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BERT WECHSLER REMEMBERS:
PAST REVIEWS OF BROADWAY AND CLASSICAL CDs
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LENA HORNE: Love is the Thing. Jazz Heritage 514375T.
Vintage Horne, a beautifully chosen compilation of 20 songs recorded from
1955 to 62. This is real singing: sit back, enjoy.
CHARLES TRENET: Anthologie. Angel EMI 8 31393 2.
Trenet was one of my favorite French Music Hall singers. I heard him long
years ago at a star-packed benefit in the old Madison Square Garden and a
lifetime later caught his farewell engagement at the Olympia in Paris (I
secretly taped that but the tape is lost). This disc has 20 cuts,
wonderful in itself with his ebullient spirit, but shouldn't an anthology
be at least two discs? No bio or liner notes at all.
ELGAR, FRANCK: Violin Sonatas. Midori, violin; Robert McDonald,
piano. Sony Classical SK 63331.
This is good: it has passion and drama. My favorite Franck Sonata
recorded performance is the one by the Menuhins, there is more drama in
their two instruments than in a full orchestra but this one is awfully
good, surprisingly exciting.
LISZT: Works for Violin and Piano. Rachael Barton, violin;
Thomas Labe, piano. Dorian 90251.
Unfamiliar music, unfamiliar artists, all quite wonderful. The musical
line seems to be balanced on Barton's bow and Labe, who has the Hungarian
Rhapsody No. 2 to himself, is up to it all. I keep replaying this.
FRANZ SCHMIDT: String Quartets. Franz Schubert Quartet, Wein.
Nimbus NI 5467.
I had always, without really knowing for sure, thought Schmidt a dullish
conservative genre composer of his time (d. 1939) but his two
quartets are soothing and involving. I keep listening to this, too. The
performances seem to be definitive.
LISZT, BACH-BUSONI, CHOPIN. Ferrucio Busoni, piano. Nimbus
Grand Piano 8810.
This Grand Piano Series, like all recordings of original piano rolls,
arouses strong controversy. Some mavens like it, some revile it. I like
it, and enjoy, for instance Saint-Saens playing for me on Archiphone 106.
Nimbus uses the Duo-Art reproducing piano. Busoni was, of course, and
original and searching musician: his performances are always rewarding.
Each Grand Piano CD comes with informative articles on the pianists by
David Dubal.
MOZART: B Major Sonata, 12 Variations in C; MENDELSSOHN: Serious
Variations, Rondo capriccioso. Nina Marget Grimsdottir, piano. SKR
SKREF 008.
A young pianist from Iceland who has a lovely touch, sense of style and
strong musicality. One can relax to this.
CHOPIN: Works. Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, piano. Fonit
Cetra CDO 122.
This Volume One of the official archives of the Italian radio RAI and
why, when I like Michelangeli so much, I don't like this? Besides, the
disc arrived with many flaws on it: it plays like an old 78rpm.
GIUSEPPE MARTUCCI: L canzone dei ricordi, Piano Concerto.
Mirella Freni, soprano, Carlo Bruno, piano; Orchestra Filarmonico della
Scala, Riccardo Muti conducting.
Martucci was a favored conductor of Toscanini whose proselytizing of his
music didn't catch on, except perhaps for these seven gorgeous songs,
here sung equally gorgeously by Freni. The concerto is a big one with big
gestures and strong lyricism. I would invest in this disc if I were
thee.
PAGANINI: Violin Concerto No. 1; TCHAIKOVSKY: Violin Concerto.
Victor Tretyakov, violin; Moscow Philharmonic, Neeme Jarvi conducting.
Melodiya 40720 2.
When these performances first came out, in the middle '60s, they gained
excitement because we were discovering Tretyakov: now this is part of the
"Neeme Jarvi, The Early Recordings" edition. Tempus might fuget but this
still to be had for Tretyakov. Young and dashing.
JANACEK: Sinfonietta, Violin Concerto, Suite from "The Cunning
Little Vixen." Christiane Edinger, violin, Southwest Radio Orchestra,
Vaclav Neumann conducting. Arte Nova 30481 2.
The Concerto is dated 1926, reconstructed 1988, but there is nary a
comment on it in the booklet. All three works are eminently approachable
and conducted with clarity by Neumann, no stranger to Janacek. No bombast
in the Sinfonietta. Nice work by Edinger, too. A good disc.
MENDELSSOHN: Elijah. Gwyneth Jones, Janet Baker, Nicolai Gedda,
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau; New Philharmonia conducted by Rafael Frubeck de
Burgos. EMI Classics 5 68601 2 (2 CDs). MENDELSSOHN: Elijah.
Isobel Baillie, Gladys Ripley, James Johnston, Harold Williams;
Huddersfield Choral Society; Liverpool Philharmonic, Malcolm Sargent
conducting. Dutton Laboratories 2CDAX2004 (2 CDs).
I like "Elijah" and until recently preferred the EMI recording with its
stellar cast and sympathetic conducting, finally out on CD. Then Dutton
came with Sargent's 1947 performance which convinces you that this
is the way the music was written to be heard. A different work and a
greater one, its greatness unfolding as it goes along. You are at one of
England's fabled choral festivals.
WAGNER: Tristan and Isolde. Helga Dernesch, Christa Ludwig, Jon
Vickers, Walter Berry, Karl Ridderbusch; Berlin Philharmonic, Herbert Von
Karajan conducting. Musical Heritage Society 544623T (4 CDs).
How often von Karajan is right and this is one of those times. A towering
"Tristan." Vickers is unstoppable and Dernesch, before she turned mezzo,
was a creamy Isolde. Having several favorite "Tristan" recordings (mostly
"pirates," I did not intend to keep this one: I cannot consider passing
it on and I won't.
PUCCINI: Madama Butterfly. Toti dal Monti, Beniamino Gigli; Orchestra of the Rome opera, Oliviero de Fabritiis, conductor. Pearl GEMM CDS 9290 (2 CDs) It's a bit too late to debate the merits of this classic 1940 recording. The Pearl remastering is a shade less mellow then the EMI one, CHS 69990 2 and that makes a difference with dal Monte's idiosyncratic teen-age voice and Gigli's gold. EMI is thus more satisfying.
PROKOFIEV: War and Peace. Galina Vishnevskaya, Irina Arkhipova,
Yevgeny Kibkalo, Vladimir Petrov, Pavel Lisitsian; Bolshoi Theatre,
Moscow, Alexander Melik-Pashayev conducting.
If you like this opera, and its glories mostly escape me, this 1961
recording has passion and warmth. And voices. A modern Kirov performance,
conducted by Valery Gergiev of course with his mostly in your face (where
are the overtones?) stable of singers is out on Philips -- heard and seen
on the Video cassette (440 070 527-3, 2 cassettes) -- is to me glitzy and
cold in an awful British production better not seen. There is also a "War
and Peace" on Erato, conducted by Rostropovich with Vishnevshaya, Ochman
and Gedda never to forget (ECD-75480, 4 CDs).
THE DOMINGO COLLECTION. Placido Domingo, tenor; others. Sony
Classical S2K 63027 (2CDs).
Sure, for tourists. No. I was surprised how much enjoyment I got out of
this many faceted "portrait" of Domingo. Forget the Pop stuff and listen
to the wide variety of opera (some more than just bleeding chunks) and
songs which are included here. The Spanish music always opens an especial
warmth in that never-ending voice.
DEBRA KITABJIAN EVERY: Songs by Mozart, Montsavatge, Respighi.
Swedish Chamber Orchestra, Sixten Ehrling conducting. Bluebell ABCD
068.
