Monthly Archive: December 2017
BACH Family & J.J. Quantz: Viola – Roger Myers – Notos
BACH Family & J.J. Quantz: Viola – Roger Myers – Notos 001- 59:39 (7/24/17) ****: (Roger Myers, Baroque Viola/ Celine Frisch; Harpsichord) Late 18th century works by Bach’s sons, featuring the newly-arrived viola in full flight. In the liner notes of this new release, Viola: Music of the Bach Family, we are told that C.P.E. […]
Chet Doxas – Rich in Symbols – Ropeadope
Chet Doxas – Rich in Symbols [TrackList follows] – Ropeadope, 39:09 [9/8/17] ****: Do paintings have a sound? (Chet Doxas – woodwinds, synth; Matthew Stevens – guitar; Zack Lober – bass; Eric Doob – drums; Dave Douglas – trumpet (track 6); John Escreet – piano (track 5); Dave Nugent – guitar (tracks 1, 3, 5); […]
Theo Hill – Promethean – Posi-Tone
Theo Hill – Promethean [TrackList follows] – Posi-Tone PR8168, 54:23 [5/12/17] ****: Generational jazz from pianist Theo Hill. (Theo Hill – piano; Yasushi Nakamura – bass; Mark Whitfield, Jr. – drums) Want to hear the next generation of piano jazz with a solid dose of tradition? Then you need pianist Theo Hill’s sophomore album, the […]
Wadada Leo Smith (solo trumpet) – Solo: Reflections and Meditations on Monk – TUM
Wadada Leo Smith (solo trumpet) – Solo: Reflections and Meditations on Monk – TUM CD 053, 55:37 [10/20/17] *****: Putting Monk in a new light. If you’re looking for a new way to appreciate Thelonious Monk’s music, listen to Wadada Leo Smith’s Solo: Reflections and Meditations on Monk. This is nearly an hour of solo […]
Verdi’s Guitar: Fantasias for Guitar by J.K. Mertz — Alan Rinehart, guitar — Ravello Records
Verdi’s Guitar: Fantasias for Guitar by J.K. Mertz — Alan Rinehart, guitar — Ravello Records, RR7975, 71:00 This release brought to light for me the role Josef Kaspar Mertz had in the cultivation of music appreciation to romantic audiences. In Verdi’s Guitar, guitarist Alan Rinehart performs Mertz’s fantasias based upon different operas by Giuseppe Verdi. […]
Requiem: The Fraternity (Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter) Stereo CD – Sony Classical
Requiem: The Fraternity (Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter) Stereo CD – Sony Classical 88985 41735 2 (5/12/17) TT: 54:34 **** Ethereal music will soothe and inspire you What a lovely and utterly absorbing disc. It’s a selection of (mostly) Gregorian Chants performed by The Fraternity, a small choral group – an international community considered one […]
Trio S – Somewhere Glimmer – Zitherine
Trio S – Somewhere Glimmer [TrackList follows] – Zitherine ZN 002, 35:02 [6/23/17] ****: Water music, dream music and more from chamber jazz Trio S. (Doug Wieselman – B-flat and E-flat clarinets, loops, tenor banjo; Jane Scarpantoni – cello; Kenny Wollesen – drums, percussion, Wollesonics) The most famous music associated with water is probably George […]
Barry Elmes Quintet – Dog’s Breakfast – Cornerstone Records
Barry Elmes Quintet – Dog’s Breakfast – Cornerstone Records CRST CD147 56:37*** A new release filled with self-assured playing ( Brian O’Kane – trumpet, flugelhorn; Mike Murley – tenor saxophone; Lorne Lofsky – guitar; Steve Wallace – bass; Barry Elmes – drums) With an unconventional title Dog’s Breakfast, this is the first release in seven […]
Streams and Podcasts for 10 December 2017
This week’s Music Treasury features another distinguished conductor/composer from the 1900s, Paul Kletzki. Paul Kletzki was a gifted composer early in his career, and shifted to conducting after World War II. He was particularly noted for his interpretation of Romantic music, and has over 100 recordings to his credit. This week, the show will be […]
MOZART: Fantasie in c minor; Sonata No. 14 and No. 13 – Menahem Pressler, piano – La Dolce Volta
MOZART: Fantasie in c minor, K. 475; Sonata No. 14 in c minor, K. 457; Sonata No. 13 in B-flat Major, K. 333 – Menahem Pressler, piano – La Dolce Volta LDV 34, 76:38 (9/8/17) [Distr. by Harmonia mundi/PIAS] ****: Menahem Pressler’s latest installment of his Mozart sonata-cycle brings gracious pleasures at every turn. I […]
Oppo Digital UDP 205 Disc Player
The Oppo Digital UDP-205 is a universal disc player—it plays 4k, 3D and HD Blu-ray discs, DVDs, CDs, SACDs, DVD Audios, and various digital audio formats. Price: $1299. For more information about it features go to: https://www.oppodigital.com/blu-ray-udp-205/ Oppo Digital is one of my favorite companies. Oppo has consistently produced high quality components at reasonable prices. […]
Editorial for December, 2017
Every year, the internationally acclaimed Music@Menlo hosts a multi-week chamber music festival. The 2016 season, entitled “Russian Reflections”, features significant Russian composers—Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich, Rachmaninov, Scriabin among others—interspersed with pieces by European composers. The programming touches on different perspectives of the music: the ways in which Russian history is vividly reflected in its music, the parallels […]
The Budapest String Quartet with Rudolph Serkin = MENDELSSOHN, SCHUMANN: String Quartets, Piano Quintet – Budapest String Quartet/ Rudolf Serkin, piano – Praga Digitals
The Budapest String Quartet = MENDELSSOHN: String Quartet in D Major, Op. 44, No. 1; SCHUMANN: String Quartet in a minor, Op. 41, No. 1; Piano Quintet in E-flat Major, Op. 44 – Budapest String Quartet/ Rudolf Serkin, piano – Praga Digitals PRD 250 391, 82:29 (11/24/17) [Distr. by Harmonia mundi/PIAS] *****: Classic Budapest Quartet […]
Mara Gibson: Sky Born – Navona Records
Mara Gibson: Sky Born – – The Cascade Quartet/Holly Roadfeldt piano/ Michael Hall, viola/ Megan Ihnen/ mezzo-soprano – Navona Records NV6128 TT:55:00 (11/10/17) *** 1/2 A fine recording snd performance of contemporary music by and up and coming composer Sky Born is a second offering from contemporary composer Mara Gibson, and if you like contemporary […]
Gordon Grdina, François Houle, Benoît Delbecq and Kenton Loewen – Ghost Lights – Songlines
Gordon Grdina, François Houle, Benoît Delbecq and Kenton Loewen – Ghost Lights [TrackList follows] – Songlines, SGL 1621-2 70:45 [6/9/17] ****: Avant jazz with a subtle and nuanced quality. (Benoît Delbecq – piano, bass station; François Houle – clarinet, electronics, loops; Gordon Grdina – guitar, electronics; Kenton Loewen – drums, percussion) When the term ‘avant […]
B3 Kings – Laughing All The Way – CellarLive
B3 Kings – Laughing All The Way – CellarLive CL122516 50:40*** A fun-filled excursion into a jazz-infused Christmas song fest. ( Cory Weeds – tenor saxophone; Bill Coon – guitar; Chris Gestrin – Hammond Organ, tambourine, shaker & bells; Denzal Sinclaire – drums & vocals; Jack Duncan – congas & shaker #1,2,9 ) It’s […]