Music by Jule Styne, lyrics by E. Y. Harburg.

Principal cast includes: Vincent Price (Priam Farll), Patricia Routledge (Alice Challice), Brenda Forbes (Lady Vale), Peter Woodthorpe (Oxford), Teddy Green (Alf), and Charles Welch (Henry Leek).

Producers: George R. Marek, Andy Wiswell.

Recorded at Webster Hall, New York, New York in 1968. Includes liner notes by Steven Suskin.

Digitally remastered by Bill Rosenfield and Marian Conaty.

"This is one of the most witty, melodic and underrated Broadway scores ever, and those who love big, well-built musical comedies are in for a real treat with this beautifully remastered recording. . . . If you want to hear the latest 're-discovered' musical, grab a copy of this recording ASAP!" -- John Kenrick, Musicals101.com

Tracks:
1. Overture
2. He's A Genius Performer: Vincent Price (Singer), Peter Woodthorpe (Singer), Charles Welch (Singer)
3. To Get Out Of This World Alive Performer: Vincent Price (Singer)
4. It's Enough To Make A Lady Fall In Love Performer: Patricia Routledge (Singer), Teddy Green (Singer), Marc Jordan (Singer)
5. A Gentleman's Gentleman Performer: Patricia Routledge (Singer), Vincent Price (Singer), Teddy Green (Singer), Marc Jordan (Singer), Mitchell Jason (Singer)
6. Let's See What Happens Performer: Patricia Routledge (Singer)
7. Panache Performer: Peter Woodthorpe (Singer), Brenda Forbes (Singer)
8. I've Got A Rainbow Working For Me Performer: Vincent Price (Singer)
9. Money, Money, Money Performer: Teddy Green (Singer), Marc Jordan (Singer), Reid Klein (Singer)
10. That Something Extra Special Performer: Patricia Routledge (Singer)
11. What Makes A Marriage Merry Performer: Patricia Routledge (Singer), Vincent Price (Singer), Joy Nichols (Singer), Beth Howland (Singer), Teddy Green (Singer), Marc Jordan (Singer)
12. Not On Your Nellie Performer: Patricia Routledge (Singer), Teddy Green (Singer), Marc Jordan (Singer)
13. Sunset Tree Performer: Patricia Routledge (Singer), Vincent Price (Singer)
14. Butler In The Abbey Performer: Vincent Price (Singer)
15. Finale

To this day, music from classic Broadway and Hollywood musicals continues to enjoy immense popularity with audiences and performers alike. Here Simon Keenlyside, one of the world’s most charismatic and sought-after operatic baritones, presents Something’s Gotta Give, an album devoted to songs from musicals – songs that require every bit as much attention to text and interpretation as Lieder, and often the same mastery of vocal technique as operatic arias. Scarlett Strallen, a regular presence of West End and Broadway stages, partners Keenlyside in duets and sings two numbers on her own. They are joined by David Charles Abell, a musician steeped in the tradition of musical theatre, who conducts the BBC Concert Orchestra in wonderfully lush original orchestral arrangements, a number of which have been specially restored for this recording.

The programme includes some of the best-loved numbers in the repertoire, including Cole Porter’s ‘Night and Day’, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s ‘Oh What a Beautiful Mornin’’, and ‘If I Were a Rich Man’ from Fiddler on the Roof. The range represented, from the emotional tour de force of ‘Soliloquy’ to the charming character song ‘Reviewing the Situation’, showcases the many facets of Simon Keenlyside both as an extraordinary vocalist and endlessly charismatic performer.

Principal cast: Laurence Naismith (Kris Kringle); Craig Stevens (Fred Gaily); Valerie Lee (Susan Walker); Fred Gwynne (Marvin Shellhammer); Janis Paige (Doris Walker); Paul Reed (R.H. Macy); David Doyle (Mr. Psawyer); Cliff Hall (Judge Martin Group).
Recorded at Columbia Records 30th Street Studio, New York on October 6, 1963. Includes liner notes and a plot synopsis by Didier C. Deutsch in English, German, French and Italian.
All songs written by Meredith Willson.
HERE'S LOVE opened at the Shubert Theatre, New York on October 3, 1963 and ran 338 performances, closing on July 25, 1964.

This recording received a 1998 "Critic's Choice" award from Gramophone
magazine.

