Monthly Archive: June 2016
July 2016 Editorial Page
Our free July drawing is for the 51-CD lavish package from DGG entitled The Mono Era 1948-1957. Each CD is in a cardstock sleeve with the original tracks and description on the back. Performers include many of the greats of the 1950s: Kempff, Jochum, Furtwanger, Fricsay, Markevitch, Maazel, Oistrakh, Richter, Haskil, Fischer-Dieskau, Hindemith, Martzy and Varnay. In the set is a 150-page booklet in English, German and French, and many artist and production photographs. Here is Amazon’s page on the Mono Set. All you need to do is click on the Register To Win banner on the Home Page and fill out our simple form. The June winner of our drawing for the complete Wagner Ring Cycle on 8 PentaTone SACDs with booklet etc. is: Mayson Stewart, Charleston SC. Congrats! EDITORIAL AUDIOPHILE AUDITION began as a local program in San Francisco and then in 1985 as a weekly national radio series hosted by John Sunier, and aired for 13½ years on up to 200 public radio and commercial stations. In September 1998 its web site for program listings was expanded to this free Internet publication. July 2016 is our 208th issue! All disc reviews are added thru the month as […]
STEVEN BRYANT: In this Broad Earth – Music for Wind Band; In this Broad Earth; Concerto for Alto Saxophone; Concerto for Wind Ensemble – Michigan State University Wind Sym./ Kevin Sedatole/ Joseph Lulloff, alto sax – Blue Griffin
STEVEN BRYANT: In this Broad Earth – Music for Wind Band; In this Broad Earth; Concerto for Alto Saxophone; Concerto for Wind Ensemble – Michigan State University Wind Symphony cond. by Kevin Sedatole/ Joseph Lulloff Alto Saxophone – Blue Griffin (Distr. by Albany) ****: Contemporary music for wind band that is musically interesting and a welcome addition to the repertoire. In this Broad Earth is an interesting and dynamic CD that showcases the music of composer/conductor Steven Bryant, who has several well-known works for winds. First off is the title work In this broad Earth, a short fanfare Bryant wrote on a trip to Austria, where he says he was “inspired by the beauty I witnessed when hiking in the Austrian Alps with my wife, Verena – the music celebrates the earth, our only home.” Next is Bryant’s Concerto for Alto Saxophone. Written in 2014, it features the alto saxophone because it was Bryant’s chosen instrument to play during his youth. It is anchored in the jazz idiom, and the soloist does plenty of improvisation. It’s a very listenable piece, with a wide dynamic range and interesting interplay between the sax and the ensemble. Finally we hear the Concerto for […]
BARTÓK: Violin Concerto No. 2; Concerto for Orchestra – Augustin Dumay, violin/Orch. symphonique de Montreal/ Kent Nagano – Onyx Classics (2 CDs bound as book)
BÉLA BARTÓK: Violin Concerto No. 2; Concerto for Orchestra – Augustin Dumay, violin/Orch. symphonique de Montreal/ Kent Nagano – Onyx Classics ONYX4138 (2 CDs), 81:35 [Distr. by Harmonia mundi] (5/13/16) ****: Excellent performances that rank with the best. The music of Béla Bartók is, of course, by now standard orchestral fare and he is largely considered one the twentieth century’s most innovative and ingenious composers. There have been literally hundreds of recordings of these two present works – arguably his two most familiar – the second Violin Concerto and the Concerto for Orchestra. So how do these performances compare with some of the many others? I think very favorably indeed. For the second Violin Concerto, I admit I have always greatly enjoyed the old Yehudi Menuhin rendition under Antal Dorati and for a much more recent and very genuinely “Hungarian” take I strongly recommend the somewhat obscure recording by Barnabás Keleman with the Hungarian National Philharmonic. This version with Augustin Dumay is excellent; a bit more ‘refined’ than some versions that seem more “raw” especially in the finale. Dumay is a violinist and conductor of international renown who has played with a number of major orchestras worldwide. He is also […]
Schillings conducts = SCHUBERT: Symphony No. 8, “Unfinished”; SCHILLINGS: Mona Lisa: Prelude and Arrigo’s Serenade; BEETHOVEN: Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, “Eroica” – Berlin State Opera Orch./ Max von Schillings – Pristine Audio
