The Music of Don Freund, Vol. 1

On this CD:

1. Madame Bovary Ballet Suite for orchestra Part I, Scene 1, Convent School Reveries
Composed by Don Freund

Conducted by Don Freund

2. Madame Bovary Ballet Suite for orchestra Part I, Scene 2, Romance Visions
Composed by Don Freund

Conducted by Don Freund

3. Madame Bovary Ballet Suite for orchestra Part II, Scene 2, The Invitation
Composed by Don Freund

Conducted by Don Freund

4. Madame Bovary Ballet Suite for orchestra Part II, Scene 4, Slow Waltz
Composed by Don Freund

Conducted by Don Freund

5. Madame Bovary Ballet Suite for orchestra Part II, Scene 5, Fast Waltz
Composed by Don Freund

Conducted by Don Freund

6. Madame Bovary Ballet Suite for orchestra Part III, Scene 1, Infatuation with Léon
Composed by Don Freund

Conducted by Don Freund

7. Madame Bovary Ballet Suite for orchestra Part III, Scene 2, The Fair/Rodolphe's Advances
Composed by Don Freund

Conducted by Don Freund

8. Madame Bovary Ballet Suite for orchestra Part III, Scene 3, Seduction in the Forest
Composed by Don Freund

Conducted by Don Freund

9. Madame Bovary Ballet Suite for orchestra Part IV, Scene 6, Throes of Death
Composed by Don Freund

Conducted by Don Freund

10. Soft Cells for 15 instruments
Composed by Don Freund
Performed by Indiana University New Music Ensemble
Conducted by David Dzubay

11. Viola Concerto in One Movement
Composed by Don Freund
Performed by Atar Arad

12. Dissolving Music, Rockpiece for soprano and 6 instruments
Composed by Don Freund
Performed by Moira Smiley, Indiana University New Music Ensemble

Customer Reviews:

Valuable compendium.......2007-01-24

This set is extremely valuable, not only as an overview of Dame Joans career but because it contains three complete LP sets that have been very hard to find. The sets are the 2 LP French opera (operetta) set, the Mozart album and the Wagner album. Although some of these do not show her to her best advantage (the Wagner set) they all have some very beautiful things and the French items are superb. The annotations and photos are interesting as well and there are some piano songs with Bonynge that are released here for the first time along with a scene from a live Covent Garden Norma.

Rareties available on CD at last!.......2006-03-29

While Joan Sutherland has recorded a number of impressive aria collections throughout the many years of her recording career, they tend to get lost in the shuffle of the countless reissues Decca/London has endlessly repackaged. While some of the original collections have appeared intact on CD--"The Art of the Prima Donna," "The Age of Bel Canto," "Love Live Forever" (her operetta collection that was originally titled "The Golden Age of Operetta"), to name a few--others are currently represented in the CD catalogue by only a few selections on discs that also include excerpts from complete opera recordings or duplicates of selections from other original collections. As a result, it has been impossible to assemble a CD collection of her recordings without a LOT of duplication, and some of the most interesting collections are still unavailable (e.g. "Command Performance" and "Serate Musicale").

While this newest set does include a lot of bits of this and that, ranging from her very first LPs to excerpts from complete recordings most Sutherland fans already have and a few "live" performances, what is perhaps most significant about it is that it features the complete contents of the "Sutherland Sings Wagner" LP--a real repertoire departure for her--and the double-LP album called "French Opera Gala" (in the U.S.--the British title was "Romantic French Arias"), neither of which, to the best of my knowledge, has been available on CD before. "Opera News" magazine once ran an article in which they asked various stars to name the one album that they felt best represented their artistry for future generations, and Dame Joan selected the "French Opera Gala," so for Sutherland fans, this is a long-awaited treat.

I'm not going to waste space saying how miraculous I consider Dame Joan's artistry. If you are familiar with her work already, you know whether you adore her or not; and if you aren't, this massive set is probably not the best place to start (that would be "The Art of the Prima Donna" album that introduced her to most listeners decades ago)--especially since this newest set doesn't contain the lyrics, a must for newcomers. Let's hope Decca/London gets around to releasing the rest of her recordings intact instead of endlessly scrambling and repackaging the same selections over and over.

Heavenly.......2006-01-31

I first heard of Dame Sutherland while on the internet while listening to a internet radio station. I was instantly a fan, her control, technique, and tone is perfectly executed and rivals the equally fantastic Maria Callas. She has a powerful voice and presence that will evoke every emotion from her listeners. Highly recommended to all Opera Diva fans.

WHO ELSE CAN SING LIKE THIS TODAY?.......2005-04-10

This is Decca's second multi disc evaluation of this fantastic singer's long career and many recordings. True that a lot on the first set is duplicated here, but there are a few exceptions here and there that make it a worthy addition. Of particular interest are the very early items of Handel and Italian baroque arias, some forgotten song recordings and a live performance of the duet from Norma. It can't be said too many times - who can sing like this today? For sheer vocalism it's hard to find anyone on the same wavelength. This set will give very young opera goers an idea of what they missed.