The Whole Music Experience

Classical / Jazz   Harmonia Ensemble Piotr Tchaikovsky/Duke Ellington Nutcracker Suites Harmonia Mundi No one was thinking of swinging to Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker in 1892 when the Russian composer wrote the incidental music for ballet. Yet, when you listen to the Overture , we hear hints of jazz, even if this seems preposterous or impossible.   And when Harmonia Ensemble performs the March , again, we hear the delights of jazz.   Is this a coincidence? Perhaps, since Harmonia Ensemble performs back-to-back Tchaikovsky’s late romantic era ballet along with Swing Master Duke Ellington’s 1960 Harlem ballet version.   So if you’re wondering if much was lost in the translation, let’s just say a lot more layers were added. While this is a fabulous concept, I feel that the ensemble rushes through the classical version, which is probably why I’m thinking “swing” while I try to catch my breath.   Oh, the performance is still majestic and nostalgic,...

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...

Maurice Ravel 1. Prokofiev, Piano Concerto 3 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKJm3Wre1iU 2. Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto 3 (Olga Kern) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAoQoZBTqLs 3. Debussy's Prelude to the Afternoon of the Faun http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7b1FkZYarU 4. Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nT7_IZPHHb0 5. Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake (Dance of the Swans) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sd4VsbM4fOo&feature=related 6. Mozart's Clarinet Concerto http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOxX0xGTOyE 7. Mozart's Magic Flute (Queen of the Night Aria) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJJW0dE5GF0 8. Bach's Goldberg Variations (Glenn Gould) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64Xb3qiXR9Y 9. Rodrigo Concierto de Aranjuez (Yepes) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxwceLlaODM 10. Ravel Piano Concerto in G (Grimaud performing 2nd movement) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRTWLQ4nI6Q This list of pieces runs...

Gloriae Dei Cantores Unto Ages of Ages Sacred Choral Music of Sviridov, Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky Paraclete Press/Harmonia Mundi I have never stepped foot in a Russian Orthodox Church, but in 2005 I attended a concert given by a Greek Orthodox choir at a Greek Orthodox Church in Seattle’s Montlake neighborhood. It felt like stepping into a surreal universe, icons and stories appearing on gold painted ceilings and walls, and I can’t even begin to describe the men’s choir which sang chants rich in chromatic scales and otherworldly harmonies. Five years later I recall the experience as if it happened yesterday. The Massachusetts-based mixed choir Gloriae Dei Cantores (Orleans, MA) performs sacred works composed for the Russian Orthodox Church by Russian composers Tchaikovsky (1840-1893), Rachmaninoff (1873-1943) and Georgy Sviridov (1915-1998). I’m of course familiar with the repertoires of Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff, but not of the 20th century composer Sviridov (whos...

image of Mozart from Wikipedia Emmanuel Pahud (flute), Marie Pierre Langlamet (harp) and Sabine Meyer (clarinet) Mozart (Flute Concerto 1, Concerto for Flute & Harp, and Clarinet Concerto EMI Classics Narciso Yepes Guitarra Espanola Vol. 2 Deusche Grammophon Great Moments from La Traviata Cheryl Studer, Luciano Pavarotti Deusche Grammophon Nikolaus Harnoncourt Handel Messiah Sony BMG Valery Gergiev & Kirov Orchestra The Nutcracker Philips Although classical music contributes wonderfully to a person's CD collection, health and well-being, these CDs can be expensive. Also it takes time to explore various composers and compositions before each listener finds his or her musical medicine or favorites. Therefore, I recommend a trip to a local library where an array of famous and not-so-famous works can be explored for free. Libraries in larger cities offer a wider variety, but even in a small town, you can find a few gems. I have been perusing the shelves...