More from the historical legacy of an imperfect man but capable musician, Max von Schillings. Schillings conducts = SCHUBERT: Symphony No. 8 in b, D. 759 “Unfinished”; SCHILLINGS: Mona Lisa, Op. 15: Prelude and Arrigo’s Serenade; BEETHOVEN: Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 55 “Eroica” – Berlin State Opera Orch./ Max von Schillings – Pristine Audio PASC 474, 76:34 [avail. various formats from www.pristineeclassical.com] ****: It has been quipped of composer and conductor Max von Schillings (1868-1933) that “his untimely death saved him from gross infamy, relegating him instead to relative obscurity.” An ardent Nazi, Schillings had begun purging many Jewish musicians from posts associated with the Prussian Academy of Arts. He was featured in the film documentary Great Conductors of the Third Reich. As a teacher of both Frieder Weissmann, Robert Heger, and Wilhelm Furtwaengler, Schillings may have achieved his real immortality. Procucer and recording engineer Mark Obert-Thorn, in collaboration with Andrew Rose and Richard Kaplan, provides us a substantial document of Schillings’ capacities as an interpretative artist. The Schubert Unfinished Symphony (30 November 1927) exhibits many fine qualities in the course of the reading: the responsive breadth of the musical line stands foremost among a litany of […]
Audio News for June 28, 2016
Consider a Home Theater Makeover If: You can’t tell the color orange from the new black on your favorite prison show; there’s motion blur when people are running; the speakers aren’t loud enough to hear Simon Cowell’s insults; there are more remote controls on the coffee table than people in your home. First, two things you should know about 4K TVs: If you sit close enough, the four times greater resolution provides so much picture details it’s almost like being there. Due to more 4K content now becoming available and falling prices, this could be a good time to invest in a UHD TV (not really 4K), provided it has HDR, high dynamic range brightness, to bring greater color and contrast to the screen. Some have “quantum dots” whose tiny nano crystals are laid out in sheets in front of the backlight source, producing a wider color palette and better brightness. Sound bars are becoming more popular because they are less expensive than 5.1 or 7.1 surround speaker system, and easier to set up, and take up little room so become ideal for smaller rooms and apartments. A horizontal soundbar typically sits just under the TV screen. Many ship with […]
Hanami – The Only Way to Float Free – ears&eyes
Chicago jazz/improvisation with a Japanese cultural connection. Hanami – The Only Way to Float Free [TrackList follows] ears&eyes ee16-042 40:20 [4/22/16] ****: (Mai Sugimoto – alto saxophone, clarinet; Andrew Trim – guitar; Jason Stein – bass clarinet; Charles Rumback – drums) The name of the jazz quartet, Hanami, is the Japanese word for ‘flower viewing,’ specifically the Japanese traditional custom of enjoying the transient beauty of flowers. That’s appropriate. On Hanami’s debut, the 2014 self-titled Hanami Quartet, the band shaped Japanese folk songs into improvisational jazz material. The foursome continues in a similar vein on their sophomore release, The Only Way to Float Free. This time only one number is a recast version of a Japanese folk song, but the quartet’s originals have an innate, organically-generated aesthetic which elevates the sounds and tones Hanami established on their first album. This forward-thinking, Chicago-based ensemble includes Japanese and American musicians. Mai Sugimoto (who studied jazz in the US) is on alto sax and clarinet; Andrew Trim (who spent his childhood in Japan and later joined the Chicago jazz/improv scene) is on electric guitar; Jason Stein (also part of the Chicago music community; he’s performed with Mike Reed, Greg Ward and others) is […]
Rising Tides (2016)
