Music of Ned Rorem

On this CD:

1. Eagles for orchestra
Composed by Ned Rorem
Performed by Louisville Orchestra
Conducted by Gerhardt Zimmermann

2. Concerto in Six Movements for piano & orchestra
Composed by Ned Rorem
Performed by Louisville Orchestra with Jerome Lowenthal
Conducted by Jorge Mester

3. Air Music for orchestra
Composed by Ned Rorem
Performed by Louisville Orchestra with Arthur Hull Hicks, Peter McHugh, Constance Moore, Susannah Onwood, Virginia Schneider
Conducted by Peter Leonard

Tracks:

Morning
Adam And Eve
Mazurka
Staying On Alone
Their Accord
Looking
Conversation At Midnight
Flight
Lear
Katharine
Lear
Titania And Oberon
Caliban
Portia
Why Hear'st Thou Music Sadly?
Remembrance Of Things Past
Iago And Othello

Customer Reviews:

Rorem for Cello.......2007-02-13

Ned Rorem (b. 1923)is best-known as an American composer of art song and as a writer of memoirs. But, as several budget-priced releases in Naxos's "American classics" series testify, Rorem's compositions extend far beyond the realm of song. A series of Naxos CDs offers listeners the opportunity to explore Rorem's symphonies, chamber music, and concertos in addition to a selection of songs performed by Carole Farley with the composer at the piano. The most recent release of Rorem's music on Naxos includes two works in which the cello is preeminent: a suite for cello alone and Rorem's double concerto for violin and cello.

This CD features cellist Sharon Robinson, a member of the much-recorded
Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson trio together with her husband and partner in the trio, violinist Jamie Laredo. Both Robinson and Laredo have long been champions of Rorem's music, and it is exciting to have the opportunity to hear them perform on a budget CD. In the concerto, Michael Stern conducts the relatively newly-formed (2000) IRIS Orchestra, which is based in Germantown, Tennessee and regularly features the music of American composers.

Rorem's solo cello suite, "After Reading Shakespeare" dates from 1981, and Robinson's recording first appeared in 1982. This is a nine-movement suite based loosely upon Rorem's rereadings of Shakespeare and of Proust. It is rare to hear music for unaccompanied cello, and Rorem's suite immediately brings to mind Bach's incomparable set of six suites for cello alone. In some of the lengthier movements, particularly the first and final movements, Rorem's suite includes echoes of Bach's suites, as Rorem uses the cello contrapuntally to create the feeling of several voices and lines. The suite also includes movements of lyricism and passion in the companiaon pieces titled "Caliban" and "Portia" and in the Proust-inspired "Remberance of things past." The finale, "Iago and Othello" is a work in two voices full of both learning and passion, as befits its title. This cello suite is an outstanding work.

Rorem's Double Concerto for Violin, Cello and Orchestra was commissioned by the Indianapolis Symphony which first performed it in 1998. The work brings to mind Brahms's famous "Double", but in fact it has little in common with this predecessor. As is Rorem's violin concerto, this double concerto is more in the nature of a multi-movement suite than a concerto. It consists of eight mostly short movements with close integrated writing for the orchestra and the two soloists. The composition is tonal and clear throughout in a musical language that reminded me both of Debussy and of the American works of Aaron Copland.

The music seems to me to tell a story as it shows events in the lives of a married couple much in love. The centerpiece of the work is the lengthy seveth movement, titled "Conversation at Midnight" in which the cello and violin speak lovingly and intimately to each other at the beginning and the end with a long orchestral interlude in the middle. The soloists tend, on the whole, not to stand out in the remainder of the work, which shifts mercurially among many moods from the reflective to the brash and fanfarish. In his liner notes for this CD, Rorem describes the recording as a "perfect performance". Indeed both orchestra and the two soloists are engaged with the score and appear to be enjoying themselves.

I found the unaccompanied cello suite the better piece on this CD, but both it and the concerto will reward hearing. Listeners interested in American music have reason to be grateful to Naxos, and to an anonymous donor who has provided funding for this release, for continuing to make the music of Ned Rorem accessible to a wide audience.

Robin Friedman

Average customer rating:

Go overseas to get the best of America
Don't pass this one up!
Rorem's Stunning, Cinematic-Sounding Symphonies Produce Transcendent Moments of Beauty
Great Recording, Good Music
Rorem's art

Rorem: Three Symphonies

Manufacturer: Naxos American
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Similar Items:

Amy Beach: "Gaelic" Symphony; Piano Concerto
Rorem: Flute Concerto; Violin Concerto
Alan Hovhaness: Symphony No. 22 ("City of Light"); Cello Concerto
Rorem: The End of Summer, Book of Hours, Bright Music
Virgil Thomson: Symphony No 1-3

ASIN: B0000ACY0V
Release Date: 2003-08-19

Tracks:

Passacaglia
Allegro Molto Vivace
Largo
Andante
Allegro Molto
Maestoso
Andantino
Largo
Allegro
Broad, Moderate
Tranquillo
Allegro

Album Description

Universally recognized as a great master of modern song-writing, Rorem has always continued composing orchestral music but has received few performances, writing, as he has, in a tonal idiom alien to the atonal and experimental practices of the day. When Leonard Bernstein gave the first performance of Rorem's Third Symphony with the New York Philharmonic in 1959, it signaled a significant triumph for his orchestral music, but the path ahead would remain thorny. When the now famous diaries were published, it brought Rorem a great deal of notoriety and controversy, but it did not translate into performances of his orchestral music. Respected and admired by colleagues, Rorem has continued writing the kind of music that he believes in, and over the past decade, with the universal change in composing styles, performances of his music have mounted constantly. - José Serebrier

Customer Reviews:

Go overseas to get the best of America.......2007-05-15

I've only recently truly discovered Ned Rorem. After hearing a performance of the String Quartet No. 4, by the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra for a new balllet by Helgi Tomasson, I was hooked. I immediately ordered the quartet and this CD, the 3 Symphonies. I was truly amazed! An American contemporary composer who uses actual melody and harmony! Not as a sellout, but in new and creative ways. A lush, surprising, and uniquely American music. CDs like this rekindle my belief in "new music." It's not ALL "oop-eep-aop" created by some mathematical formula, or endless repeated sonorities..over and over until you want someone to put you out of your misery (Glass anyone?).
The performances of the Symphonies on this CD are professional and passionate, I only wish I could find an American Orchestra performing Ned Rorem's works (are you listening Mr. Thomas?).

Don't pass this one up!.......2006-08-30

First of all, I've written a few reviews without hailing Naxos for offering some of the most interesting music (especially 20th century) at the most unbelievable prices. Don't think these are lesser cds because of the price.

