Dancemania Summers V.3 [Import]

Dancemania Summers V.3 [Import]

Track Listings

1. Shake Ya Body (Club Mix)

2. Get It On

3. Breathe

4. Front To The Back (Mint Royale Main Mix)

5. Good Times (Scorccio Hot Mix)

6. Latain Session (Club Mix)

7. Samba De Amigo (Samba De Janeiro 2000)

8. Getting Busy With It

9. Music : Response

10. Paid

11. Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)

12. Fly (Club Version)

13. We Can Do It (Original Version)

14. I'm The Rapper

15. Gotcha (The Theme From Starsky & Hutch)

16. Bag It Up

17. Why (Horny Radio Edit)

18. Music (Is The Answer) (Club Mix)

19. Is It Love? (Original Remix)

20. Poom (With My Life)

See all 25 tracks on this disc

Tracks:

The Stripper - David Rose & His Orchestra
For Strippers Only
Shivas Regal (Theme For Gypsy)
A Pretty Girl Is LIke A Melody
Lament
Blues To Strip By
Walkin' & Strippin'
Bumps & Grinds
Lonely Little G-String
Big Millie From Philly
The Late Late Show
Perfume And Pink Chiffon
Swingin' Shepherd Blues
Lullaby Of Birdland
More Bumps And Grinds
Strip Poker
Stripper's Holiday
A Woman
Play The Blues For Masie
How Mable Get Sable Cha Cha Cha
Take It Off - Genteels
Pad - Bobby Summers

Album Description

A musical celebration of the romantic and sensual art of the striptease, serving as a much-needed reminder that the age-old "art form" can be playful and fun for everyone above the age of consent! The only compilation of its kind, featuring a lenticular cover - just tilt the CD case and witness the illusion of a sweet yet sexy woman shedding her dress to reveal lingerie. For lovers only!

Customer Reviews:

Excellent service.......2006-11-04

The jewel case was cracked on the original so they sent a new jewel case along with it. it was shipped and arrived before it was expected.

Best Burlesque cd ever.......2006-11-03

This has fast become my absolute favourite CD ever. It's a blast to dance to . So much fun. Also it is a fabulous background disk for some really fun dinner parties. There was not a single track I dodn't like. It has gone on my MUST BUY lost for all my friends with up coming nuptials. A very very good honey moon soundtrack :)

Strip Tease Classics.......2006-09-21

The first time I listened to this CD, I wasn't very impressed. But, after listening to it a few more times, some of the tracks began to grow on me. It's definitely the classic burlesque sound I was looking for, very classy - nothing like the beat-heavy songs of modern strip tease. Basically, think Betty Paige, Dita Von Tease, or Vienna Le Rouge. It's great for cocktail parties, with a wonderful vintage sound.

Great Collection!.......2006-06-08

If you are just beginning burlesque, you are going to love this compilation. You'll start bumping, grinding, and shimmying without even realizing it. The only problem is that everyone else who performs loves it too! The liner notes feature inspiring photos, and the text offers just enough history to tantalize you into exploring more. It features mostly instrumentals, and the absence of lyrics will emphasize your dance technique.

delightful kitsch that will make you wiggle what you've got.......2006-06-05

I'm not as hip to the burlesque's history as the previous reviewer, so I wasn't disappointed in the least. On the contrary, I thought this album was great -- lively, fun, and definitey kitschy.

One note -- although the disc plays great in my stereo, it's never cooperated with my laptop. Perhaps it's something particular to my disc, but I thought it would be worth mentioning.

Average customer rating:

Not all the arias were her best
DIDN'T QUITE FULFIL MY REQUEST
Fair Enough
Fleming's High Points Well Covered in Compilation CD
Beautiful indeed!

Renee Fleming: By Request
Vincenzo Bellini , Alfredo Catalani , Antonin Dvorak , George Gershwin , Erich Wolfgang Korngold , Jules Massenet , Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , Giacomo Puccini , Sergey Rachmaninov , Richard Rodgers , Richard Strauss , Giuseppe Verdi , Heitor Villa-Lobos , Georg Solti , James Levine , Jeffrey Tate , Patrick Summers , Sir Charles Mackerras , Lee Ritenour , Chamber Orchestra of Europe , and Renee Fleming
Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Modern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Czech | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

English | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

French | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Italian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

Classic | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

The Decca Records Store | Specialty Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Renee Fleming - The Beautiful Voice ~ Gounod, Lehaair, Orff, Puccini, Rachmaninov, Strauss
Renée Fleming
Sacred Songs
HOMAGE: The Age of the Diva
Haunted Heart

ASIN: B0000C3ICO
Release Date: 2003-09-16

Tracks:

O Mio Babbino Caro
Ebben? ... Ne Andro Lontana
Porgi, Amor
Come Scoglio
Casta Diva
E Strano...Ah Fors E Lui...Sempre Libera
Un Bel Di Vedremo
Je Marche Sur Tous Les Chemins...Gavotte
Mesicku Na Nebi Hlubokem (O Silver Moon)
Vocalise
Cacilie
Marietta's Lied
Summertime
Bachianas Brasileiras No.5: Aria (Cantilena)
You'll Never Walk Alone

Amazon.com

This is a compilation--plus three previously unreleased selections--of some of the glorious Renée Fleming's finest work, 15 selections covering 13 composers. The rose-in-full-bloom quality of the voice is staggeringly beautiful: Her rendition of Rusalka's "Song to the Moon" is justly famous and is, alone, worth the price of this CD. Other highlights are Marietta's Lied from Korngold's Die tote stadt, an odd arrangement of the aria from Villa-Lobos's Bachianas Brasilerias No. 5, Manon's Gavotte, and a knock-down-gorgeous reading of Gershwin's "Summertime." The three new recordings are of Violetta's big first-act scene from La traviata, which features one of the most perfect trills heard since Joan Sutherland, a thrilling Cäcilie (R. Strauss), and a version of "You'll Never Walk Alone" which is so over the-top that it might make you look away in embarrassment. On the basis of this CD, one would have to acknowledge that Fleming is more interested in--and more successful at--pure singing than she is at character delineation (Butterfly sounds oddly like Wally who sounds too much like Norma), but it's not hard to tell why she's a superstar. Her voice and technique are one in a million. --Robert Levine

Album Details

"by Request" is a Collection of Fleming's Greatest and Most Popular Recordings Including Works by Mozart, Bellini, Pucchini, Verdi and Dvorak. Featuring Recordings from Renee Fleming's Outstanding Decca Discography Together with Two Glorious Tracks Strauss "Cacilie" and Verdi's "la Traviata" a Role Fleming Performed to Critical Aclaim Earlier in 2003.

Customer Reviews:

Not all the arias were her best.......2005-01-15

There is something lacking. Although most of these are indeed her "Best" releases, some things could have been left out. Her O Mio Babbino Caro and her Casta Diva weren't her best efforts at all. Casta Diva, sung to perfection by other revered artists, sounded too breathy and fearful here. It has good chest notes, and it is definitely better than Joan Sutherland's Norma though. Her O Mio Babbino Caro is the usual aria sung in its usual way, without leaving any trace of awe at an ability of a singer to interpret the aria. Rachmaninov's Vocalise was good, and it was great of Decca to release her Song to the Moon on this disc. However, some new additions weren't all that good as well. For example, if you listen to her excerpt from La Traviata, you will find that she sounds like she was singing jazz when uttering out "Gioir!". I think Decca should have issued the live performance version of this instead. That was so much better. Also, they should have showcased more of the bel canto repertoire she had specialized in. That would have made this CD a gem!

DIDN'T QUITE FULFIL MY REQUEST.......2004-11-22

THIS CD DEFINITELY BRINGS OUT THE BEST IN HER REPERTOIRE. SHE IS SOLID, WARM, AND BRILLIANT ON MOST OF THE SONGS. SINCE I OWN MANY OF HER CDS MOST OF THE TRACKS I HAVE IN DUPLICATE. EVEN SO EACH VERSION HAS A DIFFERENT FEEL TO IT. HER "O MIO" IS GREAT BUT GENERALLY I FEEL THAT KIRI TE KAWANA IS A LITTLE CLEARER THAN RENEE. HER "Ebben?...Ne Andrò Lontana" IS ALWAYS BRILLIANT FROM HER HIGH ENDS TO THE NECESSARY LOW NOTES TO FINISH THIS GLORIOUS TRACK. HER COUNTESS HAS ALWAYS BEEN A STRONG AND POWERFUL CHARACTERIZATION AND HER BUTTERFLY TEETERS ON HAPPINESS AND PAIN. THESE RICH LYRIC ROLES DESERVE A SOPRANO LIKE RENEE. I WAS HOWEVER, VERY DISAPPOINTED THAT SHE ADDED "SEMPRE LIBERA" TO THIS CD AS SHE'S NEVER BEEN A COMPELLING VIOLETTA AND CAN'T EVEN MUSTER THE HIGH "C" WE ALL EXPECT NOW A DAYS. HER RUSALKA IS ALWAYS MESMERIZING AND HER SIMPLICITY ON GLUCK'S "Das Mir Verblieb" WAS AN INCREDIBLE SURPRISE. I FOUND THE OTHER SONGS BORING DUE TO THE FACT THAT I DON'T LIKE THEM AND I KIND OF WISHED SHE WOULD HAVE REPLACED THEM WITH SOME BETTER WORKS. I MISSED HER SOFT AND DEFEATED "AVE MARIA" FROM OTHELLO OR HER FULL BODIED SPOILED MUSETTA IN "QUANDO MEN VO" OR HER RICH SADNESS IN "DOVE SONO"

