Yearly Archive: 2018
Wilhelm Furtwängler: From Gluck to Ravel = Works by GLUCK; MOZART; CHERUBINI; SCHUBERT; BRAHMS; WAGNER; MAHLER; RAVEL – Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, baritone/ Philharmonia Orchestra of London/ Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra/ Wilhelm Furtwängler – Praga
Praga gives us Classic Wilhelm Furtwängler performances within and slightly askew of his familiar repertory.
Andy Zimmerman – Half Light – Newvelle Records
When beauty is paramount… Andy Zimmerman – Half Light – Newvelle Records NV014LP – Audiophile Vinyl – ****1/2 (Andy Zimmerman – tenor sax; Dave Douglas – trumpet – Kevin Hays – piano; Matt Penman – bass) Newvelle Records continues their third season of subscription audiophile vinyl releases with tenor saxophonist, Andy Zimmerman, and his drummer less quartet. Half Light, has a consistent theme of romantic lyrical explorations. Newvelle has a vision of letting their artists follow a path of complete freedom. Standards can be reintroduced, but it is with a fresh open mind. Here, Zimmerman explores lyrical beauty without the ballast and underpinning of a drummer. Bassist, Matt Penman, provides the bottom end with panache and full involvement, much like Scott LaFaro provided for Bill Evans. Dave Douglas, on trumpet, both provides a blending partner as well as a burnished soloist, often times with a mute. Pianist, Kevin Hays, using the same Fazioli piano as did Jack DeJohnette, on a previous sumptuous Newvelle release, is front and center with sparkling choruses that both support and invigorate the front line horns. I can’t emphasize enough the stunning acoustics captured by Marc Urselli at East Side Sound in New York City. Marc […]
The Music Treasury for 20 May 2018 – Violinist Josef Gingold
This week’s version of The Music Treasury will feature performances by the Josef Gingold, a master violinist from the 1900s. Although he was born in Russia and studied/performed in Europe, most of his career was in the United States. He held long-term concertmaster positions in several orchestras of note, performed under George Szell and Arturo Toscanini. He had a significant connection with violinist Eugene Ysaye, and performed the premier of one of Ysaye’s solo violin sonatas. A distinguished teacher as well, his students include Jamie Laredo and Joshua Bell, and held in high regard for the master classes gave and guidance to chamber and orchestral ensembles. This week’s show can be heard on 20 May 2018, between 19:00 and 21:00 PDT on its host station in the Bay Area, KZSU, as well as parallel streaming on the ‘Net at kzsu.stanford.edu. The host will be none other than Dr Gary Lemco. More information, along with the playlist, can be found below. Josef Gingold, violinist Josef Gingold, (1909-1985) was a Russian-born violinist who played under Toscanini and George Szell and later became one of the two or three most influential American violin teachers. Mr. Gingold was born in Brest-Litovsk, at that […]
Antonio Carlos Jobim – Stone Flower – CTI Records/Speakers Corner
This vinyl-remastering of classic Jobim is stunning! Antonio Carlos Jobim – Stone Flower – CTI Records CTI 6002 (1970)/Speakers Corner (2015) 180-gram stereo vinyl, 33:47 *****: (Antonio Carlos Jobim – piano, electric piano, guitar, vocals; Eumir Deodato – guitar, arrangements; Ron Carter – bass; Joao Palma – drums; Airto Moreira – percussion; Everaldo Ferreira – percussion; Urbie Green – trombone; Joe Farrell – soprano saxophone; Hubert Laws – flute; Harry Lookofsky – violin) Antonio Carlos Jobim represents the global face of bossa nova and Brazilian music. While he did not invent the genre, he significantly contributed to its global ascension. Jobim was an early proponent of exposing the instrumentalists and singers of bossa nova to a larger audience. In 1964, his collaboration with Stan Getz and Joao Gilberto (Getz/Gilberto), became a sensation winning the Grammy for Best Album Of The Year, a feat unheard of for a jazz record. The two singles from Getz/Gilberto (“The Girl From Ipanema” and “Corcovado”) were hits and launched the career of Astrid Gilberto. Just over 33 minutes, musical history changed forever. In 1967, Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim achieved critical and commercial success injecting the Brazilian artist into American pop culture. Jobim […]
