It's All So New!

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
At the height of the big-band era, radio-network disputes with music-publishing clearing house ASCAP led to a scramble to find new sources of songs. After Tommy Dorsey's band succeeded with "I'll Never Smile Again," a submission from the unknown Ruth Lowe, his program regularly featured an amateur-songwriting contest. It's All So New!, drawn from broadcasts made between 1940 and 1942 and previously unavailable commercially, is comprised mostly of such tunes. Boy singer Frank Sinatra, along with vocalists Connie Haines, Jo Stafford, and the Pied Pipers, gamely and winningly tackles the likes of "I've Got a Restless Spell" and "Sunrise Over Taxco." The real winners here, though, are the debut performance of the semiamateur "Oh! Look at Me Now" (later revisited on Sinatra's 1957 classic A Swingin' Affair!) and Irving Berlin's "Be Careful, It's My Heart." As a revealing snapshot of the pre-solo Sinatra, It's All So New! is a must, as is its companion Learn to Croon. --Rickey Wright

It's All So New!, Music, Frank Sinatra & Tommy Dorsey, Ballads, Pop, Pop Vocals, Popular Music, Swing, Traditional Pop, Vocal, Vocal Jazz
Instruments of the Orchestra
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Instruments of the Orchestra - Great Reference Material!
  • Beginner or Expert
  • Very Informative and Enjoyable
  • Frank's view
  • Excellent Intro for Those Not Familiar with the Orchestra
Instruments of the Orchestra
Various Artists
Manufacturer: Naxos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

GeneralGeneral | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
Hungarian National Philharmonic OrchestraHungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra | ( H ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
London Philharmonic OrchestraLondon Philharmonic Orchestra | ( L ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
Moscow Philharmonic OrchestraMoscow Philharmonic Orchestra | ( M ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
National Philharmonic Orchestra LondonNational Philharmonic Orchestra London | ( N ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Rap & Hip-Hop | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Soundtracks | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Instructional | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music
Blowout Box SetsBlowout Box Sets | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
More Titles at Least 20% OffMore Titles at Least 20% Off | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
All Classical Music BlowoutAll Classical Music Blowout | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
Hungarian National Philharmonic OrchestraHungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra | ( H ) | Performers, A-Z | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
London Philharmonic OrchestraLondon Philharmonic Orchestra | ( L ) | Performers, A-Z | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
Moscow Philharmonic OrchestraMoscow Philharmonic Orchestra | ( M ) | Performers, A-Z | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
National Philharmonic Orchestra LondonNational Philharmonic Orchestra London | ( N ) | Performers, A-Z | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
InstrumentalInstrumental | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
Similar Items:
  1. Britten: Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra Op34; Simple Symphony Op4
  2. The Life and Works of Ludwig van Beethoven
  3. What to Listen for in Music
  4. Study of Orchestration, Third Edition
  5. The Life and Works of Frédéric Chopin

ASIN: B00006O0NT
Release Date: 2002-12-03

Tracks:

  1. Overture To 'Tannhauser'
  2. Domna, Pos Vos Ay Chausida
  3. We Don't Merely Use Instruments, We Play On Them. And They Play On Us.
  4. Hungarian Dance No.7
  5. The Violin Is One Of The Most Tender And Beautiful Instruments Ever Invented.
  6. Violin Concerto In D Major (Adagio)
  7. But For A Long Time It Was Seen As The Instrument Of The Devil.
  8. The Soldier's Tale: Triumphal March Of The Devil
  9. The Manipulative Seductiveness Of The Gypsy Violin.
  10. Csardas Music
  11. The Violin And The Initiation Of Nature
  12. The Four Seasons (Spring, Mvt 1)
  13. Birds Are Again Evoked In The Second Concerto, Especially Music's Natural Favourite.
  14. The Four Seasons (Summer, Mvt 1)
  15. Like The Devil, The Violin Is A Master Of Disguise.
  16. Old Viennese Dance No.3 'Schon Rosmarin'
  17. The Menacing Sensuality Of Ravel's Tzigane: A Very Different Side Of The Violin:
  18. Tzigane
  19. Do We Now Have The True Measure Of This Instrument? Not Just Yet.
  20. Caprice No.24
  21. The Many Effects Of The String Tremolando: Brandenburg Concerto No.4 (Last Mvt)/From Joy To Fright/Quartettsatz In C Minor/The String Tremolo Practically Spells The World Agitato.
  22. Variations On A Theme Of Frank Bridge (No.7)
  23. Prokofiev's Tremolo In Romeo And Juliet Should Not Be Heard Just Before Bedtime.
  24. Romeo And Juliet: Act IV
  25. Vivaldi Use It To Illustrate The Shivering Of Travellers Crossing The Ice.
  26. The Four Seasons (Winter, Mvt 1)
  27. The Violin Muted
  28. Clair De Lune
  29. The Gentleness Of Muted Strings Persists Even When A Whole Orchestra Plays.
  30. Piano Concerto No.21 In C Major, K.467 (Slow Mvt)
  31. The Pizzicato Violin
  32. Pizzicato Polka
  33. In Prokofiev's Second Violin Concerto, The Accompaniment Is Pizzicato.
  34. Violin Concerto No.2 In G Minor (Slow Mvt)
  35. Varieties Of Pizzicato: Colas Breugnon (The People's Feast)/Now A Drier, Leaner, Hungrier Pizzicato. There's Not A Lot Of Comfort Here./Capriol Suite (Tordion)/The Use Of Pizzicato As 'Percussion'/Romeo And Juliet (Act I)/Mahler Used Pizzicato...
  36. The Planets (Mars - The Bringer Of War)
  37. The Technique Of Double-Stopping Enables The Violin To Play Duets With Itself./Sonata No.3 In C Major For Unaccompanied Violin (Fugue)/Now A Later Example Of The Same Technique
  38. Hungarian Dance No.4
  39. Double-Stopping Is A Standard Feature Of A Lot Of Folk Music.
  40. The Four Seasons (Autumn, Mvt 1)
  41. Now The Same Technique, But The Sound Might Have Come From Another World.
  42. Bolero
  43. Double-Stopping Can Only Approximate The Sound Of A Real Violin Duet.
  44. Cadenza To The Violin Concerto By Brahms
  45. Now Compare That With A Real Violin Duet.
  46. Forty-Four Duos (No. 1: Teasing Song)
  47. Another Duo By Bartok, Demonstrating The Violin's Rich Lower Register
  48. Forty-Four Duos (No.2: Maypole Dance)
  49. And Now What May Be The Most Beautiful Accompanied Violin Duet In History
  50. Concerto In D Minor For Two Violins (Largo)
  51. The Soul Of The Violin Is In Song; But What About This Weird Passage?
  52. Violin Concerto No.1 In D Major (Mvt 2)
  53. The Use Of Harmonies In The Orchestra Can Be Both Magical And Unsettling.
  54. Symphony No.1 'Titan' (Mvt 1, Opening)
  55. Tchaikovsky's Use Of Harmonics In The Sleeping Beauty Is Both Strange And Darling.
  56. The Sleeping Beauty (Act II, No.15: Entr'Acte)
  57. Ravel's Harmonics In Mother Goose Effect A Magical Transformation.
  58. Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Beauty And The Beast)
  59. Stravinsky's Harmonics In The Firebird Transport Us Almost Into Another World./The Firebird (Introduction)
  60. The Natural Upper Notes Of The Violins Have A Unique Emotional 'Grab'.
  61. Also Sprach Zarathustra (Of The Afterworldsmen)
  62. Still In Their Upper Register, The Violins Unleash The Energy Of A Young Colt.
  63. Variations On A Theme Of Frank Bridge (No. 4)
  64. Elsewhere, Britten Uses The Same High Register To Create A Very Different Mood.
  65. Four Sea Interludes (Dawn) From 'Peter Grimes'
  66. To End This Outing With The Violins, A Charming Little Elfin Dance
  67. Elfenreigen

Tracks:

  1. Introduction To The Viola
  2. Viola Concerto (Mvt 1)
  3. Khatchaturian Gets A Very Different Sound From It: Fuller, Fruitier, More Exotic.
  4. Gayane Suite No.1 (Armen's Solo)
  5. Very Nearly The Whole Of The Violin's Upper Register Is Also Available To The Viola.
  6. Passacaglia, Op.33b From 'Peter Grimes'
  7. The Viola Can Bring A Special, Rich Twanginess To Pizzicato That The Violins Lack./Don Quixote/Berlioz Drew Sounds From It That Retain Their Metallic Strangeness Even Today.
  8. Harold In Italy (Mvt 4)
  9. The Muted Viola: Intimate, Gentle, Poignant In Dvork
  10. Cypresses (No.9)
  11. The Massed Violas Of The Modern Symphony Orchestra In Mahler
  12. Symphony No.4 (Mvt 3)
  13. The 'Period' Viola In Bach
  14. Brandenburg Concerto No.6 (Last Mvt)
  15. The Cello: A Voice Of Unique Nobility
  16. Suite No.1 For Unaccompanied Cello (Prelude)
  17. Brahms And The 'Soul' Of The Cello
  18. Piano Concerto No.2 In B Flat Major (Mvt 3)
  19. Most Orchestral Composers Tend To Emphasize The Cello's Lower Register.
  20. Cantata 'Herz Und Mund Und Tat Und Leben', BWV 147 (Soprana Aria: Bereite Dir, Jesu)
  21. In The Time Of Beethoven The Cello Remained As Fundamental As Ever.
  22. Symphony No.3 'Eroica' (Finale)
  23. But The Cello Is Not Condemned To Spend Its Life In The Basement.
  24. Elfentanz, Op.39
  25. Not Only In Recital Showpieces Like That Is The Cello Is Used In Its Highest Register.
  26. The Protecting Veil (Opening)
  27. A Cello With An Identity-Crisis: The Pizzicato Flamencan
  28. Flamenco
  29. Double-Stopping In The Lower Reaches Of The Cello's Range
  30. Solo Suiet For Cello And Piano (Sardana)
  31. It's In The Middle Register That The Cello Really Comes Into Its Own.
  32. Oriental Dance, Op.2 No.2
  33. It Was To The Cellos That Beethoven Gave Two Of His Most Famous Themes./Symphony No.5 (Mvt 2)/Still More Famous Than That Theme Is This One From The Ninth Symphony.
  34. Symphony No.9 (Finale)
  35. Introduction To The Double-Bass
  36. The Carnival Of The Animals (The Elephant)
  37. But The Double-Bass Can Be Intensely Expressive And Graceful.
  38. Elegy No.1 In D Major
  39. The Range Of The Double-Bass Is The Greatest Of All The String Instruments/Allegro Di Concerto, 'Alla Mendelssohn'/And It's Also Capable Of Very Considerable Virtuosity.
  40. Capriccio Di Bravura
  41. Double-Bass Solos In Orchestral Scores Are Rare But Often Memorable./Symphony No.1 'Titan' (Mvt 3)/In His Third Symphony Mahler Makes A Very Different Use Of The Instrument./Symphony No.3 (Mvt 1)
  42. The Double-Bass Muted In Prokofiev/Lieutenant Kije Suite (Kije's Wedding)/In Another Work Prokofiev Uses The Double-Bass To Enhance The Winds./Romeo And Juliet (Act III)/And He Combines The Bass Clarinet With A Shivering Tremolo From The Double-Basses....
  43. Symphony No.5 (Mvt 3)/So Much For The Strings/On Now To The Winds

