CD/DVD

Vickers’ Moor revisited and Domingo’s “Otello” farewell

 With DVD, Otello finally has the right medium to appreciate Verdi’s masterpiece in all its rich detail and full glory. An operatic milestone with a supreme [...]

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Sun Aug 23, 2009
at 5:20 pm
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A Daring Turn of the “Ring”

Wagner: Der Ring des Nibelungen  (“The Copenhagen Ring”) Decca 0743264 (7- DVD set)
 Half a century ago the first studio recording of Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen [...]

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Fri Apr 03, 2009
at 1:12 pm
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A time for Butterflys

At the movies, the recent live transmission of Madama Butterfly from the Metropolitan Opera House marked  the beginning of a time for Butterflys. The stunning production by [...]

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Wed Mar 18, 2009
at 9:46 am
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Lorraine Hunt Lieberson—an artist for the ages, remembered at Ravinia

 
 Lorraine Hunt Lieberson was a rara avis, not the promotional diva du jour ,but a complete artist. Essentially American in every sense, she had impeccable [...]

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Sun Mar 08, 2009
at 10:30 am
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New “Amahl” makes a timely Christmas treat

It’s hard to believe there was once a time when a commercial television network would not only air regular classical performances but actually commission a [...]

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Fri Dec 19, 2008
at 1:40 pm
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Fleming soars in Strauss songs

Is there a finer wedding of voice to composer  today than Renee Fleming to Richard Strauss? The opulence, radiant tone, and strain of sadness in [...]

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Sun Nov 30, 2008
at 4:10 pm
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American string quartets, lost and found

The string quartet has occupied a strange place in the American musical landscape. While it was the medium of choice for the deepest and most [...]

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Thu Sep 11, 2008
at 9:16 pm
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A big box for an exquisite vox

Remember Caballé? Remember the LP? If you don’t, now is the time to refresh your memory The lady is celebrating her 75th birthday and Sony/BMG [...]

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Tue Aug 26, 2008
at 5:55 pm
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A box of Heifetz

I waited so long to write about the Jascha Heifetz Sony Original Jacket Collection ($79.98 at Amazon) that the label has since released three more [...]

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Wed Aug 20, 2008
at 11:57 pm
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"Boheme" times two

Puccini: La Boheme.Anna Netrebko, Rolando Villazon, Nicole Cabell, Boaz DanielBavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and ChorusBertrand de Billy (Deutsche Grammophon)
Puccini: La BohemeNorah Amsellem, Marcus Haddock, Georgia [...]

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Sat Jul 26, 2008
at 6:35 pm
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Sounds of near-silence

Feldman: The Viola in My Life I-IVMarek KonstantynowiczCikada EnsembleNorwegian Radio Orchestra/Christian Eggen(ECM)
The art of Morton Feldman, like the man himself, is a study in contrasts. [...]

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Sat Jul 19, 2008
at 2:47 pm
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Copland from the Heartland

Copland: The Tender Land Suite; Piano Concerto; Old American Songs, Sets 1 and 2.Benjamin Pasternack, pianistSt. Charles SingersRobert Hanson/Elgin Symphony OrchestraNaxosThe Naxos label’s invaluable American [...]

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Fri Jul 11, 2008
at 12:51 am
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CD Review

Amazing Grace: A Gospel and Bluegrass JourneySeraphic FirePatrick Dupre Quigley, artistic directorFolk, bluegrass and gospel normally fall far outside the Classical Review’s charge. But even [...]

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Sun Jul 06, 2008
at 6:59 pm
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CD Review Lara goes Australian

Hindson: Violin Concerto; Corigliano: Suite from The Red Violin; Liszt/Kennedy-St. John: Totentanz.
Lara St. JohnSarah Ioannides/Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (Ancalagon)
With her latest CD, Lara St. John serves [...]

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Fri Jul 04, 2008
at 8:16 pm
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