Skyron Orchestra [Import]

skyron orchestra [import]

Editorial Reviews
Product Description
Prog/psych Band from Sweden with Ex-lotus Member. For Fans of Pink Floyd and Jefferson Airplane.

Skyron Orchestra,Skyron Orchestra,Transubstans,Pop/Rock with lots of psychedelic tunes, the Doors meets Jefferson airplane with a female singer,Rock,Rock/Pop

Skyron Orchestra [Import]

Mozart: Flute Concertos; Rondo; Andante [Includes the Bis 2005 Catalog] [Hybrid SACD]

Average customer rating:

Quintessential Mozart
Hauntingly beautiful cadenzas
Mozart: Flute Concertos; Rondo; Andante [Includes the Bis 2005 Catalog] [Hybrid SACD]
Do NOT Miss this.

Mozart: Flute Concertos; Rondo; Andante [Includes the Bis 2005 Catalog] [Hybrid SACD]

Manufacturer: Bis
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Classical | Imports | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Russian Violin Concertos [Hybrid SACD]
Vivaldi: Four Seasons [Hybrid SACD]
J.S. Bach: Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin, BWV 1001-1006
Mozart: Piano & Violin Sonatas [Hybrid SACD]
Mozart: Violin Concertos

ASIN: B000AYYTD0
Release Date: 2005-09-27

Customer Reviews:

Quintessential Mozart.......2007-03-08

This is a bright and beautiful collection of four of Mozart's flute works with Sharon Bezaly as flautist who is making waves in Europe. One cannot ask very much more from BIS recording techniques.

Hauntingly beautiful cadenzas.......2006-12-18

Izrael-born Sharon Bezaly (who now lives in Sweden) has rightly risen to the top of her field with silky performances like this one which seemed universally rated highly by the music press (Gramophone, ClassicsToday, etc). Her repertoire extends to many Scandanavian composers who have written several flute concertos for her marvelously refined technique (she was a student of Aurele Nicolet). On this recording she plays a 24k instrument custom-made for her by Muramatsu Japan (see in the cover photo).

A great reference recording for Mozart's flute pieces is the Philips DUO set featuring Aurele Nicolet (concertos) and William Bennett (quartets). But even if you have this or other versions of these pieces, one good reason to get this one is the intriguing and hauntingly beautiful cadenzas (written for her). While they move a bit beyond the normal classical restraints, they are not beyond Mozart nor good taste. So, this reason - plus her stunning, breathless and seamless playing and solid orchestral support and budget price are enough reasons to get this. The frequently noted minor drawbacks - slightly overly-resonant sound and slightly low projection of flute vs. orchestra - are not really enough to take away from the superb piece of work by Ms. Bezaly. Also, the huge BIS catalog that is included is a great way to get to better know this Swedish label and Scandanavian composers/performers less represented by the US/EU music press. Compositions - 4 stars; Performance - 5 stars; Sound - 4 stars.

Mozart: Flute Concertos; Rondo; Andante [Includes the Bis 2005 Catalog] [Hybrid SACD].......2006-06-29

Mozart: Flute Concertos; Rondo; Andante [Includes the Bis 2005 Catalog] [Hybrid SACD]~ Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is a stupendous recording with the cute and talented Sharon Bezaley. She plays the flute with such ability and fervour that she truly is able to play Mozart as it was intended. The book-let is a fair enough item but it lacks pictures and the writing is a bit long winded. The photo of Ms Bezaley is very well done but the photo on the backof the album is a bit small and I wonder why did they did it this way. It seems quite odd. Do not get me wrong, this is an amazing recording and whilst there are some details that could have been better as far as the book-let I still would very much recommend it.

