Sensible Sound articles from August 2001

Sensible Sound archives from August 2001

Ramblings.(Editorial)
August 1, 2001... Welcome to Issue #87, another issue that looks at a wide variety of equipment of different shapes, sorts, and sizes. Not only are there numerous reviews of equipment, but there is also a pair of reports on equipment that was on display at the...

Welcome back! (Forum).(Letter to the Editor)
August 1, 2001... I left New York in January of 1980. Before leaving, I sold about 600 LPs--mostly jazz--and my audio system, except for a pair of Rogers LS 3/5As, and a Hailer DH-220. I set out for San Francisco where I settled and lived as a lapsed audiophile...

Bose prose. (Forum).(Letter to the Editor)
August 1, 2001... (1) It was an informative pleasure to once again read a complete review by Tom Nousaine. He must have more hands-on experience with consumer subwoofers and woofers than any other reviewer that I know of. What sets him apart from all the other...

Bose pros. (Forum).(Letter to the Editor)
August 1, 2001... I was fascinated to read your review of the Bose 901s. It is because of reviews such as yours that I continue to subscribe. Though I don't love the 901s, they are currently my primary speakers. I purchased a set of 901 Series V for $250 off the...

Surveying the soundscape.(Home Entertainment 2001 show )
August 1, 2001... A Really, Really Big Shew: When the Home Entertainment 2001 show hit the New York Hilton in May, it was more like an invasion than an event. At one point, I overheard a walkie-talkie conversation between a couple of normally unflappable Hilton...

That's Entertainment: our man in New York (Greg Koster) covers the Home Entertainment 2001 Show. (Special Report).(Brief Article)
August 1, 2001... The first High-End Hi-Fi Show in New York, in 1987, included 55 speaker models from 41 manufacturers. The 1990 High-End Hi-Fi Show had grown to 57 systems. The third show in New York, in 1996, reflected the changing nature oaf the high end...

Bose QC-1 Quiet Comfort Acoustic Noise Canceling Headset.(Brief Article)(Evaluation)
August 1, 2001... Manufacturer: Bose Corporation, The Mountain, Framingham, MA 01701 Price: $299.95 Source: Manufacturer loan The Bose QC-1 Quiet Comfort Acoustic Noise Canceling Headset provides noise canceling and the ability to hear music and/or...

Diablo Acoustics Model 6.(Brief Article)(Evaluation)
August 1, 2001... Manufacturer: Diablo Acoustics, website: www.diabloacoustics.com Price: $3,000/pair Source: Manufacturer loan I dreaded writing this article. Why? Not because there is any significant flaw in these speakers--there is not. No, I...

Dunlavy Audio Labs Cantata.(Evaluation)
August 1, 2001... Manufacturer: Dunlavy Audio Labs, Inc., P.O. Box 49399, Colorado Springs, CO 80849-9399 Price: $5000/pr Source: Manufacturer loan Those of you who have been reading this magazine for a couple of years might remember my review of the Dunlavy...

Eggleston Fontaines: a Correction.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2001... Two portions of the Eggleston Fontaine loudspeaker review in issue 85 were inadvertently missing. The first missing section was flattering text that applied to the in-room response curve (which did print): "Some weeks went by, but I did not...

Linn Classik CD/Receiver.
August 1, 2001... Manufacturer: Linn Products Ltd., Floors Road, Waterfoot, Glasgow, Scotland G76 OEP, linn.co.uk Distributor: Linn, Incorporated, 4540 Southside Blvd., Suite 402, Jacksonville, FL 32216; 904/645-5242 Price: $1,995 Source: Distributor loan ...

Linn Tukan.(speakers)
August 1, 2001... Manufacturer: Linn Products Ltd., Floors Road, Waterfoot, Glasgow, Scotland G76 OEP, linn.co.uk Distributor: Linn, Incorporated, 4540 Southside Blvd., Suite 402, Jacksonville, FL 32216, 904-645-5242 Price: $795/pr Source: Distributor loan...

Onkyo PS-509 "Precise" Stereo System.
August 1, 2001... Manufacturer: Onkyo USA Corporation, 18 Park Way, Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458; 800/229-1687; www.onkyousa.com Price: $629.95 Source: Manufacturer loan Reviewer: Thom Moon Not too long ago, if you wanted a small stereo for a bedroom or...

