Monthly Archive: March 2008
PACINI: Alessandro nell’Indie (complete opera) – Bruce Ford (Alessandro)/ Jennifer Larmore (Poro)/ Laura Claycomb (Cleofide)/ Geoffrey Mitchell Choir/ London Philharmonic Orchestra/ David Parry – Opera Rara
Has Pacini’s time come? This new release certainly helps.
“Air on a G String” – Baroque Masterpieces by BACH, COUPERIN, SAINT-LUC & WEISS – David Russell, guitar – Telarc
A fine recital of Baroque works mixing the familiar with the rarely-heard.
Perspectives – Works by DAVIDSON, RICHARDS, FENNER, LOMBARI, MASCARI, WARSHAUER, MANDELBAUM, GILLINGHAM, WALCZYK, PANN & ERICKSON – Var. Orch. & soloists incl. Richard Stoltzman & Gerard Schwarz – MMC (2 CDs)
A surprisingly entertaining disc of “ all new stuff”
DOWLAND: Lute Songs; BRITTEN: Nocturnal – Mark Padmore, tenor/ Elizabeth Kenny, lute/ Craig Ogden, guitar – Hyperion
A nice addition to the Dowland discography, with some bonus Britten.
Audio News for March 4, 2008
ADCOM and Emerson Radio Hook Up; Antenna Sales Increase as More Users Turn to OTA Reception; Pioneer Stops 42-inch Plasmas; You Need a Media Extender
Aaron Rosand, violin: Celebrating a Life in Music (2006-07)
Bach’s mighty Chaconne is played live-in-concert in one monster gulp, all of its labyrinthine transmutations of the opening motif in kaleidoscopic colors.
Art Pepper, alto sax – …The Way It Was! – Contemporary Records/Mobile Fidelity
A lavish reissue on SACD from Mo-Fi is always a special thing, and when the music is at such a high level as these early Art Pepper sides, jazz lovers can’t lose.
“O Thou Transcendent” – The Life of Ralph Vaughan Williams (2007)
The musical excerpts are alternated with interview material from important figures in British music, including his widow and those of other leading British composers and conductors.
Editorial for March 2008
Welcome to Adobe GoLive 6 Naxos – The world’s leading classical music label – will be sending a 16:9 widescreen DVD of the striking ballet interpretation of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream to ten Audiophile Audition readers who register on the site this month. The disc – from OpusArte – is available in three different formats: standard DVD, Blu-ray DVD and HD DVD, so we will email each of the winners at the end of this month to ask which format they would prefer. Register here to be entered in the drawing for March. The 12 winners of the two new EMI Classics CDs in last month’s Giveaway were: Karrie Millheim, Cape Coral, FL; Nine Wright, Eaton, NY; Jack Greene, Omaha, NE; Gregory Hill, Reading, PA; Ernest Napes, Woodhaven, NY; Michael Cook, Smyrna, GA; Joe Gambino, Worcester, MA; Tom Martin, Petaluma, CA; Carrie Sayre, Albuquerque, NM; Norman Strings, Burbank, CA; Leight Powers, Needham, MA; Karin Aaberg, Tenstrike, MN. Congrats to all! Register Here for the Current Drawing General Editorial Welcome to the web publication for audio, music and home theater, emphasizing hi-res, hi-def, and surround sound for music! AUDIOPHILE AUDITION began as a weekly national […]
MOZART: Symphonies No. 38-41 – Scottish Chamber Orchestra/ Charles Mackerras, conductor – Linn
Mackerras returns once again to Mozart, with results much more pleasing than on his Telarc complete set
MOZART: “Haydn String Quartets,” Nos. 15, 17, 19 – Prazak Quartet – Praga Digitals
Czech players just seem to have a preternatural affinity for chamber music, but the Prazak Quartet elevates their artistry on this disc to another level entirely.
“End of the Matter” = STEPHENSON: Vignettes; BESTOR: Concerto Piccolo; MACCHIA: The End of the Matter; ELLISON: Elegy; HAUSE: Street Jam; BRADSHAW: Sonata – Eric Berlin, trumpets/ Eduardo Leandro, perc./ Lynn Klock, saxes/ Nadine Shank, p. – MSR
An interesting blend of trumpet and mostly-percussion pieces
MOZART: Posthorn Serenade; HAYDN: Symphony No. 45; SCHUBERT: Italian Overture – arrangements for Chamber Orchestra – Emsland Ensemble – Musicaphon
This is a chamber setting of these works, but it’s a much more intimate affair than even a chamber orchestra would offer.
* SHOSTAKOVICH: String Quartets Nos. 2 and 4, arranged for Chamber Orchestra – Amsterdam Sinfonietta /Candida Thompson, artistic leader – Channel Classics
******* MULTICHANNEL DISC OF THE MONTH ******
These Dutch players all seem to have a real affinity for the music of Shostakovich!
The 2008 Portland Jazz Festival – A Big Step Forward
The Shape of Jazz to Come came and impressed all
“Hommage” – The Alban Berg Quartet plays works of HAYDN, BEETHOVEN, MOZART, MENDELSSOHN, SMETANA, BARTOK, RAVEL, BERG, STRAVINSKY, SCHUBERT, J. STRAUSS, LANNER & JANACEK – EMI set
A bargain 5-CD set from the last three decades of a great string quartet
GLORIA COATES: Symphony No. 15; Cantata da Requiem; Transitions – Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra/ Michael Boder, conductor/ Teri Dunn, soprano/ Talisker Players of Toronto/ Ars Nova Ensemble Nuremburg/ Werner Heider – Naxos
One of the more interesting of the Modernists, an American living in Munich
“A Handful of World” = LISA BIELAWA: Kafka Songs; Lamentations for a City; A Collective Cleansing – Lisa Bielawa, voice/ Carla Kihlstedt, violin and voice/ Jacqueline Leclair, English horn/ Cerddorion Vocal Ensemble/ Kristina Boerger, conductor – Tzadik
An interesting and not insignificant talent, but far too inward-looking
Audio News for March 1, 2008
HT Market to Nearly Double in Five Years; Replacing Lost or Broken Electronics Parts
Stereotypes Audio
Cembal d’amour
Pure Pleasure / Speakers Corner
Cedille
