Carley’s Staff Picks!

In recent months I have been fueled by Beethoven. Piano sonatas, string quartets, symphonies, concertos, everything. So, my first staff pick is the excellent documentary In Search of Beethoven. There are too many prominent ensembles, conductors and pianists featured in the film to count. The documentary truly takes the viewer on a journey. It catalogs his works and gives us some insight into Beethoven’s remarkable personality and his empathy for humanity.

In Search of Beethoven: A film by Phil Grabsky  ~  DVD 202

Chamber music. There’s so much of it! I think Mendelssohn is a good place to start. His piano trios are remarkable (the man DID write “Songs without Words”).

Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio in D minor was written in 1839, the year before Schumann experienced his most prolific year of songwriting. I love that Schumann viewed Mendelssohn as the Mozart of the 19th century, saying that he was the “most of illuminating of musicians”. High praise.

The Piano Trios of Felix Mendelssohn  ~  CD 9069

2013 is the bicentennial of Verdi and Wagner! Orchestras and Opera companies all over the world are celebrating with seasons dedicated to performing great works, from the most famous to the lesser-known. The AUSO began the celebration in March with the overture from  Die Meistersinger von Nurmberg and they will be joined by the AU Chorus in a couple of weeks to keep the party going with Verdi’s Four Sacre Pezzi.

Simon Boccanegra  ~  CD 8802

Birgit Nilsson Sings Wagner Arias with Hans Hotter and Leopold Ludwig  ~  CD 8173

This one’s for Robert:

Meredith Monk: Turtle Dreams  ~  CD 9697

We just got Eighth Blackbird’s GRAMMY NOMINATED “Meanwhile” (and other scores, CDs, DVD)

Get excited about our newest acquisition, Eighth Blackbird’s recent release “Meanwhile”: CD 10048.

“Is there an ensemble anywhere that conveys the sheer exuberance and joy of contemporary music like Eighth Blackbird? To listen to this brilliant young American sextet is to be constantly reminded of just how exciting, funny and ingratiating new work can be – especially when it’s delivered with these players’ characteristic blend of breakneck virtuosity and charm.”

- Joshua Kosman for the San Fransisco Chronicle

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The Kashmere Stage Band: Texas Thunder Soul, 1968-1974 - CD 10047

Paul Winter Sextet: Jazz Meets the Bossa Nova/Folk Song – CD 10046

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DVD

Chops – Music Library DVD 55

Follows a group of high school students from Douglas Anderson School of the Arts, a public school in Jacksonville, FL, as they try to win a competition where the prize is being able to play at the prestigious Essentially Ellington Festival at New York’s Lincoln Center and an opportunity to work with famed jazz musician Wynton Marsalis.

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JOHN CAGE

Bird Cage  -  M1473.C34.B57 1972

Chess Pieces for Piano  -  M25.C34 C54 2005

 Nocturne for Violin and Piano  -  M221.C34 N63 1972

Radio Music  -  M1473.C34 R33 1961

Sonata for Clarinet  -  M72.C34 S66 1963

Sonata for Two Voices  -  M298.5.C34 S66 1979

String Quartet in four parts  -  M452.C32 S77 1960

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MORE NEW SCORES!

David Amram  -  Cancion de Verano: A Piano Quartet for Young Musicians  -  M412 A47.C36 2012

J.S. Bach  -  Sechs Partiten for Klavier, 1-3  -  M24.B115 S8 1958 v. 1

Ludwig van Beethoven  -  Three Equali for four Trombones WoO 30  – M457.4.B44 D74 2012

Luigi Carvelli  -  Serenata Napolitana for Violoncello and Piano  -  M233.C37 S47 2012

Richard Danielpour  -  Spirits in the Well for Soprano and Piano  -  M1621.4.D36 S65 2012

Michael Daugherty  -  Elvis Everywhere for String Quartet and Tape  -  M585.D38 E48 2010

Jacob Druckman  -  Dance with Shadows for Brass Quintet  – M557.4.D78 D36 2012

Beat Furrer (yes that is a name)  -  Phasma for Piano  -  M25.F87 P53 2005

David Friedman  -  Mirror from Another: A collection of solo pieces for vibraphone  -  M175.X6 F75 1987

Osvaldo Golijob  -  Tenebrae (Version III) for String Quartet  -  M454.G65 T46 2011

Aram Khachaturian  -  Double Fugue for string quartet  -  M452.K53 D68 2011

Lowell Lieberman  -  Six Songs on Poems of Nelly Sachs, Op. 14 for Soprano and Piano  -  M1621.L54 op.14 2012

Steve Mackey  -  Fusion Tone for Electric Guitar and Violoncello  -  M295.M33 F87 2012

Steve Reich  -  Know what is above you for Three Soprano Singers, One Alto Singer, and 2 Small Tuned Drums – M2019.5.R45 K66 2012

Igor Stravinsky  -  Circus Polka composed for a Young Elephant, for saxophone quartet  -  M459.S77 C57 2011

New CD’s!