Fair Enough .......2004-10-01

This is a compilation. I can't say love them I think thatpeople want to be surprised by new things, instead of um things they already own.On the other hand a die hard fan wouldn't mind having an extra cd by their favorite artist.Fair Enough.There was one aria that was new to me"Cantilena Brasileras"by Villa Lobos that was very striking.Her voice flows like an unimpeded stream with a lush vibrato.Like I read in one kid's review "Renee has a silky,creamy, instrument that is very beautiful and caresses the ear",couldn't have said it better myself. I agree. One smart kid!!! One thing that I have to comment on that will not escape is the dull cover picture. Renee get a better photographer;you're far more beautiful than that. I'm sounding like her mother,dear lord! She is a fox!

Fleming's High Points Well Covered in Compilation CD.......2004-09-06

Just one listen to the high points of this disc will make you realize why Renée Fleming is an opera superstar. Covering a ten-year period, this compilation disc covers a most fertile period for Fleming, absolutely one of the world's leading lyric and dramatic sopranos. What is particularly impressive is how many different styles she has covered, ranging from Italian bel canto to French Romanticism to Rodgers & Hammerstein. She effortlessly sings in six different languages, including what sounds like flawless Czech on Dvorak's "Měsíčku na nebi hlubokén" (which goes back to her family roots). Her powerful voice is expressive, almost buttery, which allows the listener to enjoy the coloratura agility she has mastered over the years and the tonal qualities she specifically defines for each aria. This is most evident on my two personal favorites - "Ebben?...Ne scoglio" from Catalani's "La Wally" (which will sound familiar to fans of the French eighties noir film, "Diva") where her crystalline voice complements the increasing power of the melody, and the haunting "Mariettas Lied" from Korngold's "Die tote Stadt".

Fleming also has a good sense of the characters she is portraying, for instance, on the "La traviata" aria, "È stano...Ah, fors'è lui...Sempre libera", one gets a strong sense of Violetta's conflict between the attractions of true love versus the free life of a courtesan. She also gets some sturdy help from tenor Joseph Calleja as Alfredo in this piece. But even in this number, the effect of her daunting runs and trills can be a bit overwhelming. She does keep this in check with the slower-paced tracks like "Casta diva" from Bellini's "Norma", which uses a choir in the background to great effect, and Rachmaninov's lovely "Vocalise". The well-worn "Summertime" from Gershwin's "Porgy and Bess" is nicely covered here, and it certainly invites comparisons to even Leontyne Price's definitive version. Fleming ends the disc with a rousing version of Rodgers & Hammerstein's "You'll Never Walk Alone" from "Carousel" that grows a bit too bombastic for listening comfort. Regardless, this disc provides a nice sampling of what this truly great singer has done over the past decade. A treat for her fans and highly recommended for anyone who wants an ideal introduction to her range of talent.

Beautiful indeed!.......2004-07-19

I'm very happy with this CD. She has a lovely voice! And what a fox! ;)

Average customer rating:

Sound quality VERY poor
Great music, poor mixing
Gotta love the brassy brass...
Carmina Burana
Medieval Poetry

Orff: Carmina Burana

Manufacturer: EMI Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Cantatas | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

4-for-3 Opera & Vocal | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Carl Orff: Carmina Burana
Symphonie Fantastique
Carl Orff: Carmina Burana
Twilight of the Gods: The Essential Wagner Collection
Mozart: Requiem

ASIN: B00001ZSXC
Release Date: 1999-10-19

Tracks:

Carmina Burana: Fortuna Imperatrix Mundi: I. O Fortuna
Carmina Burana: Fortuna Imperatrix Mundi: II. Fortune plango vulnera
Carmina Burana: III. Veris leta facies
Carmina Burana: IV. Omnia Sol temperat
Carmina Burana: V. Ecce gratum
Carmina Burana: VI. Tanz
Carmina Burana: VII. Floret silva nobilis
Carmina Burana: VIII. Chramer, gip die varwe mir
Carmina Burana: IX. Reie
Carmina Burana: X. Were diu werlt alle min
Carmina Burana: XI. Estuans interius
Carmina Burana: XII. Olim lacus colueram
Carmina Burana: XIII. Ego sum abbas
Carmina Burana: XIV. In taberna quando sumus
Carmina Burana: XV. Amor volat undique
Carmina Burana: XVI. Dies, nox et omnia
Carmina Burana: XVII. Stetit puella
Carmina Burana: XVIII. Circa mea pectora
Carmina Burana: XIX. Si puer cum puellula
Carmina Burana: XX. Veni, Venivenias
Carmina Burana: XXI. In trutina
Carmina Burana: XXII. Tempus est iocundum
Carmina Burana: XXIII. Dulcissime Blanziflor Et Helena
Carmina Burana: XXIV. Ave formosissima
Carmina Burana: XXV. O Fortuna

Amazon.com essential recording

At first glance, this doesn't seem like conductor Riccardo Muti's cup of tea. It's a work without many subtleties, one that seems to need a policeman more than an interpreter. But Muti lets it rip--the joyous moments are superb, the mock-sentimental moments charming, changes in rhythm properly jarring, and the energy level very high. Soprano Arleen Auger almost makes her high-flying part seem simple. Warning: The louds are very loud. --Robert Levine

Customer Reviews:

Sound quality VERY poor.......2007-05-22

Like a lot of reviewers I find the difference in sound volume between the tracks and even in the tracks themslves to be extremely annoying and cannot believe that a professional sound engineer actually produced this CD.

We have to put the volume up to ear-bleeding levels just to hear the loud parts - the quiet sections are inaudible.

Full Disclosure: We bought this CD even after reading the other negative reviews because we thought people were being overly picky or were true audiophiles (which we're defintely NOT) but DO NOT BUY this recording if you'd like to actually listen to the music.

Great music, poor mixing.......2007-03-23

I can't complain about the music and the musicians were fine but the sound quality of this recording is terrible. The quiter peices cannot be heard without drastically increasing the volume and then a louder piece, like "O Fortuna" comes on and blasts ones eardrums out.

Gotta love the brassy brass..........2007-03-16

Although the choir really isn't the greatest in this recording, Muti's tempi and the brashness of the orchestra are absolutely enchanting. Auger's soprano was MADE for these solos, and it's just a fun recording and a must-have for any Carmina lover.

Carmina Burana .......2007-01-28

I listen to this CD at least once a day while I am cooking...it's great.

Medieval Poetry.......2007-01-18

I was introduced to this music genre while attending a "Trans Siberian Orchestra" concert a couple years ago, listening to it on home or car stereo pales to having heard it performed live, WOW!. It's an awesome compilation of music from poetry, masterfully done by Carl Orff,

Average customer rating:

Prelude to the new King Crimson
No "YAWN" here...Classic Frippian and Summerian for sure!
:-Yawn-:
Lovely, Dark, Intense
A well-kept secret

I Advance Masked
Andy Summers , and Robert Fripp
Manufacturer: A&M
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Jazz Fusion | Jazz | Styles | Music

General | New Age | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Progressive Rock | Progressive | Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock Guitarists | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

Experimental Music | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Pop | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music

Rock | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music

Alternative Rock | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music

Jazz | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music

All Blowout Music | Blowout Music | Stores | Music

More Titles at Least 25% Off | Blowout Music | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Mysterious Barricades
The Rhythmatist
Intergalactic Boogie Express: Live in Europe 1991
Invisible Threads
Three of a Perfect Pair: 30th Anniversary

ASIN: B000002GGJ
Release Date: 1992-04-21

Tracks:

I Advance Masked
Under Bridges Of Silence
China-Yellow Leader
In The Cround Forest
New Marimba
Gim On A Swing
Hardy Country
The Trunk Of Skies
Painting And Dance
Still Point
Lakeland/Aquarelle
Seven An Seven
Stuttified

Customer Reviews:

Prelude to the new King Crimson.......2007-05-08

This album was released in 1981 and is 38 minutes long.

This album was recorded just before Robert Fripp created the next version of King Crimson with Adrian Belew and Tony Levin, with Bill Buford returning, after Fripp thought the world was going to end and broke up the band in 1975.

Much of this album sounds a lot like what will appear on the next three King Crimson albums, Discipline, Beat and Three of a Perfect Pair.