This new voice from Sweden hails from Philadelphia. Her career at this
point seems tied up with conductor Ehrling. A good choice on his part as
she has a rich, appealing mezzo which makes music. The repertoire on this
disc has its own interest so, if you can find it, I recommend you
listen.
LOLITA. Film sound track. Turner Classic Movies Rhino 02
72841,
I don't really know why anyone would really want this but it's a hoot --
and James Mason's voice occasionally mellows the air. The music is by
Nelson Riddle and the film dates from 1962.
MONTEVERDI: Ballo delle ingrate, Combattimento di Tancredi e
Clorinda. Cappella Musicale di S. Petronio de Bologna, Sergio
Vartolo, director. Naxos 8.553322. Vespro della Beata
Vergine.Cantus Coln, Konrad Junghanel, artistic director. deutsche
harmonia mundi 77332 2 (2 CDs).L'Ottavo Libro de Madrigali. The
Consort of Musicke, Anthony Rooley, director. Musical Heritage Society
514165T.
When was the last time you went on a Monteverdi binge? It's worth it. I'm
partial to "Tancredi" but all these performances are worthy.
HAYDN: Symphonies Nos. 97, 98, 99. George Szell conducting the
Cleveland Orchestra. Sony Masterworks Heritage MHK 62979. SCHUMANN:
The Four Symphonies.: George Szell conducting the Cleveland
Orchestra. Sony Heritage MH2K 62349 (2 CDs). BEETHOVEN:
Egmont. Pilar Lorengar, soprano; George Szell conducting the Vienna
Philharmonic. Musical Heritage Society 514499Z.
Sleeping giants awake on re-issues. Szell was a giant and listen to all
of these. MHS also has a 2 CD set of Szell with the Concertgebouw which
includes Mozart's 34th, Beethoven's 5th, and Sibelius' 2nd. Before you
talk about new conductors, listen to the older one.
BERLIOZ: Romeo and Juliet, The Damnation of Faust, L'Enfance du
Christ, Harold in Italy, Requiem, Symphonie fantastique, Les nuits d'ete,
others. Soloists, including Victoria de los Angeles, Boston Symphony,
Charles Munch conducting. RCAVictor 68444-2 (8 CDs).
Talk about blockbusters! OK, Munch wasn't Monteux or maybe some (few)
others but if you want a full collection of Berlioz as I do -- a
revelation: I was in the mood for some music that encompassed the whole
world and I thought, of course, of Mahler, then realized that Berlioz
does this in a kinder, gentler way -- this is the collection to get.
Philips has released a box of 6 CDs of Colin Davis in Berlioz, just the
orchestral works (456 143-2), but the one I'd want is this Munch, with
other individual recordings. And the packaging is intelligent: 8 CDs in
a box only a tad wider than the old 2 CD boxes (the Philips is also
thin). But I really want Albert Wolff. The glorious "L'Enfance" is
re-released by EMI, 5 68586-2, conducted by Andre Cluytens with de los
Angeles and Nicolai Gedda. Excerpts from "Romeo" are included, conducted
by Giulini.
SCHUMANN: Das Paradies und die Peri. Soloists, Leipzig Radio
Orchestra, Wolf-Dieter Hauschild, conducting. Berlin Classics
0091882BC.
I've never heard of any of the soloists nor the conductor but this is a
warm, absolutely beautiful performance of fabulously lovely music. It is
lush, melodic and obviously written with great love. It is communicated.
The recording dates from 1984 and the libretto is only in German.
LISZT: Piano Concertos nos. 1 and 2, Totentanz, B minor Sonata,
Dante Sonata, others. Alfred Brendel, piano; Vienna Symphony, Michael
Gielen conducting. Vox Box CDX 5172 (2 CDs).
Remember when we first heard of Brendel from all those encompassing Vox
Boxes on LP? I know how he plays Liszt today but had forgotten how well
he played him in 1956 and 57. Excuse me while I put the B minor Sonata on
again. And don't forget Vox' 3 CD Box of Brendel in Schubert, 3041. O,
the infinite variety of Schubert! And then, for Liszt, there's Jorge
Bolet (Everest 9015) and he has the advantage of Robert Irving, the great
unrecognized conductor, as his colleague. I never heard Liszt One this
way.
ZINO FRANCESCATTI. New York Philharmonic, Dimitri Mitropoulos
conducting; Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy conducting. Sony
Masterworks Heritage MH2K 62339 (2 CS). ZINO FRANCESCATTI.
Columbia Symphony, Andre Cluytens conducting; Robert Casadesus, Max
Lanner, piano. Pearl GEMM 9250.
Finally Francescatti has reached CD, even from Sony which has not been
generous with its vault treasures. Five concertos and the Chausson
"Poeme" make up this set: The Pearl's Lalo Symphonie espagnole and the
Franck Sonata plus encore pieces all date from 1945 and they all are
treasures. One of the most satisfying violinists of his time, it is good
to have him back.
ANGELIKA KIRCHSCHLAGER: Lieder.Helmut Deutsch, piano. Sony
Classical SK 68344.
It takes guts to release a debut album of a new mezzo-soprano but the
Austrian-born Kirchschlage carries it off neatly. Most of the songs are
of Mahler which she does with unassuming smoothness but the novelty is
songs by Korngold and Alma Mahler. These, of course have an interest of
their own. Diction could be better but I think we have a real singer
here. I love designers. Kirchschlager's name is hard enough, and not yet
well-known: try to read it on the cover. Or the pianist's. Or anything.
HE'LL BRING IT TO PASS: Spirituals and Americanegro Suite.
Del-Louise Moyer, mezzo; Dean Williamson, piano. Alyssum
ALY-9001.
In times past, Spirituals were on the regular recital programs of such
singers as Helen Traubel and Ezio Pinza. They can be great music. Then,
alas, the world became departmentalized. All hail to Moyer to release an
album, sung heart-feltedly and nicely, of this repertoire. The
"Americanegro Suite," six songs, is by Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler. Try
to find this.
ISABEL MARENGO: Homenaja. Piscitelli P-008
No, I am sorry to say that I had never heard of Marengo, an Argentine
soprano (1893-1977) until this disc. She sang important roles with
stellar casts in South America and Europe but evidently not in America.
The first note of the first cut ("Manon") put me in mind of Albanese but
that passed. Marengo has her own tone and passion. There are 22 cuts
here, opera in idiomatic Italian and songs in Spanish. I suggest you
listen to this major talent.
AKSEL SCHIOTZ:The Complete Recordings 1933-1946. Eventual 10
volumes, Vols 1-8 Danacord CACODC 451-458.
Danacord, the Danish company that issued the complete European recordings
of Lauritz Melchior (plus a "pirate" of Melchior's last Met "Lohengrin")
and the historic Carl Nielsen performances is at it again. Schiotz wasn't
only a Danish tenor, he was revered worldwide. His Schubert "Schone
Mullerin" and Mozart especially are lauded. Well, everything is here, or
will be. The remastering brings back the warmth in the voice that was
missing in other pressings. Warning: unless you are Danish, the sheer
number of Danish songs is daunting so you may want to choose your
volumes.
JAN PEERCE: The Great American Tenor. Legato Classics
205-1
Once again Legato has done what BMG should have done: released superb
recordings of American singers from RCA's vault. Do you remember how good
Peerce was, he musicality, style, yes even his voice? These 15 cuts are
well-chosen and superb. Get this. Aside from the others, if Peerce's "The
Holy City" isn't an example of the greatest singing, I don't know what
is. The Radio Years RY8 has Peerce's radio cuts, a wish-fulfillment disc
that includes, among what you would expect, "Nessun Dorma" and "Di quella
pira."
