With Serenade, Thomas Hampson's first album exclusively dedicated to French song, Mr. Hampson brings his passion for works by French opera composers to the PENTATONE label. Curated with the French Literature scholar Sylvain Fort and in a first collaboration with the Polish pianist Maciej Pikulski, the track listing includes romantic and introspective as well as humorous selections by Bizet, Chabrier, Chausson, Gounod, Magnard, Massenet, and Saint-Saëns, featuring texts written by some of France's most revered writers including Victor Hugo, Paul Verlaine, Rosemonde Gerard, and others.

REVIEW:

There are many byways through the well-stocked garden of French song for those who want to explore further afield. Thomas Hampson has put together an imaginative programme that places just a handful of well-known songs along its path, including Chabrier’s jolly parade of ducklings in “Villanelle des petits canards” and Chausson’s hothouse “Le temps des lilas."

-- Financial Times (U.K.)

Selections from the star tenor's early recital recordings, including music of Verdi, Puccini, Bizet, and more.

The internationally renowned pianist Caroline Fischer has put together an evocative holiday gift with her new GENUIN CD. For the recording, she sought out old and new Christmas melodies, well-known and unknown, and combined them to form a harmonious whole. Included are treasures such as Otto von Walden’s tender fantasy on “Es ist ein Ros entsprungen” and Gustav Lange’s enchanting version of “Silent Night” – some of these windfalls have been recorded on CD for the first time. Thoughtfully curated and recorded to the highest standard, the only thing really missing is the wrapping paper!

PTR1124

The present release features works for soprano and piano by Daron Aric Hagen, Johannes Brahms, Jules Massenet, John Duke, Giacomo Meyerbeer, Seymour Barab, Erik Satie, Charles Gounod, Dmitri Shostakovich, Roger Quilter, Robert Franz, Cecile Chaminade, Aaron Copland, Josephine Lang, Florence Price, Ann Rivers Witherspoon, Amy Beach, Camille Saint-Saëns, Leonard Bernstein, and Margaret Bonds.

American soprano Melissa Givens moves and excites audiences and critics alike with a rich, powerful tone, crystalline clarity, and intelligent musical interpretations. Especially noted for her expressiveness and elegance on the stage, she’s been hailed as a singer whose music making is “consistently rewarding” and “a pleasure to hear.” Givens is also an extremely versatile artist, regularly performing repertoire from the Baroque era through music of the 21st century.

A quiet, contemplative collection of Marian pieces, well sung and atmospheric.

We learn from the booklet accompanying this disc that the Zurich Boys’ Choir was founded in 1960 by its present conductor, Alphons von Aarburg. It is not attached to any church or school, but the boys meet to rehearse several times each week as well as participating in a “singing camp” during the school holidays. The disc was recorded some fifteen years ago, but the choir is still going strong, and indeed celebrates its fiftieth anniversary this year, still with the same conductor.

A glance at the program will confirm that this is a collection of contemplative music. There is a certain sameness of atmosphere as the program progresses, and the attentive listener will probably wish for a bit more variety. I hesitate to recommend it as background listening, so let me say instead that the mood it creates is more suited to quiet reflection than to undivided attention.

The programme is an interesting and inventive mix of well known and lesser known pieces. It opens with one of the best known of all, the famous Bach and Gounod joint effort. The notes seem to be suggesting that Gounod’s original adaptation of Bach’s Prelude was scored for harp, organ and solo violin, and though this was news to me there seems little reason to doubt it. The present performance adds a solo cello and two vocal parts, and may be a later version by Gounod himself, or indeed a hybrid concoction by the present performers. Either way, the opening notes from the harp come as a surprise, as do the two string soloists when they get in on the act. The soloist, Daniel Perrer, is excellent, and the choir sings perfectly well, but the scoring adds extra sweetener to an already sugary exercise. The cello and harp put in another appearance in Franck’s Panis angelicus, along with the organ, and whilst this may be a bona fide composer’s version - the choir in several parts in the canonic second verse - the effect is romantic and indulgent in a piece which can be very affecting when given simply.

