Monthly Archive: June 2008
The Brubeck Brothers Quartet & Imani Winds – Classified – Koch
The quartet considers itself working in the “classical crossover” area.
RACHMANINOV: Symphony No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 13; TCHAIKOVSKY: Romeo and Juliet–Fantasy Overture in B Minor – Philadelphia Orchestra/Eugene Ormandy; Boston Symphony Orchestra/Charles Munch (Romeo) – HDTT DVD-R or CD-R
The Rachmaninov comes from a Columbia 1/4-track prerecorded tape and the Tchaikovsky from a RCA 1/4-track tape.
GODARD: Violin Concerto No. 2, Op. 131; Concerto Romantique for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 35; Scenes Poetiques for Orchestra, Op. 46 – Chloe Hanslip, violin/ Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra/Kirk Trevor – Naxos
The Berceuse from his 1888 opera Jocelyn became the darling of such diverse artists as John McCormack and Pablo Casals.
SMETANA: Má vlast (My Fatherland) (1984/2008)
Fine concert video, but I missed the Czech scenes featured in an early laserdisc also videotaped in the early 1980s.
Marilyn Crispell, solo piano – Vignettes – ECM
The excellent piano recording for which ECM is famed was made in an auditorium at the Italian-Swiss Radio.
* “Divertimenti” – BRITTEN: Simple Symphony; GRAZYNA BACEWICZ: Concerto for String Orchestra; TERJE BJORKLUND: Carmina; BARTOK: Divertimento for Strings – Trondheim Soloists/Øyvind Gimse – 2L
******** MULTICHANNEL DISC OF THE MONTH *******
The first opportunity to compare many different surround formats on an audio-only Blu-ray disc with SACD and CD.
SIBELIUS: Symphonies Nos. 5 in E Flat & 7 in C; En Saga – Boston Symphony Orchestra/Sir Colin Davis – PentaTone
The sonics of this RQR recording meets current surround sound standards easily , even without the center channel or separate LFE feed.
ELGAR: Symphony No. 1 in A Flat Major; Sonata for Organ in G Major (Transcribed by Gordon Jacob) – BBC National Orchestra of Wales/Richard Hickox – Chandos
The transcription of the Organ Sonata is almost like a new Elgar Symphony.
DVORAK: Piano Trio No. 4 in E minor, Op. 90 “Dumky” – Louis Kentner, piano/Henry Holst, violin/Anthony Pini, cello – Pristine Audio
Great musicianship, just give us more of it for the dollar, Pristine.
Robert Walter – Cure All – Palmetto Records
He has a way of being in a fresh modern groove and funky at the same time that’s infectious.
Larry Vuckovich Trio – High Wall – “Real Life Film Noir” – Tetrachord Music
High Wall refers to the themes of deception and the big lie in most film noirs, and also to his former life in Yugoslavia.
“Garden of Early Delights” – 16 works from Renaissance and Early Baroque – Pamela Thorby, recorders/ Andrew Lawrence-King, harp & psaltery – Linn
A mixed bouquet of diverse, joyous, unusual and eloquent pieces
Audio News for June 6, 2008
3D Movies Happening Again, Plus Video This Time; Linn Records SACD Promotion
Becoming Jane, Blu-ray (2007)
Another Jane Austen story, with all the period touches in hi-res.
MICHAEL NYMAN: Mozart 252 (playlist below) – Michael Nyman Band (+ on last 3 tracks: Hilary Summers, contralto, Andrew Slater, bass – MN Records
Mozart-derived selections taken from a score for a Peter Greenaway film and from Mozart’s own letters & riddles.
MOZART: Complete Sonatas for Keyboard and Violin, Vol. 5 – Gary Cooper, fortepiano/ Rachel Podger, violin – Channel Classics
Chronology of the sonatas has been jumbled about, so you get a really good mix of youthful and mature works.
BEETHOVEN: Symphony No. 7; Works by CARL MARIA VON WEBER, ROSSINI and JOHANN WILHELM WILMS – Budapest Festival Orchestra /Ivan Fischer, conductor – Channel Classics
Channel Classics provides a spectacular Meitner/Pyramix -based DSD recording, and the sound is absolutely to die for.
GLAZUNOV & TCHAIKOVSKY: Violin Concertos – Vadim Gluzman, violin/ Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra /Andrew Litton, conductor – BIS
A reference-quality surround recording, with near-definitive performances.
Scattered Rhymes – Vocal music of GUILLAME DE MACHAUT and TARIK O’REGAN – The Orlando Consort/ Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir – Harmonia mundi
The listener can easily pinpoint the locations of the various vocalists in the excellent representation of the acoustic of the Greyfriars Church in Edinburgh, Scotland.
MOZART: Requiem – London Symphony Orchestra/ Sir Colin Davis, conductor – LSO Live
Offers remarkably good sound, capturing a really lush, believable surround sound representation of London’s Barbican.
Gary Karr, Bass Virtuoso – ECCLES: Sonata for Double Bass & Piano; 6 short works by KOUSSEVITSKY, BLOCH, LORENZITTI, RAVEL & PAGANINI; ALEC WILDER: Works for Doublebass & Piano – with Jeffrey Siegel & Bernie Lieghton, pianists – Classic Records HDAD
Rich, gorgeous sounds from the unlikely bass string instrument in the hands of a master.
Film Soundtrack CDs
37 album reviews of interest (and not) of music for films
Stereotypes Audio
Cembal d’amour
Pure Pleasure / Speakers Corner
Cedille