Tracks:

  1. The Antiquity And Magic Of The Flute
  2. Prelude A L'Apres-Midi D'Un Faune
  3. The Versatility And Agility Of The Flute
  4. Orchestral Suite No.2 In B Minor (Badinerie)
  5. The Flute In Fifteenth-Century Spain
  6. Sa'Dawi
  7. Other Flutes: The Bass And Alto
  8. Chamber Music No.II
  9. The Piccolo - Aptly Named
  10. La Naissance D'Osiris (Mvt 6)
  11. From A Piccolo Of The Eighteenth Century To One Of Its Descendants In The Twentieth
  12. Suite No.1 For Small Orchestra (Valse)
  13. A Variety Of Techniques
  14. Chamber Music No.II
  15. Flutter-Tonguing. But Tchaikovsky Got There Eighty Years Before.
  16. The Nutcracker (Act II, No.2: Scene)
  17. From The Transverse To The Vertical: The Baroque Recorder
  18. Recorded Suite In A Minor (Menuet II)
  19. An Unfamiliar, Early Vision Of The Instrument
  20. Naelden, Naelden
  21. The Bachian Oboe
  22. Cantata 'Ein Feste Burg Ist Unser Gott', BWV 80 (No.7: Duetto)
  23. Introduction To The Cor Anglais Or 'English Born'
  24. Symphony No.9 'From The New World' (Mvt 2)
  25. The Loneliness Of The Cor Anglais
  26. The Swan Of Tuonela
  27. The Cor Anglais Joins The French Horn In Haydn.
  28. Symphony No.22 'The Philosopher' (Opening)
  29. Introduction To The Oboe D'Amore, Beloved Of Bach - But Also Of Ravel
  30. Bolero
  31. The Clarinet Family: Boxing The Compass, From The Depths Of The Bass Clarinet.../The Egyptian (Violence)/...To The Raucous And Squealy.../Taras Bulba (The Death Of Ostap)/...To The Shrill And Complaining...
  32. Petrushka (No.8: Peasant With Bear)/...To The High Sprits Of A Playful Puppy./Symphonie Fantastique (Last Mvt)/And To The Downright Jazzy/Romeo And Juliet (Act II)
  33. As The High Clarinets Tend To Be Loud, So The Bass Tends To Be Soft:
  34. Gayane Suite No. 1 (Mvt 5)
  35. The Bass Clarinet Is Used By Most Composers Mainly As A Colouring Agent.../Petrushka (No.4: The Blackamoor)/...But It Does Occasionally Get A Whole Tune To Itself./Iberia (Almeria).
  36. The Range Of The Normal Clarinet Parts Goes Quite High...
  37. The Snow Maiden (Scene 5: Melodrama)
  38. ...And Quite Low.
  39. Peter And The Wolf (The Cat)
  40. The Clarinet As Concerto Soloist
  41. Clarinet Concerto In A Major (Rondo)
  42. But That's Not The Instrument Mozart Wrote It For; This Is:
  43. Clarinet Concerto In A Major (Rondo)
  44. Introduction To The Saxophone
  45. Hary Janos Suite (Mvt 4)
  46. The Soprano Saxophone Has Quite A Different Feel To It.
  47. L'Arlesienne Suite No.1 (Minuet)
  48. The Little Sopranino Sax Goes Even Higher.
  49. Bolero
  50. The Most Famous Use Of The Saxophone Is In An Orchestration By Ravel.
  51. Pictures At An Exhibition (The Old Castle)
  52. The Saxophone Can Be Quite Contagiously Good-Humoured.
  53. Sax-O-Phun
  54. The Puffa-Puffa Image Of The Bassoon
  55. Peter And The Wolf (Grandfather)
  56. The Bachian Bassoon, In Accompanimental Mode
  57. Cantata 'Weichet Nur, Betrubte Schatten' ('Wedding Cantata'), BWV 202 (Aria No.1)
  58. Bizet Leaves The Puffa-Puffa Image Out, Allowing The Bassoon To Sing./Carmen Suite No.1 (Les Dragons D'Alcala)
  59. And Ravel, Also In Spanish Mode, Does Likewise.
  60. Bolero
  61. The Bassoon As A Voice Of High Seriousness, Indeed Desolate Loneliness
  62. Symphony No.3 (Opening)
  63. The Eerie Bassoon In Its Highest Register
  64. The Rite Of Spring (Opening)
  65. Stravinsky Now Draws On Its Lowest Register, Lonely And Melancholy.
  66. The Firebird Suite (1919, Berceuse)
  67. The Bassoon As Concerto Soloist, Avoiding All Exaggeration
  68. Bassoon Concerto In G Minor (Finale)
  69. The Deep-Voiced Contra-Bassoon, As A Fairy-Tale Beast
  70. Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Beauty And The Beast)
  71. The French Horn Under Its Woodwind Hat
  72. Wind Quintet, Op.43 (Last Mvt)
  73. Now A More Prominent Role, In A Woodwind Quintet From An Earlier Era
  74. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Op.100 No.5 (Mvt 2)
  75. The Horn In Harmonious Blend With Strings In Another Quintet
  76. Horn Quintet, K.407 (Finale)

Tracks:

  1. The Trumpet As Virtuoso Soloist
  2. Brandenburg Concerto No.2 (Last Mvt)
  3. The Special Brillance Of Paired Trumpets
  4. Concerto In C For Two Trumpets, RV537 (Mvt 1)
  5. The Ceremonial Trumpet
  6. Fanfare For The Common Man
  7. Trumpets And Drums - An Incomparable Alliance
  8. Messiah (The Trumpet Shall Sound)
  9. The Versatility Of The Trumpet, From The Most Public To The Most Lonely
  10. Piano Concerto In F (Slow Mvt)
  11. The Trumpet As The Voice Of The City/An American In Paris/The Trumpet As Recruitment Officer/The Soldier's Tale (The March)/The Trumpet As Swaggerer
  12. Carmen Suite No.2 (Habanera)
  13. The Trumpet As The Voice Of Strength And Courage
  14. Carmet Suite No.2 (Toreador's Song)
  15. The Trumpet Muted/Petrushka (No.4: The Blackamoor)/Lieutenant Kije Suite (Opening)/The Trumpet As The Voice Of Weariness
  16. Billy The Kid
  17. The Trumpet As Character Actor
  18. Pictures At An Exhibition (No.6)
  19. The Trumpet As The Voice Of God
  20. Mass In B Minor ('Et Exspecto')
  21. The Birth Of The Trombone
  22. Aenmerckt Nu Hier
  23. The Birth Of The Brass As A Family
  24. Canzon 12 In Double Echo
  25. The Trombone In The Eighteenth Century
  26. Trombone Concerto In B Flat Major (Finale)
  27. The Tone Of The Tenor Trombone/Romance For Trombone And Organ/The Memorable Voice Of The Bass Trombone/Requiem (Mvt 2)/But The Bass Trombone Is More Than An Instrumental Bullfrog.
  28. Hosannah
  29. The Trombones Become Part Of The Orchestra.
  30. Symphony No.5 (Finale)
  31. The Wagnerian Trombone:/Overture To 'Tannhauser'
  32. The Trombone As Caricaturist
  33. Pulcinella (No.19: Vivo)
  34. The Trombone As Raspberry/Concerto For Orchestra (Intermezzo)
  35. The Horn And The Hunt
  36. Horn Concerto No.4 In E Flat, K.495 (Finale)
  37. The Challenging Horn Of The Baroque
  38. Abaris Ou Les Boreades (Menuet)
  39. The Scarcity Of First-Rate Players In Handel's Time
  40. Walter Music (Minuet 1)
  41. The Horn As Magician/The Firebird Suite (1919, Finale)
  42. Horns And The Sound Of Nobility
  43. Overture To 'Tannhauser' (Opening)
  44. The Special Sound Of The Horn In Its Higher Register
  45. Mass In B Minor ('Quoniam Tu Solus Sanctus')
  46. The Trumpet-Like Sound Of Massed Horns
  47. Symphony No.3 (Mvt 1, Opening)
  48. The Tuba - Unfairly Maligned?
  49. Symphony No.6 (Mvt 3)
  50. The Tuba Perfectly Cast By Ravel
  51. Pictures At An Exhibition (Bydlo)

Tracks:

  1. Introduction. And We Begin With A Bang.
  2. Fanfare For The Common Man/The Bass Drum On The Battlefields/Wellington's Victory, Op.91 (Opening)
  3. At The Opposite Extreme Is The Triangle.
  4. Piano Concerto No.1 In E Flat (Scherzo)
  5. Categories Of Percussion: Tuned And Untuned. The Side Drum
  6. Overture To 'La Gazza Ladra' - The Thieving Magpie (Opening)
  7. The Side Drum In An Effective But Unexpected Role/Clarinet Concerto (Mvt 1)
  8. The Tambourine. One Of The Oldest Instruments In The World
  9. Den Hoboecken Dans
  10. Even Older Is The Originally Oriental Gong.
  11. Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Laideronette)
  12. No Single Instrument Can Match The Gong In Evoking The Breaking Of Waves./Passacaglia, Op.33b From 'Peter Grimes'/But Gongs Don't Have To Be Struck To Be Effective.
  13. Gymnopedie No.2
  14. The Cymbals Are Generally Discovered Early In Life./The Sanguine Fan/And They Do More Than Clash Together Loudly. They Can Be Clashed Together Softly./Studio Example: But They Needn't Be Clashed Together At All/Studio Example: They Can Be Lightly...
  15. Other Untuned Percussion Instruments Include The Whip.: Piano Concerto In G Major (Opening)/And Here Are No Fewer Than Twenty, Cracked By Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker (Act I, Scene 5)
  16. More Versatile Than The Whip Are The Wood Blocks.../Studio Example/...Which Crop Up All Over The Place In Twentieth-Century American Music.
  17. Rodeo (Hoe-Down)
  18. Related To The Wood Blocks, By Sound, Are The Castanets./Jota Aragonesa/But The Castanets Were Also Used By Monteverdi Back In The Seventeenth Century.
  19. Scherzi Musicali (Damigella Tutta Belle)
  20. A Still Earlier Example From Fifteenth-Century Spain
  21. Yo M'Enamori D'Un Aire
  22. The Birth Of The Bongo
  23. Symphonic Dances From 'West Side Story'
  24. From The Streets Of New York To The Blacksmith's Shop/Il Trovatore ('Anvil Chorus')
  25. Desert-Island Decibels: Grand Canyon Suite (On The Trail)/Arcana
  26. From One Vegetable To Another: The Humble Squash, Or Marrow/Huapango
  27. Onwards To The Tuned Percussion. First, The Timpani
  28. Also Sprach Zarathustra (Introduction)
  29. But The Drum Roll Can Be More Effectively Frightening Than The Big Bang.: Symphony No.2 'Resurrection' (Mvt 3)
  30. Not One Drum Roll, But Many/Grand Canyon Suite (Sunrise)/Symphonie Fantastique (Last Mvt)
  31. Taking Advantage Of Tunability
  32. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celeste (Mvt 2)
  33. The Russian Composer Rodion Shchedrin Takes A Downward Turn./Carmen Suite (Changing Of The Guard)/Tuned, Yes; But For The Truly Melodic We Must Look Elsewhere.
  34. Introducing The Glockenspiel/Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)
  35. Saint-Saens And The Xylophone
  36. The Carnival Of The Animals (Fossils)
  37. Ravel And The Xylophone
  38. Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Laideronette)
  39. Introducing The Marimba/Carmen Suite (First Intermezzo)
  40. Introducing The Vibraphone
  41. The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (Narange Dolce)
  42. The Vibraphone Goes Russian.../Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)/...And Is Joined By The Marimba./Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)
  43. Introducing The Hungarian Cimbalom
  44. Folk Dances
  45. The Cimbalom And The Symphony Orchestra
  46. Hary Janos Suite (Mvt 3)
  47. Introducing The Tubular Bells
  48. Hary Janos Suite (Viennese Musical Clock)
  49. A More 'Up-Front' Approach From Rodion Shchedrin
  50. Carmen Suite (Introduction)
  51. But The Bells Can Also Make The Sinister Even More Sinister./Symphony No.7 'Sinfonia Antartica' (Mvt 1)
  52. Introducing The Celeste
  53. The Nutcracker (Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy)
  54. Magic, In The Use Of Collective Percussion
  55. Miroirs (La Vallee Des Cloches)
  56. Plucked Instruments: The 'Undercover Percussion'/Carmen Suite (Scene)
  57. A Prime Case In Point Is The Harp, Irresistible To The Romantics./The Nutcracker (Act II, No.1: Scene)/The Non-Solo Harp As An Integral Part Of The Orchestra/Hungarian Rhapsody No.1
  58. The Traditionally Subservient Role Of The Harpsichord In The Baroque Orchestra
  59. Brandenburg Concerto No.2 (Slow Mvt)
  60. The Piano: King Of The Tuned Percussion/Symphony No.3 'Organ' (Mvt 3)/And A Quarter Of A Century After That:
  61. Petrushka (Russian Dance)
  62. The Anti-Romantic Piano As An Integral Part Of The Orchestra
  63. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celeste (Last Mvt)

Tracks:

  1. Keyboard Instruments In The Orchestra - The Most Powerful Of Them All:
  2. Symphony No.3 'Organ' (Finale)
  3. But Things In Handel's Day Were Very Different.
  4. Organ Concerto In B Flat, Op.4 No.3 (Last Mvt)
  5. The Organ Is Difficult To Classify.
  6. An Unexpected, Organ-related Guest
  7. Concerto Pour Zampogna (Last Mvt)
  8. Peasant-Fancying... And A Touch Of The Roaming Cowboy
  9. Les Miserables (Drink With Me)
  10. Outside Artefacts And The Power Of Association
  11. Mahler's Sleighbells
  12. Symphony No.4 (Opening)
  13. A Roll-Call Of Some Unusual Guests/The Typewriter/Parade
  14. Chains, And More/Integrales/An American In Paris/Sandpaper Ballet
  15. Purpose-Built Oddities: Wind Machines/Symphony No.7 'Sinfonia Antartica' (Opening)
  16. Don Quixote (Variation VIII)
  17. National Calling Cards: The Guitar For Spain/Concierto De Aranjuez (Finale)
  18. And The Guitar's Poor American Relative, The Banjo/Washington Breakdown
  19. And Poorer Still, The Mouth Organ/The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (Packing Up)
  20. The Balalaika For Russia/Romeo And Juliet (Act II: No.14)
  21. The Maracas For Mexico/The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (El Desayuno)
  22. The Bongos And Congas And A Whole Wealth Of Other Drums For Africa And Central America/Studio Example
  23. The Sitar Of India/Evening Raga: Bhapoli
  24. The Accordion For France (Especially Paris)/Paris Canaille
  25. The Zither For Vienna/The Third Man (Theme)
  26. The Cimbalom For Hungary/Folk Dances
  27. The Guitar As An Integral Part Of The Orchestra/Rondena
  28. There Are Whole Orchestras Of Balalaikas./Sveit Mesiats
  29. The Effect Of The Wordless Human Voice, Used Purely As An Instrument/Symphony No.7 'Sinfonia Antartica' (Mvt 1)
  30. Nocturnes
  31. Instruments And the Imitation Of Nature. The Clarinet As Cuckoo
  32. The Carnival Of The Animals (The Cuckoo)
  33. The Flute As An All-purpose Aviary
  34. The Carnival Of The Animals (The Aviary)
  35. The Oboe As Duck
  36. Peter And The Wolf (The Duck)
  37. The Recording Of Reality. Does It Work As Well?
  38. The Pines Of Rome (The Pines Of The Janiculum)
  39. The Recording Of Reality Electronically Reborn In New Guises
  40. Cantus Articus - Concerto For Birds And Orchesra (Mvt 2)
  41. Beethoven Turns Avian: Cuckoo, Nightingale, And Quail
  42. Symphony No.6 'Pastoral' (Andante Molto Mosso)
  43. Some Improbable Casting: The Violin As Braying Donkey
  44. The Carnival Of The Animals (Persons With Long Ears)
  45. A Truly Orchestral Hee-haw To Be Reckoned With
  46. Overture To 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'
  47. A Thunderstorm In A Million
  48. Symphony No.6 'Pastoral (Allegro-Allegretto)
  49. the Instrumental Depiction Of A Silent World
  50. The Carnival Of The Animals (The Aquarium)
  51. Saint-Saens' Menagerie Takes A Curtain Call.
  52. The Carnival Of The Animals (Finale)

Tracks:

  1. The Grouping Of Instrumental Families. An Additive Approach. First, Two Violins
  2. Forty-Four Duos (No.4)
  3. A Great Contrast, Of Both Pitch And Character: Violin And Viola
  4. Duo For Violin And Viola In B Flat Major, K.424 (Finale, Vars 1 & 2)/Studio Example
  5. Arrival Of The Standard String Trio: Violin, Viola, And Cello
  6. String Trio In B Flat (Menuetto)
  7. The String Quartet: Two Violins, Viola, And Cello
  8. String Quartet In F, Op.18 No.1 (Mvt 3)
  9. The String Quintet - When The Extra Instrument Is A Second Viola
  10. String Quartet No.5 In D, K.593 (Adagio)
  11. The String Quintet - When The Extra Instrument Is A Second Cello
  12. String Quintet In C (Mvt 3)
  13. The String Sextet: Two Violins, Two Violas, And Two Cellos
  14. String Sextet In B Flat (Mvt 2)
  15. The String Octet: The Standard String Quaret Times Two
  16. Octet In E Flat, Op.20 (Mvt 1)
  17. Double The String Octet: A Fully Fledged String Orchestra
  18. String Symphony No.2 (Finale)
  19. The Massed Strings Of A Symphony Orchestra
  20. Fantasia On A Theme Of Thomas Tallis
  21. Contrasts Of Pitch And Instrumental 'Colour' In The Woodwind Section
  22. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Op.100 No.5 (Theme)
  23. In The First Variation It's The Horn That Gets The Lion's Share.
  24. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 1
  25. In Variation Two The Torch Is Handed To The Bassoon.
  26. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 2
  27. In Variation Three The Oboe Leads.
  28. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 3
  29. Variation Four: Conversation Before Returning To A Solo-dominated Texture
  30. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 4
  31. And Variation Five is Dominated By The Clarinet.
  32. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 5
  33. The Next To Be Featured Is The Virtuoso Flute.
  34. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 6
  35. Individual Farewells And A Closing Chorus
  36. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 7
  37. A Mixed Group: Clarinet, Bassoon, Horn, String Quartet, And Double-Bass
  38. Octet In F (Mvt 3)
  39. The Early Classical Symphony Orchestra Of Haydn And Mozart
  40. Symphony No.29 In A, K.201 (Finale)
  41. Strings, Wind, But No Brass. What Haydn And Mozart Never Knew
  42. Canzon 28
  43. Beethoven's Fifth: Two Horns, Two Trumpets, And Three Trombones Join The Team.
  44. Symphony No.5 (Finale)
  45. From Beethoven To The Massive Orchestras Of Berlioz, Wagner, And Mahler
  46. Beethoven Changed The Face Of The Symphony And The Orchestra Forever
  47. Symphoy No.6 'Tragic' (Mvt 1)
  48. The Cult Of Orchestral Elephantiasis Reaches Its Peak.
  49. Symphony No.1 'Gothic' (VI: Te Ergo Quaesumus)
  50. When Large Doesn't Necessarily Mean Loud: Debussy
  51. Images (Gigues)
  52. A Crisis Of Confidence; The Orchestra's Survival Hangs In The Balance, But It Still Develops. The Ondes Martenot:
  53. Turangalila Symphony (Chant D'amour 1)
  54. The Advent Of The 'Early Music' Movement Brings A New Vitality And Freshness.
  55. Balle De Xerxes (Gavotte En Rondeau)
  56. Computer And Synthesiser: Friends Or Foes?
  57. Concerto In D Minor For Two Violins (Largo)
  58. A Speculative Look Ahead/Mass In B Minor ('Dona Nobis Pacem')

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Instruments of the Orchestra - Great Reference Material!.......2007-04-04

This set lends itself to greatly enhancing one's knowledge of the orchestra, instruments in it, and their usage. I am a huge music buff, and I still picked up a great deal I previously did not know. I highly recommend this for all who wish to understand the origin of music, as well as the processes that are employed to create music!

5 out of 5 stars Beginner or Expert.......2007-03-12

This CD is excellent for the beginner or expert! To be able to haear the instrumets separately and then together really provides a good education. and/or refresher. The book thaty comes with the CD is alomost worth the price by itself!

5 out of 5 stars Very Informative and Enjoyable.......2006-11-20

Whether you're a music novice or pro, "The instruments of the Orchestra" is a very worthwhile purchase. The 7 CDs, with a total of 8 hours, are expertly narrated by Jeremy Siepmann. He's a great speaker, very much like the late Leonard Bernstein was. Mr. Siepmann takes you on an unforgetable musical journey covering the origins and use of the various orchestral instruments throughout musical history. The balance between his narration and a wealth of musical examples, which range from snippets to entire movements, is superb. The comprehensive enclosed booklet is excellent and faithfully follows the 7 CDs in content. Even with my 40+ years of music training I still learned new things from this wonderful collection. Considering the excellence of the content, and a cost that translates to about $5 per disc, this collection is a great value. Grab it, you won't regret that you did. Five solid stars!

3 out of 5 stars Frank's view.......2006-08-19

This boxed set of CD's with booklet achieved all I had hoped that it would. There are good samples of individual instruments and well done commentary on each. The only drawback was that some of the samples were too brief and could have been longer, hoiwever I guess this fits in with time constraints of the medium. It has given me a lot of clues as to future purchases of CD's for listening to individual instruments. Altogeth a satisfactory purchase and a welcome addition to my collection.

5 out of 5 stars Excellent Intro for Those Not Familiar with the Orchestra.......2003-11-08

I've listened to classical music for years and am interested in composition. I bought this CD set to learn how an orchestra and its instruments work. I thought the CDs would be a nice but boring lecture. They aren't! Not only are they FUN but they are informative as well. I learned a huge amount from each CD and couldn't wait to listen to the next one.

The narrator and writer is a great speaker and holds your attention well. He is definitely knowledgeable. He provides musical examples for each point he makes, so you get to "hear" what he just talked about. I'd say the CDs are about 65% music and 35% narration. You'll learn about the range of instruments, some history, different ways to play them, how they sound, and how they are used in the orchestra. This CD set was a great learning experience and is sold at such a low price!

I recommend this CD for those who want to learn about classical music and those who know about it but are interested in learning more about the inner workings of an orchestra. You'll learn much useful information. For instance, the Rite of Spring (with that eerie start) is written for bassoon! I never knew a bassoon could sound like that but now I do.

The one complaint I have is the last CD. This deals with the orchestra. I wanted more of a tour of how the orchestra has been used through history up to the present. Instead, it was a tour of how different groups of instruments sound. I thought it could have been better. The other 6 CDs are excellent.
Rodgers & Hammerstein: Songbook for Orchestra (Orchestral Suites)
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Irresistible
  • "Some Enchanted Evening" with Kunzel and the Cincinnati Pops
  • Excellent!
  • Great Arrangments
Rodgers & Hammerstein: Songbook for Orchestra (Orchestral Suites)

Manufacturer: Telarc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

WaltzesWaltzes | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music
Rodgers, RichardRodgers, Richard | ( R ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
Film ScoresFilm Scores | Theatrical, Incidental & Program Music | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Theatrical, Incidental & Program Music | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
General ModernGeneral Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
Musical TheaterMusical Theater | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Pop | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music
Orchestral PopOrchestral Pop | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music
Movie SoundtracksMovie Soundtracks | Soundtracks | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Soundtracks | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Musicals | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music
Similar Items:
  1. Lerner & Loewe Songbook for Orchestra
  2. Rodgers & Hammerstein - The Complete Overtures ~ Opening Night / Hollywood Bowl Orchestra · Mauceri
  3. Puttin' on the Ritz: The Great Hollywood Musicals
  4. The Sound Of Music (1987 Studio Cast)
  5. Classics of the Silver Screen

ASIN: B000003CXQ
Release Date: 1992-01-28

Tracks:

  1. Oklahoma!
  2. Carousel
  3. State Fair
  4. South Pacific
  5. The King And I
  6. Cinderella Waltz
  7. Flower Drum Song
  8. The Sound Of Music

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Irresistible.......2005-07-29

From beginning to end this CD is pure delight. A great recording has great music, a great performance, and great sound; this one scores on all three counts.

Rodgers and Hammerstein's musicals dominated Broadway in the 1940s and 1950s, and American musical theater has produced no more consistently eloquent and durable voice than Richard Rodgers. From his fertile genius flowed a surprising number of memorable songs, many of which have passed into and become an accepted and beloved part of modern American culture.

This well-filled CD (77:36) features symphonic arrangements (all but two by Robert Russell Bennett) of the music from Oklahoma (1943), Carousel (1945), State Fair (1945), South Pacific (1949), The King and I (1951), Flower Drum Song (1958), and The Sound of Music (1959). All the great tunes are here in suites from each musical that average 10-12 minutes in length. The arrangements are expert: rich, varied, and colorful. The performances are polished, idiomatic, and irresistible; Kunzel and this orchestra are thorough masters of this kind of material. And Telarc's sound (recorded 1991) is state-of-the-art (engineer Michael Bishop deserves to take a bow).

In short, there's nothing here to cloud your listening pleasure (the only quibble I can imagine is that some of your favorites may not last long enough), so it's hard for me to envision anyone with ears and a taste for music who wouldn't enjoy this CD. Warmly recommended. Finally, if you like this one as much as I do, you might want to know that the same team has produced a companion volume, the Lerner & Lowe Songbook for Orchestra.

5 out of 5 stars "Some Enchanted Evening" with Kunzel and the Cincinnati Pops.......2003-12-26

Erich Kunzel's Rodgers and Hammerstein anthology with the Cincinatti Pops Orchestra is one of the best and most ravishing instrumental Rodgers and Hammerstein albums of all time. With sumptuous arrangements and warm, natural Telarc recording, this glorious 77-minute CD presents sweeping, melodic arrangements of over 60 Rodgers and Hammerstein selections, spanning eight scores, and Kunzel allows the Pops to play with a characterful and polished understanding of the Rodgers and Hammerstein idiom. The disc is enough to cheer you up on a dull day and make you smile, and it might even want to make you feel like a convert to Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals.

This CD has all the scores arranged chronologically. The OKLAHOMA! suite that opens this disc promises a feast for the senses, Kunzel ably evokes the territory's "bright, golden haze" in the way he conducts the various excerpts, until you feel the atmosphere of the country charm of the show, and the love-affair between Curly and Laurey. Then, in CAROUSEL, he ably evokes the pathos of this tragic R&H masterwork, especially in the truncated Waltz, but he leads a wonderfully melodic "June is Bustin' Out All Over" and a devotional "You'll Never Walk Alone." Although this suite does not include Billy's pivotal Soliloquy, it includes "If I Loved You" as an expression of his love for Julie, and within minutes you could be soaked in the ups and downs of the show's mood.

