Great New Theatre From A Great New Composer
597827
I really liked this CD - for a lot of reasons. First, I really love to hear new music from talented emerging composers. I often scan amazon for new musicals that I've never heard of before, and that fit my personal tastes - which tend to be a bit more melancholy and melodic than maybe some others might prefer. When I came across this show, it seemed to fit the bill. Beautiful piano melodies, wonderful lyrical content, and a story with a lot of heart. The samples sounded like they were attached to songs that would be right up my alley - and I can say, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that I was not disappointed. As I listened, I was reminded a little bit of The Last Five Years, but I also felt the newness and originality of Adding Machine (which is a little known musical that I HIGHLY RECOMMEND). The story is a bit choppy, but it features a lot of introspection, and a fair amount of comedic story-telling that will take you away from the soliloquy just long enough to keep you interested. Timothy Huang does an excellent job on both the music and lyrics and it will quickly become clear that this is a composer that we should be hearing a lot more from - if everything goes well.

So, all in all, I am really happy with my purchase. But I do have a few minor complaints, which will certainly seem like nitpicking, but, instead, I hope they are taken as constructive criticism for a very talented and ambitious production team. The first minor criticism has to do with the minimalistic instrumentation. The score features only piano and trumpet - and the latter is only featured very sparingly. Now, for some scores, like The Last Five Years, this approach seems perfectly natural. But, for this one, it somehow feels unfinished. This may just be a matter of personal taste, and it is certainly not my place to question the motivations of the composer. But I somehow can't help but feel like this soundtrack was just a first pass at a much larger vision. My second comment is along sort of the same lines, and has to do with the very limited cast of one. Again, I feel like I am missing a lot of the story because we are only presented with one character. It just feels a little lazy to me - like it would have been too much effort to hire an entire cast. Again, this is only my opinion. Lastly, I was rather unimpressed with the "pitchiness" of the performance. There were some parts, in fact, that were rather hard for me to listen to. Now, don't get me wrong, it's clear that Shon Wiley can sing his heart out. But the recording, once again, feels a little lazy - like certain parts that should have been re-recorded, simply were not. This is never more evident than on the last track, which is, in fact, much better performed by the composer on the bonus track (which I absolutely love, by the way - almost as much as I love the fact that it was included).

Overall, it may sound like I am being harsh in these last comments, but I really am not. Nitpicky, maybe, but not harsh - because, the fact is, I really love this CD, I really admire this composer, and I really want this show to succeed. And, it's because of all this that I want it to be the best that it absolutely can be.

