Monthly Archive: January 2018
Furtwängler conducts Romantic Poems and Viennese Dances = Orchestral works by LISZT; WAGNER; BRAHMS; SMETANA; TCHAIKOVSKY; STRAUSS – Vienna Phil. Orch./ Berlin Phil. Orch. / Wilhelm Furtwängler – Praga Digitals
Praga Digitals restores in stunning sound Wilhelm Furtwängler’s explorations into tone-poems and orchestral works that gain his sense of Romantic ardor. Furtwängler conducts Romantic Poems and Viennese Dances = LISZT: Les Preludes; WAGNER: Siegfried Idyll; BRAHMS: Variations on a Theme of Haydn, Op. 56a; SMETANA: The Moldau; TCHAIKOVSKY: Waltz and Finale from Serenade for Strings in C Major, Op. 48; STRAUSS: Pizzicato-Polka – Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra/ Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra (Brahms)/ Wilhelm Furtwängler – Praga Digitals PRD/DSD 350 148, 79:46 (1/26/18) [Distr. by Harmonia mundi/PIAS] ****: Recorded 1949-1954, these symphonic poems and “incidental” pieces reflect no less of conductor Wilhelm Furtwängler’s commitment to the Romantic sensibility, here for the most part featuring his work with his “mistress,” the Vienna Philharmonic. Liszt’s 1848 Les Preludes, after Lamartine, fell into disrepute as having become Hitler’s favorite piece of music. Despite any political association—through no fault of the composer—the work conveys a through-composed motif that soon reaches heroically martial proportions, courtesy of trumpet and tympani. The storm eventually subsides into a bucolic and idyllic repose, harp, strings, and French horn inviting the violin and selected woodwinds into the glade. The last section builds up to its potent, assertive, former glory, ripe with sturdy […]
SCHUMANN: String Quartet in A Minor, Op. 41 No. 1; String Quartet in F Major, Op. 41 No. 2; String Quartet No. 3 in A Major, Op. 41 No. 3 – Modigliani Quartet – Mirare
Very Romantic interpretations of the Schumann Quartets, but it’s all a little soft-grained for my taste. SCHUMANN: String Quartet in A Minor, Op. 41 No. 1; String Quartet in F Major, Op. 41 No. 2; String Quartet No. 3 in A Major, Op. 41 No. 3 – Modigliani Quartet – Mirare MIR 346, 78:00 (11/24/17) [Distr. by Harmonia mundi] ***: Music lovers know that Schumann was an obsessive-compulsive when it came to the exploration of musical genres. For the first decade or so of his career he concentrated almost exclusively on the piano, with only the odd foray into chamber music (an 1829 Piano Quartet in C Minor) and orchestral music (Symphony in G Minor, “Zwichau,” 1832–33). The year of his marriage to Clara Wieck, 1840, was Schumann’s Liederjahr, when he wrote almost 140 songs. It was at Clara’s bidding that he tried his wings in other musical forms, and he did it with single-minded vigor. After the year of song, there was the year of the symphony (1841), producing the First Symphony; the first version of what would be the Fourth Symphony; and the Overture, Scherzo, and Finale, a symphony in all but name. Eighteen-forty-two was the chamber music […]
![Mozart: 16 Sonatas for Violin and Piano. Tomas Cotik (violin), Tao Lin (piano)—Centaur [Dist. by Naxos]](https://www.audaud.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Mozart_TomasCotik_512x512.jpeg)
Mozart: 16 Sonatas for Violin and Piano. Tomas Cotik (violin), Tao Lin (piano)—Centaur [Dist. by Naxos]
Mozart: 16 Sonatas for Violin and Piano. Tomas Cotik (violin), Tao Lin (piano)—Centaur CRC 3619/20/21/22—4:27:43 [Dist. by Naxos] ****1/2 : In this new recording from Tomas Cotik (violin) and Tao Lin (piano) are presented sixteen sonatas by Mozart on modern instruments. Cotik has a very warm tone which contrasts nicely with the more acoustically-distant piano which has a colder sound, especially so in the upper register at softer volume. And while modern instruments are adopted, Cotik is wise, I believe, in playing with one eye looking backward: in the use of vibrato he uses the effect lightly in a very sympathetic way. This is well displayed in the Andantino sostenuto e cantabile from the Sonata in B-flat, KV 378. It’s a beautiful movement where the duo shines. Reviewing a recording is more than a commentary on the music, or the quality of the performance. I want to know the performers’ point of view. I can’t escape the contribution of the recording engineers. And I am also sensitive to matters of historical performance practice. The faster movements, for all their energy, suffer somewhat in this recording from the acoustic. All the technical precision by Lin on piano is somewhat washed together. […]
