Paris Archive
Wes Montgomery – Wes Montgomery In Paris: The Definitive ORTF Recordings – Resonance Records
Wes Montgomery – Wes Montgomery In Paris: The Definitive ORTF Recordings – Resonance Records HCD-2032 (2-CD box), 102:47 ****1/2 (Wes Montgomery – guitar; Harold Mabern – piano; Arthur Harper Jr. – double bass; Jimmy Lovelace – drums; with special guest Johnny Griffin – tenor saxophone) In November, Resonance Records released a rare live recording of a 1965 Wes Montgomery performance. In partnerships with the Institute National de L’Audiovisul (INA). Wes Montgomery – In Paris is notable for many reasons. It is the first time, the Montgomery estate will be paid for this recording which had been previously bootlegged. The concert marked the only overseas trip for Montgomery, and helped to further Zev Feldman’s stalwart recovery of ORTF (Office Of French Radio And Television) material. The initial foray Larry Young – The ORTF Recordings was the first release. Montgomery fronted a quartet consisting of pianist Harold Mabern (Miles Davis, Harry “Sweets” Edison, Donald Byrd), bassist Arthur Harper Jr. (Bud Powell, Heath Brothers, Lee Morgan) and drummer Jimmy Lovelace (Rahsaan Roland Kirk, George Benson, Tony Scott). As a bonus, saxophonist Johnny Griffin (Art Blakey, Thelonious Monk, Lionel Hampton) played on three tracks. Montgomery (along with Bill Evans) has been an integral part […]
OLIVIER LATRY: Voyages – (Organ transcriptions) – Olivier Latry, organ – Erato/ Warner Classics
OLIVIER LATRY: Voyages – (Organ transcriptions) – Olivier Latry, organ – Erato/ Rhino Warner Classics 0190295888503, 78:31 (1/20/17) **1/2: Good recording of a rather mundane program. “Voyages” is the first album to be recorded on the new organ of the Paris Philharmonie. Voyages contains 11 famous pieces – ranging from BACH to KHACHATURIAN By way of MENDELSSOHN, CHOPIN, LISZT, WAGNER, SAINT-SAËNS, RIMSKY-KORSAKOV, FAURÉ, DEBUSSY and DE FALLA – it showcases both the ‘symphonic’ capacities of the new organ and the artistry of leading French organist Olivier Latry. Paris’s magnificent new concert hall, the Philharmonie, opened in January 2015, but its massive organ – which has over 6000 pipes and 91 different stops and weighs more than 25 tons – was not inaugurated until early 2016. This CD, Voyages, containing short pieces transcribed for organ, is the first to be recorded on the new instrument. From the CD it’s clear this is a fine instrument. The low end is palpable, and the microphone is set back to give a sense of the acoustic space. I would have preferred the extended range of an SACD, but the CD rendering holds its own. Larry is a fine organist. A native of northern France, […]
Bruno Walter Rarities, Vol. 2 = Works of BERLIOZ, HANDEL, WAGNER, MOZART, WEBER – Pristine Audio
Mark Obert-Thorn adds more rare Bruno Walter recordings to supplement his three earlier installments. Bruno Walter Rarities, Vol. 2 = BERLIOZ: Roman Carnival Overture, Op. 9; HANDEL: Concerto Grosso in b, Op. 6, No. 12; WAGNER: Parsifal: Act I Transformation Music; A Siegfried Idyll; MOZART: Le Nozze di Figaro, K. 492 – Overture; Serenade No. 13 in G Major, K. 525 “Eine Kleine Nachtmusik”; WEBER: Der Freischuetz, Op. 77 Ov. – Berlin Philharmonic Orch. (Berlioz)/ Royal Philharmonic Orch. (Wagner)/ Mozart Festival Orch. (K. 492)/ British Sym. Orch. (K. 525)/ Paris Conservatory Orch. (Handel, Weber)/ Bruno Walter – Pristine Audio PASC 492, 72:28 [avail. in various formats from www.pristineclassical.com] ****: The recorded legacy (1923-1938) of Bruno Walter (1876-1962) enjoys further expansion in the CD format via the painstaking efforts of Mark Obert-Thorn, who restores several items – the Handel Concerto Grosso, in particular – once available through the Bruno Walter Society on LP, and the frisky 1928 Le Nozze di Figaro Overture, which makes its debut here. Essentially, Obert-Thorn’s tour takes us from Walter’s work in Berlin to his excursions to Britain and then flight to Paris, France to escape the Anschluss in Austria. Walter’s musical style maintains strong ties a […]
