Ragtime Music

I am delighted to find a variety of Ragtime composers still being recorded. The Europeans seem to have much more appreciation of the American Jazz heritage than do the Americans.

Tom Oliphant
Los Alamos, NM

It goes without saying that the music itself is excellent, but the written score means nothing unless the performer can execute it properly. Guido Nielsen does this. He plays these pieces smoothly and he doesn't play them too fast; and I have heard, in listening to this recording, absolutely *no* liberties taken by him to "jazz" up these works. He lets them speak for themselves instead of adding his own embellishments. This recording really is worth five stars and is probably as close as anyone will come to perfect in a ragtime recording. The information in the booklet that comes with this C.D. is also great; full-color reproductions of the covers of the sheet music to these pieces (and descriptions of each piece), and a short (but sweet) biography of Joseph Lamb.

Only the most superlative of superlatives suffice to describe Lamb's rags. His music is melodious, lyrical and enchanting. A friend who heard only two cuts from this album begged me to order him a copy. What more can I say? This album is superb!

Nielsen does a splendid job of interpreting the works of Lamb. Neither exceedingly maudlin nor sugary sweet, Nielsen plays Lamb's "Nightingale," "American Beauty," and "Sensation" with a dearth of treacle and swoon. Nice Chris Ware cover too.

I have been a ragtime fan since the 1970s revival. I have not had much exposure to Joseph Lamb, so wanted to fill the gap in my collection. I was in for a very pleasant surprise. I think Lamb is on a par with Joplin, although their styles are somewhat different.I would say Lamb's compositions are closer to those of James Scott than to Scott Joplin. Lamb is rather more of an acquired taste than Joplin, however it is worth the effort.
The playing, by Guido Neilsen, is masterly . Ragtime is often wrongly played too fast and in a honky-tank style but Nielsen never falls into this trap. His playing manages to be pleasing..robust when required, delicate at other times.
My personal favourite is Excelsior Rag.

Don't listen to all those elitists who gave Zimmerman a negative review- his playing is so unique and full of emotion. Contrary to what others have said, Zimmerman's tempo is much slower and better than many other artists' tempos. Though he doesn't play everything true to the sheet music, I feel that he wonderfully captures the spirit of ragtime. If you listen to some of Joplin's own recordings (via player piano), you will find that he himself added some jazzy improvisations. Although Zimmerman makes some mistakes, it somehow seems to add authenticity to his interpretation. The bad sound quality also adds this unique feeling of authenticity. Everything--his style, the piano, the sound quality--works together to create a truly wonderful recording. If you want a comprehensive, beautifully played, rendition of Joplin's works, then I highly recommend this box set!

I enjoy the chronologically arrangement of tracks. It's interesting to see the evolution of Joplin's style.

I've always been a fan of ragtime, but not particularly an expert. This artist is either playing a completely faithful rendition of the music, or he stutters sometimes. This does not detract from the music at all, it's probably just the artist's playing style.

The set is jam-packed with pieces I've never heard before, so it was quite an experience. The last disc in particular features an opera-style suite!

Adds welcome diversity to my Classic Rock collection. Understand that this isn't the last word on Joplin - it's more like a really good first. It's not a complete work-up, with quartet accompaniment, like Marvin Hamlisch's "The Sting" soundtrack. It's just Zimmerman on piano, and sometimes he doesn't play so great. I mean, if you compare "The Entertainer" between the two - you'll think you fell off a cliff.

However, it is a complete Joplin - 66 songs, including every major Rag and other stuff, such as waltzes, marches, and pieces of "Treemonisha", his failed opera. What I wanted was a player piano, with a complete set of paper scrolls, you know what I'm talking about? Even if I could find one, I can't afford it. Maybe this is the next best thing?

So I definitely recommend it for the Joplin novice - it's something to strongly encourage. But is this the last Joplin you'll ever buy? I doubt it - it's merely adequate, not great. Joplin for 40 cents a pop, you won't find a better value.

Well done, with the only drawback that Joshua Rifkind is not at the piano. Sometimes the pace is too frenetic.

This is a wonderful collection of Scott Joplin's music. Delightful to own, to play over and over and over.