So, with that, I say: Best of luck to this very inspiring new composer and to a very heartfelt and enjoyable new show!
1459195
Just bought this disc used. Josefina Scaglione's voice as Maria is a bit uneven -- thin,  light, but when she is on, it's lovely (as in "One Hand, One Heart"  and in "Quintet." No, she's no opera singer; nor should she be. She's a bit girlish -- but Maria is supposed to be -- what? 16-17. Matt Cavenaugh's Tony I had more problems with. Yes, a bit urgent/anxious. But even in the soundtrack, Tony (Richard Beymer) is a bit of a nervous boy. So I got used to that, if not the nasal quality. Yes, Carol Lawrence and Larry Kert own the lead roles -- no question about it.
  That said,  I think the orchestra and the orchestration are first rate. Clear and distinct; dissonant, where they should be. I could hear every single reed instrument, basses, cellos, violins. I'd go as far as to say it sounded "Coplandesque." Thought the tempo was just right as well. Fairly blown away by the sound. Simply the best sounding "West Side Story" of all. The conductor respects the original Broadway production while making it his own.
  Also, loved that the Sharks speak Spanish and that Maria sings "I Feel Pretty" and "A Boy Like That," completely in that language. I don't speak or understand Spanish, but its use lends an authenticity that was surprising and delightful. We all know the English words anyway, and -- as in opera -- it doesn't particularly matter.
  The prologue is crisp, arousing, on the money. I rarely like redos of these great American musicals -- although "Carousel" is worthy, but I love this "New Broadway Cast Recording," especially the orchestra. I think Leonard Bernstein would love this production.
2596277
The sets are minimal in this production but that sometimes a plus because he really focuses on the singers. And in Cinzia Forte and Saimir Pirgu we have two leads who actually have voice to burn, a rarity nowadays. They sing at a comfortable level was good residence without anyone feeling pushed. And the sound quality is worth mentioning. The 5.1 recording is outstanding, it's one of the best I've heard. I got a real sense of the stage and the orchestra - it was like having good orchestra seats, without noise from thw audience. The sound for the orchestra was clear and well balanced from the deepest bass right up to the violins.
Violetta's friend Gaston was wearing a jacket we used to call "Uranium Green" and she is dressed in a red gown. The back up on the extras was a little bit on the off side but frankly they played very minor role here. Alfredo was in tones of grey. In my notes I kept referring to the sound this is so will recorded!
Unlike many recordings these days Violeta and Alfredo actually interact with each other and sing to each other. They take center stage, and at the end when Alfredo leaves after "Addio", the conductor starts with a presto and shifts to prestissimo to clear out the guests who have been at the side. Forte goes into "Ah, fors'e lui" and continues to the end alone, in a tour de force manner.
She is excellent in Act Two as well, but the scene with Germont Pere is a bit forced, as he is stiff. As soon as Alfredo returns she is able to be vulnerable again. The casino scene is very well done, starting rather fast, and gradually slowing to the end, reflecting more and more the tragedy unfolding. Alfredo winds up face down, flat on the floor, looking broken.
This production makes use of body language in a quietly effective manner that others miss.
I'm impressed with this conductor, Paolo Arrivabeni, his long arc of vision and his control of the orchestra.
The camera is intelligently used and spends all the time necessary to capture the atmosphere of each shot.
There are many large productions that would benefit from the intelligence used in presenting this one.
The great 5.1 sound doesn't hurt either.
The Third Act is fairly straightforward. No over-dramatization, no Zombie make-up, Forte lets the music speak.
I hope you'll take the chance to see this production and the 5.1 sound is really great!
4692161
I purchased this Ruddigore with some trepidation, having been disappointed before by Sargent's rather dull Mikado and Pinafore (but not his Trial by Jury, which is excellent).  How surprised I was when I found this performance to be far better than my D'Oyly Carte (1962) recording!  Owen Brannigan makes a truly fine Sir Despard (terrifying in voice, together with a cracking whip for atmosphere)and Grand Opera's Joseph Rouleau's true bass makes for a very exciting (and scary) version of "When the Night Wind Howls"--even better, in my opinion, than the wonderful Donald Adams.  A bit of mugging/"hamming" by George Baker (Robin Oakapple) and the chorus adds welcome "atmosphere" to the performance.  Excerpts from Sullivan's incidental music to "The Tempest" and "The Merchant of Venice" are nice extras reminding me that there is more of Sullivan to buy.  Simply put, a very pleasant surprise.
4787594
What a pleasant surprise this production is.  Not many recordings of this opera are available, but this one brings "Adriana Lecouvreur" back into repertory in London's opera history.  Beautiful production, with innovative sets and beautiful costumes, and singing that fills the house.  The 'Music' by Celia matches anything Puccini ever wrote.  Orchestrations and the orchestra's playing is beautiful, lush, melodic, and warming for the tragedy as it unfolds.  E N J O Y !
2192319
Great composers might suggest or recall other composers works, but not "compare" themselves to anyone, not 'sound like' anyone else.

There was just one moment in this opera where K. took a chord progression from P.  We could hear it coming, it came and it went.  In three full acts of great tunes, great sounds, great singing ... this is no crime at all.

I guess we all started with Die Tote Stadt, then  perhaps went to Violanta and Heliane.  If so, then Die Kathrin is our reward, our desert.  Not morose and sort-of emotionally monotone like Stadt, and not as demandingly tonally ambiguous as Heliane, Kathrin is simply lovely.  To me, for those of you who might know Korngold's 3rd string quartet, which placed the composer's favorite movie music altogher in a simple expressive vehicle, you might feel the same here.  While all the music is completely new, the clarity, freshness, directness of it all is simply delightful.

Thank you, thank you to cpo, the artists and the support staff.

If - IF - these years are bad for new classical music, well then they are GREAT for older music -- great quality, great selection, low cost ... is this a golden age of recorded clasdical music?
2734238
It's safe to say that no Russian conductor from the past made an impression with Debussy, even though the Paris-Moscow axis had a huge influence on modern art (in ballet, painting, theater).  Gergiev would seem to be making a stealthy approach to Debussy's two most famous orchestral works, but in fact he has widely performed both the Afternoon of a Faun and La mer. One of this great conductor's strengths is in the shaping of quiet, nuanced music, and his version of Faun is the most delicate I've ever heard, superbly balanced on the verge of tremulousness. The opening flute solo approaches from the shadows, and although the eroticism of the faun doesn't appear, Debussy's magical orchestration is given full play - delicious. There is more warmth than in Boulez's two accounts, so as famous as they are, I would call this new one my favorite among modern recordings.