As far as Rorem goes, we owe it to ourselves to check out this amazing American music. While Ned is chillin' on Martha's Vinyard writing some of the most beautiful music, we go to concerts and hear the same old Mozart, Beethoven, and Dvorak. Not to preach, but we should be seeing Rorem, Piston, Barber, Bloch, Harris, Creston, and Hovhaness on the program too to let audiences know that we have interesting American composers.

Rorem states on this disk that ..."when my second symphony was resurrected (for this disk), it had not been heard in 43 years, so I had to strain my memory for the program notes..." Shame, shame, shame.

Rorem's Stunning, Cinematic-Sounding Symphonies Produce Transcendent Moments of Beauty.......2006-07-12

Despite his prolific output of musical compositions, American composer Ned Rorem has written just four symphonies in his lengthy career, three of which are included in this beautifully recorded disc played impeccably by the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra under the baton of José Serebrier. Yet, his decidedly idiosyncratic style is recognizable with its effusively tonal quality. With the exception of the opening of the second symphony, the movements are relatively brief but stunningly melodic, and in aggregate, they are quite entertaining in an almost cinematic manner akin to Copland and especially Bernstein. This also marks the premiere recordings of Symphonies No 1 and No. 2, reason enough to purchase this bargain-priced CD.

The disc opens with Rorem's most recent and masterful work, 1958's five-movement Symphony No. 3, which contains a dizzying array of musical expressions beginning with the subdued, mysterious-sounding albeit brief "Passacaglia". Its feeling of containment is broken free by the jazz-oriented second movement, "Allegro molto vivace", filled with a cacophony of percussive rhythms that sounds like a tribute to Bernstein's "On the Town". This leads into the dream-like state of the "Largo", the third movement, which segues nicely into the fourth movement, the impressionistic "Andante", with its persistently wistful tone. The percussion returns in the form of castanets and drums for the fifth and final movement, "Allegro molto", a fitting conclusion that encompasses all the sounds of the previous movements.

Symphony No. 1, Rorem's earliest piece from 1950, starts with an intoxicating pastoral quality in "Maestoso" that continues to suspend reality in the second movement, "Andantino". He achieves an even fuller sound on "Largo", the third movement, with the complementary combination of flute, oboe and strings, and then builds the tempo considerably with an animated sense of joy on the fourth movement, "Allegro", which was apparently inspired by an Arab wedding tune Rorem heard in Morocco. His Second Symphony from 1956 concludes the recording, and it opens with "Broad, Moderate", an extended passage of orchestral melancholy, beautiful yet unrelentingly sad until it livens up into a more rhythmic melody midway through the fifteen-minute movement. The brief second movement, "Tranquillo", may be my favorite moment on the disc with successive turns on flute, strings and clarinet that meld beautifully into a cinematic landscape. The equally brief last movement, "Allegro", almost sounds like a passage from "West Side Story" with its bright propulsive rhythms. Overall this is a stunning work by any measure.

Great Recording, Good Music.......2006-03-10

I purchased this music because I had never heard of Ned Rorem. When I first listened to these symphonies I was not impressed: wandering, whimsical music punctuated by loud bass drum and brass. All three selections seemed to be quite similar. However, I listened again (actually two more times) on my Bose noise-cancelling head set and was able to grow an appreciation for Rorem's work. These works are beautiful and deserve attention -- definitely not "background" stuff while one dines.
The performance and the quality of the disc are excellent.

Rorem's art.......2005-12-26

It may be too easy to over praise Rorem's symphonies, but this is an exciting recording of these wonderful pieces. Rorem's musical lanugage is perfected, and I for one hear as much Rorem the writer in these symphonies as Rorem the composer, as indeed one well might say about much of his musical oeuvre, the songs included. His attraction to text thus acquires another level, one important enough to understand and admire in order to plumb these musical scores as meaningfully as possible. The First and the Third symphonies seem especially generous in this subtext of their lean lines, the ideas fertile and beautifully cared for with craftsmanship, and an always original nobility. The French veins found in Rorem's music, a formidable and inviting aspect -decisive and not, impatient and not, lost and found- find vigorous new purpose in symphonic gesture. These are sly, tender, and witty scores played wonderfully, and are a feast of good fortune for the revival of so many neglected American scores; indeed, Naxos' hand in the rejuvenation cannot be overvalued. This recording company's considerable insight is uniquely rewarded here with the rich, distinctive playing of the Bournemouth Sinfonietta, and Jose Serebrier. Like his unprecedented Journals, Ned Rorem's musical language is subtle, never wasteful, and always a joy to discover, finally to contemplate. Those unfamiliar with his songs can easily find their way there through these orchestral works. Highest recommendation for a unique recording.

Average customer rating:

Another Fabulous Rorem Disc
Who knew Rorem's non-vocal music was so wonderful?
SEREBRIER RECORDS MORE ROREM PREMIERES

Rorem: Flute Concerto; Violin Concerto

Manufacturer: Naxos American
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Similar Items:

Rorem: Double Concerto for Violin and Cello; After Reading Shakespeare
Rorem: Three Symphonies
Howard Hanson: Organ Concerto; Fantasy Variations; Nymphs and Satyr; Summer Seascape; Pastorale; Serenade
Alan Hovhaness: Symphony No. 60; Guitar Concerto; Khrimian Hairig
Rorem: The End of Summer, Book of Hours, Bright Music

ASIN: B000F6YWVW
Release Date: 2006-05-16

Tracks:

Pilgrims
The Stone Tower
Leaving-Traveling-Hoping
Sirens
Hymn
False Waltz
Resume And Prayer
Twilight
Toccata-Chaconne
Romance Without Words
Midnight
Toccata-Rondo
Dawn

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Ned Rorem (b. 1923) holds dual citizenship: in the realm of words and the realm of music. In the first, he has produced a notoriously frank multivolume diary; in the second, numerous symphonies and chamber music works. But it is his hundreds of songs that make him famous, for this is where his two worlds meet and merge. However, this disc, celebrating his approaching 82nd birthday, presents three of his instrumental works. Spanning four decades, they vary greatly in style and content, but have in common a singing, sometimes almost spoken quality; Rorem calls this "a setting of words that aren't there." Indeed, both concertos have six movements whose descriptive titles strongly imply a narrative thread. Those of the Violin Concerto (1984) are thematically connected; they begin with "Twilight" and end with "Dawn." Soft, slow, lyrical passages alternate with busy running ones; timpani crash, woodwinds sing, the violin converses with the orchestra. The very difficult, brilliant solo part, played with easy virtuosity and a gorgeous tone by Philippe Quint, exploits every instrumental resource; the orchestration is masterful. The Flute Concerto (2002) was commissioned by the Philadelphia Orchestra for its principal flutist, Jeffrey Khaner, who plays it splendidly on this premiere recording. It features violent dynamic contrasts and imaginative orchestral sound effects; the flute adds color and rhythmic verve, acting more like a partner than a soloist. "Pilgrims" for string orchestra is slow, lyrical, warm, tonal, with lovely soaring melodies. The title refers not to America's founding fathers but to a biblical quote: "...strangers and pilgrims on the earth"; though written in 1958, it too has never been recorded. --Edith Eisler

