This collection of 18th century harpsichord music brings together works by Johann Sebastian Bach, Jacques Duphly, Francois Couperin, Jean-Philippe Rameau, George Frederic Handel, Louis-Claude Daquin, and Guiseppe Domenico Scarlatti. The pieces go together nicely, not least because of the way in which Sophie Yates plays them.
This is the right way for a label to record an anthology of tracks featuring its artists. First, eleven outstanding groups are featured. Second, the anthology includes pieces never before released on CD, rather than selections from previously issued CDs. The exquisite production and extensive liner notes with full discographical information and bonus bibliography make this a "must-buy" for lovers of adventurous jazz. Among the artists represented are trumpeter Dave Douglas, pianist Paul Plimley, clarinetist François Houle, tenor saxophonist Ellery Eskelin, guitarist Ben Monder, and alto saxophonist Briggan Krauss. With a lineup of that caliber, it is no wonder Songlines has emerged as one of the world's up-and-coming small jazz labels. Kudos to producer Tony Rief for fulfilling an ambitious vision.
This isn't James Galway's most virtuosic CD, but it is still absolutely beautiful and magic…about .1% percent of the time it's a little dull, but the other 99.9% is truly beautiful. I think my favorite thing about this CD is its utter peacefulness and the fluttery, angelic sound of the flute. The Irish classics on this CD don't just have flute accompaniment; there are many other instruments that combine to really make this an "Irish" album. In particular, I really enjoyed the drums, the pipes (can't get enough of them!!!) and the alto flute (slightly more mellow-sounding than the usual flute).
Five more CDs of Connie Francis, picking up right where Bear Family's earlier White Sox, Pink Lipstick set left off, in 1960 – although its 300-plus minutes of music only cover the period of 1960 to 1962. By this time, Connie Francis was established as one of the top female vocal talents of her generation, and she was ready to experiment – you hear her successful move into country music, wonderful outtakes, and never-issued songs from her early-'60s sessions…
Four Seasons is a collection from Pete Namlook's individual cds dedicated to the seasons. This series started early 1994 with "Seasons Greetings =Winter=" and since then evolved to a successful series of all four seasons. This very balanced and unique product contains Peter's real definition of the word Ambient in a very explicit way. Following the path of the great impressionist composers of the late 19th century, he improvised on the impressions that came to him during the four seasons. Of course these were brought to life with the instruments of our time: synthesizers, ringmodulators, incorporating environmental sounds.
On their third album, "Beyond the Maybe Machine", Melting Euphoria continued to revive the sounds of early '70s psychedelic space rock outfits like Hawkwind, Gong and Ozric Tentacles, adding some of the synthetic textures of late-'70s electronic outfits like Tangerine Dream. Frequently, the group come up with interesting sonic flourishes and they know how to create trippy psychedelic soundscapes.
Stephane Grappelli Live at the Blue Note with Bucky Pizzarelli, John Pizzarelli and Jon Burr. Stephane Grappelli was one of the masters of the jazz violin. In this wonderful Telarc recording one can witness the master's playfulness, charm and talent as he plays before an appreciative and polite audience.