Panis angelicus features some very pleasing solo tenor singing from Frieder Lang, and indeed his presence is one of the strong points of this collection. He is ably supported by the children in Franck’s rather lovely Ave Maria, and he turns in a most sensitive performance of an Ave Maria by Tosti. Another solo Ave Maria, by Arcadelt this time, is certainly beautifully sung, though the authentic performance purists might quibble at one or two stylistic points. I think they might not be totally satisfied with Schütz from Zurich either, at least not in 1995, rhythmically stolid and altogether too smooth for comfort.

The program features a masterpiece or two, not least the two sublime Bruckner motets. Ave Maria is given a good performance, as is Virgo Jesse, though to my ears the boys do not supply anything like the passion in the soprano line that both pieces require. Most adult choirs find it easier to provide this, and a group such as the Westminster Cathedral Choir manage to find both passion and restraint, a heady mixture. There are one or two slightly uncertain attacks in the upper register here too, and, for this listener, some unpleasant staccato and accented final syllables on the word “hallelujah”. In the Verdi piece, and judged by the standards of the finest children’s choirs, intonation is not always spot-on.

Reger’s lullaby, given in a two-part version unfamiliar to me, and again accompanied by the harp, is a particular pleasure. The Mozart, at a reasonably flowing tempo, goes as far as most performances in avoiding the morose atmosphere which can so easily invade this glorious piece. The harp appears again, along with the organ, in Schubert’s Ave Maria. The young Daniel Perrer again sings beautifully, but this really doesn’t sound much like Schubert. Then, that’s not the point of the disc, which will bring much pleasure to those who enjoy this kind of program.

-- William Hedley, MusicWeb International

After many acclaimed releases on BIS, most recently ‘Sounds and Sweet Airs – A Shakespeare Songbook’ (BIS-2653), Carolyn Sampson’s latest recital with Joseph Middleton lives up to its name: it is an eloquent testimony to the English soprano’s love of her art. This programme artfully blends well-known and lesser-known lieder by German and Austrian masters such as Schubert, Mendelssohn, Brahms, Richard Strauss and Hugo Wolf with French songs by Gounod, Poulenc and Franck, as well as works by Anglo-Saxon composers such as Hubert Parry, Samuel Barber and Ivor Gurney. Female composers are not forgotten, with rarely-performed songs by Rita Strohl based on slightly risqué poems by Pierre Louÿs, music by Cheryl Frances-Hoad, Kaija Saariaho – who has recently passed away – and Deborah Pritchard, whose song presented here was composed especially for Sampson. And while Leonard Bernstein’s comically cheeky song ‘I hate music’, appears to be a call not to let music take itself too seriously, Errollyn Wallen’s ‘Peace on Earth’, which concludes the album, invokes calm and encourages us to find peace, a message that seems more relevant today than ever.

Mariss Jansons was one of the most important conductors of our time, celebrated worldwide and held in the highest regard – all the more so since his unexpected death on December 1, 2019. "Mariss Jansons - The Edition," comprising 70 recordings and a box set in representative LP format, documents the final phase of his life and career: his work as chief conductor of the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks and the Bavarian Radio Chorus between 2003 and 2019. Predominantly live recordings from Munich, Tokyo, Vienna, New York, Waldsassen, and the Vatican enable listeners to experience for themselves musical highlights that are as moving as they are exciting. The set contains a remarkably diverse repertoire, ranging from symphonic music and great choral works to opera, and from the First Viennese School to 20th century classical music. "Mariss Jansons - The Edition" contains works by a broad range of composers, including complete cycles of the symphonies of Beethoven, Brahms, and Mahler respectively. It is supplemented by fascinating rehearsal recordings that bear witness to Jansons's trusting artistic collaboration with the musicians in his orchestra, together with a large-format, approximately 72-page-long booklet containing background information, essays, an interview, and a detailed track listing.

