Classical music reviews

I read a review in a magazine that described Chiaroscuro as a cross between Dream Theater and (I think) Rage Against the Machine. I don't care for RATM, but at that point Dream Theater *was* my second favorite band. I bought the CD, my best investment in the last year.

Chiaroscuro offers a wide range of progressive sounds. They offer songs with driving fast paced rythms and slower songs with an awesome melodic flavor. The singing is great, and their musical ability is awesome. If you like Dream Theater, you will probably love Chiaroscuro. This band has been my second favorite since almost the day I received the album.

In a world of metal bands (yes, this band is metal) that tend to form themselves in the vein of the many crotch level "pimp-rock" bands out there, this young band sets a new standard of musicianship and brilliance. Definitely influenced by the progressive leanings of Dream Theater, Chiaroscuro actually takes their music in a VERY progressive step. They add the animosity of some of the current heavyweights while never going into the sad, tired funk inclinations that abound in current "hard" music. The one exception to this is the chorus to "Crucifixion", where lead vocalist Aaron does his best Korn-ism. Unfortunately, his voice is just too incredible to bring it down to this level of non-musicality.

This is what we've been waiting for. It's almost impossible to measure up to Dream Theater's standards, but this band puts together some impressive tracks that are sure to satisfy finicky prog fans.

Cassandra is a really good, pleasing, melancholy soundtrack-like composition with one neat spoken-word track in the middle. This is the kind of music you can listen to in the background or the foreground, at any old time, and everyone seems to like it at some level. I own three copies I bought over the years to listen to at home, at work and in the car.

...because Brendan Perry (formerly of Dead Can Dance) will be involved! (at least, according to Brendan's website)

I have read the other reviews and I fully concur. This CD is now my #1 favorite and I have a lot of CD's. I want another and I want Zoar to keep them coming. It is unlike anything else.

Alexander Brailowsky's Performance of the 14 Chopin Waltzes - a definitive version
By Peter Dietrich, President, Chopin Society of New England
Alexander Brailowsky's performance of the fourteen Chopin waltzes seems to be among the definitive versions. This stereo recording from the early sixtees and the previous one on LP for RCA Victor LM1082 recorded in the early fifties, equals in sound and profound understanding of the two great versions by Artur Rubinstein recorded in 1953 and 1963 respectively. The four recordings are milestones of the classical waltzes. Their interpretations have achieved expert fluidity with grace and elegance of the nobility, as Robert Schumann remarked "should be danced at least by countesses." To the above four recordings I will add Dinu Lipatti's recording issued by EMI in the Great Recordings of the century series. My opinion is based on hearing a great number of outstanding as well as good performances through more than fifty years. I will just list several additional names from my collection who have recorded fourteen waltzes: 1) Robert Lortat (1930), 2) Alfred Cortot (1934 and 1943), 3) Edward Kilenyi (1952), 4) Moura Lympany (1959), 5) Witold Malcuzynski (1959), 6) Regina Smendzianka (1959 and 1961), 7) Samson Francois (1964), 8) Stefan Askenase (1964), 9) Adam Harasiewicz (1965), 10) Tamas Vassary (1966); pianists who have recorded nineteen waltzes : 1) Augustin Anievas (1970), 2) Geoges Cziffra (1979), 3) Claudio Arrau (1980 - several of the waltzes are played too slow), 4) Vladimir Ashkenazy (1984), 5) Lidia Grychtolowna (1989), 6) Istvan Szekely (1992), 7) Garrick Ohlsson (1996 - 20 waltzes in this recording) 8) Jerzy Sterczynski (1996 - 23 waltzes, which will be discussed in the future).
I have also heard a large number of selected waltzes including Vladimir Horovitz and Jose Iturbi. Some of the individual performances are also very beautiful, as Vladimir Horovitz's recording of the Waltz Op. 34 No. 2 and Evgeni Kissin's of the famous C# minor Op. 64, No. 2 in his Carnegie Hall debut. My copies of the waltzes with Alexander Brailowsky - first: LP Columbia MS6228 stereo, which was a "part of a projected series
of the Complete Piano Music of Chopin played by the renowned Polish pianist Alexander Brailowsky" (not completed as far as I know) and second: CD SBK 46346 are in excellent sound.
The Sonata No. 3 in B minor, Op. 58 first issued on Columbia Masterworks MS 6569 (1964) and CD SBK 46346 (1990) is a stereo remake of a great performance recorded for HMV in London in 1938 and issued on CD APR 5501 in 1993 (currently available) and also included in "Brailowsky plays Chopin", two disc set reviewed by me earlier. The stereo remake of the Sonata is a shade less successful as its famous predecessor but it is also an excellent performance. The first movement Allegro maestoso opens by the artist with a bold sweep of grandeur and proceeds toward a splendid profusion of thematic ideas set forth with great freedom within the framework of the sonata form. The Scherzo, Molto vivace is a short movement requiring a great technique and musicianship which Brailowsky plays to perfection. The third movement Largo which requires a perfect legato, phrasing and the ability to create a contemplative elegiac mood shows Brailowsky at his lyrical best. The Finale, Presto non tanto, is a notorious pianistic proving ground. Considered by many as unplayable but under Brialowsky's hands it becomes a powerful masterpiece of great musical and technical display. The Sonata Op. 58 has a great competition particularly from Rubinstein, Kempff and Lipatti. But the waltzes? No matter where you look, you will not find them as good Having Brailowsky, Rubinstein and Lipatti recordings you can safely say that you "own" the Chopin Waltzes. No further recommendations are necessary.

