Search the Music Review Database

Classical Music

Elgar: Symphony No 3 (completed Anthony Payne)
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Davis
MMC DO-53 Reviewed by JMH
When Elgar died in 1934, he left over 130 pages of sketches intended for a third symphony. The existence of these sketches has long been known; however, the generally expressed view was that they were far too fragmentary to be worked into a convincing whole. Also, hadn't Elgar just a few months before his death, implored close friend Billy Reed to burn the sketches so that no one could 'tinker' with them? The full fascinating story of how composer Anthony Payne came to elaborate Elgar's sketches into a four movement symphony lasting almost an hour is recounted in the booklet - and in a talk on a companion CD to the above issue. Suffice it to say that Payne has worked minor miracles here, creating a work that sounds like mature Elgar. It's far, far better than any of the laughable attempts to recreate the unfinished finale of Bruckner's ninth symphony, though no one's saying that what's being offered here is truly Elgar's third - only an insight into what might've been had Elgar lived. Nevertheless, the meat and potatoes - Elgars material - is arresting and powerful, and Payne has fashioned it into a convincing edifice that stands repeated listening. It's handsomely played by the BBC SO under Andrew Davis, and MMC's recording is full-bodied and sonorous, with good clarity and detail despite some dense scoring. A fascinating issue!

Glazunov: Symphonies 1 and 4
Moscow Symphony Orchestra, Alexander Anissimov
Naxos 8.553561 Reviewed by JMH
Naxos are in the process of recording the complete orchestral works of Alexander Glazunov - a worthy enterprise, albeit one that will inevitably unearth music of little or no merit. Glazunov had remarkable facility as a composer; his ear for sonority was legendary, his technique absolute. Yet some of his scores seem to have been written on auto-pilot; almost all the ingredients for writing truly memorable music were his, except perhaps the gift of melody. Yet if any works of his escape these generalisations it's the two symphonies coupled here. The first symphony - a student work, written when the composer was just 16 - is a wonderful piece; fresh, imaginative, and loveable. The fourth symphony dates from 1893 and marks a big advance on the first symphony - the lovely yearning 'oriental' theme in the long first movement evokes the nostalgic romanticism of Borodin, while the lively second movement owes something to the Tchaikovsky of Swan Lake yet is pure Glazunov. The finale opens with a rich luscious theme, tricking the listener into thinking it's the start of a slow movement. But the pace soon quickens, and Glazunov steers the work to an exciting colourful conclusion. The performance under Alexander Anissimov is committed and well-played, while the Naxos recording is clear and more than acceptable, if slightly lacking in tonal body.

Handel: Concerti grossi Op 6
I Musici de Montreal, Yuli Turovsky
Chandos 9004/5/6 Reviewed by JMH
One unfortunate by-product of the revolution in performing and recording old music on instruments of the composer's period is the way it's made much baroque repertoire 'off limits' for orchestras who still play on modern instruments. Yet, as these highly accomplished and very enjoyable accounts of Handel's Op 6 show, there's more to the successful performance of baroque music than using historically correct forces. Things like style and enthusiasm count for much, and in any case Handel's robust full-bodied Saxon demeanour isn't always well-served by performers who scale down his imperious rhetoric. Not that I Musici de Montreal play this music in a heavy old-fashioned style. Their performances are keen and lively, with clean incisive string playing and minimal vibrato. Turovsky uses strings throughout, omitting the optional wind parts added to several of the concertos, and captures the rich cosmopolitan ambience of these aristocratic works - something waxy 'authentic' performances fail to do for all their academic correctness. Tempi are well judged; for the most part not too fast, but nicely sprung rhythmically with an attractive Handelian swagger. It sounds as though the players are challenged and excited by the music and are enjoying playing it. What wore can one ask for? Chandos provide sharp clean sound that's lucid and detailed with good clarity and presence.