SUMMARY OF MAJOR WORKS:

Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 1-9 (No. 9 appears twice)

Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique

Brahms: Symphonies Nos. 1-4 (No. 4 appears twice)

Bruckner: Symphonies Nos. 3-4; 6-9

Mahler: Symphonies Nos. 1-9 (Symphonies Nos. 3-4, 6, & 8 are FIRST RELEASES)

Saint-Saëns: Symphony No. 3 ("Organ")

Schoenberg: Gurre-Lieder

Schubert: Symphonies Nos. 3 & 8 (9); ("The Great")

Schumann: Symphony No. 1

Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 5-7, 9-10

Stravinsky: Petrouchka, Firebird, & Rite of Spring

Tchaikovsky: Symphonies Nos. 4-6; Pique Dame

Verdi: Requiem

After collections celebrating the label’s 40th year that focused on sacred, orchestral, and chamber/soloist music, respectively, Capriccio’s fourth and last Anniversary Box now features the singing stars in the label’s history. There’s that pioneer of ‘counter-tenorism’, Jochen Kowalski, for example. We hear unexpected works from icons like Peter Schreier (with lute accompaniment) and Hermann Prey (singing Operetta music), Italian fare from Alfredo Kraus and Ramón Vargas, and Cecilia Bartoli – discovered and first recorded by Capriccio – in her first (and presumably only) Wagner role! Also opera rarities the kind with which Capriccio made a name for itself – with a cast that would have turned heads even at the finest opera houses.

An icon of French Romanticism thanks to the enduring popularity of his operas Faust and Roméo et Juliette, Charles Gounod competed three times for the prestigious Prix de Rome between 1837 and 1839. Thus he composed three unpublished cantatas for soloists and orchestra, including Marie Stuart et Rizzio and La Vendetta, which he never had the opportunity to hear in performance. Revealed for the first time, these three cantatas, fine examples of French Romanticism, show a young composer with a remarkable flair for opera. In the end Fernand won him the coveted prize, carrying with it the privilege of a three-year stay (from 1840) at the Villa Medici in Rome. While there he produced several sacred compositions, which have also remained unknown until now. His splendid Messe vocale for unaccompanied choir, written in a neo-Palestrinian style, deserves a place on the programme of every vocal ensemble.

REVIEWS:

Although all the cantatas on Disc One tug with tension, the most poignant display of Gounod’s might falls inside Fernand. Akin to Karine Deshayes, Judith Van Wanroij’s Zelmire reveals remarkable, flexible dramatic delivery, and a buoyantly light timbre. Her lover, Alamir (sung by tenor Yu Shao), shines inside the lyrically French passages with excellent enunciation while Nicolas Courjal sings with such sensitivity to draw out the selfless tendencies of the Spaniard, Fernand. The music’s orchestral interludes anticipate Faust, yet there is a marked feel of Félicien David and his Herculanum. Brilliant from beginning to end.

The four selections on the second CD give variety through mixed voices and soothing organ accompaniment by François Saint-Yves. Hervé Niquet’s direction is pristine and well-reflected through the Flemish Radio Choir with well-balanced and attentive diction upon every turn of the page. Each composition suffuses platonic rapture: undemanding on the ear, lyrically light, sweet in melody.

Anyone who cherishes the magnificence of Charles Gounod would be well to collect this little treasure.

– ConcertoNet.com (Christie Grimstad)

Music-making, at least here, is first-rate with orchestra, choir, and soloists all of the highest quality. Packaging is plush, with bound booklets in French and English containing much biographical and detailed musical information on the artists, their early musical careers, and the music included on the discs. At least with Gounod, one can hear the young composer’s increasing aptitude and increasing confidence as his skills are honed, first in the parochial French competitions and then in the real world of paid artistic commissions. I would guess we are all generally pleased that Gounod eventually abandoned the relatively modestly remunerative life of ecclesiastical music to turn to operatic blockbusters such as Faust and Roméo et Juliet, but these pleasant and melodious apprentice works also deserve to be heard, to be heard in quality productions, and to take their rightful place in the pantheon of recorded music. Highly recommended.

-- Fanfare

This album is, simply, a necessary addition to the Busoni discography, carried off with panache. A studio recording, sound is uncramped, gutsily close, and incisively detailed. Sine qua non for the Busoni aficionado, and enthusiastically recommended to all who care for the literature of the piano.

- Adrian Corleonis Fanfare (From review of Capriccio 10896 which contains the same performances.)

