Nadina Mackie Jackson "'-"Pl!lll!llll!"'11rm''-!:ll on her I atest CD N otesfromabroJ J/hhllllllg/1111/0hll I ; 314 Churchill Ave; Toronto, Ontario 'I M2R 1 E7 Canada 1 Tel: 416·224·1956 I Fax: 416-224-2964 ; I ; ; ; I, MIKROKOSMOS www.mlkrokosmos.com We buy your classical LP ; collection , I ; ; ; ; (cl assical, such as Beet hoven, Mozart, Stockhaus en) , ; we travel anywh ere fo r good co llec tio ns lllllll'/00 1110,,,.'4 56 Music by Bitsch, Tansman, Duclos & Schrecl< with exciting new works by Mathieu Lussier, aleks schurmer & John B. Hedges "Ms Jackson is superb here, completely secure in her wide-ranging technique ... 'one of the ... finest bassoon recitals I have been lucky enough to review. Steven Ritter, The American Record Guide, Sept.I Oct. 2004 .. gorgeous recording ... Jackson performs it all with effortless musicality and integrity, making the bassoon sound like a human voice." Tamara Bernstein National Post, Monday, June 21, 2004 Twelve Fantasias Fifty Years of Choral Music Choir of St. Simon-the-Apostle, Toronto Independent Echoes - 10 years of song I Coristi Chamber Choir (Edmonton); Debra Cairns Arktos 2004-79 These two discs are both retrospectives from talented choirs, but that's about where the similarities end. The music on the disc from St. Simon's consists of enhanced archival recordings representing the tenures of organist/conductors Eric Lewis who presided over the choir from 1932 to 1966, Ned Hanson from 1966 to 1981, and Derek Holman (whose Magn ificat excerpt is included) from 1981 to 1998. The current director, Thomas Bell, conducts a performance recorded live in concert in 2003. The repertoire, of course, is hymns and anthems for the Anglican Service. There are some lovely treble solos in Mozart's Laudate Dominum, Faure's Pie Jesu and J.S. Bach's Sheep May Safely Graze, which also happily uses the obbligato recorders rather than the usual organ substitution. Other than Peter Neelands in the Bach, the soloists and instrumentalists on the recordings are not identified. As for the other treblt(S featured on this disc, they are, of course, boys: the controversial development of allowing girls in the Anglican Church choir only became a reality for this ensemble in 2001. Because of the many years of music represented on this recording, there is at times a certain lack of clarity in the overall sound, but for those who appreciate the history of one of Toronto's finest Anglican choirs, this is a lovely compilation. I Coristi, founded 10 years ago in Edmonton, offers an engaging mix of ancient and modern, sacred and secular repertoire sung with skill and clarity. Most impressive is their agility in the onomatopoeic bird peeps and trills of Janequin 's Le Chant des Oiseaux and the percussive vocal accompaniment in A cappella in Acapulco by Anders Edenroth. As well, they sing pieces in Latin, Italian, French, Spanish, and even a Maori lullaby. Rautavaara's Suite de Lorca is chilling in its expression. As well, there are arrangements of some American standards such as Ain't Misbehavin' and Someone to Watch Over Me, along with the whimsical Four Whatevers by Scott Wilkinson. I Coristi's director, Dr. Debra Cairns, who supervises the graduate program in choral conducting at the University of Alberta and conducts the Concert Choir there, explains that the eclectic mix "celebrates the dreams and visions of youth, the joys of life, of love, and of nature". This sentiment is clearly conveyed in the exuberance and fine musicmaking of this relatively young choir. Dia1111e Wells CLASSICAL AND BEYOND Sainte-Colombe - Concerts a deux violes esgales Vol.2 Les Voix Humaines ATMA Baroque ACD2 2276 This double CD set is the second volume of Sainte-Colombe's short "concerti" for two equal viols. Margaret Little and Susie Napper (Les Voix Humaines) perform these intimate pieces in a way that transports the listener directly back to the time in which they were written. The ensemble of the group OCTOBER 1 - NOVEMBER 7 2004
is perfect, and the recording itself allows for a breathless decay at the end of each section, thus creating the atmosphere so cleverly composed by M. Ste-Colombe, who was brought to the attention of the world through the film Tous Les Marins du Monde. Les Voix Humaines certainly represent the highest quality of performance on early instruments that can be found in North America, and the pairing of these excellent musicians with the technicians and producers at ATMA Classique helps bring the virtues of the group alive. The discs come complete with wellwritten and highly researched programme notes, which are perfect for the scholarly listener. Because of the intricacies of ornamentation and voicing unique to the French Baroque, along with the highly skilled interpretation of the pieces by the instrumentalists, I would caution against listening to this recording as background noise. A dim room and some well-aged Armagnac is probably what it best requires, but a night-light and a paper cup of Orange pop will do in a pinch. Gabrielle McLaughlin Concert Note; Les Voix Humaines join countertenor Matthew White in Toronto Consort performances at Trinity-St. Paul's Unitep Church on November 5 and 6. Bach - Fantasia and Fugue in A Minor et al Angela Hewitt Hyperion SACDA67499 Angela Hewitt should be no stranger to our readers. Her interpretation of Bach changes my understanding of his compositions time and time again. She is direct and confident in her musicianship; her technique is controlled and awe inspiring. She makes it all sound so easy. Of note is the recording of Sonata in D major BWV963. In five movements, it is probably the only "original" keyboard sonata Bach wrote. The work may not be at Bach's usual caliber but is noteworthy nevertheless in its melodic simplicity and inherent humour, both of which Hewitt successfully incorporates into her interpretation. The closing 5th movement has the unusual title "Thema all' imitatio Gallina Cuccu" (Theme in imitation of the chicken and the cuckoo). The witty repartee Hewitt establishes between the contrapuntal voices is charming. The other works on this release are performed with the pianist's usual flair. One cannot go wrong by listening to Angela Hewitt perform J.S. Bach. She always amazes. Giovanni Paisiello - Piano Concertos Francesco Nicolosi Collegium Philarmonicum Chamber Orchestra Gennaro Cappabianca Naxos 8.557031 C.:ii)'VWllli PA 1.srn.1..1.0 li;.>1t11 (,'1Qtl111'< "°" J Ml\d .j ••-1..c .. !'
