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HARMONIA MUNDI
DANTE QUARTET/Faure-Franck: Award wining classical crew puts together an unlikely themed release taking in the late works by two composers you generally don’t think of in the same breath. While the Franck reading is sort of a what you hear is what you get reading, the Faure reading almost seems to go behind the music to find the filigree in this introspective, gentle work. Franck apparently was not ready to go gently into that good night. The Dante’s make it all cohesive and special throughout.
67664 (Hyperion)
BELLI PIANO DUO/Mythical Dances: Certainly, there’s plenty of room for classical players to go rock star. The Bellis counterpoint works by Crumb and Stravinsky into a wild piano ride for four hands, fusing important works by both into an new important work. Cascading influences, vibes and textures into an audio kaleidoscope that works, these pros show the future of experimental fusions are in good hands. Classical mash ups? Not as outré as you might think with this as a leading light.
6007 (Wergo)
KML RECORDINGS
MAYTE MARTIN-KATIA & MARIELLE LABEQUE/de fuego y de agua: The Labeques have worked with vocalists before, but this is one of their more radically different classical recordings yet. Although a tribute to Spanish music, this sounds more like a great lost Kurt Weill record. Their chosen vocalist partner, Mayte Martin, is such a clear and forceful vocalist, you’d think she could give Labeque pal, Madonna, lessons how to power her way through her tabloid paper divorce proceedings. Certainly keeping it fresh and boundary pushing, old fans might have preferred another spin on Gershwin or Bernstein, but this is breath taking rather than safe and the sonic rewards hare there by the bushel. Certainly and artistic win for our keyboard loving girls in France.
1119
TERRI HINTE PUBLIC RELATIONS
SONNY ROLLINS/Roadshows V. 1: Another of the old guys that have become systemically untethered late in their careers, Rollins, like McCoy Tyner and others, enjoys and wears the freedom well in setting his own artistic and commercial course. After how long of honking on that ax?, this set is Rollins first live compilation pulling tracks from all over from his archives of the last 30 years with performances that range from one of a kind to once in a lifetime. All this and there’s no reprise of “St. Thomas” live at Ravinia—these archives have a way to go before they are plumbed. A dandy reintroduction to Rollins as a lion in winter far from retiring to his den.
(Doxy)
DVD SUPPLEMENT
WALT DISNEY HOME VIDEO
TINKERBELL: With Caribou Barbie on one end and Marcia Brady Crackwhore Barbie on the other, today’s young ladies are bombarded by too many confusing and wrong images and it’s no wonder they’re going crazy in record numbers. Even something wholesome like “American Girls” is surrounded by so much materialism that it’s wholesome value is diminished. Disney’s latest direct to vid is worth more than thousands of hours of therapy for today’s over programmed stressed young ladies that are on the way to becoming self medicated psychos of tomorrow. Checking out the back story of la Tink, we find out that it’s ok not to be great at everything and always be perfect. This is certainly the vid I’d want my rugrat to watch day after day. Tink is a cutey, she finally talks, Ugly Betty and Kris Chenoweth are along for the ride and all the usual Disney standards are upheld. With quality, non-agenda kidvid like this sneaking out in to the market, the world just got a little safer for the young ‘uns. Well done throughout.
Volume 31/Number 356
October 21, 2008
MIDWEST RECORD
830 W. Route 22 #144
Lake Zurich, IL., 60047
CHRIS SPECTOR, Editor and Publisher
©2008 Midwest Record
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