Janacek: Works for solo piano and piano and orchestra
Kubelik, Bavarian Radio SO, Furkusny (pno)
449 764-2 Reviewed by JMH
The piano is not an instrument one readily associa-tes with Janacek, and these two CDs contain almost all the music he wrote for this instrument. Yet his piano works contain some of his most intimate and private music, especially the deeply personal On the Overgrown Path. The main work here, it confronts the raw feelings and emotions occasioned by the death of the composer's daughter at the age of 21. This isn't a smooth beautifully-crafted response to death, as in Mahler's Kindertotenleider but some-thing altogether tougher and closer to the bone, drafted in language that's terse ans aphoristic. As a boy of five, Firkusny met Janacek and later studied with him. His insight into the music is compelling; the subtle colouring and articulation of dynamics creates an almost speech-like narrative where every note is important. I'd previously heard On the Overgrown Path in other interpretations without being able to understand the music. But with Firkusny everything suddenly made sense. The other music is played with similar insight, and sounds absolutely authoritative - though works like the Concertino for piano and chamber orchestra nonetheless emerge tough and angular, in Janacek's best take-it-or-leave-it style! The early '70s recordings are clear and bright, with only a slightly clangy piano tone to complain of. The original LPs were notoriously difficult to reproduce, and these CDs sound smoother and cleaner.

Rubbra: Symphony No 1, A Tribute, Sinfonia Concertante*
BBC NSO of Wales, Hickox, Howard Shelley piano*
Chandos CHAN 9538 Reviewed by JMH
I'm old enough to remember the days when Classical music was routinely referred to as Serious music - something that probably sounds quite fearsome in these days of Soundbites and short attention spans. Certainly, Rubbra wrote 'serious' music; there's no small-talk, no chit-chat. Even when the tone lightens (as in the second move-ment of the first symphony - here receiving it's first recording, incidentally) there's no mistaking the seriousness of purpose behind the music. Not that serious' in Rubbra's case means heavy or pompous. Rather, one is engaged by cogent musical argument and powerful rhetoric, as though the composer were engaged in a robust war of words. The symp-hony was completed in 1937 when Rubbra was 34, and it sounds remarkably assured and mature for one so young. The Sinfonia Concertante for piano and orchestra was begun slightly before the symp-hony, but not finished until the early 1940s. Again, it's a big-boned serious work that makes a lasting impression - it's brooding power and weighty Introspection contrasting sharply with passages of great energy. Music reflects the age in which it was written, and it's clear both works were composed in anxious uneasy times. The performances are first-rate, and the Chandos recording sounds clean and well-balanced, but not too resonant, allowing detail to tell without difficulty. Some nice deep bass too, especially in the Sinfonia Concertante.

Sibelius: The Tempest, suites 1 and 2. The Oceanides
Helsinki Philharmonic, Leif Segerstam
Ondine ODE 9142 Reviewed by JMH
More richly atmospheric Sibelius from Leif Segerstaw and the excellent Helsinki Philharmonic. The works on this CD might not be among the most popular by this composer, but that says more about popular taste than the quality of the music! The Oceanides, for example, is a very unusual and original piece here written when Sibelius was almost 50 years old and at the height of his powers - a work whose inexorable organic growth looks forward to late master-pieces like Tapiola and the Seventh Symphony. The Tempest is later still, and contains music that veers between brooding introspection, verdant freshness, coy sentimentality, and unrestrained good spirits - qualities well caught in this new recording. The conductor's liking for measured tempi, and Ondine's burnished highly detailed sound, ensures that everything is heard clearly. Segerstaw made an earlier (1991) recording of the first Tempest suite for Chandos with the Danish radio symphony orchestra, but good as that was this new Ondine sounds even better; full-bodied and powerful, with excellent deep bass. The disc ends with a stately sonorous account of the tone-poem Nightride and Sunrise; another highly original score that no one but Sibelius could have written. State of the art sound - colourful, detailed, and 'big' like the best analogue!