SHAKESPEARE: Hamlet & Othello (comp.productions by Royal Shakespeare Co.), Blu-ray (2016)
SHAKESPEARE: Hamlet & Othello (comp.productions by Royal Shakespeare Co.), Blu-ray (2016) SHAKESPEARE: Hamlet ‒ Paapa Essiedu, Hamlet / Natalie Simpson, Ophelia / Cyril Nri, Polonius / Clarence Smith, Claudius / Tanya Moodie, Gertrude / Hiran Abeysekera, Horatio / Marcus Griffiths, Laertes / Ewart James Walters, Ghost; Gravedigger / James Conney, Rosencrantz / Bethan Cullinane, Guildenstern / Kevin N Golding, Bernardo / Priest, Player King / Theo Ogundipe, Fortinbras; Marcellus; Lucianus / Doreene Blackstock, Player Queen / Marième Diouf, Cornelia; Player / Romayne Andrews, Osric / Eke Chukwu, Voltimand / Simon Godwin, Director / Royal Shakespeare Company ‒ Opus Arte Blu-ray OA 807172 D, 180 min., main features; 5 min., extras (10/28/16) ****: SHAKESPEARE: Othello ‒ David Ajao, Montano / Nadia Albina, Duke of Venice / Scarlett Brookes, Bianca / James Corrigan, Roderigo / Ayesha Dharker, Emilia / Eva Feiler, Citizen of Venice / Owen Findlay, Gentleman of Cyprus / Jacob Fortune-Lloyd, Cassio / Guy Hughes, Soldier / Gwilym Lloyd, Gratiano / Rina Mahoney, Citizen of Venice; Messenger / Lucian Msamati, Iago / Ken Nwosu, Gentleman of Cyprus / Brian Protheroe, Brabantio / Hugh Quarshie, Othello / Herald, Jay Saighal, Gentleman of Cyprus / Tim Samuels, Lodovico / Joanna Vanderham, Desdemona […]
Children of Divorce, Blu-ray (1927/2016)
Clara Bow really shines, and an early Gregory Peck is not bad in this restored silent of 1927. Children of Divorce, Blu-ray (1927/2016) Cast: Clara Bow, Gary Cooper, Esther Ralston, Einar Hanson, Norman Trevor Directors: Frank Lloyd & Josef von Sternberg Studio: Paramount/Blackhawk Films/ Flicker Alley (12/3/16) (2 discs: Blu-ray & DVD) Video: 4:3 silent, 1080p HD Audio: New scored based on original by Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra PCM 2.0 Extras: 65 min. Clara Bow: Discovering the ‘It’ Girl produced for Turner Classic Films by Hugh Hefner and narrated by Courtney Love, Souvenir booklet of rare photos, essay, notes of production, article on music of Rodney Sauer, score compiler. Length: 71 min. Rating: ***** This is the 50th publication of Flicker Alley, is based on a 4K resolution scanning of the Library of Congress 1969 fine grain master, and involved over 200 hours of lab work to create the best version possible. This was the first silent film where I must say I forgot it was silent, and the intertitles were not up too long. Gorgeous cinematography, and Clara Bow stands out as the first sex symbol in movies and as far as I’m concerned, way beyond her successors: Jean […]
********* Multichannel Disc of the Month *********** COUPERIN: Trois Lecons de Tenebres; SEBASTIEN DE BROSSARD: Trio Sonatas in c and a; Stabat Mater – Soloists/La Nuova Music – HM
A beautiful excursion into the world of Parisian devotional music. COUPERIN: Trois Lecons de Tenebres; SEBASTIEN DE BROSSARD: Trio Sonatas in c and a; Stabat Mater – Lucy Crowe/ Elizabeth Watts, sop./ La Nuova Musica/ David Bates – Harmonia mundi multichannel SACD HMU 807659, 70:32 [Distr. by Harmonia mundi/PIAS] *****: The Lamentations of the Prophet Jeremiah at the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 form the basis for the Tenebrae services of Lent in the Roman Catholic Church. The term itself refers to the darkness spread in the church during the services of Matins on Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday. There have been many settings of these works over the years, some of which constitute a good portion of the greatest pieces of liturgical music ever composed. The French style, of which Couperin was an excellent exponent, was one in which flowing melodies and a simpler harmonic excursion was a hallmark. The composer did work during his lifetime to reconcile it with the more adventurous—and perhaps, popular—Italian style. But here, in this most churchly of settings, the French holds sway, making for a meditative and extremely provocative and intimate experience of the great Prophet’s distress. But Italy is not […]
