effort in poetry and in music.

Rorem's songs are declamatory in style. Typically, the voice line delivers the text of the poetry in a sort of chant. The relationship between the voice line and the piano is far from Schubertian. Generally, the piano takes a separate line and accentuates the voice by means of large chords or by runs or by other comments and punctuation on the voice. The texts are well set and the music is effective. There are some unusual harmonies with jazz and blues influences. Rorem's piano accompanyment on this disc gives the recording a sense of authenticity -- we get a good idea of how the composer wants his songs to be conveyed.

The disc includes excellent program notes and texts of all the songs. Naxos has received deservedly high praise for its "American Classics" series which makes much music written by Americans available on CD at a low price. This disc includes some lovely, little-known songs. It is an excellent introduction to the American art song and to the music of Ned Rorem.

more German than Rorem.......2002-07-20

I've been a Rorem fan since hearing a highschool friend perform some of his work in her college recital. His startling, atonal songs were an instant revelation. For years there were few reliable CDs of his vocal work. A scandal considering his reputation rests more on his art songs and chamber music than on his orchestral pieces. This Naxos entry of a wide overview of his best songs is thus quite welcome, due largely to its availability, wide distribution and professional packaging (he's had some shoddy issues before with incorrect liner notes, etc.; the challenge of the low budget).

I can't call myself an unalloyed fan of soprano Carole Farley however. Her delivery here recalls the speak-singing style of German 12-tone composers (a specialty of hers), and can sound melodramatic, especially when she rushes the more delicate passages.

I prefer Rorem's softer, more melodious French side, the one that descends from Impressionism and is more warmly emotive. While Farley loses the shading of some of the more fragile songs, she is well-suited to the longer, more forceful pieces. I've heard many readings of "Early in the Morning" (one of Rorems most popular songs) by male and female vocalists, and its tale of wistful nostalgia is muted by Farley's direct approach. However, she nails "My Papa's Waltz," a fractured setting for a Roethke poem about a frightened child forced to dance with a drunken father. Here her acting skills come to the fore, and she perfectly captures the tipsy madness of the song. Rorem can be quite theatrical himself on occasion. She does almost as well with "See How they love me," a ballad with a regular pace that allows her assertive style to breathe.

At any rate it's great to hear these lovely songs in a recent (2000) recording, accompanied (rather emphatically, but perhaps he's matching his theatrical singer) by Rorem himself.

The similar Susan Graham album is more to my taste, but this is a more than competent bargain set.

delightful art songs.......2002-01-02

rorem's songs are amazing, and naxos has done well
to group them by poet. the complete settings of roethke
are particularly compelling and edgey.

carole farley's voice is lovely, but her phrasing
and willingness to push her voice seems
a big departure from the styling of art songs i've
heard by poulenc and somers.

this takes some getting used to- at least 3 or 4 complete
listen-throughs in my case. her voice is almost jazzy,
kind of like early recordings by holly cole.

anyway, rorem accompanies her on piano so obviously
this reading fits with his intent; his playing is also delightful.

Customer Reviews:

We're sending our love down a well..........2007-05-07

Unfortunately, I have to agree with the first reviewer. The reverby sound renders this cd almost too painful to listen to. Which is a shame, for I feel that these are some of the greatest pieces written for the guitar. Perhaps Halasz can record a second cd for those of us who prefer an intimate "guitar in your living room" sound, rather than the "guitarist trapped in a well" sound.

Great Recording of Takemitsu's Solo Guitar Works.......2007-04-26

I'm going to have to disagree with the first review. There is quite a bit of reverb on the recording, but it doesn't sound like it was recorded in a high school gymnasium. I think the sound is warm, rich, well-balanced and quite appropriate, but apparently it's a matter of taste. There is a great deal of direct sound atop the ambience, and these compositions/arrangements sound very nice in the chosen environment. I'm not sure a much drier space would have been very complimentary to these pieces, especially considering the specifics of their technical challenges and the way many parts are voiced.