 We’ve got plenty of new CD’s! Check them out and have a listen

Outkast – The Love Below and Speakerboxx – CD 9898

Carole King – Tapestry – CD 9907

Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday and more – Let’s Be Frank Sinatra – CD 9901

Betty Carter – I Can’t Help It – CD 9902

The Very Best of Burt Bacharach CD 9900

Ruby Braff, Dick Hyman – America, The Beautiful

CD 9904

The George Benson Collection – CD 9899

Kevin Mahogany – My Romance – CD 9892

Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers with Thelonious Monk -        CD 9891

Thank you, John! Our Tribute to John Coltrane -                    CD 9893

The Best of Lou Donaldson, Volume 1 (1957-1967) -           CD 9903

Gene Ammons and Sonny Stitt – We’ll Be Together Again – CD 9905

Phineas Newborn Jr. – Back Home – CD 9906

The Ultimate Diva Collection – CD 9894

Jazz at Night’s End – CD 9895

Jazz Weekend – CD 9896

Jazz for the Open Road – CD 9897

Glenn Gould – The French Suites (Anniversary Edition)    CD 9889

Glenn Gould – The English Suites (Jubilee Edition)            CD 9890

 

 

Music of Edward Joseph Collins:

• Vol. I – Variations on an Irish tune and other works, Allegro piacevole, Tango (in Form of a Rondo) and other works - CD 9879
• Vol. II – Orchestral Music – CD 9880
• Vol. III – Concerto No. 3, Symphony (“Nos habebit humus”) – CD 9881
• Vol. IV – Hibernia (Irish Rhapsody), Concerto No. 1, Lil’ David Play on Yo’ Harp, Lament and Jig – CD 9882
• Vol. V – Arabesque, Songs, Prayer, Suite for Violoncello and Piano            CD 9883
• Vol. VI – Hymn to the Earth, Variations on Irish Folksong, Cowboy’s Breakdown  –      CD 9884
• Vol. VII – Ballet-Suite: The Masque of the Red Death, Irish Rhapsody, Set of Four – CD 9885
• Vol. VIII – Piano Trio (Geronimo) Op. 1, Songs Piano Solo Works                CD 9886
• Vol. IX – Daughter of the South (opera in one act and two scenes)               CD 9887
• Vol. X - Sonata Op. 2/14 for violin and piano (Allegro) - CD 9888

[In] CAGE

[In] CAGE
September 2,  2:00 pm [Studio Theater]
September 7,  4:00 pm – 9:30 pm [Recital Hall]
September 8, 9:00 am [Recital Hall]

Join the AU Music Department in a centennial celebration of John Cage’s birthday!  In partnership with the John Cage Centennial Festival of Washington, DC, American University will be hosting three Cage-ian events!

On September 2nd at 2 pm, come to the Katzen Center Studio Theater to get a taste of Cage’s repertoire with [In] CAGE.  Bonnie Whiting Smith, Dustin Donahue and AU Music Faculty Dr. William Brent, the members of red fish blue fish will be performing.

On September 7th at 4 pm, Tom Delio will give a lecture about John Cage’s percussion work “Amores” [1941].  Following Mr. Delio’s lecture, a series of concerts will cover every decade of Cage’s work from the 1930s to the 1990s.  Steven Schick and the Percussion Group Cincinnati will give rare performances of Cage’s music.  This performance will be located in the Studio Theater at 5:30 pm [free], the Katzen Museum at 6:30 pm [free], and there will  be a feature performance in the Recital Hall at 7:30 pm [$5 with a student ID]. There will be another performance of Cage’s work at 9:30 pm in the Museum [free].

On Saturday September 8th at 9:00 am [Recital Hall], Steven Schick and Percussion group Cincinnati will lead a free masterclass on interpreting Cage and other experimental music that will be performed in the September 7th concert.