Another most worthwhile documentary on the water crisis coming up. Rising Tides (2016) Actors: Dr. Benjamin Strauss, Orrin H. Piekey, Dr. Stanley R. Riggs, Kate White Directors: Jason Auerbach & Scott Duthie Video: for 16:9 scree Audio: English stereo PCM All regions Studio: Cinema Libre Studio Rating: **** I recently reviewed the 2010 documentary on the water crisis, because even though it’d be a bit old I thought it was really important. It focused mainly on the horrible situation in Bengladesh – the poorest country on earth – due to both flooding and desert-like conditions imposed by India. The increased frequency of such devastating events as Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Sandy demonstrate the realities of climate change and the rising seas. The impact will be devastating on many coastal cities, with Miami probably the first to suffer. It explores the topic of coastline erosion, showing what has been done in the past, what is being done now, wha worked and what didn’t. All angles of this life-threatening issue are covered thru the interviews. The viewer is asked what or what should not be done to combat this global threat in the very near future. I didn’t know anything about the […]
![D. SCARLATTI: Complete Keyboard Sonatas Vol. IV [Books 9, 10 & 11 – 1754] – Carlo Grante, p. – Music&Arts (5 CDs)](https://www.audaud.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/ScarlattiVol.IV_.jpg)
D. SCARLATTI: Complete Keyboard Sonatas Vol. IV [Books 9, 10 & 11 – 1754] – Carlo Grante, p. – Music&Arts (5 CDs)
One of the best of the piano versions of the Domenico Scarlatti Sonatas. DOMENICO SCARLATTI: Complete Keyboard Sonatas Vol. IV [Books 9, 10 & 11 – all 1754] – Carlo Grante, playing a historic Bosendorfer Imperial piano – Music & Arts CD-1293 (5 CDs) [Distr. by Naxos] [7/8/16] ****: This is a continuation of the acclaimed series of the complete keyboard works of Scarlatti, and the only one ever recorded with the same pianist playing all of these works. As a harpsichordist myself, I naturally lean toward recordings of these 555-odd amazing little sonatas on the harpsichord, but the only complete set is the one recorded by the late Scott Ross on Erato/Warner Classics. Wanda Landowska recorded some of them with the Scarlatti Society in the 1930s. However, about half of them were recorded for the Westminster label by the equally amazing Fernando Valenti and six are available in greatly-improved sonic condition from Pristine Audio. He was the definitive exponent of Scarlatti of the time and his personality mirrored Scarlatti’s. Ottavio Dantone is also up to Vol. IV of his series of the planned complete Scarlatti Sontatas on harpsichord for the Stradivarius label, but they don’t equal the facilities of […]
********** Multichannel Disc of the Month *********** For the Beauty of the Earth – Works of WIDOR, VAUGHAN-WILLIAMS and others – Gabriel V Brass Ensemble/ Sharon Rose Pfeiffer, pipe organ, Percussion Ens. – Arte/ Paraclete
A most enjoyable surround concert of brass, percussion and pipe organ. * For the Beauty of the Earth – Celebrating Creation – Works of WIDOR, VAUGHAN-WILLIAMS and others – Gabriel V Brass Ensemble/Sharon Rose Pfeiffer, pipe organ, Percussion Ens. – Arte/ Paraclete multichannel SACD GDCD 061, 53:03 [5/1/16] ****: This is a gorgeous collection, in hi-res surround, of works expertly performed for brass, percussion and pipe organ. The Gabriel V ensemble usually performs and tours the world with the chorale group Gloria Dei Cantores. They also run an annual concert series in Orleans, MA. The Gabriel V Ensemble and organ were recorded in the historic Mechanics Hall of Worcester, MA, which since its restoration in 1977 has been internationally regarded as one of the world’s finest concert halls. The standout here is the six-minute Toccata from Widor’s Fifth Symphony – probably the best arrangement of the work I have ever heard. There is also a lovely arrangement of Vaughan-Williams’ hymn, Randolph. Other composers include Anthony DeLorenzo, David Marlatt, Walter Pelz, and John Bacchus Dykes. This is a perfect type of music for hi-res surround, and for the use of the surrounds for more than the usual ambient sonics. TrackList: 1. […]
Leonard Bernstein, Larger Than Life, Blu-ray 2016