Kate McGarry, Keith Ganz, & Gary Versace – The Subject Tonight is Love – Binxtown Records
The first Five Star release of 2018… Kate McGarry, Keith Ganz, & Gary Versace – The Subject Tonight is Love – Binxtown Records – 61:09 – *****: (Kate McGarry – vocals, piano; Keith Ganz – acoustic and electric guitars, acoustic bass guitar; Gary Versace – piano, keyboard, organ, accordion; Special Guests: Ron Miles – trumpet, Obed Calvaire – drums) The new CD from the trio of vocalist, Kate McGarry, guitarist, Keith Ganz, and multi-instrumentalist, Gary Versace, earns a solid five stars. It’s theme, the eternal exploration of love has been a subject that has controlled our interactions, both in connecting with partners, and keeping our focus on the most positive of emotions in a world fraught with more damaging human behaviors. The trio casts a wide net for their search, including folk, pop, and jazz genres. Many vocal driven trio recordings place their primary focus on the lead vocalist with a piano providing melody and mood accents. This is not the case here, with McGarry’s husband, Keith Ganz, on a variety of guitars and bass; and Gary Versace, on a multiple format of keyboards, both fully involved on every track, and equally important as a team member. McGarry’s vocal talents […]
STRAVINSKY: Chant funebre; Le Sacre du Printemps – Sophie Koch, mezzo-soprano/ Lucerne Festival Orchestra/ Riccardo Chailly – Decca
This compilation of Stravinsky’s early works restores a long-lost tribute to the composer’s revered teacher, Rimsky-Korsakov. STRAVINSKY: Chant funebre, Op. 5; Feu d’artifice, Op. 4; Scherzo fantastique, Op. 3; Le Faune et la Bergere, Op. 2; Le Sacre du Printemps – Sophie Koch, mezzo-soprano/ Lucerne Festival Orchestra/ Riccardo Chailly – Decca 483 2562, 70:19 (1/12/18) [Distr. by Universal] *****: The 2015 discovery of Stravinsky’s Funeral Song, Op. 5 in St. Petersburg, a result of the refurbishing of the old Conservatory building in Teatralnaya Ploshchad, marks much of the import of this release, recorded 16-19 August 2017. Stravinsky composed the Funeral Song (1908) as a memorial to his teacher Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov; but after its initial premiere in January 1909, the score disappeared, despite the composer’s having called it “the best of my works before The Firebird.” Indeed, the opening measures of the score possess chromatic figures and tremolo effects that quite adumbrate aspects of the later ballet, especially the theme that depicts the “Sudden Appearance of Prince Ivan.” The succession of individual instrumental colors forms a funereal wreath to be laid at the foot of Rimsky-Korsakov’s bier, and the music will rise up in bucolic but solemn procession that more than […]
Streams and Podcasts for 28 Jan 2018
Pianist Andrew Write will be featured in this week’s show from The Music Treasury, with the apt subtitle “The Art of Transcription”. Driven by his own enthusiasm and creativity, Andrew Wright has searched out “hidden gems” from some more minor figures of composers from the 19th and 20th century. Aside from piano literature, Wright has also explored opera, and now has released two CDs of piano adaptations/transcriptions from significant composers of the genre — Verdi, Bellini, Wagner, Rossini… The show on this Sunday evening will feature works from those releases: “The Operatic Pianist” and “A Night at the Opera”, including Andrew Wright’s own transcriptions, along with those of Liszt, Martucci, and Thalberg. It can be heard on 28 January 2018, between 19:00 and 21:00 PST, as well as a live streaming of the show from kzsulive.stanford.edu on the Internet, hosted by the inimitable Gary Lemco.
