Archive for Review – Page 7
Textura Reviews One Movement Symphonies
Textura Magazine reviews the Kansas City Symphony and Michael Stern’s recording of Barber, Sibelius, and Scriabin One Movement Symphonies: “While each piece satisfies for different reasons, the fact that each can be experienced as a singular statement without pause is an appealing quality common to all. That they’re all performed by the Kansas City Symphony under the expert guidance of conductor Michael Stern also does much to recommend the release, as does its acoustically resonant…
Leshnoff Symphony No. 3 is “Beautiful and Inspiring”
Ralph Graves reviews Michael Stern, Joyce Yang, Stephen Powell, and the Kansas City Symphony’s recording of Leshnoff: Symphony No. 3; Piano Concerto for WTJU FM: “Written for the centennial of Armistice Day, Leshnoff gives voice to those who fought. He sets excerpts from letters written to loved ones at home. They don’t talk about the glory of battle but share quiet, intimate moments in simple yet beautifully poetic language. … It’s a beautiful work, beautifully…
The Arts Desk Reviews “One Movement Symphonies”
Graham Rickson reviews The Kansas City Symphony and Michael Stern’s recording of Barber, Sibelius, and Scriabin One Movement Symphonies on The Arts Desk: “[Barber’s Symphony No. 1 is] played brilliantly here, Michael Stern’s Kansas City Symphony having exactly the right tonal blend for this music. Brass have ample weight, and the strings sing. Scriabin’s Poem of Ecstasy receives a similarly ripe performance. … This Sibelius 7 is excellent. Stern’s transitions are seamless, and the trombone theme’s third…
One Movement Symphonies Gets Five Stars from Audiophile Audition!
Gary Lemco gives a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review to Michael Stern and the Kansas City Symphony’s One Movement Symphonies recording on Audiophile Audition: “The Kansas City Symphony brass prove especially resonant in their dark coloration… The Kansas City Symphony lushly blends the powerful [Barber] Finale, sustaining the Romantic ethos of the material, weaving all three tunes together and concluding with a jubilant, energetic thrust of youthful confidence. … The sense of improvisational freedom fused with a volcanic…
MusicWeb International Praises One Movement Symphonies
MusicWeb International critic Dan Morgan reviews the new Kansas City Symphony and the Michael Stern recording, One Movement Symphonies: “From the outset, it’s clear Stern has the measure of the [Barber First Symphony], its dramatic arch cannily constructed, its final destination never in doubt. As for the KCS, they respond with real warmth and commitment, their playing as poised and polished as anything you might hear in Boston, Chicago, or even Detroit. Predictably, the recording…
Classical Candor Reviews Last Tango Before Sunrise
John J. Puccio reviews José Serebrier’s Last Tango Before Sunrise on his Classical Candor blog: “Most classical music fans know Jose Serebrier as a world-class conductor, but not everyone may know that he is also a composer. The present disc hopes to rectify that situation by showcasing nine of his compositions, several of them world-premiere recordings. … The first two items on the program are among the longest, starting with the Symphony for Percussion, written in…
An 11 out of 10 for Kansas City Symphony’s One Movement Symphonies release!
Jean-Yves Duperron reviews Michael Stern and the Kansas City Symphony’s new recording of One Movement Symphonies for the Classical Music Sentinel: “The audio engineers over at the Reference Recordings label, and Keith O. Johnson in particular, one of the label’s founders, have always prided themselves on the high definition, “realistic” quality of their music recordings. You know, that just like being there type of sonic experience. And this one, like many others, is a case in point… in this…
All About the Arts Reviews One Movement Symphonies
Rafael de Acha reviews Michael Stern and the Kansas City Symphony’s One Movement Symphonies recording for All About the Arts: “Leading the peerless musicians of the Kansas City Symphony, Michael Stern delivers an extraordinary reading of Barber’s work. … [Sibelius’ Symphony No. 7] is brief and unflagging in its tensile intensity, ever underpinned by inspired, disciplined playing from the members of the Kansas City Symphony, with Michael Stern at its helm. … Again, [in Scriabin’s…
Rafael de Acha Reviews Last Tango Before Sunrise
Rafael de Acha reviews Jose Serebrier’s Last Tango Before Sunrise album on his All About the Arts blog: “the album features an interesting sampling of Serebrier’s journey as a composer, leading from the dissonances of the 1957 Piano Sonata and the explorations of the conflation of sound and colors in the 1971 Colores Mágicos. In certain early compositions featured in the album Serebrier taps into his Latin American roots, seeking to return to the richness of the music…
Art Music Lounge Review for One Movement Symphonies
Lynn René Bayley reviews Michael Stern and the Kansas City Symphony’s One Movement Symphonies recording on her Art Music Lounge blog: “This is exactly the kind of imaginative programming that I long to see on most symphonic CD releases… superb control of orchestral balance and textures, good phrasing… a good, solid, professional performance. … I heard many interesting details in the music that escape many a recording by more famous conductors. … an interesting album,…
Four Star Pizzicato Review for José Serebrier’s Last Tango Before Sunrise
Remy Franck gives four stars to the new release of José Serebrier: Last Tango Before Sunrise on Pizzicato Magazine: “The earliest work is the Piano Sonata of 1957, influenced by Latin American rhythms… and played powerfully and with verve by Nadia Shpachenko. The most recent piece is the title track Last Tango Before Sunrise from 2018, and just like the other dance movements on this CD, it offers inspiredly composed music with distinctive melodies and…
Stereophile Review for Beethoven: Symphony No. 9
Stephen Francis gives 4.5 Stars to Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s recording of Beethoven Symphony No. 9 in Stereophile: “From Reference Recordings, we can count on pellucid sonics, including here. You can “hear through” the textures even in the most violent tuttis, with no trace of congestion. In the finale’s “recitatives,” the divided low strings are wonderfully enveloping. The Adagio‘s airy woodwind chorales are almost tangible. …The music, guided by the conductor’s sharp ear, is…
ConcertoNet Review for Last Tango Before Sunrise
Christie Grimstad reviews José Serebrier’s Last Tango Before Sunrise recording for ConcertoNet: “Driven forward with striking acuity in any sort of music he’s conducted, his excellence never fails… Serebrier’s Symphony for Percussion acts like a case study, showing the importance of percussion… It’s best to close the eyes, sit back and soak in the widely wizard remarks. … Pocketed throughout by Stravinsky-esque discords, the Piano Sonata is not without its lighter, genteel lines. … The rollicking “Moto Perpetuo: Presto”…
American Record Guide Review for Beethoven Symphony No. 9
American Record Guide‘s Gil French has a thorough review of his multiple listens through Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s Beethoven Symphony No. 9 recording: “the riches, most superbly tuned strings basses I have heard since Joseph Guastafeste led the Chicago Symphony’s string bass section (1961-2011) and better recorded as well! When the entire orchestra joins in [in the Finale], their phrasing reflects the words mentally engrained in anyone familiar with the text. Continue…
Audiophile Audition Gives Five Stars to Beethoven Symphony No. 9
The Pittsburgh Symphony and Manfred Honeck’s recording of Beethoven Symphony No. 9 gets a five-star rave from Audiophile Audition: “This disc should come with a warning label. Why? Because it is easily the most intense Ninth I have ever heard. This is not a criticism, only a fact. … The wonderful last movement gives us a truly joyful and energetic flow of consolation and satisfaction, jam-packed with intensity and far, far away from the “joyful,…