But, it isn't all King Crimson sounding. First off, it all instrumental (no vocals). And there is Andy Summer's influence and sound on many songs. Some of it might sound as if Discipline meets Ghost in the Machine (the Police album that came out right after this).

No "YAWN" here...Classic Frippian and Summerian for sure!.......2003-09-26

Wow. This is a lovely recording of some extremely Frippian Prog. You can definately hear Andy Summers' influences in the subtext. Yes, you have to be sort of predisposed to early 80's Experimental and Prog to appreciate this unit. If you listen to Fripp's King Crimson or any Andy Summers solo stuff, this will satisfy your need for more. Fripp's "Crafy" guitar style shows up here and the intricracies abound. Definately for the Prog efficianado and the 80's-style ambient lover.

:-Yawn-:.......2003-02-12

I bought a vynil copy of this album at a local used-record store not knowing what to expect. Since it was from 1982, I guessed that it would have a lot of the minimalist/contrapunctal type stuff that Fripp was into in that period. It does, but there doesn't seem to be very much variety in the pieces. In fact, the whole album seems to drag along with no real idea of it's own purpose. I think Fripp recorded this simply because he was in the studio with Summers. I strongly doubt that some of the pieces were even practiced beforehand.

There are a few "ambient"-style tracks thrown in for variety, but these pieces sound as though Fripp and Summers listened to a heap of old Eno records and tried to copy his style. That might be exactly what they did.

So I would say that if you are a Fripp completist, or really like his ticky-ticky guitar style of the early eighties, you will probably enjoy this disc. If not, you might find it aggravating. And DEFINETELY don't buy this based on a liking of king Crimson - Fripp outside of his band is a different player.

Lovely, Dark, Intense.......2002-05-10

This CD is difficult to characterize. In mucical terms, it is complex and was certainly ahead of its time upon its original release date. While heavy on Fripp, Summers adds unique voicings and his contributions to this work should not be underestimated. "Girl on a Swing" is perhaps an arrangement that summarizes the musical craftsmanship on the album.

A well-kept secret.......2001-10-18

Often overlooked, and most likely underrated, I Advance Masked is a true synergy of guitar duets. Far superior to its follow-up Bewitched, which was a bit overproduced and relied more on guitar synths--not that that's a bad thing, but in this context, the approach used on I Advance Masked was more effective. This recording shows Summers and Fripp truly inspired, brimming with ideas, and remarkably synchronized mentally as well as musically. My preferred track from this set is "Hardy Country," which I never tire of hearing.

Average customer rating:

an exotic, twisted fantasy world of sound.
Boulez high interpretive visions; to himself for a change.
Boulez Returns to Conducting Boulez!
A new, mellower Marteau
Bravo Mr Boulez!!!

Boulez conducts Boulez

Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Deutsche Grammophon: Music | Specialty Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Boulez: ...Explosante-fixe...
Boulez: The Three Piano Sonatas
Unsuk Chin: Akrostichon-Wortspiel
Boulez: Pli selon Pli
Boulez: Sur Incises/Messagesquisse/Anthèms 2

ASIN: B0006OS5YI
Release Date: 2005-03-08

Customer Reviews:

an exotic, twisted fantasy world of sound........2007-06-08

although i don't know that i will ever _like_ Pierre Boulez's music that much, I still find it among the most interesting in all of western art music. here is an emotionally gripping exception in his catalogue, however: _le marteau sans maitre_ for alto, alto flute, guitar, vibes, xylorimba, percussion, and viola. The obvious reference point for such a work is clearly Schoenberg's _Pierrot lunaire_, which serves as more than partial inspiration. The comparison is important, because _pierrot lunaire_ is the most spiritually/emotionally intense work of expressive 20th century music. now boulez's work does not exactly reach that level, but it has a more organic, more lyrical nature than the works of earlier Boulez, like his piano sonatas, the _Structures_, or _explosante-fixe_. Both pieces feature vocals with small chamber groups, although in Boulez's work the instrumental selection is more unconventional and lends itself to a very different timbral effect, and the soprano does not actually sing in all nine movements. (both works complement each other nicely and together make for good listening on a rainy evening)

perhaps too much comparison for my liking, so the individual personality of this work needs emphasis. This is of the first Boulez works to escape the severe self-restrictions of pure serialist methodology. this must partly be the reason that _le marteau..._ is startlingly lyrical, free of the barrenness that makes much of this post-war contempory music very `samey' and prosaic. It also has a strange immediacy that is more "of this earth" than his more alien music. the first movement is startling for its sheer beauty, urgent and strange guitar chords, eerie percussion and gentle strokes of the viola. Later there is a familiar trait found here, which is the way in which Boulez masterfully manipulates the cyclical, intertwined nature of the movements. Its structure is not rigid mosaic components, but notions that are provisional, plastic, and self-modifying - its engrossing transformations arcane but emotionally charged. This is perhaps easier to see if one changes the order of movements to 1,3,7 in the first part, 2,4,6 in the second part, and 5,9 at the end, although doing this causes a loss of dramatic effect. `bourreaux de solitude' would have to show any dullard the potential for enigmatic beauty in the pejoratively titled `atonal music'. In faster, brighter, more rhythmically intense movements there is a calmness and wonderful lack of irony. although all throughout its metric direction is weirdly timeless, there appears to be a jazz-like pulse barely perceptible especially on the `commentaires' II and III. The singing is very good, the best on the last movement where the music is ultra-jagged but the vocals like a cool breeze. i have read that this performance is slower and mellower than Boulez's previous ones -- I can only think it was meant to sound like this.

_derive 1_ for six instruments (flute, clarinette, violin, cello, vibraphone, and piano) and _derive 2_ for 11 instruments (horn, english horn, clarinette, bassoon, violin, alto, cello, vibraphone, marimba, harp, and piano) are very nice. I am too lazy to write more about them, but they are relatively minor works anyway.

Boulez high interpretive visions; to himself for a change........2006-05-19

you can never argue with good playing of music,even if the music itself is utterly dull and uninspired,although I have played music where no amount of interpretive imagination could have saved it;here we have inspired aggressive playing, in tune,well-balanced,and razor-sharp timbres exhibited,that in itself compells the ear to listen more,it instills a direct committment to the timbre, the ultimate meaning of music, this interface is one Boulez knows quite well,and as he has said himself no amount of wiggling gesticulating in convulsions on the podium will make the music any more interesting; that's not what you get herein however; "The Hammerless Master"when written was perhaps the most highly imitated work of the post-serial period,mostly academic Americans where everybody thought they could "out-Boulez", Boulez, well we have a lotta music now that is collecting dusk in those corridors.Boulez was more attuned to creating a new context for serial creativity a renewal of one with usuable timbres(Orient-Occidental) circling the globe, the gamelan timbre is certainly here,as well as the complexity of serial procedures. There are infintesimal harmonies created with the interesting combinations of acoustic guitar, viola, alto flute,percussion bongoes(primarily vibraphone).I never grow tired of this work, but Boulez's instincts for seeing interpretive dimensions no one else does is/are always worth pursuing(as his readings of un-Tchaikovsky-like Stravinsky,very lean and mean Berg, then Mahler and Bruckner) here in his own music he allows himself to find new points of pursuable interest as his more lyrical sensual "Hammerless Master" reveals. I still find the vocal writing however problematic, as if it is beside the meaning of the text,just another instrumental part thrown upwards; the voice has a kind of "other-wordly" place, not a conveyor of meaning but more of "ambience","mists" of an opaque situation.This recording trys to "fix" or "re-tune" this emotive role-bearing aspect of Rene Char's powerful text to some degree. Now if that is intended and if you find that compelling well no one can argue with this.
In "Derive" as well Boulez again here pursues yet another reading(like a cantus firmus) of his 1994 piano solo later revised in 2001, "Incises" translated as the "cuttings" as like a river may "cut" a continent in half, or the fine lattice work, the lapidarian shapes of nettles cutting a metal image in miniature. Here the gestures are fairly obvious, and I agree with the other reviewer who finds that the work grows dull and arbitrary in its discoursal direction.I first heard Derive 1 along side Dufourt's powerful "Antiphysis"(for larger forces) which drew the more sketchlike "unfinished" qualities in the Boulez all the more pronounced. It does have an affinity for late Debussy, with its find, pulled-backwards gestures, gentle tremoli,exposed fine elegant bourgeois melodic lines.

Boulez Returns to Conducting Boulez!.......2005-12-10

Pierre Boulez has become a name synonymous with masterful conducting of clarity, revealing inner voices of a work, while transforming the classics into thrillingly alive and refreshing experiences. His Mahler, Wagner, Debussy, Stravinsky, Bartok etc performances and recordings rarely fail to open vistas to those of us who thought we knew favorite scores well. It should be no surprise then that his new recording of his now 'old modern works' sound soothingly new under his baton.

