Plays Arrangement

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In 1953, when these very fine recordings began, Art Farmer was still only 25 years old, but he had already been recognized for his engaging, balanced, and reserved playing. It was lyrical and warm at whatever tempo. On trumpet and flügelhorn, he softened hard bop into an individual style that was accommodating and open. He relaxed into tunes, then produced crystal clarity and sentiment while remaining close to a tonal center. Those qualities are apparent on these recordings, made over three years just after Farmer had moved to New York from L.A.'s Central Avenue scene. They feature choice performances by an evolving lineup that included such fine players as Charlie Rouse on tenor, Quincy Jones and Horace Silver on piano, Percy Heath on bass, and Art Taylor on drums. --Peter Monaghan

Plays Arrangement,Art Farmer,Ojc,Jazz,Jazz Music,Pop

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Music

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Tracks:

Rhapsody In Blue
An American In Paris
Swanee
Walkin' The Dog
Let's Call The Whole Thing Off
Somebody Loves Me
Our Love Is Here To Stay
S'Wonderful
Embraceable You
Oh, Lady Be Good

Customer Reviews:

Let the Buyer Beware.......2007-01-12

I do not disagree on any level with the other reviewers of this CD. However, the content is recorded from piano rolls rather than directly from the artist. This fact is not explicitly presented on the web page. Yes, if one clicks on the CD cover photo to get an enlarged image, one can read "First recording 1924 from rare piano rolls" at the bottom in small type. Not everyone will do this however. For this reason alone I only rate this product 3 stars.

Historical and Pristine.......2006-12-22

This compilation of Gershwin selections taken from the piano rolls of the composer offer a perfect introduction to the music of Gershwin, offering a balance between his serious symphonic pieces and his accessible popular songs. Beginning with two of his concert works, "The Rhapsody in Blue" and "An American in Paris," the CD just hints at what the composer accomplished in the concert hall and the world of serious music. To my understanding, the "Rhapsody in Blue" was originally performed at a concert titled 'An Experiment in Modern Music' in 1924 at Aeolian Hall in New York. The piece was performed by an orchestra with Paul Whiteman as director, and with the composer at the piano as part of a concert experiment in jazz. The version on this CD is a piano adaptation created by the composer based off of the original symphonic work.

"An American in Paris" is also a concert work that did not achieve the widespread adoration that the Rhapsody has garnered. It was intended by the composer to capture the emotions of a tourist visiting Paris, and was purportedly auto-biographical. It was performed in 1928 at New York's Carnegie Hall with Walter Damrosch conducting the New York Philharmonic. It received mixed reviews at the time but remains a favorite of Gershwin's classical works. Like the "Rhapsody," the version included here is a piano adaptation of the original orchestral work.

The remaining works on the CD are those of a popular composer, the flipside of Gershwin's career. No other American composer (or any for that matter) has strattled these two different fields of music with the success with which George Gershwin did. And the popular songs, among them, "Embraceable You," "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off," and "Love is Here to Stay" have achieved enormous pop culture penetration and secure Gershwin's place in history as a master of popular song composition. Notably missing from this CD, however, are Ira Gershwin's contributions, i.e. the words, which add an element important to these songs' true place in history. Along with Ira's contributions come the countless Gershwin vocal interpreters who helped to realize these songs' true significance and their dispersion throughout the American popular music idiom.

On these versions, it is simply Gershwin playing his works (albeit the recordings are taken from his piano rolls, not an actual live recording). In these arrangements, the melodies are incorporated into lush and often convoluted harmonic accompaniment, in which the melody often becomes lost (i.e., the bridge or B section of "Oh, Lady Be Good!"). However, the opportunity to hear the composer express the harmonic possibilities of these disguisingly "simple" American tunes is truly a valuable one. The particular bouncing style with which Gershwin jumps from chord to chord to accompany his melodies is clearly apparent on many of these tunes, and that is an aspect borrowed from Ragtime that contributes to Gershwin being labeled as a uniquely "American" styled composer. The idiosyncracy of his composition and playing are tied together and come to life on this CD. The harmonic statements are sophisticated and evasive to the common ear, and the rhythmic precision and prolificity are legendary. Together with the melody, these elements of the musical composition on which Gershwin demonstrates mastery come together to produce a truly quintessential and essential Gershwin compilation.

