Leonora, the main female character of Il trovatore, embodies like no other Verdian heroine absolute devotion and faithfulness, until her ultimate sacrifice to save her lover. One of the most tragic roles of the bel canto repertoire, it is very vocally demanding, requiring a wide ambitus and virtuosity. Having triumphed in Leonora on all world stages, Maria Callas bade farewell to the role in this stunning recorded version, conducted by Karajan and surrounded by a five-star vocal cast.
The album marks 45 years since Chailly’s debut at La Scala, and also the signing of his exclusive contract with Decca.
Rock Symphonies' is a collection of five symphonic works, 'Rock (tribute to Ligeti)', ''Concerto Vedras', 'Sinfonia Noa Noa', 'Todo o Teatro é um muro branco de música' and 'Abertura Secondo Novecento', composed between 2001 and 2018.
Franco Alfano is remembered today for his completion of Turandot after Puccini’s death. His catalogue of works, including operas, orchestral and chamber music, reveals him to be a sophisticated and original composer. Alfano possessed an innate melodic facility combined with a talent for unexpected timbres, as heard in the luxuriously orchestrated Suite romantica which, in the composer’s own words, aims to convey ‘the feelings of two lovers travelling through Italy’. From the neo-Classical Divertimento to the noirish postwar Nenia, and from the lightness of touch of Amour… Amour… to the impressionistic and iridescent Una danza, each work reveals a different aspect of this multifaceted composer.
This is the third in a series of "Discovery" discs dedicated to unknown or rare works by three famous Italian composers, Rossini, Verdi and now Puccini. Chailly had already recorded some Puccini rarities in the early 80's but this new issue contains quite a few works that never seem to have seen the light of day.
Of the 10 selections on this disc of Verdi “discoveries”, four are bona fide world premieres, though in one of those, the Variations for Oboe and Orchestra, only the orchestral part is by Verdi. In the late 1830s clarinetist Giacomo Mori hired the young Verdi to provide an orchestra accompaniment to his variations on the theme “Canto di Virginia”. Here, Verdi displays his early skill at handling large orchestral forces, and the same can be said of his Variations for Piano and Orchestra. However, there are few musical hints in these works–or in the Capriccio for Oboe and Orchestra, the Sinfonia in C, or the Adagio for Trumpet and Orchestra–that suggest the great master Verdi was to become.
4 Non Blondes howled their way onto the charts in 1993 with "What's Up?" and then vanished without a whisper. Formed in 1989 with Linda Perry (vocals), Shaunna Hall (guitar), Christa Hillhouse (bass), and Wanda Day (drums), 4 Non Blondes had no problems attracting major labels based on live shows and local radio support from KUSF, but the labels didn't know how to market them. After Day was replaced by Dawn Richardson, the group was eventually signed to Interscope Records and released Bigger, Better, Faster, More? in 1992. Although Hall contributed guitar tracks and some songs, she left before the album was released (replaced by Roger Rocha for the tour). Dominated by Perry's high-pitched singing, "What's Up?" was slowly added to modern rock stations and then crossed over into the mainstream, peaking at number 11 on the Billboard Top 200…
Like many of even the most prolific and celebrated composers of the sixteenth century, Jacobus Clemens non Papa (‘not the Pope’) has offered the history books little factual material with which to work. In contrast to the paucity of biographical material, however, many sources of Clemens' music survive. Indeed, he is one of the most widely published musicians of the entire century with fifteen Masses, over two hundred motets, many Dutch psalms and French chansons to his name.
San Francisco's 4 Non Blondes burst onto the national scene with their massive, neo-hippie anthem "What's Up" from their debut Bigger, Better, Faster, More? Although they failed to recreate the single's success, the album, as a whole, is a fairly engaging mix of alternative rock, quasi-funk, and blues. The focal point is on lead singer Linda Perry who also plays guitar and was the primary writer of the material. Perry has a powerful set of pipes akin to Johnette Napolitano, but, unfortunately, she tends to cut loose when a little more restraint would benefit the proceedings. However, "Superfly" is a feel good, funky number and "Spaceman"'s yearning lyrics are delivered over a quiet, martial drum rhythm. A solid debut that got lost in the wake of its mammoth hit.