DVD Archive

BERG: Lulu (David Robert Coleman completion) – DGG

BERG: Lulu (David Robert Coleman completion) – DGG

A production for idiots, and a musical completion that spells disaster. ALBAN BERG: Lulu (complete opera, David Robert Coleman completion) Cast: Mojca Erdmann (Lulu)/ Deborah Polaski (Countess Geschwitz)/ Michael Volle (Jack the Ripper)/ Thomas Piffka (Alwa)/ Stephan Rügamer (Painter/Negro) Orch.: Staatskapelle Berlin/ Daniel Barenboim Director: Andrea Breth Studio: DGG 00440 073 4934 Video: 16:9 widescreen Audio: PCM Stereo, DTS 5.1 surround Subtitles: German, English, French, Spanish, Korean No Region Code Length: 156 minutes Rating: ** This is a new completion of Berg’s opera, one that proves as willful and ostensibly unidiomatic as can possibly be imagined. The production attempts to disguise this fact, but then you read in the booklet “As a result of Berg’s sudden death in 1935, his second and last opera remained a fragment and has now been completed by David Robert Coleman, who was commissioned by the Berlin State Opera Unter den Linden to elaborate the composer’s sketches. The result is this new “Berlin version”, premiered in 2012, which omits the prologue and the so called “Paris scene” at the beginning of Act III, in order to condense the plot and to underline the symmetrical structure intended by Berg.” I am not an expert on this […]

A Portrait of Duke Ellington – Dizzy Gillespie and his Orchestra – Verve/ HDTT (DVD-A)

A Portrait of Duke Ellington – Dizzy Gillespie and his Orchestra – Verve/ HDTT (DVD-A)

A compendium of 11 famous selections by Ellington, played by Dizzy and his Orchestra in hi-res. A Portrait of Duke Ellington – Dizzy Gillespie and his Orchestra – Verve/ HDTT, 41:09 192K/24-bit DVD-A *****: High Definition Tape Transfers has taken the old Verve 4-track pre-recorded tape from a 1960 NYC session and made a hi-res DVD copy using the ultimate in tape-to-digital equipment. Economic pressures forced Dizzy to give up his big band in 1950, but they appeared overseas after that and made this terrific recording. The HDTT liner notes have quite a bit of information about Dizzy and his playing of the unusual trumpet with the horn up at a 45-degree angle, and his cheeks blown out to drastic size. The package looks just like an ordinary CD but it is not. Although it says DVD-Audio, it will play on most any DVD deck or universal player.  The sonics and the performances can’t be beat. TrackList: 1 In A Mellow Tone Written-By – Ellington* 3:44 2 Things Ain’t What They Used To Be Written-By – Ellington*, Persons* 4:50 3 Serenade To Sweden Written-By – Ellington* 4:23 4 Chelsea Bridge Written-By – Strayhorn* 2:34 5 Upper Manhattan Medical Group Written-By […]

Last Of The Mississippi Jukes (2016)

Last Of The Mississippi Jukes (2016)

Last Of The Mississippi Jukes (2016) An interesting historical blues documentary finally gets released on DVD. Performers: Alvin Youngblood Hart; Bobby Rush; Chris Thomas King; Vasti Jackson; Patrice Moncell; Eddie Cotton; George Jackson; The King Edward Blues Band; The House Rockers; Abdul Rasheed; J.T. Watkins & Levon Lindsey; Dennis Fountain & Pat Brown; Lucille; Greg “Fingers” Taylor; Sam Carr; Anthony Sherrod; Jesse Robinson; David Hughes & Virgil Brawley; Steve Cheseborough; Casey Phillips & The Hounds Studio: MVD Visual MVD7127D Director: Robert Mugge Audio: PCM Stereo 2.0, DTS 5.1 Video: for 16:9 screens, color and black & white Chapters: Saturday Night, Sunday Morning; Ground Zero For Blues; Subway Swing; Last Call; Subway Blues: End Of The Line Length: 86 minutes Rating:    Audio: ***1/2    Video: ****    Overall: **** Blues has been an integral part of the American culture since its inception. The legacy of racism and brutality can never be ignored or changed by revisionist history. But this deeply felt musical genre has permeated African America and the mainstream with significant impact. Elvis Presley, The Rolling Stones, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Led Zeppelin, Carl Perkins, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Duke Ellington and Count Basie all share this musical roots genesis. […]