'Le marteau sans maître, for alto, alto flute, guitar, vibes, xylorimba, percussion & viola' was a success at its premiere way back in 1955 - music that changed the palette of sound and timbre yet remained accessible. Here Boulez finesses his old recordings and in this splendid, clear, transformative reading confirms that this work is a masterpiece. The Ensemble Intercontemporain plays as though the members grow out of Boulez' fingertips and Hilary Summers lush and perfectly focused mezzo-soprano voice traverses the impossible melismata with ease and conveys the beauty of the poetry. The performance is a knockout!

Dérive I, for flute, clarinet, piano, vibes, violin & cello and
Dérive II, for chamber ensemble are later works and now find far more interest than intial hearings. The palette of sound and rhythmic variations is startling and beautifully performed. This is a fine recording on all counts and one that certainly belongs in the collection of those who follow Boulez in all his myriad accomplishments. Highly Recommended. Grady Harp, December 05

A new, mellower Marteau.......2005-06-25

On its comparatively rare appearances in concert, Pierre Boulez's Le Marteau sans maitre--the work that made his name as a composer--continues to divide audiences, some seeing it as a perfect example of sterile post-war modernism, others echoing the positive reaction of figures such as Igor Stravinsky and Otto Klemperer, who saw it as a vital contribution to post-war art. The composer has now made his fourth recording, examining his early music from a vantage point fifty years later on, perhaps providing a good time to re-evaluate the work.

Previous recordings (particularly the early recordings) have tended to emphasise the work's spikiness as well as the glittering colours that come from its remarkable alto-register ensemble (flute, guitar, viola, vibraphone, xylorimba and percussion). However, Boulez's new reading focuses more on the music's lyrical aspects, perhaps siting it in a context of late Debussy and song cycles such as Ravel's Mallarmé poems. Hillary Summers' voice seems to have been chosen specifically with that in mind--warm and creamy, it suits very well Boulez's gentler tempo and emphasis on the sensual over the radical. Perhaps this recording will feel too low-voltage for those used to the early recordings of the work, but, on the other hand, it might also make new friends for the work (never before has Bourreaux de solitude sounded so lyrical, so French).

Given the manner in which the performance of Marteau refracts early Boulez through a late-Boulez prism, it's perhaps appropriate that the couplings are of comparatively recent works. Dérive 1 is a luscious miniature for flute, clarinet, violin, cello, vibraphone and piano, six minutes of pure wallowing in sound. The largely unrelated Dérive 2 (making its debut on disc) is a little more problematical. Written for a larger ensemble (cor anglais, clarinet, bassoon, horn, violin, viola, cello, vibraphone, marimbaphone, harp and piano) it takes the 'never-ending spiral' structure of Sur Incises, and works out its material over twenty-five minutes of oscillations between various rhythmic figures. At times the music sounds delectable, but I find that after a while it starts to pall--it's less fun than Sur Incises and sometimes the progress of the work seems rather arbitrary.

The performances are mostly exemplary, as one would expect from Boulez's own ensemble, though I marginally prefer the composer's earlier recording of Dérive 1 on Erato. Convinced Marteau admirers will no doubt want to hear this distinctly different interpretation of the work--others may feel differently.

Bravo Mr Boulez!!!.......2005-05-14

Le Marteau Sans maître is one of the most important works of the Twentieth Century . It is a work that symbolize, by its austerity and rationalist process of composition , the essence of the second vanguard of the century. After years of a Neo Classical process (1920-1950) , the new generation, born in the twenties , rediscovering Webern and Schoenberg , were ready to change the history. The serialism was at its peak: timbres , durations, dynamics, everything was pre determinate. Le Marteau sans Maitre can be read as a new way to see one of the most important works of the first half of the twentieth century: Pierrot Lunaire, by Arnold Schoenberg. Schoenberg wrote this work in three parts, with different subjects in each of the three parts. Pierre Boulez handle with three parts too: There are three songs based in three poems by Rene Char. And each song has one instrumental precedent or commentary. But the order isn't easy to understand: Lets take the three first movements of the work:it begins with a intricate fast scherzo: it is one precedent of the song L'artisanat furieux. Than we have a commentary of another song :Bourreaux de solitude. Than for the first time one of the songs: L'artisanat furieux. This one is a clear homage to Schoenberg. As in the seventh song of Pierrot Lunaire , we have hear a music to voice and solo flute. And as in Pierrot Lunaire, Boulez controls the extension of the pauses between the movements of the work. The sounds of Le Marteau sans maitre include exotic sounds like the African ( and very popular in Bahia-Brazil) Agôgô and the Caribbean Maracas. And the end of the work evokes something of oriental music. The surrealist texts are placed in a very sophisticated atmosphere . The result is fantastic. At the end we have a fusion between the voice and the instruments. If you don't have to play or to conduct this work, forget all the difficulties of the score. Enjoy the sounds, the ambience and the fantastic relations between text and music.
Before this recent performance Pierre Boulez recorded several times this work. There are two of these versions that are remarkable: one with the mezzo Jeanne Deroubaix ( the flutist in this record was the fantastic Severino Gazzeloni) and other with the famous Canadian Mezzo Yvonne Minton ( with fantastic musicians as the percussionist Sylvio Gualda and the flutist Michel Debost). I would like to remember that there is one very interesting old recording ( in LP) conducted by Robert Craft, and curiously this is the only one to follow the crazy metronomic marcs of the score. Boulez himself never followed his metronomic indications, and this new recording is the slower of all. The young musicians of the Ensemble Intercontemporain play this music as if it were easy. As never before we have hear a fluency and one constant beauty of sound. The Mezzo Soprano Hilary Summers has a beautiful voice and her intonation is simply perfect. Her range is perfect for this music. In short: this is the most fluent and the most perfect performance of Le Marteau sans Maître . And technically the sound of the recording is outstanding . As a bonus we have two other masterpieces: Dérive 1( 1984) and the wonderful Dérive 2 ( concluded in 2002). This recent composition has some instrumental colors of a profound beauty. Written for 11 instruments, it shares the atmosphere of Sur Incises and of Répons. Dérive 2 is a testimony of the energy of this young 80 years old composer. Maybe the most important musician of the second half of the twentieth century. This recording gives you the opportunity to know compositions that aren't easy. But no one can deny that these are works among the really more important works of the last 50 years. These works deserve your attention .

Average customer rating:

Yes, she DOES sing a High G!
Intriguing and powerful voice
A beautiful voice, but the wrong stylistic approach...
The Voice God
A Bel Canto Cake: Enjoy

Renée Fleming: Bel Canto
Gioacchino Rossini , Patrick Summers , and Orchestra of St. Luke's
Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

The Decca Records Store | Specialty Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Renée Fleming
Renee Fleming - The Beautiful Voice ~ Gounod, Lehaair, Orff, Puccini, Rachmaninov, Strauss
Renee Fleming: By Request
Renée Fleming - Visions of Love ~ Mozart Arias / Mackerras
Renée Fleming - Signatures ~ Great Opera Scenes / Sir Georg Solti

ASIN: B00006589U
Release Date: 2002-08-27

Tracks:

Bellini/La sonnambula: "Ah!..se una volta sola"
Bellini/La sonnambula: "Ah!..non credea mirarti"
Bellini/La sonnambula: "Ah! non giunge uman pensiero"
Donizetti/Maria Padilla: "Abbracciami"
Donizetti/Maria Padilla: "Il piu tenero suon d'arpa morende"
Donizetti/Maria Padilla: "Ah! non sai qual prestigio si cela"
Rossini/Semiramide: Introduzione
Rossini/Semiramide: "Bel raggio lusinghier"
Rossini/Semiramide: "Dolce pensiero di quell'istante"
Bellini/Il pirata: Introduzione
Bellini/Il pirata: "Ah! s'io potessi dissipar le nubi"
Bellini/Il pirata: "Col sorriso d'innocenza"
Bellini/Il pirata: "Oh sole! ti vela di tenebre oscure"
Rossini/Armida: "D'Amor al dolce impero"
Rossini/Armida: "Gli augei tra fronde e fronde"
Rossini/Armida: "La fresca eta sen fugge"
Rossini/Armida: "Ah! si, godete amanti"
Donizetti/Lucrezia Borgia:"M'odi, ah m'odi, io non t'imploro"
Donizetti/Lucrezia Borgia: "Figlio!...Figlio!...Ola, qualcuno!"
Donizetti/Lucrezia Borgia: "Era desso il figlio mio"

Amazon.com

Surely Renée Fleming's soprano must be one of the most beautiful voices before the public today. Though renowned for her interpretations of Mozart, Strauss, and Verdi, as well as for her commitment to contemporary music, she says that the bel canto repertoire has always been central to her career. On this recording, which features scenes and arias from operas by Bellini, Donizetti, and Rossini, she proves that she has achieved total, effortless technical mastery of the uniquely difficult vocal writing characteristic of the style. Every note is perfectly placed. Her runs, including scales over a huge range in both directions, are as clear and evenly paced as a chain of exquisite pearls. Her leaps always land in the center of the pitch. Her intonation is flawless.

