Say Archive
“Soaring Solo – Unaccompanied Works II” – Stephanie Sant’Ambrogio, violin & viola – MSR Classics
Don’t think twice about getting this wonderful recital. “Soaring Solo – Unaccompanied Works II” – Stephanie Sant’Ambrogio, violin & viola – MSR Classics MS 1627, 73:32 [Distr. by Albany] *****: This is Stephanie Sant’Ambrogio’s second solo disc, the first called “Going Solo” following this same sort of format. Here, the artist says “Soaring effortlessly high above the clouds. That is the sensation I enjoy when I am in the perfect performance zone. It is a feeling of tremendous freedom and peace. As if I am weightless, I am soaring on air currents looking passively down on the tumultuous world below as the music flows past my ears. When I decided to record a second CD of solo pieces for violin and viola, Soaring Solo was the title that came ‘out of the blue’ and drifted into my consciousness.” Interesting, and no doubt pertinent to this fine violinist/ violist when selecting this program, but I am not sure how much it matters to the listener or our appreciation of the music. What is important is the wonderful technical acumen she brings to each piece on this recital regardless of instrument played, and the superb tonal qualities she manages on each. The […]
“In Search of the Miraculous” – Works by SAY; SHARAFAYAN; KHALII; HOVHANESS; SURMAN & CLEARY: Hilliard Ensemble/ EQ Ensemble/ Elisaveta Blumina, John Feeley and Pavlos Kanellakis – Louth Contemporary Music Society
Contemporary music with an eastern flavor hampered by a dearth of information.