Do NOT Miss this........2005-12-14

In my studies of these pieces I have gradually come to own over 10 recordings of them, and until I heard this one, I thought Galway, Rampal, and Nicolet had a comfortable proprietorship of the field. But times have changed. This Sharon Bezaly deserves to be known in every household. I have never heard flawless tone and pitch control paired with such clean articulation. She is smoother even than Maestro Galway himself. The liner notes say she studied with Aurele Nicolet - it shows. She carries all the patrician elegance of her teacher, only more easily. Her technique is a face-and-tongue equivalent of the unerring steel fingers of the young Vladimir Horowitz. As to her interpretation, the spirit of old Nicolet returns in a glorious new prophet: she is both charming and powerful, serious and joyful. She is on good terms with the orchestra, blending admirably; the recording itself seems to have been made in a more natural setting that doesn't amplify the flute beyond levels heard in the concert hall. The cadenzas are strange and beautiful. The only thing that is merely excellent on this recording is the conducting. Juha Kangas is no Karl Boehm or Neville Marriner and his understanding of Mozart is profound but still mortal. However, in the maestro's defense, he does bring out many often-obscure parts beautifully and he really does not take anything away - a difficult thing to achieve with Mozart. The orchestra is wonderful to boot. The sound recorded sound may be a bit less rich than what we're used to with the likes of Sony Classical and DG, but that doesn't matter - in a portrait of an angel, it is hard to obscure the light of heaven. Buy this recording and bask, bask, bask!

Rorem: Double Concerto for Violin and Cello; After Reading Shakespeare

Average customer rating:

Rorem for Cello

Rorem: Double Concerto for Violin and Cello; After Reading Shakespeare

Manufacturer: Naxos American
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

$6.99 and Under | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music

All Classical Music Blowout | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music

Instrumental | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Rorem: Flute Concerto; Violin Concerto
Alan Hovhaness: Symphony No. 60; Guitar Concerto; Khrimian Hairig
William Schuman: Symphonies Nos. 3 & 5
Howard Hanson: Organ Concerto; Fantasy Variations; Nymphs and Satyr; Summer Seascape; Pastorale; Serenade
Rorem: Three Symphonies

ASIN: B000JVSVE2
Release Date: 2006-12-12

Tracks:

Morning
Adam And Eve
Mazurka
Staying On Alone
Their Accord
Looking
Conversation At Midnight
Flight
Lear
Katharine
Lear
Titania And Oberon
Caliban
Portia
Why Hear'st Thou Music Sadly?
Remembrance Of Things Past
Iago And Othello

Customer Reviews:

Rorem for Cello.......2007-02-13

Ned Rorem (b. 1923)is best-known as an American composer of art song and as a writer of memoirs. But, as several budget-priced releases in Naxos's "American classics" series testify, Rorem's compositions extend far beyond the realm of song. A series of Naxos CDs offers listeners the opportunity to explore Rorem's symphonies, chamber music, and concertos in addition to a selection of songs performed by Carole Farley with the composer at the piano. The most recent release of Rorem's music on Naxos includes two works in which the cello is preeminent: a suite for cello alone and Rorem's double concerto for violin and cello.

This CD features cellist Sharon Robinson, a member of the much-recorded
Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson trio together with her husband and partner in the trio, violinist Jamie Laredo. Both Robinson and Laredo have long been champions of Rorem's music, and it is exciting to have the opportunity to hear them perform on a budget CD. In the concerto, Michael Stern conducts the relatively newly-formed (2000) IRIS Orchestra, which is based in Germantown, Tennessee and regularly features the music of American composers.

Rorem's solo cello suite, "After Reading Shakespeare" dates from 1981, and Robinson's recording first appeared in 1982. This is a nine-movement suite based loosely upon Rorem's rereadings of Shakespeare and of Proust. It is rare to hear music for unaccompanied cello, and Rorem's suite immediately brings to mind Bach's incomparable set of six suites for cello alone. In some of the lengthier movements, particularly the first and final movements, Rorem's suite includes echoes of Bach's suites, as Rorem uses the cello contrapuntally to create the feeling of several voices and lines. The suite also includes movements of lyricism and passion in the companiaon pieces titled "Caliban" and "Portia" and in the Proust-inspired "Remberance of things past." The finale, "Iago and Othello" is a work in two voices full of both learning and passion, as befits its title. This cello suite is an outstanding work.

Rorem's Double Concerto for Violin, Cello and Orchestra was commissioned by the Indianapolis Symphony which first performed it in 1998. The work brings to mind Brahms's famous "Double", but in fact it has little in common with this predecessor. As is Rorem's violin concerto, this double concerto is more in the nature of a multi-movement suite than a concerto. It consists of eight mostly short movements with close integrated writing for the orchestra and the two soloists. The composition is tonal and clear throughout in a musical language that reminded me both of Debussy and of the American works of Aaron Copland.