Audiophile Recordings

Henry Mancini and His Orchestra- Breakfast at Tiffany's
ARS RCA LSP-2362 Reviewed by RP
Last years 75th anniversary of the birth of Hollywood arranger-composer-conductor Henry Mancini, has passed by largely unnoticed. And yet the lightweight nostalgia of the films he worked on remains as popular as ever. Blake Edwards' impossibly sanitised version of call girl Holly Golightly is as good a starting point as any. Gingerly toe-dipping the murky waters of sexual liberation with a soundtrack that's suitably lightweight and easy on the ear, Mancini's score has twelve episodic encounters that work best as the dreamy, soft-focus, companion piece to a visual dimension up there on the screen. Obviously, Johnny Mercer's sugar-sweet 'Moon River', with its massed strings and ethereal voices is reason enough to add this record to your collection, but don't discount the hidden pleasures of a track like 'Mr. Yunioshi'; where Larry Bunker's vibraphone and the plucky banjo playing of Bob Bain uncover what surely has to be a subtle musical allusion to the oldest profession, as they tease out strains of 'Money. That's What I Want'. Jazzy band numbers, including 'The Big Blow Out', are a fine vehicle for the talented session players, who all benefit from a consistently accurate and nicely balanced record-ing, while, for the voyeurs amongst us, there is always Howell Conant's deliciously iconic cover shot of Audrey Hepburn to dwell upon.

Henry Mancini and His Orchestra- Hatari!
ARS RCA LSP-2559 Reviewed by RP
Whereas the Oscar-winning Breakfast at Tiffany's trades on a degree of realism, Hatari! Is a shame-less hussy that will give plenty of thrills to anyone who wants to push their system to its limits. Put aside, for one moment, conventional musical values and contemplate 'The Sounds of Hatari'. This convocation underscores (in a very big way) the film's opening sequence - a pursuit of the furious rhino shown on the sleeve. Shelly Manne and the other five percussionists indulge in a mildly rhythmic beat as tom-toms, bass and snare drums are sporadically pierced by a colourful use of maracas, rice shakers, bamboo sticks and castanets. Momentum is sustained through judicious piano and tuba arrangements that help draw the listener headlong towards a final flourish of trumpets and skins. The farthest reaches of an immense soundstage are explored, and I could not help thinking how much this track reminded me of the Sounds Unheard Of! LP (APR 3009). Both records offer adroitly crafted show pieces, but with 'The Sounds of Hatari' you get the wallop from a small orchestra instead of the Shelly Manne / Jack Marshall duo. The salon numbers and dubious humour of the other tracks wears pretty thin, but what the reissue disc does guarantee is fine musicianship backed up by a superb recording.

Henry Mancini and His Orchestra- The Pink Panther
ARS RCA LSP-2795 Reviewed by RP
With the coolest of opening tracks Plas Johnson's sax solo has left an indelible pink paw print on my psyche, courtesy of cartoons from my formative years. The Pink Panther does not share superdisc status with Mancini's original African excursion because original pressings employed the Dynagroove cutting process. Now, ABS have returned to the analogue masters which prove that Jim Malloy's engineering was at least thqual of that found on Hatari! Musically? Well, Panthers can stretch tolerances to the limit. But in amongst the anachronisms like 'Something for Sellars' lurks the odd gem. Take 'Royal Blue' where, the melody is picked out by Sheldon's muted trumpet, forward and to the right of centre stage. Jimmy Rowles' piano intro provides a counterpoint out on the left. String instruments spread across the middle of the recording in warm waves and Manne keeps a respectfully cool beat going in the background. Wistful trumpet notes alternate with those from the piano until the ivories fade.., to be replaced in time and space by haunting images cast by Johnson's saxophone - beautifully atmospheric. Clearly, the three Mancini LPs present something of a dichotomy - nostalgia or anachronism? It's a fine dividing line. But Sixties kitsch should always be served this way - on vinyl.

