Welcome to the start of your weekend and twelve great releases that make up the best of what’s New In Music This Week: November 10th.
My top pick this week is:
CLASSICAL: RACHMANINOFF REFLECTIONS – Inon Barnatan – Pentatone Music
There’s a long tradition of transcriptions of larger orchestral works for solo piano. Franz Liszt’s transcriptions of works by Beethoven, Mozart and Wagner are considered amongst the best.
To celebrate Rachmaninoff’s 150th anniversary (as many artists have done this year), pianist Barnatan has chosen to create his own arrangements of the composer’s Symphonic Dances Op. 45 and his Vocalise from the 14 Romances, Op. 34. Both arrangements and performances are extraordinary with the delicacy of the Vocalise bringing full emotion to the piece without ever threatening to break its fragility.
Also on this album are the six Moments Musicaux (written in 1896) and his Prelude in G-Sharp Minor (written in 1910).
If you love Rachmaninoff, you’ll want to listen to this album as I have…on repeat.
Here are the rest of my selections for New In Music This Week: November 10th:
CLASSICAL: TERRITÓRIOS – Gabriele Leite – Rocinante
This eclectic debut album from classical guitarist Leite combines works by William Walton, Edino Krieger, Sérgio Assad and Heitor Villa-Lobos to stunning affect.
Leite’s home country of Brazil (she’s from São Paulo) is amply represented by contemporary guitarist and composer Assad; the late avant-garde composer Krieger and Villa-Lobos. Then there’s the late British composer Walton whose Cinco Bagatelas opens the album. I wasn’t familiar with these works by Walton and this discovery was worth the investment of my time.
Leite plays with a style that seems completely effortless (which, of course, means it is anything but). This is a fascinating collection of 20th century music for the guitar. I look forward to what the future has in store for Gabriele Leite.
CLASSICAL: BEETHOVEN VIOLIN CONCERTO/VIOLIN SONATA No. 9 “KREUTZER” – Nemanja Radulović – Warner Classics
Double Sens is a conductor-less chamber ensemble founded by violinist Radulović 15 years ago. They join him for a performance of Beethoven’s only concerto for violin. This is an expanded group of musicians comprising performers from Radulović’s homeland of Serbia and also from France where he studied.
The most interesting part of this album is his new arrangement of the Kreutzer violin sonata. Radulović has taken what was originally a piece for violin and piano and created a fascinating work for violin and string ensemble. Purists might scoff at this concept, but I found the arrangements brought new life and urgency to this incredible composition.
CONTEMPORARY CLASSICAL: POEMS – Viktor Orri Árnason/Álfheiður Erla Guðmundsdóttir –Deutsche Grammophon
There are ten beautiful new compositions in this album from Icelandic composer Árnason and soprano Guðmundsdóttir. Five different poems by Icelandic poets are set to music here – four deceased poets and one young one. There are also lyrics by the composer and his soprano.
Given that Guðmundsdóttir is also a visual artist, there are some stunningly beautiful videos that accompany several of the songs on Poems.
JAZZ: CLAM CITY – Jeff Babko/Tim Lefebvre/Mark Guiliana – Sam First Records
Sam First Records is quickly becoming one of my favorite new labels. Their recordings live from the small club in Los Angeles capture interesting artists at their best. This record by keyboardist Babko, drummer Guiliana and bassist Lefebvre is no exception.
There’s an incredible trust and intimacy to the music on this record which must reflect the friendship that centers these three musicians.
While most of the tracks are originals (and quite good ones at that), I am a big fan of their version of Thelonious Monk’s Boo Boo’s Birthday.
JAZZ: JAZZ AT OBERLIN – The Dave Brubeck Quartet – Craft Recordings
Audiophiles will want the newly made 180-gram vinyl of this record of a concert Dave Brubeck and his quartet performed at Oberlin College in 1953. All five tracks are standards and they have an urgency to them that reveals Brubeck and his musicians at their peak.
Those musicians are bassist Ron Crotty; drummer Lloyd Davis and alto saxophonist Paul Desmond. The standards are The Way You Look Tonight; How High the Moon; These Foolish Things; Perdido and Stardust.
You don’t have to be a vinyl fanatic to hear this terrific record. It’s also available for streaming.
