Archive for Rafael de Acha
All About the Arts Previews Reencuentros
Rafael de Acha previews and reviews Cecilia Duarte’s Reencuentros recording on All About the Arts: “Cecilia Duarte gives renewed life to a dozen Latin American songs… the profound meditation on the end of life Alfonsina y el Mar, arranged by David Scanlon for his string bass as the sole accompaniment to Duarte in a posthumous homage to the Argentine poetess Alfonsina Storni, follow each other in impressive succession evidencing Cecilia Duarte’s beautiful voice and her impeccably…
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…
Music Notes Review for Blessed Art Thou Among Women
Rafael de Acha’s Music Notes site reviews the PaTRAM Institute’s Blessed Art Thou Among Women recording: “Works by Rachmaninoff along compositions by Gretchaninoff, Tcherepnin, and several other musical artists that lived and worked in the past two or more centuries enrich the CD Blessed Art Thou Among Women, a wonderfully varied collection of devotional texts in praise of the Virgin Mary set to choral music and superbly sung by the PaTRAM Institute Singers, led by Peter…
Music Notes Declares Jonathan Leshnoff’s Double Concerto A Best of 2020
Rafael de Acha adds the Pittsburgh Symphony and Manfred Honeck’s Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4 and Jonathan Leshnoff Double Concerto recording to his short list of Best of 2020: “Commissioned and premiered by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and conducted by Manfred Honeck, the ensemble’s superb Music Director, Jonathan Leshnoff’s beautiful Double Concerto for Clarinet and Bassoon affords PSO principals Michael Rusinek (clarinet) and Nancy Goeres (bassoon) the opportunity to shine as soloists in this gorgeous 20-minute-long, three-movement composition. Leshnoff’s music is unabashedly accessible. From the onset…
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…