Author Archive for Reference Recordings – Page 21
Now Available – Kurt Sander: The Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom
Reference Recordings is very pleased to present the second release in our series from the PaTRAM Institute, rising stars whose debut album on our label, Chesnokov: Teach Me Thy Statutes (FR727SACD), has recently garnered a GRAMMY® nomination for Best Choral Performance. The music performed on this new recording of Russian Orthodox choral music in the English language was written by Dr. Kurt Sander. Conductor Peter Jermihov writes: “The Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom by Kurt Sander is unique in several respects. Within the…
You Really Shouldn’t Miss The Poetry of Places
Nadia Shpachenko’s The Poetry of Places has been added a SECOND time to Fanfare Archive’s “Not To Be Missed” section of their website after the publishing of a new review by Peter Burwasser: “As was the case with Nadia Shpachenko’s previous Reference Recordings project, Quotations and Homages, this release features a broad range of contemporary voices, with a scintillating mix of daring sound, genuine beauty, and a commodity too often missing from the new music world:…
Textura Sees Nadia Shpachenko Recordings as Trilogy
Textura Magazine’s new review of Nadia Shpachenko’s The Poetry of Places places it in context with her previous FRESH! From Reference Recordings releases: “The Poetry of Places could easily pass for the final part of a trilogy, so complementary is it to Nadia Shpachenko’s previous Reference Recordings releases, Woman at the New Piano (2014) and Quotations & Homages (2018). In all three cases, the intrepid pianist tackles challenging new works by a host of innovative composers, and while the…
SF Chronicle Reviews The Poetry of Places
Critic Joshua Kosman reviews Nadia Shpachenko’s The Poetry of Places in the San Francisco Chronicle Datebook: “In ‘The Poetry of Places,’ the gifted and versatile pianist Nadia Shpachenko premieres a remarkable lineup of 10 new works… It’s a winningly loose concept, and the music that results covers a wonderfully diverse stylistic range, from the disruptive shifts of tone in Andrew Norman’s ‘Frank’s House’…to the psychedelic whizzing and swooshing of Lewis Spratlan’s ‘Bangladesh.’ In between come…
The Poetry of Places is an Engaging Disc
The Whole Note‘s April 2019 “Keyed In” section of reviews for piano releases by critic Alax Baran features Nadia Shpachenko’s The Poetry of Places recording: “The variety of this repertoire is remarkable. Shpachenko performs a veritable tour of structures ancient and modern, producing extraordinary colours and textures from her Steinway D. Her composers sometimes add a second piano, voice, a toy piano, percussion and electronics to build their works. … Each composer provides a few…
The Poetry of Places is a Celebration of New Music!
Rafael’s Music Notes reviews Nadia Shpachenko’s The Poetry of Places recording: “The Poetry of Places…is a celebration of new music featuring a formidable pianist in the company of top practitioners in the field. … Throughout The Poetry of Places, Nadia Shpachenko valiantly navigates the now tranquil, now tumultuous waters of eight new works, six of them commissioned by and dedicated to her. … Set aside for a moment the technique and musicianship it takes to learn…
Fanfare Says The Poetry of Places is “Not To Be Missed”
Fanfare Magazine highlights Nadia Shpachenko’s The Poetry of Places recording in their online “Not To Be Missed” section: “The idea of reacting to spaces is the thread that snakes through this fascinating recital. Programming is clearly a strength of Shpachenko, as her disc Quotations & Homages spoke of a similarly adventurous spirit. The superbly produced booklet gives fine background information to the pieces and composers, in tandem with a selection of photographs worth the price of…
RR at AXPONA 2019
Heading to the 2019 AXPONA Show April 12-14? Make sure to keep an eye out for the Elusive Disc booth in The Marketplace – they’ll have a good selection of RR CDs, SACDs, and LPs available for purchase at the show! AXPONA 2019 April 12 – 14, 2019Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel & Convention CenterSchaumburg, IL More Info
Fiona Boyes’ “Party At Red’s” an International Songwriting Competition Finalist
The International Songwriting Competition announced its 2018 Finalists, and Fiona Boyes’ song ‘Party at Red’s’ from Voodoo In The Shadows is a finalist in the Blues category of the International Songwriting Competition. The official judging round is underway, but there is also a ‘People’s Choice’ award for each category selected solely by a public vote. Simply an email address is required and you can vote once-per-day. Click the button below and scroll through the list…
Break The Chain Vinyl in Stereophile
Doug MacLeod and the LP release of Break the Chain got a nice mention from Stereophile‘s Michael Fremer as part of a review of the Audia Flight FLS1 Pre-Amp/DAC in the April 2019 issue: “Bluesman Doug MacLeod hasn’t put out one bad record in his long career…His latest, Break the Chain (2 45rpm LPs, RM-2519), recorded live at Skywalker Sound by Keith O. Johnson and Sean Royce Martin, with no edits or overdubs, is yet…
Cinemusical Review for The Poetry of Places
The Cinemusical blog gives full marks to Nadia Shpachenko’s The Poetry of Places recording: “The Poetry of Places is a truly fascinating collection of original music for piano that demonstrates a great variety of approaches. The thematic thread that runs through the album helps create a secondary connection to the music and invites the listener in on a journey through these different spaces. Shpachenko’s technical virtuosity is on display throughout here. She is very adept…
Sequenza 21 Reviews The Poetry of Places
Paul Muller reviews Nadia Shpachenko’s new recording, The Poetry of Places for Sequenza 21: “The playing here is crisp and seamlessly coordinated, even as the rapidly complex phrases seem to explode into motion at every moment. Frank’s House is a wild musical ride through an artistic mind unburdened by limitations. … Harold Metzer’s In Full Sail for solo piano … smoothly alternates between the serious and the sprightly, with lighthearted stretches bubbling up from under the darker…
The Poetry of Places is “Marvellous”
Critic Dean Frey reviews Nadia Shpachenko’s The Poetry of Places recording on his Music for Several Instruments blog: “…this marvellous disc from pianist Nadia Shpachenko…music [interacts] with a wide range of human activities: fine and applied arts (architecture and design), the heritage arts and the natural world. … I happen to share a fondness for and a deep admiration of some of the architects of these special places, especially Frank Gehry and Louis Kahn. But…
The Poetry of Places is Now Available!
Nadia Shpachenko’s latest Reference Recordings release The Poetry of Places features World Premiere recordings of works for solo piano, for two pianos, percussion, electronics, voice, and toy piano in a fascinating mélange inspired by great architecture and places. The eight compositions monumentalize places as wildly diverse as the Copland House in Cortlandt, NY, The American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore, Louis Kahn’s National Assembly Buildings in Bangladesh, Newgrange Ancient Temple in Ireland, and Frank Gehry’s House in…
The Poetry of Places – Harold Meltzer: In Full Sail
Harold Meltzer: In Full Sail for solo piano (2016) For years I have been taking walks in Manhattan through Chelsea, along the High Line park, or to take my son to summer camp by the Hudson River. Regularly they bring me past the curved white glass facade of Frank Gehry’s IAC Building, which, according to a critic, “gives the appearance of a tall ship in full sail.” I began to imagine the building launching from…