After a brief STATE FAIR suite, with sweeping renditions of "It Might As Well Be Spring" and "It's a Grand Night for Singing", we are brought into the disc's showstopping highlights. These highlights are the excerpts from SOUTH PACIFIC, THE KING AND I, and THE SOUND OF MUSIC. But yet Kunzel conducts the rest of the disc until the various suites amount to a series of showstoppers. These three suites present wonderfully-arranged versions of their many familiar classic songs, with well-played solos. The SOUTH PACIFIC suite presents the songs in chronological order, yet preserves the atmosphere of the show at the same time. Kunzel ably brings out the romance in "Some Enchanted Evening" and "Younger than Springtime," and contrasts it with the exotic and dreamlike "Bali Hai'i" and the comic "There is Nothing like a Dame" and "I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair". Although the suite ends quietly with a reprise of "Dites-Moi" rather than the reprise of "Some Enchanted Evening," within minutes we are swept into the KING AND I suite. Kunzel ably brings out the Oriental pathos in this score, and he captures the warmth of Anna's rapport with the King's Siamese children in "Getting to Know You", and with the King himself in "Shall We Dance." There is also romance in the love ballads "I Have Dreamed" and "We Kiss in a Shadow." Similarly, in the selection from THE SOUND OF MUSIC, Kunzel conducts this until the orchestra soaks itself in the atmosphere of this Austrian R&H score. This SOUND OF MUSIC suite has more of a feel of the score compared to the bonus track on Sony's reissued version of the Broadway recording. You can almost feel as if you are following the progress of the Trapp family and how it lifts its spirits with the joy of music. Kunzel gives us a soaring version of the title song, and spirited versions of "Do-Re-Mi" and "My Favourite Things." He balances it with the open-air quality of "Edelweiss" and "The Lonely Goatherd." Although this suite could have included "Something Good," the love ballad written for the film, the three recollections of the songs that were cut from the movie only last for a while. And, the towering version of "Climb Every Mountain" crowns this portion of the disc, and this sumptuously-produced recording. But, I should also mention the infectuous FLOWER DRUM SONG medley, where Kunzel turns this underrated score into a work of art, until it convinces you to buy the cast recording. And, don't forget about the brief CINDERELLA WALTZ, too, when Kunzel conducts it magically, until you feel like you are in the company of Cinderella and the Prince. He is able to show how this R&H score marked a comeback for R&H after the failiures of Me and Juliet, and Pipe Dream.

Overall, this glorious Rodgers and Hammerstein recording is guarunteed to make you want to pucker your lips out for a whistle or sing along (to paraphrase another revew for Kunzel's Disney Spectacular disc) - even if this recording is music only, and as long as you know the words to the songs (and you might know a large handful of them already.) There is always a certain magic in this fine CD that makes you feel like you're sitting in the theatre watching these musicals, until it makes you feel like it is truly, to borrow two R&H song titles, "Some Enchanted Evening" and "Something Wonderful" to be in Kunzel's company for this R&H offering. It would certainly be one recording that could make you feel willing to buy the complete cast recordings of the shows. And I guaruntee that it will make you feel willing to pull out your existing copies of the cast recordings to listen to them again. I also guaruntee that it will be a cornerstone in any Rodgers and Hammerstein collection, just as it is in mine. Recommended heartily to any Rodgers and Hammerstein enthusiast and to fans of Erich Kunzel's work. And, you can play it while reading the Richard Rodgers biography, Musical Stages, until Rodgers himself would count this as his favourite disc in the afterlife.

By the way, most of the arrangements for the suites on this CD were done by the veteran R&H orchestrator Robert Russell Bennett, and it surely adds to the appeal of this recording. This itself is enough to amount to the icing on the cake, since Kunzel conducts them well on here, and since this recording still allows the suites to have the original theatrical atmosphere. And, although this recording is like the Mauceri collection of the Rodgers & Hammerstein overtures in compiling orchestral suites of Rodgers & Hammerstein, I think that I like the Kunzel recording even more because Kunzel has more magic in his conducting of these suites.

5 out of 5 stars Excellent!.......2003-04-08

This is one of the best Erich Kunzel/Cincinnati Pops collections we own! A must for Rodgers and Hammerstein fans, too.

5 out of 5 stars Great Arrangments.......2001-09-02

This is a first rate album with great arrangments and orchestrations. If you're a Rodgers and Hammerstein fan, you can't afford to miss this specatacular album
Dittersdorf: Arcifanfano, King of Fools
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • A Comic-Opera Treasure!
  • an obscure delight!
Dittersdorf: Arcifanfano, King of Fools

Manufacturer: Video Artists Int'l
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

All Works by DittersdorfAll Works by Dittersdorf | Dittersdorf, Karl Ditters | ( D ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
General ModernGeneral Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
Classical (c.1770-1830)Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music | Cantatas | Romances
GermanGerman | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
OperettasOperettas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
Similar Items:
  1. Anna Russell Takes On... Nabucco & The Magic Flute
  2. The Anna Russell Album
  3. Anna Russell Again?
  4. Encore?
  5. Anna Russell - Crown Princess of Musical Parody: Her Television Appearances 1964, 1976, 1977

ASIN: B000003LIK
Release Date: 1994-12-12

Tracks:

  1. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Overture
  2. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Chorus - We've Traveled Far (Semplicina, Gloriosa, Garbata, Sordidone, Malgoverno, Furibondo)
  3. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Recitative - Approach! What Is Your Name, Sir? (Furibondo)
  4. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Aria - With A Sword That Is Sterner Than Moses (Furibondo)
  5. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Recitative - Unhappy Oddling (Gloriosa)
  6. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Aria - My Fair Skin, My Bare Chin (Gloriosa)
  7. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Recitative - Was Ever There Insanity (Sordidone)
  8. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Aria - Snugly Hidden Safe From Prying (Sordidone)
  9. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Recitative - Madness Beyond All Measure (Malgoverno)
  10. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Aria - When The Purse Is Clinking (Malgoverno)
  11. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Recitative - There, Like A Vapor (Semplicina)
  12. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Aria - O Look So Woeful (Semplicina)
  13. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Recitative - Such As She Seems To Be Frigid (Garbata)
  14. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Aria - Let's Sing, Let's All Be Jolly (Garbata)
  15. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Recitative - For All Types Of Confusion
  16. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act I: Aria - The Fierce One Lives Only For The Slaughter
  17. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - I Beg You To Stop (Malgoverna, Gloriosa, Garbata)
  18. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Aria - We Praise The Sun For Beauty (Malgoverna)
  19. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - Bumpkin, Coarse-grained (Gloriosa, Garbata)
  20. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Aria - If You Will Love Me, I Will Love You (Garbata)
  21. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - No, They Cannot Persuade Me! (Gloriosa)
  22. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Aria - Lovely Ladies, You Enjoying (Gloriosa)
  23. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - Where's My Lover, Sweetheart (Sordidone)

Tracks:

  1. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Aria - Sordidone, Be A Bunny
  2. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - Are You Hiding? (Sordidone, Garbata)
  3. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Duet - See Comely Phyllis Wander (Garbata, Sordidone)
  4. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - Don't Come Near Me (Semplicina, Furibondo)
  5. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Aria - The High And Mighty Lion (Furibondo)
  6. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - Quiet At Last (Semplicina)
  7. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Duet - Semplicina, Do You Hear Me? (Semplicina)
  8. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Quartet - Ever More Bitter Shall Be My Raging (Gloriosa, Garbata, Malgoverno, Furibondo)
  9. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Recitative - What Now? What New Forms Of Madness? (Gloriosa, Sordidone, Malgoverno, Furibondo)
  10. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act II: Chorus - Long Live King Arcifanfano (Semplicina, Gloriosa, Garbata, Sordidone, Malgoverno, Furibondo)
  11. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - Earth, Our Dearest, Good And Nearest (Sordidone)
  12. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - That His Sowing Yield A Growing (Malgoverno)
  13. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - What Has The Fool Committed (Malgoverna, Gloriosa)
  14. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - Ask Of Beauty, She Will Answer (Gloriosa)
  15. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - Hop And Stop It! (Furibondo, Gloriosa)
  16. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - All Of This Planet, I Cry To Each Man (Furibondo)
  17. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - What's Unleashed These Dreadful Roars? (Garbata, Furibondo)
  18. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - I'm Simple And I'm Candid (Garbata)
  19. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - What Mischief And Load This Purse Is!
  20. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - Goddess Bright As Morning
  21. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - Mother Always Used To Tell Me (Sordidone, Semplicina)
  22. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - What A Lot I Need What I Need Lot's Of! (Sordidone)
  23. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - May He Not Come To Harm (Semplicina)
  24. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Aria - There's A Devil In A Ducat (Semplicina)
  25. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - Gather, O Subjects, About Us (Gloriosa, Garbata, Semplicina)
  26. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Duet - If You Marry Me (Semplicina)
  27. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Chorus - With Curiosity All Aflame (Semplicina, Gloriosa, Garbata, Sordidone, Malgoverno, Furibondo)
  28. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Recitative - Quiet, Please, We Implore You!
  29. Arcifanfano, King Of Fools: Act III: Chorus - The Wise And The Mad Have Got One Word For Their Dwelling

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars A Comic-Opera Treasure!.......2007-01-28

Dittersdorf is a sort of working-man's Mozart; in fact, this opera sounds similar to some of Mozart's early operas. But Mozart sought to break the rules and to explore new musical ideas; Dittersdorf is not an innovator...yet he is no less a master! This performance, too, is a materpiece of refined (not always!) comedy; the arias include some extremely difficult vocal leaps and trills, yet the primary joy is the witty verse. W.H. Auden (no less!) ramrodded this translation to English. And Anna Russell, famed for her "Analysis of Wagner's Ring Cycle" steals every scene she's in! Ad-libbing shamelessly, her introductory aria, all by itself, is worth more than the purchase price!

