Monthly Archive: January 2011
ELLIOTT CARTER: Cello Concerto; UDO ZIMMERMANN: Lieder von einer Insel (Songs from an Island) – Jan Vogler, cello/ Bavarian Radio Symphony/ Kristjan Järvi – Neos
Two very different and very interesting and worthwhile pieces of the modern realm—and yes, you can understand them both.
The Complete Metropolis, Blu-ray (1927/2010)
Metropolis’ influences can be seen in many more modern films, such as Frankenstein, Dark City, Bladerunner and various other sci-fi films.
Pete Anderson – Even Things Up (Deluxe Edition) – Little Dog Records
Blues man plays his hand.
Ernest Ansermet Collection = BERLIOZ: Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14; LISZT: Battle of the Huns; WAGNER: Eine Faust-Overture – Orchestre de la Suisse Romande/ Ernest Ansermet – Cascavelle
Assembled 1950-1968 performances by Ernest Ansermet display his capacity for spectacle and daring, colorful panache in Romantic repertory.
Hans Knappertsbusch – The Complete RIAS Recordings = Works of BRUCKNER, BEETHOVEN, SCHUBERT, J. STRAUSS, NICOLAI, HAYDN, TCHAIKOVSKY, KOMZAK – Audite (5 CDS)
A seminal collection of Hans Knappertsbusch inscriptions with the Berlin Philharmonic, demonstrating the breadth, girth, and facility of his Bruckner and popular works.
Audio News for January 7, 2011
Dolby Adds Virtual Surround Sound to Computers; NuVo Technologies Shows Powerline-Carrier Whole-Home Audio System; McIntosh Laboratory Flagship Disc Player Uses ESS D/A Converter; StreamHD Wirelessly Sends 1080p Video with 5.1 Audio from Computers to HDTVs; Verizon Enters Home Automation Market
STEFAN LITWIN – “The Bells” = DEBUSSY: La Cathédral engloutie; MICHAEL GIELEN: Klavierstück, “Recycling der Glocken”; RAVEL: La vallée des cloches; STEFAN LITWIN: The Bells: excerpt; LISZT: Carillon – David Moss, Sprechstimme /Stefan Litwin, p. – Telos
I had fun, but whether you want to take a flyer on this disc I leave up to you, gentle reader.
SZYMANOWSKI: Piano Works Vol. 1 = Nine Preludes, Op. 1; Serenade No. 7, Op. 55; Métopes: Three Poems for Piano, Op. 29; Sonata No. 3 for Piano, Op. 36 – Anu Vehviläinen, piano – Alba
This very recommendable disc gives us so fine a snapshot of Szymanowski’s growth as a piano composer.
SCHUBERT: Winterreise – Peter Harvey, baritone/ Gary Cooper, pianoforte – Linn
Another Winterreise—and one that features a powerful voice and innate understanding of the text.
TAVENER: Towards Silence – Medici Quartet/ Finzi Quartet/ Cavaleri Quartet/ Fifth Quadrant – Signum
The religious and philosophical quests of John Tavener continue—what is he up to now?
CHOPIN Vol. I: 19 Waltzes – Mordecai Shehori, piano – Cembal d’amour
The Chopin Waltzes–here conceived as an ongoing cycle–and rendered much as the composer intended, virtually for the first time, by the conscientious Mordecai Shehori.
Laurindo Almeida & Bud Shank – Brazilliance – Pacific Jazz/Pure Pleasure Records
This path-setting 1954 release of a 1953 recording is regarded as the first bossa nova jazz album to be released in North America.
Daniel Barenboim 4 DVD-Box
A very entertaining perspective on the many talents of the maestro! Four films from two continents.
SMETANA: Ma Vlast (complete) – Gewandhaus Orchestra/ Vaclav Neumann, conductor – Berlin Classics
A recording with a lot of pedigree is back once again in the catalog, but the sound might preclude it as an only choice.
BRAHMS: Piano Trios, Vol. 2 = Piano Trio No. 2 in C, Op. 87; Piano Trio in A, Op. posthumous – Guarneri Trio Prague – Praga
Volume 2 in the outstanding SACD Brahms series by the Guarneri Trio Prague.
Knight and Day, Blu-ray+DVD+Digital Copy (2010)
Smart, funny and packed with a great deal of action.
Audio News for January 4, 2011
Disney to Release 15 3D Films on Blu-ray; Glass Speakers; CES in Las Vegas, January 6-9; Internet Radio Brought Into Cars
ALLAN PETTERSSON: Concerto No. 1 for Strings – Swedish Radio Sym./Stig Westerberg; Sym. No. 12 – Stockholm Philharmonic/ Chorus/Carl Rune Larsson – Caprice
Compelling case to get to know a Swedish original.
"Hommage á MOZART" – Sonata for 2 Pianos (mvt. one only); Sonata for 2 Pianists; MICK BAUMEISTER: Ballade about Mozart; Vicious Circle; RICHIE BEIRACH: Fantasy on a Mozart Theme; LISZT: Reminiscences de Don Juan – Hans-Peter & Stenzl/Jazzduo – Ars Musici
All in all, it’s a surprisingly mind-bending excursion into what we think Mozart sounds like.
Jake Fryer/Bud Shank Quintet – In Good Company – Capri Records
Beyond the call of duty…
Matthew Rybicki – Driven – Matthew Rybicki Music
In need of wider exposure…
Robinson Crusoe on Mars, Blu-ray
It turns out to be one of the better sci-fi features of that period – in blazing Technicolor and quite accurate in many of its imaginings of what Mars would be like.
Stereotypes Audio
Cembal d’amour
Pure Pleasure / Speakers Corner
Cedille
