English Discoveries (12 Cd)

The eighteenth century is probably the most extraordinary period of transformation Europe has known since antiquity. Political upheavals kept pace with the innumerable inventions and discoveries of the age; every sector of the arts and of intellectual and material life was turned upside down. Between the end of the reign of Louis XIV and the revolution of 1789, music in its turn underwent a radical mutation that struck at the very heart of a well-established musical language. In this domain too, we are all children of the Age of Enlightenment: our conception of music and the way we ‘consume’ it still follows in many respects the agenda set by the eighteenth century. And it is not entirely by chance that harmonia mundi has chosen to offer you in 2011 a survey of this musical revolution which, without claiming to be exhaustive, will enable you to grasp the principal outlines of musical creation between the twilight of the Baroque and the dawn of Romanticism.

A "simple, effective melody" must sound as though "you’ve always known it" as Ralph Siegel, the composer of easy listening "Schlager" music once in an interview. For four decades this hit composer has followed his dictum with successful consequences. The "craftsman of emotions" - as the German newspaper "taz" described him - has been recorded as composer or producer of over 3000 "Schlager" pieces, and has been the writer of the German entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 16 times. In fact, in 1982 his Song "Ein bisschen Frieden" was the winner.
Compared with the cosmos of jazz - where ideally melodies are played so that they are no longer recognisable - the shimmering dream world of Schlager music seems light years away. But now we have a clearly serious homage by three top German jazz musicians to the master of glamorous simplicity, Ralph Siegel…

Last year Scott and I were invited by the folks at Vancouver New Music to present a concert for their Vox Organi festival, based off of the work captured on Colours of Air. The invitation was special in that it asked us to work with an organ live, and not just as a rich sound source.

Not surprisingly, Jean-Pierre Rampal’s recordings for Erato during the 1970s – when he was at the top of his career – encompass an immense repertoire, with a special emphasis on discoveries, whether in baroque, classical or romantic flute literature. Still a model today for flutists and flute lovers all over the world, his incomparable sound, spectacular brilliance and fabulous artistry made many albums legendary. Beyond their sheer beauty, the immense joy of music-making they communicate and the excitement they generate make these performances simply unforgettable.

Alfred Deller - The Complete Vanguard Recordings, Vol.5 - English, French and Italian Madrigals (2009) {6CD Set}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 1.94 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 0.99 Gb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 17 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2009 Vanguard Classics / Musical Concepts | MC 196
Classical / Choral / Vocal Music / Madrigals

I grew up listening these recordings in LP. I always loved these charming performances of selected English, French, and Italian madrigals. At last we have these musical treasures in six Vanguard boxes. The dean of the countertenors, Alfred Deller, didn`t have a beautiful voice, but, as Callas among the sopranos, was instead, a very great singer and performer. Everything he and the ensemble sing is witty or moving. Not all the voices singing in the Deller Ensemble were really fine, but there is an outstanding unity in every piece and in the whole thing.

"The wonderful discoveries that I have made during my research on neglected repertoire often make me wonder why it is that so much beautiful Polish music has fallen into oblivion" - thus writes Acte Préalable (AP) impresario Jan Jarnicki in his customary preamble for the CD booklet. Music-lovers who have bought previous AP discs will have asked themselves the same question - how to account rationally for the big repertoire gap between Chopin and Szymanowski, and again between Szymanowski and Penderecki/Górecki. The names capable of filling those holes are legion, a fact to which many previous AP recordings are persuasive testimony.

Ivan Lins is one of the most treasured and recorded Brazilian composers in the world and a melodist with few equals. The winner of four Latin Grammy Awards, Lins has recorded nearly fifty albums since 1970; they contain countless songs, notably “Madalena” and “Começar de Novo” (To Begin Again), that have become standards in his country. “Love Dance,” cowritten with his longtime arranger, Gilson Peranzzetta, and lyricist Paul Williams, is Lins’s English-language classic. Its performers include Sarah Vaughan, Peggy Lee, Mark Murphy, Shirley Horn, Blossom Dearie, Carmen McRae, George Benson, Nancy Wilson, Barbra Streisand, and Quincy Jones, who helped maneuver Lins’s U.S. breakthrough in the early ‘80s.