Monthly Archive: October 2006
SHOSTAKOVICH: Piano Quintet in G Minor, Op. 57; FAURE: Piano Quintet No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 89 – James Dick, piano/ Eusia String Quartet – Round Top Records
Elegantly rendered and balanced versions of both quintets
Michael O’Neill – Ontophony – New Music for Highland Pipes and Percussion featuring Mearingstone & Uzume Taiko – Songlines
Some hypnotic surround sounds for those not averse to bagpipes, Taiko drums or minimalism
JOHN ADAMS: The Dharma at Big Sur – Tracy Silverman, electric violin/BBC Symphony orchestra/John Adams; My Father Knew Charles Ives – BBC Symphony Orchestra/Adams – Nonesuch
Separate short CDs for each new work
Audio News for October 15, 2006
Wireless Homes; Flat-Panel Displays Top Shopping Lists; New Paid Services Aid Frustrated Home Electronics Purchasers
RUDI STEPHAN: Music for Violin and Orchestra; Music for Orchestra (1910) Music for Orchestra (1912) – Sergey Stadler, violin/ Melbourne Symphony Orchestra/Oleg Caetani – Chandos
****** MULTICHANNEL DISC OF THE MONTH *******
Samsung HL-S5687W 56” 1080p DLP HDTV
Great resolution, performance, and price
Premier Acoustics PA-6F Home Theater Speaker System
A true surround speaker system with tower front channels at a cost close to some HTIB systems
Elman Plays Hebrew Melodies – Mischa Elman, violin/ Joseph Seiger, piano – Vanguard
Exaggerated emotional delivery proves an asset in these classics of Jewish melodies
Boston – Boston – Epic/Legacy
The rock band’s first album was recorded in the leader’s basement
Boston – Don’t Look Back – Epic/Legacy
“Collectable” version reissue of the rock group’s second album
BRITTEN: The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra; Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes; ELGAR: Enigma Variations – Cincinnati Symphony orchestra/Paavo Järvi – Telarc
First-rate performance and surround sonics
AvantGarde – Experimental Cinema of the 1920s & ’30s
24 classic art shorts on 2 DVDs from such as Man Ray, Orson Welles, Hans Richter and Fernand Léger
“Lyricism: Songs Without Words” – MICHAEL GLENN WILLIAMS: Songs Without Words 1, 2 & 3; Canzicranz Dance; Berceuse; Enchanted Forest Suite; Nocturne; Collage Suite; Regrets; Romance – Roberto Prosseda, piano – AIX Records
DVD with four different audio format options, plus a separate standard 44.1 CD
Fats Waller & His Rhythm Boxed Set = “If You Got To Ask, You Ain’t Got It” – 3 CD Overview of his career with 100-p. illustrated booklet – Bluebird/Legacy
Rare photographs from Waller’s manager distinguish this superb compilation
Audio News for October 10, 2006
Motorola iRadio Debuts Public Radio Content; HDMI Training for Consumer Electronics Installers; Top-of-Line SACD and Universal Players Are Two-Channel Only; Avoid Scratching Your Video Display
Kennedy Live a la Citadelle (2006)
Kennedy is a classical Bruce Willis with a glitter jacket and a violin
Leon Fleisher, piano – The Journey = BACH: Capriccio on the Departure of His Beloved Brother‚ Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue in D Minor; MOZART: Piano Sonata in E-flat Major, K. 282; CHOPIN: Berceuse in D-flat Major; STRAVINSKY: Serenade – Vanguard (2 discs)
An ailment in his right hand prevented the pianist for using it in performance for 40 years
“Bravura Bassoon” – Benjamin Coelho, bassoon – Crystal & “Bellissima” Italian Tunes for the Big Bassoon – Susan Nigro – Crystal
Big and Little Bassoons
Weather Report – “Forecast: Tomorrow” – Special Boxed Set of 3 CDs + live concert DVD – Columbia/Legacy
Fascinating survey of the fusion group’s 15-year history
Roy Haynes and the Fountain of Youth Band – “Whereas” – Dreyfus Records
80-year-old Haynes is one of the truly great drummers in the history of jazz
Cut Chemist – The Audience’s Listening – Beatdown Recordings/Warner Bros
First CD from a genius of turntables and samplers
Al Di Meola – Consequence of Chaos – Telarc
A host of guests, including Chick Corea, join in Di Meola’s latest guitar-centered album
Stereotypes Audio
Cembal d’amour
Pure Pleasure / Speakers Corner
Cedille