Benjamin Britten: Nocturne, Four Sea Interludes, Passacaglia
Peter Pears, Britten, LSO, OROH
Decca (Speakers Corner) SXL 2189 Reviewed by RG
Composers conducting their own works don't always produce the best results, however, Britten is an exception, and the series of recordings he made for Decca, especially those with his life-partner, the tenor Peter Pears, are sonically and musically outstanding. Pears, not surprisingly, has an almost intuitive grasp of Britten's strange amalgam of gloom, drama and hope, moving vibrantly and effortlessly between moods. This disc combines the Nocturne with the Four Sea Interludes and the Pasacaglia from Britten's first opera, Peter Grimes. Whilst the original opera box set is still fairly easy to find, it's also fairly daunting as an introduction to Britten's 'difficult' vocal music. That makes this disc especially welcome. The sparse orchestration of the Nocturne for strings and seven obligato instruments makes for dramatic musical colours and shadings, beautifully balanced by Pears. The recording is absolutely first rate (although the larger orchestral forces of the Interludes present a greater range of moods albeit with less convincing dynamics). Pears voice is rich and nicely separated, and the tonal range of the wind instruments is near perfect. The infamous timpani solo thunders impressively. If you've always steered clear of Britten's operas, then treat this as a perfect primer.
Supplier: Vivante - www.vivante.co.uk (44)(0)1293-822186

Horner - Glory OST
Classic Records VR91329 Reviewed by RG
When you consider the scale of the slaughter in the American Civil War, a war in which the power and accuracy of small-arms for ever outgrew the dated tactics of line, column and volley fire, and where the sheer volume of fire was so great that the field of Gettysburg is littered with 'twins', bullets that collided and fused in mid air, its power in the American collective consciousness is hardly surprising. The emancipation of the slaves and the peculiar ferocity of a nation practising on itself only adds to that power. Glory cuts straight to the heart of the matter, following the struggle to raise, equip and train the first black regiment In the Union Army, in the shadow of its eventual destruction in a hopeless assault on Fort Wagner. Horner takes no chances, and like so many film composers before him, liberally ransacks the American tradition, blending Copland with the fife and drum of the infantry line to produce hauntingly evocative and brooding music. And for once he succeeds in treading the tightrope between bombast and the cloying sentimentality that pollute so many modern film scores. The recording helps, with only the congealed violins and soprano voices to betray its digital origins, while the 180g pressing adds weight, warmth and an appropriate sense of authority.
Supplier: Vivante - www.vivante.co.uk (44)(0)1293-822186

Puccini: Operatic Arias
TuIIio Serafin, Philharmonia Orchestra, Maria CaIIas, Soprano
TESTAMENT/COLUMBIA 33CX 1204 Reviewed by RP
In its day this 1954 selection of arias from Manon Lescout, Madama Butterfly, La Boheme, Suor Angelica, Gianni Schicchi and Turandot was a controversial record. Her first ever recital disc is Maria Callas to the core with Puccini, Serafin and the Philharmonia Orchestra serving as worthy hand-maidens to the Goddess. At the height of her drawing power, yet having already relinquished the heavier Wagnerian roles in the opera house, she brilliantly delivers a remarkable range to handle the music of Liu and Turandot. Dramatic, intelligent and individual: every phrase is awash with colour and meaning. Yes, there are occasional moments of dubious intonation and stridence, and a muscular Mimi will not convince the purists, but these are minor criticisms of little consequence to the overall impact of these impassioned and atmospheric interpretations. The engineers dutifully spotlight Callas and, although the age of this recording reveals some low-level hiss and tape deterioration, it does not distract from the magnificence of 'In questa reggia' (Turandot) or the unexpected vision and freshness brought to those well-worn Butterfly arias 'Con onor muore' and 'Un bel di vedremo'. The beautifully sweet '0 mio babbino caro' (Gianni Schicchi) is worth the entry price alone to this versatile display of a diva's art.
Supplier: Vivante - www.vivante.co.uk (44)(0)1293-822186