For more information about the rest of the John Cage Centennial Festival Washington, DC, visit http://www.johncage2012.com/index.html.

Staff Picks ~ 7/12

It’s been awhile since the last round of staff picks, so its about time for some more.

Steve Reich Works 1965 – 1995

I like Steve Reich’s music. This box set is a collection of Reich’s music spanning a 30 year period featuring the Steve Reich Ensemble among many other esteemed groups. Its a great collection.

The cover art is pretty cool too.

Bruckner: Symphonies 1-9

This nifty little box set off the the RCA label is a really well put together compilation of what are arguably some of the biggest, longest and most complex symphonies in the major Western repertoire. The cycle was recorded in the 70′s by the Gewandhausorchester of Leipzig under the baton of Kurt Masur. Its powerful where it needs to be powerful, which is important with Bruckner. Even the slower tempos don’t seem as drawn out as other recordings of Bruckner, although I would not say Masur zips through them. Overall, if you like Bruckner, this is a good box to look at.

Copland: Third Symphony ~ Music for the Theater

I like Copland. I especially like his Third Symphony. It represents a culmination of his Americana-esque sound now associated with Western Soundtracks. I also like it because the orchestration is incredibly well done. Chief among this, in my opinion is the way he handles the Brass. I know I am a bit biased towards Brass (was the Bruckner a clue at all?), but this is one of those pieces that is made for the brass section, taking advantage of everything it does well. But enough about the piece, lets talk about this recording.

Usually when people talk about a recording of Copland’s Third Symphony, they talk about the New York Philharmonic recording from 1986 under Bernstein’s Baton. Actually, with so much attention on that recording, people tend to forget that there are other great recordings out there. This is one of them. Yoel Levi conducts the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in a great performance that reminds you that you can find a nice recording outside of the Big Five.

Prokofiev: Alexander Nevsky, Lieutenant Kije, Scythian Suite

Sporting more than just a cool picture, this collection of Prokofiev conducted by Abbado is seriously heavy. Alexander Nevsky and Lieutenant Kije is as big as anything gets these days. However, Scythian Suite is something that just takes that extra excessive step. This was my first recording of the piece and as a brass player, the second movement holds a special place in my heart. Take a listen and see why.

Prokofiev: The 5 Piano concertos

If you asked me which Pianist I would want to hear play something Russian, it would be Alexander Toradze. Then if you asked me who I would want to conduct, it would be Valery Gergiev. So it only makes sense that this recording be in my list of recommendations. Toradze is powerful on the keys, yet sensitive to the frenetic changes in mood common in Prokofiev. Add to this the long years of collaboration between him and Gergiev and you have a match made in heaven.

Cheers

Philharmonic 360

>>>>Stream<<<<

Got something to do at 2:00 EST today?

No?

Good. Then I have something for you to watch. Every once in awhile an orchestra tries something adventurous with their programming. Sometimes it works out, sometimes not. In this case of the New York Philharmonic and their new Philharmonic 360 program, I think it might. For those of you who are not familiar, Philharmonic 360 is an attempt by the NY Phil to take advantage of an unorthodox space to program highly spacial music. It looks something like this:

Cool, right?

The program consists of Gabrieli, Boulez, Mozart Ives and Stockhausen and is designed around the aspect of space and direction. The Gabrieli features Brass coming from opposing balconies in a sort of Baroque Cathedral effect and the Mozart is a semi-staged performance of excerpts from Don Giovanni. The Boulez, Stockhausen and Ives are all pieces specifically designed to be performed by separate groups located at different angles.

Was it be successful?

The jury is out, but the fact that the first performances sold out well in advance indicates this is an adventure worth taking.

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As an addendum, if you are a student in the DC area Consortium you can use the link at the top of the page. For everyone else, you can find the stream here.

Some More Staff Picks by Alex

Stravinsky Conducts Stravinsky

This collection puts together a huge amount of Stravinsky’s work. What I like about it is that every group either features Stravinsky as a soloist or as the conductor. The result is a series of recordings that highlight the sounds Stravinsky created in a way I haven’t seen elsewhere. Sometimes cast of as a bit of a vanity play by the composer, this nonetheless provides a good look at what he intended when writing his music.