Fleming also displays her emotional affinity for the drama, pathos, and lyricism of the music and her ability to identify with her larger-than-life heroines. Chosen from familiar and unfamiliar operas, the music is beguilingly beautiful, ranging from peacefully pastoral to darkly menacing. However, some listeners may feel that Fleming's tendency to overinflect, overphrase, make long pauses, and put swells on long notes, especially in the slow arias, undercuts the music's simplicity and the directness of her expressive communication. The performances are based on the latest scholarly research into the "bel canto" style regarding historically correct ornamentation (only in repeats) and the problems of balancing textual fidelity with imaginative freedom. The Orchestra of St. Luke's gives splendid support, with outstanding solos, especially from the winds. --Edith Eisler

Album Details

Bel Canto is Shrink Wrapped as a Strictly Limited Edition, with a Bonus Disc of Four Unreleased Tracks of Popular Favorites By: Bach, Handel, Mozart and Debussy

Customer Reviews:

Yes, she DOES sing a High G!.......2007-03-21

When I was reading the other reviews of this album, I saw people talking about Renee Fleming going up to a High G (that is G above High C), and I was a bit skeptical...I was used to hearing her in the roles that climax on High B-Flat or High C. But now that I have the album, I can verify that she does indeed go that high! She just touches on it, but hey, that counts! My favorite selections from this album are "Ah! Non Giunge" when she sings a brilliant high E-flat, and because I just love that bouncy little aria. And "Era desso il figlio mio"... that's the one where she sails up to a High G...and She ends the piece with another glorious High E-Flat. Her melismas are delectable. And her high notes are not grating or shrill. Her tone quality is, as usual, plush and sumptuous...and the way she turns the musical phrases so poetically is just amazing. I'm SO glad she made this CD!

Intriguing and powerful voice.......2007-01-21

Renee Fleming has an interesting voice and is obviously an accomplished bel canto singer. Her voice seems to have a heavier, darker sound than many sopranos who essay the coloratura corpus. The sound is very rich. While I'm not sure that I would call her voice ravishing or beautiful, it is clearly up to the task of producing a compelling sound.

This CD begins with a scene from Bellini's "La Sonnambula." Her version of "Ah! Non giunge uman pensiero" is nicely done. She displays an agile voice. She hits the high notes well. Other versions feature trills; hers does not. However, later cuts on this CD surely show that her trill is one of the better ones today. I had never heard even small selections from Donizetti's "Maria Padilla" before. However, Fleming does a very good job. In the final part of the scene that she sings, "Ah, non sai qual prestigio si cela," she trills wonderfully. I have been acquiring CDs and listening to contemporary bel canto singers lately and, to this point of those to whom I have listened, she has one of the best trills around.

"Bel raggio lusinghier" from Rossini's "Semiramide" is nicely sung. Again, she is agile, can hit the high notes, and displays good coloratura technique. The high notes are wonderfully wrought; appoggiaturas well crafted. A number of other reviewers comment on her high note to conclude the cut from Donizetti's "Lucrezia Borgia." She nailed it pretty well, as those others noted.

And so on. No need to go through each cut one by one. All in all, a very good CD. Her darker, heavier voice combined with her vocal agility and coloratura technique make for a very interesting work. She clearly has some of the better coloratura technique among sopranos working in the vineyards of opera today.

A beautiful voice, but the wrong stylistic approach..........2005-11-16

I remember hearing Renee Fleming's first CD - I was instantly struck by the extremely beautiful lyric sound, and the ease with which Ms Fleming sang repertoire that required a high tessitura. I was reminded very much of Kiri Te Kanawa's tone, atlhough at the time, of course, Ms Fleming didn't have the polish of Te Kanawa.

The voice itself is a miracle. It is one of the beautiful voices of this age. But increasingly, I have become disenchanted with the WAY in which Renee Fleming uses her voice. Endowed with such a lovely voice, with a rich and even legato quality throughout, one would think that bel canto repertoire would suit Ms Fleming perfectly. And I think potentially it does... If you do not already possess the full opera recordings of Rosmonda d'Inghilterra (Donizetti) and Armida (Rossini), with Fleming in the title roles, I would like to recommend that you purchase them. They are very beautiful - stunningly so.

A small digression... My CD collection, I should mention (just casually), is nearly 3000 CDs strong, all of which are classical, and the majority of which are vocal (opera, oratorio, Lieder, operetta, early music, French chansons, etc.). The bel canto portion of my collection is substantial. I am also a bel canto singer myself. I speak, thus, with a knowledge of bel canto style, with particular reference to the ways in which the composers would have expected singers to handle their works.

So I hope readers will understand that when I say that Ms Fleming isn't performing on this CD with appropriate bel canto style, I am not speaking out of ignorance, malice, or uninformed opinion. The liner notes shed light on Renee Fleming's approach: she mentions that "like the great singers who premiered these works, we must use our own musical intelligence and imagination to make this music come alive. For someone like myself, trained as a jazz singer, this comes as a liberating reveltion."

Yes. That puts the finger on the major difficulty here. Of course the arias and scenas need to give interpretation and wonderful ornamentation in the repeats of cabalettas, etc. - but NOT, please God, with jazz in mind. The two fields are completely different. This explains to me why Ms Fleming's later recordings fail to satisfy me as much as her earlier ones. I was surprisingly enchanted by her Schubert album, in which I thought a lot of careful interpretative work had gone, and those two earlier full recordings of bel canto operas were superb. How had that wonderful bel canto technique gone astray in this recording? I think - I may be wrong - but I think that Renee Fleming is now relying almost entirely upon her own idea of how bel canto should be sung, rather than being given detailed guidance from an experienced conductor who's both au fait with the requirements and not intimidated by Ms Fleming's very beautiful voice and star billing.

I did buy this CD with great anticipatory pleasure, and I was disappointed because I had such high hopes. I am sorry, because I adore Ms Fleming's voice, but the swoops and the bathos of the interpretations are not moving to me. I so much want Ms Fleming to record bel canto in the future with a great conductor guiding her to avoid the mannerisms that may seem very expressive to Ms Fleming, but strike many listeners as only detracting from the creamy and lovely tone.

Three stars from me, because the voice is unquestionably beautiful.

I do hope that Renee Fleming decides to follow the guidance of some bel canto specialists.

For more authentic bel canto soprano singing, I recommend the peerless Edita Gruberova (still singing wonderfully), the beautiful Sumi Jo, and the great classic recordings of Callas, the young Caballe, and the young Joan Sutherland.

The Voice God.......2005-09-08

I've been a lover of opera for the past 5 years, and I'm 20 now. Never have I been so utterly blown away from a recording, and I have many. After purchasing this CD, I quickly bought 4 of her other recordings, as well as her film. After listening to "Bel Canto" I am sure that you will be convinced, as I am that Renee Fleming is hands down this generation's greatest soprano. Every selection on the CD is amazing, especially the scene from Lucrezia Borgia where she hits a high G above high C. You can feel the passion and drama through her voice, it pierces your heart it's so beautiful! For me, this CD was truly an epiphany. I did not realize that the human voice could be so beautiful, and now singing is all that I want to do! I highly recommend this CD for anyone who wants to hear unbelievable singing.

A Bel Canto Cake: Enjoy.......2005-07-27

Renee Fleming is today's leading American opera diva and her many albums attest to her versatility and superb musicianship. Among these albums, the recent jazz album Haunted Heart, (Fleming originally intende to sing jazz)Strauss- Der Rosenkavalier, Arabella and Cappricio as well as Four Last Songs, Mozart Don Giovanni (in the role of Dona Ana) Nozze Di Figaro (Countess)Cosi Fan Tutte (Fiordiligi)The Schubert Album, and such successful roles as Violetta in Traviata, Massenet's Manon and Dvorak's Rusalka. Not to mention she sang for such films as Lord of the Rings (in Elvish) and Bride of the Wind about the composer Gustav Mahler's ambitious composer wife Alma. Fleming has established herself as the most beautiful voice of recent years in the opera scene. I didn't know of her until she rose to prominence in the late 90's (she is also credited in the Mass In C by Beethoven in the movie Immortal Beloved). Fleming is primarily a lyric voice, whose purity and focus on tone is more important to her than dramatic effect. In this way, she is only following the tradition of the techniques of such sopranos as Elisabeth Schwartkopff, Leontyne Price, Montserrat Caballe and Joan Sutherland. She does have an ethereal beautiful voice, and this album - bel canto - is a showcase for gorgeous legato, pianissimi and coloratura trills and roulade fireworks.

