The Whole Music Experience

Arcanto Quartett w/ Olivier Marron Franz Schubert String Quintet op. 163 Harmonia Mundia When I began listening to classical music for healing purposes several years ago, I heard and read little about Franz Schubert, except for a short radio documentary about Schubert during one of his anniversary years.   I had heard snippets of his work, but only recently did I sit down and listen to an entire composition, String Quintet op. 163 performed by the innovative Arcanto Quartett and musical guest Olivier Marron who rounds out the European quintet.   And since Schubert represents a Romantic Era composer, you will hear little restraint, but bursts of passion alternating with tender moments. I have heard this quartet perform before on previous recordings and I’ve also reviewed cellist Jean-Guihen Queyras’ solo efforts, especially his Vivaldi Cello Concertos (Harmonia Mundi), which I feel fondness.   And similar to some of Vivaldi’s pieces, Schubert’s string...

Daniil Trifonov, Valery Gergiev Mariinsky Orchestra Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 Mariinsky label Distributor--Harmonia Mundi While I returned to college in 2007, I relied on classical music for memory retention and for stress-reduction.   I recall listening to the first movement of Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto, No. 1, along with pieces by Mozart.   The famous concerto seemed as familiar to my ears as melodies from the composer’s Nutcracker Suite .   Now, I’m listening to a new recording by a young Russian virtuoso Daniil Trifonov, who also performs songs by Schubert, Schumann, and Chopin’s Barcarolle .   Certainly, I feel impressed with Trifonov’s wide emotional palette and great dexterity as he interprets Romantic era music representing several countries.   Joining with the Mariinsky Orchestra conducted by Valery Gergiev (no stranger to me), the program’s focus on the recording, Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 , lands on the piano...

Amjad Ali Khan Scottish Chamber Orchestra with David Murphy Samaagam World Village I’ve heard diverse European classical fusions with classical music of other cultures.   But the bridge between traditional Indian classical and European classical music provides a blissful experience that travels beyond words.   When you consider that European music is currently based on a well-tempered scale with basically 7 notes (an octave repeats a note) and Indian music possesses 12 note scales with microtones, it seems like a miracle that these 2 languages can actually converse musically.   Traditional Indian instruments were created around the 12 note scale and the European classical instruments were created for the rigors of European classical music.   But that didn’t stop Indian master sarod player Amjad Ali Khan from teaming up with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra laboratory from exploring Indian ragas and employing 2 musical systems to achieve this goal. ...

Emmanuelle Bertrand Le violoncelle parle Harmonia Mundi Celebrated French cellist Emmanuelle Bertrand tackles challenging works by Benjamin Britten (1913-1976), Catalan Gaspar Cassadò (1897-1966), her partner, pianist-composer Pascal Amoyel (1971), and Hungarian Zoltàn Kodály on her ambitious Le Violoncelle parle .   While you can view the French cellist contorting her body and face performing this masterwork on the DVD portion of the album, she also contorts the concept of the language of music. On both the CD and DVD, she emphasizes the language of the cello itself.   The back of the CD cover reads, “When music takes over the idioms characteristics of each culture, pushing back the limits of the instrumental technique, reshaping, and dismantling the rules to better express a specific identity…” The cultural identities the cello expresses here range from the hope and despair of Holocaust musician survivors (how music uplifted them), Hungarian and Russian folks...

Gabriel Ayala & Will Clipman Passion, Fire & Grace Canyon Records I spent the weekend fighting off a lung infection. Fortunately, Yaqui classical/flamenco guitarist Gabriel Ayala and master percussionist Will Clipman’s recording Passion, Fire & Grace arrived in my mailbox. I listened to the recording several times over the weekend, even hitting the replay button. And at times I had wished for a long-play or a double CD because I found the music here enticing, healing, and comforting. There’s nothing worse than dealing with a sickness when you’re alone, and music can often bring comfort as this recording did. The recording supplies its listeners with plenty of flamenco guitar including renditions of work by nuevo flamenco guitarist Paco de Lucìa ( Entre Los Aguas ) and a younger flamenco guitarist Vicente Amigo. Most of the work here was composed by Ayala from the catchy opener Sonoran Nights to the nuevo flamenco piece Allegro that closes the CD. Native ...

Ballakè Sissoko Vincent Segal Chamber Music Six Degrees Records When we think of the cello, we hear a somber, melancholic sound, mostly attached to European classical music. And when we hear the shimmering sound of a West African kora, the mood that arrives, (though no less sedate than the mood of a cello), feels spiritually uplifting. So pairing these two instruments might seem awkward at first. That is until you hear the beautiful marriage of tones and timbre. While I’m not sure that I would call Ballakè Sissoko (kora) and Vincent Segal (cello) album Chamber Music groundbreaking, certainly it represents one of the most spellbinding albums to come along. The moods of the cello and kora appear to balance each other out, leaving listeners somewhere between melancholy and relaxation. I find this music healing, even powerfully so. Personally, I find Chamber Music deeply relaxing, so relaxing in fact, that I want to crawl back in bed and absorb its warm tones, rather than ty...