CARMEN. The 1915 Cecil B. de Mille film starring Geraldine
Farrar. VAI 69222.
Yes, this is not a CD but a very important Video, restored and tinted
magnificently. The Metropolitan opera soprano Farrar made 14 silent film
of which "Carmen" was the first. de Mille's version is not the opera --
Don Jose is very much a business job for Carmen -- and the film runs
about an hour (the Lenscrafter "Carmen?"). Farrar acts all out, and while
her "unbridled sensuality" must be taken on faith, she is quite
wonderful. The original symphony orchestra musical accompaniment is also
restored. An important and historic document, one that is quite
enjoyable, too.
CANDIDE. "New Broadway Cast Recording." RCAVictor 68835-2.
Why don't they leave "Candide" alone? The vocal lines are here simplified
and there are jazzy new orchestral arrangements that often sound like a
circus. Take the original, please.
STEEL PIER. Original Broadway cast recording. RCAVictor
68878-2.
Even more than on stage this score is relentless. It drives and drives
and drives one a little mad. "Chicago" on coke; "Cabaret" on speed. And
without Karen Ziemba's physical energy and teeth, there are few redeeming
features here.
KURT WEILL ON BROADWAY. Steven Kimbrough; Cologne Radio
orchestra, Victor Symonette conducting. Koch Schwann 3-1416-2.
Somehow I can't get excited about this disc but it's certainly one to
have. Lesser (or unknown) songs from Weill's Broadway shows and one
should know them. I'm especially glad to hear "Here I'll Stay" from "Love
Life."
FRED ASTAIRE AT M-G-M. Rhino R2 72828-2 (2 CDs).
Now here is something. From 1933's "Dancing Lady" with Joan
Crawford on, we have 39 cuts of Astaire, all at his best. Try not to
dance on the walls and ceiling, just try.
SONGS & MORE SONGS BY TOM LEHRER Rhino R2 72776.
Will a whole new generation now know and love Tom Lehrer -- and forget
his lesser imitators? But where are the topical songs, Werner von Braun,
for instance? Certainly get this but I'll hold on to my LPs, the 12 inch
and the 10 inch ones.
HELGE ROSVAENGE und die Leichte Muse 1927-1937. Lebendige
Vergangenheit 89225 (2CDs)
One of the greatest tenors ever in 42 cuts of operetta, almost a
lifetime's worth, full-throated and exciting. To hear Rosvaenge sing the
original of the Dean Martin tango "I Get Ideas" is a trip! The Danish
record company Danacord once released, but only on LP and I think on this
writer's instigation, Rosvaenge's very early Danish popular songs. I only
have a test cassette of them but they are fun. Opportunistic under
Hitler, yes, but a superb tenor nonetheless.
ZWEI HERTZEN IM DREIVIERTELTAKT. Sylvia Geszty, Peter Schreier;
Dresden Philharmonic conducted by Heinz Rogner. Berlin Classics
0020722BC.
Tenor Schreier, if not all things to all men, seems to be all things to
Berlin Classics and so his open throat and full singing in this
repertoire is really a surprise. Geszty is to the manner born and the
songs and duets are not always the usual fare. I liked this and think you
will.
PUCCINI: La Boheme. Rosanna Carteri, Ferruccio Tagliavini,
Giuseppe Taddei, Cesare Siepi. Orchestra of Turin Radio, 1952, Gabriele
Santini conducting. Cetra CDO 30 (2 CDs)
Next to the Toscanini, this has always been my favorite recording of "La
Boheme." It's everything you want, and more. My third favorite is a live
performance from New Orleans, 1959, with Licia Albanese (also on the
Toscanini -- and the Gigli) and the young Giuseppe di Stefano, conducted
by Renato Cellini on VAI Audio 1119-2.
MOZART: Cosi fan tutti. Elisabeth Schwartzkopf, Hanny Steffek,
Christa Ludwig, Alfredo Kraus, Giuseppe Taddei, Walter Ludwig.
Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Karl Boehm. Musical Heritage Society
534553W (3 CDs)
Funny, I've never heard a recording of "Cosi" I haven't liked and this is
no exception. Great cast -- Schwartzkopf is not too mannered and Berry
not too young (this is 1963) and everything works. Kraus, Taddei and
Ludwig. What more do you want? How many recordings can one keep. And I'm
still waiting for Sony to rerelease the Metropolitan Opera one with
Steber and Thebom, conducted by Stiedry, in English.
DEBUSSY: Pelleas et Melisande. Mireille Delunsch, Gerard
Theruel, Armand Arapian, Gabriel Bacquier; Lille Opera, Jean-Claude
Casadesus, conducting. Naxos 8.660047-9 (3CDs)
>From Lille, from Naxos and with unfamiliar singers (except Bacquier who
here sings Arkel), a serious, fully satisfying accomplishment, recorded
well. I can't say enough good words about this - but don't forget the
Metropolitan Opera 1945 performance released by Walhal (WHL 27). It has
Sayao, Singher, Tibbett and Kipnis, conducted by Emil Cooper. Bacquier
was a great Golaud; Arapian is a fine one, but Tibbett was the best. And
that's only a "for instance."
NICOLAI GEDDA: The First Ten Years. Bluebell ABCD056
We seem to have always taken Swedish tenor Gedda for granted. Supreme in
Mozart, French opera, Czech opera, operetta, Italian roles, everything:
O, it's Gedda. These recordings, which even include a "Celeste Aida"
rival any tenor, including the young di Stefano. Listen, enjoy, and
marvel.
ALEXANDER KIPNIS: Opera, Lieder. Nimbus Prima Voce NI 7885/6 (2 CDs). ALEXANDER KIPNIS: Opera Arias & Songs. Sony MHK 62354. OMAGGIO AD ALEXANDER KIPNIS. Great Opera Performances 799 (2 CDs). Kipnis (1891-1978) owned a rolling bass voice and peerless artistry. I don't know why these three releases appeared almost simultaneously but welcome they are. In spite of a bit of repetition between them, I recommend all three, covering the length of his career. And don't forget the earlier RCA release, 60522-2. A Verdi heroic bass, maybe not, but everything else is profound singing.
BRUCKNER: Symphony No. 7. Berlin Philharmonic, 1971, Herbert
von Karajan conducting. Musical Heritage Society 514557A.
Say7 what you will about Bruckner and/or about Herbert the K, this is a
great performance, simply a great performance. You will hear meanings you
never conceived of before in this music -- did Bruckner conceive of them?
NIELSEN: Just about everything: Danacord in many multi disc volumes. The Danish company Danacord has, for several years now, been reprocessing and releasing CD versions of historic recordings of the music of Carl Nielsen. We have volumes of the operas, symphonies, chamber works. This is a remarkable accomplishment and this writer strongly suggests you browse the Nielsen bin and consider all of these.
HINDEMITH: Das Marienleben, 19 piano Songs. Ruth Ziesak; Ulrich
Eisenlahr; NDR Radio Philharmonic, Cord Gorben conducting. CPO999
331-2
Never have I heard "Das Marienleben" taken so seriously and given so
persuasive performance from both singer and conductor. This whole disc is
a triumph.
THE MUSIC OF PAUL BOWLES. EOS Ensemble, Jonathan Sheffer,
conductor. Catalyst 68409-2.
Bowles is quite famous in some circles but few seem to really know for
what. Here we have five of his music works and they all sound like
Poulenc to me with an occasional gloss of Ravel. Satie would have helped.