This outstanding collection contains 6 discs and features some of the most memorable performances by The Royal Opera. The works included in this set include Verdi’s Aida, Otello, and Stiffelio, Strauss’s Salome, Gounod’s Romeo Et Juliette, and Mozart’s Mitridate, re di Ponto. These discs bring together incredible conductors Paul Daniel, Edward Downes, Charles Mackerras, and Georg Solti with world-class stage directors Elijah Moshinsky, Nicholas Joel, Peter Hall, and Graham Vick. These recordings, all taken between 1992 and 1994, are preserved here in Standard Definition and 4/3 picture format.

CHRISTMAS and HANUKAH: I'll Be Home for the Holidays

Classical Music

Recordings from 1932-1948.

Maria Cebotari was working as an actress at the Moscow artist theater before she decided in 1929 study singing in Berlin. In 1931 she got an engagement as an opera singer in Dresden and launched her very successful career. She sang in Dresden till 1943, and made frequent appearances at the Berline State Opera. Her interpretations of the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Richard Strauss belonged to her specialties.

She made her film debut in 1929 with "Troika", but only from the middle of the 30's did she focus increasingly in this profession. Her well-known movies are "Mädchen in Weiss" (36), "Starke Herzen" (37) and "Il sogno di Butterfly - Premiere der Butterfly" (39).

GOUNOD Symphonies: No. 1 in D. No. 2 in E? • Patrick Gallois, cond; Sinf Finlandia • NAXOS 8.557463 (68:14)


Charles Gounod (1818–1893), internationally famous for his grand opera Faust, composed both these symphonies in 1855. By that time, he was an accomplished and well-traveled musician, but not famous, and the symphonies went unperformed and, before the LP era, unrecorded. All the critics I read are unanimous that this is a shame. Though not among the towering masterpieces of the genre, both are perfect within their modest intentions. Among words and terms that fairly describe them are cheerful, polished, attractively scored, deftly organized, melodious, and economical. Now that they are available, listeners seem to like the First (here 29 minutes long) a bit better than the Second (almost 40 minutes), if they show any preference at all.


Gounod’s Symphony No. 1 is most often discussed as the model for the Symphony in C of his 17-year-old student, Georges Bizet. The two works are similar in length, mood, orchestration, and faithfulness to classical models. Furthermore, both remained unknown until modern times. But Gounod as a symphonist sounds like a French Mendelssohn, whereas his student, subsequently world-famous for Carmen, already sounds like himself. However, if the student’s essay deserves greater fame than its model, that is no reason for neglecting the fine work of the older composer.


Conductor and flautist Patrick Gallois recorded these symphonies with the Sinfonia Finlandia of Jyväskylä in May 2004. The performances are alert, disciplined, expressive, and beautifully recorded, making a highly recommendable disc. The leading current competitor is a widely praised Philips disc with Neville Marriner conducting the ASMF Orchestra. That costs more than this Naxos release, but has the bonus of including the ballet music from Faust. One assumes that Marriner either plays the symphonies faster, or skips repeats—possibly both. Finally, one should mention an ASV disc of the Gounod symphonies featuring John Lubbock and the Orchestra of St. John’s, which has its partisans.


FANFARE: Robert McColley

The polished and affectionate playing of the Athena Ensemble in Ibert’s Three Pieces breves is admirable on Chandos CHAN 6543 c/w Gounod Petit symphonie and Poulenc Sextet.

-- Michael Cookson, MusicWeb International

This Blu-ray Disc is only playable on Blu-ray Disc players and not compatible with standard DVD players.

Also available on standard DVD

Charles Gounod was enchanted by the young Provençal-born Frédéric Mistral’s epic love poem Mirèio, and enlisted the distinguished Michel Carré to fashion a libretto. Against the grain of prevailing operatic practice in the 1860s, and its promotion of glamour and spectacle, Gounod relished instead the lives of modest country people and their idyllic world. He utilizes folk dances and a shepherd’s lament to chart the story of his tragic heroine whose desire to marry her true love ends in her death. ‘Everything feels true to the opera’s pastoral spirit’ wrote Gramophone about this production, which marked the opera’s first appearance at the Paris Opera.