Alexander Brailowksy's heydey was in the 1920s and 1930s. These recordings are from the twilight of his career, and what he must have sounded like in his prime! His performance of Chopin's magnificent Sonata No. 3 is something to cherish forever, especially in the pulse-pounding final movement. The only drawback is the sound, which was apparently accomplished with a microphone placed next to the piano hammers. What in the world was anyone thinking? Highly recommended, anyway.

I think that this is the best recoding of Chopin's waltzes ever. Brailowsky's approach( light, "humourous") is perfect for them. I also recommend his cd of the mazurkas, also on Sony.

Gavrilov's etudes are well-executed to be sure, yet without much tonal subtlety and a true legato. His typically aggressive approach can be exciting but I usually turn to other albums before this one. Recorded sound lacks warmth.

I think there are few pianists who can be accused of playing the Chopin etudes too fast, since it is for most etudes almost impossible to play them faster as the original metronome markings (by Chopin) indicate.
Well, Gavrilov does it! Although the result is at times astonishing, I feel that he tends to overemphasize his technical abilities and sometimes, on careful listening, loses SOME accuracy, not only with regards to "hitting the right keys" but also with regards to dynamic markings and pedaling.
I feel that recording by Pollini and Askenazy (his first Melodya recording) do more justice to these incredible pieces.
Still, this cd is definately worth listening to.

I collected a lot of CD's in the '90's, many based on Penguin Guide recommendations. While many of these have regrettably collected dust on the shelf, after several years the Gavrilov/Chopin CD is still the first Chopin CD I reach for. Gavrilov first piqued my interest after I heard his stunning recording of Balakirev's Islamey on NPR. After that, I had to investigate this Chopin CD and have not been disappointed. I look forward to hearing his Melodiya Rach 3 on CD.

This is a very great chorus, and one of Haydn's best as far as i am concerned. The pace, grandness and spirit of the piece all conjure in one's imagination the majesty of heaven, and God's throne. I cannot help but be moved to praise the God of the heavens and the earth.

kanmi ogundipe

I came home from work one day when my uncle was visiting my wife and myself. He was recently retired from the ministry. He had heard a lot of choral music in his life. My aunt said he had the stereo ( power end of my stereo at the time was an Adcomm 555 amp. conservatively rated at 200 watts RMS per channel) up so loud it was rattling the whole house. I too have come to love this music. I mostly listen to rock and roll; but the way my uncle, and now I, play this thing, it is rock and roll from another era!!!

