JAZZ ANDIMPROVISED MUSICOLD WINE IN NEW BOTTLESFINE OLD RECORDINGS RE-RELEASEDFor Percy HeathWilliam Parker and the LittleHuey Creative Music OrchestraVicto CD 102Masterful New York bassist WilliamParker liberally applies the vibrantcolours available from the 14members of his Little Huey CreativeMusic Orchestra to this compositionsaluting Percy Heath(1923-2005), the Modern JazzQuartet (MJQ)'s bass player. Recordedat the Festival Internationalde Musique Actuelle de Victoriaville (Quebec) a month afterHeath's death, parts of the interlockingfour-part suite erupt soenergetically and frenetically that theresult is celebratory not mournful ...Ken WaxmanPOTPOURRI- )1" ....... /R~/: :z: .:::::> ~ ~ •®Uri Caine EnsemblePlays Mozart; Uri CaineWinter & Winter W &W 910 130-2Truer to the spirit of Mozart thanthose by-rote recreations of the composer'sbest-known works, with thisnotable CD pianist Uri Caine extendsthe improvisational spirit that wouldhave been familiar to Mozart in the18th Century. However he doesn'tlacquer the music with a facileswinging sheen. Applying a blues/jazz sensibility to the instantly recognizablethemes, Caine extends theiressence without destroying melodiesthat literally define classical music ...Ken WaxmanThomson, Virgil - The Plow thatBroke the Plains; The RiverPare Lorenz films; Post-ClassicalEnsemble; Angel Gil-OrdonezNaxos 2.110521There's a scene in the documentaryfilm The River where newly-cutlogs slide down giant chutes andsplash into the Mississippi River.American composer Virgil Thomson'sjaunty arrangement of HotTime in Our Town Tonight is heardon the soundtrack. It's witty andamusing. But the brilliance of thisscene lies in the way the visual andmusical images work with eachother to suggest the devastation thelogging will cause ...Pamela Marg/esSo the Journey GoesAutorickshawTata-Wallah Records TW003The second CD from lndo-jazz fusionband Autorickshaw continuestheir tradition of presenting jazzy interpretationsand innovative arrangementsof Indian music along with afew original compositions. We beginwith the title track, which is avivacious song by their vocalistSuba Sankaran telling of her literaltrain journey in South India, aswell as her metaphorical journey ofself discovery. In fact, the musicalstyle and words of So The JourneyGoes also seem to express and summarizethe Autorickshaw characterstory. It is a great opener ...Annette SangerConcert Notes: Autorickshaw willlaunch "So the Journey Goes" atLula Lounge on April 11. SubaSankaran is one of the guest vocalistsfeatured with the EvergreenGamelan Ensemble at Lula Loungeon May 6.REMINDER:Visit www.thewholenote.comto view complete CD reviews.72 WWW, THEWHOLENOTE.COMDuring the first halfofthe 20th Century,Paris remained a very importantmusic centre for composers andperformers alike. Pianists such asAlfred Cortot, Yves Nat and RobertCasadesus became internationallyfamous, while many female pianistswere nurtured in this fertileenvironment, which was characterizedby elegance and a refined styleof playing where the piano washeard as a singing instrument morethan a percussive one. Famous andimportant then, but now almost lostin time, was Monique de la Bruchollerie,who also toured in Americaplaying solo and concerted works inNew York, Boston, and elsewhere.Similarly, Israeli pianist Pnina Salzman,a protege ofCortot, toured theworld and settled back in Israel. Alsovery successful was Reine Gianoliwho possessed al I the sensitivity of herpeers. Possessing a singing tone anda technique that seemed to reflect anaristocratic sensitivity, she recordedfor Westminster who documentedher complete Mozart piano sonatasin 1954-55.·'lnZ \RICoincidentally, Gieseking and LilyKrauss also made complete cyclesat about the same time. The thenmighty EMI made sure that theirGieseking topped the bill, eventhough there were more than a fewdissenting opinions at the time. Halfa century later, with our recentlyrevised attention to appropriateperformance practices calling for asinging line, Gianoli betters bothGieseking and Krauss. She isresponsive to Mozart's every moodand inflection. Exquisite is not anadjective one could apply to the othertwo but is clearly appropriate inGianoli's case. DOREMI hascarefully transferred the cycle fromthe Westminster LPs (DHR-7901-5, 5 CDs), retaining the originalbody and impact.Clearly not from 'the French school'is the German pianist An neroseSchmidt who was born in Wittenbergin 1936 and studied in Leipzig.In 1956 she won the all-German pianocompetition and the InternationalSchumann competition in Berlin. Itwas as a Schumann interpreter thatI had paid attention to her and nowthere is three CD set from BerlinClassics (0013822 BC) containingher Schumann performancesfrom 1973-77. It has long been myfeeling that the piano music of Schumann(a favourite composer ofmine) is better thought through bywomen. These discs do nothing todispel that predilection. lfone is irrevocablyimprinted by idiomaticversions then these performanceswill capture your attention as theyare, for the most