"Rhapsody In Blue".......2006-07-12

"This piece (Rhapsody In Blue) seemed to sweep through my mind. It was the heart of America, the feverishness of life, the musical welter of races, of peoples, their joys and their passions, their dissipations and their exaltations." ~ George Gershwin (September 26, 1898 - July 11, 1937) ~

Today, July 11, 2006, marks the 69th death anniversary of one of America's most versatile songwriters, George Gershwin. The birth of one of my favorite jazz-infused-classical pieces, "Rhapsody In Blue" in 1924 made Mr. Gershwin an overnight and sensational star and had gained him a worldwide recognition. He had been my late parents' (and mine, too) favorite composer along with Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern and Cole Porter. His harmonious collaboration with his brother, Ira Gershwin, had produced the most beautiful songs of all-time. They were the most prolific team of songwriters and their compositions have been recorded countless times by famous interpreters of Great American Songbook such as Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, John Coltrane, Tony Bennett, Miles Davis, Oscar Peterson, Joe Pass, Michael Feinstein, Natalie Cole, Linda Ronstadt, Rod Stewart, Steve Tyrell, Diana Krall, John Pizzarelli, Michael Bublé and Chris Botti, among many others.

This CD is a musical treasure and one that I would strongly recommend not only to any Gershwin enthusiast but also to any new fan for this includes the original recording of "Rhapsody In Blue" from rare Piano Rolls. The sound quality is just terrific. It highlights two of his major works - "Rhapsody In Blue" (1924) and "An American In Paris" (1928). It also features some of his well-known popular songs and favorites of mine, my parents' theme songs "Our Love Is Here To Stay" and "Embraceable You." It has been said that Mr. Gershwin functioned best and had written his very best compositions at 3 o'clock in the morning and when he finish eight bars that he likes, he can finish a chorus in a few minutes, like the songs "`S Wonderful" and "Let's Call The Whole Thing Off." This recording also includes "Swanee," "Walkin' The Dog," "Somebody Loves Me," and "Oh, Lady Be Good."

It's so amazing that he composed frequently and never run out of inspirations for writing melodic tunes that are so pleasing to the ears. He can write three to five songs in a single afternoon. When he completed the melody of a song, he gives it to Ira to write words to it. He was such a genius and played the piano by ear after a fashion, tapping out the tunes with a finger.

Not known to many, Mr. Gershwin had tried his hand at painting. I've seen a portrait of himself that he painted a year before his death from brain cancer, and I would say, it's a beautiful work of art, almost like a work of a professional painter. He could have been a great painter.

George Gershwin will always be remembered as one of the greatest 20th Century composers and his music will always linger in the hearts of music lovers like me who truly appreciate and enjoy fine music.

Shakespeare's Musick (Songs & Dances from Shakespeare's Plays) / Pickett, Musicians of the Globe

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Excellent argument for watching Shakespeare's plays
Elizabethan Surprise!

Shakespeare's Musick (Songs & Dances from Shakespeare's Plays) / Pickett, Musicians of the Globe
John Dowland , William Byrd , John Wilson , Giles Farnaby , Robert Jones , Anonymous , Robert Johnson , Thomas Morley , Philip Pickett , Rachel Elliott , Meredith Hall , Musician of the Globe , Libby Crabtree , Jacob Heringman , Rosalind Waters , Gary Cooper , Roderick Williams , Joanne Lunn , and William Shakespeare
Manufacturer: Philips
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Shakespeare's Songbook, Vols. 1 & 2
The Enchanted Island (Music for a restoration "Tempest") / Pickett, Musicians of the Globe
Shakespeare's Songbook

ASIN: B0000041KP
Release Date: 1997-07-15

Tracks:

Pieces For Broken Consort: Hollis Berrie
Pieces For Broken Consort: Daphne
Pieces For Broken Consort: My Robin Is To The Greenwood Gone
Pieces For Broken Consort: Tickle My Toe
As You Like It: It Was A Lover And His Lass
Kemp's Jig
Strophe 1: Measure For Measure: Take, O Take Those Lips Away
Bonny Sweet Robin
Twelfth Night: Farewell, Dear Love
Tarletones Riserrectione
Henry IV Part 2: Hold, Lingel, Hold
Hamlet IV:5 (Ophelia): How Should I Your True Love Know
Walsingham
The Winter's Tale: Get You Hence
La Coranto
La Coranto
Cymbeline II: 3: Hark, Hark! The Lark
The First book Of Consort Lessons: La Volta
The First book Of Consort Lessons: La Volta
Othello IV: 3: The Poor Soul Sat Sighing (The Willow Song)
Robin
Twelfh Night: O Mistress Mine
O Mistris Mine
The Tempest: Full Fathom Five
The Tempest: Where the Bee Sucks, There I Suck I
The First book Of Consort Lessons: Can She Excuse (John Dowland?)
The First book Of Consort Lessons: Go From My Window ( Richard Alison)
Shakespeare's Musick - The Musicians Of The Globe

Customer Reviews:

Excellent argument for watching Shakespeare's plays.......2005-11-29

'Shakespeare's Musick' by Musicians of the Globe, lead by Philip Pickett is, like a similar recording, 'Songs and Dances from Shakespeare' by The Broadside Band' is a very nice recreation of what you would have heard at the Globe Theatre in London during or after the performances of Will Shakespeare's plays. I will also say that I believe it is just a bit better than the alternative recording if only for it's fewer 'Hey Nonnie Nonnies'. But, both recordings are not the best you can find of Renaissance music. Compared to excellent recordings of Renaissance dances and liturgical music, these seem to suffer from being out of context.

These are well worth the listen, but they will probably not set your toes to tapping as you might to performances by, for example, the Renaissance specialist band Piffaro.

Elizabethan Surprise!.......2000-02-12

If someone had asked me before I listened to the music provided on this CD if I liked English music of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, I would have wrinkled my nose and said a resounding "Yuck!" I came across "Shakespeare's Musick" quite by accident at the local library. I was working on a project dealing with William Shakespeare and decided to take this CD home to see if it would fit into my theme. From the very first song to the very last, Philip Pickett and the Musicians of the Globe had me captivated. The sound is pure and lively and takes the listener on a ride that transcends time. It certainly made this listener a convert! I am now purchasing "Shakespeare's Musick" to add to my own collection and would highly recommend its addition to anyone elses. It will open your ears to a whole other world of sound -- sound that not only tickles the fancy, but enchants the soul.

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Fritz Kreisler Plays Encores

Manufacturer: Pearl
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Fritz Kreisler Plays Kreisler
Heifetz Showpieces

ASIN: B000000WT9
Release Date: 1992-12-23

Tracks:

A May Breeze
Humoresque
Songs My Mother Taught Me
Thais: Mediatation
L' Arlesienne: Intermezzo
Scherzo
Liebesfreud
Liebesleid
Rondino On A Theme (By Beethoven)
Caprice Viennois
Tambourin Chinois
Frasquita: Ser
Giudetta: Ser
Wienerisch
La Vida Breve: Danse Espagnole
En Bateau
Slavonic Dance No.3 in G
Indian Lament
Tango, Op.165/2
Malaguena

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The Distilled Simplicity of Erik Satie Realized by Peter Fletcher
A broad range of gems from a very influential and intersting artist and personality - played beautifully on guitar

Peter Fletcher Plays Erik Satie

Manufacturer: Centaur
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Ballets | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Modern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000AYYTS0
Release Date: 2005-09-27

Customer Reviews:

The Distilled Simplicity of Erik Satie Realized by Peter Fletcher.......2006-01-21

Erik Satie (1865 - 1925) remains an enigma to the classical music world. His compositions are so apparently transparent and minimalist that he simply defied classification for years. Highly regarded among the brilliant minds of his time, composers such as Debussy, Ravel, Stravinsky, Milhaud, his purity of impulse of creation, reducing the excesses of Romanticism to what would open the way toward modern music, is still a point of revelation.