After Mr Shaw spent many years in NYC and Cleveland with RCA Red Label,he came into Atlanta for a big change! Soon he switched to TELARC DIGITAL! I still Joyfully remember our Recording of the Christmas Nativity in Dec of 1975! Sir Robert, conducting with earphones encasing his head shouted: "Stop the taping, there is some Darn Sizzling noise in those Lights!" We may have not heard the word "Damn" lights, that he employed at times!

On both this newer release of TELARC and the older Recording of The Christmas Nativity, there are Bach's Chorale, Break Forth, Dona Nobis Pacem from the B-Minor Mass, Handel's Hallelujah! Plus the exquisite, Shepherds's Farewell to the Holy Family of Berlioz's The Infant Christ!

Those who may not be familiar with Berlioz from both recordings, will be richly rewarded by hearing them plus the Rex Tremendae from Berlioz''s Requiem and the other Kyrie from the Bach B-Minor! Absolutely, no other Christmas Music can ever approach these two splendid recordings, which are the basis of the ASO celebrating every Christmas with "Robert Shaw in the Spirit!"

Retired Chaplain Fred W Hood

As expected, the Mannheim Steamroller collection is outstanding. A new twist on the traditional Christmas songs.

Wonderful, uplifting. It is just what I was looking for to take care of my Christmas music needs.

Bought this for my husband for Christmas and we listen to it every year! What great arrangements for background any time of the year!

This is a great disc of traditional Christmas music. It sounds especially good after you've been exposed that contemporary crud that passes for Christmas music.

NOTE: To the reviewer from Green Bay -- "penultimate" means "second to last". I think the word you're looking for is "definitive"! Sorry to nitpick. Happy Holidays!

Next to the selections by Mannheim Steamroller, The Boston Pops and Arthur Fiedler put together some of the wonderful instrumental melodies of the Christmas season.Every one is first rate to listen to. I don't know which one I like. Anyway.. you will like this!!!

The penultimate version of "Sleigh Ride" is on this CD, as are other holiday favorites that one remembers from childhood but had no idea who performed them. Buy it and enjoy it!

This is the only album I have heard. The one song "Heartwind" was interesting to listen to but - most of their music is simple and repetitious. I kept wanting them to go someplace with the music. I consider them a curiosity.

Few bouts of salmonella would have spawned as protean a brew of music as that of Penguin Cafe Orchestra's progenitor, Simon Jeffes. Some time in the early 1980s I was leafing through the racks and stumbled on the beguiling avian art of Emily Young. She was to become a signature for the Orchestra's releases as Neon Park had served Little Feat in the 1970s. Her bizarre, Beckmanesque fantasies bespeak the romantic air of Jeffe's protean imagination. Penguin Cafe Orchestra possesses a folk sensibility translated through classical instrumentation, a sort of late 20thC Bartok. Don't go listening here for 'roots' music, or even poached hybridity. Jeffe's remarkably boyant ear achieves a cultural ambience of his own, a sprightly, muscular, lush and wistful geography peppered with attractive vistas and to be enjoyed at either a leisurely stroll or at waltzing pace. I prefer the earlier albums (especially over the 'Best Ofs') and probably this album is the most endearing. Though it's unfair to single out a member of the various ensembles that play under the PCO title, I must make mention of Helen Liebmann's cello, whose contribution to mood is never less than exemplary.

Simon Jeffes always considered he didn't have enough musical training to be a classical musician and no intimacy with pop to be a popular musician. And although he lived in many countries and was crazy about music from many cultures he never wanted to do "world music".

A quiet man, he had one simple and rare talent: the ability to create sublime music.

And he had an even rarer talent among instrumental musicians: sense of humor.

The PCO is a small chamber group that plays instrumental music that draws from all these sources. It is music created by a music lover. Sometimes it sounds like a happy mantra from Bolivia, sometimes as a moving string quartet playing something that sounds medieval, sometimes he flirts with electronic gadgets like ring modulators (not on this CD though).

The PCO crossed boundaries like few other groups have. And nothing sounds forced, it all makes sense and seems organic as if this was the only way to play music.

The cruelest irony is that you will usually find this CD under "new age". Well, it is definitely not new age and I believe it ends up in the New Age aisle just because this genre is broad enough to fit any music that is not loud.