Harpist to Queen Victoria, the Welsh composer John Thomas (1826–1913) also wrote prolifically for his own instrument, both for solo harp and for duos of two harps or harp and piano – a combination where the different sounds of the two instruments enhance the clarity of the texture. Thomas’ original works use the elegant Romantic style of his own day, but he also left a generous legacy of transcriptions, especially of operatic favourites. Although some of his music was intended for the Victorian drawing room, other pieces require a virtuoso technique – and all of it has a thoroughly engaging melodic appeal.

Romeo and Juliet is the most famous love story of all time. In Charles Gounod's operatic adaptation of the Shakespearean tragedy at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona "Saimir Pirgu and Aida Garifullina mesmerize as the tragic lovers.“ (Euronews) Charles Gounod is one of the great representatives of French lyric drama and due to his famous aria “Je veux vivre,” ravishing melodies; magical duets and the unique ballet scene in Act IV; Roméo et Juliette continues to gain much popularity. This production by Stephen Lawless once again demonstrates the abundance of ideas that Shakespeare’s legendary tale is able to inspire; even in the 21st century. In addition to the lavish stage sets and the carefully chosen costumes and props; the production captivates the audience thanks to its refined dramaturgical logic: “Lawless successfully creates a dignified and logical background to the
ongoing story […].” (Metropolitan Barcelona)

American bass-baritone Mark S. Doss honors the history of Chicago’s Bel Canto Foundation with an all-encompassing vocal recital program. With works ranging from classic “devil” songs and roles, (other) grand opera, and classic Italian Italians songs to showtunes and inspirational songs, Welcome To My World highlights Doss’s impressive range, tone, and showmanship.

MASTERWORKS HERITAGE: Bidú Sayão

It's a tough road to get where you're going nowadays - and Delos has created a wonderful new collection, including a delightful bonus, to help make the trip a little easier. Serene Journeys is a specially priced 3-CD set packaged in a 6-CD carrying case, carefully programmed with the most relaxing classical music. This tranquil collection is unique among 'mood' compilations in featuring acclaimed classical artists, such as Carol Rosenberger, Voices of Ascension, the Dallas Symphony, and the Seattle Symphony, all in a value-priced three-disc gift package. Selections include the familiar, such as Barber's Adagio [Agnus Dei], piano selections of Debussy, the Mozart Clarinet concerto, as well as other less familiar works which will help educate and enrich the listener while expanding his knowledge of the classical repertoire.

These two popular 19th century orchestral masses could hardly be more different: even though there are only 40 years between Franz Schubert’s Mass No. 2 in G major D. 167 and Charles Gounod’s St. Cecilia Mass. While Schubert at the tender age of 18 wrote his mass - in a single week! - in the customary style at the time of the Missa brevis, Charles Gounod’s St. Cecilia Mass stands out by virtue of lustrous tone colors with harp and winds - reminiscent in many places of grand opéra.

The recording of the present CD took place in March of 2007 in Munich’s Herkulessaal in the Residence and reveal Mariss Jansons, the Chief Conductor of the Chor and Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks in an especially deeply felt program.

Presenting the major singers of today and the stars of tomorrow, the Rosenblatt Recitals are London’s only world-class season of opera recitals. This set of CDs from the partnership with Opus Arte are based predominantly on studio recordings with occasional bonus live tracks.

ROMANTIC ARIAS • Nino Machaidze (s); Michele Mariotti, cond; Bologna Th O • SONY 88697841742 (73:00 Text and Translation)


Arias from MASSENET Manon. GOUNOD Roméo et Juliette. BELLINI Adelson e Salvini. La Sonnambula. ROSSINI Il Turco in Italia. DONIZETTI Lucia di Lammermoor. La Fille du régiment. Linda di Chamounix


Although Georgian-born soprano Nino Machaidze has been a member of the prestigious young artists development program at La Scala in Milan and actually made her leading-role debut there in 2007, she didn’t make a real splash in the international opera scene until she filled in for a pregnant Anna Netrebko as Gounod’s Juliette in a summer Salzburg production in 2008. (An obviously pregnant Juliette would really have made a splash!) After her success there, Machaidze has followed up with debuts at several prestigious opera venues, including both coasts in the U.S., appearing in Rossini’s Il Turco in Italia at the Los Angeles Opera and as Gilda in Rigoletto at the Metropolitan Opera. Machaidze’s lyric coloratura repertoire and her sultry Slavic beauty have led to the inevitable comparisons with superstar Netrebko. Here the young Georgian singer presents a debut album of well-known Romantic arias.