Yamaha RX-V3000 Audio/Video Receiver.
August 1, 2001... Manufacturer: Yamaha Electronics Corporation, 6660 Orangethorpe Ave., Buena Park, CA 90620; 800/4-YAMAHA Price: $2000 Source: Manufacturer Loan Reviewer: Howard Ferstler This is the fourth Yamaha product I have reviewed since I began...

Ballads (Remembering John Coltrane).
August 1, 2001... Karrin Allyson: Ballads (Remembering John Coltrane) (Concord Jazz CCD-4950-2) This is a really good album that could have been a really great album. The concept is bold: a jazz vocal album of the ballads associated with John Coltrane's...

Freefall.
August 1, 2001... Kenny Barron and Regina Carter: Freefall (Verve 314 549 706-2) Pianist Kenny Barron is, as always, a delight, but what keeps this recording from being truly delightful is the rather earthbound violin playing of Regina Carter. Her previous...

The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album.
August 1, 2001... The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Albums (JVC JVCXR-020802) The day Frank Sinatra died, I was walking down the street in Monterey, California, when I was asked by a TV news crew what I thought of Frank Sinatra. Without blinking, I said that I...

Written in the Stars.
August 1, 2001... Bill Charlap Trio: Written in the Stars (Blue Note Records 7243 5 27291 2 8) The Bill Charlap Trio comprises Charlap on piano, Peter Washington on bass, and Kenny Washington on drums. The tunes are standards, the mood is lyrical, and the...

The Seven Last Words of Jesus Christ.
August 1, 2001... Haydn: The Seven Last Words of Jesus Christ Rosamunde Quartet (ECM New Series 1756 289 461780-2) The full title of Haydn's composition is usually given as The Seven Last Words of Jesus Christ from the Cross. The shorter version above is...

Not for Nothin'.
August 1, 2001... Dave Holland Quintet: Not for Nothin' (ECM 1758 CD 314 014-004-2) Master bassist Dave Holland has been playing with this same group (Chris Potter on saxophones, Robin Eubanks on trombone, Steve Nelson on vibes and marimba, and Billy Kilson...

Levee Town.
August 1, 2001... Sonny Landreth: Levee Town (Sugar Hill SUGCD-3925) Sonny Landreth plays a mean slide guitar, and he has provided some excellent support to John Hiatt over the years (Hiatt sings background on one cut). I had auditioned a couple of his...

Symphony No. 4.
August 1, 2001... Mahler: Symphony No. 4 Philharmonia Orchestra/Camilla Tilling, soprano/Benjamin Zander (Telarc 2CD-80555) Who would have ever thought that Telarc would someday become the recording label boasting of the most distinguished catalog of Mahler...

Blues for Bighead.
August 1, 2001... Andy McCloud's Gentlemen of Jazz: Blues for Bighead (Mapleshade 07832) Bassist Andy McCloud leads a quartet that includes Steve Nelson on vibes (who would later go on to much greater heights as part of The Dave Holland Quintet), Joe Ford...

Move to the Groove.
August 1, 2001... Pat Metheny and The Heath Brothers + Ralph Towner and Charlie Haden: Move to the Groove (West Wind WW 2155) This release is something of a musical mutt. The first five cuts were made in Cannes, France, in 1983. Four of them feature Metheny...

Gotcha!
August 1, 2001... Ernest Ranglin: Gotcha! (Telarc CD-83533) In last issue's Ramblings column I included a belated review of Ernest Ranglin's previous effort for Telarc, Old Solutions to Modern Problems; with this new release, I am trying to be more timely...

Passage of Time.
August 1, 2001... Joshua Redman Quartet: Passage of Time (Warner Bros. 9 48080-2) This new CD from the Joshua Redman Quartet (Redman on tenor sax, Aaron Goldberg on piano, Reuben Rogers on bass, and Gregory Hutchinson on drums) represents Redman's most...

Scheherezade; Russian Easter Overture.
August 1, 2001... Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherezade; Russian Easter Overture Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/Robert Spano (Telarc CD-80568) No need to beat around the bush here: this is one of the finer overall combinations of performance and sound this warhorse has...

Klavierstucke.
August 1, 2001... Schonberg/Schubert: Klavierstucke Thomas Larcher, piano (ECM New Series 1667 465 136-2) What a fascinating recording! Pianist Thomas Larcher juxtaposes pieces by these two Viennese masters, the end result being more than an hour of...