As for Halasz's playing, it's brilliant. Sometimes I think I could stand for him to take a little more time with some of the phrases and things; but really, so much of timing and phrasing and shaping, in Takemitsu's music, is meant to be left totally up to the performer, and I think Halasz has done a mighty fine job with interpretations (I especially like the Folios at the tempo he's chosen) This is an album of wonderful compositions/arrangements played technically and musically better than I've ever heard them. I highly, highly reccommend it. Give it a listen on iTunes or something before you buy it and see what you think of the sound. I've never written such an album review before, but I felt strongly enough about this recording to do so. I hope you'll give it a chance.

Zachary Barr

Takemitsu Discovers Reverb.......2007-03-13

I was excited to have a complete solo guitar recording of Takemitsu,s work. The recording quality of this work , however is very painful to listen to.

Drenched in ambient reverb from the church in Sweden and one track from a concert hall in Germany, one has to dig through a virtual wall of sonic sludge to hear Takemitsu,s brilliant arrangements/compositions.

This is a real as shame as the guitarist , Franz Halasz has a masterful command of his instrument and the material at hand. Hopefully someone will record this body of work so we can enjoy listening and not feel like the performance took place at a high school gymnasium.

Peter C. Cavano

Average customer rating:

Tchaikovsky: Songs

Manufacturer: Hyperion UK
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Classical | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B000002ZRV
Release Date: 1993-03-04

Tracks:

Last Night, Op.60 No.1
To Forget So Soon
The Nightingale, Op.60 No.4
It Was In The Early Spring, Op.38 No.2
Amid The Din Of The Ball, Op.38 No.3
The Fearful Minute, Op.28 No.6
Do Not Believe, My Friend, Op.6 No.1
The Cuckoo, Op.54 No.8
Was I Not A Little Blade Of Grass?, Op.47 No.7
Cradle Song, Op.16 No.1
Behind The Window, Op.60 No.10
Ser, Op.63 No.6
The Canary, Op.25 No.4
Not A Word, O My Friend, Op.6 No.2
Lullaby In A Storm, Op.54 No.10
Spring, Op.54 No.9
Why Did I Dream Of You?, Op.28 No.3
None But The Lonely Heart, Op.6 No.6
Does The Day Reign?, Op.47 No.6
If Only I Had Known, Op.47 No.1
Why?, Op.6 No.5

Average customer rating:

Some lovely work, although not idiomatic French and with very English approach
If one track is worth US$50. . .
Gounod needs style, charm

Songs By Charles Gounod

Manufacturer: Hyperion
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

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

Classical | Imports | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Songs by Bizet
Songs by Camille Saint-Saëns
The Songs of Chausson / Lott · Murray · McGreevy · Trakas · Chilingirian Quartet · G. Johnson

ASIN: B000002ZWA
Release Date: 1993-12-28

Tracks:

Ou voulez-vouz aller?
Le soir
Venise
Ave Maria
Serenade
Chanson de printemps
Au rossignol
Ce que je suis sans toi
Envoi de fleurs
La paquerette
Bolero
Mignon
Reverie
Ma Beel amie est morte
Loin du pays
Clos ta paupiere
Priere
L'absent
Le temps des roses

Tracks:

Biondina: Prologo: Da qualche tempo
Biondina: Biondina bella
Biondina: Sotto un cappello rosa
Biondina: Le labbra ella compose
Biondina: E stati alquanto
Biondina: Ho messo nuove corde
Biondina: Se come io son poeta
Biondina: Siam iti l'altro giorno
Biondina: E le campane hanno suonato
Biondina: Ell'e malata
Biondina: ler fu mandata
Biondina: L'ho accompagnato
The Worker
A Lay Of The Early Spring
My True Love Hath My Heart
Oh Happy Home! Oh Blessed Flower!
The Fountain Mingles With The River
Maid Of Athens
Beware!
The Arrow And The Song
Ilala (Stances a la memoire de D Livingstone)
If Thou Art Sleeping, Maiden

Customer Reviews:

Some lovely work, although not idiomatic French and with very English approach.......2007-06-01

One of the reviewers below truly does not like this collection. I can understand and do agree with some of his criticisms, but not with all.