The New Age (1994/2016)

The New Age (1994/2016)

A sexy and smart 1994 comedy on La-La-Land shams and scam. The New Age (1994/2016) Cast: Judy Davis, Peter Weller, Patrick Bauchau, Adam West Director: Michael Tolkin (The Player) Studio:  New Regency Enterprises/20th Century Fox [2/23/16] Video: for 16:9 screens, color Audio: English, PCM stereo No region coding No previews Length: 112 min. Rating: **** Considered one of the sharpest dark comedies about life in LA, it makes some other attempts at the same idea seem a bit lame, but the later American Beauty is a winner. Nice to have this one on a decent DVD for the first time. It’s immediately obvious this is an older film because the portable phones are huge. The two leading actors play the Witners perfectly. The yuppie couple in the expensive LA home with pool, take part in a great satire on consumerist culture. It includes sexual relations with others, alternative medicine, Death By Dignity before it became an Oregon law, misapplied Buddhist, Hindu and pagan philosophy, yoga, drum circles, and even BDSM. It opens with Judy yelling at her husband because he has just quit his high-paying job without telling her. She says “Money isn’t money! Money is an expression of something […]

Pete Townsend’s Deep end – Face The Face – Video DVD + CD (1986/2016)

Pete Townsend’s Deep end – Face The Face – Video DVD + CD (1986/2016)

Pete Townsend’s Deep end – Face The Face – Video DVD + CD (1986/2016) A thirty year-old concert of Who leader has re-emerged. Performers: Pete Townsend – guitar, vocals; Peter-Hope Evans – harmonica; Chuchu Merca – bass; Simon Phillips – drums; John “Rabbit” Bundrick – keyboards; Jody Linscott – percussion; David Gilmour – guitar; “The Kick Horns” – Simon Clarke, Roddy Lorimer, Tim Sanders, Peat Brachill & Dave Plews; Billy Nicholls – background vocals; Ian Ellis – background vocals; Chris Staines – background vocals; Gina Foster – background vocals; Coral Gordon – background vocals Studio: Eagle Vision, Eagle Rock Ent./ WDR Rockpalast EV307769, 2 discs (9/16/16) Directors: Christian Wagner & Pete Townshend Audio: DTS Digital Sound 5,1; Dolby Digital Surround 5.1 & Stereo Video: 4:3 screen format on DVD TrackList (DVD + CD are the same): Won’t Get Fooled Again; Secondhand Love; Give Blood; Behind Blue Eyes; After The Fire’ Slit Skirts; Blue Light; I Put A Spell On You; Hiding Out; The Sea Refuses No River; Face The Face; Pinball Wizard; A Little Is Enough; Rough Boys; Night Train Length: 87 min. Rating: Audio: ***1/2         Video: ***          Overall: ***1/2   The […]

Bruckner: Symphonies 0-9 – var. orch./ Mario Venzago – CPO (10 CDs)

Bruckner: Symphonies 0-9 – var. orch./ Mario Venzago – CPO (10 CDs)