It's now customary to play La mer as an orchestral showpiece in the same league as Stravinsky's Rite of Spring and the Bartok Concerto for Orchestra. I've heard James Levine lead the BSO in a thrilling reading that put even Munch in the shade. Gergiev takes a different tack, focusing, as in Faun, on the gossamer orchestration of the atmospheric sections, to the point that some listeners may miss the expected drama of the sea in turmoil.  He's not fussy or cautious (charges that could be leveled against Michael Tilson Thomas and Esa-Pekka Salonen in this music), but we're some distance from Karajan's famous account with its blazing virtuosity.  Limited to fewer big surges, the LSO plays with such variety and color that I heard La mer with fresh ears, transported into the heart of the orchestra through intimacy. As a balancing act between drama and impressionism, I found this an engrossing reading and remarkable proof of Gergiev's rapport with his orchestra, five years into their partnership. A haunting experience.

For the general audience, Jeux has been a problem child among Debussy's major orchestral works, being diffuse, unmelodic, and harmonically elusive. The Nijinsky ballet for which it was written centered (improbably) on a game of tennis, but don't expect competitive thrills or playfulness - Jeux is almost an abstract study in textures. The only previous  recording that fully captured my attention was by Lorin Maazel (on RCA/BMG), displaying his full command of orchestral technique. My usual experience is that Debussy's final orchestral work lasts a long 18 minutes. Gergiev's approach is intriguing in that he accents the score as if it were the Firebird, bringing out sharp colors and eerie atmosphere. Among the variable recordings engineered in the Barbican, this one is detailed and clear, so one hears the fine sewing that Debussy knits together.  There is more drama, more rise and fall than in Haitink's widely admired, and excellent version. I must admit that without quite getting Jeux, I stayed the course with pleasure. Gergiev's evident enthusiasm carried me along.

For some reason I haven't read any raves for this CD, perhaps because Gergiev is taken granted as the workaholic among conductors - no one else produces recordings at this rate nowadays. But no one who loves Debussy should consider this just another La mer and Afternoon of a Faun.  There is much more to listen to and be fascinated by.
1127534
I feel compelled to write a review for this product. Partially because there have only been two so far, and because Classic Today's reviewers gave it an average of 7 out of 10. I think this production deserves much much more attention though. While this is the first real time that I have heard Brahms' symphonies and a couple select other compositions, I was just amazed at what great music this was, and how seemingly well Haitink did at conducting it. I especially found a great performance in the serenade. It was a perfect addition to the performance of the symphonies, which are also top notch. Now it really is one of my favorite classical music sets, and I highly recommend it as a wonderful place to find Brahms' best known creations as a starting point in his music. It is also much cheaper at emusic, which is where I found it and other great classical music, such as Vanska's performances of Beethoven's symphonies, which is another highly recommended set by myself, as well as many publications. But you will not be disappointed by this performance, I guarantee it!
2193466
The very fine concept and well-executed 'English String Miniatures' adds great depth to the appreciation of that particular British sound dealing with string orchestras.  This Volume Four is most appealing because it offers works unfamiliar to most of us. David Lloyd-Jones conducts the fine Northern Sinfonia in performances that are assured, finely detailed and capture that special mood that suffuses each of these charming works.

One surprise to this listener was the work of Peter Hope whose 'Momentum Suite' opens this concert. The work incorporates tunes and dance melodies in the first two movements and rollicks in the third movement to an ever increasing rapid tarantella-like spin.  Frank Bridge, one of the hallowed greats of English composers, is well represented with his 'Valse-Intermezzo' and 'Scherzo Phantastick' (sic), the latter in an arrangement from his string quartet in E minor.

Other less well-known but very fine composers - Adam Carse ('Sketches'), Ernest Tomlinson ('Graceful Dance') and Paul Lewis ('English Suite') provide diversions in the midportion of the recording and the final works include Holst's 'A Moorside Suite' and Delius' beautiful 'Aquarelles' (from his 'songs to be sung on a summer night').

David Lloyd-Jones has a particular affinity for this music and he draws lush string playing from the Northern Sinfonia.  It makes an interesting diversion to begin listening to this four-volume set of English String Miniatures with Volume Four and creates a commitment to buy the other three volumes!  Grady Harp, July 06
2363184
Critics have been very harsh on this new opera. This has happened before; composers have been misunderstood or not-understood at all by critics, while the public loved them. Seems too early to dismiss "The First Emperor". I have seen it many times and every time I discover something new. The DVD is much better than the live broadcast I saw in the theater, the image is much brighter.