SCHUMANN: Papillons; Carnaval; Davidsbuendlertaense – Philippe Bianconi, p. – La Dolce Volta
Philippe Biancoli revisits those Schumann works that indulge in masks and identity transformation. SCHUMANN: Papillons, Op. 2; Carnaval, Op. 9; Davidsbuendlertaense, Op. 6 – Philippe Bianconi, p. – La Dolce Volta LDV 28, 77:51 (9/30/16) [Distr. by Harmonia mundi/PIAS] ****: Philippe Bianconi attended the Conservatory in Nice where he studied with Simone Delbert-Fevrier. In Paris he studied with Gaby Casadesus and in Freiburg-in-Breisgau with Vitalij Margulis. He was the first prize winner of both the Casadesus International Competition in Cleveland and the “Jeunesse Musicales” International Competition in Belgrade, as well as the Silver Medal of the Seventh Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in Fort Worth. Biancoli recorded this all-Schumann recital 7-10 April 2016, meaning to capture the theme of “Doubles and Masks.” Biancoli takes Schumann at his “word,” insofar as the composer responds in all of the works presented here to Jean-Paul Richter’s novel Flegeljahre – Years of Indiscretion – to create a series of masked balls whose characters represent the many contradictory aspects of Schumann’s psyche. Rife with biographical allusions and anagrams of the name of “Schumann” and the town of “Asch,” the pieces often roam into fact and fiction, the commedia dell’arte, and the ongoing romances in Schumann’s […]
Trios from Our Homelands” – REBECCA CLARKE: Piano Trio; ARNO BABAJANIAN: Piano Trio; FRANK MARTIN: Trio on Pop Irish Melodies – Lincoln Trio – Cedille
We got a duplicate of this, so here is a second review opinion on the same recent CD. “Trios from Our Homelands” – REBECCA CLARKE: Piano Trio; ARNO BABAJANIAN: Piano Trio in f-sharp; FRANK MARTIN: Trio on Popular Irish Melodies – Lincoln Trio – Cedille CDR 9000 165, 64:15 ****: Rebecca Clarke (1886-1979) narrowly lost the Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge Chamber Music Award in 1919 for her Viola Sonata. When Mrs. Coolidge revealed the runner-up, she reported, “You should have seen [the judges’] faces when they saw [the sonata] was written by a woman.” It was unheard of for a woman to be a composer in the early 20th century. Clarke also narrowly lost the award in 1921 for her Piano Trio. She went on to write songs and chamber music and lived until the ripe age of 93. Clarke’s Piano Trio is a work of considerable emotional substance and musical creativity. The piano boldly opens the first movement which theatrically alternates sensitive lyricism with rhapsodic drama, ending quietly. The viola sings a wistful lullaby in the folk-like Andante. The cheerful last movement opens with a dance between the strings and piano which is broken by an ardent interlude. The ending […]
RACHMANINOV: Piano Concerto No. 2 in c; 5 Morceaux for Piano; Vocalise; Romance in A and Valse in A – soloists/Royal Liverpool Phil./ Alexander Vedurnikov – Erato
Rachmaninov large and intimate provides a fine hour for Alexander Tharaud and his associate Alexanders. RACHMANINOV: Piano Concerto No. 2 in c, Op. 18; 5 Morceaux for Piano, Op. 3; Vocalise, Op. 34, No. 14; Romance in A Major and Valse in A Major (for 6 hands) – Sabine Devieilhe, sop./ Alexander Tharaud, p./ Alexander Melnikov and Aleksander Madzar, p./ Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orch./ Alexander Vedernikov – Erato 019029595469, 66:41 (10/21/16) [Distr. by Warner Classics] ****: Alexander Tharaud comments on his recent (rec. 5-7 January 2016) Rachmaninov recording: “I was still quite young when I first played this concerto,” explains Tharaud. “I adored it … Rachmaninov’s virtuosity really appeals to young pianists. Today, of course, I’m still enthralled by the concerto’s virtuosity, but now I’m more interested in its dark shadows: the sense of despair, of staring into the abyss. My interpretation of Rachmaninov has changed a lot over the years.” I cannot attest to any prior recording of the ubiquitous 1900 c minor Concerto by Tharaud, but this performance proves exemplary, with perhaps the finest exposition of the opening Russian-bells sequence in F, crescendo, since the Kapell collaboration with William Steinberg. Lovely flute and clarinet work complements Tharaud at […]