The music seems to me to tell a story as it shows events in the lives of a married couple much in love. The centerpiece of the work is the lengthy seveth movement, titled "Conversation at Midnight" in which the cello and violin speak lovingly and intimately to each other at the beginning and the end with a long orchestral interlude in the middle. The soloists tend, on the whole, not to stand out in the remainder of the work, which shifts mercurially among many moods from the reflective to the brash and fanfarish. In his liner notes for this CD, Rorem describes the recording as a "perfect performance". Indeed both orchestra and the two soloists are engaged with the score and appear to be enjoying themselves.

I found the unaccompanied cello suite the better piece on this CD, but both it and the concerto will reward hearing. Listeners interested in American music have reason to be grateful to Naxos, and to an anonymous donor who has provided funding for this release, for continuing to make the music of Ned Rorem accessible to a wide audience.

Robin Friedman

Rodrigo: Concierto de Aranjuez; Villa-Lobos: Concerto for guitar; Ponce: Concierto del sur

Average customer rating:

One tiny mistake
Concierto de Aranjuez
A very solid recording
Recommended
Worthy of a Grammy nomination, at the very least!?!

Rodrigo: Concierto de Aranjuez; Villa-Lobos: Concerto for guitar; Ponce: Concierto del sur

Manufacturer: Warner Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Sharon Isbin Plays Baroque Favorites for Guitar
Dreams of a World
Journey to the Amazon
Greatest Hits
Sharon Isbin

ASIN: B00069KFKK
Release Date: 2005-08-16

Tracks:

Allegro Con Spirto
Adagio
Allegro Gentile
Allegro Preciso
Andantino E Andante
Allegretto Non Troppo
Allegretto
Andante
Allegro Moderate E Festivo

Customer Reviews:

One tiny mistake.......2007-03-09

The only regret is that in the liner
notes, the names of composers Manuel Ponce
and Heitor Villa-Lobos are misslabeled in their pictures
thought you should know that; otherewise
the recording is great outstanding work
of Isbin and the New Yorkers, Serebrier is
just as great as always...

Concierto de Aranjuez.......2007-01-24

Wanted the concert from Jackson Hole. This isn't it. Not so hot.

A very solid recording.......2005-11-14

Sharon Isbin gives a phenominal performance on this album. All three concertos are excecuted very well. One of the biggest things that I enjoy about Aranjuez on this CD is that the guitar never gets covered up by the orchestra. I have listened to recordings of Aranjuez and not known that certain passages were even in the guitar part until I saw someone perform the concerto live. This is a great recording because it gives you three essential guitar concertos on one recording executed by world class musicians.

The Rodrigo concerto is without a doubt the most important and famous composition involving a guitar in the entire classical repertory. However, of the three concertos on this recording, Aranjuez is probably the weakest one on the disc. Isbin's tone gets a little to naily and clicky sometimes on this piece. Some of the runs in the first movement are a little sloppy and the cadenza in the second movement is a little over dramatic and the climax of the cadenza is very harsh. However, from the standpoint of sheer musical interpretation, it is probably one of the best interpretations of Aranjuez I've ever hear. Isbin adds little details to the piece that make it much more exciting.

The Villa-Lobos is very exciting. It seems that Isbin cleans up her technique a little by this point. The Ponce is brilliant as well. Words cannot describe the amazing execution of these pieces. I also cannot give as much critism to these pieces because I don't know them as well as the Rodrigo. Overall, this is a very solid recording. It is probably the best classical guitar recording of the year.

Recommended.......2005-07-16

Superlative version of the "Concierto de Aranjuez". The only caveat is a few too many fireworks in a cadenza in the otherwise beautiful second movement. Since it is slightly overwrought, though this album is a must for guitar lovers, it shouldn't be the only recording of this piece in one's collection. Try balancing it with the less emotional Christopher Parkening version.

Worthy of a Grammy nomination, at the very least!?!.......2005-02-15

I'm sure that Sharon Isbin does not exactly live for Grammy Awards, although they certainly don't hurt a performer's career. However, it is astonishing to me that her collaboration in this recording with the New York Philharmonic under the baton of Jose Serebrier was not seen fit to merit at least a nomination for the 2005 awards. I'm sure that all of the nominees and the winner (announced the previous night) gave fine performances, but they could not have been any more compelling than this one.