Probably the best documentary on the great conductor and composer. Leonard Bernstein, Larger Than Life, Blu-ray 2016 Directed by: George Wobbly Studio: C Major/Unitel Classica 73004 [5/27/16] Video: For 16:9 screens colof 1080i HD Audio: English PCM stereo Subtitles: English, German, French, Korean, Japanese Extras: Bonus interviews with conductors Dudomel, Nagano, Alsop Length: 76 min. Rating: ***** This, though a bit late, may be the best documentary film on the great conductor, composer and bon vivant. I can’t think of any other that brings across amazing passion and energy of Leonard Bernstein. And the various talking heads all support the idea of his amazing genius and accompilshments. This wonderful documentary shows why he was considered one of the most influential classical musicians of the last century. He was an inspirational teacher (and the documentary spends a great deal of time on his long-running Young People’s Concerts on TV), a brilliant conductor who brought the symphonies of Mahler to the pubic eye and ear, a fine composer, and an accomplished pianist. His Omnibus TV programs broke down barriers in an extraordinary manner and reached large audiences worldwide, way beyond classical music. Several of his children are included in the interviews, plus […]
Audio News for June 24, 2016
Portland’s Allegro Distributors Out of Business – Brothers Joe, Vince and Rico Micallef have run Allegro Media Group since 1982, specializing in indie music label CDs and DVDs. But when music streaming caught on, the bottom fell out. There used to be seven major label groups – now there are just two. The same thing basically has happened to independent distributors. Allegro’s liquidation leaves many labels in the lurch. The company is a year or more behind on some sales payments, and about half the staff have lost their jobs. More Robots Than Humans in 20 Years – A British study asked over 2000 Americans a series of questions about how they believed their lives would be transformed by technology. Over half predicting that we will regularly wear clothing connected to the Internet within the next 20 years, and one in four American adults think robots will outnumber humans by 2036, and two-thirds think physical money will be totally replaced by cashless computer technologies. The group felt that they will no longer visit the doctor but will instead consult them from home using VR. A large number also believe 3D printers will be used to producer human organs, potentially removing […]
Benny Golson – Horizon Ahead – HighNote
Benny Golson – Horizon Ahead – HighNote HCD7288 54:54 ***: Benny Golson is a tenor saxophonist in the hard bop tradition and always worthy of a listen. (Benny Golson – tenor sax; Mike LeDonne – piano; Buster Williams – bass; Carl Allen – drums) There is an old saying which runs along the following lines: ”if you’re not getting old, you’re dead”. The former is almost always better than the latter. For Benny Golson, the getting old part does not seem to be any problem as he continues to perform publicly and record, if not prodigiously, at least regularly. The latest venture for this octogenarian is the release Horizon Ahead where Golson is joined by a sprightly rhythm section, to delve into an offering of several of his lesser-known originals, and some tried and true standards. Duke Ellington is well-represented with two offerings “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore” and “Mood Indigo,” from different ends of the rhythm spectrum. The former prances along quite smartly with basset Williams setting the pace, as Golson slyly opens the melody, which sets up his solo turn. On the latter, Golson begins the tune in ballad style with a deep tone, as he covers the […]
Stockholm Syndrome Ensemble – “A Moveable Feast” – Works by VAUGHAN WILLIAMS, RAVEL, FALLA – Channel Classics
Stockholm Syndrome Ensemble – “A Moveable Feast” – Works by VAUGHAN WILLIAMS, RAVEL, FALLA – Simon Crawford-Phillips (p.), Malin Broman (violin and viola), Fredrik Paulsson (violin and viola), Malin William-Olsson (violin and viola), Johannes Rostamo (cello), Rick Stotijn (double bass). Channel Classics CD 36916, TT: 58:00 (4/1/16) [Distr. by Harmonia mundi] ***1/2: An interesting combination of three composers residing in Paris at the same time. This latest disc from Sweden’s Stockholm Syndrome Ensemble is a well- played and well-recorded CD with music by Vaughan Williams, de Falla and Ravel. It’s a somewhat eclectic mix, but actually all the composers represented were alive during roughly the same period. Is there more to this grouping? Yes, according to the group. The music has a very specific location and time at its heart: Paris in 1907. The Englishman Ralph Vaughan-Williams and Spaniard Manuel de Falla both came to study there and both were accepted into Maurice Ravel’s close circle of friends (Vaughan-Williams was Ravel’s student). This program is built around the thought that these three very different artists were all in Paris at the same time discussing music and inspiring one another. The liner notes included with the disc go into great and […]