Music composed by Julie Styne. Lyrics written by Stephen Sondheim.
Principal cast includes: Ethel Merman (Mama Rose); Jack Klugman (Herbie); Sandra Church (Louise); Lane Bradbury (June); Paul Wallace (Tulsa); Jaqueline Mayro (Baby June); Karen Moore (Baby Louise); Faith Dane (Mazeppa); Chotzi Foley (Electra); Maria Karnilova (Tessie); Bobby Brownell, Gene Castle, Steve Curry, Billy Harris (Newsboys); Marvin Arnold, Ricky Coll, Don Emmons, Michael Parks, Ian Tucker, Paul Wallace, David Winters (Farmboys).
Producer: Goddard Lieberson.
Recorded on May 24, 1959. Originally released on Columbia (OL 5420).
Composer: Jule Styne.
Lyricist: Stephen Sondheim.
GYPSY, which opened on May 21, 1959 at the Broadway Theatre in New York, remains one of the most enduring works of American musical theater, thanks largely to Jule Styne and Stephen Sondheim's memorable score and the inimitable voice of Ethel Merman, all beautifully captured on the original cast recording. For Styne, GYPSY was a crowning achievement and a perfect example of his ability to suit his music for a particular singer. And while Sondheim had initially hoped to write not only the lyrics but the music as well, the task turned out to be the ultimate proving ground: his lyrics were perfectly suited both to the music and the characters.
This remastered version of the original cast recording offers a few departures from its predecessor, particularly in the restoration of several edits and the occasional use of alternate takes. As explained in the liner notes, a longer production schedule (to say nothing of more advanced technology) allows for careful examination of the original masters, a luxury not afforded the original producers, who were under pressure to get the job done as quickly as possible. In addition, the reissue contains several bonus tracks not included in the original release.

Principal cast includes: Miyoshi Umeki (Mei Li), Larry Blyden (Sammy Fong), Juanita Hall (Madam Liang), Ed Kenney (Wang Ta), Keye Luke (Wang Chi Yang), Arabella Hong (Helen Chao), Pat Suzuki (Linda Low).
Producer: Goddard Lieberson.
Reissue producers: Didier C. Deutsch, Darcy M. Proper
Recorded at Columbia 30th Street Studio, New York, New York on December 7, 1958. Includes liner notes by Didier C. Deutsch.
All tracks have been digitally remastered.

Music composed by Elmer Bernstein. Lyrics written by Carolyn Leigh. Principal cast includes: Anthony Roberts, Marilyn Mason, Brenda Vaccaro, Tommy Tune, Barnard Hughes, Hiram Sherman, James Congdon, Joe McGrath, Bob Gorman, Patti Davis, Alexander Orfaly, Jennifer Darling, Rex Everhart. Recorded at Webster Hall, New York, New York on December 17, 1967. Includes liner notes by Peter Marks. Digitally remastered by Harold Hagopian & Hsi-ling Chang (1999, BMG Studios).

Music and Lyrics by Charles Strouse.
Principal Cast: Lenny Wolpe (Mayor); Douglas Bernstein, Marion J. Caffey, Keith Curran.
Producers: Michael Zager, Charles Strouse.
Reissue producer: Ken Bloom.
Recorded at Blank Tape Studios, New York, New York. Includes liner notes by Peter Filichia.
All tracks have been digitally remastered.

Recorded in 1964. Includes liner notes by Stephen Cole.
All tracks have been digitally remastered.

Classical Music

"The Rothschilds" was written by Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick and opened on Broadway in 1970.

Principal cast: Maxene Andrews (Pauline DePaul); Patty Andrews (Paulette DePaul); Douglass Watson (Norwin Spokesman); Jim Weston (Make-Out); MacIntyre Dixon (Father); Bette Henritze (Mother); William Griffis (Rankin); Marilu Henner (Donna); Phyllis Sommerville (Wilma); Ann Reinking (Maggie); Janie Sell (Mitzi); John Travolta (Misfit); Treat Williams (Utah); John Mineo (Lucky); William Newman (Sarge); Samuel E. Wright (Sam); April Shawhan (June); John Driver (Bill).
The Big Band: Joseph Klein (leader); Ruben Rivera (cello); Carmen Mastren (guitar/banjo); Jimmy Sedlar, Bob Millikan, Jay Brower, Charles Sullivan (trumpets); Harry DiVito, Merv Gold, Jack Gale, Vincent Forchetti, (trombones); Bernie Berger, Harvey Estrin, Michael Schuster, Sol Schlinger (saxophones); Mike Cavin (clarinet); Clay Fullum (piano, accordion); Hal Schaefer (piano); Doc Soloman (bass, Teddy Sommer (drums); Warren Hard (percussion).
Recorded at CBS 30th Street Studio, New York, March 31, 1974.
All songs composed by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman.

