The Kinnitty Sessions.
Lúnasa: Seán Smyth, fiddle, whistle; Kevin Crawford,
flutes, whistles, bodhran; Donogh Hennessy, guitar; Trevor Hutchinson,
double bass; Cillian Vallely, uileann pipes, whistles. (Compass, 7-4377-2)
I read the press materials
about this live recording before popping it in the CD player, and fully
expected the usual chair squeaks, stifled or unstifled coughs, and (in
my opinion) gratuitous extended applause from a live audience. However,
there was none of that. From the first notes of "Stolen Purse"
to the last strains of "Tie the Bonnet," this recording is
all Lúnasa all the time. I was mystified. Was it a "live
in the studio" recording, perhaps?
Nope.
Late last year, the band
took up residence in Kinnitty Castle in Co. Offaly (please, no jokes
about the unfortunate pronunciation) for a series of concerts recorded
in front of several real, live, and exceedingly well-behaved audiences.
The results combine all the advantages of a live performance with few
if any of the setbacks.
It's outstanding.
Formed in 1997, Lúnasa
is named for an ancient Celtic harvest festival honoring the Irish god
Lugh, patron of the arts. The group is often compared to the legendary
1970s Bothy Band. Lúnasa is frequently referred to as a supergroup,
an Irish-music dream team, even "the new Celtic royalty."
Fortunately the players
live up to the hyperbole.
Three outstanding lead instrumentalists,
fiddler Seán Smyth, flutist Kevin Crawford, and piper Cillian
Vallely, are backed by rhythmic stalwarts Trevor Hutchinson on upright
bass and guitarist Donogh Hennessy, both of whom played with the Sharon
Shannon Band. Hutchinson was also a member of the Waterboys, and has
contributed to many other musical projects at his home-based Marguerite
Studios in Dublin, where the live tracks from Kinnitty were cleaned
up for final production.
Seán Smyth and his
fiddle take center stage on "Punch," a medley of three tunes:
the "Scottish Concerto Strathspey" (penned by legendary pianist
and fiddler Charlie Lennon), the traditional reel "Trip to Windsor,"
and "Punch in the Dark" (written by banjoist and fiddler Gerry
O'Connor). Smyth's ornamentation is lovely, particularly in the B part
of the last reel, where he executes pinpoint-accurate repeated triplet
runs.
Tasty stuff.
The lead players also take
turns accompanying one another, as in Smyth's funky pizzicato behind
Crawford's lead whistle on "Island Paddy" (for those keeping
score: a medley of two reels, "Rathlin Island" and "Sporting
Paddy," that has become a bit of a signature set for the band).
"There are lots of great melodies in Irish music but often people
don't hear the rhythms underneath," says Smyth. "We try to
relate the swing or energy out of the music, using new rhythms, letting
each instrument add its own unique layer. We'll play the same tune over
and over, searching for the groove, exploring it. We let the music find
its pulse."
If your pulse doesn't quicken
listening to this album, you should see your doctor.
Janine Jansen.
Janine Jansen, violin, with Barry Wordsworth conducting the Royal Philharmonic
Orchestra. Tchaikovsky, Danse Russe from Swan Lake; Khachaturian, Nocturne
from Masquerade Suite; Saint-Saëns, Havanaise, Op. 83 and Introduction
et Rondo Capriccioso, Op. 28; Shostakovich, Romance from The Gadfly
Suite; John Williams, Main Theme from Schindler's List; Vaughan
Williams, The Lark Ascending; Ravel, Tzigane. (Decca, 475 011-2)
Playing on the "Barrere"
Strad of 1727, the glamorous, highly touted young Dutch virtuoso Janine
Jansen, 26, makes a brilliant recording debut with a program that markets
her seductive skills, both as a violinist and as
a sex symbol. Her beguiling small tone enhanced by kittenish charm and
an attractive underlying intelligence, she sounds best in the flashes
of the Tchaikovsky and in the feline meanderings of the Khachaturian.
The Saint-Saëns pieces sound more like standard issue, as does
the Tzigane. Barry Wordsworth and the Royal Philharmonic give her superbly
attentive backing, and the recorded sound has power and color. The CD's
art is adorned by images of the artist in a variety of fetching poses,
but they are entirely appropriate to the music making she delivers.