GRIEG: In Autumn; Lyric Suite; Sigurd Josalfa; 10 Songs – Kirsten Flagstad, soprano/ BBC Symphony Orchestra/ Sir Malcolm Sargent – Pristine Audio
In her last concert appearance, Kirsten Flagstad celebrates the music and spirit of Edvard Grieg to the delight of the Proms audience. GRIEG: In Autumn, Op. 11; Lyric Suite, Op. 54; Sigurd Josalfar, Op. 56: Homage March; 10 Songs – Kirsten Flagstad, soprano/ BBC Symphony Orchestra/ Sir Malcolm Sargent – Pristine Audio PASC 528, 77:29 [www.pristineclasical.com] *****: The Proms concert of 7 September 1957 at the Royal Albert Hall meant to celebrate 50 years since the passing of esteemed Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg. The extended concert program brought Kirsten Flagstad from her two-year retirement, given her intense devotion to the composer. Set in two distinct parts, the concert provided orchestral music prior to each of the two appearances by Flagstad in a total of ten songs. The BBC Transcription Service indicates that the Piano Concerto found a place among the selections, though it does not appear to have been preserved. Ms. Flagstad proceeded to state categorically that she would never again appear before the public in concert: so, producer Andrew Rose and Pristine team give us: Flagstad Sings Grieg: Her Final Concert Performance, 1957. Sargent opens with the 1865 concert overture In Autumn, Op. 11, a piece I had long […]
Joseph Haydn: Piano Trios – Trio Wanderer – Harmonia Mundi
Trio Wanderer brings a superb presentation to five piano trios by Joseph Haydn—a welcome addition to the library! Joseph Haydn: Piano Trios, Hob XV: 14, 18, 21, 26, 31. Trio Wanderer—Harmonia Mundi HMM902321—69:00, ****1/2: This is my first survey of the Trio Wanderer (Vincent Coq, piano; Jean-Marc Phillips-Varjabédian, violin; and Raphaël Pidoux, cello). Their newness to me, however, betrays their prodigious career, recording the variable canon of trios for piano, violin, and cello: Discography | Trio Wanderer. This marks their second recording of trios by Haydn, the first appearing in 2001 (Harmonia Mundi HMG 501968). To help situate these works, I turned to Charles Rosen’s The Classical Style (Norton, 1972) who devoted a chapter to Haydn’s trios, considering them Haydn’s third great collection of works, following his symphonies and string quartets. They are not chamber music in the usual sense, but works for solo piano, solo violin, and accompanying cello. For the most part the cello serves only to double the piano’s bass, although in a very few places it is briefly independent. Despite liking the pieces, he also says: They may be splendid pieces, but they are unprogressive, backward in style, and should have been written differently. And… In […]
Eumir Deodato – Deodato 2 – CTI Records/Speakers Corner
Vinyl re-mastering of 70’s West Coast Jazz is compelling! Eumir Deodato – Deodato 2 – CTI Records CTI 6029 (1973)/Speakers Corner Records (2014) 180-gram stereo vinyl, 35:39 ****1/2: Brazilian composer, arranger, producer and instrumentalist Eumir Deodato de Almeida has established a unique musical career. His merging of styles include jazz, rock, pop, rhythm & blues, classical, bossa nova and other latin-based genres has shaped his musical legacy. After starting on accordion, Deodato took piano instruction and studied orchestration, conducting and arranging before playing with bossa nova bands in the early 60’s. He eventually formed his own band. He has produced and arranged for over 500 tracks, including Kool & The gang, K.D. Lang, Bjork and Christophe. Deodato’s breakthrough came at CTI Records. There he was an in-demand producer and arranger. He arranged the epic Antonio Carlos Jobim release, Stone Flower but the public became aware of this musical visionary from his CTI debut, Prelude.On that album, the unlikely jazz arranged “Also Sprach Zarathustra” rose to #2 on the U.S. pop charts and won a Grammy in 1974. The Richard Strauss composition had resurfaced in the 1968 Stanley Kubrick film 2001: A Space Odyssey. The extended, funky jazz arrangement reflected the […]
