It's no longer possible to shrug off the early-music
movement as a playground for specialists and narrow-minded
dogmatics. Nor would you want to when encountering the
thrilling reconstructions of major musical events from the
Renaissance and baroque that Paul McCreesh has made. A flood
of U.S. releases this year further demonstrates the
conductor's versatility and creative vision.
REVIEW
Mozart: "Cosi fan tutte"
Veronique Gens, Werner Gura, et al.; Concerto Koln; Rene
Jacobs, conductor
REVIEW
Mozart's "Cosi fan tutte" is one of the ultimate schools for
lovers: tender, cynical, and ultimately quite deeply
moving. This period-instrument version is one of the most
exciting Mozart opera recordings in some time. Rene Jacobs
offers a magnificently bracing interpretation that's like
restoring a fresco to its original colors. It also includes
a bonus interactive CD-ROM crowded with information about
the opera and its cultural background.
Messiaen: "Saint Francois d'Assise"
Jose Van Dam, Dawn Upshaw, et al.; Halle Orchestra, Arnold
Schoenberg Choir; Kent Nagano, conductor
REVIEW
Olivier Messiaen lavished loving detail on his opera
"St. Francis of Assisi," an enormous meditation on suffering
and redemption that ignited this maverick composer's unique
imagination. The four-hour opera includes the famous legend
of preaching to the birds, in which the composer's own
long-term fascination with the dazzling variety of bird
music takes center stage. This spectacular live recording
from Salzburg reveals the work as a profoundly moving
summation of a lifetime of discovery.
Schnittke: "Psalms of Repentance"
REVIEW
Of German-Jewish heritage, Alfred Schnittke converted to
Catholicism yet drew upon Russian Orthodox musical
traditions among many others for his collage-like
"polystylism." This characteristic permeates Schnittke's
religious works--such as the great "Choir Concerto"--but
reaches a new level of severe, awe-inspiring beauty in the a
cappella "Psalms of Repentance," given here in a superb
recording by the Swedish Radio Choir. Schnittke weaves the
old with the new in these ethereal settings of 12 psalms
from Old Russian writings.
Popular vocal selections from the list of customer favorites include:
"Voice of an Angel"
Charlotte Church
REVIEW
Charlotte Church's phenomenal debut album put her in the
"Guinness Book of Records" as the youngest artist ever to
have an album at No. 1 on the classical charts.
"Paul Hillier: Home to Thanksgiving"
Paul Hillier, Theatre of Voices, His Majesties' Clerkes
REVIEW
The impulse to take stock and give thanks has inspired music
from the earliest times, and it lies behind some of our most
enduring musical traditions. Gathered together from
contemporary troubadour Paul Hillier's visionary recordings,
"Home to Thanksgiving" presents a fascinating collection of
centuries of thanksgiving.
"Handel: Acis and Galatea"
Sophie Daneman, Paul Agnew, Alan Ewing, Patricia Petibon, et
al.; Les Arts Florissants; William Christie, conductor
REVIEW
The combination of William Christie and French baroque opera
always promises a remarkable result, but his account of
Handel's delightful English-language pastorale is equally
felicitous. Gathered together here is a splendid cast of
early-music specialists who add vitality to the composer's
mythical cast of nymph, shepherd, and villainous giant.
"Strauss Heroines"
Renee Fleming, Barbara Bonney, Susan Graham; Vienna
Philharmonic; Christoph Eschenbach, conductor
REVIEW
Richard Strauss has few peers when it comes to writing for
the female voice, and his operas present a field day for
serious artists interested in using vocal beauty to portray
richly human characters. Renee Fleming's sensuous
intelligence makes her a natural for the "Strauss Heroines"
she brings to life on her new disc, on which she is joined
by Barbara Bonney and Susan Graham.
"Szymanowski: King Roger"
Thomas Hampson, Elzbieta Szmytka, et al.; City of Birmingham
Symphony Orchestra; Simon Rattle, conductor
REVIEW
If you haven't yet discovered the music of Karol
Szymanowski, you're in for a special treat with the
shimmering, fragile beauty of this neglected masterpiece
from 1926. Characterized by thinly veiled homoeroticism,
lush impressionist scoring, and a philosophical take on the
story line of Euripides's "Bacchae," "King Roger" is more
oratorio than opera but a work of unique vision in Simon
Rattle's cogent interpretation.
"Monteverdi, Vivaldi, et al.: Lamenti"
Anne Sofie von Otter, Jakob Lindberg, et al.; Musica Antiqua
Koln; Reinhard Goebel, conductor
REVIEW
Possibly the best solo recording Anne Sofie von Otter has
yet made, "Lamenti" is a breathtaking compendium of mostly
17th-century music centered around the topics of grief and
loss. Otter's sensuous mezzo conveys both the virtuosity and
pensive dignity of these pieces by Monteverdi, Vivaldi,
Purcell, and others, while the period-instrument Musica
Antiqua Koln plays with exquisite grace.