I've heard many recordings of classical guitar with orchestra, and none that I have heard surpass this one. It is true that Isbin made a previous recording of the Rodrigo in 1989 with Lawrence Foster and the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra that received critical acclaim and that Rodrigo himself praised her performance then as among the very best. However, that earlier recording contained one major flaw: the guitar was apparently not miked separately from the orchestra. As a result, the orchestra often covered her playing to an annoying degree. (If the guitar did have its own miking, the engineers did not bother to use it when they created the master.)

The current recording of the Rodrigo has all of the artistry of that first recording and none of its defects. The presence of both guitar and orchestra is, indeed, intimate. As a result, so much more of her interplay with the orchestra, as well as her unmatched range of color and dynamics, not to say technical brilliance, stand out brilliantly.

Sharon is, perhaps, unique among guitarists recording today in coming closest to the expressive range found only in Segovia, even to the point of almost matching his apparently unmatchably warm vibrato. And Segovia unfortunately never had a recording this magnificent in detail and presence to pass on to us. If you consider that Segovia is never known to have played Rodrigo's "Concierto De Aranjuez," then I would not hesitate in suggesting that this recording gives you an excellent idea of how he might have played it (along with more of his unique vibrato).

The other two works on the recording are equally brilliant. The Villa-Lobos surprises (I had not heard it before), and the Ponce, again, is a very close match to Segovia's own matchless recording of that piece.

In truth, Sharon Isbin brings her own unique qualities, including a steadier sense of tempo that stands apart from Segovia's famously self-determining (and remarkably effective) tempi. With more recordings like this, and a personal and professional generosity that stands apart, her name may yet be uttered in the same breath as that of the formerly unsurpassable Segovia.

So, what did happen to that Grammy nomination?

Sharon Isbin Plays Baroque Favorites for Guitar

Average customer rating:

Warmth
Likely to Become Bach Favorite for Guitar

Sharon Isbin Plays Baroque Favorites for Guitar

Manufacturer: Warner Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Trios | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Cantatas | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

More Titles at Least 20% Off | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music

All Classical Music Blowout | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music

Opera & Vocal | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Rodrigo: Concierto de Aranjuez; Villa-Lobos: Concerto for guitar; Ponce: Concierto del sur
Journey to the Amazon
Dreams of a World
Greatest Hits
Latin Romances for Guitar

ASIN: B00008CLIT
Release Date: 2003-04-22

Tracks:

Allegro
Largo
Allegro
Allegro
Andante
Allegro Assai
Adagio
Allegro Non Molto (Quasi Andante)
Larghetto
Allegro
Adagio
Prelude For Lute In D Minor BWV 999
Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring

Customer Reviews:

Warmth.......2005-08-16

Kudo's to Ms. Isbin, her masterful playing brings warmth to the classical pieces thus removing the pretense and stiffness generally assoicated with classical music

Likely to Become Bach Favorite for Guitar.......2003-04-29

I've always enjoyed Parkening and others who do Bach on the guitar. Here, noted classic guitarist Isbin provides a beautifully crafted and performed set of baroque favs on guitar.

She plays with controlled passion and clarity, and to my ear her Bach is even more clean and phrased superior to Parkening's.

The selection is well chosen, with great addition to instrument's reportoire of Vivaldi's Concerto in A major.

I find her Albioni's Adagio very well done! The dynamics are well done as well as tempo in this spirited rendiiton.

Tracks:

Music For 18 Musicians

Tracks:

Different Trains
Tehillim
Eight Lines

Tracks:

(You Are) Variations
New York Counterpoint
Cello Counterpoint
Electric Counterpoint
Triple Quartet

Tracks:

Come Out
Proverb
The Desert Music

Tracks:

Music for Mallet Instruments, Voices, and Organ
Drumming

Album Description

Phases: A Nonesuch Retrospective is an essential CD companion to the extraordinary range of events in the United States and Europe on October 3rd, 2006 celebrating Steve Reich's 70th birthday.