Customer Reviews:

Another Fabulous Rorem Disc.......2006-08-16

Naxos has issued another excellent CD is what is becoming a Ned Rorem cycle. This CD opens with a short work called Pilgrims, written for string orchestra. The subject of the music has nothing to do with the founding pilgrims but was based on a Bible verse from Hebrews. The mood is one of reflection, not sad but one of recalling things that were not attained. The Flute Concerto was written in 2002 but is more of a suite than a concerto. It was written on a commission from the Philadelphia Orchestra for their principle flautist Jeffrey Khaner, who performs the piece here. The six movements bear the names: The Stone Tower, Leaving-Traveling-Hoping, Sirens, Hymn, False Waltz and Resume and Prayer. The music is a kind of Odyssey, which was considered as a possible title. The concerto begins with an energetic first movement named for the studio in New York where the music was composed, the second is quite and reflective while the third, Sirens, is mysterious with the flute calling out to caress and tempt sailors. Hymn is scored for five instruments: bassoon, piano, trumpet, viola and flute; a short interlude that gives way to the False Waltz with a comic waltz tune interlaced with boisterous music punctuated with tympani. The final part, Resume and Prayer brings back the musical ideas in the prior movements with a long cadenza for the flute, ending quietly.

The Violin Concerto was composed in 1984 and like the Flute Concerto is cast in six movements, again making it more of a suite especially since each movement is treated as a narrative being thematically linked. The movements are: Twilight, Toccata-Chaconne, Romance Without Words, Midnight, Toccata-Rondo and Dawn. The Romance Without Words title was borrowed from Mendelssohn and is a song that had its words removed. As the names indicate, the concerto is something of a journey. Dawn recalls the Twilight section; the jagged rhythms of the Toccata-Chaconne are reflected in the false waltz of the Toccata-Rondo. The soloist, Philippe Quint plays beautifully, especially in the Midnight section with he beautifully conveys the mysterious and melancholy atmosphere. Jose Serebrier conducts another wonderful program of Ned Rorem with the first two works being World Premiere records. I will be looking forward to further releases.

Who knew Rorem's non-vocal music was so wonderful?.......2006-05-20

You can guess from this review's title that it will be a rave. Until I heard Rorem's symphonies (also on Naxos) a couple of years ago, I had no idea that Ned Rorem could write so beautifully for orchestra. Well, I did know, too, because years ago there were recordings of some of his tone poems (String Symphony, Sunday Morning, Eagles -- Louis Lane, Atlanta Symphony) but that was long enough ago that it had slipped from memory. Since hearing this CD I pulled them out and reveled in their beauty, too. On this disc we have two concerti that are entirely engaging, the Flute Concerto and the Violin Concerto, and for 'filler' another tone poem, 'Pilgrims' (for string orchestra).

Pride of place goes to the alluringly beautiful Flute Concerto. Written for and played here by the principal flutist of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Jeffrey Khaner, it is a collection of six movements that have little to do with classical concerto forms; Rorem himself says it could just as properly be called a suite (and the same applies to the Violin Concerto). Taking his inspiration partly from the flute music of the impressionists, particularly Debussy, we hear music of many moods. The separate movements have more or less arbitrary titles -- implying but not really outlining some sort of narrative. Rorem has said that no matter what kind of music he is writing he always has silent song lyrics in mind -- 'words that are not there' -- and this gives his music both a narrative feel and a rhapsodic construction. For me the two movements that I connected with most are 'Leaving-Traveling-Hoping' with its pastoral calm, and 'False Waltz' with its repeated timpani figure and skittering flute. (Interestingly, there is a movement in the violin concerto that also has a repetitive timp figure as a kind of chaconne bass.) Khaner, whose name I knew but whose solo work I didn't, is a nonpareil flutist. I particularly like that he doesn't have the fruity vibrato so commonly heard from European flutists. Still, he has numerous tone colors at his disposal; not an easy thing with an overtone-poor instrument like the flute. I am eager to hear more from him.

The Violin Concerto is from 1985 and has previously been recorded by Gidon Kremer, a recording I have not heard. Rather more expressionistic that the Flute Concerto, it too is a six-movement suite rather than a classic concerto. Phillippe Quint, whose recording of William Schuman's violin concerto I quite liked, is a marvelous advocate for this virtuosic work. Still, I am less struck by this concerto than the Flute Concerto, which I feel confident will enter the repertoire.

The 'filler' is Rorem's 1959 'Pilgrims' which doesn't refer to America's founding fathers but takes its title from a passage in Hebrews (11:13) and actually was prompted by a passage quoting that verse in Julien Green's novel 'Le voyageur sur la terre' (we will remember that Rorem lived in France a number of years and is an ardent Francophile). For string orchestra and lasting about seven minutes, it is elegiac and richly harmonized with much use of divisi strings.

The performances here could hardly be bettered. Jose Serebrier, who earlier recorded the three Rorem symphonies with the Bournemouth Symphony, conducts the excellent Royal Liverpool Philharmonic in idiomatic and persuasive accounts of this music. He also contributes the helpful booklet notes.

Enthusiastically recommended, particularly for the Flute Concerto.

Scott Morrison

SEREBRIER RECORDS MORE ROREM PREMIERES.......2006-05-17

Following on the steps of his memorable recording of the Rorem three symphonies (two of them world-premiere recordings) José Serebrier gives us now the world premiere of Rorem's string
orchestra masterpiece, "PILGRIMS", a gem that should attain the notoriety of Samuel Barber's famous "Adagio for Strings", and the first recording of Rorem's new Flute Concerto, recently premiered by the Philadelphia Orchestra and Jeffrey Khaner, who is the soloist in this CD. Jeffrey Khaner is the solo first flute of the venerable Philadelphia Orchestra.

José Serebrier makes the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic sound
full and warm in the string piece, and absolutely accurate and razor-sharp in the accompaniment of the two concertos. It's hard to imagine a better performance. Obviously the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic is a first-class orchestra, but it takes a master like Serebrier to bring out all their potential. The Flute Concerto is masterfully played by Khaner, who obviously knows every nuance and every note in his heart and mind. He gives a truly spectacular, virtuoso performance. The variety of sound and colors is amazing. The work itself, a sequence of several movements in the form of a suite, is quite different in style and character from the older Violin Concerto, (which was previously recorded by Gidon Kramer and Leonard Bernstein with the New York Philharmonic).