Renee Rosnes – Beloved Of The Sky – Smoke Sessions Records
Powerful and evocative music from a singular post modern quintet. Renee Rosnes – Beloved Of The Sky – Smoke Sessions Records SSR-1801 61:13****: ( Renee Rosnes – piano; Chris Potter – saxophones & flute; Steve Nelson – vibraphone; Peter Washington – bass; Lenny White – drums) Emily Carr, born in British Columbia, Canada, before the turn of the Twentieth Century, was a Modernist, Post-Impressionist painter, whose canvas Scorned As Timber, Beloved Of The Sky adorns the album cover of pianist Renee Rosnes new release “Beloved Of The Sky”. Although not born in British Columbia, Rosnes was raised there and would have come to know, appreciate, and be informed by Carr’s work. Hence, this is the frame around which the album is built. Canadian artists, be they pianists or painters, frequently struggle for recognition beyond Canada’s borders. Carr was no different. Although Carr was described as a “Canadian icon” it was many years after her death in 1945 that her works gained a measure of international recognition. Pianist Rosnes has fared somewhat better. Firstly, she is still alive and her success has come after she moved to New York in 1985, where she began working with a number of top ranked […]
BRUCKNER: Symphony No. 8; MESSIAEN: Couleurs de la Cité Céleste – London Symphony Orchestra / Simon Rattle (cond) / Pierre-Laurent Aimard (piano) – LSO Live
Two very different composers in one concert by the LSO. BRUCKNER: Symphony No. 8; MESSIAEN: Couleurs de la Cité Céleste – London Symphony Orchestra cond. by Simon Rattle – pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard – LSO Live Blu-ray and DVD LSO 3042 TT: 104 minutes (5/11/18) ***: Sir Simon Rattle and the London Symphony Orchestra are joined by French pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard in a concert that brings together music by Anton Bruckner and Olivier Messiaen: two composers as united in their devotion to the Catholic faith as they are different in their style of music. The disc begins with Bruckner’s Symphony No.8, with Rattle leading the LSO through its 1939 edition. The eighth was Bruckner’s last complete symphony, it has since become characterized by its explosive, dramatic nature and immense scale. Taking Bruckner over five years to compose and revise, it would only be performed three times whilst he was alive. In rather stark contrast to the magnitude of Bruckner’s eighth, Messiaen’s Couleurs de la Cité Céleste lasts just over quarter of an hour. The 20th century work comprises sequences of short episodes and serves as a microcosm of the composer’s various preoccupations, from birdsong to the book of Revelations. Centered on […]
Impromptu = Impromptus by SCHUBERT; CHOPIN; IVES; DVORAK; GERSHWIN:; BEETHOVEN; LISZT – Shai Wosner, piano – Onyx
Shai Wosner offers a “jam session” of diverse improvisations by composers whose keyboard mastery shines through each selection. Impromptu = SCHUBERT: Impromptu in F minor, D. 935, No. 1; Impromptu in B-flat Major, D. 935, No. 3; Impromptu in A-flat Major, D.. 935, No. 2; Impromptu in F minor, D. 935, No. 4; CHOPIN: Impromptu No. 1 in A-flat Major, Op. 29; Impromptu No. 3 in G-flat Major, Op. 51; IVES: Impromptu for piano III; Impromptu for piano I; DVORAK: Impromptu in D minor; GERSHWIN: Impromptu in Two Keys; BEETHOVEN: Fantasy in G minor, Op. 77; LISZT: Impromptu (Nocturne) – Shai Wosner, piano – Onyx 4172, 74:43 (5/5/17) [Distr. by Harmonia mundi/PIAS] ****: Pianist Shai Wosner (b. 1976) explores the art of the improvisation, as inscribed by several composers who embrace a diversity of styles. Wosner credits his teacher Andre Hajdu with having instilled in him the love of spontaneous creation at the keyboard that assumes a telos all its own. Though certain such creations seem formless, they often reveal a ternary or rondo structure; and in some cases, such as the Beethoven Fantasia in G minor (1809), conceived for Muzio Clementi as a virtuoso vehicle, the result emerges as […]