They're not in the least unpleasant, but neither is Poulenc.
RAPHAEL MOSTEL: Nightsongs.
Tibetan Singing Bowl Ensemble, New Music For Old Instruments. Source
Music 10008-2.
The singing bowls of Tibet are an ancient aid to religious rite and
meditation. Other sound medium were added, like yak horn and human femur,
and as such I was introduced to the form by a CD released by Musical
Heritage Society a while back with Alqin Pressencer. Mostel knows his
bowl and adds instruments like the didjeridoo, flutes, lyzarden. The
performances here of "Jacob's Ladder" and "Nightsong" are live ones and
they are special listening, still for meditation: certainly not for beer
parties. Try.
WILEM MENGELBERG: A Portrait (1926-1941). New York
Philharmonic, Concertgebouw Orchestra. Grammophono 2000 AB 78637.39 (3
CDs).
From Beethoven to Weber to Tchaikovsky to Wagner this set is a delight.
Can you call Mengelberg's music making conversational? That's what it
seems to be: he is talking to you in music. A superb set.
THE LIFE. Original Broadway cast. Sony SK 63312.
It's not a pleasant story, nasty even, but it is a real Broadway score.
Cy Coleman sets Ira Gasman's lyrics the way lyrics should be set and the
cast is faultless. Andrew Lloyd Webber and his imitators be damned. This
is this season's the Broadway score to get.
TITANIC. Original Broadway cast. RCAVictor 68834-2.
When it opened on Broadway, the review of this musical by this writer,
printed on these (electronic) pages was headed "It's Not Just the
Iceberg" and I see no reason to revise my opinion. One begins with hope,
and hope sinks, too. Maury Yeston's score has elements of everybody
except, perhaps his successful "Phantom of the Opera," put in the shade
by the other "Phantom." Is that why Andrew Lloyd Webber is the
main inspiration for this one?
LADY IN THE DARK. Rise Stevens, John Reardon, Danny Kaye,
Lehman Engel, conducting. Sony Classical MHK 62869.
From the point of view of today, Ira Gershwin's lyrics can be too cute
for they're own good and psychoanalysis is more than passe, but the Kurt
Weill score holds up and Rise Stevens is magnificent. Also on this disc
is the Danny Kaye recording of the full score. Yes, a necessity.
SWINGTIME CANTEEN. Atlantic City cast plus "guests." Papa
HF9798.
World War Two songs, nostalgic and fun. But to this old person they
don't get the sound. The Andrew Sisters songs without the Andrew Sisters
sound aren't quite the same. The Smithsonian has a great CD collection of
the originals which, damn, I can't locate at the moment. If you also
can't find it, try this disc.
VOICES OF LIGHT. Anonymous Four, others. Netherlands Radio
Philharmonic, Steven Mercurio conducting. Sony Classical SK
62006.
Inspired by the Carl Dryer silent film, this Richard Einhorn score is
haunting and beautiful. I have played it often, in many moods, and it
satisfies. Try it.
BEI UNS UM DIE GEDACHTNISKIRCHE RUM...:Berlin Cabaret. Various.
Edel 0011532TLR (2 CDs).
A bit esoteric perhaps for many, but these original recordings from the
Berlin cabarets before the war are not only history but no little
enjoyment. We have Dietrich of course, and also Hans Albers, Blandine
Ebinger, Werner Finck, Friedrich Hollander, Heintz Ruhmann, the Comedian
Harmonists, among others. The era is dead, many murdered by Nazis: relive
it here.
THE ART OF THE TOY PIANO. Margaret Leng Tang. Point Music 456
346-2.
Just the way Tang can sit on her knees for so long playing her toy piano
is amazing. She also makes it sing, but why? Her in 12 cuts, many written
for her (but not the Beethoven), she employs a variety of other sounds
but we still feel that we are listing to a music box at Christmas. You
may want to try this perhaps.
SIGRID ONEGIN. Pearl GEMM 9274.
You want to talk about today's coloratura contraltos? Listen to the Swede
Onegin (1889-1943). Here and on Lebendige Vergangenheit 89027 we hear an
art form long lost. Pearl has 17 cuts; LV, 13. As one must have the
Mozart Alleluja and the "Lucrezia Borgia" Drinking Song (the latter
rivaling Schumann-Heink's), there is some duplication but get them both.
CHARLES KULLMAN: Serenade. Memoir Classic CDMOIR 429.
Kullman was an important tenor in Vienna, Berlin and then the
Metropolitan but this is a genre disc, mostly popular romances of the
day. While there are a few operatic arias, in English, try to get "I'm
Only a Strolling Vagabond" out of your mind. Everything is stylistically
impeccable. Fun. Romantic.
TORSTEN RALF II. Lebendige Vergangenheit 89152.
Ralf was an important if not particularly exciting Wagnerian tenor in
Europe and at the Metropolitan in the '30s and 40s. The singing is always
refined but not too varied. This is an American recorded all-Wagner disc
-- the "Tristan" duet is with Helen Traubel and Herta Glaz. Added is the
"Otello" duet -- Ralf was a famous Otello -- with Hilde Konetzni. The
conductors are Fritz Busch (US) and Karl Bohm in the 1944 Berlin
"Otello." I have not heard Volume I.
SCHUBERT: Die Schone Mullerin. Walter Ludwig, tenor; Walter
Bohle, piano. Berlin Classics 0092872BC.
Ludwig was a popular German tenor but this recording must have been made
too late in his career. He is too stentorian and not sweet enough,
coloring his interpretation of the words. Not recommended.
WAGNER: Tannhauser. Kirsten Flagstad, Lauritz Melchior,
Lawrence Tibbett. Metropolitan Opera January 1936, Artur Bodanzky
conducting. Walhall Records WHL 30.
Yes, this what it says, a legendary performance with a legendary cast.
Flagstad is peerless: but it is the song contest that really excites.
Melchior and Tibbett take each other on as if they mean it. A great
performance all in all. (This writer did the liner notes on Tibbett.)
RIMSKY-KORSAKOV: The Maid of Pskov. Kirov Production, Valery
Gergiev, conducting. Philips 446678-2 (2 CDs)
In our personal musical masochism, we are convinced that we should learn
every opera that Rimsky wrote. We are allowed to miss some and
"The Maid" could be a candidate for that. And not everything that Gergiev
manages to sell the world has to be bought. Galina Gorchakova is the
Princess.
MOZART: Symphonies Nos. 38, 39, 41; Coronation Mass, Vesperae
Solemnes. Vienna Symphony, Jascha Horenstein conducting. Vox Legends
CDX2 5524 (2CDs).
Any Horenstein reissue is worth hearing and this, as are many, is
special. He brings a fresh approach and a clarity to his music and
this is Mozart. The vocal soloists are Wilma Lipp, a young Christa
Ludwig, Murray Dickie and Walter Berry. Yes, get this.
r.STRAUSS: Orchestral works. Chicago Symphony, Fritz Reiner,
conducting. RCAVictor 68635-2 (5 CDs, boxed).
RCA has collected the "Living Stereo" Strauss recordings by Reiner and
the Chicago and reissued them beautifully. Byron Janis is the soloist in
Burlesque; Inge Borkh (no Ljuba Welitsch) in the "Salome" and "Elektra"
scenes. We have the Tone Poems and more. These CDs are available
separately but I'm glad I have them all.
RUED LANGGAARD: Music of the Spheres, Four Tone Pictures.
Danish Radio Symphony, Gennady Rozhdestvensky conducting. Chandos 9517.
