2010 – Walter Simmons

SCHUMAN Symphony No. 8. Night Journey. IVES (arr. Schuman) Variations on “America”

wswebmaster on November 27, 2018

SCHUMAN Symphony No. 8. Night Journey. IVES (arr. Schuman) Variations on “America” ● Gerard Schwarz, cond; Seattle SO ● NAXOS 8.559651 (65:04) With this release, Gerard Schwarz and the Seattle Symphony complete their comprehensive survey of the symphonies of William Schuman (minus Nos. 1 and 2, …

SCHUMAN Symphony No. 6. Prayer in Time of War. New England Triptych

wswebmaster on November 27, 2018

SCHUMAN Symphony No. 6. Prayer in Time of War. New England Triptych ● Gerard Schwarz, cond; Seattle SO ● NAXOS 8.559625 (60:51) This appears to be the penultimate installment of Gerard Schwarz’s survey of the symphonies of William Schuman for Naxos, No. 8 …

Robert Muczynski (1929-2010) Obituary.

wswebmaster on November 27, 2018

American composer Robert Muczynski died on May 25, at age 81. I have often described Muczynski as the most frequently-performed composer whose music is never discussed. His Flute Sonata (1961) is in the repertoire of most flutists, and his Moments (1992) for …

HOVHANESS Piano Trio No. 1. Sonata Ricercare. Artinis. Suite, Sonata for Oboe and Bassoon. Poseidon Sonata. Bardo Sonata. Piano Sonatina. String Trio. Three Haikus. Night of a White Cat. Sonata for Two Clarinets. Sonata for Viola Solo.

wswebmaster on November 27, 2018

HOVHANESS Piano Trio No. 1. Sonata Ricercare. Artinis, “Urardüan Sun God. Suite for Oboe and Bassoon. Poseidon Sonata. Bardo Sonata. Piano Sonatina. String Trio. Three Haikus. Night of a White Cat. Sonata for Two Bassoons. Sonata for Two Clarinets. Sonata for Oboe and Bassoon. Sonata for Viola Solo …

HERRMANN “Citizen Kane” Filmscore. “Hangover Square” Filmscore; Concerto Macabre

wswebmaster on November 26, 2018

HERRMANN “Citizen Kane” Filmscore. “Hangover Square” Filmscore; Concerto Macabre – Rumon Gamba, cond; BBC Philharmonic; Orla Boylan (sop); Martin Roscoe (pn) – CHANDOS CHAN-10577 (77:31) I write as neither a collector of, nor an expert in, nor an enthusiast of filmscores, but rather, as …

FERGUSON Piano Sonata in F minor. Discovery. Five Bagatelles. Partita for Two Pianos

wswebmaster on November 26, 2018

FERGUSON Piano Sonata in F minor. Discovery. Five Bagatelles. Partita for Two Pianos – Raphael Terroni, Vadim Peaceman (pns); Phillida Bannister (contralto) – NAXOS 8.572289 (60:11) Howard Ferguson (1908-1999) was an English composer and musicologist, born in Ireland. Though he lived a long life, his …

COPLAND Dance Symphony. Symphony No. 1. Symphony No. 2, “Short Symphony”

wswebmaster on November 26, 2018

COPLAND Dance Symphony. Symphony No. 1. Symphony No. 2, “Short Symphony” – Marin Alsop, cond; Bournemouth SO – NAXOS 8.559359 (58:40) Aaron Copland is not usually thought of as belonging to the “American symphonic school,” usually associated with William Schuman, Walter Piston, Peter Mennin …

Interview with Lilia Boyadjieva

wswebmaster on November 26, 2018

The piano artistry of Lilia Boyadjieva was first brought to my attention back in 1997 by a Greek friend, who urged me to hear a newly-released recording of the complete piano music of Samuel Barber featuring a Bulgarian pianist of …

BLOCH Two Psalms. Three Jewish Poems. Baal Shem Suite. Suite Hébraïque

wswebmaster on November 26, 2018

BLOCH Two Psalms.Three Jewish Poems. Baal Shem Suite. Suite Hébraïque – Steven Sloane, cond; German SO, Berlin; Christiane Oelze (sop); Antje Weithaas (vn); Tabea Zimmermann (va) – CAPRICCIO 5001 (65:55) This is a perfectly adequate recording of four of Ernest Bloch’s lesser Jewish-oriented works. …

BLOCH Baal Shem. BERNSTEIN Serenade. BARBER Violin Concerto

wswebmaster on November 26, 2018

BLOCH Baal Shem. BERNSTEIN Serenade. BARBER Violin Concerto – Vadim Gluzman (vn); John Neschling, cond; São Paulo SO – BIS SACD-1662 (70:31) I have reviewed several previous recordings featuring the artistry of Ukrainian-Israeli-American Vadim Gluzman, and have found the playing of this violinist, now in his …