Benny ANDERSSON, Piano – DG
Refreshing, relaxing, and simply beautiful. Benny ANDERSSON, Piano – DG 479 8143, 76:47 [Distr. by Universal] *****: Anyone who remembers or who is a fan of the pop rock group ABBA from the late 1970s will no doubt have heard, seen, or know who Benny Andersson is. The phenomenal success of the Swedish “fab four” as they were called then, is now legendary, with nearly 400 million records sold worldwide since then. This makes them third in line among the all-time best selling popular bands, just behind the Beatles and Elvis Presley. Though many were critical of them over the years, particularly some very famous rock musicians whose total lifetime sales didn’t add up to a tenth of ABBA’s earnings, the music endured, and successive generations have fallen in love with it. The group itself, two married couples (Agnetha Fältskog and Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad) put a roadblock on their good times when both divorced in the early eighties, though the band stuck together for a few more years. Since then, the women hit some hard times, especially the most popular, Agnetha, whose life seems one tragedy after another, not the least of which she seems to […]
Vienna Philharmonic 2018 New Year’s Concert = Works by Johann STRAUS I; Johann STRAUS II; Josef STRAUSS; SUPPE; CZIBULKA – Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra/ Riccardo Muti – Sony
In his fifth year of leading the Vienna Philharmonic New Year’s concerts, Riccardo Muti adds six new items to the sparkling elixir of musical champagne. Vienna Philharmonic 2018 New Year’s Concert = Marches, Dances, and Concert Pieces by JOHANN STRAUSS II; JOHANN STRAUSS I; JOSEF STRAUSS: ; SUPPE; CZIBULKA – Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra/ Riccardo Muti – Sony 88985477002 (2 CDs) 56:00; 60:00 (1/26/18) ****: [Complete list of pieces follows below] An ardent collector of the recorded Vienna Philharmonic New Year’s concerts since 1951—led by Clemens Krauss—I have followed the progression of the stellar conductors who have inaugurated Vienna’s New Year with the graceful and often scintillating melodies and rhythms of the Strauss family and their worthy colleagues. Riccardo Muti leads this year’s jubilant concert, offering six new items to an already illustrious gathering of waltzes, polkas, quadrilles, and marches. Muti’s affinity for the Viennese lilt comes across with lush authenticity, especially in the perennial 1868 Tales from the Vienna Woods and the equally hypnotic 1880 Roses from the South, but no less so in a marvelous novelty, the 1881 Myrthenblueten of Johann Strauss II, meant to celebrate Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria and Princess Stephanie of Belgium, whose tragic story […]
Dan Pugach Nonet – Plus One – Unit Records
A nonet that gives the impression and conviction of a larger group driven by a musically creative drummer. Dan Pugach Nonet – Plus One – Unit Records UTR 4816 52:28*** [Artist and Track List follows] It is generally conceded that the nonet which Miles Davis brought to the Royal Roost club in New York City in September 1948 changed the direction of American Jazz music. The subsequent recordings by this entity in 1949 and 50 under the title Birth Of The Cool cemented the iconic music of what was, in essence, a rehearsal band. Dan Pugach’s Nonet has no such pretensions. It is, nonetheless, a tight knit organization that shows an assertive and imaginative approach to the material recorded on the album Plus One. With February 16, 2018, release date, the bar has been set high starting with the opening track “Brooklyn Blues” although is has more a Crescent City second line vibe, which is propelled along by Pugach’s drumming. “Coming Here” opens with a few tasty bars from trombonist Mike Fahie, followed by some pointed interplay from the ensemble, before trumpeter Ingrid Jensen shows her biting attack. As the melody weaves in and out with soloists finding their space, […]
Chris Parker – Moving Forward Now