Langgaard was the outcast of Danish music: he belonged to no clique and
had few friends. He was also a unique composer, idiosyncratic and his own
man. Through the efforts of Jesper Buhl and Danacord Records, all the
works of Langgaard were forced upon the Danish public -- and then the
world's -- in both historic recordings and new ones made for Danacord.
While you can't beat Rozhdesvensky, I suggest the whole Danacord
Langgaard inventory. There are too many to be listed here by number but
there are all the symphonies and everything else. Discover Langgaard this
Fall.
GUBAIDULINA: Seven Words, Silenzio, In Croce. Various. Naxos
8.553557.
Today, when every composer is a genius no matter what country he/she is
from or emigrated from, there is the uniqueness of Sofia Gubaidulina. She
has a personal voice not chained to a system (or chained to no system).
Listen to her.
YIP SINGS HARBURG. Yip Harburg, others. Koch International
3-7386.
Harburg is the lyricist of "The Wizard of Oz," "Finian's Rainbow" and
some great songs. He is no singer but his (unnamed) collaborators on this
disc are and the songs are here. History of sorts.
THE PAJAMA GAME. Judy Kaye, Ron Gaines, National Symphony
Orchestra, John Owen Edwards conducting. Jay2 1250 (2CDs).
I had forgotten what fun "Pajama Game" is and this set brings it all out.
It's not the original Broadway cast, and not as good as they were, but
you'll enjoy this.
MUSICALS! Various forces. EMI Classics Red Line 5 69875
2.
A budget priced rerun disc, well chosen but, while it tells you who
sings, who have to guess who sings what. There are many Ethel Merman
songs but no Merman. A fun disc, however.
THE BEST OF OPERETTA. Ingrid Kertesi, Zsuzsa Csonka, Janos Berkes. Hungarian Operetta Orchestra, Laszlo Kovacs conducting. Three volumes, Naxos 8.550941-43. Viennese operetta was never far from the other side of the Empire, Hungary and these forces really have the feeling for the music. Of course there is Tauber, et al, but this set is highly satisfying. Put on all three and relax.
VIENNESE OPERETTA ARIAS. Lucia Popp, Academy St.Martin in the
Fields, Neville Marriner conducting.
Popp is absolutely wonderful in these 14 selections but who thought to
hire this unindigenous orchestra and conductor? But Popp is so good, I'll
keep the disc.
THE STUDENT PRINCE. Marilyn Hill Smith, David Rendall, Norman
Bailey. Philharmonia Orchestra, John Owen Edwards, conductor. JAY2 1252
(2CDs).
Every note, I guess, and what a surefire tear-jerker this Romberg
operetta is. And how lovely! Given a serious, almost operatic in the best
sense treatment, I don't see how you will fail to love this set.
PAGANINI, GIUDITTA. Deborah Riedel, Jerry Hadley, others.
English Chamber Orchestra, Richard Bonynge, conducting. Telarc
80435,80436.
These two Lehar operettas do not survive well the change to an English
libretto and singers who are not born to the milieu. The great melodies
come out as mere ditties and his two roles stretch Hadley's voice
uncomfortably. Good try but no Sacher torte.
PUCCINI: La Rondine. Angela Gheorghiu, Roberto Alagna, London
Symphony, Antonio Pappana conducting. EMI Classics 5 56338 2 (2
CDs)
Yes, this is an operetta, Puccini's take on the Viennese mode. It is a
beautiful work, wistful and tinged with sadness. Unfortunately all that
is missed here as it is presented straightforwardly, full face. There is
a beautiful live recording in not too good sound with Licia Albanese, a
perfect Magda, on Grand Tier ENGT #8 94 and the incomparable Ljuba
Welitsch can be heard in German on a Melodram LP set.
THE DOMINGO COLLECTION. Placido Domingo, others. Sony Classical S2K 63027 (2CDs). Recorded from 1976 through 1996, this set is particularly well-chosen, 28 cuts from his extensive versatile repertoire. We have opera, Pop songs, Spanish songs, taken from many sources. I was surprised how much I enjoyed this.
JOHN MCCORMACK: More Rarities. REGO 3960.
Would you believe the CD label is in green ink? Of course. 16 cuts of his
Irish and popular songs in his impeccable style and voice.
ALMA GLUCK. Pearl GEMM 9268.
Mother of Efrem Zimbalist and grandmother of Stephanie Zimbalist,
Rumanian-born Gluck was one of America's greatest singers. She, with
Caruso, popularized recorded music. All households had Caruso's
"Pagliacci" aria and Gluck's "Old Folks at Home." This disc, especially
well-chosen, has 19 cuts of her pure, beautiful singing. It includes
duets with Caruso and Louise Homer, arias and a lot of beauty.
ERNA BERGER: Liederabend 1949. Koch Schwann 3-1164-2.
This is a previously unpublished concert given in Berlin's Titaniapalast
given by one of our finest and most beloved coloraturas. It is a generous
program, 21 numbers, and a lovely one. Gunther Weissenborn is the pianist
and we even hear the audience being very pleased.
WALTRAUD MEIER: Sings Wagner. Bavarian Radio Orchestra, Loren
Maazel conducting.
Meier has made a name for herself in both the soprano and mezzo
repertoire but this disc won't help it. It's good enough but not good
enough for historical competition and the conducting is not that
interesting.
WALTRAUD MEIER: Sings Wagner. Bavarian Radio
Orchestra, Loren Maazel conducting.
Meier has made a name for herself in both the soprano and mezzo
repertoire but this disc won't help it. It's good enough but not good
enough for historical competition and the conducting is not that
interesting.
OLGA BORODINA: Arias. Welsh National Opera Orchestra, Carlo
Rizzi conducting. Philips446 663-2.
Borodina is one of those many singers let loose around the world by the
Kirov Opera. She is a good mezzo and here sings 12 arias including
Purcell and Berlioz but it is all somewhat soporific. So is the
conducting.
WAGNER: Die Meistersinger. Karita Mattila, Ben Heppner, Jose van Dam, others. Chicago Symphony, Georg Solti conducting. 4CDs. This came in a limited edition box from Musical Heritage Society and I think was recorded by London but no company credit is anywhere to be seen. I guess whoever thought this would be a blockbuster seller and it wasn't. It's good, it's clear but the music doesn't glow the way it can. I suggest sticking to either of the Rudolf Kempe recordings: they're not new but they can't be bettered.
PUCCINI: "Manon Lescaut." Mirella Freni, Cecilia Bartoli, Luciano Pavarotti, Ramon Vargas, Dwayne Croft, Giuseppe Taddei. Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, James Levine conducting. Musical Heritage Society 524497X (2CDs). A great cast who do their best but are undercut by Levine's slow, willful conducting. Stick to the Albanese/Bjorling on RCA 60573-2-RG.
BRAHMS: Symphony No. 1. Sergiu Celibidache conducting the Milan
Radio Symphony. Cetra CDAR 2009.
The legendary conductor concentrates on the passion of Brahms in this
persuasive, actually fabulous performance.
TCHAIKOVSKY: Symphony No. 5, Eugene Onegin excerpts. Rudolf
Kempe conducting the Berlin Philharmonic. Testament SBT 1100. Symphony
No. 6, Theme and Variations. Rudolf Kempe conducting the Vienna
Philharmonic. Testament SBT 1104.
Recorded from 1958-62, Kempe, one of our finest conductors plays
Tchaikovsky straight with no breast-heaving or heavy breathing. The music
stands on its own. I can even take here (almost) the Theme and
Variations, ruined for me years ago by Ballanchine's ballet.
