Let’s be clear: the wind ensemble of Telemann’s time was vastly different than the ones we have today. Clarinets, metal flutes, valved brass instruments, and percussion were later additions to the ensemble. The lineup of L’Orfeo Bläserensemble is one Telemann was familiar with: two oboe d’amore, two F horns, and bassoon. Lute and cembalo provide […]
Classical music
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Ensemble Imaginaire performs Durante with light touch
This double-disc release features eight string concertos by Francesco Durante, plus one that’s never been recorded before. Durante was a major figure in the early 18th Century. His music helped define the Neopolitan Galante Style. It was clean, clear, and relatively free of ornamentation. For the most part, the concertos on this release follow the […]
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Alexander Moyzes Symphonies Nos. 5 & 6 – Popular reissues
This third volume of Alexander Moyzes symphonies features two of his most popular symphonies. Symphony No. 5 was dedicated to Moyzes father. Mikuláš Moyzes (1872–1944) was an early pioneer in creating a national style of classical composition. Alexander Moyzes demonstrates his mastery of this concept with this work. The symphony uses elements of his father’s […]
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Shelest and Järvi make the most of Rubinstein concertos
In the 19th Century Russia, one composer towered over the rest. It wasn’t Tchaikovsky, any member of the Might Five. It was Anton Rubinstein. Rubinstein was prolific, and one of the first to assimilate Western musical tradition into Russian composition. Rubinstein was a piano virtuoso (among other talents), and his five piano concertos were the […]
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Ronn McFarlane – The Celtic Lute goes beyond tradition
By my count, Ronn McFarlane has recorded at least 14 albums of Celtic music, both as a soloist and as a member of the Baltimore Consort. Scottish tunes of the 17th Century were often transcribed for lute (and McFarlane’s recorded a good deal of it). This release presents McFarlane playing his own lute arrangements of […]
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#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalSpring Week 2
Classical Spring For January 2019 the #ClassicsaDay team made #ClassicalWinter then theme. It seemed only right to continue the trend and celebrate Spring. So for April 2019, everyone is encouraged to share classical works inspired by the season. Some famous pieces may readily come to mind, such as the “Spring” movement from Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons,” or […]
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David Diamond Symphony No. 6 worth the wait
David Diamond said, “You have to write music that will be loved.” This release presents three such examples. Diamond was arguably at his creative peak in the immediate postwar era. “Rounds for String Orchestra” (1944), “Music for Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet” (1947), and Symphony No. 6 (1951-54) all come from that period. Diamond was a […]
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Sergei Zhukov Concertos Suited to Soloists
Ukranian composer Sergei Zhukov wrote a series of three concertos, each dedicated to a different sister of The Bekova Trio. This release features the Piano Concerto written for Eleonora Bekova and the Violin Concerto, written for Elvira Bekova. Omitted is the Cello Concerto, composed for Alfia Bekova. Zhukov’s stated intent was to create concertos that […]
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Judith Shatin retrospective concert – insights and thrills
The audience for Hearing Things: Music by Judith Shatin heard some exciting music in Old Cabell Hall on April 6, 2019. The retrospective concert was part of Shatin Music Month. Shatin founded the Virginia Center for Computer Music in 1987 and guided its growth through her retirement. The concert included works created at the Center, as well as some that didn’t use […]