Monthly Archive: August 2015
Rostropovich – A Romantic Portrait – DVORAK/ SCHUMANN/ TCHAIKOVSKY – Mstislav Rostropovich, cello – Royal Philharmonic / Sir Adrian Boult/ Leningrad Philharmonic / Gennady Rozhdestvensky – Praga Digitals
Archival performances lovingly remastered and beautifully played.
“American Chamber Music” of HERRMANN, COPLAND, GERSHWIN, AND WAXMAN [TrackList follows] – The Nash Ensemble – Hyperion
Fine music but a muddled program.
HENRI HERZ: Piano Concerto No. 2 in c minor and other works – Howard Shelley (piano) / Tasmanian Sym. Orch. / Howard Shelley – Hyperion hi-res
Early Romantic works for piano and orchestra in hi-res to raise the spirits.
Joe Porter and Joel Goodfellow, “Detours – Music for Percussion and Piano” = ENNIO MORRICONE: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly Suite; HOWARD SHORE: Concerning Hobbits from The Fellowship of the Ring; PAUL DESMOND: Take Five; SEAN BEESON: Promotheus Rapture, Seven Legends – Big Round
Seems like pretty good playing but I am unclear on the concept.
Emil Gilels in Prague = MOZART: Piano Sonata in F Major; BRAHMS: 4 Ballades; 7 Fantasien – Praga Digitals
Emil Gilels comes to Prague, shedding his Russian sensibilities to proffer fine renditions of Mozart and Brahms.
Double Feature: Jean De Florette & Manon of the Spring, Blu-ray (1986/2015)
A pair of wonderful French films, now on Blu-ray.
REGER: String Quartet in E-flat Major; Violin Sonata in f-sharp minor: Allegretto; Suite in Old Style – Bonus Tracks: Clarinet Quintet in A Major: Vivace; String Quartet in E-flat Major: Quasi presto – Busch-Quartet – Testament
Guild restores the happy collaboration of violinist Adolf Busch and his colleagues in the music of Max Reger.
Audio News for August 14, 2015
Another Home Automation Platform; Sono Luminus to Release Three Albums Using Auro-3D; Yamaha Expands Selections of Under-TV Speaker Bases; Melco Hi-Res Music Library Now Available in U.S.
American Chamber Music: HERRMANN /GERSHWIN / WAXMAN/COPLAND [Tracklist Follows] – The Nash Ensemble – Hyperion Hi-Res
A superb performance of a first-class piece of American Chamber Music.
The Budapest String Quartet: Early Recordings = HAYDN, MOZART, DITTERSDORF, DVORAK, BORODIN, SCHUBERT, MENDELSSOHN & TCHAIKOVSKY – Pristine Audio (2 discs)
A collection of early Budapest String Quartet inscriptions, played by personnel who took the group into the electrical era.
BACH Imagine: Transcribed Selections [TrackList follows] – Jean Rondeau, solo harpsichord – Erato/Warner Classics: BACH By Syrinx + CPE BACH: Flute Concerto in A [TrackList follows] – Simion Stanciu, syrinx/ Ens. Orch. de Normandie/ Jean-Pierre Berlingen/Zurich Ch. Orch./Edmond de Stoutz – Cascavelle
Two fascinating treatments of Bach on instruments for which the music was not actually written (except for one sel.).
BACH Imagine: Transcribed Selections [TrackList follows] – Jean Rondeau, solo harpsichord – Erato/Warner Classics: BACH By Syrinx + CPE BACH: Flute Concerto in A [TrackList follows] – Simion Stanciu, syrinx/ Ens. Orch. de Normandie/ Jean-Pierre Berlingen/Zurich Ch. Orch./Edmond de Stoutz – Cascavelle
Two fascinating treatments of Bach on instruments for which the music was not actually written (except for one sel.).
Far From the Madding Crowd, Blu-ray (2015)
An excellent transfer of a Thomas Hardy classic to the big screen.
MENDELLSOHN & GADE: Violin Concertos – Thomas Albertus Irnberger (violin) – Jerusalem Sym. Orch./ Doron Salomon – Gramola
Two fine concertos – one familiar, one lesser known.
IPPOLITOV-IVANOV: Symphony No. 1 in e minor Turkish Fragments; Turkish March – Singapore Sym. Orch./ Choo Hoey – Naxos
Naxos restores some colorful scores by Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov, charming and effective, if not particularly colossal.
Simon And Garfunkel – The Concert In Central Park – Warner Brothers/ Sony Legacy – double stereo vinyl
An historic concert is captured in this audiophile vinyl re-release.
BERNSTEIN: Overture to Candide; ALBENIZ: Suite espanola; MARK GLENTWORTH: Blues for Gilbert; ALLEN SHAWN: Three Dance Portraits, GERSHWIN: Rhapsody in Blue – Blue Chamber Quartet – Coviello Classics
An exciting German classical crossover quartet in hi-res surround.
Takeshi Asai – French Trio Vol. 2 [TrackList follows] – Blanchard Musique/ de Trois Cités Records
A nice, straightforward trio outing.
VYTAUTAS BACEVIĈIUS: Orchestral Works, Volume 1 = Piano Concerto No. 3; Piano Concerto No. 4 “Symphonie Concertante”; Spring Suite – Gabrielius Alekna, p./ Lithuanian Nat. Sym. Orch./ Christopher Lyndon-Gee – Naxos
Interesting works that may struggle to rise above the level of curiosity.
Heaven Adores You, Blu-ray (2015)
An examination of the life and music of Elliott Smith.
Audio News for August 11, 2015
Classical News; Audio Industry Veteran Len Schneider Dies; SuperMHL Chips; Classical Music for Dummies
TCHAIKOVSKY: Souvenir de Florence in d minor (String Orchestra Version); String Quartet No. 3 in e-flat minor; Melodrama from The Snow Maiden – Ch. Orch. Kremlin/ Misha Rachlevsky – Claves
Two of Tchaikovsky’s glowing chamber works receive symphonic treatment in these lush performances from Moscow, 1993.