Pomp and Pipes
Frederick Fennell, Dallas Wind Symphony. Paul Riedo, organ.
REFERENCE RECORDINGS RR-58 Reviewed by RP
Undisputed heavy-weight champion of Wind Bands since his early Mercury days leading the Eastman Wind Ensemble, Frederick Fennell is an extraordinary figure. His performances of music in the band tradition are universally acclaimed, and "definitive" is not too strong a description for many of the Cozart-Fine collaborations and later Telare releases that pre-date this Indian Summer at Reference Recordings. Here, a generous and diverse selection of works by Karg-Elert, Reed, Gigout, Wills, Grainger, Dupre, Nelson, Widor and Weinberger are subtitled "Powerful Music for Organ, Winds, Brass & Percussion", and (like the Rutter Requiem) superbly engineered by Keith O. Johnson at the Meyerson Centre. Favourite moments include an evocative Nordic study, 'The Vikings' (Wills), with its self-styled classic British brass band arrangements augmented by additional bass tubas, soprano cornets, euphoniums, trumpets and percussion to give it balls. Ron Nelson's joyous and unbelievably liberated 'Pebble Beach Sojourn' sparkles in a typically irreverent American fashion, while traditionalists will applaud the intensity of Dupre's Verdun tribute: 'Poem Herioque', as well as the seriousness of 'Lord, Save Thy People' (Widor) and an uplifting 'Polka and Fugue' (Weinberger) with its romantic swinging themes and essential, rock-solid notes sustained by the excellent resident organist, Paul Riedo.
Supplier: Vivante - www.vivante.co.uk (44)(0)1293-822186

Jacintha - Here's to Ben
GROOVE NOTE GRV 1001-1 Reviewed by RP
Former Classic Records guru Ying Tan is a fine judge of talent when he hears it, and the unanticipated, yet seamless, transition of Singapore-based pop vocalist Jacintha to pure jazz in this tribute for the late saxophonist, Ben Webster, is a tremendous coup for his newly-founded Groove Note label. She uncannily combines discipline, technique, emotion and old-fashioned loveliness - breezing through nine safe standards which include 'Georgia On My Mind',' Tenderly', 'How Long Has This Been Going On?', 'Stardust', 'Pennies From Heaven' and 'Danny Boy'. Jacintha, supported by a combo graced by the likes of Billie Holiday sax man, Teddy Edwards, and those well-matched stalwarts Kei Akogi (piano) Derek Dies (bass) and Larance Marable (drums), is superbly captured in a live to 2-track pure analogue recording, mastered by the excellent Bernie Grundman. Her voice, immediate and rich, has wonderful resonance in a plaintive rendition of 'Tenderly', but possesses the dexterity and fullness to pick up the mood with George and Ira Gershwin's swinging 'Our Love Is Here To Stay'. Nit-picking? Well, this choice of repetoire could have been expanded to incorporate more imaginative numbers, but the inclusion of a twelve-inch single version of 'The Look Of Love' / 'Danny Boy' is a compensatory bonus.
Supplier: Vivante - www.vivante.co.uk (44)(0)1293-822186

Ahmed Jama l- Ahmed Jamal's Alhambra
Alto 005 Reviewed by DD
Jamal is one of the most important and influential pianists in modern jazz. A major influence on the music of Miles Davis who was so taken with his style that he even asked his own pianist of the time, Red Garland, to try and sound like Jamal. Recorded in '61, the inaugural year of Jamal's Chicago club, this album is one of those classic jazz recordings that on the right system is capable of putting you there. Jamal heads a trio with Israel Crosby on bass and Vernell Fournier on drums and from the closely recorded audience applause prior to the first notes of 'We Kiss a Shadow' this is a 'front row' treat. Very crisply recorded, with the percussive effects tint Jamal's keyboard work particularly well captured, the playing on this set of standards is much more open and freer than most of Jamal's studio work. Many numbers are taken at an unusually fast pace. In particular 'Love for Sale' which though it's still highly enjoyable has an upbeat flavour that's totally at odds with its theme. This is the exception though, since all the other numbers are much more in keeping with this treatment, from 'Broadway' to a nicely evocative 'Snowfall'. When Jamal slows the pace a little, as in my favourite number on the album 'Willow Weep for Me', the music moves up a notch and becomes that bit more powerful and effective.