Bel canto literally means "beautiful singing" and Renee Fleming brings that meaning back. Because of the illustrious efforts of such singers as Beverly Sills, Shirley Verrett, Leyla Gencers and inevitably Maria Callas, bel canto has now been a vehicle for dramatic intensity. Callas was never afraid to sound ugly or gritty to bring out the dramatic portions in the opera. But Renee Fleming knows she has a miraculous voice of sheer beauty of sound and she pleasures our ears with the sound of it. But one also sees her own efforts to sound as dramatic as she can sound. In La Sonnambula, Bellini created a vehicle for beautiful lyric sopranos with coloratura prowess. Singers like Anna Moffo made it sound gorgeous but Callas sang it and unearthed its dramatic power. Fleming attempts the Callas effect and even at times sounds like Montserrat Caballe, especially in such arias from Il Pirata (an opera Caballe recorded and performed on stage). She sounds creamy, golden, full-voiced, with gleaming high tops and rich chest registers, effectively colorizing all the melodic lines. I have not heard singing like this in a long time, and again Montserrat Caballe comes to mind. Just listen to how she sings Lucrezia Borgia, especially in the outburst "E sperto! " (He's dead!) the dramatic moment when Lucrezia discovers she has poisoned her own son. Fleming is also exceptional in Rossini's Semiramide. This is not her first experience singing Rossini. She has sung Il Vaggio A Reims, a rare Rossini opera. Bel canto is truly challenging, and it was for her, but she stepped up to the challenge and came out on top.

What's in the future for Fleming ? I would love for her to take on heavier roles, but she is herself very cautious about ruining her voice. Lyric sopranos like her can easily break if not properly trained. While she has sung Handel well and modern operas like "Ghosts of Versailles" I fear she will never take on the roles I long for her to sing - Tosca, Norma, not even Madame Butterfly. Mirella Freni, a voice quite like Fleming's managed to transition to heavier repertoire well- she sang Butterfly and Tosca with flying colors. Perhaps Fleming will continue to sing purely lyric roles- more Desdemonas, more Tatianas in Eugene Onegin or perhaps the heroine in Queen of Spades. But perhaps she can step outside herself and sing Elisabeth Valois in Don Carlo, or perhaps Lucia Di Lammermoor (why hasn't she sung that ? It's tailor made for her)Who knows what she has in mind but whatever it is, she will sound brilliant.

Renée Fleming - Signatures ~ Great Opera Scenes / Sir Georg Solti

Average customer rating:

what a voice....
Amazing!!
Renee Fleming - Signatures-Great Oper Scenes
BEAUTIFUL CROSS SECTION OF STYLES
Renee Fleming's greatest recital ever!

Renée Fleming - Signatures ~ Great Opera Scenes / Sir Georg Solti
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky , Antonin Dvorak , Giuseppe Verdi , Benjamin Britten , Richard Strauss , London Symphony Orchestra , Sir Georg Solti , Renée Fleming , Larissa Diadkova , and Jonathan Summers
Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Czech | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

English | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Italian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Russian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

The Decca Records Store | Specialty Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Renee Fleming - The Beautiful Voice ~ Gounod, Lehaair, Orff, Puccini, Rachmaninov, Strauss
Renée Fleming
Renée Fleming: Bel Canto
Renée Fleming - Visions of Love ~ Mozart Arias / Mackerras
Renee Fleming: By Request

ASIN: B0000042HU
Release Date: 1997-09-09

Tracks:

Le nozze di Figaro: Porgi, Amor
Le nozze di Figaro: E Susanna Non Vien!...Dove Sono I Bei Momenti
Eugene Onegin: Nu, Zaboltalas Ya!...Puskai Pogibnu Ya (Letter Scene)
Rusalka: Mesicku Na Nebi Hlubokem (O Silver Moon)
Otello: Era Piu Calmo?...'Piangea Cantando Nell Erma Landa'... Ave Maria
Peter Grimes: Peter Seems To Have Disappeared...Embroidery In Childhood Was A Luxury Of Idleness
Daphne: Ich Komme - Ich Komme (Transformation Scene)

Amazon.com essential recording

As the possessor of one of the great lyric soprano voices of our time, soprano Renée Fleming is in demand in the world's great opera houses. (It doesn't hurt that she's also lovely and a fine actress.) This album is an outstanding collection of great arias, ravishingly sung. It shows something of Fleming's range, including as it does music by Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Dvorák (the sumptuous "Song to the Moon" from Rusalka, the best part of the entire opera, and sung here in definitive fashion), Verdi, Britten (an effective "Embroidery Scene" from Peter Grimes), and Richard Strauss. This disc is a good starting point for someone seeking to learn more about operatic singing, and a valuable addition to the library of anyone already converted. Fleming is given strong support by mezzo-soprano Larissa Diadkova, baritone Jonathan Summers, and by the late Sir Georg Solti in one of his last recordings. --Sarah Bryan Miller

Customer Reviews:

what a voice...........2006-09-14

I love this recital which is my first introduction to a solo album by Fleming.
Her voice , with its richness and dusky timbre and beautiful, strong higher notes is a treat to hear.
She did sound expressive too but has not yet touched a chord in me when it comes to emotion and feeling.
Call me a helpless Callas fan, but I couldn't help but wonder how La Divina would sound if she sang Russian and played Tatyana in the "Letter" scene; what a great vehicle for acting!
But it does take voices a while to grow on me and that might be it.
I do plan on buying more of her CDs.

Amazing!!.......2005-09-28

This may be one of my favorite albums of all time. Renee Fleming is of course amazing with Mozart...but there are other gems on this album. The scene from Otello is truly astounding!! My personal favorite on this album is the Embroidery Scene from Peter Grimes by Benjamin Britten...WOW!!! And of course we all know that the Song to the Moon from Dvorak's Rusalka is amazing. The Tchaikovsky is so wonderful!! The scene from R. Strauss's Daphne is awesome! Brava Renee!!!

Renee Fleming - Signatures-Great Oper Scenes.......2005-08-11

I gave this item as gift so I cannot review it.

BEAUTIFUL CROSS SECTION OF STYLES.......2004-11-22

I really loved this CD, mainly however due to "Mesicku Na Nebi Hlubokem" as it was the first version I had ever heard. Her phrasing, emotion, and tone were a perfect match for Dvorak's lone mermaid. I was also surprised to find Richard Strauss's Daphne here. It is not a common opera or aria so it was all I could do to listen to the beauty of the music that was not a real aria as it was vocal renderings controlled by the orchestra. It may not ever be common but it shows Richard Strauss in a more lyrical way verses his usual more heavy and harsh operas including "Salome" and "Elektra". Now if only we could get Fleming to record "Daphne" in it's entirety. Her other pieces were rich and warm as I have always adored her in the Countess road and she has always does Desdemona proud even if it is just a literary character. This CD is Renee Fleming at her best!

Renee Fleming's greatest recital ever!.......2004-04-16

What can I say that hasn't been said already? The great Solti (Who adored Fleming btw) and Renee Fleming made magic here. One of the greatest recitals in operatic history. Brava Renee!

Dead Man Walking (Live recording of 2000 world premiere production)

Average customer rating:

Isa Lei
Weak attempt at opera realism
Challenging in many dimensions
The Opera is Fabulous.
It Could Have Been More

Dead Man Walking (Live recording of 2000 world premiere production)
Jake Heggie , Susan Graham , Frederica von Stade , Patrick Summers , and San Francisco Opera Chorus and Orchestra
Manufacturer: Erato
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Operettas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

The Faces of Love ~ The Songs of Jake Heggie / Fleming, McNair, Larmore, von Stade, Forand, Cao, Clayton, Vaness, Asawa
Little Women: An Opera in Two Acts
Cold Sassy Tree
Previn - A Streetcar Named Desire / Fleming, Futral, Gilfry, Griffey, SF Opera, Previn
Bolcom - A View from the Bridge / Josephson, Malfitano, Turay, Lyric Opera of Chicago, D. Russell Davies

ASIN: B000059ZHR
Release Date: 2002-01-08

Tracks:

Prelude - Patrick Summers
Prologue - Patrick Summers
Act One, Scene 1. Hope House: 'He Will Gather Us Around'
Act One, Scene 2. The Drive To Angola State Prison: 'Be Careful,' People Have Always Told Me.
Act One, Scene 2. The Drive To Angola State Prison: Aria: This Journey. This Journey To Christ.
Act One, Scene 3. Outside Of Angola State Penitentiary: Sister Helen? I've Been Waiting For You.
Act One, Scene 4. Father Grenville's Office: Some Of Them Didn't Look So Bad.
Act One, Scene 4. Father Grenville's Office: I Don't Like That Man.
Act One, Scene 5. The Walk Through Death Row: Woman On The Tier!
Act One, Scene 6. The Death Row Visiting Room: Thank You.
Act One, Scene 6. The Death Row Visiting Room: Aria: A Warm Night.
Act One, Scene 7. The Pardon Board Meeting: The Defendant's Mother, Mrs. Patrick De Rocher. - Frederica Von Stade
Act One, Scene 8. The Parking Lot Outside The Courthouse: Its A Good Sign When They Take So Long.
Act One, Scene 8. The Parking Lot Outside The Courthouse: You Don't Know What It's Like To Bear A Child.
Act One, Scene 8. The Parking Lot Outside The Courthouse: It's The Decision Of This Pardon Board
Act One, Scene 9. The Death Row Visiting Room/Scene 10. The Waiting Room: Guess Your Nun Ain't Comin' Back, De Rocher./Excuse Me. Do You Have Any Change?
Act One, Scene 10. The Waiting Room: 'He Will Gather Us Around'

