These CD's present Cras's complete orchestral works, minus his "Andante religieux," which is still in manuscript. Here, Cras's style is not really "impressionist", but more a mixture of late-20th century French romanticism with touches of impressionism. The music is sort of in the vein of D'Indy, Magnard or Tournemire, with fleeting influences from Debussy and Ravel, but without really sounding like any of them. Cras eschews academic form, and allows his materials to find their own shapes, somewhat like late Debussy. Although some movements are melancholy or mysterious, the clouds are never terribly dark, and Cras's accustomed optimism constantly reasserts itself.
These CD's present Cras's complete orchestral works, minus his "Andante religieux," which is still in manuscript. Here, Cras's style is not really "impressionist", but more a mixture of late-20th century French romanticism with touches of impressionism. The music is sort of in the vein of D'Indy, Magnard or Tournemire, with fleeting influences from Debussy and Ravel, but without really sounding like any of them. Cras eschews academic form, and allows his materials to find their own shapes, somewhat like late Debussy. Although some movements are melancholy or mysterious, the clouds are never terribly dark, and Cras's accustomed optimism constantly reasserts itself.
This performance is excellent. The booklet gives you some interesting insights written by Mr Denyer. This version is approved by the composer herself. So what else do you need? The six piano sonatas by Galina Ustvolskaya were composed over the course of 43 years – each showing a gradual progression of the composer's style.
Good news! Five of Italian trumpeter Enrico Rava's Black Saint and Soul Note recordings have been reissued by CAM Jazz in one of those pretty white box sets with each LP reproduced as a separate CD tucked into a miniature record jacket. Born at Trieste in 1939, Rava later attributed his lifelong pursuit of modern jazz to the influence of Miles Davis. One might add Don Cherry and Freddie Hubbard to that equation, along with maybe Richard Williams and Lee Morgan. In order to fully comprehend what he was up to from the '70s onward, it is important to consider the artistic company that Rava kept during the ‘60s. Take a moment, for example, to ponder the blended influences of Chet Baker and Gato Barbieri.