Orchestral Brass Classic

Miles Davis - Sketches of Spain (1959) {2CD Set, 50th Anniversary Legacy Edition rel 2009}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 570 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 276 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (jpg) -> 123 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1959, 2009 Columbia / Legacy / Sony Music | 88697 43949 2
Jazz / Modal Music / Cool / Trumpet

As most readers familiar with Miles Davis' music will know, `Sketches of Spain' recorded in 1959-60 was his third and final collaborative project with orchestral arranger Gil Evans. The original album release, distilled from the recording sessions, explored the musical styles of the Iberian Peninsula and has a distinctive feel quite different from Miles' other work: listeners familiar with classical music who never previously connected with jazz often found SoS to be an accessible gateway to other innovative jazz compositions of the era.

Offered at auction with no reserve, serial number 0940 from Classic Records limited edition Deluxe 1S Edition set of audiophile grade re-issues of 10 RCA Living Stereo LPs. The sound quality of these Classic Records re-issues is legendary. All 10 LPs are brand new, still in the original sealed outer sleeves. Each bears a serial number label as on the box, showing the number 0940.

Though John Barry achieved popular recognition for the swinging, loungey, noir-ish soundtracks he composed for the James Bond films, he moved to the front rank of film composers with his score for 1966's BORN FREE. Stylistically, the music of BORN FREE is miles removed from Barry's Bond soundtracks, though the composer's fondness for brass fanfares, stirring strings, and lush, intricate charts with stunning dynamic range is still intact. On the whole, however, the music to BORN FREE has a playful, innocent quality, evoking the nature of the wild animals at the film's center. As the movie is set in Africa, Barry employs a range of African percussion instruments, and sections of flute music (which often seem to echo the sounds of birds or other creatures). The arrangements are expansive and sweeping, giving rise to the sensation of open plains, and Barry's recurring musical themes parallel the film's action (the track titles indicate plot events). The score is, for the most part, surprisingly subdued, with occasional bursts of energy (mirroring tumultuous events onscreen) and its stirring title theme the exceptions. Barry won an Academy Award for the score in 1966.

At long last, Jean Martinon's classic EMI Debussy and Ravel cycles from the 1970s have been gathered in a space-saving box set. If you love this repertoire, you'll gasp with joy at the conductor's crystal-clear orchestral balances, which truly reproduce what you see in the printed music. If you respond to a lean, sinewy approach to this repertoire in the manner of Toscanini and Boulez, but pine for the timbral characteristics that used to distinguish French orchestras (silver-coated strings, tart woodwinds, and slightly watery brass) in gorgeous, vibrant sonics, Martinon's your man. Aldo Ciccolini's crisp, diamond-edged finger work stands out in Ravel's two piano concertos and in Debussy's rarely heard Fantasie. The young Itzhak Perlman's dazzling, effortless traversal of Ravel's Tzigane will humble many an aspiring fiddler. And you won't find a more sparkling, translucent Ravel Mother Goose Suite on record. Martinon was a marvel, and a sadly underrated podium giant.

–Jed Distler

Nelson Riddle And His Orchestra - An Orchestral Portrait of Nat King Cole (2019) {Everest Records rec 1965, remastered}
FLAC (tracks) - 16bit/44.1kHz - Official Digital Download (highresaudio.com) -> 180 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 86 Mb | Cover | 5% repair rar
© 1965, 2019 Everest Records
Jazz / Orchestral / Easy Listening / Traditional Pop

This album was recorded in Hollywood USA using the finest studio musicians around, many of whom played in the great bands of America in the swing era. One notable musician who was a jazz pianist himself in the early days of swing was Jimmy Rowles who was a personal friend of Nat. "Arranger Nelson Riddle leads his orchestra, with special guest pianist Jimmy Rowles, through 12 elegant renditions of classic songs associated with Nat King Cole, the majority of which Riddle had initially arranged for him. Originally released on Reprise in 1965, this tribute set includes instrumental versions of "Straighten Up and Fly Right," "Mona Lisa," "Ramblin' Rose," "Too Young," and "The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)." Although not essential, this is a respectable reissue that traditional pop fans should be aware of."