What Jansen actually sounds like in person, and which music she is up
to, are not answered by her first recording (though critics have raved
about her concert performances), but it makes this reviewer want to
hear more. Her second disc, recorded this summer, will feature Vivaldi's
Four Seasons.
–Laurence
Vittes
Bartók: Violin
Sonatas. Christian Tetzlaff, violin, Leif Ove Andsnes, piano.
(Virgin Classics, 7243 5 45668 2)
Béla Bartók's
violin sonatas are among the repertoire's supreme challenges, and this
performance must be one of the best on record. Tetzlaff has the consummate
technical virtuosity to make their almost insurmountable difficulties
sound easy—the Solo Sonata seems to emanate from several violins—the
intellectual grasp to give them structural coherence, and the stylistic
affinity to communicate their musical and emotional content. His tone
is incredibly pure, focused, and beautiful; he is capable of changing
color and inflection instantly with bow and vibrato. Even the pizzicato
has vibrancy. His playing has an idiomatic, spoken quality that gives
it a singular immediacy of expression. He identifies with every mood,
from mysterious other-worldliness to unbridled earthly passion, spins
out sustained melodic lines, and makes dotted rhythms jagged and razor-sharp.
His close collaboration with Andsnes, a splendid pianist, testifies
to their long association.
—Edith
Eisler
Original Masters.
Amadeus Quartet: Norbert Brainin and Siegmund Nissel, violins; Peter
Schidlof, viola; Martin Lovett, cello. Haydn, Schubert, Brahms, 1951–1957.
(seven-CD box set; Deutsche Grammophon, 474 730-2)
Schubert: Trout Quintet,
D. 667, Mozart: String Quartet K. 387. Amadeus Quartet with
Hephzibah Menuhin, piano, Edward Merritt, bass. (Testament, STB 1254).
For lovers of great quartet
playing, these records are indispensable. Formed in 1947, the Amadeus
Quartet stayed together without a personnel change for 40 years, disbanding
at its violist's death in 1987. It became the bearer of the venerable
European string-quartet tradition and was widely acclaimed as one of
its supreme exponents. The group left a large discography, recording
many favorite works several times. These reissues—including its
last exclusive recordings made for HMV and released now on the Testament
label—prove that even its earliest efforts, when the players were
still in their 20s and 30s, were extraordinary, already displaying all
the qualities that made the Amadeus unique.
Most immediately striking
is the tone: rich, full-blooded, radiant, incredibly warm, unfailingly
expressive, capable of instantly adapting to the subtlest changes of
mood and character with an infinite variety of color and nuance. The
texture ranges from massive to transparent; every voice stands out without
apparent effort. Each instrument has its own timbre, yet the collective
sound seems spun out of a single substance.
Trading and developing lines,
phrases, and dynamics with uncanny unanimity of expression, the players
weave a seamless tapestry of sound, building a cohesive whole from innumerable
meticulous details. Their tempos are never excessive, often leisurely,
yet always flowing; their liberties are poised and balanced within a
rock-steady, yet flexible rhythm.
The playing combines the
sometimes-reckless
exuberance and tempestuousness of youth with deeply felt inwardness,
reposeful lyricism, and soaring ecstasy, but never loses a sense of
natural simplicity. The music recorded on the new seven-CD Deutsche
Grammophon box set represents the quartet's core repertoire; it is in
the players' blood and heartbeats, the
style their native tongue. (However, they also
championed contemporary composers: Benjamin Britten's quartets were
written for them.) The Haydn has courtly charm, lightness, humor, and
serene devoutness in the "Seven Last Words"; the Schubert
and Brahms have ardent, poetic romanticism, dramatic intensity, and
fiery abandon.
In this many-faceted treasure
trove, listeners will find their own favorites.
—E.E.
Sejong Plays
Ewazen. International Sejong Soloists; Adele Anthony, solo violin;
Linda Strommen, solo oboe; Hyo Kang, artistic director. (Albany Records,
TROY 577)
Tonal and accessible, the
music of Eric Ewazen can't possibly pose much of a challenge to the
International Sejong Soloists, who must nevertheless have an affinity
for the work of this Juilliard professor. Of the selections presented
here Down a River of Time is the strongest, featuring some fine oboe
lines from Linda Strommen. The work itself is a memorial to Strommen's
father and her connection to it is apparent. Yet despite pleasant playing
throughout, the Soloists fail to make a strong case for these works.