Ann Murray is mostly in truly beautiful voice, especially on the first disc. No one would suggest her French is perfect (and it's not - it is very English), but her feeling (mostly) for the songs is often charming, and I enjoyed in particular her singing of "La pâquerette" and "Boléro", which moved in very sprightly fashion.

Anthony Rolfe Johnson's voice is inexplicably referred to by a reviewer below as a "dry little voice" and "completely lacking in charm or aural appeal". This is demonstrably not true - listen to the soundclips above, and you will hear a beautiful tenor voice in the classic modern English style. Anthony Rolfe Johnson has a sensitive approach, which admittedly does not always serve the music as well as it could, particularly where darker emotion is required or deeper passions could be shown - but goodness! The voice itself is delicious! Anything for which the requirement is a gorgeous sound and a feeling of tenderness is exactly what he does best.

(I must agree that his Italian is not good - it's very very British and makes scarcely an attempt at an Italian accent.)

Felicity Lott is my least favourite singer on this set. I particularly didn't like her first two offerings here - and I don't believe Ms Lott ever "gets" the style. Her French IS indeed heavily accented (school French is correct) - she liaises where she should, she follows the rules, but the flavour is always roast beef instead of crêpes Suzette. However, her voice is not ugly, and she certainly knows what she is singing. It's just that none of that knowledge really percolates into anything approaching the French style and an interpretation that reaches the listener. To understand what I mean, compare her version of "Mignon" with that sung by Sophie Marin-Dego on the CD "Vivent les vacances" - what a difference! (That album, by the way, is one I very highly recommend.)

The first CD of this set comprises only some of Gounod's French songs (sung by the two women), and the second CD consists entirely of the Biondina cycle (sung in Italian) and Gounod's "English" songs (sung in English). As Anthony Rolfe Johnson doesn't even sing any songs in French in this set, it's rather unfair to make any assumptions about his French. I thought the Biondina often sounded ravishing, and if I was left wishing for more urgency and variation in some of the songs in this cycle, that and the very English accent remain my sole caveats.

It was the English songs on this set that made me most uncomfortable. All three singers essay these songs in the rather bombastic style that has hamstrung English ballad singers throughout the last century. The "r"s are rolled (overly so); the approach is often coy and school-ma'am-ish; the timbres seem to slip into Savoy Opera G&S style... and in my opinion does not serve the music as well as would a more straightforward and elegant approach. It doesn't help that the lyrics are mostly pretty dreadful...! Why, oh why didn't Gounod use some better quality poetry?

Overall, it's undeniable that this is not a representation of French songs sung with impeccable French style. That's true. But the singing itself is often lovely, and certainly Graham Johnson's playing is beautiful - I do agree that the playing was sometimes stodgier than I felt it should be, but this reflects the tempi chosen by the singers.

In all, in spite of the stylistic lack and the English pronunciation of the French, this remains an often beautifully sung set, containing otherwise unavailable recordings of comparatively rare songs in the discography. (Why is Gounod so infrequently recorded? It is strange.) And for those reasons, this is a set worth having.

I would actually give this 3 and a half stars, but I do think 3 stars is a little unfair... so 4 stars let it be.

If one track is worth US$50. . ........2005-01-18

If one track is worth fifty bucks then you should definitely buy it. I am referring to the "Song of Spring" surely one of the few happy melodies out of Gounod and regrettably out of print in its master recording (E. Ameling, D. Baldwin, Soiree Francaise, 1985). Song of Spring pops up often in many critical studies: see, e.g., Camera Lucida, by R. Barthes who referred to it in his "wintergarten" passage. To this day, it still invites reflection. The passage of flats and diminished sevenths throughout the otherwise joyful song could only be interpolated by a composer and harmonist who, like J. Strauss, had lived life and the song still deserves, as the above critic suggests, to be sung by a younger woman speckled with the odor of chrysanthemums.

