Ferde Grofé's arrangements for Paul Whiteman's band constitute a treasure-trove of early- to mid-20th century Americana. Usually we only get to hear his epoch-making original arrangement of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, but here we are treated to the rarely-performed Second Rhapsody, as well as Grofé's own Grand Canyon and Mississippi Suites. The results are both delightful and ear-opening. In this arrangement the Second Rhapsody sounds remarkably light and sassy, and notably less "cinematic" than in its original form (the music began life as a film score). Oddly enough, the small ensemble's smoother dynamic profile gives the piece greater coherence and flow, aided by Lincoln Mayorga's elegant playing and Steven Richman's idiomatic and alert conducting.


The same observations hold true for the Grofé works. If the final "Cloudburst" from the Grand Canyon Suite isn't as obviously overwhelming as it can be when played by a full orchestra, movements such as "On the Trail" gain in terms of sheer charm. Throwing the balance of tone onto the winds and brass rather than the strings produces a far less heavy texture overall, and the music sounds somehow more modern, less dated. It's also great to have the chance to hear the Mississippi Suite once again. It's really a fine piece of descriptive work and it deserves to be popular.


As a bonus, we have Gallodoro's Serenade, a characterful bon-bon offered by Mayorga and the piece's dedicatee, Al Gallodoro himself, something of a living legend. He played clarinet and saxophone in Whiteman's band for several decades and is still going strong well into his 90s. Bridge's sonics are typically terrific, while Richman and the Harmonie Ensemble deserve lots of credit for digging up these arrangements and bringing them back to life with such gusto and polish. More titles are promised, and we can only look forward to them with enthusiasm. [11/8/2006]
--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

SHOSTAKOVICH New Babylon. A Year Is like a Lifetime • Frank Strobel, cond; Kai Adomeit (pn); Southwest German RO Kaiserslautern • HÄNSSLER 93.188 (2 CDs: 135.49)


New Babylon is not one of Shostakovich’s standard, propagandistic, political potboilers. This is the music of the enfant terrible of Soviet music. Composed in 1928 immediately following his satirical opera, The Nose , the score for the silent film New Babylon reflects Shostakovich’s lifelong fascination with the cinema and his experience as a piano accompanist for silent films. The film’s directors, Grigori Kosintev and Leonid Trauberg, were considered to be avant-garde, if that were possible at the time. New Babylon deals with the rebellion of the Paris commune in 1870–71, with a superimposed tragic love story between a working girl and a bourgeois soldier. Shostakovich had recently completed his brilliant First Symphony, and the directors immediately wanted him to score the film. Shostakovich’s music is laced with dissonance, acerbic wit, bitonality, and flirts with atonality. The composer utilizes numerous fragmentary quotations from sources as disparate as Offenbach, Tchaikovsky, and the Marseillaise.


An abridged Melodiya version conducted by Gennady Rozhdestvensky was released in 1976 by CBS, and a more-or-less complete recording has been recently available on Capriccio conducted by James Judd. That was the most definitive recording, at least in terms of completeness, prior to the appearance of this one. The program notes state that this complete reconstructed version—including all the music cut from the film—is based on the composer’s personal manuscripts stored in the Glinka museum in Moscow and the orchestral parts and piano score printed for the premiere. The manuscript was edited by the D-S-C-H publishing house and cross-referenced to a proof copy from the composer’s personal estate. In addition, Frank Strobel synchronized the newly edited music with the 1929 premiere version of the film. All of this is not surprising when you consider Strobel’s incredible reconstruction of Prokofiev’s complete score for Alexander Nevsky ( Fanfare 28:3).


There appears to be no reason to doubt the authenticity of this version, but it really doesn’t matter because Strobel’s performance and Hänssler’s sound are superior to the previous Capriccio recording. Capriccio’s soft edged, more distantly miked sound does not serve the music as well as the more brash, brassy, and closely miked sonics on this recording. There is over an hour and a half of outrageous, funky, melodic but gently dissonant music reminiscent of The Nose and his impish ballets. Strobel’s conducting, aided by incisive and dynamic sound, is flamboyant as befits the music. Shostakovich’s bad-boy early style is an acquired taste for some, but if you have any interest in this aspect of Shostakovich’s art, New Babylon will be a treasure.