This music with its soaring sweetness seems better suited for the big
screen than for the concert hall, though in the former venue the work
of Jerry Goldsmith is more compelling. Those interested in new American
tonality would do well to investigate the music of John Corigliano or
Aaron Jay Kernis. Let's hope that the Soloists' next foray into the
recording studio will prove more adventurous.
—Ben
Finane
Livin' with the Blues.
Vassar Clements, violin; with Elvin Bishop, Bob Brozman, Roy Rogers,
Marc Silber, and David Jacobs-Strain, guitars; Charlie Musselwhite and
Norton Buffalo, harmonicas; Dave Matthews, piano; Maria Muldaur, voice;
Bobby Cochran, voice and drums; and Ruth Davies, bass. (Acoustic Disc,
ACD 58)
Runaway Fiddle.
Vassar Clements, fiddle and vocals; Buddy Spicher, fiddle and cello,
with Paul Kramer, mandolin and guitar, John England and Bill Rehrig,
guitars, and David Spicher, bass. (OMS, 25170)
Fiddler Vassar Clements,
76, recorded his debut session with bluegrass pioneer Bill Monroe in
1948 at the tender age of 21. He has gone on to record with everyone
from Paul McCartney to Jerry Garcia to Hank Williams, building a reputation
that by the 1970s made him one of the most distinctive and popular fiddlers
on the emerging trad-music scene. Clements' new all-blues disc was produced
by mandolin-great David Grisman (who played with Clements on the 1973
progressive bluegrass classic Old & In the Way) with bluesman
Norton Buffalo. Livin' with the Blues is marked by spare, roadhouse
blues tunes that find Clements in top form as he explores the genre
with some of the best instrumentalists around (especially red-hot guitarists
Bob Brozman and Roy Rogers). "There's always a deep, dark sadness
in Vassar's music," violinist and Berklee educator Matt Glaser
observes in the liner notes, "and he never needs to warm up to
play with devastating expression." An instant classic.
Meanwhile, Clements teams
up with progressive country fiddler extraordinaire Buddy Spicher—whose
recording credits range from Asleep at the Wheel to Henry Mancini to
Doc Watson—on a vibrant set of country-swing fiddle favorites in
the spirit of Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys. Clements and Spicher
deliver one double-fiddle threat after another, and Clements' rich vocals
wrap gently around such ballads as "A Good Woman's Love."
This is a real gem.
—Greg
Cahill
Hero. Itzhak
Perlman, violin; Kodo Drummers; China Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus;
You Yan, soprano; Liu Lu, ancient lute. Music by Tan Dun. (Sony Classical,
SK 87726)
The real stars on this film
soundtrack are the drummers, who provide exciting, many-layered rhythms,
and the mournful, hollow-sounding viola; Perlman participates on only
four tracks, playing various forms of the "Theme." The music
is mostly slow, meditative, harmonically static, full of erhu-inspired
slides (in which Perlman joins with obvious relish). Less true to the
style is the orchestral strings' incongruously lush, Hollywood-like
sound. Diversity is created mostly through the instrumental combinations
and the occasional addition of the male chorus and wordless solo soprano.
Perlman's inimitable golden sound soars above the texture and weaves
through the orchestral lines. It's a pity that he isn't given a more
extensive and varied part.
—E.E.
Che! A Musical Biography.
Nokuthula Ngwenyama, viola, and Michael Long, nylon-string guitar. (EDI,
6254)
This evocative, often haunting
suite for viola and guitar is built around mostly Spanish musical themes,
pairing violist Nokuthula Ngwenyama and classical guitarist Michael
Long in a dozen classically informed instrumental vignettes by Spanish
composer Miguel Corella, whose mother played viola. This intriguing
suite—colored by South American Afro-Indian influences—was
inspired by the life of Argentine-born revolutionary Ernesto Che Guevera,
the once-idealistic
doctor and popular lieutenant of Cuban leader Fidel Castro who was gunned
down in 1967 by Bolivian soldiers. Ngwenyama handles a lot of harmony
duties in the early going, but gets lots of opportunities to show her
stuff. She really soars on the pivotal track "Habana," leaving
you amazed by her muscular tone. All in all, an ambitious and well-executed
project.
—G.C.
