Starter Packs

Complete your collection with these curated titles, grouped at a special discount.

Shop Now
Naxos

American Classics - Harris: Symphonies 3 & 4 "Folksong Symphony" / Alsop, Colorado Symphony Orchestra

$19.99

Details

Composer
HARRIS
Artist
Marin Alsop, Colorado So
Format
CD
Label
Naxos
Released
Jul 25, 2006
Catalog #
8559227
UPC
636943922729

About

I have to confess that I was a bit concerned at the opening of this new performance of Roy Harris' Third Symphony, where Marin Alsop and the otherwise very good Colorado Symphony fail to match the urgency and passion of Bernstein's benchmark Sony recording. Once the piece gets moving, however, the music quickly builds to an explosive account of the big fugue, with brilliant contributions from the brass, while the tragic conclusion with its pounding timpani pedal is perhaps the most intense yet captured on disc. Certainly no one has made the final bars sound more convincing or inevitable. Just a touch more drive at the very beginning and this might have been the new reference recording for the work, but as it is my reservations are minuscule and it's definitely a "keeper".


Having a modern recording on hand of the delightful "Folk Song Symphony" certainly adds to the disc's attractions. There's only one other that enjoyed general circulation, Golschmann's on Vanguard, and heaven only knows if it's still available. In any case, this one is definitely superior sonically, though I marginally prefer the earlier version's quicker tempos in Western Cowboy and Negro Fantasy (the second and sixth movements, respectively). Alsop still has the edge, though, in terms of both singing and playing, and her quicker sections pack an even bigger punch than the Vanguard release. This is a really attractive work that ought to be better known. If the composer in question had been English/Irish (and some of the tunes actually are: The Girl I Left Behind Me, a.k.a. The Wandering Laborer, also appears in Hamilton Harty's "Irish" Symphony), we'd no doubt have a plethora of modern recordings from which to choose. Never mind: this one will do very nicely.
--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

Tracklist 8 tracks

  1. 1 Symphony No. 3 17:59
    Track
    1
    Title
    Symphony No. 3
    Duration
    17:59
    Composer
    Roy Harris
  2. 2 I. The Girl I Left Behind Me 03:51
    Track
    2
    Title
    I. The Girl I Left Behind Me
    Duration
    03:51
    Composer
    Roy Harris
  3. 3 II. Western Cowboy 10:25
    Track
    3
    Title
    II. Western Cowboy
    Duration
    10:25
    Composer
    Roy Harris
  4. 4 III. Interlude: Dance Tunes for Strings and Percussion 03:04
    Track
    4
    Title
    III. Interlude: Dance Tunes for Strings and Percussion
    Duration
    03:04
    Composer
    Roy Harris
  5. 5 IV. Mountaineer Love Song 07:44
    Track
    5
    Title
    IV. Mountaineer Love Song
    Duration
    07:44
    Composer
    Roy Harris
  6. 6 V. Interlude: Dance Tunes for Full Orchestra 03:06
    Track
    6
    Title
    V. Interlude: Dance Tunes for Full Orchestra
    Duration
    03:06
    Composer
    Roy Harris
  7. 7 VI. Negro Fantasy 09:20
    Track
    7
    Title
    VI. Negro Fantasy
    Duration
    09:20
    Composer
    Roy Harris
    Ensemble
    Colorado Symphony Orchestra Chorus, Colorado Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Marin Alsop
  8. 8 VII. Johnny Comes Marching Home 03:17
    Track
    8
    Title
    VII. Johnny Comes Marching Home
    Duration
    03:17
    Composer
    Roy Harris