A Year Is like a Lifetime is an entirely different story, but is not without interest. It begins with three cues featuring straightforward, bombastic statements of the ubiquitous Marseillaise (as opposed to the fragmentary references and variations in New Babylon ), urgent low strings, strident brass, and slashing snare drums. But at the end of the “Intermezzo” a strange thing happens. The music subsides into pianissimo quivering strings and tolling bells from the sound world of the 11th Symphony. Then a 15-minute subdued, atmospheric, and introspective “Farewell” featuring a plaintive French horn solo is clearly the emotional and musical heart of the score. It is followed by a delicious, tongue-in-cheek waltz and a brief reappearance of some faceless battle music. The suite concludes with the horn solo and music of the “Farewell,” now more upbeat in a surprisingly understated way, with wind and brass chords embellished by lush, rising and falling string configurations building to a climax that Golden Age film music fans will love. Thus the noisy bombast offers contrast rather than dominating a score that remains cinematic, but is predominantly subdued and eminently likeable in the style of The Song of the Forests oratorio.


This album is a clear winner in every conceivable way. The music, performance, and sound make it required listening for any adventurous listener interested in the music of Shostakovich beyond the symphonies and string quartets.


FANFARE: Arthur Lintgen

Bartok: Wooden Prince Suite (The) / Concerto for Orchestra

Songs, Drones, and Refrains of Death is one of the richest of George Crumb's brilliant and moving explorations of the poetry of Lorca, musically inspired by such pieces as Mussorgsky's Songs and Dances of Death and Mahler's Kindertotenlieder. Like so much of Crumb's mature music, it uses avant-garde performance techniques and unusual instruments (percussion especially) plus electronics to create a primal, elemental atmosphere. In this sense, the music stands in the tradition of Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring or Bartók's The Miraculous Mandarin, both works where an exceptionally refined and sophisticated technique is used unflinchingly to depict visions of mystery, evoke primitive rituals, and explore the ancient myths of our collective unconscious. In this respect, no poet is better suited to musical setting than Lorca, and no composer has ever responded to him more evocatively than Crumb.


The performance here under Fuat Kent is a very good one. Most Crumb recordings tend to be successful because either the players know what they are doing, or they don't, and faking it is not an option; the mere process of delivering what Crumb's highly detailed scores demand virtually guarantees a high level of achievement. But there are differences between this recording and Bridge's benchmark version with baritone Sanford Sylvan and Speculum Musicae (part of its complete Crumb edition). These primarily concern tempo: this newcomer is about four minutes slower overall, and this is particularly noticeable in the long final movement, Death-Drone III. Although Crumb's music relies heavily on sheer atmosphere, and absolute speed as such is rarely an issue, I marginally prefer the Bridge recording for its inevitably greater density of incident. The atmosphere basically takes care of itself. Still, this performance is very well played. The exciting bits (Song of the Rider and Cadenza appassionata for two drummers) are thrilling, and baritone Nicholas Isherwood certainly is as persuasive in his declamation of the text as Sylvan.


Quest--a remarkable sextet that includes important parts for guitar, harp, soprano saxophone, keyboards, and percussion (including a harmonica or concertina at the end)--was written for guitarist David Starobin. It's a watershed in Crumb's output for several reasons, not least of which is the fact that it permitted Crumb to work his way out of a serious writer's block in the 1990s. The piece also makes frequent reference to the song "Amazing Grace", thus anticipating the epic cycle of folk-song settings (four collections to date) that loom large in the composer's recent work.