The Violin Concerto in the Naxos CD has the advantage of the soloist, the young Russian-American Philippe Quint, who surpasses Kramer by a long shot, in articulation, musicality, even intonation. It sounds like an incredibly difficult work,
but Quint manages to make it sound easy and even simple. We heard him previously in the memorable recording of the beautiful Concerto by the American composer William Schuman, with José Serebrier conducting the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, (which perhaps was Quint's debut recording). The Rorem performance is even better sounding, which is remarkable, considering that the CD of the Schuman is truly exceptional. Quint sounds now more assured. Obviously he has known the Rorem Violin Concerto for a long time.

"Pilgrims" give the strings of the RLP the opportunity to shine under Serebrier's inspired direction. He manages to obtain a Stokowskian string tone and glow, the sort of sound quality that hasn't been heard on disc since Stokowski. The work and the performance are a delight.

All three works are quite different in character, while the Rorem style and spirit remain recognizable in each. The orchestrations are brilliant and the writing for the solo instruments obviouslly challenging, but extremely idiomatic. It's the kind of recording one wants to hear again and again.

This is one of the most rewarding recordings of new music I have heard in years.
R. Richardson

Average customer rating:

It's lovely - But not newly recorded!
Yet another compilation
how precious!
Disappointing Duplication
If you like this sorta thing

Song of America
Charles Tomlinson Griffes , Erich Wolfgang Korngold , Charles Naginski , Ned Rorem , American Traditional , Elinor Remick Warren , Kurt Weill , Haydn Wood , Michael Parloff , Jay Ungar , Armen Guzelimian , Craig Rutenberg , David Alpher , Evan Stover , Garrison Keillor , and Mark Rust
Manufacturer: Angel Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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General | Folk | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

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

The Very Best of Thomas Hampson
Christmas with Thomas Hampson
Long Time Ago - Copland / Dawn Upshaw & Thomas Hampson
American Dreamer: Songs of Stephen Foster; Thomas Hampson; Jay Unger; Molly Mason
Leading Man

ASIN: B000BGR0TW
Release Date: 2005-11-08

Tracks:

As Adam Early In The Morning
Ah! May The Red Rose Live Alway (1850)
Shenandoah (Traditional)
Beautiful Dreamer (1864)
Danny Deever
Roses Of Picardy
Jeanie With The Light Brown Hair (1854)
Hard Times Come Again No More (1854)
Molly, Do You Love Me? (1850)
An Old Song Resung
Tomorrow (When You Are Gone)
The Erie Canal (Traditional)
We Two
The Nightingale (Traditional)
Comrades, Fill No Glass For Me (1855)
Luke Havergal
To What You Said
Look Down Fair Moon
Dirge For Two Veterans
Ethiopia Saluting The Colors

Amazon.com

Thomas Hampson is a persuasive advocate for these treasures from the Library of Congress' vast collections, so this CD's generous sampling leaves you wanting more. It covers the American songbook in all its variety, from traditional "folk" items like Shenandoah to Stephen Foster to the immigrants Erich Korngold and Kurt Weill to Leonard Bernstein and contemporary composers. Hampson adjusts his flexible, light baritone to fit each song. The voice is full and resonant on Danny Deever, simple and direct in 19th-century traditional songs and ballads, and nuanced in songs like Ned Rorem's "As Adam Early in the Morning," one of several on the disc with texts by Walt Whitman. A standout is the last song in this recital, one that leaves you with thoughts about music, history, and our nation's continuing issues, "Ethiopia Saluting the Colors," by Henry Burleigh. Most of the selections are performed with piano accompaniment, but several are with a small ensemble of traditional instruments. A word of caution: everything was recorded in the 1990s and presumably was available piecemeal on previous releases, although few are likely to have more than a handful of these 20 gems. --Dan Davis

Customer Reviews:

It's lovely - But not newly recorded!.......2006-10-04

I don't think this recording deserves One Star ratings or that the artist deserves such crude bashing. And re: Hampson's eye-colour.... Uh, these aren't lenses? He has blue eyes. I met him many times and...indeed, they are dark blue.

Anyhow, this is what Hampson is focusing on right now, American song. While those aren't exactly my thing I have to say that he sings them beautifully. I wish he'd stick to that rather than heavy Verdi and Wagner which his voice isn't right for.

Yet another compilation.......2006-06-13

I am a huge Tom fan. I go to his concerts and buy all of his CDs. I must say that I have been disappointed by this CD because it's entirely made of old recordings. There's a new photo on the cover, but that's all that is new here. So if you've bought your share of Tom CDs over the years, you want to check out the track info before you guy this one.

Now, Tom has been on tour and I STRONGLY recommend that you go see him next year when he comes through your city.

The other thing really annoying is that on the CD where you'd expect information about the music or the recording co., you instead get a large warning label from the FBI on pirating.

how precious!.......2006-05-08

Thomas Hampson swoons and croons to monotonous effect throughout this tired collection; again displaying his ego and faux scholarship in ample measure. Oi-vay, what a disaster! And what is with the blue contact lenses in the Jacket phot? Hampson's eyes are brown. What an unbelievably vain Diva!

Disappointing Duplication.......2006-01-17

I have not even heard the album, and I will not. Although I revere Mr. H. in just about everything he does, especially in song and Lieder, I am very disappointed that so many of these songs appear on other cds of which I already have about 19 of him. I think he and the producers should have chosen totally NEW material for this instead of drawing on his past achievements. I have no reservations about his performances, for I have seen him at the Met in opera and at Carnegie Hall in Mahler. I value them and all of his past cd productions.

If you like this sorta thing.......2006-01-17

Here Mr. Hampson is in his element. Unlike his less than viable attempts at Opera, Mr. Hampson is a thorough and intelligent singer of songs. His affectations, so fully inappropriate in bigger operatic literature, work well with the intimate nature of these sweet and personal songs. If you are Hampson fan, this album will thrill you.