Gounod needs style, charm.......2004-12-05

Anybody who has heard one of the better Gounod songs sung by the likes of Reynaldo Hahn, Ninon Vallin, Charles Panzéra, Pierre Bernac or Gérard Souzay will know how extremely lovely and hard to sing they are!

They require a full technique-what Gérard Souzay has called "French bel canto"-to do justice to their delicate and elaborate melodies; a perfect sense of STYLE constructed on an idiomatic command of ennunciation; an elegant musicianship; last, but emphatically not least, they require CHARM, an elusive feeling impossible to coach.

Study a few of those older interpreters, and you will understand immediately, in a few measures, why some people-among them Maurice Ravel-thought Charles-Marie Gounod the father of French art song.

It is nice to have this collection by three respected British singers in superb, though somewhat overresonant, digital sound. They are musical, somewhat slack perfomances in high-school French. They totally lack any sense of what the music is about, however, or any of the sensuous elegance the music requires. The worst offender is the tenor, whose dry little voice-what is known in the operatic world as a tenorino comprimario-is completely lacking in charm or aural appeal. His Italian, in the Biondina cycle, is awful.

The women are a bit better, but sound none-too-young.

The pianist, who is the brain behind this whole series of Hyperion song recordings, is a good player with an ear for the lovely phrase, but tends to take everything far too slowly: the nascent love of the singer for the lovely Biondina, and his funereal lamentations for her demise, towards the end of the cycle, sound exactly alike! That is certainly NOT Gounod's fault.

Listen to Reynaldo Hahn's one recoding from this cycle, and you will understand immediately why this collection will really not do.

Average customer rating:

Welcome collection of Marcella Sembrich's work

Marcella Sembrich

Manufacturer: Nimbus Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Mazurkas | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Waltzes | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

French | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Italian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Nellie Melba
Hempel: Prima Voce
Ponselle, Vol. 2
Galli-Curci: Prima Voce
Geraldine Farrar in Italian Opera

ASIN: B00000JCAV
Release Date: 1999-06-15

Tracks:

Don Pasquale: Vado, Corro - Marcella Sembrich/Antonio Scotti
Halka: Gdyby Rannem Slonkiem (If With The Early Sunshine)
Semiramide: Bel Raggio Lusinghier
La Traviata: Ah, Fors' E Lui...Sempre Libera
Norma: Casta Diva...Ah! Bello A Me Ritorna
Hamlet: Doute De La Lumiere - Marcella Sembrich/Emilio De Gogorza
I Vespri Siciliani: Merce, Dilette Amiche (Bolero)
Lucia Di Lammermoor: Ardon Gl'incensi (Mad Scene) - Marcella Sembrich/Darius Lyons
Ernani: Ernani, Involami...Tutto Sprezzo Che D'Ernani
Il Barbiere Di Siviglia: Una Voce Poco Fa
Rigoletto: Caro Nome
Martha: The Last Rose Of Summer
Fruhlingsstimmen, Op.410
The Lass With The Delicate Air
Parla!
Home Sweet Home
Si Me Vers Avaient Des Ailes - Marcella Sembrich/Frank La Forge
Wohin? - Marcella Sembrich/Frank La Forge
Aime-Moi
La Sonnambula: Ah! Non Giunge
Comin' Thro' The Rye

Customer Reviews:

Welcome collection of Marcella Sembrich's work.......2007-03-07

Marcella Sembrich recorded the cuts on this CD in her mid- and late 40s. Thus, obviously, we are not hearing at in her best voice. Also, this is an old-time acoustic recording; hence, the quality is not what would come later. It is fun to listen to one of the leading sopranos of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. But it's hard to know how good she really was, given the technology of recording and the fact that she was well into her 40s (although her voice is still rich).