"Verismo"
Jose Cura; Philharmonia Orchestra; Jose Cura, conductor
REVIEW
The controversial tenor from Argentina has come out with an
exceptionally impressive solo album of selections by
Leoncavallo, Mascagni, Puccini, and other great "verismo"
composers, just in time for his much-anticipated
Metropolitan Opera debut in "Cavalleria Rusticana." Cura
also appears in a dual role as conductor, and this
off-the-beaten track program is replete with enjoyable
singing.
"Legends of St. Nicholas"
Anonymous 4
REVIEW
As one of the most popular saints throughout the Middle
Ages, St. Nicholas--better known today as Santa
Claus--inspired supremely beautiful musical settings of
poems recounting his miracles. Anonymous 4 bring these
"Legends of St. Nicholas" to life with their customary brand
of ethereal vocals in their latest release. If you're tired
of the same old holiday fare, this is for you.
"Stravinsky: The Rake's Progress"
Anne Sofie von Otter, Ian Bostridge, Bryn Terfel, et al.; London
Symphony Orchestra, Monteverdi Choir; John Eliot Gardiner, conductor
REVIEW
"The Rake's Progress," which was inspired by Hogarth's
morality-tale paintings of 18th-century decadence, features
a particularly brilliant libretto by poet W.H. Auden and
some of its composer's most engaging music. John Eliot
Gardiner proves himself the stylistic polymath yet again in
a recording on which everything comes together, including a
splendid cast featuring Anne Sofie von Otter, Deborah York,
Ian Bostridge, and Bryn Terfel (as the chilling Nick
Shadow).
"Messiaen: Saint Francois d'Assise"
Jose Van Dam, Dawn Upshaw, et al. Halle Orchestra, Arnold
Schoenberg Choir; Kent Nagano,conductor
REVIEW
Visionary French composer Olivier Messiaen spent nearly a
decade writing "Saint Francis of Assisi," his four-hour
opera inspired by the saint's life--including the famous
legend of preaching to the birds, in which the composer's
own long-term fascination with the dazzling variety of bird
music takes center stage. This spectacular live recording
from Salzburg reveals the work as a profoundly moving
summation of a lifetime of discovery.
"Denyce Graves: Voce di Donna"
Denyce Graves, mezzo-soprano
REVIEW
Mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves has captured attention for her
sumptous, velvety sound and for emotionally charged
portrayals of Carmen and Dalila. This young artist's latest
solo disc features, in addition to arias from those two
operas, a nice selection ranging from Purcell to Barber.
"Puccini: La Boheme"
Roberto Alagna, Angela Gheorghiu, et al.; Riccardo Chailly,
conductor
REVIEW
Even though Puccini's most beloved opera has fared
marvelously well on disc, it requires--like all
masterpieces--a significant new interpretation for each
generation. Going back to Puccini's own observations on
performance and using a new critical edition of the score,
Riccardo Chailly here performs a work of deeply moving
restoration. And the chemistry conveyed by the young, vital
cast makes this nothing less than a "Boheme" for our time.
BOOKS ABOUT MUSIC
"Opera: Desire, Disease, Death"
by Linda Hutcheon and Michael Hutcheon
REVIEW
About suffering they were never wrong, the old masters, but
it's the sociological implications of illness as metaphor
that are the focus of this fascinating work of cultural
study. Many of the famous operas link disease to emphatic
sexuality, with moral overtones that still have resonance in
contemporary culture.
"Schoenberg and His World"
ed. by Walter Frisch
REVIEW
From a distance, the controversies that once swirled around
Arnold Schoenberg's radical new music can now be seen as
distractions from the true nature of that music, not to
mention of the man. This collection of essays and
documentary sources considers the many facets of
Schoenberg's talents as a teacher, painter, and Jewish
thinker.
"Text and Act"
by Richard Taruskin
REVIEW
This seminal series of essays on the significance of the
historically informed performance movement has surely caused
some readers to hurl the book against a wall. But for all
his reputation as a flamethrower, Taruskin covers the issues
for anyone interested in what the early-music revival is all
about and the intense passions it arouses.
Renee Fleming "Strauss Heroines"
REVIEW
G. Puccini "Boheme-Comp Opera"
REVIEW
Jose Cura "Verismo"
REVIEW
"In Paradisum: Faure and Durufle Requiems"
Cecilia Bartoli, Bryn Terfel, Santa Cecilia Academy of Rome
Orchestra; Myung-Whun Chung, conductor
REVIEW
The ritual farewell that is part of the Requiem's function
has inspired its share of intensely dramatic scores, but
Faure's composition stands out for its gentleness and
peaceful vision. Chung understands that its pleasures are
more subtle than lapel-grabbing in this sensitive account of
the later, fully orchestrated version. It features stunning
solo contributions by Cecilia Bartoli and Bryn Terfel. The
coupling of the increasingly popular and beloved Durufle
Requiem makes a perfect complement.