Customer Reviews:

A Steve Reich 70th Birthday Present from Nonesuch.......2006-10-22

If you are a big Steve Reich fan, you probably already have most or all of these recordings. These are not rarities, PHASES is not for collectors -- this 5-disc box is aimed at those of us who have been curious, but not convinced enough to buy multiple Reich recordings. I, for instance, consider MUSIC FOR 18 MUSICIANS to be a masterpiece of late 20th century music (the original ECM recording), but I haven't been nearly as impressed by the other Reich music I've heard. I consider this box to be a gift, and now I have finally satisfied my curiosity about one of the most important and influential composers of our time.

Here we have, for less than the price of any two of these discs as previously marketed, the pioneering COME OUT (1966), a 1987 recording of the 1971 piece DRUMMING, a 1996 recording of the 1976 masterpiece MUSIC FOR 18 MUSICIANS by the Steve Reich Ensemble, the original recordings of DIFFERENT TRAINS (1988) and the TRIPLE QUARTET (1999/2000) with the Kronos Quartet, the original recordings of DESERT MUSIC (1984) and TEHILLIM (1993) for choir and orchestra, ELECTRONIC COUNTERPOINT (1987) with Pat Metheny, PROVERB from 1998, and the entire YOU ARE (VARIATIONS) album of 2005, and more.

I am not that impressed with the vocal compositions. Similarly, I don't think minimalism suits the string quartet format, though the TRIPLE QUARTET was better live when I heard the Kronos Quartet perform it at LSU in Baton Rouge in the spring of 2005. The concept of DIFFERENT TRAINS is powerful, the composition less so. COME OUT is a stunning work which ends, after the phase shifts separate, with a throbbing electronic rhythm track. DRUMMING is the next best thing to 18 MUSICIANS. I always assumed it was all drums, but as it turns out, it also includes marimbas, glockenspiels and vocals, which are added in turn to stunning effect.

You may know that Reich's music since the 1980s has been strongly shaped by his Jewish faith -- did you know he is an Orthodox Jew? Does it strike you as intriguing that such a radical, innovative composer is devoutly Orthodox? It certainly makes me even more interested in his music. (Thanks to David Schiff and his 11/6/06 article in The Nation for this insight.)

Happy Birthday, Steve, and shalom -- peace.

Budget priced overview of newer recordings.......2006-10-15

Reich suffers much the same problem as Riley (or even Cage and Stockhausen) where classic recordings remain unavailable and what can be found (easily) on the shelf are newer, 'tamer' recordings that fail to express the more challenging dimensions of the pieces. While much has been done to fix this problem with Riley, the best recordings of Reich remain unavailable.

This set collects the newer performances presented on Nonesuch (recordings dated from the late 80's to the present), and are not what many collectors are looking for. On the other hand, at ~$30 (the price of two CDs), this 5 disc set is nearly give-away and is difficult not to pick up based on this premise alone.

The set does contain a decent (though not terribly informative booklet), and the design of the set is functional and pleasent to look at. For those who want an idea of what Reich did and are willing to accept these rather mild recordings, this isn't a bad investment at all.

Here is what is included in the set (sort of unfortunate it isn't actually listed on the box):

Music for 18 Musicians (Recorded 1996)
Different Trains (1988)
Tehillium (1993)
Eight Lines (1996)
You Are (2005)
New York Counterpoint (1997)
Cello Counterpoint (2003)
Electric Counterpoint (1989)
Triple Quartet (1999/2000)
Come Out (1987)
Proverb (1998)
The Desert Machine (1985)
Music for mallet instruments, voices and organ (1990)
Drumming (1987)

Average customer rating:

Uneven quality but great value
A superb collection of Mendelssohn

Mendelssohn: The Masterworks [Box Set]

Manufacturer: Brilliant Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Octets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Quartets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Quintets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Trios | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Sacred & Religious | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Oratorios | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Anthems | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Cantatas | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Choruses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Hymns | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Masses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Motets | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Oratorios | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Psalms | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Te Deum | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Blowout Box Sets | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music

More Titles at Least 20% Off | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music

All Classical Music Blowout | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music