This disc of varied music played by the DePaul Wind Ensemble, which appears to be a student group from DePaul University in Chicago, demonstrates the amazing abilities of young wind players in America today. It contains generally neo-classic music by van Otterloo, Rorem, Ritter-George and Henze. The one piece that is not neo-classic is the rhythmically jazzy atonal Concertino for Piano, Winds and Timpani by George Perle. And that's the only piece that I was able to compare with another recorded performance. Richard Goode, pianist, and the Music Today Ensemble conducted by Gerard Schwarz recorded it in the early 1990s for Nonesuch. The current performance is very similar to that one and although the performers are less well-known--the pianist is the Chicago Symphony's excellent keyboardist and a professor at DePaul, Mary Sauer--they are fully the equal of the earlier group.

Willem van Otterloo was best known, of course, as a conductor. But he was also a composer of no mean talent and his Serenade for Brass and Percussion is striking suite in four movements: March, Nocturne, Scherzo and Finale. His musical language is somewhere between, don't laugh, Hindemith and Miklos Rosza and is entirely accessible to the casual listener.

Ned Rorem, who has always been respected for his songs, has lately been getting a lot of performances and recordings for his orchestral music. His 11-minute Sinfonia for a wind and percussion group comprising the usual complement of a symphony orchestra has fast outer movements bracketing two slow movements. The mournful oboe solo of the second movement is particularly effective. The chattering winds of the final scherzo end the piece with a flourish.

Thom Ritter-George, a Michigan native and the only composer represented here who was completely unknown to me, is represented by his neoclassic Concerto for Flute and Winds, played brilliantly by Mary Stolper, flute. The 8-minute three-movement work (Pastorale, Adagio cantabile, Rondo) features lightning-flash piccolo work in the charming last movement. The piece exists in versions with accompaniment by orchestra, piano or wind ensemble.

The big surprise for me was the terrific final piece on the disc, Hans Werner Henze's 'Ragtimes and Habeneras', a witty and slightly misleading title that reminds one of Bernstein's punning 'Arias and Barcarolles.' Written in polytonal satirical style with reminiscences of Weill, Milhaud and Stravinsky, it consists of eleven short pieces featuring ragtimes, Latin American dance rhythms including tango and rumba [but no habanera] and a final march in ragtime. It left this reviewer smiling.

The ensemble work by the students at DePaul, under their distinguished conductor Donald DeRoche, is, in a word, breathtaking.

TT=62:22

Scott Morrison

This collection of twelve short pieces by Stravinsky is beautifully performed by the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, and the recorded sound is glorious. The various compositions are for quite a variety of instruments and ensembles, ranging from string quartet to chamber orchestra. The two qualities that are shared by all of the pieces are genius and a brilliantly upbeat mood. This is a CD to play when you're feeling down in the dumps or mad at the world.

This CD won a Grammy for Best Small Ensemble Performance at the 2001 Grammy awards. If for whatever reason you can't sit through Stravinsky's longer compositions, but you want to hear what he has to say, you will find this album to your liking. Most songs are under 3 minutes long; short and sweet.

This album is a compilation of short Stravinsky songs composed over a 6 decade period. If you want a snapshot of the different points in his musical career, purchase this album. However, I highly recommend you do not stop here and buy more of his music. You'll always be addicted to at least one of these songs; that will keep you coming back (I've been listening every day since I purchased back on 1 Oct. 2005).

Further, it's the little quirks that heighten the beauty of each piece. For instance, in "Tema" (Track 15) the music gradually declines into a beautiful 10 second flute solo, just before the horns begin the intro to the next track; a very nice contrast to the tone of the song.

Another example is "Arioso," (Track 11). This is one song which is somewhat outside Stravinsky's "norm". It does not contain melodies like you heard in "Rite of Spring" or "Petrushka" (both of which are fantasic). It's a soft, slightly soppy, string piece. It could easily placate the two or three individuals alive today who consider Stravinsky harsh. Hearing it on the radio, you could mistake it for a piece by Schubert.

This music will stay in the back of your head and leap into your mind at the most peculiar moments. You'll find yourself humming a few bars in the shower months after you've heard one song, or perhaps one night Stravinsky will provide the background score in a dream (or nightmare?). What is certain: you need time to digest these songs; Stravinsky is a very clever composer and we men of "the herd" sometimes don't understand what his music says at the first go. When your mind opens and you REALLY hear Stravinsky, the power of it all may bring tears to your eyes. Stravinsky does that.