Tracks:

Prelude - Patrick Summers
Act Two, Scene 1. Joseph's Cell: 31...32...33... - John Packard
Act Two, Scene 2. Sister Helen's Bedroom: Oh!... Now And At The Hour Of Our Death. Amen.
Act Two, Scene 2. Sister Helen's Bedroom: Duet/Scene 3, Joseph's Cell. August 4 In The Evening: Sometimes Forgiveness Is In The Smallest Gesture./Well? Well?
Act Two, Scene 3. Joseph's Cell. August 4 In The Evening: What Time Is It?
Act Two, Scene 4. The Visiting Room: Wow! Those New Ford Mustangs Are So Cool.
Act Two, Scene 4. The Visiting Room: Aria: Dont' Say A Word.
Act Two, Scene 4. The Visiting Room: Who Will Walk With Me?
Act Two, Scene 5. Outside The Death House: Good Evening.
Act Two, Scene 5. Outside The Death House: Duet: I've Said Some Harsh Things.
Act Two, Scene 6. Joseph's Holding Cell: You're A Regular Illustrated Man, De Rocher. - David Okerlund
Act Two, Scene 7. The Confession: How Much Longer? How Much More Time?
Act Two, Scene 7. The Confession: We'd Been Drinkin' And Smokin' Weed At The Road House.
Act Two, Scene 8. The Execution: Dead Man Walking!
Act Two, Scene 8. The Execution: 'He Will Gather Us Around.'
Applause

Amazon.com

Dead Man Walking opens with a brutal rape-murder scene and ends with a passage, silent except for the clicks of the machine delivering fluids that execute a condemned man, followed by Susan Graham intoning the spiritual "He will gather us around." Those searing scenes flank that rarity, a contemporary opera that deals with an important issue--the death penalty--with balance and empathy while sustaining dramatic tension, the narrative conveyed with musical alertness. Small wonder that the opera has been so successful. It's based on the book by Sister Helen Prejean and the acclaimed Tim Robbins film made from it about a nun who befriends a condemned man and brings him to face the redemptive truth of his actions. The recording was made during the San Francisco premiere of the opera and has all the intensity of a live performance, in addition to the overwhelming power of the story and the music.

It would be hard to imagine a better performance, too. Susan Graham is perfect as Sister Helen, singing with purity of tone and fiery passion. She's delightful, too, in the humorous bits that leaven what would otherwise be a story too harrowing for the medium. Frederica von Stade, as the murderer's mother, is as good, and baritone John Packard as the condemned man is a real find--a singing actor totally convincing throughout, both as the hardened killer and later as the repentant man finally accepting responsibility for his deeds. The supporting cast is also first-rate, and Patrick Summers conducts with unerring sweep and fervor. Jake Heggie's score may lack hummable arias (other than the traditional hymn that plays so important a part throughout), but the orchestration is fresh, the vocal lines are grateful, and the range is wide, moving seamlessly from modern romanticism to bits of pop and rock. No small part of the opera's success is due to Terrence McNally's dramatically cohesive libretto. A triumph for all concerned. --Dan Davis

Customer Reviews:

Isa Lei.......2006-12-25

The merging of the Fijian song Isa Lei into a deeply moving piece of sub-continental music is brilliant. Worth the whole CD

Weak attempt at opera realism.......2004-09-02

The idea of making this story into an opera is a great idea, and I was so excited to see it, but the music is way too tonal and lyrical for a story like this. The whole opera sounds very amateurish. Heggie's sense of orchestration and musical language is very bland and unimaginitive in my opinion. And a good chunk of the opera consists of about four or five themes that keep reappearing throughout the opera almost always in the same form. There is no intellectual system of Wagnerian leitmotif here, it is simply direct repetition of material throughout the opera. This is not a story of heros and heriones with an epic romantic plot. This is a very dark and gritty look at the death penalty, and I'm amazed that reviewers complained that this opera is too atonal and 20th century for their tastes. In my opinion this opera does not nearly have enough atonality and emotional depth to it. Dark stories should use dark music. Just look at operas like Peter Grimes, Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, Wozzeck, and Lulu. In all of these operas the purpose of the music is to elevate the drama in this dark stories to a level that could not be achieved by simple spoken word. To me Heggie undercuts the drama by reverting to lyrical numbers at very dramatic points in the opera. It doesn't help that the stage direction was pitiful in the version I saw (stage symmetry is the last thing you would want in a 20th century realism opera). It seems that I am alone here in my argument. But anybody who knows anything about 20th century opera realism (Puccini does not count) will probably agree that Heggie completely missed a good opportunity to make a scoarching opera.

Challenging in many dimensions.......2004-06-09

I think that this opera (or it's subject more generally) gets to the heart of the entire debate about capital punishment - if we could devise a test that was perfect in its ability to distinguish the guilty from the innocent, would we still be willing to execute people for horrendous crimes. Having just seen this opera in a performance in Pittsburgh, I'm not sure. One of the amazing things about this opera is the extent to which it presents the conflicts associated with the death penalty without manipulating the observer. Is this despicable person really worth anyone's time? Is there some sense in which his death is warranted as retribution for his crimes? Would his death provide any sort of compensation to the surviving victims of his crimes? I honestly have no idea. But an extraordinary feature of this opera is the way in which it introduces these issues without biasing the viewer. During the after-show dinner, my wife and I discussed these issues a number of times. Any work that induces that type of reflection about the deeper underlying issues is worthwhile from my point of view.

In terms of the music, I suppose that there are moments of power and beauty. We're talking about a modern opera, so there aren't many hummable songs (see Broadway if you want those.) I suspect that the entire endeavor is more effective in person.

The Opera is Fabulous........2003-06-21

I recently saw the Opera in Detroit, Michigan. It was a wonderful experience (but isn't going to the opera always a wonderful experience?). I thought it was well done-- the music was a tad too 20-th Century for my tastes, but I still loved it!

It Could Have Been More.......2002-06-26

This opera has it's moments and they are glorious moments. The story is powerful and the central idea is important. Jake Heggie is a wonderfully lyrical composer. He really knows how to show off the voice and has an innate sense of drama. He also proves a brilliant orchestrator. The duet on forgiveness in the second act is very moving...as is the music for Von Stade. Occasionlly the opera goes a bit over the top, particularly at the end of the first act, where Sister Helen seems to be having a psychotic break...seems a bit much. But more often the piece is pretty understated for an opera and the ending is extremely effective.

So why only three stars? I think the problem rests with the libretto. This opera continues the deplorable late 20th century trend in opera toward sung play. As opera houses move toward commissioning playwrites such as McNally and William Hoffman as librettists the things that distiguish the particular art of the librettist are dying out. This opera libretto reads like a play. While there are a few ensembles that attempt to present multiple viewpoints simulteneously, they don't compare to the great ensemble situations of a Da Ponte or Boito. And perhaps more importantly, though McNally does include soliloquies, they are in a rather straightforward prose...one that is hard to set well in music. Too many syllables and too little verbal rhythm. As a result, no matter how hard Heggie struggles (and he does a heroic job at this) the opera never bursts into song, as it obviously wants to. Some will say that this is because the opera is throughcomposed, as is the style in modern opera. While that's true, you only have to listen to the operas of Barber or Carlisle Floyd to here examples of throughcomposed opera that still retains the sense of song. Even Nixon in China manages to create a sense of song while remaining throughcomposed.

Perhaps the difference is that in the most successful contemporary opera libretti, the librettist is either the composer, or a poet. In many ways, the best choice for a modern librettist is to follow the practice of Broadway and let the dialogue be written by a playwrite, reserving the set pieces (and most operas still have set pieces, even Britten) for a poet or lyricist. Certainly, this would have helped this opera to do what opera can do best, soar.

Hard to review this one. I like it, but with reservations.

Little Women: An Opera in Two Acts
Average customer rating:

Mesmerizing

Most enjoyable

Thank you, Mark Adamo!

The opera is good, but ...