Opera & Vocal | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Dvorák: The Masterworks [Box Set]
Haydn: The Masterworks [Box Set]
Vivaldi: The Masterworks (Box Set)
Brahms: The Masterworks (Box Set)
Schubert: The Masterworks [Box Set]

ASIN: B00062FLJ2
Release Date: 2004-11-30

Customer Reviews:

Uneven quality but great value.......2007-04-30

Brilliant Classics has found a niche with their extremely low-price multi-disc collections of the work of a single composer or performer. The Bach, Mozart and Chopin Complete Editions are legitimately considered to be artistic and economical triumphs. But the Masterworks series are more uneven. Currently available from Amazon France at about a buck per CD, they're still a bargain for those interested in quickly building a music library. But it's worth keeping a few things in mind. Unlike the Bach and Mozart Editions, these are not always historically informed performances. In this Mendelssohn set, the Hanover Band puts in a cameo (in Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage), but most of the ensembles use modern instruments, techniques and proportions. This doesn't always work out, as in the case of the ponderously heavy recordings of the String Symphonies by an apparently full complement of Gewandhausorchester Leipzig strings (Mendelssohn likely wrote these early works for a much smaller group). The caliber of the performances varies too, ranging from good to poor, and from marquis musicians such as Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau to a few Dutch who-dats. The chamber musicians generally acquit themselves well (though the Octet recording is marred by an engineering flaw in the last movement, distortion, at least on my copy). But the symphonies suffer from some substandard performances, such as the Italian Symphony's live recording with not only audience noise but also ensemble flaws such as a distracting clarinet squeak in the first movement's recapitulation. Another strike is the lack of program notes. Brilliant's Complete Editions provide a booklet or CD-ROM with program notes, but here you'll need to do your own research.

Despite these shortcomings, this set is still good value (at least at Amazon France's current price of 31 Euros). And it's a fine way to become acquainted with Mendelssohn's music.

A superb collection of Mendelssohn.......2007-03-24

Let me preface this by saying that most of these works were not new to me - I own many other Mendelssohn CDs and have enjoyed his compositions for some time now. Also, this set is available much cheaper elsewhere, particularly from European retailers.
The symphonies are well-performed. 'Reformation' is an inspired live recording. The 12 string symphonies, written in Mendelssohn's youth, are also included. The concertos are exceptional - the violin concerto is as good as you'll find anywhere. The oratorios Elijah and Paulus are included, as well as the complete chamber works and a diverse assortment of choral works. The last few discs include the Lied ohne worte, the epic organ sonatas, and excellent renditions of A Midsummer Night's Dream and Fingal's Cave. While there are a few sketchy performances in the choral and chamber works, the performances and recordings are generally very solid, and the body of work couldn't be better.

Average customer rating:

The "Clinker" of the bunch

Brahms: The Masterworks (Box Set)

Manufacturer: Brilliant Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Quartets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Quintets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Sextets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Trios | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Ballads | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

Fantasies | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Sacred & Religious | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Choruses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Masses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Motets | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Oratorios | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Psalms | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Requiems | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Blowout Box Sets | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music

More Titles at Least 20% Off | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music

All Classical Music Blowout | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music

Opera & Vocal | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music

Brilliant Classics | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Mendelssohn: The Masterworks [Box Set]
Dvorák: The Masterworks [Box Set]
Vivaldi: The Masterworks (Box Set)
Beethoven: The Masterworks (Box Set)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Complete Works (170 CD Box Set)

ASIN: B00062FLIS
Release Date: 2004-11-30

Customer Reviews:

The "Clinker" of the bunch.......2006-12-19

Having collected the entire "The Masterworks" series (including the Bach and Mozart Complete Works) this set is the 'clinker' of the bunch. First off... 6 CD's of Lieder 'historic' (pre-historic) recordings. No Overtures, No Orchestral Seranades, No Haydn Variations?? The performances of the Symphonies and the Concertos are shakey and not very well recorded. Brilliant Classics, who has done such a wonderful job with the Hadyn Complete Symphonies (licensed from Nimbus), the Mozart and Bach Complete sets, has stumbled a bit with this release.