part, refreshinglythoughtful and searching. The listener'sattention is newly focused onthe composer rather than hearingyet another version of the familiarmodel. Included are the Fantasie inC major, Kreisleriana, Davidsbundlertanze,Carnaval, Toccatain C major, Faschingsshwank ausWein, and more.Many people arefamiliar with thework of ChristopherNupen whomakes films aboutmusicians. In 1984he and his crewcreated an outstandingtribute toSibelius which earned the SilverMedal at the 1984 New YorkInternational Film and TelevisionFestival (Sibelius - The EarlyYears; Maturity & Silence -Christopher Nupen; TheChristopher Nupen Films 05CND). There are no actors involved,simply Nupen's voice relating, wartsand all, Sibelius ' s life anddevelopment. Visually we seepertinent artifacts and vistas ofFinland which meant so much, if noteverything, to the man who wouldbecome the musical voice of hiscountry and a towering composer ofthe century. In performance,Vladimir Ashkenazy is seenconducting the Swedish RadioSymphony Orchestra with sopranoElizabeth Soderstrom and violinistBoris Belkin in generous passagesfrom the symphonies, the violinconcerto, tone poems and songs.Thi s film was made with impeccabletaste and makes an irresistible case
for Sibelius. You may be prompted to acquire theCDs of Ashkenazy conducting the symphoniesand tone poems, the violin concerto, songs, etcrecorded in London at about the time by Decca(4735902, 5 CDs).Incidentally, Decca has just issued a set of thecomplete Beethoven piano sonatas played byAshkenazy (4428887, 10 CDs) which retailsfor less than 0 ! Recorded between 1971 and1977, the pianist was at the height of his deservedpopularity and this is the first compilation. Hisenergetic and enthusiastic playing is heard inDecca's best sound. At less than .98 per disc,this is almost a gift!The late Pierre Monteux was one of the mostesteemed maestros of the last century. He leadthe Boston Symphony from 1919 to 1924, theAmsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra from 1924to 1934 along side Mengel berg, conducted in Parisfrom 1929 to 1938 and from 1938 until 1952 heheaded up the San Francisco Symphony withwhom he made many recordings for RCA. Healso conducted at the MET. He founded theschool for conductors in Hancock, Maine whosegraduates include Neville Marriner, Andre Previnand David Zinman. Music and Arts has remasteredtheir earlier boxed set of "SundayEvenings with Pierre Monteux" ( 1941-1952)and added a further four hours of new material(CD-1192, 13 CDs priced as 8). The orchestrais essentially the San Francisco Symphonymasquerading as The Standard SymphonyOrchestra. Because these were broadcastconcerts with time constraints, the are no workslonger than the 36 minute Franck Symphony,which permitted performances of the Beethoven5th, Mozart's Haffner and Jupiter Symphonies,the Haydn 88th, the Mendelssohn Italian, and theSchumann 4th. There's a large number of' lollypops' including Strauss tone poems, lots ofBerlioz, chunks ofWagner, and various Overturesand concert favo urites to a total of about 75separate works, closing with an exuberant readingof Chadwick's Jubilee.There are a several performances here that riseto the top of the heap but this is essentially atribute to Monteux, amply demonstrating hispanache and conviction and providing, as sponsorStandard Oil would hope, Music for the Millions.The sound is now clearer than before with noperceivable attempt to add reverberation to thesomewhat clinical acoustic.Bruce SurteesThe World's Leading Classical Music Label!ftK l ! \CGiuseppe Tartini - Violin ConcertosAriadne Daskalakis, violin • Cologne COHelmut Miiller-Briihl, conductor8570222..:~~.I- ~ --• Over 3,000 titles• All digital recordings• New recordings and compositions monthly• Critical acclaim in all key classical publications• Featuring great Canadian artistsSpecially priced - 3 CDs for ............ _~· 1 1.~"·';'' =1 •. l..l!'L'"Manuel de Falla - Piano Music • 2Daniel Ligorio, piano8555066Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky - PianoConcerto No. 2 in G major, Op. 44Konstantin Scherbakov, piano• Russian PODmilry Yablonsky, conductor8557824Music & Sweet P·oetry Agree16'1' & 17'"'Gentury En glish MusicMatthew Wlilt@ I countertenorS>Jdm:t i 1-~ arid d cgm1rllynl, Mo-ri'c}', Cumpiim, i.Jo,.·!cmd & Puro:liGRAUPNER: Friihl1ng & WijnterPartitas for Harpsk:ho,rd Vol.6Genevieve So!y'Grtitt/Jrier coulrl11•1 (Uk for a /lit-erii:lti!fP.reier !lrnn _,5"CJ-ty• 1OJ10Class-Jes Tl>d;a~·,,..._--. .. 1J=o-.....,h."Jose SerebrierSymphony No. 2 (Parlila)London PO• Jose Serebrier, conductor8559303The Art of the FluteWolfgang Schulz & Matthias Schulz, flutesPeter Schmid!, clarinetMadoka Innui, piano8570309Offer only available at HMV 333 Yonge St., TORONTOLudwig van BeethovenSymphonies Nos. 5 & 7Philharmonia OrchestraOtto Klemperer, conductor8111248Dolce VitaSimma"i!Mn $b:ff:f$ .lith~ .. , J\'adki UWrle'$ flute~ Mgli!111111 tJdJi.e fatl(JJ r1111w /nllrie's ar.aJf.1~119i!ias tmlmnad.ll!r"~CS.-~"GllQmophone MAgllZineWWW. THEWHO LENOTE.COM