Once again, this work is available on Bridge performed by its dedicatees, superbly, but this newcomer is hardly less accomplished or less favorably recorded, and in the final analysis if you want these two pieces (they are coupled differently on Bridge) then you can purchase this disc with complete confidence in its faithfulness to the composer's unique vision. It's good to see Crumb's music being performed and recorded regularly again. Without question, he is a great composer with a very special voice.
--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

Carlo Maria Giulini's large-scaled, warm-hearted Haydn is typical for its era--the live concert was recorded in 1979, before period-performance style had become prominent. The conductor's usual emphatic style--rich sonorities, exact rhythms, and insistence of full note values--makes for particularly robust-sounding Haydn, thankfully free of the heaviness that marred many of Giulini's latter-year recordings. The faster movements go at a moderately quick pace, while the Andante flows smoothly, even by today's standards. The "surprise" chord generates the intended shock effect, thanks to Giulini's scrupulous observance of dynamics, well captured by the spacious recording. The Bavarian Radio Symphony musicians play as if they're really enjoying themselves--which is not all that difficult in this delightful symphony.

Giulini's ear for orchestral color illuminates the delicate textures of Ravel's Mother Goose Suite--an interesting choice for a concert pairing. However, the low-level recording places the listener in a center balcony seat, requiring a significant volume boost for the woodwinds to register properly. No such problem affects the double basses, which resonate throughout the hall. Nor the strings, which sing sweetly in the graduated build-up to the magical conclusion, a passage that Giulini takes with exceptional deliberateness (reminding of his contemporaneous Mahler Ninth recording). In sum, while not the first choice for either work, the disc nonetheless should prove a treat for Giulini fans.

--Victor Carr Jr, ClassicsToday.com

This re-release by Naxos brings together music from two of Prokofiev’s best known film scores on one disk. The cantata came from the original film score for Eisenstein’s film, Alexander Nevsky, and the suite from the Alexander Feinzimmer film Lieutenant Kijé.

The first thing to note is that this CD was in fact recorded live, although it’s not clear until the applause at the end that this is the case. There is no audience noise and the recording is very sharp, clear and close to the orchestra.

Alexander Nevsky opens with “Russia under the Mongolian Yoke”, with harsh open octaves setting the scene perfectly. This is followed by a song about Alexander Nevsky recalling an earlier battle. The chorus in this recording are the Latvian State Choir and, although I am not a Russian speaker myself, the words seem to be very clear and the choral singing excellent. The song about Nevsky is beautifully interpreted with a clear contrast being drawn between the more reflective parts of the song at the start and finish and the recollection of battle in the central section. The third section suggesting the appearance of Teutonic knights in the city of Pskov, with brass and percussion blaring out a bleak warning, is performed in this recording with enough gusto to bring a chill to one’s spine!

I had a chance to hear the recording of this work by Fritz Reiner and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and it is interesting to note that Reiner adopts a much slower tempo than Casadesus for the second and third parts, which seems to me to work better, even if there is the slightly off-putting factor of Reiner’s recording including the text in English.

The fourth section (Arise, ye Russian People), allows a distinct contrast to be drawn between the different emotions; the call to arms which opens this song, along with the more reflective middle section. Again these contrasts are handled excellently in this recording.

It is the fifth section (The Battle on the Ice), which is the longest. In fact this section took up a large part of the film. The performance is clean and precise. Perhaps it is this precision that takes away a little from the tension that one would expect in a battle scene; for me there is still enough there to get the adrenaline going. Special mention should go to the percussion section, who are able to drive the music on without overpowering it, no mean feat with such music. On balance, I would have to say that the Reiner/Chicago SO recording narrowly wins in terms of building tension, but there’s not a lot in it.

The sixth section (The Field of Death) is where we hear the mezzo-soprano, Ewa Podles, lamenting the lives lost in battle. Her wonderful deep voice carries these sentiments perfectly, assisted by some sensitive playing.

The final section (Alexander’s Entry into Pskov) ends the work on a triumphant note, aided by another excellent piece of chorus singing; they are able to hold their own to the very end and are not overpowered by the orchestra.

Overall, this is an excellent performance of Prokofiev’s colourful and exciting score, which I would recommend highly.

-- Euan Bayliss, MusicWeb International

Includes work(s) by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. Ensemble: Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra. Conductor: Kees Bakels.

Includes work(s) by Alfred Schnittke. Ensemble: Tapiola Sinfonietta. Conductor: Ralf Gothóni. Soloists: Ralf Gothóni, Tero Latvala, Ulf Wallin.

