Leopold Stokowski: Bach Transcriptions, Vol. 2 Conductor: José Serebrier Orchestra: Bournemouth Symphony
As the authentic performance movement started to gain momentum 35 years ago, these transcriptions became a common point of derision. Why would you take the hallowed works of J. S. Bach and bastardize them with "modern" instruments? One of the marks of a Stokowski or a Beecham is that they took great works (as did Bach) and re-voiced them for their orchestras. Also, as the D minor Toccata and Fugue that opens this recording reminds us, through Mickey Mouse, Stokowski brought transcribed works to a massive audience. These transcriptions are good, but it's the Olympian grasp of ensemble that is what this disc is all about. This is amplified by the fact that José Serebrier knows the Bournemouth Symphony like the back of his hand, and he was mentored in his youth by Stokowski, himself. There is no new ground here, just a stunning and ravishing exercise in orchestral beauty, recorded and staged with excellence (thank you Naxos). These sounds are good enough to eat.
Vivaldi Soloist: Daniel Hope Orchestra: Chamber Orchestra of Europe I'm in two minds about encouraging this sort of album, but the playing and the repertoire have won me over. It teeters close to the type of vehicle superstars use to strut their stuff. I'm referring to the glossy, themed production, with a lush cover, with only one or two words in the title, that contain repertoire from all over the place, to show what a particular race horse can do. Although Daniel Hope's recent offering looks the part, further comparison would be unfair. His theme is Vivaldi that hasn't been beaten to death, and there is a great selection of well and lesser well-known works here. Get it right and Vivaldi is a home-run. He has a sense of theater and dance that the other Italian Baroquers never quite capture, and Hope latches into both in these pieces. It's not exactly a bonus track, but Anne-Sophie von Otter - joins the band with the subdued, but beautiful aria "Sovvente il sole". I was sorry when the album came to an end.
The Guarneri Quartet The Hungarian Album Where's the American music? I don't have a slew of new world compositions but I have returned to this album a few times. A couple of years ago the Guarneri announced that they would stop performing as a quartet in 2009. I don't know whether this will be their last release, but if it is, one of my favorite American groups is going out on the right note. On offer are three quartets, two of which are by Ernö Dohnányi (D flat major and A minor, respectively), but it's the middle offering from Kodály that I keep going back to. A little more challenging, tonally, this gem does not look west for influences, but is a rustic exploration of Hungarian folk idioms, even bird-song and musical fragments that build to a full-blown Hungarian dance at the climax of the second movement. Distinct and different music, given a clear, cohesive voice, by a group that will be missed.
Shostakovich: Symphony No. 11 "The Year 1905" Conductor: Vasily Petrenko Orchestra: Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra Finished in 1957, the eleventh symphony commemorates the massacre of hundreds of Russian demonstrators by the Imperial Guard, outside the Winter Palace, in January, 1905. Part of the brittle terror locked in this work comes from the fact that while Shostakovich was working on this piece, Soviet tanks were dealing with Hungarian students and demonstrators, with a similarly cruel hand. That terror is not locked in there anymore. Conducting phenom', Vasily Petrenko was still 20 years away from being born when this was written but he brings a level of cohesion and understanding that makes this one of the most accomplished, dynamic readings of this work, I have ever heard. I've got goose-bumps just penning this.
I'm not sure if I actually believe that, but it's an attention grabbing
headline, don't you think!?
Rumors spread last week that Solange was going to be dropped by her
label Interscope after disappointing sales of her latest album, Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams. Thankfully, Interscope have said those rumors aren't true: "Contrary to
rumors floating through the Internet over the last few
days, Solange remains a part of the Interscope Geffen A&M family."
Phew!
If you're still confused by the headline, Beyonce and Solange are sisters; but there's lots of reasons why they aren't really
suitable for comparison. Beyonce has been one of the world's favorite
pop stars for a decade or so now, whereas Solange only has two albums,
neither of which has even approached any of Beyonce's releases in terms
of profile. Whereas Beyonce is a key figure in contemporary R&B and
pop, Solange's music is more derivative of 60s psychedelic pop and 70s
soul. On the opening track to Sol-Angel, Solange sings of: "Two girls going in different directions" and asks to "Let my star shine on its own." Well, her family connection is an easy angle for writers to generate some initial interest (moi? lazy?), but by rights her talent should enable her to stand on her own.
