This Swiss Cascavelle disc most adroitly presents the world premiere recording of the orchestral poem Helvetia alongside two less obscure works for viola and orchestra. A highly attractive release, well designed and documented. Enthusiasts of Bloch, the viola and the mountain heights must not miss this.
If Prokofiev's Symphony-Concerto for cello and orchestra and Shostakovich's Second Concerto for cello and orchestra had heretofore seemed to be late works shot through with nostalgia and bitterness, that's certainly entirely understandable. Rostropovich, the works' dedicatee who gave both their world premieres, played them that way in his recorded performances and most subsequent cellists have naturally followed his lead.
An eclectic mix of American, African, and Caribbean music with strong rhythmic aspects. This CD has the ability to make the listener jump, dance, and listen, depending on what mood the individual is in while cruising the grooves. Leonard King was born in Detroit, Michigan where he has been able to absorb the multi-cultural musics of the entire metro area. He has performed with many artists such as Donald Byrd, Johnnie Taylor, Al Green, Herb Ellis, Barbara Dane, Eddie Kendricks, Pigmeat Markham, James Carter, and many others.
Two DVD over two and a half hours of material that is a masterclass in performance and knowledge. Neal Scryer has been described as the most influential mentalist since Annemann. Both Richard Webster and Neal Scryer were the first recipients of the "Annemann Award" for their highly sought after books featuring the works of Scryer. Material from these seven books are now in the repertoires of almost every professional mentalist around the world. What makes Neal Scryer's material so popular is that they use regular objects, and many use no props and can be performed completely impromptu.
Jomelli, regarded by many of his contemporaries as the greatest opera composer of the century, sets the lamentations in a dramatic and religio-operatic style as a duet between two high voices. Gérard Lesne receives higher billing than Véronique Gens on the cover of the CD, but they both sing exquisitely well – too well, perhaps, for the music to be regarded in the light of a meditation on the Passion, but that’s the way that Jommelli writes it.