Monthly Archive: June 2006
Lea DeLaria: Double Standards – (Lea Delaria, vocals; Gil Goldstein, piano, keyboards and arrangements; Christian McBride, bass; Bill Stewart, drums; Stephon Harris, marimba and vibraphone; Seamus Blake, tenor sax) – Telarc
Surprisingly enjoyable jazz vocal disc from the comedienne
BUXTEHUDE – Membra Jesu Nostri – Cantus Colln – Konrad Junghanel, conductor – Harmonia Mundi
Superbly staged performance of rare Buxtehude cantatas
BUXTEHUDE: Membra Jesu Nostri – The Netherlands Bach Society – Jos van Veldhoven, conductor – Channel Classics
Winner of this month’s Buxtehude shootout, sort of…
Outlaw Audio Model 990 AV Preamplifier/Tuner
Entry-level multichannel AV preamp passes muster
MOSCHELES: Cello Sonata No. 2 in E Major, Op. 121; 3 Melodic-Contrapuntal Studies, Op. 137; HUMMEL: Cello Sonata in A Major, Op. 104 – Jiri Barta, cello/ Hamish Milne, piano – Hyperion
A pair of lovely cello sonatas from minor Romantic composers
“Round-Up” – Western classics – Frankie Laine, vocals/ Men of the May Festival Chorus/ Cincinnati Pops Orchestra/ Erich Kunzel – Telarc
A derived surround-sound version of the label’s popular 1987 CD
DAVID DEL TREDICI: Paul Revere’s Ride; CHRISTOPHER THEOFANIDIS: The Here and Now; LEONARD BERNSTEIN: Lamentation – Hila Plitmann, sop./Richard Clement, tenor/ Brett Polegato, baritone/ Nancy Maultsby, mezzo-sop./ Atlanta Symphony Orch./Spano – Telarc
Two exciting new choral works in stirring performances
BEETHOVEN: Violin Sonata No. 9 in A Major, Op. 47 “Kreutzer”; Violin Sonata No. 5 in F Major, Op. 24 “Spring” – Itzhak Perlman, violin/ Vladimir Ashkenazy, piano – Decca The Originals
Both players, recorded in the early 1970s, dig into the notes of both works
Audio News for June 28, 2006
Home Entertainment Network Years Away, Says Intel; StreamNet Selected to Connect Speakers and Components Over IP Networks; More Than 25% of Consumers Have MP3 in Their Vehicles Now; Boosey & Hawkes Inaugurates Jazz Publishing
SOUNDTRACKS
19+ Recent, Past, and Coming Soon Film Score CDs
John Pizzarelli – Dear Mr. Sinatra (with the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra) – Telarc Jazz
A right-on tribute to Ol’ Blue Eyes
“Panoramic” – (Ensemble with steel drums) – Rhythmic Union Records
Brazilian, African, Indian and jazz elements mix with the Caribbean sounds
Jazz Crusaders, The Paris Concert (2002)
Almost four decades since their founding, the Crusaders still lay down their Soul and Funk groove
SCHUBERT: Piano Sonata in A Minor, D. 845; Piano Sonata in A Major, D. 959 – Thomas Guenther, fortepiano – Cybele
Performances with a piano sound closer to what Schubert heard
TCHAIKOVSKY: Symphony No. 6 in B Minor, Op. 74 “Pathetique”; Serenade for Strings in C Major, Op. 48 – Royal Philharmonic Orchestra/ Daniele Gatti – Harmonia mundi
Idiomatic and quite exciting Tchaikovsky in surround sound
Fine Arts Quartet, 30th Anniversary Album = SHOSTAKOVICH: String Quartet No. 3 in F, Op. 73; PROKOFIEV: String Quartet No. 2 in F Major, Op. 92 – Fine Arts String Quartet – Gallante
Two Russian quartets from long-running, consistently fine quartet
“Cello, Celli!” – The Yale Cellos, dir. by Aldo Parisot – Music of BRUBECK & BACH – Naxos
The rich sound of massed cellos in skillfully transcribed and performed works
BRAHMS: Variations on an Original Theme, Op. 21, No. 1; Scherzo in E-flat, Op. 4; 3 Waltzes, Op. 39; 2 Intermezzi, Op. 117; 6 Klavierstuecke, Op. 118; 3 Intermezzi, Op. 119; 3 Pieces, Op. 116; 3 Pieces, Op. 76 – Wilhelm Backhaus, piano – Naxos Historical
The master pianist can be as stolid as he is sensitive
JOHANN WENZEL KALLIWODA (1801-1866): Concertos & Orchestral Works = Dieter Klöcker, clarinet/Radovan Vlatkovic, horn/ Hamburger Symphoniker/ Johannes Moesus – MDG
A magnificent work for horn & orchestra highlights this CD
PHILIP GLASS: Symphony No. 8 – Bruckner Orchestra Linz/ Dennis Russell Davies – Orange Mountain Music
Typical Glass minimalism expanded to symphonic size
SCRIABIN: Intégrale des Poèmes (Complete Poèmes) – Pascal Amoyel, piano – Calliope
These pieces brought composition for piano into the 20th century
DVORAK: Symphony No. 7 in D Minor, Op. 70; Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Op. 88 – Czech Philharmonic Orchestra/ Vaclav Talich – Naxos Historical
Historical recordings don’t come any better than this
Stereotypes Audio
Cembal d’amour
Pure Pleasure / Speakers Corner
Cedille