Peter Fletcher is not only a brilliant musician, but he is also a musicologist whose absorption in the music that he elects to perform demonstrates sensitivity to the composer's impulses that allows him to enter the difficult world of transcription. This generous recording of the music of Erik Satie includes works that are indeed standard repertoire (the 'Gymnopedies' and 'Gnossiennes' are often performed by pianists and by orchestras in the famous transcriptions by Debussy, as well as the rarely heard works such as 'Sports et Divertissements' that Fletcher performs impeccably along with the French poetry beautifully recited by an uncredited female reader ('Tiny Thoughts for Children'). And after an array of jewels Fletcher ends this recital with the lovely waltz 'Je te veux'. Ah, Paris!

The recorded sound is warm in presence with excellent engineering. But in the end it is Fletcher's suave tone and quiet surface (no fingers on strings sounds here!) that allows us to simply listen to the gentle genius of Satie's melodies. No higher praise could be paid a performer. Highly recommended,
Grady Harp, January 06

A broad range of gems from a very influential and intersting artist and personality - played beautifully on guitar.......2006-01-11

This is a disk of very charming and witty music played masterfully in very fine transcriptions for guitar. Peter Fletcher is a musician of great sensitivity and a master of his instrument. Somehow, he makes all of these pieces come across wonderfully well. The parts are all cleanly heard and their fun, wit, and even mystical aspects are all communicated.

The notes provided are very helpful. The listener can get the background of all the pieces as well as the English translation of the narrated portions of the large work on the disk, "Sports et Divertissements" from 1914. You will get to hear the familiar Satie (The "Three Gymnopédies" from 1888, the sad Rag-Time from Parade (commemorating the sinking of the Titanic) from 1919, to several quite unfamiliar and delightful gems.

However, I believe that, more than for most other composers of significance, it is quite helpful to get some idea of the character and personality of Erik Satie in order to come to terms with his music.

Sorry for the long quote to follow, but it is insightful. In "Conversations with Igor Stravinsky" when asked what he recalled of Satie, the composer said, "He was certainly the oddest person I have ever known, but the most rare and consistently witty person, too. I had a great liking for him and he appreciated my friendliness, I think, and liked me in return. With his pince-nez, umbrella, and galoshes he looked a perfect schoolmaster, but he looked just as much like one without these accoutrements. He spoke very softly, hardly opening his mouth, but he delivered each word in an inimitable, precise way. His handwriting recalls his speech to me: it is exact, drawn. His manuscripts were like him also, which is to say as the French say `fin'. No one ever saw him wash - he had a horror of soap. Instead he was forever rubbing his fingers with pumice. He was always very poor, poor by conviction, I think. He lived in a poor section and his neighbours seemed to appreciate his coming among them: he was greatly respected by them. His apartment was also very poor. It did not have a bed but only a hammock. In winter Satie would fill bottles with hot water and put them flat in a row underneath his hammock. It looked like some strange kind of marimba. I remember once when someone had promised him some money he replied: `Monsier, what you have said did not fall on a deaf ear.'

"His sarcasm depended on French classic usages. The first time I heard `Socrate', at a séance where he played it for a few of us, he turned around at the end and said in perfect bourgeoisie: `Voila, messiers, dames.'

"I met him in 1913, I believe, at any rate I photographed him with Debussy in that year. Debussy introduced him to me and Debussy `protected' and remained a good friend to him. In those early years he played many of his compositions for me at the paino (I don't think he knew much about instruments and I prefer `Socrate' as he played it to the clumsy orchestra score.) I always thought him literarily limited. The titles are literary, and whereas Klee's titles are literary they do not limit the painting; Satie's do, I think, and they are very much less amusing the second time. But the trouble with `Socrate' is that it is metrically boring. Who can stand that much regularity? All the same, the music of Scorates' death is touching and dignifying in a unique way. Satie's own sudden and mysterious death - shortly after `Socrate' [this is odd because the piece was premiered in 1918 and Satie died in 1925 - CSM] - touched me too. He had been turned towards religion near the end of his life and he started going to Communion. I saw him after church one morning and he said in that extraordinary manner of his: `Alors, j'ai un peu communiqué ce matin.' He became ill very suddenly and died quickly and quietly."