Willem Mengelberg conducts New York Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra = Works of MOZART, MEYERBEER, BEETHOVEN – Opus Kura
Opus Kura extends its formidable Mengelberg legacy with the conductor’s 1929-1930 RCA recordings. Willem Mengelberg conducts New York Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra = MOZART: Die Zauberfloete Overture; MEYERBEER: Coronation March from Le Prophete; BEETHOVEN: Egmont Overture, Op. 84a; Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 55 “Eroica” – New York Phiharmonic Sym. Orch./ Willem Mengelberg – Opus Kura OPK 2115, 69:44 [Distr. by Albany] ****: Willem Mengelberg (1871-1951) took time away from his hand-picked Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam to lead a series of concerts in New York, 1921-1930. The RCA Victor label was quick to contract Mengelberg and the orchestra – then about to merge with the Walter Damrosch Symphony Society – in order to commit to records a portion of the conductor’s powerful repertory, enhanced by his penchant – even mania – for precision of ensemble. Even given the typical, “period” style of performance, with its fondness for homogenous portamento, what emerges from the shellacs remains an impressive testimony to the thoroughness of Mengelberg’s preparation. The recordings offered here by Opus Kura derive exclusively from sessions held 1929-1930. My former mentor at SUNY, Stefan-Bauer Mengelberg (1927-1996), praised the Overture to The Magic Flute for its ardent energy and uniformity of […]
Quincy Jones And His Orchestra, Live In Ludwigshafen 1961 – SWR Jazzhaus
Quincy Jones And His Orchestra, Live In Ludwigshafen 1961 – SWR Jazzhaus JAH-455, 75:49 ****: A treasure-trove of superb big-band playing. (Quincy Jones and His Orchestra featuring Benny Bailey; Freddie Hubbard; Melba Liston; Curtis Fuller; Ake Persson; Eric Dixon; Phil Woods; Sahib Shihab; Les Spann; Stu Martin; Carlos ‘Patato’ Valdes) Before Quincy Jones morphed into “Q”, a one-man musical conglomerate, during the general period before this recording was made, he had been a section trumpeter for several formations including those of Lionel Hampton, Dizzy Gillespie and Art Farmer. Somewhat later, he was recording as leader, composer, conductor, and arranger for big bands bearing his own name, including the one heard on this release. At the time of this recording in March 1961, the band had been travelling and recording in Europe, and a little later with a slightly different iteration played the Newport Jazz Festival in July 1961. However none of the other recordings from this period, contain the breadth of material of Live In Ludwigshafen 1961. This is a full-throttled aggregation playing straight-ahead jazz, from mostly recognizable material,with arrangements generally by Quincy Jones. That old Benny Goodman war-horse “Air Mail Special” charges out of the gate with the reed […]
“Tapestries” = Choral works of DAN LOCKLAIR – soloists/The Choral Art Society/ Robert Russell – MSR Classics
A wonderful and generous sampling of some of the finest choral music written today. “Tapestries” = DAN LOCKLAIR: Holy Canticles; Alleluia Dialogues; Instant Culture; On Cats; Break Away!; Dona Nobis Pacem; Proclaim The Lord; A Christmas Carol; Three Christmas Motets; Windswept (The Trees); For Amber Waves; Tapestries; Brief Mass; Changing Perceptions; Epitaph – Ann Doyle, p./ Bel Canto Company/ David Pegg/ Prometheus Ch. Players/ Shirley Curry, p./ The Choral Art Society/ Robert Russell – MSR Classics MS 1463 (2 CDs), 61:46, 70:26 [Distr. by Albany] ****: Few contemporary composers have been as successful as Dan Locklair; his prolific music is performed