MAHLER: Symphony No. 8. Heather Harper, Lucia Popp, Arleen
Auger, Yvonne Minton, Helen Watts, Rene Kollo, John Shirley-Quirk, Martti
Talvela. Chicago Symphony conducted by Georg Solti. Musical Heritage
Society 514500W. Symphony No. 8.Alessandra Marc, Sharon Sweet,
Elizabeth Norberg-Schulz, Vessalina Kasarova, Ning Liang, Ben Heppner,
Sergei Leiferkus, Rene Pape. Bavarian Radio Symphony conducted by Colin
Davis. RCAVictor 68348-2 (2 CDs). Das Lied von der Erde Peter
Seiffert, Thomas Hampson. City of Birmingham Symphony conducted by Simon
Rattle. EMI Classics 56200-2.
Solti's 1972 Mahler No. 8 is a classic and well returned to the market
but Davis' new one is a surprise to me. Deeply felt, and with superior
soloists, it is the experience this music should be. Rattle's Das Lied is
also a fine reading with Hampson growing in the music usually sung by a
mezzo. Seiffert is a perfect tenor for his music.
CHICAGO. Broadway revival cast. RCAVictor 68727-2.
While I thought this revival a non-show on stage, the recording is jazzy
and fun. The songs may be formula but with a Scotch in hand at home I
liked them.
WHEN PIGS FLY. Original off-Broadway cast. RCAVictor
68729-2
Or more correctly, "Howard Crabtree's When Pigs Fly." It won several
awards. I haven't seen it but it sounds like a clever college
show.
DEBUSSY: Preludes. Youri Egorov, piano. CFPSilver Doubles 68941
(2 CDs).
Egorov, who died tragically too young, is remembered by this fine set,
reasoned beautifully, and by an earlier 4 CD boxed set, Legacy 0492. EMI,
his original record label, doesn't seem interested in Egorov's legacy,
but you should be.
VERDI: Otello. Miriam Gauci, Nicola Martinucci, Eduard
Tumagian; Barcelona Symphony, Alexander Rahbari, Conductor. Discover
International 920435-6 (2 CDs).
The reason to own this particular "Otello" is Gauci's luminous Desdemona.
Her name is being made by performances like this one. Martinucci doesn't
have the heft for Otello and Tumagian's Iago is not a stand out. Rahbari
seems to be holding his orchestra down for his male leads.
SCHNITTKE: Historia von D. Johann Fausten. Cast of the Hamburg
premiere, Gerd Albrecht, conductor. RCAVictor 68413 2 (2 CDs).
The music I heard of Alfred Schnittke seemed false to me until I heard
his two operas. He is a real opera composer who writes in an accessible
idiom and for voices. The two are decidedly weird but listen to them,
they're involving. His "Life With an Idiot" was previously released by
Sony, S2K 52495 and features Mstislav Rostropovich leading the Amsterdam
premiere cast.
PUCCINI: Madame [sic] Butterfly. Film soundtrack, James Conlon
conducting. Sony Classical S2X 69250 (2 CDs).
The film opened in New York with fairly a flutter but may, because of its
visual opulence, have an effect not felt on the discs. Not that this is
bad: it's good enough but still not good enough. All is sensitive, with
young, healthy voices. Butterfly needs Albanese, not a student; it needs
passion, Italian passion, not refinement. There are better recordings.
STRAUSS: Elektra. Deborah Polanski, Alessandra Marc, Waltraud
Meier. Berlin State Orchestra conducted by Daniel Barenboim. Teldec
4509-99175-2 (2 CDs).
How can a performance of "Elektra" go by and a listener almost not
notice? This does to me. Barenboim is willful, stretching phrases out of
shape and/or meaning, and containing as if in a box the grand
dissonances. Neither Polanski nor Marc make individual sounds or
statements, leaving even some unfinished once the note count is up. How
can "Elektra" be boring? This belabored performance is how.
WAGNER: Orchestral excerpts. Leningrad Philharmonic, Evgeny
Mravinsky conducting. Melodia/BMG 25199 2.
I don't know the Wagner tradition in the former Leningrad, here 1965 and
1982, but this disc bodes dull for it. There are too many exciting discs
- Toscanini, Furtwängler, Kempe, Tennstedt - to invest in this one. This
is Volume 10 of the Mvarinsky Edition. I trust the others are more
enjoyable.
BEETHOVEN: Missa Solemnis. Zinka Milanov, Bruna Castagna, Jussi
Björling, Alexander Kipnis; NBC Symphony and Chorus, Arturo Toscanini
conducting. Grammofono AB 78626.
This is, of course, the definitive performance of this beastly difficult
Missa. However, I prefer the AS Disc transfer, AS 307. Get either.
MUSIC FOR VOICE AND GUITAR. Peter Pears, tenor; Julian Bream,
guitar. RCA Victor 61601-2.
Volume 18 of RCA's Julian Bream Edition, enhanced by the artistry of
Pears. Britten and Walton are the main fare. Also recently heard: Vol. 1,
The Golden Age of English Lute Music and Vol. 25, Music of Granados and
Albéniz. You can't go wrong.
SIBELIUS: Symphonies 3 and 5. Oslo Philharmonic, Mariss Jansons
conducting. EMI Classics 5 55533 2.
Jansons and the Oslo's recordings get better and better. This is strong,
virile Sibelius, both brooding and exciting. There is a feel of the
North. Recommended highly.
BEETHOVEN: Symphonies Nos. 1 and 6. Nicolaus Esterházy
Sinfonia, Bála Drahos conducting. Naxos 8.553474. Symphony No. 6.
Dresden State Orchestra, Fritz Konwitschny conducting. Berlin Classics
0090392C.
The is the first disc of Naxos' new transversal of the Beethoven
symphonies and bodes well for the project. The readings are not
heaven-storming but loving, extremely musical, and fulfilling. They won't
replace for me the complete sets by Toscanini, Krips, or Kletzki (on LP)
- I don't have the Furtwängler - but at the price, you can't go wrong
with Drahos. The Dresden, from 1955, is however a tried and true middle
European rendition: big band, big sound, and very exciting. Beethoven has
room for every (serious) musician.
MAHLER: Orchestral Songs. Jessye Norman, Janet Baker, Tames
King, Hermann Prey, John Shirley Quirk; Concertgebouw Orchestra, Bernard
Haitink conducting. Philips 454 014-2 (2 CDs).
Mahler was neurotic, OK, but it surfaced in passion, commitment,
engagement, risk-taking, and the like: he was never placid or bland and
Haitink makes him only that, even in "Das Lied von der Erde." The poor
soloists, not all of whom are tops anyway. Sorry, forget this.
Wind in the Bamboo Grove. Evelyn Glennie, percussionist.
Catalyst 68193-2.
Evelyn Glennie, here on the marimba, has a created a following not only
in the East but in Japan and this CD pays tribute to that country's
composers. She does her treatment of music by Abe, Yuyana, Yoshioka, and
Miki. It's individual.
Sidney Bechet. Europe 1 RTE 1003-2.
The Saints really come marching in. Absolutely incomparable Sidney Bechet
Paris concerts in 1956 and 1957. There are 10 extended cuts and it's hard
to sit quietly while listening to them. This is exciting.
CHICAGO BLUES. DRIVE 3201.
The authentic Chicago Blues beat goes on and on with these 18 tracks from
the film "Chicago Blues." Buddy Guy and Junior Wells, John Young, Muddy
Waters, Mighty Joe Young, Koko Taylor, J.B. Hutto, and Johnny Lewis give
their all. Catch the drumming in "We're Ready."
EILEEN FARRELL: Blues. DRG 91436.