5 out of 5 stars an obscure delight!.......2002-07-31

Eleanor Steber's image on the cover of this set caught my eye while rummaging through the cut-out bins of San Francisco on a recent opera whirlwind. What a lost treasure this performance is - recorded "LIVE" in NYC 1965! All the principles shine, their energy ebullient. Don't hesitate, buy it and smile before it disappears.
Porgy & Bess / Most Happy Fella
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Nice performances
  • "Gershwin and Loesser musical journeys ~ Percy Faith"
Porgy & Bess / Most Happy Fella
Percy Faith
Manufacturer: Collectables
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

GeneralGeneral | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music
Orchestral PopOrchestral Pop | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music
Traditional Vocal PopTraditional Vocal Pop | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music
Traditional & Vocal PopTraditional & Vocal Pop | Pop | Indie Music | Stores | Music
Easy ListeningEasy Listening | Pop | Indie Music | Stores | Music
Similar Items:
  1. Lil Abner/Broadway Bouquet
  2. Subways Are for Sleeping / Do I Hear a Waltz
  3. Kismet/Music From Hollywood
  4. The Sound of Music/South Pacific
  5. Angel of the Morning/Black Magic Woman

ASIN: B000066JEO
Release Date: 2002-05-21

Tracks:

  1. Catfish Row
  2. Summertime
  3. A Woman Is A Sometime Thing
  4. My Man's Gone Now
  5. Leavin' For The Promised Land
  6. I Got Plenty O' Nuttin'
  7. The Buzzard Song
  8. Bess, You Is My Woman Now
  9. Oh I Can't Sit Down
  10. It Ain't Necessarily So
  11. The Strawberry Woman And The Crab Man
  12. I Loves You, Porgy
  13. There's A Boat That's Leavin' Soon For New York
  14. Bess, Oh Where's My Bess
  15. O Lawd I'm On My Way
  16. The Most Happy Fella
  17. Somebody Somewhere
  18. Standing On The Corner
  19. Joey, Joey, Joey
  20. Abbondanza
  21. Don't Cry
  22. Sposalizio
  23. How Beautiful The Days
  24. Fresno Beauties
  25. Warm All Over
  26. Big D
  27. My Heart Is So Full Of You

Album Description

Gershwin's "Porgy And Bess" and Frank Loesser's "The Most = Happy Fella" get the Percy Faith treatment on these two original albums = on one compact disc. Famed "Tonight Show" trumpeter "Doc" Severinsen = is the credited soloist on "Porgy And Bess."

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Nice performances.......2005-10-08

The music is very enjoyable. I especially liked Doc Severinsen's contribution on a few pieces. Percy Faith is always solid, and this collection is no exception. The Gershwin sounds much better than Most Happy Fella because of the stereo sound compared to mono.

5 out of 5 stars "Gershwin and Loesser musical journeys ~ Percy Faith".......2003-06-04

The greatness of George Gershwin's "Porgy and Bess", can only amplify melody of music can exist without lyric ~ and our legendary composer/arranger performs his "Percy Faith Touch". Mr. Faith was chumping at the bit to do this project ~ with sweeping arrangements and full orchestration that leaves no stone unturned. Highlighting ~ "SUMMERTIME", "I GOT PLENTY O' NUTTIN'", "IT AIN'T NECESSARILY SO", "I LOVES YOU, PORGY", "THERE'S A BOAT THAT'S LEAVIN' SOON" and my favorite of favorites "MY MAN'S GONE NOW", attentive haunting strings with echoing saxophones each musician reaching into the depths of their soul for this one ~ they were George Ockner (violin), Bernie Leighton (piano), "Doc" Severinsen (trumpet), Jimmie Abato (alto sax), Russ Banzer (tenor sax), Terry Snyder (drums), Phil Kraus (mallets), Lucien Schmidt (cello) and Harold Feldman (oboe).

Another well received show was Frank Loesser's "The Most Happy Fella", with some great musical selections that Mr. Faith has given his full attention and the arrangements are exuberant. Such as the opening tracks "THE MOST HAPPY FELLA", "STANDING ON THE CORNER", "ABBONDANZA", "SPOSALIZIO", "FRESNO BEAUTIES" and "BIG D", sure to please all fans of Musicals and Broadway Shows ~ this one has your name on it.

A must have for those rainy afternoons with a good book ~ entire album of twenty-seven selections is simply captivating and highly listenable. Percy Faith is still larger that life and his music will live through us his fans ~ and go on forever.


Total Time: 72:10 on 27 Tracks ~ Collectables COL-CD-7469 ~ (5/21/2002)
Leo Smit: 33 Songs on Poems of Emily Dickinson
Average customer rating: Not rated
    Leo Smit: 33 Songs on Poems of Emily Dickinson

    Manufacturer: Bridge
    ProductGroup: Music
    Binding: Audio CD

    General ModernGeneral Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
    GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
    GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
    ClassicalClassical | Indie Music | Stores | Music
    ASIN: B00000JIRG
    Release Date: 1999-07-20

    Tracks:

    1. Cycle 1, Cholde Emilie, 14 Songs About Memories & Fantasies Of Childhood: 1. I Was The Slightest..
    2. Cycle 1, Cholde Emilie, 14 Songs About Memories & Fantasies Of Childhood: 2. Through Lane It Lay...
    3. Cycle 1, Cholde Emilie, 14 Songs About Memories & Fantasies Of Childhood: 3. It Troubled Me As...
    4. Cycle 1, Cholde Emilie, 14 Songs About Memories & Fantasies Of Childhood: 4. The Childs Faith Is New
    5. Cycle 1, Cholde Emilie, 14 Songs About Memories & Fantasies Of Childhood: 5. Softened My Time's...
    6. Cycle 1, Cholde Emilie, 14 Songs About Memories & Fantasies Of Childhood: 6. Papa Above!
    7. Cycle 1, Cholde Emilie, 14 Songs About Memories & Fantasies Of Childhood: 7. We Talked As Girls Do
    8. Cycle 1, Cholde Emilie, 14 Songs About Memories & Fantasies Of Childhood: 8. They Shut Me Up In...
    9. Cycle 1, Cholde Emilie, 14 Songs About Memories & Fantasies Of Childhood: 9. I Cried At Pity--Not At
    10. Cycle 1, Cholde Emilie, 14 Songs About Memories & Fantasies Of Childhood: 10. Let Us Play Yesterday
    11. Cycle 1, Cholde Emilie, 14 Songs About Memories & Fantasies Of Childhood: 11. A Loss Of Something...
    12. Cycle 1, Cholde Emilie, 14 Songs About Memories & Fantasies Of Childhood: 12. Good Morning...
    13. Cycle 1, Cholde Emilie, 14 Songs About Memories & Fantasies Of Childhood: 13. Up Life's Hill With...
    14. Cycle 1, Cholde Emilie, 14 Songs About Memories & Fantasies Of Childhood: 14. I'm Ceded--I've...
    15. Cycle 2, The Celestial Thrush, 12 Songs About Music & Birds: 1. I Was A Phoebe--Nothing More
    16. Cycle 2, The Celestial Thrush, 12 Songs About Music & Birds: 2. The Bird Her Punctual Music Brings
    17. Cycle 2, The Celestial Thrush, 12 Songs About Music & Birds: 3. The Earth Has Many Keys
    18. Cycle 2, The Celestial Thrush, 12 Songs About Music & Birds: 4. The Bobolink Is Gone
    19. Cycle 2, The Celestial Thrush, 12 Songs About Music & Birds: 5. A Train Went Through A Burial Gate
    20. Cycle 2, The Celestial Thrush, 12 Songs About Music & Birds: 6. I Cannot Dance Upon My Toes
    21. Cycle 2, The Celestial Thrush, 12 Songs About Music & Birds: 7. Upon His Saddle Sprung A Bird
    22. Cycle 2, The Celestial Thrush, 12 Songs About Music & Birds: 8. Better-Than Music!--For I--Who...
    23. Cycle 2, The Celestial Thrush, 12 Songs About Music & Birds: 9. Bind Me--I Still Can Sing
    24. Cycle 2, The Celestial Thrush, 12 Songs About Music & Birds: 10. Within My Garden, Rides A Bird
    25. Cycle 2, The Celestial Thrush, 12 Songs About Music & Birds: 11. Heart, Not So Heavy As Mine
    26. Cycle 2, The Celestial Thrush, 12 Songs About Music & Birds: 12. I Shall Keep Singing
    27. Cycle 6, The White Diadem, 7 Songs About Poets & Poetry: 1. I Reckon--When I Count At All
    28. Cycle 6, The White Diadem, 7 Songs About Poets & Poetry: 2. I Dwell In Possibility
    29. Cycle 6, The White Diadem, 7 Songs About Poets & Poetry: 3. The Martyr Poets--Did Not Tell
    30. Cycle 6, The White Diadem, 7 Songs About Poets & Poetry: 4. The Poets Light But Lamps
    31. Cycle 6, The White Diadem, 7 Songs About Poets & Poetry: 5. I Would Not Paint--A Picture
    32. Cycle 6, The White Diadem, 7 Songs About Poets & Poetry: 6. To Pile Like Thunder To Its Close
    33. Cycle 6, The White Diadem, 7 Songs About Poets & Poetry: 7. Me--Come! My Dazzled Face

    Album Description

    Leo Smit has an impressive pedigree as an American composer and musician. A virtuoso pianist, he has worked closely with such legends as Stravinsky, Balanchine, Copland and Stokowski. He has set more that 75 of Emily Dickinson's poems to music, grouping the works into cycles about related subject matter. The disc contains the world premiere recordings of three of those cycles- Childe Emilie- Memories and Fantasies of Childhood, The Celestrial Thrush- Songs of Music and Bird, and The White Diadem- Songs About Poets and Poetry. Smit's songs display great sensitivity to Dickinson's very personal world, and reflect the poet's emotional range by adopting an extremely colorful palette. The songs frequently veer from the simple and tonal to more rhythmically complex and chromatic settings, always alert to word and mood.
    A Season's Promise
    Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    • A wonderful affirmation of American invention
    A Season's Promise