New Operas are important, very important

Little Women: An Opera in Two Acts
James Maddalena , Daniel Belcher , Joyce DiDonato , Stephanie Novacek , and Patrick Summers
Manufacturer: Ondine
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
Operettas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
General | Classical | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Little Women: Opera in Two Acts

Dead Man Walking (Live recording of 2000 world premiere production)

Bolcom - A View from the Bridge / Josephson, Malfitano, Turay, Lyric Opera of Chicago, D. Russell Davies

Cold Sassy Tree

Floyd: Of Mice and Men

ASIN: B00005NG58
Release Date: 2001-08-28

Tracks:

Four Little Chests All In A Row
Laurie - The Very Same, Madam
Couldn't I Un-bake The Breads
Barrister! It's A Quarter Past!
Again We Meet To Celebrate
Major, Minor
Socks!
Supper, Half An Hour!
Madness. No. Mania No.
Rigmarole? It's Another Game.
There Was a Knight Once
Oh, This Cannot be Borne.
She That IS Down Need Fear No Fall
Our Own Fanny Mendelssohn
Mr. John Brooke, Laurie's Tutor
Long May Our Comrades Prosper Well
Things Change Jo
I Understand. You're Leaving Us
Aunt? Now, I Haven't Done Any Shading Yet
We Stand Together on the old
Jupiter Ammon! The Poetry!
We Stand Together On This Old/New Day
Don't Dare Suggest It, Laurie

Tracks:

Cockling? Cackling?
Drizzling In New York
But That's Why I Loved It! So Lurid and Preposterous
Kennst Du Das Land, Wo Die Zitronen Bluhn?
Do You Know The Land Where The Lemon Trees Bloom?
It's Lovely. My Father Swears By Him
She's Asked For You
Have Peace Jo
She Who Is Down Need Fear No Fall
That's The Problem With Solitaire: You Always Need A King
My. Jo, Beyond Measure, Mother!
She Sounds Very Happy. I Hope Laurie Feels The Same
You, Alone: A Mansion Of Stone
So The Days Go By, And The Summers Fly
Let Me Look At You

Amazon.com's Best of 2001

Mark Adamo's transfer of the Louisa May Alcott novel to the opera stage is an artistic and commercial success. It's been scheduled by numerous opera companies, and this Houston Grand Opera production drew a large audience to its PBS broadcast. The success is due to Adamo's sense of the lyric theatre--his sharply focused libretto that clarifies both story line and the narrative's meaning, and his accessible yet sophisticated music.

Little Women is about change and letting go of the past. This theme and the dramatic conflict it engenders are beautifully encapsulated in two fine Act I scenes: Jo's "Look at us, Laurie: we're perfect as we are," and Meg's aria, "Things change." Adamo's music is equal to the challenge of his ambitious agenda. The 18-piece orchestra sounds bigger than it is, perhaps because it's always active, moving the story along on its own or commenting on the characters and action. Adamo writes big arias and unapologetically includes expressive coloratura passages. He even dares to write a Schubertian aria on the text of Goethe's "Kennst du das Land," repeating it (with variations) in English. And he injects some humor into the opera, as heard in the delightful scene of Brook's proposal to Meg, an arch snippet about surtitles, and Jo at the offices of a trashy tabloid. The singers are all first-rate, but the opera rises or falls on Jo, the kind of meaty part singers would kill for. Stephanie Novak is marvelous here, singing with passion and projecting Jo's innocence as well as her journey to self-knowledge. Patrick Summers leads a definitive performance of the opera. The recording is drawn from live performances in March 2000. Ondine, a Finnish company, has done American music proud with this release. --Dan Davis

Customer Reviews:

Mesmerizing.......2006-05-07

OK, so I'm the last US listener to catch up with this piece. Wow. Amazing. Nothing extra, nothing missing--it's beautiful, but that's not what I'm writing about---listening to it is like being inside someone's heart. If you've ever thought you could make someone keep loving you through force of will...it's strange that something so "nostalgic" can feel so tough and aching at the same time--when Meg sings "I love you--things end," I thought my stomach would sink right out of my body. I really can't tell you if it's a "good" record or not from an audiophile POV. But I play it. A lot...Peace, Ellen

Most enjoyable.......2006-02-23

I bought this c.d. for my brother's birthday as he is a great fan of Joyce di Donato. He is very fussy about the quality of the recording and was delighted with this one.

Thank you, Mark Adamo!.......2005-03-08

I had the privilege of attending New York City Opera's production of this incredible work, and I have seldom been so moved. Obviously, the composer couldn't (and shouldn't) have included every single scene from the novel. What he did set, however, were some of the most touching and beautiful pages. Scenes that let us get to know these people, and care deeply about them, without needing to know their entire life stories. Maybe I'm too emotional (if there is such a thing), but I shed quite a few tears during this performance. Mark Adamo has written the finest opera of the last 50 years and more. Thank you, Mr. Adamo, for this magnificent work.
The recording is fine, as well, with a strong cast and good sound. A bargain at twice the price.

The opera is good, but ..........2004-02-02

Marc Adamo's _Little Women_ follows Alcott's book much more closely than it seems to. True, this opera doesn't include Jo's famous haircut, the father's service (and subsequent illness) as a military chaplain, or any of the childhood antics depicted in the book's first half. But that's because Adamo focuses his attention on the less-celebrated second half, which Alcott entitled "Good Wives" (though she sarcastically claimed "Wedding Marches" would have been more appropriate).

The opera itself is superb; among American composers, only Douglas Moore and Virgil Thomson have equalled its accomplishment. Adamo's libretto is consistently quick-witted and sharp-tongued (a trait he seems to have picked up from Alcott herself), while his music is tonal, eclectic, emotional and intelligent. Each character, it seems, has at least one moment to shine, but Professor Bhaer's German lied in Act II never fails to bring down the house. What's more, the opera stages beautifully; one gets the sense that it would be as much at home on Broadway as in the concert hall. (Hint, hint?)

Unfortunately, this particular recording is live, which means that the music doesn't come across with the same clarity that a studio recording would have. It's tough to justify shelling out more than thirty bucks for manifestly inferior sound, and I wish the Houston Grand Opera had purchased some studio time so they could give this opera its due. Still, the performances are as good as they come. For fans of the work, this will be a must-own.

New Operas are important, very important.......2003-08-17

I saw a production of this opera at New York City Opera this past season which is why I bought the CD. It really is a triumph. I'm sorry for the people who didn't I enjoy. I wonder if NYC Opera is performing a different version or just a different concept of the same version. I found the production to be very endearing and touching. No one left the theater untouched emotionally. There is a lot to be said for new operas. Without new opera the form won't expand and continue to grow. New Operas do not take anything away from the classics, it's just important that new avenues be explored. I saw buy this CD, you'll enjoy it.

Average customer rating:

Instrumental Experimentation... not little pop songs
absolutely disappointing

Synaesthesia
Andy Summers
Manufacturer: Times Square Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Jazz Fusion | Jazz | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

The Rhythmatist
I Advance Masked

ASIN: B000P6R8K4
Release Date: 2007-06-12

Tracks:

Cubano Rebop
Chocolate Of the Desperate
Meshes Of the Afternoon
Monk Hangs Ten
Umbrellas Over Java
Low Flying Doves
Invisible Cities
Synaesthesia
I Remember

Customer Reviews:

Instrumental Experimentation... not little pop songs.......2007-07-16

This is a very entertaining CD, with a variety of musical styles and innovative song structures. Anyone expecting a nice little package of pop songs is not going to like it and should just move on. Anyone else who would like a dose of intelligent experimentation would do well to listen in. The CD starts with some great raw electric guitar on the opening song "Cubano Rebop" and ends with beautiful Spanish guitar on "I Remember". "Meshes of the Afternoon" reminds me of recent King Crimson while "Umbrellas Over Java" takes one audibly to a distant and mysterious land. The smooth, graceful "Low Flying Doves" drifts along for nearly 6 beautiful minutes until the brash piano chords of "Invisible Cities" wake you up to think "I've not heard a song like that before!" That's what is so nice - the different flavors and textures that Summers creates in the course of one short CD. Only the title song left me wanting, as it seemed a bit long and less interesting than the rest of the CD. But that's the ONLY song I didn't fully enjoy. A refreshing change from the every day, this CD is.

absolutely disappointing.......2007-07-08

The CD snaesthesia by Andy Summers has disappointed at the least. A home made childish scratching on an electric guitar and a playing with all type of effects whithout taking the time to realy find the reasons of such effects. There is neither harmony nor a single music method. The CD is one of the worst CDs I have EVER heard and if it where not Andy Summers, I would not believe that such music is possible to be sold. The sadest thing is that there are music productions and labels who offer such "music", just for the name of the musician. Sorry, I can not say a single good thing for this CD.

Music:

Music

music

Recommended Music:

The Yankee Dollar [Import]

Kodaly: Sonata for cello solo Op8; Duo Op7

Lovesings Greatest Hits: Best of the Best Gold [Import]

Music: Crazy Moon

Looking Back, Vol. 5

Mean

Lisboa: Red Hot on Portugal

Legs to Make Us Longer [Enhanced]

Left Hand Drive [Import]

Light My Fire

Reflections V.2 [Import]

Last Boat

No One Can Do It Better

Classical Music classical-music-14

Fats Waller in London