BORODIN: The Three Symphonies = Historic Recordings of Symphony Nos. 1, 2, & 3 – Praga Digitals
The three Borodin symphonies receive colorful, energized performances from sympathetic conductors and top-flight orchestras. BORODIN: The Three Symphonies = Symphony No 1 in E-flat Major; Symphony No. 2 in B minor, Op. 5 “Bogatyr”; Symphony No. 3 in A minor “Unfinished” – Moscow Radio Symphony Orchestra/ Gennady Rozhdestevensky (No. 1)/ Philharmonia Orchestra/ Paul Kletzki (No. 2)/ USSR State Symphony Orchestra/ Yevgeny Svetlanov (No. 3) – Praga Digitals PRD 250 375, 80:56 (5/4/18) [Distr. by Harmonia mundi/PIAS] ****: Alexander Borodin (1833-1887) earned distinction in his full-time capacity as a professor of chemistry, so his commitment to the “Mighty Five” Russian composers under Mily Balakirev had to remain tangential, slowing Borodin’s creative process. The First Symphony in E-flat Major took the composer five years to complete, and its style seems an awkward hybrid of Russian nationalism and Robert Schumann. Conductor Alceo Galliera made an important recording of the work (1955) with the same Philharmonia Orchestra that Paul Kletzki leads in the B minor Symphony. Here, Rozhdestevensky leads a veteran Moscow ensemble (January 1966) whose sound projects a large and boisterous resonance in the low basses and in the high brass. Though the music of the first movement’s Adagio opens in the minor […]
BACH: Mass in B Minor – Les Arts Florissants/ William Christie – Harmonia mundi
A well-intentioned, hugely successful interpretation of this timeless work. BACH: Mass in B Minor – Katherine Watson, s/ Tim Mead, ct/ Reinoud Van Mechelen, t/ Andre Morsch, b/ Les Arts Florissants/ William Christie – Harmonia mundi HAF 8905293 (2 CDs), 52:16, 52:47 ****: The B-minor’s keep on comin’. I suppose we cannot be too critical of the efforts, seeing as how one of the world’s greatest masterworks automatically serves as a recording magnet. And when you add names like William Christie to the mix, whose involvement with this work spans decades and goes back to his very youth outside Buffalo, New York, the results will be something to talk about. This indeed proves the case here. Christie’s goal in this recording is to not only present the work as a testament to the Christian faith, which he readily admits it is, but also to provide a humanistic covering to the work, an equally inspiring testament to the human race. With that in mind, his musical aspirations here include some quick tempos—by his own admission—that serve to slightly undermine the fully religious immersion found in this piece, an act of homage to the dance-like elements that he finds in the music. […]
Santana – Amigos – Columbia Records (1976)/Speakers Corners (2013)
Carlos Santana’s 1976 comeback album gets a terrific sonic upgrade. Santana – Amigos – Columbia Records PC 33576 (1976)/Speakers Corners (2013) 180-gram stereo vinyl, 41:14 *****: Mexican born guitarist Carlos Santana moved to San Francisco as a young child. He was already a trained musician, first in violin and then guitar. There is an array of business owners in The Mission District who still claim to have launched Santana into the vibrant Sixties music scene. As a teenager, Santana became a part of San Francisco rock lore. In 1966, at the Fillmore West (the Fillmore Auditorium at the time), he filled in for an “ailing” Paul Butterfield with an all-star band of local rockers. The rest is history. Bill Graham embraced the musical phenom and the rapid ascent to stardom was underway. The combination of hard rock and Latin/African jazz rhythms was unique. The addition of timbales and congas made the percussion stand out. The lineup for the first self-titled album included Greg Rolie (vocals, organ, piano), Dave Brown (bass), Michael Shrieve (drums), Michael Carabello (congas) and Jose Chepito Areas (timbales). The album yielded a hit single, “Evil Ways”. More importantly, Santana delivered the breakout performance at Woodstock with a […]