widely, even world-widely, in many genres. It’s not difficult; it doesn’t have even the slightest pretense towards aphoristic complexities or trendy associations. What it does have is heart, lots of heart, sincerity, craft, and communicativeness. And best of all, none of these characteristics are in the slightest way condescending toward we listeners. Everything Locklair declaims is honest, forthright, and moving. This generous two-CD set covers a lot of his choral output from 1981-96, and the consistency and quality are remarkable, and the excellent mix of sacred and secular provides a fine overview of the man’s intents and interests. Especially […]
“Horizon 7” – Royal Concertgebouw Orch. with multiple composers and conductors “Horizon 7” – Royal Concertgebouw Orch. with multiple composers and conductors – RCO Live – RCO Live
“Horizon 7” – Royal Concertgebouw Orch. with multiple composers and conductors. (See TrackList below) RCO Live multichannel SACD RCO 16003 TT: 74:00 (5/6/16) [Distr. by Naxos] ****: Contemporary music superbly played and well-recorded. The seventh release in RCO Live’s Horizon series features world premieres recorded during three concert seasons. Magnus Lindberg’s Era – a birthday present from the Concertgebouw to the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra – dates from the 2012-2013 season. Both Tan Dun’s double bass concerto The Wolf and Richard Rijnvos’s fuoco e fumo about the 1996 destruction by fire of the Venetian opera house La Fenice, are from 2015. The program opens with a recording made in September 2015, when composer George Benjamin himself conducted his song cycle Dream of the Song. All these contemporary works are densely composed and all will demand attention from the listener. The Benjamin work, Dream of the Song is a nice mix of vocal and orchestral. It deals with themes both mundane and cosmic. As a whole, it’s a satisfying and emotional piece. Era, by Magnus Lindberg has some elements of Sibelius, but it’s an original, emotional, and at times a thrilling work. Finally, we have two shorter works, the first by Richard […]
Sax to Tango – Julio Botti, sop. & tenor sax – Zoho Desperate Dance – Pablo Ziegler Trio – Enja
Two terrific CDs taking us into the world of the tango. “Sax to Tango” – Julio Botti, sop. & tenor sax/Pablo Ziegler, producer/U. of S. Denmark Sym. Orch./ Saul Zaks – Zoho ZM 2011607 [6/3/16] ****: “Desperate Dance” – Pablo Ziegler & Quique Sinesi & Walter Castro (piano/guitar/bandoneon) – Enja Yellow Bird YEB 7755 [9/4/15] ****: The 13 tracks of the first CD cover some of the famous tango works by such as Astor Piazzolla, Ziegler and a couple others. Julio Botti has a brilliant way of performing on his two saxes, and the rich orchestral canvas behind him is the creation of Latin Grammy-winner Pablo Ziegler. He is also heard on piano as a terrific performer of his own and the music of Piazzolla. Of course both Oblivion and Libertango of Piazzolla are here, but so are a dozen other tangos of various sorts. This is he second collaboration of Botti, Ziegler and the Danish Symphony. Their earlier double-CD set was titled “Tango Nostalgias.” TrackList: 1. PRIMAVERA PORTEÑO 5.12 2. INVIERNO PORTEÑO 6.13 3. NIEBLAS DEL RIACHELO 4.01 4. AÑOS DE SOLEDAD 3.40 5. FUGA Y MISTERIO 5.05 6. OBLIVION 4.03 7. ROJOTANGO 4.47 8. FLOR DE LINO 3.52 […]
“A Lovely Light” (Songs by DEEMS TAYLOR) – Elizabeth Tyron, sop. – Centaur
New Taylor discoveries make for enthralling listening. “A Lovely Light” – DEEMS TAYLOR: Night is My Sister, and How Deep In Love; Two Figs From Thistles; Ebb; Lament; Thanks Be to God the World Is Wide; To the Not Impossible Him; The Betrothal; Exiled; I Know I Am But Summer to Your Heart; The Return from Town; Girometta; Time Enough; The Wedding Dress; The Faithless Lover; Song To A Sleeping Child; Twenty, Eighteen; Nay, My Years Are Tender; Fair Yolanthe; May-Day Carol; Rantin’ Rovin’ Robin; The Banks o’ Doon; The Ways of the World; The Siesta; In the Country – Elizabeth Tryon, sop./ George Small, p. – Centaur CRC 3424, 53:34 [Distr. by Naxos] ****: History will be forever grateful that the so-called “Dean of American Music”, Deems Taylor, decided not to become an architect. He subsequently embraced composition, despite minimal training, and went on to become a critic of no little repute, as well as a cheerleader for American music—it is he who is the narrator in Disney’s Fantasia. Basically a conservative in all things musical, his initial forays into opera were very well-received, with the number of Metropolitan Opera performances for The King’s Henchman and Peter Ibbetson surpassing […]