Symphonies Nos. 1 and 15.
August 1, 2001... Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 and 15 Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra/Jesus Lopez-Cobos (Telarc CD-80572) Maestro Lopez-Cobos, who is leaving the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, is also leaving quite an excellent legacy of recorded...

Phantasy Quintet; String Quartets Nos. 1 & 2.
August 1, 2001... Vaughan Williams: Phantasy Quintet; String Quartets Nos. 1 & 2 Maggini Quartet/Garfield Jackson, viola (Quintet) (Naxos 8.555300) The Maggini Quartet has been making some excellent recordings of British chamber music for the Naxos label,...

Double double.(comparing two recordings of Mahler's Symphony No. 1)
August 1, 2001... Long-time readers should be well aware that Tom Lyle and I are big-time fans of the music of Gustav Mahler. When Telarc recently released a recording of that composer's Symphony No. 1 in audiophile-grade DSD sound (Telarc CD-80545, featuring...

Carousel corner.(popular music)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2001... Nothing separates the generations more than music. By the time a child is nine he has developed a passion for his own music that is even stronger than his passion for procrastination and weird clothes. (Bill Cosby, Turn That Crap Down!) ...

The Marshall Mathers LP.
August 1, 2001... Eminem, The Marshall Mathers LP (Aftermath/ Interscope) The great thing about rage is that no pube escapes it. Some deal with it better than others, but every one of us and every one of our sons and daughters inevitably feels disconnected...

The History of Rock.
August 1, 2001... Kid Rock, The History of Rock (Lava/Atlantic) Robert James "Kid Rock" Ritchie hails from Romeo, Michigan, one of Detroit's dinky, dirty northern `burbs, largely working-class, white -- chock full of the proverbial fast cars, street drugs,...

Enema of the State.
August 1, 2001... Blink-182, Enema of the State (MCA) The great thing about checking out stuff you've seen on the shelves, but you're not quite sure you've ever heard, is that you can stumble across an unsuspected gem or get stuck with a real stinker. Enema...

Renegades.
August 1, 2001... Rage Against the Machine, Renegades (Epic) Rage Against the Machine (Zack de la Rocha, Brad Wilk, Tom Morello, and Tim Bob Commerford) has achieved renown as leftist guerrillas, much like the MC5 did some decades ago. And for all of their...

The Last Meal.
August 1, 2001... Snoopdogg, The Last Meal (Priority) Despite his late efforts to distance himself from West coast gangsta rap, The Last Meal is evidence that Snoop Dogg's fate is bathed in confrontational violence, replete with the gunshot punctuation on...

Levee Town.
August 1, 2001... Sonny Landreth, Levee Town (Sugar Hill). From his seminal work, which we reviewed in No. 81, to his work with John Hiatt's band, The Goners, to this latest solo collection, Landreth's unique slide guitar style has grown with depth,...

Little Sparrow.
August 1, 2001... Dolly Parton, Little Sparrow (Sugar Hill). Okay, Dolly. Enough! I'm a convert already. No, really. I had assumed, like I think many others, that The Grass Is Blue, Dolly Parton's Sugar Hill debut, was compulsive. Everybody tries to go...

Tone Poems III.
August 1, 2001... Mike Auldridge, Bob Brozman, & David Grisman, Tone Poems III (Acoustic Disc). After the astonishing initial Tone Poems with Tony Rice and the slightly less arresting Tone Poems II, one wondered what David Grisman could possible cook up for...

A Day Without Rain.
August 1, 2001... Enya, A Day Without Rain (Reprise). Ever since Enya lulled my infant daughter to sleep lo those many years past, I've come to treasure her songs, her instrumentation, and her lovely voice. Yeah, it's still New Age -- which has entered...

Mai.
August 1, 2001... Eri Sugai, Mai (Pacific Moon). It had to happen. After all Japan is arguably the nestling stone of New Age, all that mood music to calm an overcrowded island. Eri Sugai is Japan's Enya. No, don't laugh. Mai starts with "Horizon", something...

Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea.
August 1, 2001... P.J. Harvey, Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea (Island). Polly Harvey debuted at a full roar, and age, love, and success haven't cut her decibels a single skosh. If anything, Stories finds her songwriting mature, punchy, melodic,...

And Furthermore ...
August 1, 2001... Hot Tuna, And Furthermore... (Grateful Dead/ Arista) Many, many years ago a bunch of us flocked to UC Berkeley's on-campus hamburger joint, The Bear's Lair, one Saturday night to hear a new band, reportedly renegades from Jefferson...