Average customer rating:

One last touch of Paris (but oversold by the critics)
wonderful perforance of excellent songs
Classic Rorem Songs!
Come To Pop, Baby!
Worthy indeed - a gem

Susan Graham - Songs of Ned Rorem
Susan Graham , Martin Martineau , and Ensemble Oriol
Manufacturer: Erato
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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

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Similar Items:

Ned Rorem: Selected Songs
The Faces of Love ~ The Songs of Jake Heggie / Fleming, McNair, Larmore, von Stade, Forand, Cao, Clayton, Vaness, Asawa
Susan Graham - La Belle Époque (The Songs of Reynaldo Hahn)
Susan Graham ~ Berlioz - Les nuits d'été
Poèmes de l'Amour

ASIN: B00004R9BK
Release Date: 2000-04-04

Tracks:

Sonnet [Bynner]
Clouds [Goodman]
Early In The Morning [Hillyer]
The Serpent [Roethke]
Now Sleeps The Crimson Petal [Tennyson]
Opus 101 [Bynner]
I Strolled Across An Open Field [Roethke]
To A Young Girl [Yeats]
Jeanie With The Light Brown Hair [after Foster]
Ode [de Ronsard]
For Poulenc [O'Hara]
Littlle elegy [Wylie]
Alleluia
Look Down, Fair Moon [Whitman]
O You Whom I Often And Silently Come [Whitman]
I Will Always Love You [O'Hara]
The Tulip Tree [Goodman]
The Wintry Mind [Bynner]
I Am Rose [Stein]
The Lordly Hudson [Goodman]
O Do Not Love Too Long [Goodman]
Far - Far - Away [Tennyson]
For Susan [Goodman]
A Journey [Glaze]
Sometimes With One I Love [Goodman]
Love [Lodge]
Orchids [Roethke]
Stopping By The Woods On A Snowy Evening [Frost]
Do I Love You More Than A Day [Larson]
Ferry Me Across The Water [Rossetti]
The Sowers [Bynner]
That Shadow, My Likeness [Whitman]

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Contemporary composer Ned Rorem is typically likened to an American Schubert (living in Paris) for the fecundity, emotional range, and quality of his songs (though this represents only one facet of a prolific career). And Rorem's masterful 1998 cycle Evidence of Things Not Seen would seem to justify that reputation, as does this marvelous anthology from the Rorem songbook of the past half-century. The composer is fond of dividing musicians into the "German" and the "French," clearly identifying himself with the latter for the elusive sparkle and subtle play of shadows that characterize his art. What other kind of sensibility could "through-compose" Gertrude Stein's "I Am Rose" in a deftly perfect 27 seconds? Fortunately, American lyric mezzo Susan Graham intuitively understands this expressive aspect, as does pianist-partner Malcolm Martineau. Graham is constantly attentive to the marriage of music and text in the 32 songs here and phrases their little worlds into being with grace and wit. She can shade to a sweet vanishing point or allow her voice to blossom, orchidlike, into a dazzling profusion of colors. Few of these songs, which draw on the poetry of Walt Whitman, Theodore Roethke, Frank O'Hara, and many others, last more than two minutes. But their resonance lingers, whether in the haunting "Opus 101"--with its lean but potent string trio scoring--or the enigmatic "That Shadow, My Likeness" from Whitman. --Thomas May

Customer Reviews:

One last touch of Paris (but oversold by the critics).......2005-10-11

Ned Rorem is the last survivor, since the death of Virgil Thompson, of the long reach that Paris exerted over a generation of American expatriate composers, many of whom drifted overseas between the wars to study with the legendary Nadia Boulanger. Rorem's songs sometimes have American folk roots, but mostly he writes chansons, and like their French counterparts, his are crystalline, spare, sophisticated, and precisely defined emotionally.

If he were more tlaneted he might have wirtten masterpieces, but mostly this sounds like Samuel Barber on skim milk. Rorem often sets minor, if not trivial poetry. His lyrical gift is modest. But there's no doubt that he has been neglected, largely because of his stubbornly tonal conservatism, and now that tonality is repsectable again, he is being accorded last-minute honors. I'm glad for him, and his best work, which consists of his multi-volume memoirs, has added much to American culture. But even when skillfully sung by an artist of the caliber of Susan Graham, a hour's worth of Rorem's tiny jewel-like chansons is about twice too much at one sitting.

wonderful perforance of excellent songs.......2005-01-20

I'm a neophyte to Ned Rorem's work. To be honest I purchased this CD because I really enjoy listening to Susan Graham. Although I really love hearing Ms. Graham's opera performances, I find it refreshing to hear her singing something in English. I also appreciate how she's taken time to perform something other than opera. Susan Graham's performance of Ned Rorem's songs has me seeking out other performances of his work.

Classic Rorem Songs!.......2004-05-18

Susan Graham has a remarkable mezzo voice and sings Rorem as though she really is a sounding board for the composer. Kudos to her and this CD comes highly recommended to newbies to Rorem songs and those many die-hard fans!

Come To Pop, Baby!.......2004-03-12

Recently, I heard Susan Graham on Garrison Keillor's "Prarie Home Companion" show. Wow! I didn't know who she was, but she had so much humour, verve and style while singing some show tunes, and that incredible voice. I rushed to amazon but all the English language songs I could find seemed to be on this album of Ned Rorem music. Well, whatever the weight lieder songs carry for the Germans, it seems that art songs in English mean songs you can't snap your fingers to, can't slap out a beat to and would never, ever, sing with your friends. I know, I know, I'm a Philistine, but please, Ms. Graham, give us an album of American popular classics, show tunes and the like. When I listened to you on Mr. Keillor's show, if I had been a bell, I'd have been ringing too! You are simply great. Don't let the classical music fans have all the fun. Throw a little our way too. Pretty please.

Worthy indeed - a gem.......2002-08-27

I cannot disagree with "A Music Fan"'s panning of this CD. Having first purchased the Hearing CD which he/she references, I reached the conclusion that Rorem's music was too knotty and "20th century" for repeated listenings and enjoyment. This CD with Susan Graham completely reversed my opinion. The songs are indeed chosen to be accessible, but they are much more than that. They are, simply stated, lovely. This is a disc I will play again and again, and has caused me to investigate many other Rorem CDs. I just came on line to buy it as a gift for a friend. Rorem deserves his due, and this disc gives it to him.

Rorem: The End of Summer, Book of Hours, Bright Music

Average customer rating:

Ned Rorem's Chamber Music
Fascinating chamber music from Ned Rorem

Rorem: The End of Summer, Book of Hours, Bright Music
Ned Rorem , and The Fibonacci Sequence
Manufacturer: Naxos American
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Quartets | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

4-for-3 Classical | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music

4-for-3 All Music | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Rorem: Three Symphonies
Rorem: Flute Concerto; Violin Concerto
Ned Rorem: Selected Songs
Amy Beach: "Gaelic" Symphony; Piano Concerto
Rorem: Double Concerto for Violin and Cello; After Reading Shakespeare

ASIN: B000088DUH
Release Date: 2003-02-18

Tracks:

End of Summer - Capriccio
End of Summer - Fantasy
End of Summer - Mazurka
Book of Hours - Matins (Nocturne)
Book of Hours - Lauds (Sunrise)
Book of Hours - Prime (6am)
Book of Hours - Terce (Mid-morning)
Book of Hours - Sext (Noon)
Book of Hours - None (Mid-afternooon)
Book of Hours - Vespers (Evensong)
Book of Hours - Compline (Nightfall)
Bright Music - Fandango
Bright Music - Pierrot
Bright Music - Dance-Song-Dance
Bright Music - Another Dream
Bright Music - Chopin

Customer Reviews:

Ned Rorem's Chamber Music.......2003-04-08

Many people know too little about the cultural achievements of Americans. This is particularly the case in the area of art ("classical")music, perhaps because American popular music in its many varieties has captured the imagination of much of the world. The Naxos Company, which specializes in inexpensive, innovative recordings of classical music has been producing a series titled "American Classics" with the aim of making American music available to the public at a low price. This is an altogether commendable aim. It is valuable both because it encourages the exploration of classical music and also because it encourages an appreciation of American creativity.

