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Naxos

Varèse: Arcana, Octandre, Etc / Lyndon-gee, Castets, Et Al

$19.99 Only 2 left

Details

Composer
VARESE
Artist
Christopher, Maryse, Lyndon-Gee, Castets
Format
CD
Label
Naxos
Released
Aug 01, 2001
Catalog #
8554820
UPC
636943482025

About

Play this recording of Arcana next to the recent Boulez/Chicago on DG, and you're in for a big surprise. No, the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra isn't Chicago, and Naxos has paid for a recording of great immediacy and clarity of texture by accepting a very dry, attenuated bass. But musically, Christopher Lyndon-Gee blows Boulez away. His Arcana is only about a minute faster, but sounds about ten times more exciting, more dynamic, more rhythmically emphatic, more committed. Here is a conductor who understands what the composer means when he writes a triple forte, and he charts an unerring course from the pounding opening right through the mysterious closing bars.


The other works offer still more evidence of extraordinarily communicative musicianship. Tangy wind sonorities give a playful edge to Octandre's acerbic central movement, and a vocal, human warmth to its outer ones. Déserts, unlike the Boulez version, includes its taped interpolations and explores a stunning sonic landscape in which Lyndon-Gee's contributions sustain the work's atmosphere far more impressively. Intégrales reveals greater sensitivity to dynamic gradation than Boulez permits his Chicago players, and Offrandes' mysterious, sensual landscapes still mesmerize despite the dryness of the sound and the close-up focus on the otherwise fine soprano, Maryse Castets. In short, this wholly unexpected surprise of a disc will delight Varèse fans. You won't find Chailly's level of polish and sophistication, but Lyndon-Gee's interpretations offer a wholly winning freshness of their own. Now dare we hope for Amériques from these same forces?
--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

Tracklist 14 tracks

  1. 1 Arcana 18:36
    Track
    1
    Title
    Arcana
    Duration
    18:36
    Composer
    Edgard Varèse
    Ensemble
    Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christopher Lyndon-Gee
  2. 2 I. Assez lent 02:31
    Track
    2
    Title
    I. Assez lent
    Duration
    02:31
    Composer
    Edgard Varèse
    Ensemble
    Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christopher Lyndon-Gee
  3. 3 II. Tres vif et nerveaux 01:55
    Track
    3
    Title
    II. Tres vif et nerveaux
    Duration
    01:55
    Composer
    Edgard Varèse
    Ensemble
    Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christopher Lyndon-Gee
  4. 4 III. Grave 02:20
    Track
    4
    Title
    III. Grave
    Duration
    02:20
    Composer
    Edgard Varèse
    Ensemble
    Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christopher Lyndon-Gee
  5. 5 Chanson de La-haut 03:29
    Track
    5
    Title
    Chanson de La-haut
    Duration
    03:29
    Composer
    Edgard Varèse
    Performer
    Maryse Castets
    Ensemble
    Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christopher Lyndon-Gee
  6. 6 La Croix du Sud 03:44
    Track
    6
    Title
    La Croix du Sud
    Duration
    03:44
    Composer
    Edgard Varèse
    Performer
    Maryse Castets
    Ensemble
    Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christopher Lyndon-Gee
  7. 7 Integrales 11:00
    Track
    7
    Title
    Integrales
    Duration
    11:00
    Composer
    Edgard Varèse
    Ensemble
    Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christopher Lyndon-Gee
  8. 8 Deserts 03:57
    Track
    8
    Title
    Deserts
    Duration
    03:57
    Composer
    Edgard Varèse
    Ensemble
    Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christopher Lyndon-Gee
  9. 9 First Electronic Interpolation (beginning) 02:58
    Track
    9
    Title
    First Electronic Interpolation (beginning)
    Duration
    02:58
    Composer
    Edgard Varèse
    Ensemble
    Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christopher Lyndon-Gee
  10. 10 First Electronic Interpolation (conclusion) 08:18
    Track
    10
    Title
    First Electronic Interpolation (conclusion)
    Duration
    08:18
    Composer
    Edgard Varèse
    Ensemble
    Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christopher Lyndon-Gee
  11. 11 Second Electronic Interpolation (beginning) 02:11
    Track
    11
    Title
    Second Electronic Interpolation (beginning)
    Duration
    02:11
    Composer
    Edgard Varèse
    Ensemble
    Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christopher Lyndon-Gee
  12. 12 Second Electronic Interpolation (conclusion) 01:54
    Track
    12
    Title
    Second Electronic Interpolation (conclusion)
    Duration
    01:54
    Composer
    Edgard Varèse
    Ensemble
    Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christopher Lyndon-Gee
  13. 13 Third Electronic Interpolation (beginning) 04:12
    Track
    13
    Title
    Third Electronic Interpolation (beginning)
    Duration
    04:12
    Composer
    Edgard Varèse
    Ensemble
    Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christopher Lyndon-Gee
  14. 14 Third Electronic Interpolation (conclusion) 03:41
    Track
    14
    Title
    Third Electronic Interpolation (conclusion)
    Duration
    03:41
    Composer
    Edgard Varèse
    Ensemble
    Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
    Conductor
    Christopher Lyndon-Gee