BLOCH Symphony in E-flat. Evocations. Three Jewish Poems

wswebmaster on November 22, 2018

BLOCH Symphony in E-flat. Evocations. Three Jewish Poems · Andrey Boreyko, cond; Malmö SO · BIS CD1183 (71:12) Here is a worthwhile new release of three major works by Ernest Bloch that span more than forty years and represent three different phases of his compositional …

Picks of the Year: 2002

wswebmaster on November 22, 2018

Only four items that came my way this year met my own Want List criteria as neglected masterpieces of the past hundred years in superior performances. Samuel Barber’s choral music constitutes some of his best work. Admirers of the American …

Picks of the Year: 2001

wswebmaster on November 22, 2018

This year’s choices offer some very economical and efficient means of updating and refining one’s collection of the finest 20th-century music in traditional styles. Leonard Slatkin has proven to be one of the most perceptive and sympathetic conductors of Samuel …

Picks of the Year: 2000

wswebmaster on November 22, 2018

During the past year I have been less thorough in keeping abreast of new releases (and, as some may have noticed, less prolific in writing reviews), because of a large-scale project that has been occupying me. It is my hope …

Barber’s Vanessa at the Washington Opera

wswebmaster on November 22, 2018

Barber’s Vanessaat the Washington Opera  This past October and November, the Washington Opera presented eight performances of Samuel Barber’s Vanessa, featuring Dame Kiri Te Kanawa in the title role, her only U.S. appearances in 2002. The production, staged by Stephen Lawless, was …

Picks of the Year: 1999

wswebmaster on November 22, 2018

Listed below are the five releases that thrilled and satisfied me the most during the past year. First is a new, up-to-date recording (reviewed last issue) featuring fine performances of Lili Boulanger’s greatest choral and orchestral works. This is an …

PICKER Thérèse Raquin

wswebmaster on November 22, 2018

PICKER Thérèse Raquin · Graeme Jenkins, cond; Sara Fulgoni (Thérèse Raquin); Richard Bernstein (Laurent); Gordon Gietz (Camille); Dallas Opera O · CHANDOS CHAN-9659(2) (2 CDs; 1:49 &) As much as I enjoy reviewing new operas, I always find it difficult, and typically feel pressed by a …

Picks of the Year: 1998

wswebmaster on November 22, 2018

There are two worlds of classical music today, and they are increasingly distinct from each other. One is the world of superstar soloists, conductors, and their orchestras, who carry on a saprophagous relationship with a more or less fixed repertoire …

Picks of the Year: 1997

wswebmaster on November 22, 2018

We read that the classical record business is in bad shape.  This is most unfortunate; but from the standpoint of the serious music lover, there has never been such a wide range of repertoire available—and so well performed and so superbly …