Among the program are two French arias from the Gounod opera of the two ill-fated lovers mentioned above, and the delightful “Adieu, nôtre petite table” as Manon sings goodbye to her furniture in Jules Massenet’s opera named for the heroine. The other six selections on the disc are bel canto and coloratura showpieces, a repertoire with which Machaidze seems the more comfortable. Instead of the usual mad scene from Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor , we get the lovely act I entrance scena and aria for Lucia, “Regnava nel silenzio.” A beautiful aria from Vincenzo Bellini’s obscure first opera, Adelson e Salvini , “Dopo l’oscuro nembo,” is probably better known to operagoers as Giuletta’s “Oh, quante volte” after Bellini reused the tune in his I Capuleti e I Montecchi. Two extended scenes, one from Donizetti’s La Fille du Régiment and the other the wonderful finale from Bellini’s La Sonnambula, here demonstrate Machaidze’s ability to span a range of emotions and a range of musical styles culminating in spectacular coloratura fireworks.


As to vocal production, Machaidze has all the breathtaking high notes and the vocal agility to sing florid passages with which only the young are blessed for too short a time. She does not possess the tonal beauty and solid security in her top range that Netrebko enchants us with, but both sopranos have the dusky, rich sound in the lower register often found with Slavic singers. Machaidze has been criticized in some live performances for occasional intonation problems, but one hears little of that here. The young coloratura sings very well, her Italian better than her French.


Booklet essays and complete texts are provided in English, German, French, and Italian. Sony takes advantage of the photogenic Machaidze with nine glamour photos. The Bologna Teatro Communale Orchestra is no doubt long familiar with these operatic chestnuts and supports the singer in excellent fashion. Machaidze bears watching and hearing; she is one of the young guns on the opera horizon. You will enjoy her work on this fine CD.


FANFARE: Bill White

Classical Music

From a 1960 live performance in Paris with the Orchestre Lyrique de l'O.R.T.F. and conducted by Pierre-Michel Le Conte, this classic tale of star crossed love features an all-French cast including arguably the most visible of French tenors in the post war era, Alain Vanzo as Romeo complemented by lyric soprano Huguette Riviere's Juliette.

Some of the world’s greatest sacred masterpieces are heard on this disc, performed by some of the world’s leading vocal ensembles. The journey ranges from Thomas Tallis’s extraordinary Spem in alium to César Franck’s immortal Panis angelicus. Pergolesi’s Stabat mater is a masterpiece of the early eighteenth century. Mozart, who as a 14-year-old had copied out Allegri’s Miserere from memory, is represented by his beautiful Ave verum corpus. It is impossible to omit the Bach-Gounod Ave Maria from a journey that crosses geographical borders and spans the centuries.

CHILL WITH BACH comprises superb Johann Sebastian Bach interpretations selected for their soothing properties. For example, pianist Hae-won Chang plays "Siciliano" from Bach's Piano Concerto in E Major with incredible sensitivity and melodic flow. Her version of this piece relies on subtle dynamic shifts, which in turn create a wonderful depth in the music. Chang's interpretation of this slow movement is profound because of its expressiveness. She avoids the motoric tendency of lesser players and instead brings out the understated symmetry of this melody.
Chen Pi-Hsien's pianistic skills are equally engaging. Performing two themes from the Goldberg Variations, Hsien reveals the harmonic congruity of these themes by also avoiding a mechanized approach. Indeed, Hsien embraces the ebb and flow of Bach's counterpoint; this is essential since Bach's music is so openly fugal. In addition to all the tremendous excerpts found here, this collection also contains Bach's famous piece, "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring." Performed by a solo pipe organ, this work contains one of Baroque's most contagious melodies.