MUSICAL - CHARLES STROUSE AND LEE ADAMS Performed by Charles Strouse and Lee Adams. ALL AMERICAN - Live Backers Audition.

Directed by Arne Arnbom. Starring David Tudor, Carolyn Brown, Barbara Lloyd.

The word 'luminous' might have been coined simply to describe Barbara Cook - a LEGEND OF BROADWAY whose golden voice, eloquent soul and irresistible charm have set the standard in making Broadway song an exuberant art form.

Considered one of Broadway’s most important composers in the post 1950s era, and still active today nearing 90 years old, John Kander is responsible for the music to such acclaimed shows as Cabaret, Chicago, and Kiss of the Spider Woman to name just a few. This extraordinary 2-CD set spans 55 years of his compositions along with rare demos included featuring Kander with his longtime lyricist Fred Ebb and new recordings of some of his classic songs. Including a deluxe lavishly illustrated 64 page booklet with extensive notes and comments on the songs by Kander. A milestone in musical theatre music releases

POP VOCAL Slyvia McNair; Hal Cazalet; Steven Blier, piano. THE LAND WHERE THE GOOD SONGS GO - THE LYRICS OF P.G. WOODHOUSETracks: Oh, Gee! Oh, Joy!; Tell Me All Your Troubles, Cutie; You'r The Top; Rolled Into One; Sir Galahad; The Land Where The GoodSongs Go; If I Ever Lost You; Go Little Boat; You Can't Make Love By Wireless; Bill; You Never Knew About Me; Shimmy With Me; Non-Stop Dancing; My Castle In The Air; The Enchanted Train; Anything Goes.

"•Opus Two – violinist William Terwillger and pianist Andrew Cooperstock – has been hailed for its unanimity of style and spirit, exemplary balance and close rapport” as well as its commitment to expanding the violin-piano duo repertoire. • This Gershwin Project, in collaboration with soprano Ashley Brown, features a number of world-premiere recordings."

THE FULL MONTEVERDI • Robert Hollingworth, cond; I Fagiolini • NAXOS 2.110224 (DVD: 60:00 Text and Translation)


MONTEVERDI Madrigals, Book 4


Monteverdi’s Fourth Book of Madrigals, published in 1603, is a setting of 19 poems by Arlotti, Gotti, Guarini, Moro, Rinuccini, Tasso, and Anonymous. Their only unity is the theme of separation, or the parting of lovers. While that is not much of a plot, an additional difficulty in creating a scenario out of these texts is the madrigal form, five voices singing polyphony. Moreover, due to the varying tessitura from one to the next, a set of madrigals usually uses a group of six voices. John La Bouchardière, an opera director who knew this Fourth Book since childhood (doubtless from the Raymond Leppard cassette), realized that six couples sitting in a restaurant might be sharing, separately but simultaneously, the experience of parting. He matched the six singers of I Fagiolini to six actors and created a theatrical presentation that was given almost 90 times from 2004 to 2006. The set for the performance venue was a restaurant, the six couples sitting at tables among the audience. A minimal performance provided only six tables, one couple at each. When it came time to film the performance, the soundtrack was first recorded, then the drama was videotaped. For video, the scene of the performance was not restricted to the restaurant. Flashbacks to scenes in the homes of the six couples and other locations were inserted. The singing partners among the six couples, assisted by the paired actors carrying out the thankless task of responding to the drama silently, actually sang along to the playback for verisimilitude. What began in the restaurant with six couples dissolving their relationships concluded strikingly back at the same location with six lonely individuals sitting at separate scattered tables.


Never mind the title, which is no more than a clever play on a recent stage musical, though it does suggest stripping bare the emotions as madrigals do. This is a remarkable way of realizing a book of madrigals that was never conceived to be heard this way. It’s highly successful, whether you watch with the English subtitles on or off. Not a word is spoken, for apart from ambient sound there is nothing to be heard but the singing, interrupted only by the briefest of pauses. The emotional expression on all the faces is convincing, an aspect that could easily have spoiled the effect. Repeated viewing will certainly reveal overlooked details, as the viewer becomes familiar with the dozen personalities that pop up in succession with some rapidity. Remember, six amorous breakups are unfolding simultaneously, the emotions and meanings of the madrigals applying equally to all of them. The production was made jointly for five national television systems and Naxos, and it has been broadcast since last autumn. This is a remarkably original conception, carried out with astonishing success. I have never realized the meaning of a set of madrigals as clearly as I did here.