Interesting renditions of these works by one who has studied them deeply. ANTON BRUCKNER: Symphonies Nos. 0-9 – Tapiola Sinfonietta/Northern Sinfonia/Bern Sym. Orch./Basel Sym. Orch./Konzarthausorch. Berlin/Mario Venzago – CPO 555 023-2, 562:53 (ten CDs) plus PAL DVD “The Making of…” [Distr. by Naxos] (7/08/16) ***: First, let’s get this out of the way: the ‘bonus DVD’ titled The Making of.. is a short documentary by filmmaker Laurent Jaquet that apparently contains plenty of interview and rehearsal footage with conductor Mario Venzago that I was rather looking forward to. The DVD is clearly labeled “Region free; 0 Region” but – in fact – it will not play on my American DVD player; nor that of our editor’s, so it is PAL.  I can’t tell you whether it’s intriguing or not. (Come on, CPO!) [We seem to be getting a number of non-North-American region DVDs lately… And Amazon has some warnings about them up which are usually wrong, as so many of their listings…Ed.] To the music and these interpretations: This ample box set is actually a reissue of the many separate CPO recordings that Venzago did with the same variety of orchestras represented here, including his own Bern Symphony and also […]

Audio News for September 9, 2016

Everything by Mozart Gets 200-CD Set – Decca Classics has now released a massive 200-disc box set for Mozart completlists. DGG also participated in the Universal Music Group release titled Mozart 225: The New Complete Edition, which arrives late next month. It contains all his symphonies, concertos and all 22 operas plus a newly-discovered composition. (It was a friendly competition with Antonio Salieri and involved a song.) There are also two hardcover books, with a new biography and several frame-worthy prints. The collection was created in partnership with the Salzburg Mozarteum Foundation and Mozart expert Cliff Eisen. Amazon will sell it for $479.36, while Presto Classical appears to have it for only $350. Other Mozart products being prepared are a 33-DVD package all of his operas, a 3-CD collection of “singles,” digital download bundles, streaming albums and themed playlists. The box set consists of 4000 tracks, with 15,000 minutes of music, 600 performers and ensembles, 60 orchestras, 20 different record labels, 5 hours of newly-recorded performances, two hours recorded on Mozart’s own instruments, and it would take ten days to listen to all the music. 70% of the recordings are different from the last major Mozart box set. Video Games […]

*********  CORIGLIANO: The Ghosts of Versailles (complete opera)  *********  LA Opera – Pentatone (2)

********* CORIGLIANO: The Ghosts of Versailles (complete opera) ********* LA Opera – Pentatone (2)

At long last, a recording of one of the most important American operas – ever. * CORIGLIANO: The Ghosts of Versailles (complete opera) – Victoria Livengood (Woman with hat)/ Kristinn Sigmundsson (Louis XVI)/ Scott Scully (Marquis)/ Christopher Maltman (Beaumarchais)/ Patricia Racette (Marie Antoinette)/ Lucas Meachem (Figaro)/ Lucy Schaufer (Susanna)/ Joshua Guerrero (Count Almaviva)/ Guanqun Yu (Rosina)/ Renée Rapier (Cherubino)/ Patti LuPone (Samira)/ LA Opera Orchestra & Chorus/ James Conlon – Pentatone American Operas multichannel SACD PTC5186538 (2 discs), 80:57, 74:37 [Distr. by Naxos] (4/8/16) *****: Hard to fathom the fact that it has been 25 years since Ghosts so dramatically entered the scene. Conceived as a commission for the Met’s 100th anniversary, it was twelve years in the making and eight years past the deadline. The catalyst was James Levine, and the opening cast was a blazing fury of stars and up-and-coming stars. It was recorded on video and eventually released on DVD—no longer available except from some Amazon rip-off sites for two hundred bucks—and though there have been a fair amount of performances, most are of a scaled down version that does not reflect the original “Grand Opera Buffa” espoused by the composer. So this release is something of […]

HANDEL: Messiah (complete) – Soloists/Mormon Tabernacle Choir – CFN – (2 CDs + DVD)

HANDEL: Messiah (complete) – Soloists/Mormon Tabernacle Choir – CFN – (2 CDs + DVD)