This disc fits into the semi-authentic category – that is, the instrument is from the past and is therefore authentic of its own period, but it is not specifically linked to the repertoire on the disc. The piano is Leach's own Stodhart square piano of 1823.

Leach's performances are characterised by clarity of thought and texture; they are intimate, measured, satisfying. Their neat musicality lacks the last grain of virtuosity. Many Scarlatti ‘favourites', such as Kk380 and Kk491 are to be found on the disc.

Some intellectual sleight of hand is usually necessary to link a period instrument contingently available with what is recorded, since the connection is by definition post hoc . In this case, one could easily argue that Scarlatti wrote demonstrably virtuosic, display pieces, and wrote them in a context of domestic performance (it is well known that his keyboard sonatas were principally written for Princess Maria Barbara of Portugal , who became Queen of Spain). The square piano clearly gives a suitably intimate sound, and its light action suits the rapidity of the notes. Great pianists of the past, such as Horowitz, who frequently programmed Scarlatti, themselves favoured light pianos.

As the booklet explains, Leach was originally a performer on modern pianos, but found period instruments suited her approach. The Athene label, which is now part of the Divine Art stable, was a way of setting down her distinctive and thoughtful interpretations, among which her Haydn and John Field are especially well regarded.

Good modern recorded sound, and Divine Art's usual crisp presentation. We also learn from the notes that Joanna Leach's long and distinguished career has been seriously threatened by illness; her determination to continue recording is all the more to be commended.

-- Ying Chang, Classical Pointers

PAVLOVA Monolog. Old New York Nostalgia. Sulamith: Ballet Suite ? Yarolsav Kransnikov (vn); Rossen Milanov, cond; Moscow PO ? NAXOS 8.557674 (73:57)


Much of this program falls into the category of light classical, or pops music. Alla Pavlova, Moscow born and trained, now a resident of New York City, writes well-constructed material that is drenched in nostalgia, and yet each work on this program has a distinct profile. Monolog is an homage to the composer?s music-loving father, an amateur violinist. It is sweet and short, in just the right proportions; the brevity of the piece keeps the sentimentality of the music from welling over into sappiness. Old New York Nostalgia is also, at first blush, too simple and relentlessly tonal to have any lasting impact, and yet there is an integrity and good old-fashioned craft at the core of this writing that draws the listener in, and even encourages repeat hearings. Her memories tend to be sweet with little bitterness; even the ?Lullaby for the Twins,? a 9/11 tribute, oddly skirts any intense emotions.


The centerpiece of the program is Sulamith , a ballet suite based on the Russian writer Alexandre Krupin?s tale of a love affair between King Solomon and one of his servants, the eponymous young waif. The oriental flavor of the music brings to mind Rimsky and Scheherazade , less the soaring sumptuousness. That?s the rub; Pavlova, in all of the music on this CD, seems determined to keep her emotional burners on low, even as she flirts with coy melodrama. Her symphonies, which have also been recorded by Naxos, may tell a different story. Certainly, her voice is intriguing enough to merit an audition.


Rossen Milanov is a young conductor of Bulgarian origin and seems to be one of the more promising talents of his generation. He has become highly admired in Philadelphia, as the associate conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra, where he has consistently displayed a sensitive ear for color and dramatic shape, which are appropriate attributes in this music. The Moscow ensemble is gently sonorous, warmly sympathetic to the music.


FANFARE: Peter Burwasser

REVIEW:

As I have noted in connection with other collections of contemporary music, the problem with programs such as this is that they tend to consist of hits and misses--that is, works of unequal quality or composed in styles that won't appeal similarly to most listeners. This release is an exception, in that each piece is well worth getting to know, and even if you don't like everything, chances are you'll come away satisfied. Barbara Kolb's All in Good Time is a rhythmic study almost devoid of melody, but it's harmonically interesting and brilliantly scored. It makes a fun, bubbly curtain-raiser. Aaron Jay Kernis' Sarabande in Memoriam began life as a string quartet and was enlarged for string orchestra as yet another post-9/11 tribute. Happily, however, the work predates that tragic day by several years, and so neither Kernis' sincerity nor his taste are in question. It's a beautiful work given a grave, intense performance under Carlos Kalmar's sympathetic baton.

