Sensible Sound articles from January 2001

Sensible Sound archives from January 2001

RAMBLINGS.
January 1, 2001... Welcome to Issue #84, which contains our annual staff picks of recordings. Each year I ask our contributors to submit lists of their favorite recordings, and each year they respond with an amazing variety of picks. A special treat in this...

FORUM.
January 1, 2001... My AM Is True Well, here I go, a "first-time reader" who just subscribed, and probably a "last-time writer" (all going well), who'd rather read other people's writing in your magazine than his own. Let me say up front that I like The...

Artistry in Sound.(Jackson Pollock's stereo system)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... Have you seen the movie Pollock yet? I haven't, but I'm looking forward to it, partly because of the very small connection I have with the hi-fi rig that's still installed and working in Jackson Pollock's home. A few years ago, I happened...

DVD All the Way.(Sony DVP-S360 functions well for audio CDs)(Evaluation)
January 1, 2001... In one of my previous columns and in probably more than a few reviews, I have noted that it just does not pay to get a CD player when DVD players are so cheap, particularly since audio and video were well into the process of merging. I have...

Velodyne HGS-10 Subwoofer.(Evaluation)
January 1, 2001... Manufacturer: Velodyne Acoustics, Inc., 1070 Commercial St., Suite # 101, San Jose, CA 95112; www.velodyne.com Price: $1,799 Source: Manufacturer loan Reviewer: Gregory Koster You can't repeal the laws of physics, but it...

Waveform: A Fond Farewell.(speaker company going out of business)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... This is one of those classic good news/ bad news scenarios. The good news is that Waveform, a loudspeaker company from Canada who make some of the best speakers in the world (their tri-amped Mach 17 has been used by Telarc and others for...

Waveform MC.(egg-shaped speaker)(Evaluation)
January 1, 2001... Waveform produced high-end speakers for about 15 years. Over the last few years the midrange and tweeter of the speakers were enclosed in an egg-shaped pod. The MC was the company's lowest-priced product ($1,085 each, with MC tower stand $495,...

Waveform MC/MC.1.(satellite speaker package)(Evaluation)
January 1, 2001... In a way, this report is a pre-funeral encomium. Not too long after this substantial array of gear arrived at my place, its builder, John Otvos, indicated that he was going out of business. His company had been steaming ahead for 15 years, and...

Waveform Mach Solo.(speaker)(Brief Article)(Evaluation)
January 1, 2001... This will be a brief note, for reasons soon to be obvious. Only a few weeks ago as I write this, John Otvos, owner of Waveform, offered to deliver a pair of their Mach Solo speakers for review. (The Mach Solo is quite similar to the MC/MC.1...

Our Favorite Things: Recordings.(staff favorites of the past year)
January 1, 2001... Once again, we have asked our staff to pick their favorites from among the recordings they have encountered during the past year. We think you will agree that this is quite an eclectic list, and we hope that you find it useful. Enjoy! ...

Joey Baron/Arthur Blythe/Ron Carter/Bill Frisell: We'll Soon Find Out (Intuition 3515-2).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Joey Baron/Arthur Blythe/Ron Carter/Bill Frisell: We'll Soon Find Out (Intuition 3515-2) The previous outing for this all-star aggregation, Down Home, was a lot of fun, but not quite convincing, as the "down-hominess" seemed a little...

James Carter: Chasin' the Gypsy (Atlantic 83304-2).(Review)
January 1, 2001... James Carter: Chasin' the Gypsy (Atlantic 83304-2) Saxophonist James Carter has prodigious talent; unfortunately, he also has a tendency to be a hot dog. The result on this outing is a CD that is a glorious mess. Sonically, this is a...

Billy Childs: The Child Within (Shanachie 5023).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Billy Childs: The Child Within (Shanachie 5023) I must have been sleeping when this was originally released, back in 1996; so must have a lot of other people, for I don't remember ever seeing anything about it in the press. (Maybe there...

Copland: Fanfare for the Common Man; Appalachian Spring Suite; Third Symphony Minnesota Orchestra/Eiji Oue (Reference Recordings RR-93CD).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Copland: Fanfare for the Common Man; Appalachian Spring Suite; Third Symphony Minnesota Orchestra/Eiji Oue (Reference Recordings RR-93CD) If you love Copland and big sound, and you have a big system, then this is the disc for you. Recorded...

Chick Corea: Solo Piano Standards (Stretch Records SCD-9028-2).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Chick Corea: Solo Piano Standards (Stretch Records SCD-9028-2) Released as a companion to Corea's Solo Piano Originals disc, this CD features Corea at the piano digging into familiar jazz fare. Surprisingly (at least to me, as I had never...