The third complete Messiah recording from this legendary ensemble. HANDEL: Messiah – Sonya Yoncheva (soprano), Tamara Mumford (mezzo-soprano), Rolando Villazon (tenor), Bryn Terfel (bass), Mormon Tabernacle Choir/ Orch. at Temple Square/ Mack Wilberg – Mormon Tabernacle Choir CFN 1631-2 (2 CDs) + Bonus DVD – 320k or FLAC download, TT: 2:23:26, 40:17 (DVD) (3/4/16) ****: The saga of the Mormons and their trek across America is indelibly etched into the psyche of all people in this country, regardless of what one’s opinion is of the religious tenets behind the faith. Mormons, not universally recognized by the Christian population of the United States—or the world—as a Christian religion, have struggled to become mainstream accessible for many, many years, and their success in this endeavor is much higher today than it was fifty or sixty years ago. But one of their most fruitful efforts was in the creation of the Tabernacle Choir, a highly sophisticated amateur ensemble of great size that enjoyed superior technical finesse, beauty of sound, and a repertory that spoke all aspects of the American experience. Founded in 1847, only a month after arriving in Utah, and building their unique tabernacle in 1867, the group consolidated into one of […]

NICOLAS KAVIANI: Te Deum; Tous Les Matins du Monde – Moravian Philharmonic Orch./Janacek Opera Choir/ Soloists/Petr Vronsky – Navona CD & DVD

NICOLAS KAVIANI: Te Deum; Tous Les Matins du Monde – Moravian Philharmonic Orch./Janacek Opera Choir/ Soloists/Petr Vronsky – Navona CD & DVD

Traditional religious text treated like a traditional setting of traditional religious text. NICOLAS KAVIANI: Te Deum; Tous Les Matins du Monde – Moravian Philharmonic Orch./Janacek Opera Choir/soloists/Petr Vronsky – Navona NV6021 + DVD documentary (2 discs)  [Distr. by Parma] (7/08/16) 48:20 **1/2: Nicolas Kavaiani, from the bio on a piano accompanist website, is a composer, pianist and accompanist and has over ten years of experience teaching piano, music theory and composition to students of all levels, styles and ages. He received his B.A. in Music Composition at UCSC and also studied at the Conservatoire de Musique in Avignon, France. Now, from some publicity materials for this new recording of his Te Deum: ”Nicolas Kaviani writes his modern day Te Deum (Navona CD plus documentary DVD) to praise the heavens in the fundamental manner that Western Civilization has done for many centuries past. In our modern age, however, the full creation is something we now know much more about than we previously believed. Yet it is still a mystery. The vastness and ineffable nature of boundless space as science has come to know it is the material entity Nicolas Kaviani sets out to praise in his half-hour work for orchestra.” Well, […]

GOYA – Visions of Flesh and Blood (2016)

GOYA – Visions of Flesh and Blood (2016)

Nothing to do with music, but a fascinating view of the father of modern art. GOYA – Visions of Flesh and Blood (2016) From the National Gallery, London Director: David Bickerstaff Producer: Phil Grabsky Studio: Seventh Art Prod. SEV190 [7/8/16] (Dist. by Naxos) Video: 1.78:1 for 16:9 screens, color Audio: English PCM stereo Subtitles: English, French, German, Dutch, Swedish, Spanish, Italian All Regions Length: 96 min. Rating: ***** This is perhaps a better introduction to the great painter than a visit to to the exhibition of his work at the National Gallery in London. It uses a fresh biography, excerpts from his letters, and stunning local scenery as well as behind the scenes at the Gallery. Francisco Goya was a really brilliant observer of everyday life and of the troubled times in Spain. His gifts as a portrait painter extended to his getting a true feeling for person he was painting and especially with their eyes showing your way into their very soul – which other portrait painters failed to capture. He had a highly modern approach to the capture of subtle expressions and gestures, and occasionally painted himself as a minor figure in the back of many of his […]