![FRANCOIS COUPERIN: Music for Two Harpsichords Vol 1 & 2 – [TrackList follows] – Jochewed Schwarz & Emer Buckley – Toccata Classics](https://www.audaud.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/FrCouperinVols12.jpg)
FRANCOIS COUPERIN: Music for Two Harpsichords Vol 1 & 2 – [TrackList follows] – Jochewed Schwarz & Emer Buckley – Toccata Classics
Two volumes covering two-harpsichord Francois Couperin material. FRANCOIS COUPERIN: Music for Two Harpsichords Vol 1 & 2 – [TrackList follows] – Jochewed Schwarz and Emer Buckley – Toccata Classics TOCC 0203 & 0258, 62:21, 66:03 ****: Fr. Couperin published two set of chamber works, Concerts Royaux and Les Nations, scored so that they could be performed by whatever instruments were at hand (as many composers did at the time). But the composer said he himself preferred to perform them on two harpsichords. These two albums use selected movements from both works, and in the first volume three short pieces from his Pieces de Clavecin, in the second and third books. These are strong and vital-sounding performances from both ladies (Schwarz is Israeli and Buckley is Irish), and the series of movements from the Quatrime Ordre of Les Nations amounts to over 22 minutes long. A later series from the Second Ordre totals 29 minutes. Many of these selections are first recordings of these works. And also are very well-recorded. They both play von Nagel harpsichords, the recordings were made in his workshop in Paris and Ms. Schwarz was also the producer. The double-manual instruments are based on 18th-century French originals […]
“ORGANISM” – TRYGVE MADSEN, KJELL MØRK KARLSEN, and KJELL FLEM – Terje Winge, organ – 2L
“Organism” – TRYGVE MADSEN, KJELL MØRK KARLSEN, and KJELL FLEM – Terje Winge, organ – 2L Pure Audio Blu-ray 2L-123-SABD + multichannel SACD, DTS-HD MA 192kHz/24 bit 5.1, DTS-HD MA 96kHz/24 bit 7.1, PCM 192kHz/24 bit stereo, Dolby Atmos, 9.1 Auro 3D, mShuttle: stereo MQA 96kHz + MP3 (8/25/16) (1:09:17) [Dist. by Naxos] ****: Excellent contemporary organ music in a variety of listening formats, both hi and low-res. The organ music on this album is written by three composers with different musical backgrounds, who give us excellent contemporary music for organ. Trygve Madsen studied with organist-composer Egil Hovland, one of the 20th century’s most significant pioneers in the field of church music. Kjell Mørk Karlsen grew up in a rich church music milieu, inspired by his father, Rolf Karlsen, who was Oslo cathedral organist for over fifteen years. Kjell Flem studied piano and organ, gaining a close knowledge of the organ’s technical and musical possibilities. Included on the disc are: 1 Kjell Mark Karlsen: Sonata “De profundis”, Op. 142 (21:13) 2 Trygve Madsen: Le Tombeau de Dupré, Op. 62 (22:30) 3 Kjell Flem: Ecclesia in mundo (25:35) As is always the case with 2L, this is a beautiful recording. It arrives […]
What Happened, Miss Simone?, Blu-ray + CD