Frank Sinatra - The Voice
Colombia (Classic Record) CL 743 Reviewed by RG
There's been no shortage of Sinatra re-issues but with this one Classic have hit pay-dirt. This early "six-eye" collection showcases Francis Albert at his best, and combined with Classic's exemplary cutting and pressing standards, and a stellar running order, what more could you ask for? Well, someone should of got shot of that appalling piece of schmaltz 'Over The Rainbow'. Not Only is this the nastiest, most sickly sweet arrangement that I've heard in years, but the recording is absolutely ghastly. Thankfully it's an aberration (albeit a fairly major one), and the rest of the album is a class apart. This is Sinatra the world weary lover, showing just what he can do with a collection of standards: 'Try a Little Tenderness', 'These foolish Things', 'Fools Rush In', 'That Old black Magic', 'I Don't Know Why' and 'She's funny That Way' just to name a few. The recordings, as with any collection, are variable, but tend to the excellent side of good. The performances of course, are peerless. If you are only going to buy one Sinatra album.... But we don't want to go there. This is a record that only shows a single side of the man. A companion volume with the knowing, devil-may-care rake at the helm would be welcome indeed. But while we wait, you'll not go wrong with this.
Supplier: Vivante - www.vivante.co.uk (44)(0)1293-822186

Rutter: Requiem
Timothy Seelig, The Turtle Creek Chorale, Dallas Women's Chorus
Reference Recordings RB-SO Reviewed by RP
Notoriously difficult to record well, expansive choral works have generally been viewed with antipathy by the audiophile labels. Reference is an exception to that rule, and their incomparable HDCD of John Rutter's sensitive and thoughtful valedictory composition is brilliantly staged and engineered. A Faure inspired Requiem, where the combined voices (over three hundred in total from the two choirs) search out an optimistic and ultimately comforting message for humanity with music of exquisite beauty, has the familiar resonances of Psalms 23, 130 and The Book of Common Prayer at its core. I doubt whether a performance on this scale will ever again be recorded with such a sympathetic acoustic. Remarkable translucency and the capacity to reveal the most delicate harmonic details - even the subtle shading of accompanying harp, cello, oboe, clarinet and flutes - are amongst its impressive list of credentials. Wonderful, emotionally-charged singing of an uncommon quality, too, for the five smaller sacred pieces that sandwich the main choral work. The highlight of these has to be the little known, A Gaelic Blessing, which Rutter here sets to music for the first time. An exceptional CD, but now very difficult to find on vinyl - the LP being down to the very dregs.
Supplier: Vivante - www.vivante.co.uk (44)(0)1293-822186

Illinois Jacquet with Kenny Burrell - Desert Winds
Alto AA 014 Reviewed by DD
Tenor Saxophonist Jacquet first made his name in Lionel Hampton's band in the '40's when, famously, he recorded a honking 64-bar solo for the single 'Flybng Home'. On this album, Jacquet is partnered with Kenny Burrell, Guitar, Wendell Marshall, bass, Tommy Flanagan, piano, Ray Lucas, drums and unusually by a Latin percussionist, Willie Rodriguez. This line-up had not worked together as a regular group and the sessions took a while to gel. Rodriguez who had a great sense of humour but very little hair received a 'complaint' about the glare from his head. The ice was broken when he explained that he would have worn his toupe but didn't want to compromise the studio acoustics. Clearly neither the acoustics or the band integrity were compromised because this is a very tight, well-recorded set. For me it's marred a little only on one track, 'Blues For the early Bird' where a degree of rock 'n roll influence has crept into Burrell's playing which probably sounded very contemporary at the time but somewhat dated now. Strangely, the standout number is atypical of Jacquet's style. 'You're my Thrill' is a gorgeous take on this slow ballad, and alone is worth the price of admission. That it's surrounded by fine takes of a number of standards including 'Lester Leaps In' and the title track, is a bonus. Excellent if slightly dry recording and the usual fine Alto pressing.
Supplier: Vivante - www.vivante.co.uk (44)(0)1293-822186

© Images and text copyright Absolute Multimedia (UK) Ltd 1999-2008
another fine webwork by Global WebTrader