    Manufacturer: New World Records
    ProductGroup: Music
    Binding: Audio CD

    Larsen, LibbyLarsen, Libby | ( L ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
    All Works by LauridsenAll Works by Lauridsen | Lauridsen, Morten | ( L ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
    All Works by ThomsonAll Works by Thomson | Thomson, Virgil | ( T ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
    GeneralGeneral | Early Music | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
    GeneralGeneral | Sacred & Religious | Classical | Styles | Music
    GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
    GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
    OratoriosOratorios | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
    Holiday MusicHoliday Music | Compilations | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music
    General ChristmasGeneral Christmas | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music
    Opera & VocalOpera & Vocal | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music
    ClassicalClassical | Indie Music | Stores | Music
    General ChristmasGeneral Christmas | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music
    Opera & VocalOpera & Vocal | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music
    Similar Items:
    1. All Is Bright
    2. Divine Grandeur
    3. Music of R Nathaniel Dett

    ASIN: B00005O4UH
    Release Date: 2001-09-05

    Tracks:

    1. Ave Maria - Wayne Oquin
    2. While All Things Were in Quiet Silence - Ned Rorem
    3. The Shepherds and the Kings - Ruth Fox Hume and Paul Hume
    4. Carol (Neighbors on this frosty tide) - Joan Morris and William Bolcom
    5. I. Three Nativity Carols: The Holly and the Ivy - Stephen Paulus
    6. II. Three Nativity Carols: This Endris Night - Stephen Paulus
    7. III. Three Nativity Carols: Wonder Tidings - Stephen Paulus
    8. Lo, The Messiah - Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco
    9. So Blessedly It Sprung - Libby Larsen
    10. O My Deir Hert - Virgil Thomson
    11. O Magnum Mysterium - Morten Lauridsen
    12. Wishes and Candles - Stephen Paulus
    13. Sing Christmas! - Philip Lasser
    14. Deep in the Night - Jennifer Higdon
    15. Behold the Star - Thomas Cabaniss
    16. A Seasons Promise - Dave Conner
    17. All Together - Lance Horne

    Album Description

    The towering tree at Rockefeller Center, midnight mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral, Bing Crosby singing White Christmas—these are among the core snapshots of an American Christmas. A holiday that fuses the sacred and secular, high-gloss entertainment and deep spiritual meaning, Christmas in the United States is built on longstanding rituals at the same time as new riffs are continually being invented. It has its own distinct identity, and in one of the most culturally diverse societies on the globe, a Christian holiday has risen as the country's most prominent.

    The striking array of works conducted by Judith Clurman on this recording open a window onto the many facets of a contemporary Christmas. Most of these compositions were first performed at one of the annual Christmas-tree-lighting ceremonies at Lincoln Center, where Clurman has directed music-making since 1992, and many were commissioned for those events.

    Customer Reviews:

    5 out of 5 stars A wonderful affirmation of American invention.......2001-09-30

    Judith Clurman knows how to work with singers, and the sound of her chorus is sumptuous on this CD. Just what you might want to have playing as the family is gathering for the holidays. And in a time of questioning and re-examination of what makes us Americans, the fact that this CD represents a wide variety of American composers doing their best to connect to beloved traditions makes this CD a winner. Hats off to New World for making a CD the record companies never would have...
    Classics Explained: Rite of Spring
    Average customer rating: Not rated
      Classics Explained: Rite of Spring
      Stravinsky , Rahbari , and Brt Po Brussels
      Manufacturer: Naxos
      ProductGroup: Music
      Binding: Audio CD

      GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Instructional | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
      Similar Items:
      1. Classics Explained: Pastoral Symphony
      2. An Introduction to Ravel's "Boléro" and "Ma mère l'oye"
      3. Symphony 9: Introduction to Dvorak
      4. An Introduction to Brahms' Piano Concerto No. 2
      5. Classics Explained: Brandenburg Concertos 4 & 5

      ASIN: B00007FPFN
      Release Date: 2003-07-15
      Campaign Moving Slow
      Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
      • Amazing...
      • Turn on your Stereo
      Campaign Moving Slow
      We're All Broken
      Manufacturer: Fidelity
      ProductGroup: Music
      Binding: Audio CD

      GeneralGeneral | Rock | Styles | Music
      Pop RockPop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music
      Post HardcorePost Hardcore | Hardcore & Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music
      ASIN: B00029LO4A
      Release Date: 2004-06-29

      Tracks:

      1. Baltimore
      2. Ambrosia
      3. Bite & Kick
      4. Long Pause/Short Pause
      5. Bit in the Head by a Woolf
      6. Estella
      7. Red Carpet Welcome
      8. Vomit on the Boardwalk
      9. Apple Parade
      10. Bovine Scatology
      11. Hail Vagabond Bride

      Product Description

      1. Baltimore
      2. Ambrosia
      3. Bite & Kick
      4. Medley
      5. Bit In The Head By A Woolf
      6. Estella
      7. Red Carpet Welcome, The
      8. Vomit On The Boardwalk
      9. Apple Parade
      10. Bovine Scatology
      11. Bovine Scatology
      12. Hail Vagabond Bride


      Format: CD

      Customer Reviews:

      5 out of 5 stars Amazing..........2004-11-21

      While listening to Campaign Moving Slow, you can't help but think Thursday and Sunny Day Real Estate have been fused together to bring you We.re All Broken. This band is absolutely incredible. With beautiful chord blending, the infectious Baltimore won't be able to leave your head. If you haven't already, go see them live because their energy is simply amazing.

      Standout Tracks: Baltimore, Long Pause/Short Pause, Red Carpet Welcome

      5 out of 5 stars Turn on your Stereo.......2004-07-08

      Having followed We're All Broken for several years, this disc arrives much anticipated. Though I did have pretty high expectations for a record that is the culmination of years of playing and writing together, I could never have expected the breadth of what they have achieved. Every song is filled with unexpected surprises and the little intricacies that reward repeated, focused listening, while immediate listens are equally enjoyable due to the energy and passion these guys bring to the table. This is not a rock record to listen to once and toss in the pile. But it is a ROCK record...to be played loud. From the opening track to the last, We're All Broken take the listener on a journey through heavy excursions, beautiful melodies, ambiguous lyrics that still mean something(to those who like to use their imaginations every now and then) and ambient and electronic textures that create a cohesive album that doesn't sound like one long song, but a unit as great or greater than the sum of its parts. Albums like these are hard to come by from any band, and for a debut record to be as strong as this, the future of We're All Broken is something to get very excited about. Start paying attention.
      Leonard Bernstein: The 1953 American Decca Recordings
      Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
      • It's wonderful to have Bernstein back, but the performances fall short
      • Come back Lennie, we need you
      • For Bernstein enthusiasts, it's like owning a gold mine
      • Bernstein's Early American Recordings
      Leonard Bernstein: The 1953 American Decca Recordings

      Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon
      ProductGroup: Music
      Binding: Audio CD

      All Works by BeethovenAll Works by Beethoven | Beethoven, Ludwig van | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
      All Works by BrahmsAll Works by Brahms | Brahms, Johannes | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Dvorák, Antonín | ( D ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
      All Works by Robert SchumannAll Works by Robert Schumann | Schumann, Robert | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
      All Works by TchaikovskyAll Works by Tchaikovsky | Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilyich | ( T ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
      RomanticRomantic | Symphonies | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
      Deutsche Grammophon: MusicDeutsche Grammophon: Music | Specialty Stores | Music
      Similar Items:
      1. Karl Böhm Conducts Mozart and Strauss
      2. Leonard Bernstein Conducts Haydn (Collectors Edition)
      3. Pierre Monteux Decca & Philips Recordings, 1956-1964
      4. Shostakovich: The Golden Age
      5. The Complete 1950s Chopin Recordings

      ASIN: B00067GKF6
      Release Date: 2005-02-08

      Customer Reviews:

      3 out of 5 stars It's wonderful to have Bernstein back, but the performances fall short.......2006-11-26

      These 1953 mono recordings catch Bernstein a decade after his famous debut with the NY Phil. and five years before he became their youngest-ever condcutor. It's great to hear that warm, comforting voice again, although his analyses--especially the longest one devoted to the Brahms Fourth--aren't as polished as they would become. He gets pedagogical at times and runs us through a rote example-and-explanation formula. Even then, howeer, colorful Bernstein touches peek out, and we are reminded of the man who taught an entire generation to venerate classical music.

      For me, the performances themselves fall short. They were often recorded in a rush, sometimes late at night after a summer concert. I know that the Stadium Sym. is actually the NY Phil., but they don't sound particularly fine, and Bernstein's interpreatations, though vigorous, often border on the slapdash. Plowing through Beethoven's 3rd, Dvorak's 9th, Schumann's 2nd, Brahms' 4th and Tchaikovsky's 6th, I found few sparks of originaity, much less genius. This is a tough admission from one of LB's geat admirers, but there you are. The original recorded sound is also a bit thin and harsh.

      5 out of 5 stars Come back Lennie, we need you.......2006-02-22

      This box is worth its price just for the five talks. Bernstein at this stage had a teaching style rather more stilted than the chatty sage of later years, but the combination of authority, insight and infectious enthusiasm is unique. Entertainingly offhand about the New World, he's at his best on the music he reveres most, i.e. Beethoven, Schumann, and Brahms, the first movement of whose Fourth Symphony gets a particularly in-depth analysis that left me yearning for more. Practically anyone could enjoy and learn from these talks - they're fascinating fun without a whiff of down-dumbing. When the classical and the popular cross over nowadays, the results are usually compromised and crass, but with Bernstein there doesn't even seem to be a gap to be crossed over - just a passion to share these wonders with as many people as possible. We need his all-embracing talent and vision today more than ever.

      Then there are the performances. I'm not the biggest fan of mono symphonic recordings, but these positively leap down your ears, unmannered, committed and electric. It's hard to believe what was achieved under the hasty recording conditions described in the booklet. The sound is a little fierce, but good enough to make this set a wonderful gift for any open-minded but symphonically ignorant acquaintance. I can easily imagine it turning someone on to classical music.