An engaging album from a young jazz artist. Chris Parker – Moving Forward Now – Self-released, 75:20 [10/6/17] ****: [Artist and Track List below] What were you doing at age 20? Trying to get through university? Maybe a hitch in the military? Finding your footing in a post-high school job? Navigating that first serious relationship? If you’re drummer Chris Parker, it’s time for your first CD as a leader, the 75-minute and aptly-named Moving Forward Now. The Indiana-based artist has shared stages with saxophonists Jim Snidero and Greg Abate, and others. For his self-released debut, Parker enlisted 13 musicians to assist him on 13 tracks which range from Parker’s originals (including a four-part suite) to classical music; and from jazz standards to a Bob Dylan tune. Some of the better-known personnel include guitarist Dave Stryker (who is on two cuts), pianist Luke Gillespie (an important Indiana jazz mainstay), saxophonists Jamey Aebersold and Rob Dixon (both noted jazz instructors) and Indiana clarinetist Frank Glover. Parker contributes five compositions. The five-minute title track is an optimistic tune which has a cityscape sound and an urbane and slightly urban tone. Jesse Wittman excels on his stand-up bass while Dixon plays smoothly and with […]
The Topping Tooters of the Town = Music of the London Waits 1580-1650 — The City Musick / William Lyons — Avie
The Topping Tooters of the Town. Music of the London Waits 1580-1650 — The City Musick, dir. William Lyons— Avie, AV2364, 50:00 ****: This recording of 30 tracks is a compilation of pieces—dances really—from the likes of Anthony Holborne, John Adson, Peter Philips, Thomas Morley, Thomas Ravenscroft, and John Playford. These are names I haven’t heard of late, but reading them right now I can think back to my music history classes. The music represents, according to the liner notes, the zenith of the town musicians in London around 1600 who performed in all sorts of public venues with wind instruments. You may have been exposed to this repertoire, as had I, through arrangements for brass ensemble. The City Musick, however, brings authenticity to this repertoire with recorders, cornetto, shawm, bagpipes, dulcian (a predecessor to the bassoon), and hoboy (early oboe). The harmonies and sound world of these instruments certainly do speak of an earlier time. This music very much belongs to the Renaissance but in a time where the sophistication of instruments and the station of performers was on the verge of meeting the renown of vocal music. The character of these pieces does not betray the pragmatism from […]
Frank MARTIN: Music for Winds = Concerto for Winds & Piano; Concert Suite; March – Massachusetts Chamber Players/ Nadine Shank, piano – MSR Classics
Wind music by Swiss composer Frank Martin embodies the pacifist nation’s virile national identity. MARTIN: Music for Winds = Concerto for Winds Instruments and Piano (1924); Concert Suite from “A Dance of Death in Basel in the Year 1943”; Official March of the Swiss National Exhibition – Massachusetts Chamber Players/ Nadine Shank, piano – MSR Classics MS 1602, 53:28 (10/1/17) [Distr. by Albany] ****: Conductor Matthew Westgate organized the Massachusetts Chamber Players in the fall of 2016 specifically for this recording project (rec. 4-5 November 2016) of music by Swiss composer Frank Martin (1890-1974). The ensemble consists primarily of woodwind, brass and percussion faculty member musicians from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and artist teachers from the Five-College Consortium of Western Massachusetts. Several UMass alumni and student musicians, western Massachusetts freelancer musicians and guest players complete the instrumentation. The Department of Music and Dance of UMass Amherst represents one of the largest music programs in New England, providing more than 250 performance and concert opportunities each year across seventeen instrumental ensembles, six vocal groups and numerous solo and ensemble recital series. Noted leaders in the fields of performance, pedagogy and scholarship, the UMass faculty create a community at UMass […]
Streams and Podcasts for 21 January 2018
Sir Thomas Beecham built a reputation as a conductor working with major UK orchestras—London Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic, as well as Liverpool and Hallé. Among other things, he is to be noted for introducing operas by Strauss and Delius to the English stage. This week will showcase Sir Thomas Beecham conducting works by Alwyn, Gretry, Liszt, and Berlioz. As always, the show is hosted by none other than Dr Gary Lemco; it can be heard on 21 January 2018, between 19:00 and 21:00 PST, as well as a live streaming of the show from kzsulive.stanford.edu on the Internet.