A sampling. . . . "Bal raggio lusinghier" (from Rossini's "Semiramide") is well sung. Her voice shows agility. The ornamentation is somewhat different than what we are used to hearing in recent decades. Her voice is rich sounding. She shows a mediocre trill before concluding with a nice high note.

"Ah, fors e lui. . .Sempre libera," from Verdi's "La Traviata" is a showpiece. "Ah, fors e lui" is smoothly sung, although there is a rough note somewhat before "Sempre libera." It may be the technology (I don't know). There is another mediocre trill before "Sempre libera." The latter is sung at a quick pace and Sembrich hits high notes well. The ending is somewhat less musical than what came before.

One of the segments of "The Mad Scene" from Donizetti's "Lucia di Lammermoor" is "Ardon gl'incensi." This is smoothly sung, with some occasional harsh sounding notes (again, is this the technology or the voice?). "Una voce poco fa," from "Il Barbiere di Siviglia," features a couple harsh high notes. There also seems to be something of a break from her lower to her middle and upper register. The cabaletta is taken at a delightfully quick pace. In some florid passages, the notes sort of "mush" into one another in a way that I do not find particularly attractive.

Strauss' waltz, "Fruhlingstimmen," is sung with gusto. The singer seems to be having fun on this cut. Finally, "Ah! Non giunge" from Bellini's "La Sonnambula." This is the oldest cut on the CD (recorded in 1904). The recording is of noticeably poorer quality than other selections. Sembrich sings at a quick pace. Some of the higher notes are a bit harsh sounding.

All in all, this is a welcome introduction to one of the major figures of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Kudos to such companies as Nimbus Records for making these singers and their work available to contemporary audiences.

Le Quintette Moraguès Fait la Fête 20 Ans de Concerts, 20 Ans de Bis : A Festive Moment with the Moragues Quintet 20 years of concerts, 20 years of encores

Average customer rating:

Good music, good fun

Le Quintette Moraguès Fait la Fête 20 Ans de Concerts, 20 Ans de Bis : A Festive Moment with the Moragues Quintet 20 years of concerts, 20 years of encores

Manufacturer: Le Chant Du Monde
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Ballets | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Dances | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Polkas | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Quintets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

French | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Russian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Classical | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B000056F7S
Release Date: 2002-03-12

Tracks:

Carmen, Entracte (Actes III-IV)
Pizzicato-Polka
Danses Slaves, Danse Op. 72
Rimski-Korsakov, Nikola
Carmen, Chanson Bohenne
Amour Sorcier, Danse Rituelle du Feu
Danses Norvennes Op. 35, Deuxi Danse
Danses Antiques Hongroises, Cinqui Danse
Danses Roumaines, Peloc
Suite Pour Orchestre de Jazz N2, Valse N2
Jeux d'Enfants, Op. 22, La Toupie
Carmen, Entracte (Actes II-III)
Moments Musicaux, Op. 94 D. 780, Impromptu
Danses Slaves, Danse Op. 46
Momiji, Les Feuilles Rouges de l'Automne
Age d'Or, Op. 22, Polka
Mdies aques, Op. 34, Dernier Printemps (2e Mdie)
Pell et Msande, Op. 80, Sicilienne
Pop Suite, Ragtime
Montfeyrine de Gryon
Rikudim, Finale
Concerto en Sol Majeur, Adagio Assai

Customer Reviews:

Good music, good fun.......2003-04-27

This is a very enjoyable CD. It does not include "serious" wind quintet repertoire (very underrated and ignored music, by the way), but many transcriptions of well know tunes, like Dvorak's Slavonic Dances, Bizet's Carmen, Strauss' pizzicato polka (yes) and so on, that they have been playing as bises in their concerts. This is one of the specialities of the Moraguès quintet (thanks to their oboist, David Walter), and the results are amazing. Forget your prejudices about the original scores (which are absolutely respectable, of course) and have a go. There is a lot of good humour all the way along, and a very very skillful playing from all of them, careful tuning and musical phrasing. At this price, it is a bargain, I only regret that the recordings of this group are so difficult to find. Definitely recommended.