Another kind of Blues, very personal Blues, are sung by Eileen
Farrell. The fact that one of the greatest of American operatic dramatic
sopranos is also a matchless Blues singer has been no secret. This is the
real thing.
THE LIFE. All-star pre-production cast. RCAVictor
68001-2.
It might HAVE been only a gleam in its producers' eyes, but this when it
was done non-show album features, in the catchy music of Cy Coleman and
the brilliant lyrics of Ira Gasman George Burns (the only recording of a
100-year-old man: made just before he died?), Lesley Gore, Lou Rawls,
Bobby Short, an unannoying Liza Minnelli, et al. I like it.
GOOD NEWS! Music Theatre of Wichita revival. Jay CDJAY
1291.
The title is from 1927 but here the script, although still in college, is
new, and further DeSylva, Brown and Henderson hit songs are interpolated.
It's well-done, it's fun, but should the title now be "New News!"?
THE MAN OF LA MANCHA. Placido Domingo; others. Sony Classical
SK 46436.
Oh, yes, Don Quixote is Spanish and so is Domingo. But did you ever
imagine the Knight of the Woeful Countenance as a heroic tenor, even to
sell discs? Only Julia Migenes knows what she is doing with a Broadway
show and is wonderful: Mandy Patinkin invests his usual annoying falsetto
with a Spanish-Yiddish accent as Sancho. There are cameos by Samuel
Ramey, Jerry Hadley, Robert White, and Domingo's two sons, all in Pop
ballad arrangements. This was recorded in 1990 and recently released.
Why?
BLACKWELL SINGS BERNSTEIN. Harolyn Blackwell, Vanessa Williams.
RCAVictor 68321-2.
While still no one is allowing Blackwell to record opera, we have a most
stylish, beautiful CD of Bernstein songs and scenes with her. Williams
joins in the "West Side Story" sequence and is a matching talent. the
disc only runs 48 minutes: Blackwell's talent runs longer and deeper than
that!
THE BEST OF JULIE ANDREWS. Rhino 26680.
We all love Julie, of course, but her talent does flow a little thin when
heard in 19 cuts from her Broadway shows and films. Actually Richard
Burton steals the disc in "Camelot"'s "What Do the Simple Folk Do?".
BESSIE SMITH: Empress of the Blues. Magnum MCCD 002.ALBERTA
HUNTER: Beale Street Blues. Magnum 003. ALBERTA HUNTER: with Love
Austin's Blues Serenaders. Heritage Jazz 513432K. RUTH BROWN:
Softly. Jazz Heritage 513370Z. JOSH WHITE: The Legendary...
Magnum 004
The Empress and the Queen, Bessie and Alberta, in the '20s and '30s. 18
cuts of each and their collaborators are, in many cases, as great as they
are. Draw a glass of bootleg and enjoy. The second Hunter disc is from
1961 and the Brown from 1964. Even in this company, Brown is fabulous.
"You get no meat with one meat ball" - the relaxed, laid back (before
that phrase was coined) folk blues genius White finally and finely
recalled. What a series!
PAUL ROBESON: SONGS OF FREE MEN Pearl GEMM CD 9264
A fabulous collection of Robeson, including Ballad for Americans and the
whole 10 inch 78rmp album Songs of Free Men, Russian songs, Chinese
songs, Spirituals. Never forget Robeson. More are on Omega OCD 3007, ASV
Living Era AJA 5047R, and ASV AJA 5027.
LEHAR: The Land of Smiles (80419), The Czarevitch
(80395). Both Telarc. Nancy Gustafson, Jerry Hadley, others. English
Chamber Orchestra, Richard Bonynge conducting.
Sincere tries at Lehar, in English, and enjoyable they be on their own
terms. Hadley is more successful here than in his BMG "crossovers" -- and
he did the translations. Thanks to Telarc for not forgetting both G&S and
Lehar.
GIGI. Complete film soundtrack. Rhino Turner Classics
71962-2.
The perfect score, perfectly performed. Lerner and Loewe, Leslie Caron
(dubbed but Caron's earnest original tries are here), Louis Jordan,
Chevalier. Yes.
FOR ME AND MY GAL, THE HARVEY GIRLS. Judy Garland, original
film soundtracks, complete. Rhino Turner Classics 72204-2 and
72151-2.
More irreplaceable Judys, "Gal" with Gene Kelly and Marta Eggerth (who
has her five minute "The Spell of the Waltz" restored: it had been cut
from the final film); "Harvey" with Ray Bolger, Virginia O'Brien, the
Atchison, Topeka, and the Santa Fe. More, much more than nostalgia.
THE ENVELOPE PLEASE: Academy Award Winning Songs. Rhino. Vol. 1
(1934-45), 72276-2; Vol. 2 (1946-57), 72277-2; Vol. 3 (1958-1969),
72278-2; Vol. 4 (1970-81), 72279-2; Vol. 5 (1982-93), 72280-2.
They're all here but how many do you actually remember? Few are from the
soundtracks and some of the versions are great, i.e. Billie Holliday.
There is certainly a marked deterioration in song quality with the advent
of electrical instruments.
THE FABULOUS VICTORIA DE LOS ANGELES. Victoria de los Angeles,
soprano; various colleagues. EMI Classics 5 65061 2 (4 CDs).
This set is not incorrectly titled. Almost five hours of the great
singer in French and Spanish song literature plus a smattering of other
art songs and duets (Fischer-Dieskau). The beauty of her voice, her
interpretations, and her unique communication make this deserved
retrospective a dream.
WALTZES. Alban Berg Quartet. EMI Classics 7 54881 2.
The Berg, arguably today's finest string quartet, here has especial fun
with lilting Viennese waltzes by Lanner and Johann Strauss I and II, some
in arrangements by Webern, Berg, and Schoenberg (with added instruments).
I put this on for dinner music and it was perfect. Light the candles.
BERNARD HERMANN: Moby Dick. London Philharmonic, composer
conducting. Unicorn-Kanchana UKCD2061. ADD.
Yes, it's the white whale. Hermann's cantata, with four soloists and
chorus, is deadly serious, a 47 minute setting of Melville's deep novel.
While it may not be entirely successful -- only Melville was -- it has a
fascination that almost matches the book. The composer's "For The
Fallen," a six-minute orchestral elegy, completes the disc. Again this is
American music recorded in England, and originally in 1973.
MOZART: La Clemenza di Tito. Soloists; Orch.of the Zurich
Opera; Nikolaus Harnoncourt, conductor. Teldec 4509-90852-2 (2
CDs).
Harnoncourt moves the opera along nicely. The cast is strong, headed by
Phillip Langridge as Tito and Lucia Popp as Vitella. I recommend
this.
D'ALBERT: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 and 2. Piers Lane, piano; BBC
Scottish Sym.; Alun Francis, conductor. Hyperion CDA66747
When will the discovery of d'Albert finally begin? All right, the first
concerto is a student work (!), but the second belongs in the repertoire.
Fine performances.
HOLST: The Planets. BBC Symphony; Andrew Davis, conductor.
Teldec 4509-94541-2
Once again Davis takes "big" music and diminishes it, not that it
holds that much interest in the first place. Recorded sound is not that
good either.
HAPPY HUNTING. Original Broadway Cast. RCAVictor 68091-2.
Ethel Merman and "Mutual Admiration Society." That can be enough from
this 1956 show for us. In fact, that's what there is -- but there is
Merman and that is fine with me. Jay Blackton conducts.
MISS SAIGON. National Tour Cast. Angel 555674 (2 CDs).