A terrific documentary on the life of this important vocalist in jazz, plus a CD of some the songs most associated with her career. What Happened, Miss Simone?, Blu-ray + CD (2015) Director: Liz Garbus Cast: Nina Simone and many of her friends and family Studio: Netflix/RadicalMedia/Moxie Firecracker Prod./Universal/Eagle Vision Blu-ray EVB335429 (9/2/16) + standard CD (2 discs) Video: 1080i for 16:9 screens, HD color & B&W Audio: English DTS-5.1 HD-MA, PCM stereo (CD – 44.1K/16-bit stereo) Subtitles: English, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese Rating: ***** The story of her life and career is shown thru bits of archived interviews, extensive footage of her performances, and new interviews with family, friends and colleagues. Simone started out as a little black girl classical pianist of great talent, beginning at the age of four, who was turned away by Curtis Institute due to her race. She became a jazz and pop pianist, a unique vocalist, songwriter, singer, performer, civil rights activist, wife and mother, victim of abuse and a black icon. Simone’s career in music began when she had to earn money and began by playing and singing jazz and blues in nightclubs. She was considered by many to be too black, short […]
SCHUMANN: Violin Concerto in d minor; Symphony No. 1 in B-flat Major, “Spring”; Phantasy in C Major – Thomas Zehetmair, v. & cond. / Orch. de chamber de Paris – ECM New Series
Zehetmair’s “double duty” as violinist and conductor produces poetry and happy energy music. SCHUMANN: Violin Concerto in d minor, WoO 23; Symphony No. 1 in B-flat Major, Op. 38 “Spring”; Phantasy in C Major for Violin and Orch., Op. 131 – Thomas Zehetmair, v. & cond. / Orch. de chamber de Paris – ECM New Series 2396 48111369, 79:00 (4/29/16) [Distr. by Universal] ****: Founded in 1978, the Orchestre de chambre de Paris quickly established its reputation as one of Europe’s leading chamber orchestras. In 2012, Thomas Zehetmair was appointed the orchestra’s principal conductor and artistic advisor and on this recording, made at the Theatre des Champs-Elysees in February 2014, does double duty as both soloist and conductor. Zehetmair has approached the 1853 Violin Concerto with a new urgency and respect, returning to the original version without the emendations accorded the “flawed” work from Joachim and Kulenkampff. Collectors well know the unhappy circumstances of the Violin Concerto and its suppression from publication by Clara Schumann and Joseph Joachim after Schumann’s 1854 suicide attempt. The work found itself rediscovered in the 1930s, when its world premiere was to have been granted to Yehudi Menuhin. The National Socialists, however, staged the premiere […]
“Belle Epoque” French music for harp and orchestra – Emmanuel Ceysson, harp/ Orch. Régional Avignon Provence – Naïve
Soothing music for harp and orchestra from French composers, performed by Emmanuel Ceysson. “Belle Epoque” French music for harp and orchestra – Emmanuel Ceysson, harp/ Orchestre Régional Avignon Provence – Naïve V5419, 65:54 [7/31/15] (Distr. by Naxos) *****: The turn of the last century truly was a “beautiful era” for music in France. So this disc of harp music composed around that time is appropriately named. The Paris Conservatoire was the focal point for much of the musical pedagogy and creativity. It was there that the harp prodigy Henriette Renié (1875 – 1956) enrolled at ten years of age, and began lessons with the man, Alphonse Hasselmans, of whom she had said after hearing him play a concert of harp music, “That man is going to be my harp teacher.” She was five years old at the time! She became a legendary performer, composer and teacher on her instrument. Her Concerto in C minor (1901) opens this disc. The first movement Allegro risoluto shows the harp in full partnership with the orchestra. The second movement is a hymn-like Adagio, and the third, a Scherzo, is a delightful frolic with a pastoral interlude. The last movement Final continues Renié’s penchant for […]
DE FALLA: Complete Works for Solo Piano – Juan Carlos Rodriguez, p. – Paladino Music