Nigun: A Celebration
of Jewish Music. Inbal Segev, cello, Ron Regev, piano. Works
by Bloch, Bruch, Ravel, Achron, Stutschewsky, Ben-Haim. (Vox Classics,
VXP 7910)
This is a lovely record.
The pieces are suffused with the wistful, melancholy characteristic
of Jewish music; all are in minor keys, even the relatively cheerful,
bouncy dances. Some are based on traditional folk music, some are original
compositions; the transcriptions for cello, many by the performers themselves,
work unusually well. The program features Max Bruch's familiar Kol Nidrei,
two pieces by Joseph Achron, and five by Ernest Bloch, including the
Nigun. The playing is excellent and expressive, but never sentimental.
The cellist's tone is warm, pure, and beautiful, the ensemble impeccable.
To these two young Israeli artists, the style is as natural as their
native tongue.
—E.E.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart,
Requiem in D Minor, K.626 (Unfinished). New revised edition
by Franz Beyer. The Concentus Musicus Wien conducted by Nikolaus Harnoncourt;
with the Arnold Schönberg Choir, Erwin Ortner, chorus master. (Deutsche
Harmonia Mundi/BMG, 82876 58705 2)
As a cellist and early-music
specialist, Nikolaus Harnoncourt recalls in the liner notes to this
stunning recording, he was "forced to play [the Mozart Requiem],
time after time, in such harmless and sugary interpretations that in
the end I couldn't bear this misinterpretation of Mozart's music any
longer. I had no choice but to leave the orchestra and take up the baton
myself!" Now the Austrian conductor completes his mission with
this compelling recording of Mozart's unfinished masterwork. It features
a new revised edition by violist Franz Beyer of the Melos Quartet that
corrects errors in Franz Xaver Süssmayr's familiar version, including
faulty harmonics. To do further justice to the Requiem, Harnoncourt
has enlisted his own period orchestra, the Concentus Musicus Wien, and
the Arnold Schönberg Choir for a live concert recording reproduced
with high-resolution surround-sound technology in the SACD format that
includes a CD-ROM track featuring the composer's original manuscript
of the Requiem. The result is sometimes dark, often exultant, and always
sublime.
—G.C.
Rock the
Note
The Juilliard-trained Hampton
String Quartet sparked the whole string-tribute-to-rock craze nearly
20 years ago with the release of it hugely successful What If Mozart
Wrote . . . series on RCA Records and the subsequent independent
CD Sympathy for the Devil. Now the HSQ, which markets a wide
variety of string-quartet rock charts through Mona Lisa Sound, is back
with more '60s and '70s rock classics on the self-produced HSQ Rides
Again (www.hamptonstringquartet.com).
Half of this 14-track disc
is devoted to string treatments of Led Zeppelin, including a nice pizzicato
cello line on "Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You." It includes covers
of the Beatles, the Doors, Santana, Derek & the Dominoes, Kansas,
Jefferson Airplane, and Queen ("Bohemian Rhapsody," for which
an excerpt of HSQ's arrangement can be found in the Strings May
2004 issue).
Following in HSQ's footsteps,
the Section emerged from the torrent of string-tribute projects released
over the past couple of years on the Vitamin label, which spawned the
recently charted String Tribute to Evanescence. The Section's
self-produced No Electricity Required (www.thesection.net)
is set in the same vein. This talented quartet, under the guidance of
first violinist and arranger Eric Gorfain (who has contributed arrangements
to Strings), dips into the classic rock repertoire of Led Zeppelin,
Cream, Iron Maiden, and Kiss, but also delves into contemporary material
by Radiohead, Coldplay, Queens of the Stone Age, Tool, Jeff Buckley,
and the Darkness.
Meanwhile,
the cello duo Rasputina plows fertile ground on Frustration Plantation
(Instinct, www.instinctrecords.com),
in which cellist, vocalist, songwriter, and bandleader Melora Creager
serves as a wonderfully strange tour guide through a Southern Gothic
soundscape reminiscent of an urban Alice in Wonderland rife with
tasteful electronic effects, drum programming, and no small amount of
weirdness. It's Rasputina's most fully realized recording to date, thanks
in part to coproducer and former Danzig keyboardist Joseph Bishara and
lush string arrangements juxtaposed with the exquisite decay of the
subject matter.
—G.C.