FANFARE: J. F. Weber
-------------------

Picture format: NTSC 16:9
Sound format: Dolby Digital Stereo / Surround / DTS Surround
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: English
Running time: 60 mins

Through the eye of French director Laurent Pelly this expression of Berlioz's undying admiration for the Bard - his adaptation of Much Ado about Nothing as an opera comique - becomes ''an elegant treatise on love and music designed in shades of grey with 50's-era costumes'' (Sunday Express). Housed by designer Barbara de Limburg in a series of oversized boxes, it's ''terribly chic, terribly pretty'' (The Spectator). Soaring over the ''warmly graceful playing of the London Philharmonic'', Paul Appleby sings ''attractively'' as Benedict and Stephanie d'Oustrac ''makes a marvellously wiry and fiery Beatrice, singing with charm and acting with gusto'' (The Telegraph).

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REVIEW:

Antonello Manacorda is a natural-sounding guide to the stage events shown here. His cast sound and work together naturally. Stéphanie D’Oustrac (an expressive face to enjoy in close-up) and Paul Appleby (carefully less histrionic in duet) spar well. The Ursule of Katarina Bradic´ is quite a find, more comfortable with notes and character than Sophie Karthäuser’s Héro, accurate but less ethereal than ideal. The men do well, although Lionel Lhote’s effortful Somarone the music-master, falling everywhere on a sliding table in Act 2, will not be to everyone’s comic taste—but that may be Berlioz’s fault in falling (for once) for the cliché that audiences have always seemed to find onstage musical jokes especially hysterical.

Despite some reservations, this only official DVD to date of such an important opera, well recorded and filmed in a slick modern production, deserves a place in the catalogue and on your shelves.

– Gramophone

SONDHEIM Sweeney Todd • Ulf Schirmer, cond; Mark Stone ( Sweeney Todd ); Jane Henschel ( Mrs. Lovett ); Gregg Baker ( Anthony Hope ); Rebecca Bottone ( Johanna ); Jonathan Best ( Judge Turpin ); Adrian Dwyer ( Beadle Bamford ); Diana DiMarzio ( Beggar Woman ); Ronald Samm ( Pirelli ); Pascal Charbonneau ( Tobias ); Bavarian R Ch; Munich R O • BR 900316 (2 CDs: 123:59) Live: Munich 5/6/2012


Composer-librettist Stephen Sondheim maintains that Sweeney Todd is not an opera, and so does the annotator for the present release. Nevertheless, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (its full title), since it premiered on Broadway in 1979, has been revived by several opera companies, including the New York City Opera, the Houston Grand Opera, and the Chicago Lyric Opera. Why? Musically, it is highly sophisticated, and operatic voices are not wasted on it. Furthermore, with its larger-than-life dramatic themes, including mistaken identity, lust, vengeance, obsession, madness, and murder, how more operatic could a theatrical work be?


There have been several recordings of this work, including the unforgettable original cast recording on RCA with Len Cariou in the title role, and Angela Lansbury in the role of Mrs. Lovett, his cheerfully amoral partner in crime. That version will never be eclipsed, but each new recording adds a welcome new perspective. The one reviewed here, recorded in the Munich’s Prinzregententheater, is the most operatic yet, even more than the one with the New York Philharmonic which features singers such as Heidi Grant Murphy (Johanna), John Aler (Beadle Bamford), and Paul Plishka (Judge Turpin). This time around, we have legitimate operatic singers in all of the main roles; only DiMarzio appears not to be a “classical” musician per se. In other words, here we have an ensemble of acting singers, as opposed to singing actors such as Cariou, Lansbury, George Hearn, Patti LuPone, and Michael Cerveris, who all have made major contributions to this opera’s . . . I mean, musical’s performance history.


It turns out fairly well. I was immediately pulled in by Ulf Schirmer’s conducting, which is tense, taut, and stylish. In fact, you might not hear a better conducted Sweeney Todd anywhere. The Bavarian Radio Choir also adds much to the success of this performance. Although their diction is less clear than that of English-speaking ensembles who have recorded this music, their dramatic involvement is high, as is their musicianship.


