Monthly Archive: April 2015
Bob Dylan – Roads Rapidly Changing (2015)
Some interesting footage, but all too familiar ground in this Bob Dylan documentary.
SHOSTAKOVICH: Symphony No. 8 in C Minor; SCRIABIN: Poem of Ecstasy – Leningrad Philharmonic Orch./ Yevgeny Mravinsky – Praga Digitals
Much maligned at its premier, the Shostakovich Eighth now commands respect, and the Scriabin work showcases Mravinsky’s virtuoso ensemble.
Audio News for April 28, 2015
Recycle Your Old Electronics; Premium Home Audio Brought to Ford Explorer; New Rotel Surround Processor
Melody Gardot – My One And Only Thrill – Verve Records /ORG (45 rpm vinyl)
Jazz singer/songwriter glows on this vinyl 45 rpm reissue.
Donny McCaslin – Fast Future [TrackList follows] – Greenleaf Music
The future is now on saxophonist Donny McCaslin’s acoustic-electro album.
Exodus – Gods and Kings, Blu-ray (2015)
A Hollywood try to remake DeMille’s classic Ten Commandments, but doesn’t make it.
RODION SHCHEDRIN: The Left-Hander – Mariinsky Orch. and Chorus/ Valery Gergiev/ Soloists – Mariinsky (2 SACDs)
Sardonic little comedy in the Shostakovich tradition.
PHILIP GLASS: The Hours; Metamorphosis; Mad Rush [TrackList follows] – Valentina Lisitsa, piano – Decca (2 CDs)PHILIP GLASS: “Mad Rush” [TrackList follows] – Jeron van Veen, piano – Brilliant Classics (2 vinyls)
Glass’ piano music on both vinyl and CD, and the CD set wins out.
Permutations – Eliesha Nelson – viola; James Howsman – piano – Music by NIKOLAI KAPUSTIN, JOHN MCLAUGHLIN WILLIAMS, ROSS LEE FINNEY, JEFFREY MUMFORD, GEORGE WALKER (TrackList below) – Sono Luminus
American contemporary chamber music well-played and presented.
PHILIP GLASS: The Hours; Metamorphosis; Mad Rush [TrackList follows] – Valentina Lisitsa, piano – Decca (2 CDs)
PHILIP GLASS: “Mad Rush” [TrackList follows] – Jeron van Veen, piano – Brilliant Classics (2 vinyls)
Glass’ piano music on both vinyl and CD, and the CD set wins out.
Randy Crawford – Raw Silk – Warner Bros. (1979)/ Pure Pleasure vinyl (2015)
Soul vocalist is impressive on this vinyl re-mastering.
VASSILY SAPELLNIKOFF: The Complete Recordings, 1924-1927 (rec. 1926); XAVER SCHARWENKA: The Complete Recordings, 1910-1913 – Vassily Sapellnikoff, p./ Aeolian Orch./ Stanley Chapple/ Xaver Schwarwenka, p. – APR (2 CDs)
The complete recordings of Vassily Sapellnikoff and Xaver Schwarwenka return to us in sound forum that well belies their age and historical significance.
Drivin’ ’N Cryin’ – Best Of Songs [TrackList Follows] – Plowboy Records
Indie rock band is impressive on this unusual greatest hits release.
Los Angeles Guitar Quartet – New Renaissance (TrackList follows) – LAGQ Records
A new disc for aficianados of guitar quartets.
Audio News for April 24, 2015
PBS Subwoofer Mounts Any Way; Four-Screen Display for TVs; DTS Withdraws DTS:X from 3.0 Broadcast TV Standard Consideration; SMS Audio Teams Up with Marvel & Reebok; Five Classical Music Controversies
Jimmy Witherspoon – Spoon’s Life – Isabel Records (1980)/ PurePleasure (2015)
A great blues singer in crisp and understated mono acoustics.
UK DK – Michala Petri (recorder) & Mahan Esfahani (harpsichord) – [TrackList follows] – OUR Recordings
Fine performances and good music, though some odd esthetic choices about the audio soundstage.
LISZT: Scherzo and March; Mephisto Waltz No. 1; Harmonies poetiques et religieuses: Ave Maria; Pensees des morts; Funerailles; Andante lagrimoso; Nuages gris; Valse oubliee No. 2 in A – Sviatoslav Richter, p. – Praga Digitals
Praga assembles a potent Liszt recital from various appearances by Sviatoslav Richter in Moscow, Budapest, and Cologne, 1957-1988.
Le Silence de la Mer, Blu-ray (1949/2015)
A moving first film from Jean-Pierre Melville, honored by the French Resistance.
The Steinmeyer Organ in Nidaros Cathedral – Various composers [TrackList follows] – Magne Draagen, organ – LAWO Classics
If you can’t get to Norway to hear this wonderful instrument, this disc is the next best option.
Ryan Truesdell: Gil Evans Project – Lines Of Color – ArtistShare/Blue Note
The music of a jazz innovator.
Free Nelson Mandoomjazz – Awakening of a Capital [TrackList follows] – RareNoise
Music which rises from deep depths to develop dread and dissonance.