Slonimsky, in the third edition of "Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians" says, in part, of Satie: "celebrated French composer who elevated his eccentricities and verbal virtuosity to the plane of high art."

Again, this is the kind of disk you should get and enjoy for so many reasons not the least of which is the fun of hearing these pieces in a new way because they are performed on guitar.

Sweet and Low-Down - Richard Dowling plays George Gershwin

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This guy is AMAZING!
He's Got Rhythm!
Richard Dowling has found teh Gershwin Way to play

Sweet and Low-Down - Richard Dowling plays George Gershwin

Manufacturer: Klavier
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Preludes | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

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World's Greatest Piano Rags
Richard Dowling Plays Chopin, Volume II

ASIN: B00005N9Z9
Release Date: 2001-07-01

Tracks:

Sweet and Low-Down
Looking for a Boy
Someone to Watch Over Me
That Certain Feeling
'S Wonderful/Funny Face
Maybe
Swanee
Clap Yo' Hands
Drifting Along with the Tide
"Andantino moderato" theme from Rhapsody in Blue
So Am I
Kickin' the Clouds Away
My One and Only
Prelude No. 1 in B-flat Major
Novelette in Fourths
Sleepless Night
Rubato
Promenade
Three-Quarter Blues
Prelude No. 2 in C-sharp Minor
Impromptu in Two Keys
Prelude No. 3 in E-flat Minor
I Got Rhythm
Oh, Lady Be Good!
Liza
Embraceable You
Somebody Loves Me
Fascinatin' Rhythm
The Man I Love

Album Description

American pianist Richard Dowling performs virtually all of Gershwin's original works for solo piano along with several new transcriptions of Gershwin improvisations from disc recordings and player piano rolls. Dowling transcribed several of the tracks himself including a world premiere of Gershwin's own three-minute rendition of the main theme of "Rhapsody in Blue." Rounding out the disc are Earl Wild's Seven Virtuoso Etudes on Themes by Gershwin.

Customer Reviews:

This guy is AMAZING!.......2002-12-08

I heard one of Dowling's concerts and he's awesome! I play this CD in my car and almost got a speeding ticket because of it. Richard really knows the Gershwin style. It's upbeat and a lot of fun to listen to over and over.

He's Got Rhythm!.......2001-08-31

Richard's got the most amazing fingers (and ears)! He's such a good pianist that you'll swear you're hearing old George playing himself. If you love music from 1920s and 30s New York, this is about as authentic as it gets. The Earl Wild pieces at the end will blow you away. You'll want to listen to this CD over and over because the music is happy and the execution is perfect.

Richard Dowling has found teh Gershwin Way to play.......2001-08-17

The masterful work displayed on this CD is a pleasure to listen to. The speed with which the keystrokes are perfectly executed is simply astounding. I have only had the CD for about a week and have enjoyed it completely many times.

Dohnány plays Dohnányi: The Complete HMV Solo Piano Recordings, 1929-1956

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Dohnány plays Dohnányi: The Complete HMV Solo Piano Recordings, 1929-1956

Manufacturer: APR
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Dances | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Waltzes | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music
ASIN: B0001HM4H4
Release Date: 2004-01-01

Michaël Zuber Plays Tartini, Bach, Mozart, Kreisler, Gershwin

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Michaël Zuber Plays Tartini, Bach, Mozart, Kreisler, Gershwin

Manufacturer: Fremeaux & Assoc. Fr
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Classical | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B000094664
Release Date: 2003-08-05

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Sebastian Knauer plays George Gershwin

Manufacturer: Glissando
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Preludes | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Soundtracks | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00000J67L
Release Date: 1999-05-01

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Anthony Jennings Plays Bach

Manufacturer: Mam Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Fugues | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

Preludes | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

Toccatas | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00000IXWU
Release Date: 1999-05-18

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