Slatkin's recording of Tchaikovsky's "Little Russian" Symphony (No 2 in C minor) is very good. Slatkin uses an expansive tempo in the Allegro of I, but the music never drags. In short Slatkin and the virtuoso musicians of the Saint Louis Symphony serve Tchaikovsky's early symphony very well. The impression they give is one of massiveness and confidence, and it works!
This grainy live recording captures psychedelic wrecking crew Iron Butterfly in a particularly sharp club performance from early in their career. Still months away from the release of their 1968 debut Heavy, Live at the Galaxy captures the band in their earliest, roughest form, working out songs heavy on organ stabs and blues riffing. The bootleg quality of the album is on par with other obscure, audience-recorded artifacts of its era by psych bands like the Electric Prunes and others, but the band transcends the lo-fi cloudiness of the album with spirited jamming that all but wrote the acid rock rule book, especially on high points such as "Iron Butterfly Theme."
Granting a long-held wish of many record collectors, Sony Classical is issuing the complete monaural American Columbia discography of Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra in a vast box set of 120 CDs, all in new remasterings. Almost all of this material will be appearing for the first time on CD on Sony Classical. Indeed, 152 of these recordings have never been released at all on CD before now.
Romeo and Juliet begins with 4 minutes of an intriguing, mysterious, adagio theme, followed at 5 minutes by an energetic, allegro theme. At 8 minutes we hear a beautiful, adagio melody over rippling French horns. After that, the existing themes are developed to express passion. Francesca da Ramini has an opening theme that evokes a netherworld. Thereafter Tchaikovsky extensively develops a powerful theme. Then at 10 minutes a clarinet begins a beautiful melody to be continued by violins then flute. Near the end the piece builds to a climax.
Collected together for the first time are all of RUGGIERO RICCI’s nine solo albums taped for American Decca between 1960 and 1970. The sessions brought concertos by Vivaldi (The Four Seasons with an all-Stradivarius ensemble), Paganini and Saint-Sa?ns as well as several concept albums. ‘The Glory of Cremona’, a recording ‘that all fiddle fanciers will insist on having’ (Stereo Review) saw him play fifteen priceless violins. The 1967 traversal of the complete Bach Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin were described by Gramophone as ‘a miracle’. One of the last century’s most spell-binding technicians on the violin, Ricci was a complete musician, to whom this set pays eloquent tribute.
Tilt is the second solo album by English drummer Cozy Powell, released in 1981. Tilt features musical assistance from Jeff Beck, Jack Bruce, Don Airey, Bernie Marsden and Gary Moore. Considered to be one of England's best drummers, Cozy Powell was almost legendary for a heavy-hitting style that could be made to work with many styles of music, He is best remembered for his work with Rainbow, Michael Schenker Group, Whitesnake and Black Sabbath as well as Emerson, Lake & Powell.