Average customer rating:

Sonorous Beauty

Nightshade Rounds: Virtuoso

Manufacturer: Virgin Records Us
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Preludes | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Road to the Sun: Latin Romances for Guitar; Sharon Isbin
Sharon Isbin Plays Baroque Favorites for Guitar
Bach: Complete Lute Suites
Rodrigo: Concierto de Aranjuez; Villa-Lobos: Concerto for guitar; Ponce: Concierto del sur

ASIN: B000002SQ9
Release Date: 1994-04-12

Tracks:

Five Bagatelles: I Allegro
Five Bagatelles: II Lento
Five Bagatelles: III Alla cubana
Five Bagatelles: IV =126c.
Five Bagatelles: V Con slancio
Nightshade Rounds
Preludes For Piano: I Allegro ben ritmato e deciso
Preludes For Piano: II Andante con moto e poco rubanto
Clocks
English Suite: Folk Songs
Nocturnal: I Musingly
Nocturnal: II Very agitated
Nocturnal: III Restless
Nocturnal: IV Uneasy
Nocturnal: V March-Like
Nocturnal: VI Dreaming
Nocturnal: VII Gently Rocking
Nocturnal: VIII Passacaglia

Customer Reviews:

Sonorous Beauty.......2007-03-10

When I first listened to Nightshade Rounds, I didn't find it all that great. Good, but not great.
But, like so many things that are sublime, you must experience them more than once to fully appreciate them. That was the case for me with this recording. Each time that I listen to it I like it more.
If you like solo "classical" guitar music, Sharon Isbin is a master and this is a must have recording.

Average customer rating:

Nocturne: Music for Dreaming

Manufacturer: Virgin Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Pavanes | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Quartets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Compilations | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

French | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Choruses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

4-for-3 Classical | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music

4-for-3 All Music | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Lost in Meditation: Meditative Gregorian Chants, Vol. 1
The Most Relaxing Classical Album in the World...Ever!

ASIN: B0002W1208
Release Date: 2005-09-27

Tracks:

Pavane - Paul Tortelier
Clair De Lune - Kun Woo Paik
II. Adagio - Sharon Isbin
II. Andante - Borodin String Quartet
Gnossienne No.1 - Anne Queffelec
Il Vecchio Castello - Charles Mackerras
Pavane Pour Une Infante Defunte - Libor Pesek
II. Andante - Sinfonia Varsovia
Meditation - Renaud Capucon
IV. Adagietto - Jukka-Pekka Saraste

Average customer rating:

Dun shows engaging guitar writing, but with little in the way of orchestral drama
Flawless work of art!!
Well-deserved award-winner
Complex and amazing
Hurray! For Rouse and Dun

Sharon Isbin

Manufacturer: Teldec
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Rodrigo: Concierto de Aranjuez; Villa-Lobos: Concerto for guitar; Ponce: Concierto del sur
Sharon Isbin Plays Baroque Favorites for Guitar
Dreams of a World
Journey to the Amazon
Greatest Hits

ASIN: B000050J1F
Release Date: 2001-05-15

Tracks:

Rouse: Concert de Gaudi for Guitar and Orchestra
Rouse: Concert de Gaudi for Guitar and Orchestra
Rouse: Concert de Gaudi for Guitar and Orchestra
Dun: Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra
Dun: Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra
Dun: Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra
Dun: Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra
Dun: Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra

Amazon.com

Sharon Isbin knows how to pick classical guitar works just about as well as she knows how to play them (which is to say, exceptionally well). On her Grammy Award-winning Dreams of a World, she explored folksy classical guitar works from around the world. On this disc, the music of two guitar concerto world premieres is less-familiar and just as exciting. Christopher Rouse's Concerto de Gaudi for Guitar and Orchestra is rooted in the Spanish idiom, but it has numerous twists and turns. Isbin gets plenty of tricky solo flights here, but the piece also features some truly explosive brass and percussion moments reminiscent of orchestral works by Ives and Revueltas. Tan Dun's commission for Isbin is less structured; there's plenty of improvisation where the guitarist is required to use tremolo to make her instrument sound like a Chinese lute, or p'i-p'a. Again, you'll hear the influence of Spanish composers, though you never lose the influence of Eastern tonalities in Tan Dun's Impressionistic work. It's a fantastic showcase for Isbin's talents, though not necessarily a piece you'll want to hear every day. These live recordings boast great sonics, and the Gulbenkian Orchestra is in fine form. --Jason Verlinde

Customer Reviews:

Dun shows engaging guitar writing, but with little in the way of orchestral drama.......2006-12-11

I will limit my comments here to the Tan Dun piece, as I don't care much for the music of Christopher Rouse.