This disc of chamber music by Ned Rorem (b. 1923) is an outstanding addition to the series. Rorem is both a composer and a writer, best known for his art songs. (A collection of Rorem's songs is available on another Naxos disc in this series.) The performers are a group of seven young British musicians who call themselves the "Fibonacci sequence".

There are three pieces on the CD dating from 1975 through 1987. The first piece, "The End of Summer" consists of three movements and was written in 1985. It is scored for clarinet, violin, and piano. The most striking aspects of this music are the long declamatory passage for solo violin which opens the piece, and the lyrical secondary themes that appear in the first and third movement. The music does indeed have a yearning, autumnal quality.

The second piece on the disc, the "Book of Hours" was written in 1975 and is scored for flute and harp. It consists of 8 short movements. This music reminded me of Rorem's songs. In general, I found the flute taking the lead (as the vocalist in one or Rorem's songs) and presenting a declamatory line in the music with the harp punctuating and commenting on the flute through chords, runs around the theme, and otherwise. (As the piano seems to me to do in many of Rorem's songs.)

The third piece, "Bright Music" (1987) consists of five movements and is scored for flute, two violins, cello, and piano. The two outer movements are modernist in tone, yet both of them are based upon the final, mad movement of Chopin's "Funeral March" piano sonata. (The final movement is titled "Chopin") The third and fourth movement contain beautiful dream and dance sequences.

Rorem's music is in a distinctly modern idiom which yet will be accessible to the listener. The program notes to this CD are unusually thorough and will help the listener approach this music. This is an excellent recording. Naxos is to be commended for its efforts in bringing to the public American attainments in classical music.

Fascinating chamber music from Ned Rorem.......2003-03-21

Ned Rorem (b. 1923) is one of our most distinguished composers, perhaps best known for his songs; certainly he is one of the finest composers we have when it comes to word-setting. But this disc is given over to chamber works, and a fine disc it is; it features the British chamber group Fibonacci Series, which consists of seven instrumentalists (led by violinist Jonathan Carney, brother of the American String Quartet's second violinist, Laurie Carney).

"End of Summer" (for clarinet, violin and piano (1985), in three movements: Capriccio, Fantasy, Mazurka) starts with a declamatory cadenza for unaccompanied violin that seems to be notifying us that an important announcement is about to be made. But shortly after the clarinet and piano enter we are taken to a world of pastiche (and of memory) that includes old hymns, children's songs, snippets of faux-Satie. In the 'Fantasy' we enter an autumnal mood, with some late Brahmsian use of the clarinet, in which there seems to be rueful recollection of times past. 'Mazurka' is a lively old-fashioned folk-dance, alternately contrasted with an elegant waltz. Toward the end two dances jostle for primacy and finally disappear into thin air. "End of Summer" is a delightful suite that deserves some real popularity.

"Book of Hours" (flute and harp, 1975) is a collection of eight pieces reflecting each of the canonical hours designated for daily prayer. 'Matins' opens quietly and at mid-way reverses itself (a palindrome) to end as it began; it is echoed in the final 'Compline.' 'Lauds' is a vigorous eye-opener (Lauds comes at sunrise). 'Prime' (6am) is a dreamlike meditation of harp glissandi with flute wheeling above. 'Terce' (Mid-Morning) is for mostly unaccompanied flute that begins meditatively but then soars into the stratosphere, ending with coruscating glints of sunlight. 'Sext' (Noon) has note-bending swoons on the flute with reassuring chords from the harp - a crisis of faith with support coming from an older member of the monastic community? 'Nones' (Mid-afternoon) has spashes of discordant flute and harp chords alternating with calming common chords and simple melodies. 'Vesper' (Evening) is a reversal of the process in 'Lauds.' And finally 'Compline' ends as 'Matins' began. This is a superbly atmospheric suite superbly realized by flutist Anna Noakes and harpist Gillian Tingay.

"Bright Music" (for flute, two violins, cello and piano, 1987) has five movements whose titles are descriptive of the music they contain: Fandango, Pierrot, Dance-Song-Dance, Another Dream, and Chopin. Rorem has said 'Fandango' was inspired by the image of 'rat inside a can'! Certainly it runs and scrabbles in fandango rhythm. 'Pierrot' is a melancholy clown reportedly inspired by images from Picasso's early 'blue period.' 'Dance-Song-Dance,' is just what it says - a frenetic dance (with whirling piano, plucked strings and screaming flute) - followed by a simple, pensive song which the dance interrupts for a frantic finish. 'Another Dream', the longest section at eight minutes, opens with an yearning cello solo eventually joined by distant chiming on the piano. One by one the other instruments enter, all singing trancelike songs. There is a modest climax before the music again recedes into its initial dream. The brief finale, 'Chopin,' is a virtuosic gloss on the 'wind in the graveyard' finale of Chopin's B-flat minor piano
sonata.

Tracks:

The Waking
Root Cellar
My Papa's Waltz
I Strolled Across An Open Field
Memory
Orchids
The Serpent
Night Crow
Snake
Lilltel Elegy
The Nightingale
Nantucket
Lullaby Of The Woman Of The Mountain
Love In A Life
What If Some Little Pain...
Visits To St. Elizabeth's
Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening
Spring
See How They Love Me
Now Sleeps The Crimson Petal
I Am Rose
Ask Me No More
Far-Far-Away
Early In The Morning
Alleluia
Such Beauty As Hurts To Behold
Sally's Smile
Youth, Day, Old Age, And Night
O You Whom I Often And Silently Come
Full Of Life Now
As Adam Early In The Morning
Are You The New Person?

Customer Reviews:

Great vocal virtuosity.......2005-04-07

This is a great recording, by two great artists. Carole Farley is the ideal singer for Ned Rorem's songs. She spell out every
word and every nuance, giving each song and every poem their full character. The songs are a revelation. I recommend this recording without hesitation.
Christoph (Berlin, Germany)

Confuzzled.......2004-01-03

While these song are GREAT...I cannot get over Carole Farley; her voice is so affected (kind of like a sprechstimme; overly dramatic...). I love the fact that Rorem himself is playing the piano, and as a singer, the catalogue of songs is good to have...but cant say I could ever manage getting over Farley's affectation. There are far superior recordings out there.