Steve Davis: Portrait in Sound (Stretch SCD-9027-2).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Steve Davis: Portrait in Sound (Stretch SCD-9027-2) Trombonist Steve Davis is a musician who has been associated with jazz icon Chick Corea. But Davis has put together a fine outing here that stands on its own quite well, thank you. The...

Patrick Demenga/Thomas Demenga: Lux aeterna (ECM New Series 1695 289 465 341-2).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Patrick Demenga/Thomas Demenga: Lux aeterna (ECM New Series 1695 289 465 341-2) The opening work on this ECM New Series CD, Alexander Kneifel's (b. 1943) Lux aeterna, is one of the most fascinating, compelling, intriguing, and rewarding...

Jimmie Dale Gilmore: One Endless Night (Windcharger Music/Rounder 11661-3173-2).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Jimmie Dale Gilmore: One Endless Night (Windcharger Music/Rounder 11661-3173-2). This latest release from wavering-voiced crooner Jimmie Dale Gilmore is a real winner. Some listeners are at first put off by the quality of Gilmore's voice,...

Hawaiian Slack Key Christmas (Dancing Cat Records 08022-38044-2).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Hawaiian Slack Key Christmas (Dancing Cat Records 08022-38044-2) There will probably be many who would not even consider auditioning such a recording, thinking that it must be some sort of slapdash novelty production hastened to market in...

Gidon Kremer/Kremerata Baltica: Silencio (Nonesuch 79552-2).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Gidon Kremer/Kremerata Baltica: Silencio (Nonesuch 79552-2) Violinist Gidon Kremer and his namesake chamber orchestra present works by three composers on this delightful Nonesuch recording. The CD opens with a version of Aarvo Part's Tabula...

Jacques Loussier Trio Plays Debussy (Telarc Jazz CD-83511).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Jacques Loussier Trio Plays Debussy (Telarc Jazz CD-83511) The Jacques Loussier Trio (Loussier on piano, Benoit Dunoyer de Segonzac on bass, and Andre Arpino on drums), having recorded commendable jazz trio interpretations of French...

Mahler: Symphony No. 10 (Revised performing version [1997] by Remo Mazzetti Jr.) Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra/Jesus Lopez-Cobos (Telarc CD-80565).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Mahler: Symphony No. 10 (Revised performing version [1997] by Remo Mazzetti, Jr.) Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra/Jesus Lopez-Cobos (Telarc CD-80565) In my Issue 83 review of Sir Simon Rattle's new EMI recording of the Cooke version with the...

Brad Mehldau: Places (Warner Bros. 9 47693-2).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Brad Mehldau: Places (Warner Bros. 9 47693-2) Brad Mehldau once again tries to come across in his liner notes as something of an intellectual force, and in the liner photo taken with his trio, as something of a bad boy. If nothing else, he...

Messiaen: Turangalila Symphony; L'ascension Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra/Antoni Wit (Naxos 8.554478-79).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Messiaen: Turangalila Symphony; L'ascension Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra/Antoni Wit (Naxos 8.554478-79) How wonderful it is to have these two fine works by Olivier Messiaen available in this inexpensive two-disc release from...

Wes Montgomery: Full House (JVC VICJ-60171).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Wes Montgomery: Full House (JVC VICJ-60171) This JVC XRCD release is of a live recording made on June 25, 1962, at a jazz club in Berkeley, California. The band was certainly a crack one: Montgomery on guitar, Johnny Griffin on tenor sax,...

Mormon Tabernacle Choir: A Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas Mormon Tabernacle Choir/Orchestra at Temple Square/Craig Jessop (Telarc CD-80552).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Mormon Tabernacle Choir: A Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas Mormon Tabernacle Choir/Orchestra at Temple Square/Craig Jessop (Telarc CD-80552) As you might expect, this is quite a grand Christmas recording, featuring the choir, orchestra,...

Penderecki: Orchestral Works Volume 2: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 5 Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra/Antoni Wit (Naxos 8.5544567).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Penderecki: Orchestral Works Volume 2: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 5 Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra/Antoni Wit (Naxos 8.5544567) Sorry, but I must start what will turn out to be quite a favorable review with what I fear many readers will...

Penderecki: Orchestral Works Volume 3: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 4 Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra/Antoni Wit (Naxos 8.554592).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Penderecki: Orchestral Works Volume 3: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 4 Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra/Antoni Wit (Naxos 8.554592) Penderecki first started composing his Symphony No. 2 on Christmas Eve, 1979, and the work has been subtitled...

Wallace Roney: No Room for Argument (Stretch Records SCD-9033-2).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Wallace Roney: No Room for Argument (Stretch Records SCD-9033-2) There have been some excellent recordings led by trumpeters over the last year or two, but this new release from Wallace Roney trumps them all: this is THE jazz recording of...