Free Radicals – Outside the Comfort Zone – Free Rads
A brash, brassy and boisterous band. Free Radicals – Outside the Comfort Zone – Free Rads RWE017, 68:28 [9/23/17] ****: (Pete Sullivan – baritone saxophone; Jason Jackson – alto saxophone; Aaron Varnell – tenor saxophone; Tom VandenBoom – trombone; Matt Serice – trumpet, keyboards; Nick Cooper – drums, percussion; Al Bear – guitar; Jacob Breier – bass; Nick Gonzalez – sousaphone; guest musicians: Bob Chadwick – flute; Subhendu Chakraborty – tablas; Harry Sheppard, Damon Choice – vibes; Al Pagliuso, Charlie Perez – percussion; Henry Darragh – keyboards, trombone; Lynn Bechtold – violin; Doug Falk, Nelson Mills III – trumpet; Pelayo Parlade – piano; Will Van Horn – pedal steel; Muhammad Jafari – doumbec; Theo Bijarro, Paul Winstanley – bass) What would you call a group which performs jazz, funk, hip-hop, avant-garde, ska, reggae, African music, Indian music, punk, klezmer, polka and Latin jazz? Welcome to the wild world of Free Radicals. The Houston, Texas nonet has been dazzling, confounding and turning heads since drummer Nick Cooper founded the band in 1996. The ensemble has issued half a dozen records, including their newest, the 68-minute Outside the Comfort Zone. Free Radicals love to invite guests to their recording sessions. For this […]
Jason Kao Hwang and Sing House – Sing House
Jason Kao Hwang and Sing House – Sing House A musical building with unexpected twists, turns and passageways. Jason Kao Hwang and Sing House – Sing House [TrackList follows] – Euonymus EU03, 49:22 [5/5/17] ****: (Jason Kao Hwang – composer, violin (tracks 1, 2, 4), viola (track 3), producer, mix engineer; Andrew Drury – drum set; Ken Filiano – string bass, mix consultant; Chris Forbes – piano; Steve Swell – trombone) Violinist/violist and composer Jason Kao Hwang continues his exploration of avant-garde jazz on his new quintet release, the 49-minute Sing House. For Hwang, the typical habits of Western music—echoing a theme several times; a verse/chorus/verse format; and ordinary call and response—are less useful to what he wants to create. Instead, Hwang embraces discovery, active imagination and participatory spontaneity. He does so in full on four outspread pieces which have conflict and contrast, communication and creativity, and discordance and differentiation. Pursuing a singular musical vision needs other musicians who have similar tastes in improvisation and musicology. Alongside Hwang is bassist Ken Filiano (who has played or recorded with Anthony Braxton, Vinny Golia and Nels Cline), and drummer Andrew Drury (he has collaborated with Myra Melford, Chris Speed and Jessica Lurie). […]
Phil DeGreg Trio – Queen City Blues
A trio with an open-ended attitude towards exploration Phil DeGreg Trio – Queen City Blues – Self Released 65:57***: ( Phil DeGreg – piano; Aaron Jacobs – bass; John Taylor – drums) Self released albums are generally looked on with some degree of skepticism as they usually beg the question “why couldn’t this band, group, singer , etc.” find a record label if they were any good. The correct answer is probably more complex, and frequently has more to do with circumstances rather than talent. That certainly is the case with The Phil DeGreg Trio’s release Queen City Blues. Talent abounds and while a record deal may not be around the corner, a wider listening audience is deserved. With a judicious mix of original material and popular standards, the trio has given themselves ever opportunity to shine, and they make the most of it. As Phil DeGreg states in the liner notes:”this CD celebrates thirty years of performing weekly with a piano trio in Cincinnati, and in particular ten years with Aaron and John, the most versatile trio I have ever had.” This empathy is clearly evident from the opening track “Westside Getaway”. Full of jump and a rush of […]