Two hours plus of garbage, not proto-Puccini, not neo-Asian, but
pure garbage. Kevin Grey is a terrible engineer (Jonathan Pryce
was awful in the New York original), but the Kim, Joanna Ampil, looks
pretty in the program. Every last illiterate, false-rhyming, insincere
lyric is reprinted in the booklet.
ZORBA. 1983 Broadway Revival Cast. RCAVictor 68377-2.
This disc doesn't say that it is the original Broadway cast recording,
but it carefully doesn't say that it isn't. It isn't, and it is a pale
reflection of the original, even as Anthony Quinn imitates his film
portrayal of Anthony Quinn. The Kander and Ebb score creaks here. Stick
to the real on Angel 7 64665 2 with Hershel Bernardi, Maria Karnilova,
and Lorraine Serabian.
AIN'T MISBEHAVING. National Tour Cast. RCAVictor 68415-2.
With the Pointer sisters (not a litter of Irish Setters) and Fats
Waller's music, this should be a good show when it hits your town.
JOHN RAITT: Broadway Legend. (With Bonnie Raitt.) Angel 55469-2.
Why, John, why did you do it? Let us rather remember the big, plummy
tenor-baritone that easily sang "Carousel", "Pajama Game" and all the
rest. Not the thin sound and the breath problems we have here. No.
Daughter Bonnie, in duets, is dreadful, too.
ZARZUELA ARIAS AND DUETS. Monserrat Caballé, soprano; Bernabé
Martí, tenor; Orchestra conducted by Eugenio Marco. RCA Victor 68148-2.
Spanish-made recordings from 1965 and 67, once and always beloved for
the music and performances. But has the remastering hardened the glorious
Caballé sound a bit?
WEILL: Seven Deadly Sins, Songs. Gisela May, Orchestras, Herbert
Kegel, Heinz Rögner, Henry Krtschil, conductors. Berlin Classics 2069-2.
Gisela May is a rightly famous Weill interpreter. While whenever one
listens to Weill, one hears Lotte Lenya, May holds her own, though you
may prefer, as I do, Lenya or Migenes. The 11 added Weill songs are
well-chosen and well-done.
THE GYPSY BARON. Gerda Scheyrer, Emmy Loose, sopranos; Hilde
Rössl-Majdan, mezzo; Waldemar Kmentt, tenor; Kurt Preger, Erich Kunz,
Eberhard Wächter, baritones; Vienna Volksoper Orchestra, conducted by
Anton Paulik. Vanguard Classics OVC 8082/83 (2 CDs).
This 1956 recording of the greatest of Strauss operettas is what you
would have heard in Vienna at that time, and fine enough that is.
Idiomatic and smashing, and even a libretto. The other two recordings of
the operetta, with Patzak and Gedda, have not been heard on CD so this is
the one.
A NIGHT IN VENICE. 1952, 53 Mike Todd Jones Beach production.
Everest EVC 9036.
This outdoor extravaganza, somewhat after Johann Strauss, was recorded
indoors seven years later as a tribute to Todd after his death. It is a
trifle, in English translation, but fun. Among the cast are Laurel
Hurley, Thomas Hayward, and Kenneth Schon of the Met and the once
ever-popular Enzo Stuardi.
VIENNA. Chicago Symphony, conducted by Fritz Reiner. RCA Victor
68160-2. EIN SYLVESTERKONZERT. Dresden State Orchestra, conducted
by Rudolf Kempe. Berlin Classics 0090072BC.
Vienna isn't always voices: Reiner's light touch gives us four
Strausses (including Richard), and Weber. Glistening performances from
1957 and 60. Even more fun, if possible is the Kempe concert, New Year's
(almost) 1973. What sparkle!
OPERETTE MASTERS. Forlane UCD 16719.
The turn of the French, even though a little Lehár sneaks in. Numbers
from operettes by Hahn, Messenger, Adam, and the like with Yvonne
Printemps, George Thill, Villabella, Fanely Revail, Mireille Berthon,
Fanny Heldy in Louise -- a bit of opera - and more, 18 cuts.
Melody and style.
BYE BYE BIRDIE. Telecast soundtrack. RCAVictor 68356-2.
Another Elvis sighting? Birdie flies again and this is lots of fun.
Vanessa Williams even sells "Spanish Rose," Marc Kudisch is believable as
Conrad Birdie, and the kids are wonderful. I could do without Tyne Daly
as a non-ethnic mother (only one song), and Jason Alexander is as ever
bland as Albert.
MICKEY & JUDY. With Mickey and Judy. Turner Classic Movies Rhino
R2 71921 (4 CDs).
Boxed like a book, and with program notes that would make the
Smithsonian proud, we have Babes In Arms, Strike Up The
Band, Babes On Broadway, and Girl Crazy: the full music
soundtracks, with outtakes. A national treasure!
THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT!. With everybody who ever walked past the MGM
lot. Turner Classic Movies Rhino 72182-2 (6 CDs).
Here are the soundtracks from the three That's Entertainment!
blockbuster films: a triple blockbuster. Judy goes all through (and there
is some repetition from the Mickey & Judy set, which is OK) but
try to name a name who isn't on these discs. Clark Gable? He sings, too.
Fantastic. As is the documentation.
THE WIZARD OF OZ. Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. Turner
Classic Movies Rhino 71964-2 (2 CDs).
What a disappointment! What we know and love from The Wizard is
here virtually swamped by every piece of music that was recorded for the
film. It is not a symphony, just give us those songs and singers. Now we
need a highlights album from this complete one.
CABIN IN THE SKY. Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. Turner
Classic Movies Rhino 72245.
Again, everything. But Ethel Waters, Lena Horne, Louis
Armstrong, Duke Ellington so we can sit through the purely
musical transitions, actually pleasant in themselves. Historic
and wonderful.
LENA HORNE: Motion Picture Soundtrack Anthology. Turner
Classic Movies Rhino 72246.
OK, so some of these selections are also on the That's
Entertainment and Cabin in the Sky discs but here we have that
creamy voice and perfect diction all to ourselves. A thrill, all 23
cuts.
SCOTT JOPLIN: The Easy Winners. Itzhak Perlman, violin; André
Previn, piano. Musical Heritage Society 513995K.
The Rag-Time Dance from Treemonisha begins this disc and it is
arranged and played fabulously. It is more than just a lark Perlman and
Previn are playing. But the disc can't hold up that enthusiasm and grows
a bit dull. [Wex]
Copyright © Bert Wechsler 1997
BERT WECHSLER was active in the performing arts as an actor, singer, director, coach and manager before he turned to full time writing. As editor of Music Journal for eight years, he wrote about all aspects of music and dance. He was a music and dance critic for the New York Daily News and New York Concert Review, dance critic and associate editor for Attitude, video critic for video Review, music editor of High Performance Review, dance critic for Der Tanz der Dinge (Switzerland), recordings critic for High Fidelity, correspondent for the music magazine Rondo in Finland and newspapers in Norway (regular column) and Denmark as well as other free-lance activities. He is co-author of "Dear Rogue," the biography Lawrence Tibbett, published by Amadeus Press. He was also associate Editor of Computer Buyers' Guide. He is a member of the Music Critics Association, the Outer Critics Circle, The Bohemians, an honorary life member of the New York Mahlerites, and a founder of the Manhattan Festival Ballet and the Center for Contemporary Opera. He retains his membership in four theatrical unons.
Related articles:
Bert Wechsler reviews Broadway and Classical CDs - new releases.
Bert Wechsler: On the Scene - reviews and ruminations on this week's theater, dance, opera and performance art.
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