An American Composer of Art Song.......2003-04-02

American popular song, whether standards, show tunes,jazz, blues, or rock, is one of our country's most visible artistic achievements. American classical (or Art) songs are much less known. Ned Rorem (b. 1923) is probably the greatest American composer in this unfamiliar medium. Rorem is sometimes dubbed the "American Schubert."

This disc features 32 of Ned Rorem's songs for voice and piano. Soprano Carole Farley is the accomplished singer, and Ned Rorem himself plays the piano. The disc is special because it features settings of the works of American poets. The CD begins with 9 settings of poems by the mid-twentieth century poet, Theodore Roethke, and concludes with settings of 5 poems by Walt Whitman. The disc also includes settings of poems by William Carlos Williams, Gertrude Stein, and Paul Goodman, among others. Thus the disc combines in a special way American creative effort in poetry and in music.

Rorem's songs are declamatory in style. Typically, the voice line delivers the text of the poetry in a sort of chant. The relationship between the voice line and the piano is far from Schubertian. Generally, the piano takes a separate line and accentuates the voice by means of large chords or by runs or by other comments and punctuation on the voice. The texts are well set and the music is effective. There are some unusual harmonies with jazz and blues influences. Rorem's piano accompanyment on this disc gives the recording a sense of authenticity -- we get a good idea of how the composer wants his songs to be conveyed.

The disc includes excellent program notes and texts of all the songs. Naxos has received deservedly high praise for its "American Classics" series which makes much music written by Americans available on CD at a low price. This disc includes some lovely, little-known songs. It is an excellent introduction to the American art song and to the music of Ned Rorem.

more German than Rorem.......2002-07-20

I've been a Rorem fan since hearing a highschool friend perform some of his work in her college recital. His startling, atonal songs were an instant revelation. For years there were few reliable CDs of his vocal work. A scandal considering his reputation rests more on his art songs and chamber music than on his orchestral pieces. This Naxos entry of a wide overview of his best songs is thus quite welcome, due largely to its availability, wide distribution and professional packaging (he's had some shoddy issues before with incorrect liner notes, etc.; the challenge of the low budget).

I can't call myself an unalloyed fan of soprano Carole Farley however. Her delivery here recalls the speak-singing style of German 12-tone composers (a specialty of hers), and can sound melodramatic, especially when she rushes the more delicate passages.

I prefer Rorem's softer, more melodious French side, the one that descends from Impressionism and is more warmly emotive. While Farley loses the shading of some of the more fragile songs, she is well-suited to the longer, more forceful pieces. I've heard many readings of "Early in the Morning" (one of Rorems most popular songs) by male and female vocalists, and its tale of wistful nostalgia is muted by Farley's direct approach. However, she nails "My Papa's Waltz," a fractured setting for a Roethke poem about a frightened child forced to dance with a drunken father. Here her acting skills come to the fore, and she perfectly captures the tipsy madness of the song. Rorem can be quite theatrical himself on occasion. She does almost as well with "See How they love me," a ballad with a regular pace that allows her assertive style to breathe.

At any rate it's great to hear these lovely songs in a recent (2000) recording, accompanied (rather emphatically, but perhaps he's matching his theatrical singer) by Rorem himself.

The similar Susan Graham album is more to my taste, but this is a more than competent bargain set.

delightful art songs.......2002-01-02

rorem's songs are amazing, and naxos has done well
to group them by poet. the complete settings of roethke
are particularly compelling and edgey.

carole farley's voice is lovely, but her phrasing
and willingness to push her voice seems
a big departure from the styling of art songs i've
heard by poulenc and somers.

this takes some getting used to- at least 3 or 4 complete
listen-throughs in my case. her voice is almost jazzy,
kind of like early recordings by holly cole.

anyway, rorem accompanies her on piano so obviously
this reading fits with his intent; his playing is also delightful.

Tracks:

Arise Shine
Impromptu
I: Sing, My Soul, His Wonderous Love
II: All Glorious God
III: Christ The Lord Is Ris'n Today
Why And Because
The Seventieth Psalm
I: While All Things Were In Quiet Silence
II: Before The Morning Star Begotten
III: Lay Up For Yourself
IV; Praise Him Who Was Cricified
V: God Is Gone Up
VI: Today The Holy Spirit Appeared
VII: Rejoice We All In The Lord
The Flight Into Egypt
Come, Pure Hearts
Mercy And Truth Are Met
Entreat Me Not
A Sermon On Miracles
I: O Deus, Ego Amo Te
II: Oratio Patris Condren: O Jesu Vivens In Maria
III: Thee, God

Customer Reviews:

I never knew love until..........2006-04-20

Upon listening to "Rorem: Music for Choir and Organ", as performed by the incomparable Harvard University Choir, some of the adjectives that come to mind include: "sublime", "poignant", "dilatory", and "fecund".

Having actually performed on this CD, I can vouch, with no lack of certainty, that this is the greatest choral CD ever recorded.

If you buy only one CD this year, let it be "Rorem: Music for Choir and Organ".

One minor criticism, however; I felt that the choir sound could have used a little more liquescence. Notwithstanding, the Harvard University Choir's "Rorem" will surely go down in the annuls of classical musical recordings as one of the finest CDs ever produced.

Average customer rating:

the Missing Link in Rorem fandom
The Real Deal!

Songs of Ned Rorem

Manufacturer: Other Minds
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Trios | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

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

Facing the Night: A Diary (1999-2005) and Musical Writings
Peter Lieberson: Neruda Songs
Rorem: Double Concerto for Violin and Cello; After Reading Shakespeare
Susan Graham - Songs of Ned Rorem
Rorem: Flute Concerto; Violin Concerto

ASIN: B000I8OOP6
Release Date: 2006-10-10

Tracks:

Song For A Girl
To The Willow Tree
Echo's Song
Upon Julia's Clothes
The Silver Swan
Psalm 134 'Behold, Bless Ye The Lord, All Ye Servants Of The Lord...'
Psalm 148 'Praise Ye The Lord. Praise Ye The Lord From The Heavens...'
Psalm 150 'Praise Ye The Lord. Praise God In His Sanctuary...'
The Lordly Hudson
Snake
Rain In Spring
Root Celler
Sally's Smile
Such Beauty As Hurts To Behold
My Papa's Wallz
Early In The Morning
I Am Rose
See How They Love Me
Visit To Saint Elizabeth's
A Christmas Carol
The Nightlife
The Call
Spring And Fall
Spring
To You
Youth, Day, Old Age, And Night
O You Whom I Often And Silently Come
Pippa's Song
Lullaby Of The Woman Of The Mountain
What If Some Little Pain
In A Gondola
Requiem

Album Description

"No living composer has produced a larger or more impressive body of songs." - CHICAGO TRIBUNE

