The Whole Music Experience

Dvorak Zigeunerlieder Songs and Duets Bernarda Fink, Genia Kühmeier and Christoph Berner Harmonia Mundi I was not familiar with Dvorak’s song cycles and duets prior to reviewing Zigeunerlieder .   I am familiar with Dvorak’s bigger works and I heard recordings featuring mezzo-soprano Bernarda Fink in the past.   Of Dvorak’s smaller works, this recording features Gypsy Melodies sung by the young soprano Genia Kühmeier and accompanied on piano by Christoph Berner, Moravian Duets with the addition of Bernarda Fink and Biblical Songs sung by Fink and accompanied by Berner, who plays beautifully on this disc. According to the liner notes, Moravian Duets launched Dvorak’s career and attracted the attention of the esteemed composer Johannes Brahms who at the time was a member of a jury that awarded the Austrian State Stipendium “for young, talented, and impoverished musicians”.   Dvorak had composed the songs originally for his private mus...

The Michael Treni Big Band Boy’s Night Out Bell Production Co. The Jens Wendelboe Big Band Fresh Heat Rosa Records When I think of big bandleaders, I think piano.   Yet, here are two new releases by trombonists leading modern-era big bands.   You won’t find rehashed covers of Ellington or other American jazz legends, but both the Michael Treni 16-piece big band and The Jens Weldelboe Big Band swing low and high.   First, there is Treni who began his jazz career with promise, almost landing a touring gig with Art Blakely that at the last moment fell through leading the musician to a new direction of arranging.    Trombonist Jens Wendelboe, on the other hand, has run the gamut between jazz, pop, and movie soundtracks.   He leans heavily on a strong melody. Opening with Leonard Bernstein’s Something’s Coming Treni and his musicians provide robust jazz on the album, Boy’s Night Out .   The musical personnel however, does...

You might have noticed that Whole Music Experience now has a logo.  Dana Dryg of Bellingham designed the logo for the blog. I hope you like it.

Louie Gonnie Pathway to Destiny Songs of Healing and Contemplation Canyon Records Native American traditional singer Louie Gonnie’s latest CD Pathway to Destiny begs to be listened to outdoors and near a body of water.   My intuition told met to take my portable player to the park and listen to Gonnie’s harmonized songs near the bay.   While I have not done this yet, I recommend this practice for anyone listening to this recording.   I tried to listen to the recording on my computer and it just didn’t make sense, given the titles and intent of the 14 prayer songs.  No, this recording begs for an outdoor listening experience. Gonnie pays homage to the natural world and the spirits that reside in this world.   He sings in a voice that ranges from bass to high baritone, while harmonizing with his own vocals.   If you listen to the recording through headphones, the reverb behind the vocals might conjure someone singing in a deep cave. ...

Ravi Shankar & Tanmoy Bose The Living Room Sessions, Part 1 East Meets West Music/Harmonia Mundi Release: April 10, 2012 It’s not every weekend I get to sit down and listen to new ragas performed by a 91-year old master musician.   Pandit Ravi Shankar turns 92 this month and his raga performances sound equally fiery as they do thoughtful and tender.   The master Indian classical musician gives the impression in his liner notes that The Living Room Sessions was a casual get-together with his friend tabla player Tanmoy Bose, but even one listen to this recording and we can hear the formalities of the Indian classical music tradition shining forth.  “This rather a different recording when, at almost 92-years, I was fooling around at home in Encinitas.” Also in the liner notes, “... Raga Malgunji has both a slow Vilambit gat and a display in Jhaptal of ten beats in complicated, rhythmic patterns and finishes that conveys sadness the sadness of not bein...

Elin Furubotn New Path Ozella When I hear the term Norwegian folk music, I usually think of traditional Norwegian music heavy on the hardanger fiddle and medieval folk ballads.   However, Norwegian folk can also refer to singer-songwriters such as Kari Bremnes, a Norwegian musical star, or so many others ranging from 20-years-of-age to well beyond that.   Elin Furubotn follows in the tradition of folk-fusion.   She composes more subtle tunes that range from jazz to folk to rock (the title track) on her album New Path .   She possesses a good ear for melodies that she sings in a near-whisper.     However, don’t be fooled by the softer timbre of Furubotn’s vocals, since she appears passionate about the themes that appear in each of her songs. I admit that it took me a few listens before New Path grew on me.   While I have heard many recordings graced with Norwegian vocals over the years, for some reason, I was having a difficult time ...

Imagine yourself eating a ripe orange. Imagine the tangy taste on your lips and tongue, your teeth biting into the orange’s texture and the feeling of your grateful heart. And if you ate that orange with conscious thought you might feel your body radiate with the essence of the citrus fruit throughout the day. While we don’t think of food as containing vibration, everything we touch, taste, feel, hear, or see possesses a vibration and when we connect with those vibrations, an alchemical process takes place within our bodies. Now, imagine listening to a Bach composition played on a cello. Imagine the low and throaty sound of the instrument vibrating in your chakras.   Allow your mind might wander to a memory associated with that piece of music. Your feet might tap in time and if you have developed consciousness in regard to your body, you might feel subtle vibrations moving through you and you might feel a slight crackle of energy in the room. And what if you were listenin...

Music of the African continent leans towards earthy and robust with rich polyrhythms, soaring voices and rife with tribal traditions.  From the fascinating nature-based music of the Central African pygmies, to Malian blues, to Cape Verdean morna, and the ancient calls of Senegalese griot, “the dark continent,” provides music in abundance.  You could spend your entire life exploring the music of Africa and still not get past the tip of the iceberg. Here are a handful of African recordings from my music library.  Many of you have amassed 100s of recordings, but I only have a small collection.  While I would imagine that every culture on the planet provides us with music for dancing, I find that African music and Afro-Latin music provides us with deep grounding.  Not only that, but nothing like moving that energy out of your hips, and thighs.  Here is my list. 1. Cesaria Evora, Nha Sentimento, LusaAfrica The late Cape Verdean singer Cesaria Ev...

Ragas were introduced in the West during the 1950s, and grew in popularity in the United States with Ravi Shankar performing both Indian classical music recitals and performing in pop-rock music festivals. His musical relationship with George Harrison also brought the sitar and ragas to public prominence in the West. Today, ragas come in many guises, from pure and sacred to pop and jazz fusion.  A variety of young talent emerges from India these days blending raga traditions from the South and North of the Subcontinent.  Western instruments were introduced as well, such as the saxophone and slide guitar, though the Indian slide guitar is different in that it contains sympathetic strings much like an Indian sarod or sitar.  Any fan of world music has come across Indian ragas in one form or another. I pulled out a random stack of CDs from my Indian music collection.  You can use these recordings as a jumping off point or you can visit a public library and check...

Legends of Fado Compilation Arc Music The first fado recording I heard did not feature the new generation of fadistas.    I discovered fado after a music librarian in Seattle referred me to Amália Rodrigues, a name that sounded exotic to my ears in 1996.   Yet, the first CD that I purchased (a scratchy archival recording) featured lesser-known vocalists from the 1920s and 1930s.   I fell in love with the vocals and when I played it for a vocalist (colleague) she glanced at me as if I had lost my mind.   Flash forward to 2000, when I discovered Mariza and no one looked at me as if I lost my mind.   These days fado enjoys worldwide acclaim and while a new generation of vocalists innovate the tradition, they too pay homage to the mothers and fathers of fado.   After all,   a plant can’t grow without its roots. The compilation Legends of Fado features Rodrigues, of course, but also other male and female fado legends that give Amál...