Audio News for Tuesday August 16, 2016

Dolby Cinema Construction Accelerated – 100 Dolby Cinema theater venues will be completed by the end of this year by AMC Theaters and Dolby. Each venue will be capable of projecting Dolby Vision and using Dolby Atmos immersive sound. The Dolby Vision laser projection system in the theaters delivers high dynamic range (HDR), with richer colors, ultra-deep blacks, and a contrast ratio that exceeds other image technologies. Dolby Atmos complements the enhanced visuals with 3D object-oriented sound that can seem to come from anywhere, including overhead. It makes dialog, music and sound effects more realistic, adding to the sense of immersion. There are currently 22 Dolby Cinema locations in U.S.  The public response to the combination has been enthusiastic nationwide. Latest Editions on Streaming and on Blu-ray – HBO Now has The Get Down Part 1, Hulu has Tonight With John Oliver: Season 3, and Netflix is featuring Barcelona, the fine 1994 film. Don’t miss Gilmore Girls: A Year In the Life? on Netflix in November. On Blu-ray you can see In The French Style, starring 19-year-old Jean Seberg. If you like serial killer fare you will love Road Games, starring Andrew Simpson as a British hitchhiker in rural France. […]

“Concerto – A Beethoven Journey” DVD – Seventh Art & Piano Con. Nos. 1 & 2 – Minaar, p. – Challenge

“Concerto – A Beethoven Journey” DVD – Seventh Art & Piano Con. Nos. 1 & 2 – Minaar, p. – Challenge

“Concerto – A Beethoven Journey” (2016) Music by: Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Soloist: Leif Ove Andsnes Directed by: Phil Grabsky Genre: Documentary Studio: Seventh Art (1 DVD) [7/29/16] Video: 16:9 1080i HD color Audio: PCM Stereo Menus in English, Norwegian Subtitles: English, Norwegian No Region Code Length: 92 min. Rating: **** B01AGQZF66 LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 – Hannes Minaar, piano/Netherlands Sym./Jan Willem de Vriend – Challenge Classics CC72712 multichannel SACD, 64:59 (5/06/16) ****: Two glimpses of different important series a treat for Beethoven lovers. The five piano concerti of Beethoven remain staples of the concerto repertoire and are recognized as masterpieces that bridge those of Mozart to the early Romantics; many of whom modeled their creations after those of Beethoven. These releases are both fairly recent and give us a very rewarding look into two of the finest younger Beethoven interpreters playing today. Of the two powerful and talented pianists, I was less familiar with the young Dutchman Hannes Minnaar. He is a wonderfully skilled performer and his work here with the Netherlands Symphony in the Concertos No.1 and No. 2 is of top quality, and in treatments – under maestro Jan Willem de Vriend […]

The Frank Sinatra Collection (2016)

The Frank Sinatra Collection (2016)

The Frank Sinatra Collection – DVD (2016) This is a nostalgic look at an iconic performer! Cast: Frank Sinatra; Nelson Riddle And His Orchestra; Ella Fitzgerald; Antonio Carlos Jobim; Diahann Carroll; The Fifth Dimension;  Don Costa & His Orchestra Studio: Eagle Vision EV307649 (5/27/16) Video:  4:3, Color Audio: Dolby Digital Stereo 2.0 TrackList: (A Man And His Music + Ella + Jobim): Day In Day Out; Get Me To The Chuch On Time; What Now My Love; ‘Ol Man River; All In Need Is The Girl; Body And Soul; It’s Alright With Me; How High The Moon; Up Up And Away; Look Out For Jimmy Valentine; Theme To Tony Rome; Ode To Billy Joe; Goin’ Out Of My Head; Quiet Nights Of Quiet Stars; Change Partners; I Concentrate On You; The Girl From Ipanema; The Song Is You’ They Can’t Take That Away From Me;  Stompin’ At The Savoy; At Long Last Love; Don’t Be That Way; The Lady Is A Tramp; Put Your Dreams Away (Francis Albert Sinatra Does His Thing): Hello Young Lovers; Baubles, Bangles And Beads; Cycles; The Music That Makes Me Dance; Deep Deep River; Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child; Lonesome Road; Nobody Knows The […]