This is the definitive album of the early songs of Ned Rorem and arguably the greatest collection of American art songs ever recorded. Recorded by Columbia Records with the composer at the piano. First time on CD, with completely refurbished sound. Rorem's first major album--one that catapulted him into the national classical music spotlight when it was originally released in January 1964! Electrifying performances by the greatest soloists of the day. Superb poetry by a range of writers from Robert Herrick, John Dryden, and Ben Jonson to Gertrude Stein, Elizabeth Bishop, and Theodore Roethke. Decades ago, Time magazine called Ned Rorem (b. 1923) "the world's best composer of art songs," and few have challenged that judgment since. Although he has written exceptionally fine orchestral music, his songs and choral pieces seem destined to remain his best-known legacy, in part because they are so performer-friendly. Singers love to sing his songs, and church choirs find his choral works exceptionally satisfying. Uniquely, Rorem became just as famous for his literary efforts, which now total fourteen books of music criticism, lectures, and his flamboyantly frank personal diaries. His inner life has thus become perhaps the most public of any composer in history. He has admitted that his music is as much a diary as his prose, and yet "a diary ... differs from a musical composition in that it depicts the moment, the writer's present mood which, were it inscribed an hour later, could emerge quite otherwise. I don't believe that composers notate their moods, they don't tell the music where to go--it leads them... Why do I write music? Because I want to hear it--it's simple as that. Others may have more talent, more sense of duty. But I compose just from necessity, and no one else is making what I need". In 1948 his song "The Lordly Hudson" (included in this recording) was voted the Best Published Song of that year by the Music Library Association. As a body of work, his songs are universally admired as among the best of the twentieth century, demonstrating his unique ability to keep the poet's meaning intact while suffusing it with music. Rorem has rejected the complexities of serial music and other "modern" theories of composition, opting instead for a simple, clear, diatonic approach--but as has often been remarked, the surface naivet of his music conceals great depths of feeling and meaning. As critic Alec Ross has written, "his music is too mysteriously sweet to die away". The five vocalists on this recording were all among the best of their era, particularly in the art-song genre, and all made numerous recordings on major labels. Soprano Phyllis Curtin (b. 1921) was a well-known star of New York City Opera and the Met (especially in Mozart) before becoming one of America's leading voice teachers at the Berkshire Music Center, Yale University, and finally Boston University, where she served as dean of the School of the Arts until her retirement in 1992.

Customer Reviews:

the Missing Link in Rorem fandom.......2007-06-20

This is the quality collection that has been frustratingly absent from CD until now. There's nothing wrong with the collections featuring Carol Farley and Susan Graham; they each bring their own styles and interpretations to Rorem's music, and Farley is even accompanied by him (as is everyone on this disc).

But those later recordings feature a contemporaniety that is miles away from how the songs were originally conceived. This recording dates from 1964, and the clarity and enunciation of the singers is a revelation! Every note is clear, as is every single word. Rorem's unstudied playing is a simple, strong and pure counterpart (as his arrangements often carry on counter-melodies to the vocal lines), a series of frames for each of his distinctive and rather declarative singers.

We might prefer a more nuanced, more emotive and individualistic style today, and his songs sound fine in that mode. But they were initially conceived for this very simple and uber-competent manner, and unadorned as they are here the words of the poets that Rorem has set shine in vital clarity.

The poets include Roethke, Hopkins, Whitman, Stein, Bishop and Browning, and the songs range from less than a minute to four minutes in length. Especially memorable are the intensity of Phyllis Curtin's flexible soprano, the warm baritone of Donald Graham, while Charles Bressler verges on tenor, and Regina Safferty has a more alto range that works well for the speak-singing Rorem sometimes calls for.

These are his ideal collaborators, and this album is a definitive example of American art song. Rorem has discussed in his diaries the rise of the Beatles, and written of something approaching envy and competition with their popular success as songwriters. One can see why, because on one level (not the popular one) they were competitors; Rorem was just as modern, just as responsive to both musical history and the present. But Rorem's mode is the classical world, an alternative to rock and roll in every way. Rorem combines the French modernism of the Debussy school with an awareness of Satie's flexible non-standard structures, and the rigor of German atonal Expressionism.

The genre he writes in was once the popular mode, but that battle was lost around the time he was born. He could not have admitted those other (country and blues) sensibilities into his work and preserved the unique (if rarified) distinction he has attained.

The Real Deal!.......2007-05-12

I owned this recording as an LP when I was studying music at Performing Arts High School in New York. It was one of the first albums of Rorem's vocal works; it's been a long time coming to compact disc, but well worth the wait. During the past couple of decades I have listened to the recorded efforts of Susan Graham and Carole Farley performing many of the same pieces; while they were skilful and professional, they still qualified as efforts only. Finally we have the real deal available once again. There will never be performances in this repertoire as natural, passionate and shimmering as the ones by Phyllis Curtin, Donald Gramm, Gianna d'Angelo, Regina Sarfaty and Charles Bressler; Rorem himself is at the piano. This is 20th century music at its finest, both in composition and execution. Grab it before it disappears again!!

Average customer rating:

Great Introduction

Artist Portrait: Susan Graham

Manufacturer: Warner Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Baroque (c.1600-1750) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | 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

French | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Italian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Operettas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

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Similar Items:

Susan Graham - La Belle Époque (The Songs of Reynaldo Hahn)
Susan Graham at Carnegie Hall
Susan Graham ~ Berlioz - Les nuits d'été
Susan Graham - Mozart & Gluck Arias ~ Il tenero momento
Poèmes de l'Amour

ASIN: B00008KA5L
Release Date: 2004-08-10

Tracks:

Voi Che Sapete
Non So Piu Cosa Son, Cosa Faccio
Di Te Mi Rido
Mi Lusinga Il Dolce Affetto
Mio Bel Tesoro
Verdi Prati
O Malheureuse Iphigenie!
Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening
Early In The Morning
The Wintry Mind
O You Whom I Often And Silently Come
Comment Le Dedain Pourrait-Il Mourir?
Dieu! Que Viens-Je Entendre?
This Journey To Christ
Who Will Walk With Me?
Dead Man Walking!
He Will Gather Us Around
C'est Ca La Vie, C'est Ca L'amour
Yes
Les Hommes Sont Bien Tous Les Memes

Customer Reviews:

Great Introduction.......2004-08-25

This is a great introduction at a very reasonable price to Susan Graham's lovely mezzo voice, with selections from several CDs. Be warned, however - this will only whet your appetite for the full albums (for example, her incredible live performance as Ruggiero in Handel's "Alcina" with Renee Fleming and Natalie Dessay and with William Christie conducting Les Arts Florissants - surely one of the most stupendous opera recordings ever made).

Music Review:

Music Review

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