Michael Hersch's Ashes of Memory is my favorite work on the disc. It has memorable tunes (its two movements are related), really solid symphonic scoring with impressive, powerful climaxes that at the same time never sound as if they're straining for effect, and an impressively dark, quietly gripping conclusion. The title doesn't exactly help in any meaningful way, but hey, who cares? It's terrific stuff. John Corigliano's Midsummer Fanfare, composed for the Grant Park Orchestra in 2004, presents all of its composer's sonic brilliance and skillful use of avant-garde effects in a way that beguiles rather than offends the ear. Once again, the performance is first rate, no doubt helped by the players' familiarity with the work. So many modern music collections are simply sight-reading exercises, and it shows.

Many listeners will consider John Harbison's Partita for Orchestra to be the program's major work. I have to confess, I don't especially like Harbison's music. I find its dissonant, quasi-tonal style monochromatic, like a study in grey. He often reminds me of an updated William Schuman: a composer with a strong sense of gesture but lacking in thematic memorability. That said, I enjoyed the Partita much more than previous experience suggested I would. It has great variety among its movements, some genuinely memorable ideas, and that rarest of qualities, a discernible sense of humor. I think it's one of the finest things Harbison has done, though only here does the orchestra, especially the strings in the rhythmically tricky final Courante-Gigue, sound a touch stressed. In sum, this collection (as so often with this label) works very well as a diverse program very well-suited to continuous listening, and the engineering is about as good as it gets. Terrific! [7/25/2006]

--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

Classical Music

Classical Music

Arnold Schoenberg's a cappella folksong settings are among his least-appreciated--and most easily listenable--works, excellent examples of his pre-12-tone harmonic style, with masterfully crafted polyphonic textures. For one thing, they're rarely heard, and although not especially a breeze to sing, they're effectively and soundly written--Schein uns, du liebe Sonne being the standout among the six works. The Op. 10 string quartet performed here is its original 1908 version rather than the one for string orchestra that the composer produced in 1929. It's craggy and difficult--but also offers a multitude of lyrical and beautiful moments that the Fred Sherry String Quartet fully exploits. Soprano Jennifer Welch-Babidge adds poignancy, sensitivity, and knowing style to the solos in the final two movements, using her thoughtful inflection to capture the music's colorful, moody impressionistic elements.


The 1934 Suite in G for String Orchestra is another gem--solidly tonal yet occasionally stretching the boundaries of traditional harmony, rich in melodic ideas and exciting rhythmic touches. Its five movements demand the highest level of technique from the players, even though it originally was written for developing student musicians. Again, this outstanding piece is rarely played or recorded, but this first-rate performance by Robert Craft's Twentieth Century Classics Ensemble is all you will need. The same goes for the rest of the program--and Naxos' engineering, from London's Abbey Road studios (choral works) and New York's premiere chamber-music recording venue, the American Academy of Arts and Letters, matches the disc's fine musical values. Informative notes by Craft, along with texts and translations for the vocal works, crown this much-needed addition to the Schoenberg catalog. [1/5/2006]
--David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com

Morton Gould was a very capable composer whose light music has overshadowed his more serious compositions. Despite the potential for humor latent in the title, the Jekyll and Hyde Variations are sober indeed, but they also live up to their billing in that they consist of an alternating, increasingly schizoid series of transformations of the quirky opening theme. Although hardly as melodically ingratiating as Fall River Legend, the piece is consistently absorbing and wonderfully well-scored, and really beautifully played by the Nashville Symphony under the late Kenneth Schermerhorn. Fall River Legend, here presented in its complete version (including the opening accusation against Lizzie Borden read by James F. Neal), is one of Gould's most popular pieces, and the full-length work is well worth hearing. The more familiar numbers from the suite, such as Cotillion and Church Social, have as much infectious lilt in this performance as in any other version, and Gould sustains the high quality of the musical invention throughout the ballet's 50-plus minutes. Warm, rich recorded sound completes an extremely appealing release that American music fans will not want to miss.

--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com