Don't Let Go.
August 1, 2001... Jerry Garcia Band, Don't Let Go (Grateful Dead/ Arista) Garcia's alter ego, this 1976 version with Keith and Donna Godchaux, John Hahn, and Ron Tett on drums, went places the Dead wouldn't or couldn't. Yet, this era's ambience slo-o-o-owed...

Everyday.
August 1, 2001... Dave Matthews Band, Everyday (RCA) Ever since the astonishing Under the Table and Dreaming, I've suspected that the real Dave Matthews Band has been bound and gagged in a dark, dripping place while some imposters have been touring to the...

Anthology.
August 1, 2001... Katrina and the Waves, Anthology (One Way Records) When I wrote about this band some time ago, the CDs of their three albums, Katrina and the Waves, Waves, and Break of Hearts had been out of print for many years. One Way has done all of...

Clarinet Concerto, Symphony No. 4.
August 1, 2001... Nielsen, Clarinet Concerto, Symphony No. 4 ("The Inextinguishable"), BBC National Orchestra of Wales; Takaaki Otaka (Concerto) and Petri Sakari (Symphony No. 4), conductors; Robert Plane, clarinet. (BBC Music Magazine) Fortuitously after...

Blitzkrieg Pop and Other Mutations.
August 1, 2001... The C-Nuts, Blitzkrieg Pop and Other Mutations (Wildchild!) The practice of copping pop songs and transmogrifying them into "standards" dates back to the jazz's multiple births and continues to this day -- an unbroken line from Armstrong to...

Ras Mek Peace.
August 1, 2001... Midnite, Ras Mek Peace (Before Reverb And Without Delay) (Wildchild!) Hey, mon, ya know reggae stray from de truth, mon. Weya fight Babylon, mon, with prayer, peace, and ganja, mya brother. Wey'all hail Selassi, de Lion of Judah, mon, de...

Ghosts of Hallelujah.
August 1, 2001... The Gourds, Ghosts of Hallelujah (Sugar Hill) Ghosts of Hallelujah starts with "Up on High" and the telling lyric "Dispatch that toothless hound dog/And while that dog was taking a shit/I snuck up behind him and gave him a kick/Which turned...

Scoping software: more fairly short takes.(Review)
August 1, 2001... The last time I did this column, I explained that I had tons of discs to review, requiring that I make my comments brief. Having again received quite a few transcriptions to audition, I am again forced to offer abbreviated reports on a rather...

Requiem; Symphony Number 9.
August 1, 2001... Surround Sound Recordings on CD and DVD Dvorak, Antonin: Requiem; Symphony Number 9. New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Zdnek Macal, and Westminster Choir, directed by Joseph Flummerfelt. Recorded in 1999, at the New Jersey Performing...

Mendelssohn, Felix: Gala Concert From the Gewandhaus, Leipzig, including A Midsummernight Dream, Violin Concerto, and Symphony Number 3. Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, conducted by Kurt Masur.
August 1, 2001... Mendelssohn, Felix: Gala Concert From the Gewandhaus, Leipzig, including A Midsummernight Dream, Violin Concerto, and Symphony Number 3. Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, conducted by Kurt Masur. Recording date not listed. Engineer not listed. 82+...

Seven Gates of Jerusalem (Symphony Number 7).
August 1, 2001... Penderecki, Krzysztof: Seven Gates of Jerusalem (Symphony Number 7). Penderecki Festival Orchestra and Warsaw Philharmonic Choir, conducted by Penderecki himself. The sound engineering was by Andy Rose. 140+ minutes. Arthaus Musik 100 009. ...

Shostakovich Dmitri: Chamber Symphony; Alfred Schnittke: Concerto for Piano and Strings.
August 1, 2001... Shostakovich, Dmitri: Chamber Symphony; Alfred Schnittke: Concerto for Piano and Strings. Moscow Chamber Orchestra, conducting and piano by Constantine Obelian. Recorded in 2000, at Skywalker Sound. Engineers: John Eargle and Jeff Mee. 47+...

The Nutcracker.
August 1, 2001... Tchaikovsky, Peter: The Nutcracker (complete). Staatskapelle Berlin, conducted by Daniel Barenboim. Ballet of the Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin. Recorded in 1999. Engineer: not listed. 118 minutes. Art Haus Music 100119. This DVD video is...