All of Manuel de Falla’s piano music, sensitively played by fellow Spaniard Juan Carlos Rodriguez. MANUEL DE FALLA: Complete Works for Solo Piano – Juan Carlos Rodriguez, p. – Paladino Music pmr0062 (Distr. by Naxos), 73:36 *****: Manuel Maria de los Dolores Falla y Matheu (Manuel de Falla) was born in 1876 in Cadiz, Spain and died in Alta Garcia, Argentina 70 years later. He became one of the leading Spanish composers of the 20th century, along with Isaac Albéniz (1860 – 1909) and Enrique Granados (1867 – 1916). He left music lovers with dozens of stage works, including three of the best – La vide breve (Life is short – 1913), El amor brujo (Bewitched Love, or The Magician – 1915), and El sombrero de tres picos (The Three-cornered Hat – 1917). And he spent his last decades obsessed with completing his monumental opera Atlántida, but never did. This CD presents all of the known piano music that Manuel de Falla composed – and helpfully does so in chronological order. Manuel de Falla took piano lessons in the city of his birth, developed an interest in journalism and literature in his teenage years, and established two literary magazines. By […]
Larry Young – In Paris: The ORTF Recordings – Resonance (2 CDs; also on vinyl)
A major jazz “find”… Larry Young – In Paris: The ORTF Recordings – Resonance/ INA HCD-2022 (2 CDs) 52:54, 53:06 (1964-1965) ****1/2: (Larry Young – organ and piano; Woody Shaw – trumpet; Nathan Davis – tenor sax; Billy Brooks drums; Jean-Claude Fohrenbach – tenor sax; Sonny Grey – trumpet; Jack Dieval – piano; Jacques B. Hess – bass; Franco Manzecchi – drums; Jacky Bamboo – conga) It’s about time that consideration is given to Zev Feldman at Resonance Records, for the honorary award of “jazz archaeologist.” In the last few years Feldman has released several “unearthed” previously-unissued recordings from Wes Montgomery, Bill Evans, Stan Getz, and Charles Lloyd. Add to that the just-released initial recordings of the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra. The latest treasure from Resonance is the French National Radio recordings of organist Larry Young with a band that includes trumpeter Woody Shaw. The pairing of these two incendiary figures is a match made in heaven, comparable to a 1960s classic Blue Note session. Both Young and Shaw pushed “the envelope” going outside traditional hard bop/ soul jazz influences. Larry achieved this with Miles Davis, and John McLaughlin with Tony Williams, while Woody’s edgy firebrand persona embraced John […]
MOZART: Flute & Harp Concerto; Sinfonia Concertante for Four Winds – Soloists/Oslo Philharmonic/Buribayev & Enegard – LAWO
MOZART: Concerto for Flute, Harp, and Orchestra in C Major, K. 299; Sinfonia Concertante for Four Winds in E-Flat Major, K297B – Per Flemström, flute / Birgitte Volan Håvik, harp / Pavel Sokolov, clarinet/ Per Hannisdal, bassoon/ Inger Besserudhagen, horn/ Oslo Philharmonic Orch./ Alan Buribayev (K. 299) / Arvid Enegård (K. 297B) – LAWO Classics multichannel SACD LWC1071, 57:53 (2/18/15) ****: A winning showcase for the first-chair talents of the Oslo Phil. Here are two musical souvenirs of Mozart’s ill-advised and even tragic sojourn in Paris during spring and summer of 1778. The ill advice came by way of Mozart’s father, Leopold, ever the impresario, who insisted that Mozart establish his credentials in the French capital. The tragedy involved the death of Mozart’s mother, who had accompanied him on the trip, an event that deeply affected the twenty-two-year-old composer. As it turned out, Mozart made little impact in Paris and ended up being saddled with a couple of commissions for which he was neither recognized nor paid. One of them was for the ballet Les Petites Riens; not only did the management stiff Mozart on this composition, his name didn’t even appear in the program. But then again, ballet was […]
Paris Belongs To Us, Blu-ray (1961/2016)