This is an actual performance. Apparently the time, funds, or energy to correct the inevitable live lapses was unavailable, and thus we have oddities such as Henschel at one point rechristening Beadle Bamford as “Beadle Rumford.” A few memory lapses are covered professionally, but will leave those who know the show well asking, “What did (s)he just sing?” These issues are minor, though.


I’m more concerned about two other points. One is the lack of (black, very black) humor in this production. For example, I can’t understand why, in “A Little Priest,” the wonderfully uncomfortable pun about a meat pie made from a general (“With or without his privates?”) has been removed. This is a grim show, still there is much about it that can be very funny, and allowing it to be so makes the gore and horror even more effective. As the original Mrs. Lovett, Angela Lansbury was charming and endearing; she might bake you into a meat pie, but you couldn’t stay angry with her for long! Henschel can’t inspire that kind of affection, and she makes it clear that her murderous instincts were present even before opportunity allowed them to come out. The other thing that concerns me is the way in which some of the big dramatic moments are almost thrown away. Todd’s aborted murder of Judge Turpin (interrupted by Anthony’s untimely arrival) should be a big moment, but it isn’t. Similarly, soon after, in Todd’s “Epiphany,” we should feel his mind crack and his murderous rage insanely swell to encompass all of mankind, not just the Judge, but Mark Stone is not that fine an actor, the direction is too hurried, and one of the show’s most Brechtian moments doesn’t come off. The last segment of the show, with its string of murders and its Grand Guignol effects, moves forward jerkily, sometimes grinding to a halt, and sometimes not pausing long enough to make its points. On Broadway, Harold Prince would have fixed these miscalculations, but, at least as I am hearing them on CD, they were not addressed in Munich’s Prinzregententheater.


All of the singing itself is very fine. One curiosity is a baritone Anthony; Gregg Baker’s voice is darker than Mark Stone’s. Anthony is supposed to be an inexperienced sailor, newly arrived in London, and the early scenes between him and Todd feel strange, because the voice relationships have been inverted from the original production. I really missed hearing a tenor’s voice soar into “Johanna,” one of Sondheim’s most rapturous love songs. Also, the multinational cast presents a variety of accents. In 1979, Cariou had almost no accent at all, while Lansbury made the most of hers. Here, we have the reverse: a cockney Todd in Baker, and a Mrs. Lovett of no particular nationality or region in Henschel. Someday, there will be a production of this work in which everyone gets on the same page with dialects.


So, if you want an operatic Sweeney Todd , or a fresh look at it, this new recording will satisfy. It has many enjoyable moments, but a few unfortunate ones as well. If you do not know this show at all, however, the Broadway cast recording—still in print, thank goodness!—is the only place to begin. This show is one of the masterpieces of American musical theater, and absolutely needs to be heard.


FANFARE: Raymond Tuttle

Classical Music

Marty Haugen’s musical, That You May Have Life, proclaims the Gospel of John through song. An eclectic array of musical styles sets the stage for each chapter, bringing the emotion of the characters to life. Musical selections range from beautiful melodic ballads to lush choral harmonies. Haugen incorporates narration, sung dialogue, and song in a way that conveys more than just the biblical texts. This musical includes such familiar narratives as the woman at the well, the raising of Lazarus, and the washing of the feet at the Last Supper. The depth and breadth of each tale blooms forth, enticing us into a personal relationship with these familiar biblical figures. That You May Have Life sings these stories “that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah and that through believing you may have life in his name.”

Principal cast includes: Jim Walton, Ann Morrison, Lonny Price, Sally Klein, Jason Alexander, Terry Finn, Liz Callaway, Daisy Prince, Tonya Pinkins.
Additional personnel includes: Paul Gemignani (conductor).
Composed by Stephen Sondheim.

Bel Air Classiques presents Petipa's extravaganza ''The Pharaoh's Daughter'', in a stunning production by Pierre Lacotte. Recreating the spectacular sumptuousness of the original, the ballet tells the tale of a young Englishman who dreams he elopes with a Pharaoh's daugher. Despite a desert storm, a lion hunt and an attempted suicide, the couple finally wins the Pharaoh's blessing to their marriage. From its creation in 1862, Petipa's grandiose ballet was a sensational success; its stupendous costumes and striking scenery, its exotica, romanticism and drama appealing to audiences as much as the virtuoso choreography. The Bolshoi Ballet and the two soloists Svetlana Zakharova and Serguei Filin are at their best in spite of the difficulty of Pierre Lacotte's choreography.