The opera is full of symbols. I am sure I don't even understand them all yet. Although the obvious theme is about the anthem, seems that the suffering of the builders of the Great Wall is a much more profound one. The wall is built to protect against the barbarians, while behaving in a barbaric way. Is this opera a critic to Mao (and/or others)?

The music is different, interesting and enjoyable. The singers are first quality and the Chinese performers very interesting. This production is the first one. May be it is not perfect, or it could have been done differently. I will leave that judgment for the future, when new performances are produced. Seems to me that a film production could be interesting, (like Chaudet's film of Stravinsky's "Le Rossignol").

I strongly recommend this DVD to those interested in the new world, not only of Opera, but the global village and China's cultural integration with the world in particular.
626082
When it comes to 'revisions' or 'completions' of masterworks of music left 'incomplete' by composers it is usually up for grabs if the audience can tell the original work from the 'contemporary' additions.  Such is not the case with this revision of Mozart's Mass in C by Louis Langr&eacute;e.  If anything this sounds like perfect, pure Mozart.  And that is an astounding achievement.

Of course much of the credit in this performance of the Revised Mass in C must be attributed to the conducting of Louis Langr&eacute;e at the helm of Le Concert D'Astr&eacute;e (the creation of Emmanuelle Ham) and wonderfully airborne Le Choeur d'Astr&eacute;e (David Comtet, director) and one of the finest quartet of soloists ever assembled for this work. The sopranos are Natalie Dessay and V&eacute;ronique Gens (both offering soaringly beautiful musical lines), the superb tenor Topi Lehtipuu, and one of the current 'Barihunks', bass baritone Luca Pisaroni.  It would be difficult to imagine four voices that blend better and complement the work than these four talented artists. The organ aspect of the score is well delivered by Yves Castagnet.  This is a fresh, airy, near operatic work of great sacred presence.

In addition to this splendid Mass the recoding adds Mozart's Masonic Funeral Music in C minor, a perfect way to fill out the CD with a piece that complements the Mass.  The recording benefits from being made in the Notre-Dame du Liban Church, Paris in January and February of 2006.  For this listener this is one of the most satisfying performances of Mozart's Mass in C on record.  Highly recommended.  Grady Harp, January 12
4489014
Estonian composer Erkki-Sven T&uuml;&uuml;r (b. 1959) started his musical career in a progressive rock group, but the music on this disk is quite far removed from that style. Indeed, it is difficult to categorize T&uuml;&uuml;r's music. It is clearly contemporary, but yet has elements of many musical eras as structural elements, but yet without at all sounding like a mere concatenation of styles. This is music that is boldly original, striking in sonority, and although it may seem off-putting at first hearing, it is very, very compelling, pulling the listener into a new universe of sound. The first few measures of the first cut, Architectonics VI, announce that this is music not quite like anything else you have heard before. The five selections on this CD vary in musical style and setting, ranging from orchestral to chamber to choral settings, but all are filled with vision, imagination, and wonder. How exciting and wonderful to it is to herald a major new composer!
3650242
Of all the recordings by Gergiev I own, I feel more than ready to consider this among his more pleasing efforts. Gergiev brings a new perspective to this well-worn Tchaiokvsy chestnut, such that it is given a more robust performance than typically given during the myriad of Christmas ballet productions. From the lightness of the overture to the weighty grandeur of the finale, Gergiev ably fleshes out the contrasting moods in the score. Adopting generally brisk speeds, he adopts continuity yet still churns out a magical performance for one to revel in the many felicities of the score. The dramatic mood is suitably conveyed in the transformation scene, and the many famous dances in the Suite are given crisp, robust readings. The two Pas de deux scenes and the various Waltzes convey a stately grandeur, especially during the Waltz of the Flowers. Yet there is also a delicacy in the Sugarplum Fairy's Dance, the Arabian Dance and the Dance of the Reed Pipes. Throughout Gergiev elicits a robust sound from the Kirov Orchestra, with a fine balance between the sections, except perhaps for the wobbly Russian brass. The Philips recording is superb, one of their best recent recordings, sumptuous yet clean and well-detailed. An added bonus is the fact that this Nutcracker only takes up one CD rather than two. Highly highly recommended, especially since this fresh and robust rendition seems destined to put other Nutcrackers to shame.