I think Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams is one of the best pop-soul albums in years. It's remarkably consistent front-to-back, with something to recommend in every song - not just the singles. Like the cover, it's extravagant and colorful, and like the title, it's quite hippyish. There's easy, bubblegum moments, but also interesting attempts to push the envelope a little - like when "Dancing In The Dark" steps up a gear halfway through, or when "Cosmic Journey" morphs out of its slow, psychedelic groove into a banging techno coda. And her voice is great - check out the heartfelt pleading in "Would've Been The One" and her alternately forceful/reserved delivery on "I Decided."
If only there was a way for you to hear some of these songs instead of having to read my blathering...
and a live version of "I Decided" which includes a little detour to Martha Reeves & The Vandellas' "Heatwave"...
The annual GRAMMY nominee compilation comes out today and, though I'm sure it will sell relatively well, the whole idea seems kind of weird to me in the digital age. Why would you buy someone else's seemingly arbitrarily chosen pack of GRAMMY nominated songs when you could create your own seemingly arbitrarily chosen pack of GRAMMY nominated songs? If you're so inclined, sample some of the nominated songs below and let us know what you'd include on your mix.
The Hollywood Foreign Press dubbed Slumdog Millionaire the Best Original Score of the year at last night's Golden Globes. (The video clip below is the cast's tongue-in-cheek Bollywoood dance tribute than runs during the closing credits). The soundtrack also nabbed the same honor at the 2008 Critics' Choice Awards held just a few days ago. Here's hoping Slumdog nabs an Oscar for Best Original Score, and everything else it's nominated for. Apart from being great music in its own right, it's well integrated into the film, and provides the perfect backdrop for the rollercoaster of a story.
Bruce Springsteen took Best Original Song for "The Wrestler," which apparently he wrote at his friends Mickey Rourke's request. Springsteen also received the same honor at the Critics' Choice Award last week. I can't find an official soundtrack for The Wrestler (anyone know if one's coming out?). I am guessing that this might be due to the movie's small budget and licensing fees. I heard Mickey Rourke mention last night that Axl Rose gave permission for them to use "Sweet Child O' Mine," for free (or cheap...my short term memory is useless). "The Wrestler" single will be available on Springteen's new release, Working on a Dream, out January 27.
Greetings at year's end! And it's been an interesting one here at ChordStrike, not least because ChordStrike was born in 2008. Yes, it's been a year filled with good music, good times, and no small amount of good will (although I've been called "pompous" and "hypocritical" and accused of harboring "unbeatably mediocre taste," and a few of my cohorts have taken on the occasional bruise, too). Sadly, a long list of notable musicians died in 2008, so many in fact that we've been unable to keep up in our humble, more or less reverent "R.I.P." column. But nevertheless, it's been a fun go-round, and ChordStrike has been one of the best-loved of the many new rollouts as part of Amazon Music's 10th Anniversary.
So as we head into 2009, we thank you for stopping by, and we promise more of this minor blog for major music lovers in the year to come. Happy new year!
Our love for Flight of the Conchords is welldocumented, so you can imagine how excited we were to discover that Funny or Die is streaming the first episode of their HBO show's second season two weeks before you can see it anywhere else. Head over here to watch it, or catch it embedded after the jump. -- Jeff Reguilon
What could be more inclusive and equitable than a YouTube Symphony Orchestra, composed of successful applicants from all over the world?
I love the idea of Tan Dun writing an Internet Symphony No. 1. Calling it "Eroica” waves a flag for a brave, new era, even if we are more than 20 years into this revolution. Also, what better conductor than Maestro Tilson Thomas, who has championed new works as a conductor from the podium of the San Francisco Symphony and other orchestras, even composing extensively himself?
This whole project looks to have a very bright future,if it doesn't get soiled by ugly mistakes we have made in the past. For many years, anybody that wasn't male or white stood little chance of being hired by a major symphony orchestra, until blind auditions, conducted with a screen between the applicant and the audition panel, were instituted. Some orchestras have brought on vitriolic criticism, because they adopted these practices late or half-heartedly, most notable among them, The Vienna Philharmonic. Malcolm Gladwell uses the blind audition problem as a prime example of bias in his book "Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking."