One extra note: Shortly after buying this album, I became inspired to learn the trumpet & horn; I only later learned that Stravinsky had a special love of wind instruments and he expresses this love in his pieces. That Stravinsky can inspire a layman like myself proves his genius. In the words of William Ward: "The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires."

This CD will satisfy all tastes, and leave you craving more.

This album is a rare delight. You cannot listen to this album without feeling this incredible 'joie de vivre' that infuses it. Orpheus has taken Stravinsky's chamber music into a whole new and ethereal realm. The ensemble's enthusiasm is downright contagious. There is nothing to criticise; it is all sweet bliss! If you've ever doubted Stravinsky's genius, this recording will dispel those doubts forever. This will easily become one of the best-loved recordings of any classical music collection. Don't miss it!

I can't believe Stravinsky wrote these. I appreciate his other music even though I do not necessarily care for it. This is a Stravinsky recording I really like. The pieces are fun and light. I believe the Tango is worth buying the c.d. for. The whole c.d. is fantastic. Orpheus, as always, does a great job playing this. They are extremely versitle. I highly recommend this to even skeptics of his music. This is wonderful.

This cd showcases Stravinsky's lighter side. But don't mistake this to mean simple. Stravinsky writes demanding, yet transparent passages that only virtuoso musicians can play with such ease. Intonation is excellent with snappy tempos, sensual ensemble work, and, the Orpheus gang is having fun through the most difficult Stravinsky-an passages! "Shadow Dances" by Orpheus reveals a Stravinsky seldom heard. This cd is a definite MUST BUY for anyone even remotely serious of music. It's one of the few no-brainer purchases.

Without question this is one of the unsung treasures in Deutsche Grammophon's vault, which the company has reissued in a splendid 24 bit digital imaging remastering as part of its "Originals" series. The Boston Symphony Orchestra chamber musicians give warm, glowing accounts of Strauss waltz transcriptions composed by the likes of Schoenberg, Webern and Berg, which remain true in spirit to the original compositions. The same can be said for their performances of Stravinsky's chamber music scores. Clearly this is a unique CD because of its Strauss waltz transcriptions, yet one still worth owning inspite of its novelties thanks to the Bostonians' splendid playing.

There are quite a few recordings out there of "Four Norwegian Moods," and none of the others hit those marvelous chords at the end of the introduction to "Wedding Dance" quite right. There should be a burst of light when the whole orchestra stomps twice, and here the rays shine out brilliantly.

That pretty much sums up the rest of the CD as well. The devious "Renard" is sung in Russian as it should be, and the addition of both Suites for Small Orchestra is icing on the cake, especially the way they are handled on this recording.

Just listen to the seductive, lightly lyrical opening of Suite No. 1, a suite that is finished with a playful but punchy staccato chord in the finale. Suite No. 2, while generally at a faster tempo than the First, is adroitly played here. All of Stravinsky's colors are brought out on this CD. See for yourself.

This CD, led by Paavo Järvi and played by the Bremen Chamber Orchestra, is in simply stunning sound, no matter which format you play it in. It is, of course, in hybrid multichannel SACD, which is among the best sounding I've ever heard, but its plain vanilla CD layer is also quite wonderful. The performances themselves are really quite good. 'L'Histoire du soldat' may be a little smooth for some tastes, considering the rustic nature of the story (and that the Soldier is a peasant fiddler, not a conservatory-trained violinist) but if you don't mind the beautiful playing of Florian Donderer (and, really, why should you?) this is an excellent 'L'Histoire.' (Järvi includes the 'Petit choral' which is generally left out of the 'L'Histoire' suite.) As for the other pieces, they are all played as well as I've ever heard them - and I own Stravinsky's own recordings of some of them. I particularly liked the 'Dumbarton Oaks Concerto' - one of my favorite Stravinsky pieces - for its crisp motoric rhythms and suave string playing. The 'Concerto in D' for strings is given a similar performance.

The two 'Suites for Small Orchestra' are brief, satirical and are handled lightly and with rhythmic point. 'Ragtime' is given a suitably dry reading. I have always assumed Stravinsky was sending up the genre but you might feel otherwise. In any event, it is played with bracing secco approach and that's entirely appropriate.

These are worthwhile performances in spectacular sound, and in the instance of the 'Dumbarton Oaks' and the 'Concerto in D,' at least, I don't know of any better recordings.

Scott Morrison