John Sunier Remembrance
As a listener and reader John Sunier’s radio show and website, Audiophile Audition has been a source of many superb classical music discs that has widened and deepened my love for classical music for over 20 years. As a writer for Audiophile Audition, John has given me an opportunity to identify and share with reader’s music that I love. Thanks, John for your passionate avocation for recorded music of the highest musical and sonic excellence. Your contribution to the people who value music will be remembered. Robert Moon
John Sunier — 1937 – 2018
After a glorious career in Audio of over half a century, John Sunier passed away in January of this year. John’s incredible energy and drive found a distinctive expression in Audiophile Audition. Starting as a radio show in the 1980s, it transformed into a web site as the 21st century unfolded. Sunier was recognized far and wide as a definitive expert in all matters audio, all matters for audiophiles. In the last year of his life, John stepped back from his beloved web site, assuming more of a Professor Emeritus role there. He was navigating the challenges of advancing years with the warmth and support of his friends; he was well cared for. John Sunier is survived by his wife Donna, his cat Melinda, and the memories held by all those who knew him—his colleagues, his friends, and his following throughout the Internet. He will be deeply missed. Audiophile Audition is creating a collection pictures and reflections honoring the life of John Sunier. If you have something you would like to share, please write to editor@AudAud.com Remembrances
BRUCKNER: Symphony No. 8 in c minor – Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra/ Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra/ Wilhelm Furtwängler – Praga
Superb, eminent readings of Bruckner’s darkest symphony under Furtwängler return with striking authority. BRUCKNER: Symphony No. 8 in c minor – Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra/ Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra/ Wilhelm Furtwängler – Praga Digitals PRD/DSD 350 133 (2 CDs) 77:04; 76:55 (1/5/18) [Distr. Harmonia mundi/PIAS] *****: This review is dedicated to the Spirit of John Sunier Conductor Wilhelm Furtwängler referred to Anton Bruckner’s 1884-87 Symphony No. 8 (rev. 1889) as “a battle of demons,” given its alternating, apocalyptic darkness and moments of transcendent light. In several respects, the gigantic music parallels the Richard Strauss symphonic poem Death and Transfiguration, considering the motion of the first movement – a series of groping, perhaps abortive, kernels of melodic tissue that consistently avoid the tonic minor – to conclude in the minor key with exhausted, repetitive tropes in the violas. Bruckner himself confessed that the music captures the feeling of one “on his deathbed, while opposite him the clock ticks away as his life comes to an end.” This enervation from Death’s annunciation—Todesverkuendigung—comes, however, after a course of epic periods in which moments of supreme, mortal struggle occur, well in the spirit of Matthew Arnold’s clashing armies on a darkling plain. Because Furtwängler leads his […]
Reed Tetzloff: Sounds of Transcendence = Piano Works by GRIFFES; SCRIABIN; FRANCK – Reed Tetzloff, piano – Romeo Records