BACH: St. John Passion – Soloists/RIAS Ch. Choir/ Academy for Old Music Berlin/ Rene Jacobs – Harmonia mundi (2 discs)

BACH: St. John Passion – Soloists/RIAS Ch. Choir/ Academy for Old Music Berlin/ Rene Jacobs – Harmonia mundi (2 discs)

Outstanding in every facet, this could be, just maybe, the one to own. BACH: St. John Passion (1749 + 1725 Appendix) – Werner Gura, tenor/ Sumhae Im, sop/ Benno Schachtner, alto/ Sebastian Kohlhepp, tenor/ Johannes Weisser, bass/ RIAS Chamber Choir/ Academy for Old Music Berlin/ Rene Jacobs – Harmonia mundi multichannel SACD (2 discs) + DVD HMC 802236.37, 2:15:20 [Distr. by Harmonia mundi/PIAS] *****: This is the version completed right at the end of Bach’s life, with the powerful and familiarly haunting “Herr, Herr, Herr” in the opening chorus. I mention this because there is an appendix from the 1725 version that includes some numbers also rather popular but not in the regular performing version presented here, and the opening of that earlier edition is absent the aforementioned chorus. However, in a generous and wonderfully intelligent decision by Harmonia mundi, they have included three free downloads, one of the 1749 version given in toto here, and also the complete 1725 edition as well, both offered in a high def 24 bit FLAC file, about ten times the size of a normal 128kbps MP3 file. This is a great treat, and you can even give the third download to a friend […]

Cory Henry – The Revival – Ground Up Music (CD + DVD)

Cory Henry – The Revival – Ground Up Music (CD + DVD)

Cory Henry – The Revival – Ground Up Music 80024621-00 (CD + DVD), 78:45 each, ****1/2: Some of that old time religion and a Hammond B-3 is a great combination! (Cory Henry – Hammond B-3 organ; James Williams – drums, percussion; Bishop Jeffrey White – vocals) As improbable as it sounds, Cory Henry began playing the organ at the age of two. His prodigious career includes working with a wide array of musicians including Yolanda Adams, Michael McDonald, Snarky Puppy, The Roots, P Diddy and Bruce Springsteen. At the core of his musical soul is gospel. Cory Henry’s latest release, The Revival, is an homage to gospel. And in the hands of Henry, there is no better vehicle for spreading the message than the Hammond B-3 organ. Returning to perform at The Greater Temple of Praise, Henry infuses several church standards and a few secular numbers with dynamic, glowing sound. Opening with “Lords Prayer”, the performance starts with a hushed reverie. Henry continues to maintain a low-key soulful vibe, building to a crescendo of vibrato and sustain with modulations and tone diversity that is electrifying. Picking up the tempo, “He Has Made Me Glad” demonstrates a foot-stomping, joyous resonance (not […]

BACH: Goldberg Variations – Zhu Xiao-Mei, p. (2014)

BACH: Goldberg Variations – Zhu Xiao-Mei, p. (2014)

BACH: Goldberg Variations – Zhu Xiao-Mei, p. (2014) Zhu Xiao-Mei life’s work culminates in her profoundly personal live performance at Leipzig’s St. Thomas Church. BACH: Goldberg Variations complete perf. by Zhu Xiao-Mei, piano Director: Paul Smaczny Studio: Accentus Music 42 6023483 076 7 (10/14) [Distr. by Naxos] Video: for 16:9 screens, color Audio:  PCM Stereo, DD 5.1, DTS 5.1 All Regions Extras: Documentary: “The Return is the Movement of Tao” Length: 85:54 Rating: ***** Pianist Zhu Xiao-Mei is unique among great pianists. Compared with most elite performers, she began her career late in life and performs infrequently. She spends long periods of time in retreat absorbed in a small selection of repertoire. Bach is at the heart of her immersion, the Goldberg Variations at the epicenter. She has lived with this piece as “one might live with another person.” She knows the voices of the polyphony so well that they are her family. In her performance she reveals the dialogue of arguments and conversations. Her aria is deceptively straightforward, allowing ornaments to sparkle on top of the bass. Later, she’s not afraid to shock by highlighting a bombastic bass (captured brilliantly by the recording), as she does in the beginning of […]