In the competition rules and regulations, I can't find any language that says that YouTube have made a provision for blind auditions, and for a website whose mission is to allow people to discover, watch and share original videos, I think this is something they will need to address.
Would it be that hard to do? I think there are ways to demonstrate attempts to eliminate bias, even in a medium that begins with watching and listening. Whatever they come up with, I fully acknowledge the need for YouTube to scrutinize the applicants, to make sure they're actually playing and not miming to a brilliant recording of "The Flight of the Bumblebee". Actually that could become a competition in itself. Who can spoof the audition panel? I can see it now - "Eh-hem. I would now like to perform the percussion part from "Fire", by the late James Hendrix..." -- Hugo Munday
Bad can indeed be good, and I was working up to a post that said something similar to Alan, but from a different direction. Who is familiar with the voice of the counter-tenor? Have any blokes out there sung as a counter-tenor? Both men and women have a "head voice", but for a multitude of reasons, some chauvinistic, the centuries have left us a head-voice repertoire written for the counter-tenor, and even a small repertoire for the male soprano. What is funny about a man singing in this register? Nothing, if it's done well. That is the easiest place to start because there aren't too many folk that sound really beautiful, in this register. Jeff Buckley's rendition of Britten's "Corpus Christi Carol," sounds amazing and serves well to hold the beer-can humor that usually accompanies this topic to a minimum. For those of you who prefer a more classical offering, not many people can find their way around a Vivaldi aria with such amazing poise and pyrotechnics as Philippe Jaroussky:
Now they are about as good as it gets. For the less successful offerings out there, I think our brains play tricks on our ears. Maybe the first subconscious reaction on hearing a male soprano is "Crikey! It's pretty incredible that he can do that at all!" and we forgive everything else. A friend of mine (and recovering counter-tenor) sent me this parody, which has kept me in hysterics most of the weekend:
To end on a more sobering note, meet Alessandro Moreschi, who recorded this around 1902, a full twenty years before his death. Alessandro is popularly held to have made the only known solo recordings by a genuine Castrato. -- Hugo Munday
Most music dorks, whether professional or amateur, love end-of-the-year listmaking time. Clearly, your friendly neighborhood editors are nothing if not music dorks.
As such, we've put our heads together and nailed down our list of the best songs of 2008. It includes some ultra-familar tracks, like our chart-topper "American Boy," but we also fell in love with some less-well-known jams like the bluesy ramble of José James' "Spirits Up Above" and the slinky throwback funk of Menahan Street Band's "Make the Road by Walking," which Jay-Z sampled on one of our favorite songs of last year, "Roc Boys."
We let our customers vote with their wallets, and they overwhelmingly chose Katy Perry's summer-dominating ode to fashionable sexuality experiments, "I Kissed a Girl," as their favorite song of 2008. Some surprises on their list include "I'm Yours," the slow-starting, exceedingly pleasant single by Jason Mraz, and the sassy anachronistic soul of Duffy's "Mercy," both of which managed to edge out Idol-winner David Cook's coronation song, "The Time of My Life."
Here are our respective top-10 lists for your judging pleasure:
Top 10 Editor Favorites:
"American Boy," Estelle (feat. Kanye West)
"Love Lockdown," Kanye West
"The Most Beautiful Girl In The Room," Flight of the Conchords
"White Winter Hymnal," Fleet Foxes
"Make The Road By Walking," Menahan Street Band
"Swimming Pools," Thao Nguyen and the Get Down Stay Down
"Swagga Like Us," T.I., Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Lil' Wayne
You can see both our top 100 editor picks or top 100
customer picks lists in their entirety, along with top-10 lists broken out by genre over at Amazon MP3's Best Songs
of 2008 store. You can also click the play button on either of the below sample players to hear sample clips from all songs included on both lists.
And, of course, please tell us where we went horribly awry with our picks in the comments. Please note, though, we will have no truck with any talk about how we're bad editors because our tastes don't line up perfectly with our bestsellers. We like what we like!