Jefferson Airplane – Volunteers – RCA LSP-4238 (1969)/Speakers Corners(2017)
A superior vinyl re-mastering of an iconic, political 1960’s rock band! Jefferson Airplane – Volunteers – RCA LSP-4238 (1969)/Speakers Corners(2017) 180-gram stereo vinyl, 44:19 ****1/2: The San Francisco Sound enjoyed a huge impact on popular music. Bands like The Grateful Dead, Big Brother And The Holding Company, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Mother Earth, The Steve Miller Band, The Electric Flag and Moby Group adopted the freewheeling spirit of the Beatnik culture and its folk-based structures. Additionally, the various roots backgrounds and musical genres were intermingled in the evolving scene. At the Fillmore, it was not unusual to see a jazz great like Miles Davis sharing a bill with The Grateful Dead. In 1967 The Monterey Pop Festival connected San Francisco rock to the larger national culture. One of the bands at the festival was Jefferson Airplane. Formed in the mid 1960’s, the core members Marty Balin, Paul Kantner, Jack Casady and Jorma Kaukonen merged their blues and folk backgrounds into a psychedelic rock sound. Their first release, The Jefferson Airplane Takes Off (1966) included songs like “It’s No Secret” and “Coming Up The Years” which expanded their local fan base. In 1967, there was a confluence of events that lifted the […]
The Music Treasury for 13 May 2018 — Conductor Albert Louis Wolff
Albert Louis Wolff This week, The Music Treasury will feature the French conductor and composer, Albert Louis Wolff. His main focus was opera; he conducted the premier performance of several works throughout Europe. His long career spanned both World Wars, and while he was primarily based in Europe, he also conducted opera in the North and South Americas. Orchestral and operatic works by Lalo, Massanet, Franck and others are on this week’s show, aired on Sunday, 13 March 2018, from 19:00 to 21:00 PDT. The show can be heard on its host station from Stanford University, KZSU, as well as its simulcast Internet stream, kzsu.stanford.edu. As always, the show is hosted by Dr Gary Lemco. The following notes, derived from Wikipedia, shed more light on Wolff and his career. Albert Louis Wolff, Conductor Albert Louis Wolff (19 January 1884 – 20 February 1970) was a French conductor and composer of Dutch descent. Most of his career was spent in European venues, with the exception of two years as a conductor at the Metropolitan Opera and a few years in Buenos Aires during World War II. He is most known for holding the position of principal conductor with the Opéra-Comique in […]
Turtle Island Quartet – Bird’s Eye View – Azica Records
An interesting and intricate take on jazz compositions linked to Charlie Parker. Turtle Island Quartet – Bird’s Eye View – Azica Records ACD71318 61:55**** (Alex Hargreaves – violin; David Balakrishnan – violin; Benjamin von Gutzeit – viola; Malcolm Parson – cello) Crossover albums often end up to be less than advertised for a variety of reasons, including the performers’ lack of understanding or appreciation of the intended musical form. However the Turtle Island Quartet’s newest release Bird’s Eye View delivers the goods with an interesting and intricate take on jazz compositions associated as least in name, to Charlie Parker. The disc opens with the group exploring a composition by violinist David Balakrishnan which is a lengthy four part story under the rubric “Aeroelasticity: Harmonies Of Impermanence”. The four sections are “Backlash” “Lonesome George” “Pralaya” and “Flutter Point”. While there does not appear to be a musical theme that bolts all these compositions together, there are some commonalities that can be discerned by a reading of the liner notes. For example, sections I and IV bring the issue of the effects of air currents on planes into their definition. Hence the associated music is driven by re-arranged instrumental textures, and energetic […]
Adam Rudolph – Morphic Resonances – Meta