Pianist Reed Tetzloff approaches three late Romantic composers by way of their transcendent visions. Reed Tetzloff: Sounds of Transcendence = GRIFFES: Piano Sonata; The Pleasure Dome of Kubla Khan; SCRIABIN: Valse in A-flat Major, Op. 38; Fragilite, Op. 51, No. 1; Enigme, Op. 52, No. 2; Sonata No. 7, Op. 64 “White Mass”; Vers la Flamme, Op. 72; FRANCK: Prelude, Chorale et Fugue – Reed Tetzloff, piano – Romeo Records 7323, 70:40 (11/1/17) [Distr. by Albany] ****: Reed Tetzloff (b. 1992), a graduate of Mannes College and recipient of the CME International Performing Arts Grant, presents a recital in the spirit of C.S. Lewis, whom he cites in the liner notes: “I was made for another world… Probably earthly pleasures were never meant to satisfy [my desire] but only to arouse it, to suggest the real thing.” Consequently, Tetzloff chooses music (rec. 15-24 March 2017) that appeals to his Platonic or Emersonian concept of the Over-Soul in the form of three hyper-Romantic composers. The 1919 Piano Sonata of Charles Tomlinson Griffes (1872-1920) opens the recital, a work of rather audacious vision on the part of the composer, who took his “German” training to and beyond the accepted musical envelope, […]
Dave Douglas with The Westerlies and Anwar Marshall – Little Giant Still Life – Greenleaf Music
Trumpeter Dave Douglas goes all-brassy and bold. Dave Douglas with The Westerlies and Anwar Marshall – Little Giant Still Life [TrackList follows] – Greenleaf Music GRE-CD-1058, 53:11 [10/20/17] ****: (Dave Douglas – trumpet, producer; Anwar Marshall – drums; The Westerlies: Riley Mulherkar – trumpet; Zubin Hensler – trumpet; Andy Clausen – trombone; Willem de Koch – trombone) There are few trumpeters who would attempt an all-brass music project. Dave Douglas is that kind of musician. In 2009 Douglas released the debut of Brass Ecstasy, an ensemble which included a French horn, trombone, tuba, trumpet and one drummer. The nature of that work continues to stimulate Douglas. He’s returned to a similar pathway with the 53-minute Little Giant Still Life, which features Douglas on trumpet; drummer Anwar Marshall (who is part of Philadelphia’s Fresh Cut Orchestra) and The Westerlies (a former Seattle quartet now based in NYC) which consists of trumpeters Riley Mulherkar and Zubin Hensler, and trombonists Andy Clausen and Willem de Koch. The Westerlies have issued two albums (their sophomore outing was a tribute to fellow Seattleite Wayne Horvitz) and have collaborated with roots/Americana band Fleet Foxes. Many of Douglas’ 12 originals on Little Giant Still Life (including the […]
Streams and Podcasts for 14 January 2018
Violinist Elmar Oliveira is the featured artists on this week’s Music Treasury show. Oliveira is quite the distinguished violinist, whose achievements include winning the Gold Medal at Moscow’s Tchaikovsky International Competition, the first (and only) American violinist to do so; also to his credit are winning the Avery Fisher Prize, again the first violinist to accomplish this. Oliveira has performed with distinctive orchestras throughout the world—Boston Symphony, London Philharmonic, Leipzig Gewandhaus, New York Philharmonic, and others in San Francisco, Detroit, Los Angeles, Philadelphia… His recordings appear on Naxos, Angel, Sony labels; he has performed works from days of Bach through to contemporary composers—Morton Gould, Benjamin Lees, Kristof Penderecki, Charles Wuorinen, and Joan Tower. This week’s show features a wide variety of pieces, including Elgar’s Violin Sonata, Rachmaninov Vocalise, Tchaikovsky Piano Trio, and works by Gershwin/Heifetz, Falla, Pizzetti, and Herbert. It is hosted, as always, by Dr Gary Lemco; it can be heard on 14 January 2018, between 19:00 and 21:00 PST, as well its live streaming broadcast through the ‘Net, from kzsulive.stanford.edu.
Stereotypes Audio
Cembal d’amour
Pure Pleasure / Speakers Corner
Cedille