This is the perfect CD to give as a gift. Although very accessible and pleasant on the surface, it is so deep in its structure and has such unusual arrangements that even music scholars and nitpickers will be forced to pay attention and ask "how did he do that?".

Its not on the same level as Walter with the Columbia.
I wish the eventual new owner of the Sony catelogue(M Jackson is selling his Sony holdings) will re-release the complete Columbia SO in the last 6.

See my recviews on Mozart, Bohm, Walter, Mackerras

At times I give the nod to Walter, times to Bohm.
I guess overall I prefer the Bohm/Berlin set. This conclusion based on todays comapre of the sym 40. April 15,2006.

Paul
paulfbest@cox.net

EDIT: I recall as I listen to the clips, its not on the level as with the Columbia. I had this walter/New York on vinyl yrs ago.
Sony for some reason will not rerelease the Columbia in the last 3 syms.

I'm going to be perfectly honest with you. Mozart is really difficult. I've probably heard 50 versions of these symphonies, and most are not very inspiring. Neither is this one. These are for my taste sluggish, plodding performances, but more importantly they are clearly under-rehearsed, unrefined, and extremely un-clean. Good mozart symphony recordings are difficult to come by, but believe me, you can do better.

These classic mono recordings from 1953 and 1956 are easy to evaluate--they have been mainstrays of the Mozart catalog for fifty years and show no sign of decline. Walter was at his most vigorous here, showing more inner life and alertness than in his stereo remakes with the Columbia Sym. We are fortunate that two great Mozarteans, Walter and Klemperer, left us both their mono and stereo versions of the same works, for even in decline these towering musicians are commadning in their interpretations.

Having said that, I was still surprised on revisiting Walter's Sym. 39 at how forwardly aggressive it really is compared to late Walter, and how much better the NY Phil. plays than I had remembered. The G minor and Jupiter are equally muscular and diect. This is often edge-of-your-seat musicmaking, caught in very warm mono sound. The slow movements are without repeats, and period-performance fanciers will be impatient with the weighty minuets and romaticized slow movements. To me, neither is much of a limitation. Walter's Mozart is as timeless as his Mahler, and this CD is a treasure. I'm grateful that Sony didn't stick with the stereo versions, which were already bestsellers in their catalog.

How can anyone give this five stars? How? It's garbage, like all Helfgott's other CD's! There are so many talented pianists pouring out of the premier conservatories around the world who cannot land a record deal and RCA hands one to the worst pianists in history. On this CD, Helfgott turns a noble, well manered Bosendorfer concert grand into a harsh, brittle sounding tin can. He bangs out the notes, rather than forming musical ideas. Why stop there? In several of the tracks, the piano is noticeably out of tune (Though this is out of Helfgott's control). I get nautious just listening to this. Go buy a CD of Vladimir Horowitz or Arthur Rubinstein (Or Anyone) instead.

(So...Let's try to tell all in english language!...)

You can shine by your courage. You can shine by your kindness. You can shine by your love of live. You can shine by your absence, or your silence. You can shine by your humour or your seriousness.

You can shine by your voice, your eyes, your feet, your arms, your head. Doing your proper way, whit or whitout asking yourself where you are going on, and why you're doing things.

Mister Helfgott is just a man who shines by his heart, his head and his fingers...

As many other people, i discovered the pianist by the moovy "Shine"...But...
I am a pianist too...And I know how hard it is to acquier a hight technicity and to take from the keyboard the most beautiful sounds that a piano is abble to give. When the player is not too bad!...
I've already have listen to so many famous, talented and brillants artists.
But I never was transported by the music like I was when I listened to the play of this man!
Mister Helfgott is not a genius only because of his incredible memoring and playing capacities, his music's understanding and sensibility, but also to make a success of recreated music's worlds, especially romantic works, even whith a wall always standing in front of him.

Here, whith this musician, the pianist doesn't only plays music.
He has choosed music as a unique and authentique way of communication.

I still persuaded that this musician only showed us one part of his incredible and unique gift.
The visible iceberg's part...

Helfgott delivers a very heartfelt human performance and the repetoire suits him well. If I were to purchase a Helfgott CD, this one is special ;)