CD 3247

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First Impulse

The Creed Taylor Collection: 50th Anniversary

This collection celebrates the work Creed Taylor did in bringing about the Impulse label. It does this by providing CD’s of Impulses first 6 LP’s. These releases cemented Impulse as a heavy hitter in the Jazz charts in the 60′s. With this collection, not only do you get the music but a spiffy booklet containing the original liner notes and more!

The first part of the collection is my favorite, containing the reunion of J.J. Johnson and Kai Windig. The CD is a combination of two LP’s: The Great Kai & J.J.: Brand New, Swinging Together Again and The Incredible Kai Winding Trombones. Kai and J.J. are a great duo, bridging together Bop and Swing in a fashion that is unmistakable. Creed Taylor doesnt skimp on the Rythm either. The CD features plenty of stuff from Bill Evans, Art Taylor and Sticks Evans.

I would be remiss however, if I did not mention the other albums in the collection. Next up is the classic Ray Charles album Genius + Soul = Jazz followed by Out of the Cool by the Gil Evans Orchestra

But wait, it gets even better!

It also has the Oliver Nelson Sextet playing the album The Blues and the Abstract Truth, Coltrane’s quartet playing Africa/Brass. You really can’t go wrong with this collection.

CD 9349

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Debussy: Complete Orchestral Works Vol. III

Not much to say about this one. It contains  three great piano works (Orchestrated by Caplet and Büsser) on top of the Danses sacrée et profane. Great works, performed well.

CD 6124

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BWV 1080: J.S. Bach’s “Art of the Fugue”

I give up! I really like the Art of the Fugue. Last time, I posted a recording by the Pittsburg Symphony Brass. This one is a more traditional recording, performed by Gustav Leonhardt and Bob van Asperen.

CD 6565

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Head Hunters: Herbie Hancock

Herbie Hancock, Bennie Maupin, Paul Jackson, Harvey Mason, Bill Summers.

Need I say more?

CD 9546

A lot of Noise — Staff Picks by Alex

So here we are. With all the CD’s to pick from its hard to choose only 5 to recommend. Oh well, here we go…

Symphony No. 5 — Petyr Illych Tchaikovsky: performed by Kurt Masur and the Gewandhausorchester – CD 9333

As a major work of Orchestral literature, Tchaikovsky’s 5th Symphony has been recorded more times than I care to count. So what does this recording have that makes it stand out? Ill let you take a look at the cover.

I know you shouldn’t judge a book (or CD?) by its cover, but this immediately got my attention. As a brass player, I love playing Tchaikosvky because he writes so well for brass. The parts are written in a way that is satisfying to the sound of the instrument. This recording, apart from having a great cover, reflects that sound as Masur knows how to handle a brass section in this very Brassy symphony.

Alina — Arvo Pärt — CD 9432

This recording was a collaboration between the the composer and several different musicians. It consists of several interpretations of two of Pärt’s seminal works. The music is very relaxing and a reminder that the best music does not have to be the most intricate.

Ahknaten — Phillip Glass — CD 8384

I’ve always had a hard time getting into opera. I don’t really enjoy lighter opera, while the bigger, more romantic stuff has always been too dense and impenetrable for me to enjoy. Ahknaten on the other hand is just light enough that I do not feel overwhelmed while keeping my interest. Besides, as you can probably tell, I am a bit of a fan of minimalism.

Mingus Big Band 93 — CD 4467

A bunch of really great musicians get together and make a really great band. Then they play some really great music by Charles Mingus.

Dark Full Ride — Julia Wolfe CD 9549

Do you ever wonder what 9 bagpipes bending pitches sound like? If the answer is yes, look no further. This, in my opinion is one of the coolest CD’s we’ve acquired in recent memory. Julia Wolfe, formerly of Bang on a Can, decided to put together four pieces where the focus was on exploring the sounds possible by combining large numbers of the same instrument. If you want more information, you should check out this review by Jay Batzner over at Sequenza21.

Cheers

SCORES! GALORE!