Emphasizing Adam Rudolph as composer. Adam Rudolph – Morphic Resonances [TrackList follows] – Meta/M.O.D. Technologies 021, 55:09 [10/6/17] ****: You won’t find percussionist Adam Rudolph on the hour-long Morphic Resonances. That’s because the seven tracks focus on Rudolph’s compositions, performed by other musicians, including two pieces by the Momenta String Quartet; one tune by the Odense Percussion Group; another composition with two groups working together (the Kammeratorkestret Ensemble and the Figura Ensemble); two duo pieces featuring flautist Kaura Watanabe and guitarist Marco Cappelli; and one tune for violinist Sana Nagano. Morphic Resonances is Rudolph’s 23rd as a leader and the final installment of a trilogy which includes 2015’s The Epic Botanical Beat Suite and 2017’s Glare of the Tiger. All three are connected by Rudolph’s application of the same intervallic and rhythmic materials. Rudolph explains, “Each sounds as different from the other because I used a different process to create the music on each.” The emphasis on Morphic Resonances is on Rudolph’s through-composed music. Some music was commissioned by the ensembles on the album. Others were written and offered to artists. Morphic Resonances was issued as high-resolution digital download and as compact disc with a booklet. This review refers to […]
GRAINGER Complete Music for Wind Band, Vol. 1 -The Royal Norwegian Navy Band / Bjarte Ingest – Naxos
Grainger heard and unheard in a nice debut CD of an ongoing collection from Naxos GRAINGER Complete Music for Wind Band, Vol. 1: Molly on the Shore, Country Gardens, Shepherd’s Hey – The Royal Norwegian Navy Band / Bjarte Ingest (Texts and translations included) – Naxos CD 8.573679 TT: 67:59 ****: This is the first volume in a complete sequence of Percy Grainger’s music for wind band and it very closely follows Grainger’s instructions on performance and scoring, whether for Hammond organ, Swiss hand bells or steel marimba. Grainger wrote a series of Chosen Gems for Winds, which include beautiful transcriptions of music by composers such as Bach, Franck and Fauré. This first volume also contains some of his greatest and most joyous creations—the immortal Country Gardens, Shepherd’s Hey and Molly on the Shore, along with many more selections. I’ve always been a fan of Grainger’s music, going back to my high school band days, where Grainger’s Lincolnshire Posy was always a favorite. Grainger’s music is always exuberant and emotive. The performance by the Royal Norwegian Navy Band is top notch, precise and energetic, just what Grainger’s music calls for. Several of the works in this CD are world premiere […]
RIMSKY-KORSAKOV: Scheherazade, and other orchestral works – Philadelphia Orchestra/ Leopold Stokowski – Pristine Audio
Mark Obert-Thorn restores one of the great wonders of Stokowski’s art, his brilliant and convincing versions of Rimsky-Korsakov’s scores. RIMSKY-KORSAKOV: Scheherazade, Op. 35; Russian Easter Overture, Op. 36; The Maid of Pskov (Ivan the Terrible): Prelude to Act 3; Scheherazade: The Sea and Sinbad’s Ship: take recorded 3 May 1927; Appendix: The Tale of the Kalender Prince: alternative take of Side 4 – Philadelphia Orchestra/ Leopold Stokowski – Pristine Audio PASC 529. 71:55 [www.pristineclassical.com] *****: If any American orchestral ensemble in the so-called “Golden Age” of recording could compete with—and even surpass—European counterparts, the Philadelphia Orchestra under Leopold Stokowski holds special distinction. Producer and Restoration Engineer Mark Obert-Thorn resuscitates the series of Rimsky-Korsakov performances that Stokowski committed to shellacs 1927-1939. The lithe, sensuous gloss of the orchestra combines with Rimsky-Korsakov’s natural elasticity of melodic line to produce some of the most refreshed Russian music we are likely to experience in 2018. Stokowski had the distinct advantage of first-rate men at the principal desks of his Philadelphia Orchestra, including Mischa Mischakoff, concertmaster—who went on to Toscanini’s NBC Symphony—Daniel Bonade, clarinet, and Marcel Tabuteau, oboe. The disc opens with a rousing performance of the 1888 Russian Easter Overture, a work I myself […]
Kris Davis and Craig Taborn – Octopus – Pyroclastic