12 Concerti a Cinque, op. 5.
August 1, 2001... Classics on Stereo Compact Disc Albinoni, Tomaso: 12 Concerti a Cinque, op. 5. Collegium Musicum 90, conducted by Simon Standage. Recorded in 2000, at All Saints Church, London. Engineer: Jonathan Cooper. 76+ minutes. Chandos 0663. This...

Bach and the French Clavecinists.
August 1, 2001... Bach and the French Clavecinists (works by J.S. Bach, Louis Marchand, and Gaspard Le Roux). Andrew Appel, harpsichord. Recorded in 1999, at St. Mary's Church, Hudson, N.Y. Engineer: David Walters. 63+ minutes. ASV 6247. This material...

Sonatas for Violin and Harpsichord, volume 1.
August 1, 2001... Bach, J.S.: Sonatas for Violin and Harpsichord, volume 1. Lucy van Dael, violin; Bob van Asperen, harpsichord. Recorded in 1999, at St Michael's Church, London. Engineer: Elanor Thomason. 61+ minutes. Naxos 8.554614. This is a superior...

The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1.
August 1, 2001... Bach, J.S.: The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1 Gary Cooper, harpsichord. Recorded in 2000, at New College Chapel, Oxford, England. Engineer: Adrian Hunter. 126+ minutes; two-disc set. ASV 251. This release had a wonderful, up-close sound...

Capriccio Stravagante.
August 1, 2001... Capriccio Stravagante, Volume 1 (music by Carlo Farina, Girolamo Frescobaldi, Francesco Turini, and others). The Purcell Quartet and His Majesty's Sagbutts and Cornetts. Recorded in 1998 and 2000, at St. Judes Hall, Hampstead, London. Engineer:...

Concerto Collection.
August 1, 2001... Concerto Collection. (Works by C.P.E. Bach, Boccherini, Vivaldi, Janson, and Couperin.) Santa Fe Festival Orchestra, Janos Starker, cello. Recorded ca. 1996; location not listed. Engineer: John Newton. 74+ minutes. Delos DE 3197. This was...

Music for Advent.
August 1, 2001... Music For Advent. Choir of Men and Boys, Grace Cathedral, San Francisco. Recorded ca. 2000. Engineer: Michael Larner. 71+ minutes. Gothic 49119. This is a definitely top-grade choral recording, with superb depth, detail, and soundstaging....

Robert Hamilton.
August 1, 2001... Robert Hamilton (album title), playing piano works by Mozart, Chopin, Debussy, and Aurandt. Recorded ca. 2000, location not listed. Engineer: Clarke Rigsby. 76+ minutes. Summit 278. This is an excellent recording of some excellent...

Symphony Number 10; The Big Lightning.
August 1, 2001... Shostakovich, Dmitri: Symphony Number 10; The Big Lightning. Russian State Symphony Orchestra and Symphonic Capella, under Valeri Polyansky. Recorded in 1995 (Symphony) and 2000 (Lightning). Engineer: Igor Verprintsev. 74+ minutes. Chandos...

The Movies.
August 1, 2001... Ball, Michael: The Movies. Recorded ca. 1998, at Scratch Studios, Surrey, and at Whitfield Street Studios, London. Engineer: Robin Sellars. 55+ minutes. Hip-O 241. With the tracks done at either location, this is a very smooth,...

Sailing to Philadelphia.
August 1, 2001... Knopfler, Mark: Sailing to Philadelphia. Recorded ca. 2000, location not listed. Engineer: Chuck Ainlay, with several assistants. 60+ minutes. Warner 47753. James Taylor assists Knopfler during the featured song. This is a pop recording...

Short Films.
August 1, 2001... Newton, Cam: Short Films, featuring Michael Bard and Rob Thomas, plus about a dozen additional ensemble members. Recorded ca. 2000, at Recording Associates, Portland, Oregon. Engineer: Michael Bard. 51+ minutes. Summit 1007. This release...

Aznavour: 2000.
August 1, 2001... EMI 7243-5290562-1. I remember when Charles Aznavour was about the sexiest voice alive. That was maybe 30 or more years ago. And you know something, he hasn't changed a bit since "she" was an international success. This new recording finds...

Brandenburg Concerto No. 5, etc.
August 1, 2001... Bach: Brandenburg Concerto No. 5, etc. Emmanuel Pahud, flute; Berlin Baroque Soloists. EMI 7243-5-57111-2. This disc of Bach material is really a showcase for flutist Emmanuel Pahud, a former member of the Berlin Philharmonic and on his...