A supposed first in the French New Wave, but not a classic. Paris Belongs To Us, Blu-ray (1961/2016) Cast: Betty Schneider, Jean-Claude Brialy Director: Jacques Rivette Studio: MK2/ Janus Films/The Criterion Collection 802 (3/8/16) Video: 1.37:1 for 4:3 display, 1080p HD black & white Audio: French, PCM mono Subtitles: English Extras: New interview with Richard Neupert, author of A History of the French New Wave Cinema; 1956 Rivette short Le coup du berger; Illus. booklet with essay by critic Luc Sante Length: 141 min. Rating: ***1/2 Rivette usually is not included in the leaders of the French New Wave with Truffaut, Godard, Chabrol and Rohmer, partly because finances delayed the post-production on this film and it wasn’t released until 1961, though shot in 1958 and ‘59. Rivette gets away from the American gangster-influenced characters but is also obsessed with Americana. He is known for the length of his films; this is actually one of his shortest at 141 minutes and could use some editing! Anne is a young literature student in a Paris hostel, drawn into the bohemian circle of her brother Pierre. Much of it is shot in rather decrepit Parisian rented rooms, with little attention to lighting. There’s […]
OFFENBACH: Orchestral Works = Various overtures, Tales of Hoffman music – Swisse Romande Orch. – Chandos
Estonian conductor finds the Paris experience of Jacques Offenbach entirely suited to his taste. OFFENBACH: Orchestral Works = Overture to Orpheus in the Underworld; Overture to La Belle Helene; Overture and Ballet from The Voyage to the Moon; Overture to La fille du tambour-major; Intermede and Barcarolle from The Tales of Hoffmann; Overture to Barbe-bleue; Overture to Le Mariage aux lanternes; Overture to La Grande-Duchesse de Gerolstein; Overture to Vert-Vert; Overture to La Vie parisienne – Orchestre de la Suisse Romande/ Neeme Jarvi – Chandos multichannel SACD CHSA 5160, 77:45 (11/13/15) [Distr. by Naxos] ****: Neeme Jarvi assembles (rec. 23-24 June 2015) a series of scores by Jacques Offenbach, composed 1853-1881, that embrace diverse genres, from satirical, one-act pieces to more expansive theater works that offered lavish, historical or fantastical spectacles. Infectious themes and rhythms pervade these scores, many of which found their way into conductor-arranger Manuel Rosenthal’s popular Gaite parisiene in 1938 for the Ballet russe de Monte Carlo. The program opens with the 1858 Orpheus aux enfers, Offenbach’s parody of the Orpheus and Eurydice legend, which features some lovely playing, first from the oboe, then the cello, and later the “lute” of Orpheus, intoned by violin principal Bogdan […]
RACHMANINOV: Symphony No. 3; Capriccio on Gypsy Themes; Symphonic Dances; The Rock; Vocalise – Orch. de Paris/ Paavo Jarvi – Erato
Paavo Jarvi embarks on a series of recordings dedicated to the composer’s orchestral oeuvre. RACHMANINOV: Symphony No. 3 in a minor, Op. 44; Capriccio on Gypsy Themes, Op. 12; Symphonic Dances, Op. 45; The Rock, Op. 7; Vocalise, Op. 34, No. 14 – Orch. de Paris/ Paavo Jarvi – Erato 0825646195794, 60:18, 56:42 (2 CDs) (10/2/15) [Distr. by Warner Classics] ****: As part of the Serge Rachmaninov Foundation, conductor Paavo Jarvi undertook several recordings at the Salle Pleyel in Paris – 19-21 October 2011 and 27-28 March 2013 – “to preserve the cultural heritage of Villa Senar in Switzerland. . .and to bring the whole of his oeuvre. . .to public attention.” The concert opens with the 1936 Symphony No. 3, in which Rachmaninov maintains – even in exile – his basic nostalgia for Mother Russia, while incorporating a new economy of means and sparser sonority than he had invested into his last orchestral works, dating from 1909. The modal threnody that dominates the first movement Lento – Allegro moderato – Allegro will reappear in various guises, typical of the composer’s tendency to cyclic form. The combined instruments occasionally splash passionately in rich colors, with touches from a Russian wedding […]
VIVALDI: Concerti for Bassoon RV 472, 481, 495, 498, 501 and 717 – Miho Fukui, bassoon/ Ensemble F – ARS Prod.
Fun concertos, no matter they’re for the bassoon.
Zarafa, Blu-ray (2015)
A wonderful French animation full of lots of exotic locations and animals.
Stereotypes Audio
Cembal d’amour
Pure Pleasure / Speakers Corner
Cedille