      4 out of 5 stars For Bernstein enthusiasts, it's like owning a gold mine.......2005-06-19

      This new album set is something that I had heard of, but never dared to hope would be released on CD. It consists of Leonard Bernstein's very first recordings of Beethoven's Symphony No. 3 (the "Eroica"), Dvorak's "New World Symphony", Schumann's Symphony No. 2, Brahms' Fourth Symphony, and Tchaikovsky's "Pathetique" Symphony. They are all conducted by Bernstein and played beautifully by an orchestra which bills itself as the New York Stadium Symphony Orchestra, but which is really the great New York Philharmonic, using the name that they gave themselves during summer concerts.

      The performances are a revelation, because they demonstrate conclusively that Bernstein did not always "exaggerate" or "overinterpret" great music, as critics frequently claim. His performances here are very, very direct and straightforward, more like Fritz Reiner or Toscanini than like Bernstein.

      If this album contained only Bernstein's early performances of these symphonies, it would be interesting, but it might not really attract that much attention, since he re-recorded all of these pieces in stereo in later years, and with the same orchestra.

      What makes this set so valuable is that it contains his long out-of-print lectures on these symphonies, and far from what the previous reviewer claims, they never become boring and monotonous. No musician in our time, or maybe even in the history of music, was a better or more articulate and sensitive lecturer on music than Leonard Bernstein. His legendary appearances on the "Young People's Concerts" did more for the appreciation of classical music than all the "Beethoven's Wig" albums combined. (If you don't know what "Beethoven's Wig" is, check it out and shudder at how far music appreciation has fallen since Bernstein's death.)

      Bernstein had a unique ability to make classical music accessible to everybody, without ever condescending to the listener or cheapening the music. His lectures on this album, previously only available to 1950's Book of the Month Subscribers (except for part of the Beethoven lecture, which is the only one that Bernstein did re-record in stereo), are invaluable both to music students and to those who are willing to listen. All of the lectures included cover all four movements of the symphonies discussed, except for the Brahms; that one is just as extensive as the others, but it covers only the first movement of the symphony.

      However--be warned, the lectures do have a flaw that the symphonies themselves do not, and that is why I have subtracted one star.

      The symphony recordings are obviously remastered from magnetic tape, but the lectures have been transferred from LP's. Thus, you will be able to hear an occasional click or pop from time to time, and there is a clearly audible "skip" on the Brahms lecture. It is NOT the CD being defective, or the laser beam on your player skipping; it is clearly the lecture recordings themselves. Deutsche Grammophon, which released this CD set, is very honest about the source of the transfers to compact disc, and is to be commended for this. (They mention it in the last page of the accompanying booklet.) But this shouldn't deter anybody from buying this enormously important Bernstein set.

      4 out of 5 stars Bernstein's Early American Recordings.......2005-04-02

      The most recent batch of DG's "Original Masters" box sets boasts several titles that will leave classical collectors rejoicing, "Leonard Bernstein: The 1953 American Decca Recordings" foremost among them. This 5CD set features Lenny in his earliest recorded performances of some of his trademark works -- Beethoven's 3rd, Dvorak's 9th, Schumann's 2nd, Brahms' 4th and Tchaikovsky's 6th Symphonies. Bernstein would later re-record all of five these symphonies with the NYPO (btw, the Stadium Symphony Orchestra of New York IS the NYPO) to greater acclaim for Columbia, but these early accounts capture a brilliant young conductor at the threshold of greatness. Also after each performance, Bernstein offers a musical analysis, simplifying what the listener just heard as only he could, which is again something the conductor would become famous for in years to come. Well then, if this is such a great set, why the four-star rating? First, while the performances sound very good, these are 1953 mono recordings and the casual fan needs to be aware that analog and digital stereo recordings of these works by the conductor do exist, and are generally preferable. Second, the musical analysis is a nice touch, but certainly does not warrant repeated listenings, as does the music. In fact, nearly half of the contents of these five discs is LB talking, and it could have been filled with music instead, or simply sold as a less expensive 3CD set. However, these shortcomings aside, "Leonard Bernstein: The 1953 American Decca Recordings" is another outstanding release in a fine series.
      Classic Gershwin
      Average customer rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
      • CLASSIC PLASTIC
      • Musical pleasure
      Classic Gershwin

      Manufacturer: Sony
      ProductGroup: Music
      Binding: Audio CD

      All Works by GershwinAll Works by Gershwin | Gershwin, George | ( G ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Concertos | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
      PreludesPreludes | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
      Film ScoresFilm Scores | Theatrical, Incidental & Program Music | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
      Tone PoemsTone Poems | Theatrical, Incidental & Program Music | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Theatrical, Incidental & Program Music | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
      General ModernGeneral Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Keyboard | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music
      PianoPiano | Keyboard | Instruments | Classical | Styles | Music
      Allen, ThomasAllen, Thomas | ( A ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
      New York Philharmonic OrchestraNew York Philharmonic Orchestra | ( N ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
      Cool JazzCool Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Jazz | Styles | Music
      Jazz FusionJazz Fusion | Jazz | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
      Modern & 20th CenturyModern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
      EnglishEnglish | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
      Musical TheaterMusical Theater | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
      Movie SoundtracksMovie Soundtracks | Soundtracks | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Soundtracks | Styles | Music
      Traditional Vocal PopTraditional Vocal Pop | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music
      Traditional PopTraditional Pop | Oldies | Pop | Styles | Music
      General ChristmasGeneral Christmas | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music
      CDs $7 - $10CDs $7 - $10 | Classical General | Classical | Today's Deals in Music | Formats | Music
      All Bargain TitlesAll Bargain Titles | Classical General | Classical | Today's Deals in Music | Formats | Music
      CDs $7 - $10CDs $7 - $10 | Operas | Opera & Vocal | Today's Deals in Music | Formats | Music
      All Bargain TitlesAll Bargain Titles | Operas | Opera & Vocal | Today's Deals in Music | Formats | Music
      General ChristmasGeneral Christmas | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music
      4-for-3 Broadway & Vocalists4-for-3 Broadway & Vocalists | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music
      4-for-3 Classical4-for-3 Classical | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music
      4-for-3 Jazz4-for-3 Jazz | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music
      4-for-3 Pop4-for-3 Pop | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music
      4-for-3 Soundtracks4-for-3 Soundtracks | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music
      4-for-3 All Music4-for-3 All Music | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music
      Classical MusicClassical Music | The Sony BMG Masterworks Store | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music
      Classical Instrumental MusicClassical Instrumental Music | The Sony BMG Masterworks Store | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music
      Opera & VocalOpera & Vocal | The Sony BMG Masterworks Store | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music
      MusicalsMusicals | The Sony BMG Masterworks Store | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music
      ASIN: B0000026H2
      Release Date: 1990-10-25

      Tracks:

      1. George Gershwin: Rhapsody In Blue (Original Version)
      2. George Gershwin: An American In Paris
      3. George Gershwin: Medley From The Woody Allen Film 'Manhattan'
      4. George Gershwin: Medley From The Woody Allen Film 'Manhattan'
      5. George Gershwin: Medley From The Woody Allen Film 'Manhattan'
      6. George Gershwin: Medley From The Woody Allen Film 'Manhattan'
      7. George Gershwin: Medley From The Woody Allen Film 'Manhattan'
      8. George Gershwin: 1.- Allegro Ben Ritmato E Deciso
      9. George Gershwin: Three Preludes For Piano
      10. George Gershwin: 3. - Allegro Ben Ritmato E Deciso
      11. George Gershwin: Embraceable You
      12. George Gershwin: Liza
      13. George Gershwin: A Foggy Day
      14. George Gershwin: Overture To Porgy And Bess
      15. George Gershwin: Medley From Porgy And Bess: I Love You, Porgy
      16. George Gershwin: Medley From Porgy And Bess: I Love You, Porgy
      17. George Gershwin: Medley From Porgy And Bess: I Love You, Porgy

      Customer Reviews:

      2 out of 5 stars CLASSIC PLASTIC.......2005-07-21

      Gershwin CD is strangely lacking in atmosphere and reference, with over an hour of Gershwin's more classical side, including Michael Tilson Thomas conducting The Columbia Jazz Band's "Rhapsody in Blue", featuring Gershwin's original 1925 piano roll, Leonard Bernstein conducting The New York Philharmonic's "An American in Paris", and composer John Williams on guitar in "A Foggy Day". With song titles like, "Medly From The Woody Allen Film 'Manhatten", at just over three minutes, and "Medly From 'Porgy and Bess'", the CD is a classy cash cow thrown together by CBS Records. Tilson Thomas' "Three Preludes for Piano", stops and takes a dramatic musical breath in the context of these slam-bang offerings. Truly bland CD liner notes by Bobby Finn and Kay Swift, whoever they may be.

      5 out of 5 stars Musical pleasure.......2001-07-16

      I have always loved the Gershwin music. It seems to Americana. When I first heard the recordings of the music from the piano rolls, I was fascinated. When I then heard this album with the jazz sound and the symphony sound combined with the pure sounds from the piano rolls, I was captured by the sound. The mighty ending of The Rhapsody in Blue is as powerful as this music can be. Add songs like Summertime and the Porgy N' Bess favorites and I find that this album is just the right combination of composer, performer and directors. Michael Tilson Thomas pulls forth from the group he is directing, a crisp and powerful sound. Bernstein needs no critique. If you are a lover of Gershwin and piano music, you can't miss with this.

      Music:

      1. It Takes Two
      2. Jazz Child
      3. Jazze! [Import]
      4. Learn to Croon
      5. Les Pardon My English/Plays the Blues [Original recording remastered]
      6. Les plus grandes chansons, coll. Les Immortels [IMPORT] [Import]
      7. Les Romantiques [Import] [Original recording remastered]
      8. Linger Awhile: Live at Newport and More [Live]
      9. Lucky to Be Me
      10. Much More Music [Import]

      Music

      Music