P.S. This "concert" Nutcracker is different from the other balletic Nutcrackers available, but this is a fine, handsome recording on its own terms.
4584134
They played some excerpts from this on NPR a few weeks ago.  I've been a fan of Philip Glass since his Koyaanisqatsi film in 1982, and I had some other of his music over the years.  A couple of years ago I saw this opera Galileo Galilei in a beautiful staging by the Cincinnati Opera.  I am particularly taken by the minimalist, mathematically (to me) constructed works.  I thought the Violin Concerto was in this genre and have not been disappointed.  The work is excellent as is the production.
1752449
I happened upon this work through a 20-second bite on one of the cable television channels one evening.  It caught my eyes and ears, as I've been really excited by the various musical themes and performances of Quebec's Cirque du Soleil for now close to ten years.  It took me awhile to track it down, as there were no leads to its origin within the body of this news report, but I finally found it here on Amazon.com.
This work based on Victor Hugo's story of the Hunchback of Notre Dame, as we might know it in the United States, has been produced as a truly modern opera with great drama and exacting performance in a serious work of music.  I found the music to be very exciting with its combination of contemporary vocals, orchestral sound, and storyline.
The efforts of Luc Plamondon in writing the lyrics and Richard Cocciante in creating and scoring the music are tremendous.  The empassioned performances by its artistes, Helene Segara, Daniel Lavoie, Bruno Pelletier, Garou, Patrick Fiori, Luck Mervil, and Julie Zenatti are spectacular.  I would love to see this in DVD format as it would add greatly to all of our experiences of the production.
1689755
As a playwright, I make it a point to look for and read new works that seem to be moving in a bolder and newer direction for the world of theatre.
This play was one I picked up on a whim, and one that I found to be everything I could have hoped for in a new work from a writer I had never heard of before.
The play is thought provoking, daring, insightful and refreshing all at once. As I read, I envisioned how to produce it on stage, seeing clearly the many possibilities for this piece.
If you are interested in works that stretch the boundaries that limit modern theatre, check out this play. You won't be disappointed.
2502610
Here's a new way to hear the fearsome, relentless Shostakovich Fourth, thanks to an inventive interpretation. Since he auspiciously began a Shostakovich symphony cycle for Naxos, Vasily Petrenko, now 37, has risen considerably in the world to be recognized, as he fully deserves to be, among the young luminaries of the podium. His bargain cycle parallels a much more high profile, high powered one by Valery Gergiev and the Mariinsky Orch. (it is divided between older recordings on Philips and newer ones on the Mariinsky Theater house label).  It's impossible to detract from Gergiev's authority in this music, and for me his Fourth Sym. set a new standard among modern recordings, even though it has been followed by a spectacular one from Salonen and the L.A. Phil., on DG.

Petrenko would seem to be at a disadvantage with a lesser - although very good - orchestra of non-Russians, but he has successfully erased any trace of English reticence from their playing, and his musicians adore him. What enables him to go head to head with Gergiev and Salonen is the kind of inventiveness that reveals the Fourth in a new light.  You hear this in the stinging first bars, which are then not followed, as usual, by brutal Machine Age clanging. All but x-raying the score, Petrenko phrases the first movement's episodes (this is the most unpredictably episodic of all the Shostakovich symphonies, defying easy consistency) with quiet attentiveness. He doesn't bluster or exaggerate. This is testimony to the fact that he has assimilated the score and understands it from the inside.

As a result, I was more engrossed in a score that's so grueling - its assaultive quality has been minimized, and we are ushered into the symphony's quirky world more intimately than in more ambitious readings, if ambition means big effects and visceral impact.  Someone might carp that I've put a positive spin on the absence here of dazzling virtuosity and seismic jolts, which are certainly more evident from Gergiev and Salonen, not to mention the stupendous Chicago Sym. under Haitink on the orchestra's house label. But in return, Petrenko is so alive and vibrant, which clears the dreary pall that hangs over Shostakovich's tragic/ironic idiom. Here we are reminded of the optimistic, wildly exuberant talent of the composer's youthful, experimental years.

In the episodes where the pace gets manic - the other side of Shostakovich's depressive manner - Petrenko approaches hysteria (listen 15 min. into the first movement), showing us the difference between heady excitement and merely pounding on our heads.  Naxos's sound comes into its own then,  with etched high frequencies and total transparency.  The sound stage is also quite wide, the miking close up but not at the conductor's elbow. The highest tribute I can pay to this new recording is that in the face of so much abrasive, tormented, enigmatic music, Petrenko continually made me want to hear more.