Two x Four: J. S. Bach, Anna Clyne, Philip Glass & David Ludwig - Jennifer Koh & Jaime Laredo, violins; Curtis 20/21 Ensemble/Vinay Parameswaran (Çedille 146)
Three great conservatories (two in Northeast Ohio) are represented on this new disc: Jennifer Koh is an Oberlin alum, Jaime Laredo teaches at the Cleveland Institute of Music and at Philadelphia’s Curtis Institute. This project has been in the works since 2010, when Jennifer Koh approached composers Anna Clyne and David Ludwig about creating new concertante works for 2 violins, inspired by one of Ms. Koh’s favorite works, the Bach Double Concerto which leads off the program. Anna Clyne responded with Prince of Clouds, written specifically for Jennifer Koh and her mentor at Curtis, Jaime Laredo. David Ludwig’s Seasons Lost is an artist’s response to the reality of global climate change. The fourth composer in “Two x Four” is Philip Glass whose Echorus was written in 1995 for Yehudi Menuhin.
Featured Mon 6/2, Wed 6/11, Fri 6/20
Fantasies: Schumann, Bruckner, Zemlinsky & Brahms - Stanislav Khristenko, piano (Steinway 30032)
James Manheim, All Music Guide: "A highly impressive debut CD. Ukrainian pianist Stanislav Khristenko broke through to American audiences as the winner of the Cleveland International Piano Competition, and it is heartening to see him capitalize on that triumph not with a splashy performance of standard concerto repertoire but with this thoughtful recital. Its title can be taken two ways: the four works on the program are a collection of fantasies, but also an exploration of the concept as it developed in the late 19th century...He bookends the program with...the Schumann Fantasie in C Op 17, and the extremely intricate Fantasies Op 116, of Brahms...In between are two rarely played works, each of them delightful. Anton Bruckner's Fantasie in G, one of very few keyboard pieces he wrote...and Alexander Zemlinsky's Fantasies on Poetry by Richard Dehmel...songs without words for the end of the century, dreamy and dense explorations of the mood of the four poems...Highly recommended."
Featured Tue 6/3 Thu 6/12, Mon 6/23
Recomposed by Max Richter: Vivaldi - The Four Seasons - Daniel Hope, violin; Max Richter, Moog synthesizer; Berlin Concert House Chamber Orchestra/André de Ridder (DeutGram 4792777)
Blair Sanderson, allmusic.com: "Antonio Vivaldi's Le Quattro Stagioni is one of the most beloved works in Baroque music, and even the most casual listener can recognize certain passages of "Spring" or "Winter" from frequent use in television commercials and films. Yet if these concertos have grown a little too familiar to experienced classical fans, Max Richter has disassembled them and fashioned a new composition from the deconstructed pieces. Using post-minimalist procedures to extract fertile fragments and reshape the materials into new music, Richter has created an album that speaks to a generation familiar with remixes, sampling, and sound collages, though his method transcends the manipulation of prerecorded music. Richter has actually rescored the Four Seasons and given the movements of Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter thorough makeovers that vary substantially from the originals. The new material is suggestive of a dream state, where drifting phrases and recombined textures blur into walls of sound, only to re-emerge with stark clarity and poignant immediacy. Violinist Daniel Hope is the brilliant soloist in these freshly elaborated pieces, and the Berlin Concert House Chamber Orchestra is conducted with control and assurance by André de Ridder, so Richter's carefully calculated effects are handled with precision and subtlety."
Featured Wed 6/4, Fri 6/13, Tue 6/24
Robert Schumann: The Symphonies - Chamber Orchestra of Europe/Yannick Nézet-Séguin (DeutGram 4792437)
Of his first recording of a complete symphony cycle, conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin says, "Of all the major symphonies, I’d say that Schumann’s are best performed by a slightly smaller ensemble... With a lean string section – not only in size, but also in its quality of playing – the music just works...[Schumann] is one of those composers whose personality is completely expressed in their music...those fluctuations between the melancholy and something very inward-looking are combined with a very manic kind of energy that wants to conquer the world. That’s what is so special about Schumann." These performances were captured live at acclaimed concerts in Paris.
Featured Thu 6/5, Mon 6/16, Wed 6/25
New World Quartets: Dvorák, Copland, Barber, Gershwin & Brubeck - Brodsky Quartet (Chandos 10801)
Classicfm.com: "In their new release, the ever-innovative Brodsky Quartet explores the sound of America through music written for string quartet. Unsurprisingly, it includes a complete performance of Dvorak’s ‘American’ String Quartet, as well as the original string quartet version of Barber’s Adagio for Strings. There’s also a suitably languid and touching performance of Lullaby by Gershwin, and a very playful arrangement by one of the Brodsky's own members of Copland’s famous ‘Hoe Down’ from the ballet Rodeo. A passionate and elegant album, capturing the spirit and pathos of the new world."
Featured Fri 6/6, Tue 6/17, Thu 6/26
Broadway to Hollywood: Kaper, Herrmann, Gershwin, Loewe, Weill, Porter, Newman, Warren, Martin, Rodgers, Arlen, Berlin, Lane & Khachaturian - Richard Glazier, piano (Centaur 3347)
Pianist Richard Glazier: "Recording this CD brought back many wonderful memories from my childhood. I have loved movies, movie music and Broadway musicals my entire life. I discovered a lot of this music for the first time when my parents bought me a 16mm Bell and Howell sound projector in the early 70s. It was one of the machines made out of metal from the 1950s and had to be manually threaded. In those days one could go to the public library and check out pristine prints of all the classic films for 2 days at no charge. Since my mom was an actress and a page at CBS in New York during the golden age of radio, she encouraged my passion for music, movies and Broadway...Her older sister (my Aunt Esther) was like my grandmother and we spent every Saturday together. She also fueled my passion and ultimately helped me write a fan letter to Ira Gershwin. Little did I know that would be a life defining moment for me...It is my wish that when you listen to this recording many happy memories will be brought to you as well."
Featured Mon 6/9, Wed 6/18, Fri 6/27
Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 1-4; Overtures to The Creatures of Prometheus & Coriolan - Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra/Bruno Weil (Tafelmusik 1023)
Conductor Bruno Weil: "We approach these Beethoven symphonies as if they were the very first performance, as though the music had been composed yesterday. This is the real thing - there's no sense of routine with Tafelmusik musicians, and everybody's giving their all for this music, playing with a full heart and a full soul and spirit." This 2-CD set continues the Beethoven cycle recorded live in concerts in Toronto's Koerner Hall. The ensemble's period-instrument musicians are seasoned Beethovenians: Tafelmusik has a nineteen-year tenure as orchestra-in-residence at the Klang und Raum Festival in Irsee, Germany, where Bruno Weil has directed the orchestra in internationally acclaimed performances of Beethoven symphonies.
Featured Tue 6/10, Thu 6/19, Mon 6/30