Snarky Puppy Vo. 1 – Sylva – Music of MICHAEL LEAGUE – Orch. cond. by Jules Buckley – Impulse /Universal CD + video DVD

Snarky Puppy Vo. 1 – Sylva – Music of MICHAEL LEAGUE – Orch. cond. by Jules Buckley – Impulse /Universal CD + video DVD

Probably the top big band performing today. Snarky Puppy & The Metropole Orkest – Sylva – (nearly 40 musicians plus sym. orch.) Compositions of Michael League/ Orch. cond. by Jules Buckley (Vol. 1) – Impulse!/Universal Classics/Ropeadope B0023119-00 CD + 16:9 PCM stereo DVD *****: I had never heard of this group before but it turns out they have released eight CDs before this one, and have another new one (Family Dinner Vol. 2) this year (which we will shortly review too). Snarky Puppy is a Brooklyn-based instrumental fusion band led by electric bassist, composer and producer Michael League. Formed in Denton, Texas in 2004, it is a collective of nearly 40 musicians performing on a variety of instruments. Many of them were former students at the University of North Texas. Michael League really wanted to do an album with an orchestra, and after meeting two of the Metropole Orkest managers they were already planning to make a record together. The setting is in a suburb of Amsterdam (I was surprised everyone was speaking English) and there was a setting with original sculptures of various animals and fake trees and greenery to give a general feeling of a forest. That is […]

BACH: Goldberg Variations – Alexandre Tharaud, p. – Erato/Warner Classics +  video DVD

BACH: Goldberg Variations – Alexandre Tharaud, p. – Erato/Warner Classics + video DVD

BACH: Goldberg Variations – Alexandre Tharaud, piano – Erato/Warner Classics 0825646051779, 75:13 + video DVD (16:9), PCM stereo (12/4/15) *****: After a slow, elegant, spaced-out Aria theme, relentlessly hip Alexandre Tharaud proceeds to give a freewheeling 21st century piano virtuoso’s bird’s eye view of the Goldberg Variations. Whatever the attitudes he adopts as he proceeds with the 31 variations – energetic, jaunty, bold, bright and always, forthright – the brilliant recorded sound is like the playing, almost in your face at times; the sound is so integral to the performance that you can buy it  on a vinyl and, most important, at whatever volume you play it is uniquely satisfying – although medium-loud enables you to hear more clearly just how much poetry Tharaud lavishes on what at first blush can be misconstrued as frontal attack. It is an eventful journey. Tharaud may soften with a hint of impressionists’ haze on track seven but soon returns to his semi-clattering, wandering, always fascinating ways. He also uses ornaments like earrings, to adorn the music at deliciously vulnerable places; in track 14, he goes to extraordinary lengths in the repeats with his ornaments and embellishments, as if Bach were a dandy at […]

SIBELIUS: Symphonies Nos. 1, 2, 5 & 7 cond. by Leonard Bernstein – Blu-ray (2015)

SIBELIUS: Symphonies Nos. 1, 2, 5 & 7 cond. by Leonard Bernstein – Blu-ray (2015)