Triple 9, Blu-ray (2016)
An enjoyable action-thriller with a lot of top stars. Triple 9, Blu-ray (2016) Cast: Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Anthony Mackie Director: John Hillcoat Studio: Universal Home Ent. 55179078 [5/31/16] Video: 2.40:1 for 16:9 1080i HD color Audio: English DTS-HD MA 5.1, DD 2.0 Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French Extras: Deleted Scenes, “Under the Gun,” “An Authentic World” Length: 1 hr. 56 min. Rating: **** A staged bank robbery is only the top of the iceberg when two Atlanta cops begin to suspect members of their own team are involved in the ongoing shenanigans. They don’t know who to trust, or how deep the corruption in the force really goes. And time is running out for them to find the truth. A gutsy and star-packed thriller from start to finish. Be sure to have your surround speaker setup working perfectly to experience the sonic thrills of this action film. Chiwetel Ejiofor is especially good, as always. The Kate Winslet role is quite small, as expected. Plenty of strong language, some nudity and drug use thruout so watch out. (But I don’t recommend getting one of the edited Christian versions from Utah.) —John Sunier
FRANCOIS COUPERIN: Les Nations – Juilliard Baroque – Naxos
Lots of recordings of this out there, but none better than this. FRANCOIS COUPERIN: Les Nations – Juilliard Baroque – Naxos 8.573347-48 (2 CDs), 100:13 ****: François Couperin, known best for his keyboard music, devoted no small amount of time to chamber music too. Les Nations, where French and Italian styles are set forth aside one another, is one of his largest pieces, working on the premise of the Catholic powers of Europe (France, Spain, the Holy Roman Empire and the Savoy dynasty of Piedmont) and presenting them in a manner befitting one’s appreciation and admiration. This work, in which no exact instrumentation is specified, uses the freer form of the Italian trio sonata with the structural felicities of the French suite, four trio pieces consisting of a sonata followed by a suite. The work is lively and engaging, and as presented by the Juilliard Baroque—headed by the remarkable and well-seasoned Monica Huggett, the colorful employment of violins, flute, oboe, bassoon, theorbo, baroque guitar, viola da gamba, and harpsichord make for animated renditions of great perspicacity and fervor. This recording, done in Corpus Christi Church in New York City, is quite the model of radiance and clarity, played to perfection […]
SCHULHOFF: Works for Violin & Piano – MSR Classics
ERWIN SCHULHOFF: Works for Violin & Piano – E.Gogichavili, v./K. Hosoda-Ayer, p. – MSR Classics ****: Another Entartete composer of major importance. Schulhoff (1894-1942) was a Czech composer who ended up a victim of the Nazis, dying in a detention camp in Prague after failing to emigrate in time after receiving his Soviet citizenship. A magnificent pianist and prodigy composer, his first works were assured and brilliant, technically fluent and marvelously structured. Though a late romantic at heart, and reared in that environment, he was astute enough to absorb the influence of jazz, and appreciated Schoenberg as one of the great composers. Embracing the anti-establishment Dada movement early on, he saw no contradictions in the various movements that found respite in his mind. The violin pieces on this disc make for a sparking presentation, and the music is astoundingly engrossing. The earliest, the Suite, is an engaging and highly literate escapade through the traditional German form that is all the more interesting because of its succession of the last three movements as minuet, waltz, and scherzo. By the time the solo Sonata rolled around sixteen years later, we see what a consummate master he had become of the instrument; every […]
Stereotypes Audio
Cembal d’amour
Pure Pleasure / Speakers Corner
Cedille