Tan Dun's concerto for guitar and orchestra "Yi2" (1996) is one of the composer's more avant-garde statements, light years away from the world-music crossover gimmickry of the "Symphony 1997" he was readying around the same-time. That is not to say that Tan Dun's Chinese culture plays a role here, for in fact like all his best work this music is a wholesome and *convincing* synthesis of modern orchestral trends with Dun's rural Chinese upbringing.

Out of classical soloist repertoire, music for guitar has been the most difficult for me. Even with composers that are nearly always satisfying, such as Per Norgard and Toru Takemitsu, their guitar music just leaves me scratching my head. I suspect that it is because growing up with rock music makes the guitar "not classical enough", as it were. How does Tan Dun overcomes my resistence? By writing for the guitar as if it were not a guitar! That is, at times Tan Dun treats the guitar as if it were the pipa, the stringed Chinese folk instrument. At other times he gives an aggressive edge to a usually lilting instrument, even exploring the possibilities of noise.

The orchestral scoring is considerable, with a large string section and four percussionists playing exotic instruments and Tan Dun's own water inventions. Nonetheless, it normally stays out of the way of the soloist. Yet, in the end, that's what gives me reservations about the concerto. Its musical material could have been used just as well for a solo work, there's no sense of dialogue or confrontation between soloist and orchestra.

As much as I admire the guitar writing, "Yi2" ultimately gives mixed feelings. For those new to Tan Dun, I'd recommend the superb DVD of his work "The Map" (on Deutsche Grammophon) or the "Water Passion" (Sony). Save this disc for when you've decided to seek out more.

Flawless work of art!!.......2005-04-19

This disc features unbelievable musical composition, emotional playing, and great depth and breadth a emotion. A must have - truly incredible music.....

Well-deserved award-winner.......2002-07-26

Some new pieces of music sound OK the first or second time you listen to them, then the returns diminish. Others are bad to begin with and get worse.

With this CD, I thought: hmm, pretty nice, maybe I'll listen to it again. Like an opening flower, each subsequent exposure brought greater pleasure. What a suprise that music this subtle yet generous recording would win composer Rouse a Grammy, which often goes to more splashy issues!

This CD has earned an honored--and well worn--parking slot on my collector's shelf!

Complex and amazing.......2001-12-05

Rouse's concerto is one of the richest and most amazingly complex pieces of contemporary music I've heard in quite a while, but is at the same time completely accessible on first listening. Someone should, however, correct Mr. Rouse's mistaken impression that flamenco music has anything to do with the Barcelona architect Antoni Gaudi, who was Catalan, not Spanish. Even the writer of the liner notes refers several times to Gaudi as "Spanish" and seems to think that flamenco music is somehow a natural match for his architectural genius. This is somewhat analogous to saying that one should listen to Delta blues while viewing the buildings of Frank Lloyd Wright. Catalan culture is entirely distinct from the Andalucian roots of flamenco. Perhaps Mr. Rouse has never been to Spain. But enough quibbling: the work itself (leaving Gaudi out of it) is astonishing and very highly recommended.

Hurray! For Rouse and Dun.......2001-10-10

Wonderful work Mr. Rouse, I have not heard you
have this much fun since the recording 'Dance Mix'
came out, remember? the piece you wrote for 8 percussionists?
Well, this guitar concerto; "Concert de Gaudi"
is wonderful.There is a chord in the first movement of
this concerto similar to one used by Romero and Torroba,
in their "Concierto de Malaga". Full orchestra with a
big percussion section and loud brass and at times, evocative
solos on the solo guitar section.As for Mr. Dun, his Concerto
for Guitar and Orchestra, is just as good. Full of percussion,
including a 'water gong', which is a normal practice for this
composer.Dun's Concerto is great, charming, at times sensous,
and inventive. Mr. Dun, you did a wonderful work.I am very please
to own this recording in my personal collection.

Rock Music:

Rock Music

rock music