SIBELIUS: Symphonies Nos. 1, 2, 5 & 7 cond. by Leonard Bernstein – Blu-ray (2015) Performers: Vienna Philharmonic/ Leonard Bernstein Studio: Unitel/C Major [Distr. by Naxos] (11/13/15) Director: Humphrey Burton Video: 1080i color for 16 x 9 (Symphonies 1, 5 & 7) 4 x 3: Sym. 2 Audio: DTS-HD MA 5.1, PCM Stereo All Regions Extras: Previews of other Unitel releases Video: *** Audio: **** Superb Sibelius from the ‘80s with Bernstein. In the mid 1980s, Unitel began recording a complete cycle of Sibelius symphonies with Leonard Bernstein and the Vienna Philharmonic. Bernstein’s death in 1990 unfortunately cut short this project after the release of Symphonies Nos. 1, 2, 5 and 7. Now, these 4 symphonies have been released on a single Blu-ray disc with an option to listen in multi-channel sound. While the Blu-ray release is new, these performances had earlier incarnations on DVD, and I remember some of the Unitel discs being released on Laserdisc back in the day. Bernsein, like von Karajan and Barbirolli, was a champion of Sibelius’ music, and he recorded a well-regarded set of the symphonies in the sixties. It’s a shame Bernstein did not complete this more recent survey of the symphonies, but […]

VERDI: Macbeth, Blu-ray (2015)

VERDI: Macbeth, Blu-ray (2015)

Lots to recommend in this opera. It’s a keeper. VERDI: Macbeth, Blu-ray (2015) Cast: Anna Netrebko, Zeljko Lucic, René Pape, Joseph Calleja, The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus. Studio: Deutsche Grammophon [10/30/15] (Dist. by Universal) Director: Fabio Luisi Video: 1.77:1 1080p HD Color for 16:9 screens Audio: DTS-HD 5.1, PCM Stereo Subtitles: English, German, Chinese, Korean, Spanish, French, Italian Length: 155 minutes Extras: Backstage at the Met – interviews Ratings: Audio: ****½ Video: ****½ Overall ****½ Who would have thought the old play had so much music in it? Unjustly considered one of Verdi’s second tier operas (just below his other Shakespearean operas, Otello and Falstaff), Macbeth nevertheless boasts excellent duets, solos, and several well-timed ensemble pieces. Yet it is rarely performed and even more rarely recorded. A film version (1987) transferred to DVD (2007) with Shirley Verrett and Leo Nucci is eminently splendid, with its simian topless witches (acrobats perhaps?), a musty Godfrey of Bouillon castle, and lots of blue-gray lighting. It set the bar very high, but lately it’s begun to creak in this age of HD and RF mikes. As Macbeth, Zeljko Lucic does a decent job, particularly at the beginning as he totes his AK-47 and […]

Meridian Arts Ens. “Alchemy” (CD+DVD) & Meridian Arts Ens. “Live in Concert” (DVD) – both Meridian Arts Ens.

Meridian Arts Ens. “Alchemy” (CD+DVD) & Meridian Arts Ens. “Live in Concert” (DVD) – both Meridian Arts Ens.

Meridian Arts Ensemble, “Alchemy” = music of Byrd, Gesualdo, Corelli, J.S.Bach, de Lassus, Carissimi and Elgar Howarth (Track List follows) – Meridian Arts Ensemble, 8 Bells – (CD + DVD) 59:02, (2/01/13) ***1/2: Meridian Arts Ensemble, “Live in Concert : The Library of Congress – 2004; Deutsches Jazz Festival – 1997” = music of Stravinsky, Gesualdo, David Sanford, Elliott Sharp, Su Lian Tan, Daniel Grabois, Jon Nelson, Randy Brecker (Track List follows) – Meridian Arts Ensemble, 8 Bells, 59:02, DVD (4:3 PCM stereo) [Both Distr. by Harmonia mundi] (7/10/12) ***1/2: This is a very talented and diversified brass ensemble you should hear. The Meridian Brass Ensemble was new to me. This is a genre I do enjoy but do not follow too well, I admit. The Meridian Arts Ensemble is based in New York City, specializing in the performance of new works for brass and percussion, but also in the traditional brass ensemble rep and with equal skill. Founded in 1987, the original members of the group wanted an opportunity to play challenging works, to experience control of their ensemble, and to find creative outlets for their musicianship. Meridian received its early education in the American Brass Quintet’s brass class […]