Concerto for Orchestra; Dance Suite; Miraculous Mandarin, suite.
August 1, 2001... Bartok: Concerto for Orchestra; Dance Suite; Miraculous Mandarin, suite. Sir Georg Solti, London Symphony Orchestra. Decca Legends 289 467 686-2. Practice, I suppose, made perfect. Hungarian-born Georg Solti had been a page-turner for...

The Music of Frank Bridge.
August 1, 2001... Bridge: The Music of Frank Bridge. Constantine Orbelian, Moscow Chamber Orchestra. Delos DE 3263. For the last quarter century, one of my favorite albums for pure relaxation has been EMI's recording of Bridge's "The Sea" and other short...

Piano Concerto No. 1; Nocturnes Nos. 4, 5, 7, and 8; Ballade No 1; Polonaise No. 6.
August 1, 2001... Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 1; Nocturnes Nos. 4, 5, 7, and 8; Ballade No 1; Polonaise No. 6. Maurizio Pollini, piano; Paul Kletzki, Philharmonia Orchestra. EMI 7243 5 67549 2. I first discovered Maurizio Pollini's 1960 rendering of Chopin's...

An Irish Symphony; With the Wild Geese; In Ireland.
August 1, 2001... Harty: An Irish Symphony; With the Wild Geese; In Ireland. Proinssias O Duinn, National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland. Naxos 8.554732. How could a album of Irish orchestral music miss that features three of the most popular works of one of...

A Faust Symphony; Dante Symphony; Les Preludes; Prometheus.
August 1, 2001... Liszt: A Faust Symphony; Dante Symphony; Les Preludes; Prometheus. Sir Georg Solti, Chicago Symphony Orchestra and London Philharmonic; Jesus Lopez-Cobos, L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande. Decca Double 289 466 751-1 (2-disc set.) This...

Symphony No. 9; Lieder from "Des Knaben Wunderhorn.".
August 1, 2001... Mahler: Symphony No. 9; Lieder from "Des Knaben Wunderhorn." Jessye Norman, John Shirley-Quirk; Bernard Haitink, Concertgebouw Orchestra. Philips 289 464 714-2 (2-disc set). A little over a year ago, I was writing about the latest CD issue...

Yehudi Menuhin Conducts Mozart.
August 1, 2001... Mozart: Yehudi Menuhin Conducts Mozart. Yehudi Menuhin, Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, Sinfonia Varsovia, English Chamber Orchestra. Virgin 7243 5 61678 2 7 (5-disc set). I've never been big on recommending sets of anything. Usually,...

Symphony No. 2; Vocalise.
August 1, 2001... Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 2; Vocalise. Jesus Lopez-Cobos, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. Telarc CD-80543. What piece of music is more lush and plush and Romantic than Rachmaninoff's Second Symphony, and what music company is more noted...

Six Sonatas for Strings.
August 1, 2001... Rossini: Six Sonatas for Strings. Antonio Janigro, I Solisti di Zagreb. Vanguard Classics SVC-144. Here is one of my favorite old groups, I Solisti di Zagreb, performing the ever-delightful Sonatas for Strings by Gioacchino Rossini. I...

Symphonies Nos. 6 and 7; The Tempest, Suite No. 2.
August 1, 2001... Sibelius: Symphonies Nos. 6 and 7; The Tempest, Suite No. 2. Petri Sakari, Iceland Symphony Orchestra. Naxos 8.554387. In order for any Sibelius performance to reach a level of excellence, it must display equal measures of boreal iciness...

Songs of Love.
August 1, 2001... Placido Domingo. EMI 7243 5 57045 2. A friend of mine in the music business commented recently that everything he sees on the classical shelves these days is a reissue or compilation. He suggested that it must be an indication of the weak...

Music for Wind Band, Vol. I.(John Philip Sousa)
August 1, 2001... John Philip Sousa: Music for Wind Band, Vol. I. Keith Brion, Royal Artillery Band. Naxos 8.559058. It's always welcome to hear Sousa played without the usual histrionics, but I wonder if conductor Keith Brion couldn't have added just a...

The Son of Kong; The Most Dangerous Game.
August 1, 2001... Steiner: The Son of Kong; The Most Dangerous Game. William T. Stromberg, Moscow Symphony Orchestra. Marco Polo 8.225166. Lovers of old film scores may safely continue to cheer the Marco Polo reconstructions of the past few years. This one...