Alexander Writing For Strings

Though Tchaikovsky had an obvious penchant for writing astounding melodies for the cello (the soaring 5/4 waltz from the Sixth Symphony, or the brooding opening of the A minor Piano Trio for example), he wrote surprisingly little repertoire for the instrument on its own. No concerto exists; the closest cellists have is the popular and charming Variations on a Rococo Theme. Four other short works – two of which are transcriptions by the composer himself – make up the remainder of Tchaikovsky's cello works.

The Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century continues true to it's original guiding spirit, with a new recording of the six Hamburg Symphonies, Wq 182 by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach. This second son of JS Bach, Carl Philipp has sometimes had a rough ride with posterity (and with some of his contemporaries too). Although overshadowed later by Haydn and Mozart - albeit admired by the pair - and overshadowed in his lifetime by Handel, he remains a crucial link between the Baroque and the Classical, particularly for the ultra-sensitive style, his Empfindsamkeit.

The Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century continues true to its original guiding spirit, with a new recording of the six Hamburg Symphonies, Wq 182 by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach. This second son of JS Bach, Carl Philipp has sometimes had a rough ride with posterity (and with some of his contemporaries too). Although overshadowed later by Haydn and Mozart - albeit admired by the pair - and overshadowed in his lifetime by Handel, he remains a crucial link between the Baroque and the Classical, particularly for the ultra-sensitive style, his Empfindsamkeit.

'Too Hot For Words' blends the tight-knit swing of the Metropolitan Jazz Octet with the unerring musicianship of Dee Alexander to mark the 60th anniversary of Billie Holiday's departure from the planet, mixing Holiday classics with some of Lady Day's lesser- known repertoire. The arrangements sparkle, and Alexander shines as bright as ever. But at no point does she attempt to mimic Holiday. (What would be the point of that)? And the arrangements don't try to imitate the little 'orchestras' that accompanied Holiday's greatest recordings. (No point in that either.) These new settings respect the songs, but reframe them for our era. The album becomes a sort of telescoping time capsule: sterling musicians of the 21st century, building upon an octet sound crafted 50 years earlier, revitalizing songs that Holiday began recording in the 1930s.

Much worthy English music issues from the atéliers of minor talents and has a cottage or "small beer" quality. Of course "small beer" (locally brewed) can put the grand variety to shame, and so too in music, where dedication within limitation can produce work of exceptional beauty and character. John Ireland is one such (a miniaturist extraordinaire); Gerald Finzi (1901-1957) is another. Finzi, although of Italian-Jewish extraction, was London-born and in many ways more English than his teacher Ralph Vaughan Williams.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Piano Concertos Nos. 19 & 23
Ronald Brautigam / Die Kölner Akademie / Michael Alexander Willens
SACD ISO (2.0/MCH): 2,30 GB | 24B/88,2kHz Stereo FLAC: 806 MB | Full Artwork | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: BIS # BIS-1964 SACD | Country/Year: Sweden 2013, 2012
Genre: Classical | Style: Viennese School, Piano

"…In the hands of Willems and Brautigam, this masterpiece is given a first class performance, particularly in its buoyant Finale, a sonata-rondo in which the piano and orchestra really are cavorting joyfully together. The two concertos on this disc's menu may well offer the best performances of the series so far, yielding first class solo and orchestral playing as well as the best recording of any period Mozart concerto series at this time." ~sa-cd.net