Trivia: Paul Desmond composed Take Five.
JAZZ: ROLL THE TAPE – The Adam Deitch Quartet – Golden Wolf Records
Drummer Deitch is joined by organist Wil Blades, trumpeter Eric “Benny” Bloom on trumpet and saxophonist Ryan Zoidis for this album which had me from the opening track, Lay It Back. This is an album that has plenty of groove to spare and will leave you with some extra pep in your step.
Guitarist John Scofield joins for the second track Mushroom Gravy. Deitch wrote all ten original compositions on Roll the Tape Blades sharing writing credits with him on Have Faith (which makes sense since the organ takes the lead on this track from the opening notes.)
JAZZ: PORTRAIT OF ART FARMER – Art Farmer – Craft Recordings
This album was originally released in 1958 and features composer Farmer on trumpet joined by Addison Farmer on bass, Roy Haynes on drums and Hank Jones on piano.
Three of the tracks (Back in the Cage; And Now… and Earth) were composed by Farmer. The other five tracks include compositions by Howard Dietz and Arthur Schwartz; Benny Golson, Burton Lane and Alan Jay Lerner; Ray Noble and George Russell.
When this album was reissued it included a 9th track. That sone, The Folks Who Love On the Hill, is not included in this vinyl and hi-res digital release.
JAZZ: CALL ON THE OLD WISE – Nitai Hershkovits – ECM
First a disclaimer: calling this a jazz album is simply a shorthand for the wide range of music Hershkovits has assembled on this album. Truth be told, it is clear from these mostly-improvised solo pieces that this fine pianist can find a home in classical music – both old and new.
Hershkovits wrote 16 of the 18 songs on this impressive album. The two covers are Molly Drake’s Dream Your Dreams and Duke Ellington’s Single Petal Of a Rose. Worth noting that Molly Drake was the mother of Nick Drake.
It’s power comes from Hershkovits’ calm and impressive playing. By the time we get to the final track, River Wash Me, this quietly impressive album made me wish for a rainy day to accompany it. But don’t save it for a rainy day, start listening now.
JAZZ: HOME COOKIN’ – Cory Weeds and the Little Big Band – Cellar Music Group
There are several things I love about Vancouver: the crispness of the air; walking around Stanley Park Seawall and Vij’s Restaurant (great Indian food). Now I can add Cory Weeds and his fellow Vancouver musicians who have recorded a wonderful small big band record.
The album opens and closes with songs by Horace Silver (the title track and Metamorphosis). There are some original tracks along the way and more covers, but this eleven-piece ensemble makes a great argument for the quality of jazz musicians from British Columbia.
OPERA: CHRISTMAS FROM NORWAY – Lise Davidsen/Norwegian Radio Orchestra/Christian Eggen – Deutsche Grammophon
It’s an interesting concept to explore Christmas music through Norwegian traditions. This album by the incomparable Davidsen opens and closes with O Holy Night, but the first is O Helga Natt. As much as I’ve made it clear I’m not a fan of Christmas music, I have to admit that O Holy Night, for strictly compositional reasons, is my favorite.
There are other familiar songs you’ll know very well. The discoveries on this album are the traditional songs we don’t know which find themselves sharing time with music by Bach, Reger, Sibelius and others. And you’ll find yourself enjoying Davidsen’s powerful and sublime singing.
OPERA: CHRISTMAS EVE – Frankfurter Opern- und Museumsorchester/Sebastian Weigle – Naxos
This four-act opera by Russian composer Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov had its world premiere in 1895 in St. Petersburg. It is inspired by Nikolay Gogol’s short story of the same name.
The story centers on a blacksmith (Georgy Vasiliev) who must get his hands on the Tsarina’s shoes in order to be able to marry Oksana (Julia Muzychenko), the daughter of a rich farmer. Serving as obstacles in his pursuit of her hand in marriage are a witch (Enkelejda Shkoza) who steals the stars from the sky and the devil (Andrei Popov) who absconds with the moon. Like the original story, this opera is set in Ukraine.
This is not a commonly performed opera, so the opportunity to hear it in such a great recording makes up for the inability to see this work performed.
That’s my list of What’s New In Music: November 10th.
Enjoy the music and enjoy your weekend.
Main Photo: An excerpt from the album art for Roll the Tape