Two are better as one. Kris Davis and Craig Taborn – Octopus [TrackList follows] – Pyroclastic PR 03, 58:38 [1/28/18] ****: (Kris Davis – piano; Craig Taborn – piano) What’s better than one? Two, of course. Duets in jazz are nothing new. But two pianos improvising together is still somewhat rare. Such collaborations need simpatico, communication and two minds working as one. Such is the case with Kris Davis and Craig Taborn. The two were part of Davis’ 2016 CD/DVD, Duopoly, a series of duets with Bill Frisell, Tim Berne, Julian Lage and others. During their time in the studio, it became evident Taborn and Davis had a stimulating chemistry. The two decided to go out on the road on a 12-date tour in Autumn, 2016 with engineer Ron Saint Germain. The result is the hour-long, six-track live document, Octopus, issued on Davis’ Pyroclastic imprint. The performances, which run in length from seven minutes to nearly 15 minutes, incorporate pre-composed material; wholly improvised sections; and two carefully chosen cover tunes. Taborn and Davis’ conversant style is parallel to the free jazz of likeminded pianists such as Cecil Taylor, Don Pullen or Paul Bley. Throughout the program there’s a sense of […]
Dave Liebman, Tatsuya Nakatani, Adam Rudolph – The Unknowable – RareNoise
Consistently excellent ‘spontaneous composition’. Dave Liebman, Tatsuya Nakatani, Adam Rudolph – The Unknowable [TrackList follows] – RareNoise RNR089, 48:50 [2/23/18] ****: (Adam Rudolph – kongos, djembe, tarija, zabumba, thumb piano, sintir, mbuti harp, slit drum, percussion, overtone flutes, Fender Rhodes (track 11), live electronic processing, co-producer; Dave Liebman – tenor and soprano saxophones, c flute, native American flute, recorder, piri, Fender Rhodes (track 10); Tatsuya Nakastani – drum kit, gongs, metal percussion, percussion) Fully improvised music can be difficult for some to embrace. Some may think there would not be any melody; or the harmonies would suffer; or the freedom of being musically in the moment might lead to chaos and noisy commotion. One listen to the 48-minute album The Unknowable by saxophonist Dave Liebman; drummer and percussionist Tatsuya Nakatani; and percussionist Adam Rudolph should dispel any quibbles about the benefits of a totally improvising trio. This is the first time Liebman, Nakatani and Rudolph have worked as a threesome. However, the three artists have interacted in other ways. Rudolph (whose résumé includes Don Cherry, Jon Hassell, Sam Rivers and Pharaoh Sanders) performed with Liebman during a 2016 club residency. Nakatani (who has released over 80 recordings) and Rudolph played […]
RACHMANINOV: Symphony Nos. 1, 2, 3; BALAKIREV: Russia; Tamara – London Symphony Orchestra/ Valery Gergiev – DSD
The survey of the Rachmaninov symphonies, along with two symphonic poems of Balakirev, testifies to Gergiev’s sympathy for the “Old Russian” school. RACHMANINOV: Symphony No. 1 in D minor, Op. 13; Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27; Symphony No. 3 in A minor, Op. 44; BALAKIREV: Russia; Tamara – London Symphony Orchestra/ Valery Gergiev – DSD LSO0816 (3 CDs plus 1 Pure Blu-ray) 77:57; 73:57; 76:13 (4/20/18) [Distr. by PIAS] ****: Valery Gergiev recorded the three Rachmaninov symphonies between 2008 and 2015. Despite the catastrophic first performance of the First Symphony in D minor (27 March 1897) under Glazunov, and the score’s subsequent disappearance until 1944, the reconstructed work bears the impact and tumultuous energy of a young composer inflamed at once by romantic passion—via Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina—and a sense of the gypsy notion of fate. Each movement opens with a four-note figure, and a dire descending sequence in the low strings. Like his idol Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov feels compelled to write contrapuntal progressions as though to legitimize his claim to the symphonic tradition. Gergiev’s performance of the first movement Grave – Allegro non troppo proves less histrionic than the rendition by Eugene Ormandy, tending to the lyrical and […]
Stereotypes Audio
Cembal d’amour
Pure Pleasure / Speakers Corner
Cedille