"Monteverdi: Il Ritorno D'Ulisse in Patria"
Gloria Banditelli, Maria Cristina Kiehr, et al.; Ensemble
Elyma; Gabriel Garrido, conductor
REVIEW
Opera pioneer Claudio Monteverdi's late work "The Return of
Ulysses" is a very different creature from the more famous
"L'Orfeo," presenting instead of the lavish pageantry of the
latter a real drama particularly involving in its scope.
Gabriel Garrido brings this drama to life with an unusually
colorful and imaginative continuo ensemble (including
several lutes, regal, harp, and lyra-viol) and an expert
cast of idiomatic Monteverdian singers.
"Haydn: Lord Nelson Mass"
Collegium Musicum; Richard Hickox, conductor
REVIEW
Haydn's Masses represent a significant and musically potent
aspect of his legacy. In Richard Hickox's ongoing series of
recordings for Chandos, these works can be heard with both
period-instrument precision and dramatic verve. The "Lord
Nelson Mass" in particular comes through as the supremely
beautiful statement that it is, filled with tension, richly
contrapuntal webbings, and ultimate affirmation.
"The Face on the Barroom Floor"
David Holloway, Leanne McGiffin, Barry McCauley; Central
City Opera
REVIEW
Henry Mollicone's pocket opera (lasting about 25 minutes)
about an explosive love triangle in the Old West, "The Face
on the Barroom Floor," has shown remarkable staying power
since it was commissioned in 1978. With its tight economy of
scale and vivid story line, "Face" has become a frequently
performed contemporary American opera. This is the work's
first reissue on CD, and the cast of three singers, together
with an ensemble of piano, cello, and flute, packs a
memorable dramatic punch.
"Vivaldi et al.: Music from the Venetian Ospedali"
San Francisco Girls Chorus; Sharon Paul, conductor
REVIEW
Here's a stunning account of one of Vivaldi's greatest works
(the Gloria), one that sounds fresh by going back to the
practices of the composer's time. The Gloria, like the
other works on this disc, was written for all-girl choruses
in Venetian orphanages. The San Francisco Girls Chorus
sings with a marvelous variety of expression and power:
soon it becomes clear how the apparent limitations of such
ensembles actually provided a source of inspiration to
Vivaldi and other contemporaries.
"Jean Catoire and Hildegard
of Bingen: Extasia"
Harrogate Ladies' College
Chapel Choir; Harvey Brough,
conductor
REVIEW
This fascinating fusion of
ancient and modern involves a
"collaboration" between
12th-century abbess Hildegard of
Bingen and contemporary
French composer Jean Catoire. Here
music of austere, simple
beauty reaches across the centuries
and finds an echo in the
searching spirituality of today's
"holy minimalists."
"Mozart: Die Entfuhrung aus
dem Serail"
Ian Bostridge, Christine
Schafer, et al.; Les Arts
Florissants; William
Christie, conductor
REVIEW
Here's another exciting
period-instrument performance of the
operatic Mozart, all
beautifully held together by the tasteful
and intelligent William
Christie. In spite of the silly
complications--and
then-fashionable Turkish setting--of the
libretto, Mozart displays his
astonishing facility for
characterizing nuance and
situation through music. If you
know only Mozart's later
collaborations with Da Ponte, this
is an opera you will likely
find delightfully seductive.
"Ockeghem: Missa Cuiusvis
Toni"
The Clerks' Group; Edward
Wickham, conductor
REVIEW
Ockeghem was known as the
great Renaissance puzzlemaster
thanks to such works as the
Missa Cuiusvis Toni ("Mass in
whatever mode you'd like").
Depending on where the singers
start, the score can be sung
in different modes. In their
account, the Gramophone
Award-winning Clerks' Group--which
has made a specialty of
Ockeghem--gives us a vigorous and
lively portrait of this
highly influential master.
"Glass: the CIVIL warS"
Denyce Graves, Giuseppe
Sabbatini, et al.; American
Composers Orchestra; Dennis
Russell Davies, conductor
REVIEW
Since his epoch-making
"Einstein on the Beach," Philip Glass
has redefined the face of
contemporary musical theater. This
premier recording of his
contribution to Robert Wilson's
gargantuan, multinational
"the CIVIL warS" project shows
Glass at his most "operatic."
The score features lush
voices and full-bodied
orchestrations that bind together a
number of haunting images
inspired by Matthew Brady's
photographs of the American
Civil War.