Musical Theatre

Memphis – M 1508 .B885 M46 2009

Grey Gardens – M 1508 .F69 G7 2007

Voice

The French Song Anthology (High Voice) – M 1619 .F85 2001

Berio – Un Re in Ascolto (Ein Konig Horcht) – M 1503 .B48 R4 1983 v. 1

Berio – Un Re in Ascolto (Ein Konig Horcht) – M 1503 .B48 R4 1983 v. 2

Instrumental

Raph – Solo for Trombone – M 262 .R37 2010

Shostakovich – Symphonies No. 9 & 10 – M 1001 .S554 op. 70 1995

Shapey – For Lucy, for Cello and Piano – M 233 . S527 F67 2011

Shapey – Two Short Pieces, for Flute and Piano – M 242 .S529 T9 2011

Taffanel – 17 big daily finger exercises for the flute – MT 345 .T33 G7 1958

Rutter – Suite Lyrique, suite for harp and strings in six movements – M 1136 .R8 S8 2010

Bach/Bruggen – Suites I-III, for violin solo, arranged for recorder solo – M 110 .R4 B3 BWV 1007-1009 1973

Schlossberg – Daily Drills and Technical Studies for Trombone – MT 465 .S3 D3 1947

Rochut – Melodious Etudes for Trombone – MT 465 .B6 1928 v. 3 <3

Creston – Fantasy, for trombone and Orchestra - M 1033 .C8 op. 42 1951

Martin – Ballade, pour trombone (ou saxophone ténor) et piano (1940) – M 263 .M37 B35 2006

Hindemith – Sonate – M 263 .H585 S8 1942

Sulek – Sonata, for Tombone and Piano – M 263 .S85 S6 1975

Salzédo – Pièce concertante, for Trombone and Piano – M 263 .S32 P5 1958

Casterede – Sonatine, for Trombone and Piano – M 263 .C342 S66 2006

Larsson – Concertino, op. 45 no. 7, for Trombone and String Orchestra – M 1133 .L32 op. 45 no. 7 1957

Corigliano - Chiaroscuro, for two pianos, two playing scores – M 214 .C76 C48 2011

Tomasi – Concerto, for Trombone and Orchestra – M 1033 .T6 C62 2000

Rufus Reid – Evolving Upward, and aid in developing thumb position technique for the double bass – MT 330 .R42 1977

Dempster – The Modern Trombone, and definition of its idioms – ML 965 .D45 1994

Wagner – Concerto, for Trombone and Orchestra – M 1032 .W346 2007

Martín – Mel Bay presents play solo flamenco guitar with Juan Martín – MT 580 .M37 M4 2001

Other

Simplified Arrangements of Popular Jewish Music – M 1850 .M64 S5 1960

So Many New Scores! And a CD!

CD

On a Sensual Note – Spare Change (CD 9449)

Scores

Fisher Tull – Eight Profiles : For solo Trumpet (M87 .T84 P7 1980)

Tschaikowsky – Variations on a Rococo Theme, Violincello and piano (M1017 .T33 op.33 2010)

G.F. Handel – Aria con Variazioni, transcribed for cornet and piano by R. Bernard Fitzgerald (M261 .H27 HWV430 2001)

Christopher Rouse – Rapture (M1045 R.857 R37 2011)

Kennan – Sonata for Trumpet and Piano (M261 .K45 S6 1997)

Janacek – Capriccio for piano and brass ensemble (M1010 .J3 C3 1990)

John Cage – Music for Piano #1 (M25 .C34 M8 no.1) Music for Piano #2 (M25 .C34 M8 no.2) Music for Piano #4-19 (M25 .C34 M8 no.4-19)

Richard Danielpour – The Enchanted Garden (Preludes, Book 2) for piano (M25 .D29 E52 2008)

Melodious Etudes for Trombone – Joannes Rochut, Volume 1 (MT465 .B6 1928 v.1) Volume 2  (MT 465 .B6 1928 v.2)

Chen Yi – Angel Island Passages ; For Children’s Choir and String Quartet (M1546.5 .C45 A55 2011)

Wolff – Schonen met Veters : For the Workshop (M762 .W64 S3 2011)

A History of the Trombone – David M. Guion (ML965 G83 2010)

Solos for the Trumpet Player – selected and edited by Walter Beeler (M260 .B5 S6 1963)

Alexander Goedicke – Concert Etude; For Bb Trumpet (Cornet) and Piano (M1031 .G43 op.49 1980)

Haydn – Trumpet Concerto in Eb Major (M1031 .H41 H.vII31 1991)

Guiseppe Concone -  Lyrical Studies for Trumpet (MT 445 .C665 L9 2007)

Robert Baksa – Twelve Shakespeare Songs ; for voice and guitar (M1624 .B357 S53 2010)

Andre Previn – Four Outings for Brass (M557.4 .P75 F7 1975)

Stravinsky – Tango for string quartet (M454 .S95 T2 2010)