JoAnn Falletta Brings Strauss to Life
Most of you are familiar with maestro JoAnn Falletta’s brilliant work as head of the Virginia Symphony Orchestra and as a virtuoso classical guitar soloist, but she also spends considerable time conducting the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, which is keen on recording challenging and lesser known works from classical music’s magnificent composers.
The most recent CD release from the Falletta-led Buffalo Philharmonic tackles Richard Strauss’ melodic fantasy opera “Die Frau ohne Schatten” and the symphonic fragment from “Josephs-Legende,” his Biblical ballet. These works are nicely paired with the formidable suite from “Der Rosenkavalier” (The Knight of the Rose).
According to the insightful liner notes, Straus, between the years 1946-47, “set out to give renewed life to a small handful of his lesser known score.” This effort included “Josephs” and “Die Frau.” On this recording, the Buffalo orchestra demonstrates its ability to capture the composer’s soaring orchestral themes with triumphantly bombastic enthusiasm and tender dynamics. Credit Falletta, of course.
As for the quality of this recording, let us say bravo to the engineers and production staff. The clarity is exceptional and the thunderous power of the orchestra inspires. A lesser effort might have Strauss rolling in his grave, however, this recording could easily summons him to return from the dead and take a well deserved bow!
Bob Dylan “Christmas in the Heart”(Columbia Records)
National Public Radio recently asked listeners to submit the names of the most distinctive singing voices known in Western Civilization, whether a pure operatic soprano diva or honky-tonkin’ country boy from Tennessee. Sure to make the list is iconic folk artist Bob Dylan, whose nasally twang has interestingly aged into a sonic blend of Leonard Cohen and Tom Waits.
So why is this worth mentioning?
Well, it has a lot to do with Dylan’s surprising new holiday album, “Christmas in the Heart.”
Of late, Bob Dylan has dedicated his life to preserving and forwarding Americana music; his version being a standard mix of Texas country swing and Memphis blues.
This musical style dominates the aural bliss on “Christmas,” a full bag of classics including “O’ Little Town of Bethlehem,” “Silver Bells,” “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” and “The First Noel.”
While Dylan’s voice is hardly as angelic as the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, it is inspirational in a sense, and just plain fun, if not a little kitschy. On most of the tracks, Dylan is backed by a campy swirl of female voices reminiscent of holiday recordings from yesteryear.
My personal favorites: “Must Be Santa” (thanks to its rousing cross of Cajun and Irish jig), “Winterwonderland” (retro to the max) and “Do You Hear What I Hear” (with its so marching beat). The overall best is Dylan’s take on “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” which flows like a gentle falling snow.
Treat yourself to “Christmas in the Heart” in time to share as a soundtrack to holiday get-togethers. – JM
Hot Club of Cowtown Wishful Thinking (Gold Strike Records)
Since some unheralded, undisclosed date in the 1990s, variations of good ol’ fashioned Country and Western music have been coined to identify a younger generation’s fascination with the sounds of Johnny Cash, Bob Willis, Porter Waggoner and countless others. They include Americana, alt-country, newgrass and cow-punk. Enter Austin, Texas based Hot Club of Cowtown.This trio – Elana James (violin and vocals), Whit Smith (guitar and vocals) and Jake Erwin (bass) – has developed a unique mix of old timey country – maybe even pre-country – with elements of smoky, café jazz. Backed by drummer Damien Llanes, the group delivers one beauty of an album with “Wishful Thinking.”For starters – and rightly so – Hot Club covers Willis’ early country classic “Can’t Go On This Way” like a blanket. The traditional sound is nicely recreated, or should I say preserved like a ripe Georgia peach. And speaking of which, they pull-off a fabulous rendition of “Georgia,” the classic tune etched upon most of our minds. But aside from the Gershwin gem “Someone to Watch Over Me,” Hot Club of Cowtown is keen to showcase its original songs, penned in the same style and melodic generosity as its tributes.Where Elana is convincingly country on “Reunion” and “Heart of Romain,” Whit gives a slightly Leonard Cohen-esque vibe to “If You Leave Me” and “Carry Me Close.” The exchange of male/female vocal duties gives the band a nice balance of character. If you’re looking to impress dinner guests with a hot new act with an ageless but refreshing sound, this will satisfy. Highly recommended! – JM
Monsters of Folk “Monsters of Folk” (Rough Trade)
The name Monsters of Folk implies this may be some collaborative effort by such iconic singer-songwriter legends as Bob Dylan, Arlo Guthrie and Joni Mitchell. While the Traveling Wilburys it isn’t, the Monsters represented on this collective effort are a prolific group of musicians that fans of indie pop have come to admire.Monsters of Folk is comprised of Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis of Bright Eyes, Jim James of My Morning Jacket, and M. Ward, a Portland, Oregon recording artist who has made guest appearances on albums from Cat Power and Beth Orton.Technically, Monsters of Folk formed back in 2004 but due to heavy touring and busy overall schedules its members struggled to find time for this creative side project. The record was made sporadically over a two-year period and finally released this fall. On first impression, the self-titled debut was well worth the wait.The album is a 16-track smorgasbord of retro sounding tunes including “Slow Down Jo,” “Baby Boomer” and “Ahead of the Curve.” “Say Please” is a melodic Beatleque gem with a big, noisy guitar solo. There’s a good mix of Lennon and McCartney vocal impressions and overt Beatle chord changes, yet the song smartly comes off as original at the same time. It contrasts nicely with “The Sandman, the Brakeman and Me,” which is a more subdued acoustic folk piece with clear shades of late ‘60s Simon and Garfunkle. The haunting orchestration midway is a well-injected dynamic. Perhaps the most fun tune on the album is the opening “Dear God (Sincerely M.O.F.),” a whimsical blend of swirling harp, electronic beats, hushed, Radiohead-like falsetto vocals and an overall pre-disco, early ‘70s R&B vibe.Scary in a cool sorta way. – JM
Monday, 23 November 2009 19:28 | 
Author: Jeff Maisey | 
