Audiophile Audition Archive
BACH Fantasy – Ch. Rousset, harpsi. – Aparte
It’s always nice to have Christophe Rousset back in the recording studio.
RICHARD STRAUSS: Suite from Der Rosenkavalier; Symphonic Fantasy; Symphonic Fragment – Buffalo Philharmonic/ JoAnn Falletta – Naxos
An excellent concept album featuring three operatic orchestral reductions.
MOZART: Divertimento No. 11; Concerto for Two Pianos; Symphony No. 40 – IITTI Festival Orch./Laura Mikkola, piano/ Philippe Entremont, piano and cond. – Cascavelle
From the 2009 Festival in Finland, Philippe Entremont and Laura Mikkola grace us with spirited and stylistic Mozart.
Classical Meets Jazz (2009/2011)
A video of a two-piano premiere of a jazz interpretation of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition in Boston’s famed Jordan Hall.
CARSON COOMAN “A Trip to the Sky” – MSR
A trip to some very celestial sounds from an interesting composer!
RACHMANINOV: Symphony No. 2; LYADOV: The Enchanted Lake – Orch. dell’Acccademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia/Antonio Pappano – EMI
Antonio Pappano energetically realizes two colorful, Russian Romantic scores, the Rachmaninov symphony virtually uncut to allow it “to build from within.”
Sinfonias & Concerti of GIUSEPPE ANTONIO BRESCIANELLO – Glossa Late Keyboard Sonatas of GIOVANNI BENEDETTO PLATTI – Accent
Two eighteenth-century Italian composers who sought employment in Germany, one a master of prevailing styles, one a fascinating transitional figure.
Audio News for April 26, 2011
Cassettes Make a Comeback!; Sony’s Walkman Called Most Important Musical Innovation of the Last 50 Years
Art Hirahara – Noble Path – Posi-Tone
On Art Hirahara’s new album, Noble Path, the tune is the truth and the truth is tuneful.
Works of PROKOFIEV; MUSSORGSKY; RESPIGHI; DVORAK – Rosalind Elias, mezzo-soprano/ Chicago Sym. Orch./Fritz Reiner – Urania
Refurbished historical inscriptions of 1956-1959 from the legacy of Hungarian maestro Fritz Reiner reveal the clarity and forceful energy that master could impart.
An Evening with Dave Grusin, Blu-ray (2011)
It’s obvious a great deal of work went into setting up the orchestra and other performers for the best possible appearance in the video.
The Rossano Sportiello Trio: Lucky To Be Me – Arbors Piano Series, Vol. 22 – Arbors
A solid and impressive piano trio session.
Brian Lynch – Unsung Heroes – Holistic Music Works
Lynch honors unsung trumpet masters.
Thomas Marriott – Human Spirit – Origin Records
Marriott continues his rise to the elite.
Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers – The Sesjun Radio Shows (2 CDs) – 1978, 1980, 1983 – CD 1: 67:35 / CD 2: 67:36 – Out of the Blue/ T2
Vintage late-period Blakey.
Julian Assange: A Modern Day Hero? (2011)
Any questions I may have had about the efficacy of what Assange is doing were put at ease by this informative video.
Carole King, The Carnegie Hall Concert – June 18, 1971 – Ode/Mobile Fidelity
Early Carole King in glorious fidelity.
DAVID CHESKY: Urbanicity; Concerto for Electric Guitar and Orch.; The New York Variations – Bryan Baker, elec. guitar/ Urbanicity Orch. of New York/ David Chesky – Chesky Records
Chesky’s composition strikes a unique pose as a major concerto effort featuring the electric guitar as the solo instrument.
MENDELSSOHN: Die Erste Walpurgisnacht; Works of BRAHMS & SCHUMANN: – Simone Schroeder, sop./Burkhard Fritz, tenor/Detlef Roth, bar./Franz-Josef Selig, bass/Audi Jugendchorakademie/Bayerisches Staatsorchester/Kent Nagano – Farao
Kent Nagano and assembled forces fervently explore three Romantic settings of German poets: fanciful, mythic, and valedictory.
MOZART: Trio in E-flat Major for Clarinet, Viola, and Piano, K. 498, “Kegelstatt”; ALFRED UHL: Kleines Konzert; BRUCH: Eight Pieces, Op. 83 – Lake Trio – Partita
Stylish, engaging performances of chamber works from three different musical periods.
BEETHOVEN: Mass in C; SCHUMANN: Piano Concerto in A Minor – Soloists/ Cologne Radio Ch./Cologne Radio-Symphony Orch./Walter Gieseking, p./Guenter Wand – Archipel
Two vintage performances from the literalist-perfectionist baton of Guenther Wand testify to a potent exacting taskmaster.
Joe Henderson – Barcelona- Enja
A free jazz excursion for Henderson.