Mark Turner: Ballad Session (Warner Bros. 9 47631-2).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Mark Turner: Ballad Session (Warner Bros. 9 47631-2) Tenor saxophonist Mark Turner, who at least in the photographs included in this CD bears a striking resemblance to the Indiana Pacers' Reggie Miller, shows in this CD that he has the...

Who Loves You? A Tribute to Jaco Pastorius (Concord Jazz CCD-4929-2).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Who Loves You? A Tribute to Jaco Pastorius (Concord Jazz CCD-4929-2) A little gripe before I go-go... In the liner notes, the Who Loves You? title is said to have been used because Jaco Pastorius borrowed it from Kojak and used to use it...

Double Double.(comparing different recordings of classical works)
January 1, 2001... In Issue 83, Tom Lyle and I compared two recordings of Finnish composer Jean Sibelius's Symphony No. 4. In that comparison, both Tom and I favored the RCA Victor release featuring Sir Colin Davis leading the London Symphony Orchestra (RCA...

Carousel Corner.(popular music)(Column)(Review)
January 1, 2001... As we noted in the annual music collection elsewhere in this issue, hip-hop holds dominion over the known world. Rap rules. And the Billboard Top Ten reads like a pantheon of latter day hip-hip godbots: Eminem, Wu Tang Clan, Snoop Doggy Dogg,...

Scoping Software: More Surround Sound.
January 1, 2001... As noted in the previous installment of Scoping Software, while most of today's recordings are still two-channel items, specifically designed to be played back on two-channel audio systems, I have lately been trying to deal with software that...

Linda Brava.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Linda Brava. EMI 7243 5 56922 2 1. It seems almost a rule of thumb these days that new, young female violinists are beautiful. Linda Brava takes it step further; she is both beautiful and glamorous. Glamorous enough, in fact, to grace a...

Copland the Populist.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Copland the Populist. Michael Tilson Thomas, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. RCA 09026-63511-2. Is Michael Tilson Thomas America's answer to Sir Simon Rattle? MTT is certainly one of our finest conductors, and here I want to say "young"...

Debussy: Nocturnes; La Mer; Iberia Ravel: Alborada del gracioso; Rapsodie espagnole; Daphnis et Chloe, Suite No. 2; Le Tombeau de Couperin; La Valse. Sergiu Celibidache, SWR Stuttgard Radio Symphony Orchestra. DG 543 194-2 (3-disc set).(Review)
January 1, 2001... Debussy: Nocturnes; La Mer; Iberia. Ravel: Alborada del gracioso; Rapsodie espagnole; Daphnis et Chloe, Suite No. 2; Le Tombeau de Couperin; La Valse. Sergiu Celibidache, SWR Stuttgard Radio Symphony Orchestra. DG 543 194-2 (3-disc set). ...

Jacques Loussier Trio Play Debussy.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Jacques Loussier Trio Play Debussy. Telarc CD-83511. Having already provided some subtle jazz inflections to the works of Bach, Ravel, Satie, and Vivaldi on the Telarc label, the Jacques Loussier Trio do their thing with Debussy. The Trio...

Ferko: Stabat Mater. His Majestie's Clerkes. Cedille Records CDR 90000 051.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Ferko: Stabat Mater. His Majestie's Clerkes. Cedille Records CDR 90000 051. The idea of a creating a new musical setting for the Stabat Mater is not really new. It has been done often over the years since the Latin hymn was first written...

Mahler: Symphony No. 1, "Titan." Yoel Levi, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Telarc DSD CD-80545.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Mahler: Symphony No. 1, "Titan." Yoel Levi, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Telarc DSD CD-80545. I love Mahler, but I'm not convinced there is as much to him as is generally ascribed. He has been the darling of the stereo age with his...

Mahler: Symphony No. 10. Sir Simon Rattle, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. EMI 7243 5 56972 2 6.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Mahler: Symphony No. 10. Sir Simon Rattle, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. EMI 7243 5 56972 2 6. Controversy continues to swirl around Mahler's final, uncompleted symphony, largely because of the ethics of trying to guess what the composer...

Mozart: Serenata notturna in D major; Notturno in D major; Overture to Lucio Silla; Four interludes from Thamos; Symphony No. 32; Six German Dances. Peter Maag, London Symphony Orchestra. Decca Legends 289 466 500-2.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Mozart: Serenata notturna in D major; Notturno in D major; Overture to Lucio Silla; Four interludes from Thamos; Symphony No. 32; Six German Dances. Peter Maag, London Symphony Orchestra. Decca Legends 289 466 500-2. Tighten your belts...

Nielsen: Symphonies Nos. 4 and 5. Michael Schonwandt, Danish National Radio Symphony Orchestra. Dacapo Records 8.224156.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Nielsen: Symphonies Nos. 4 and 5. Michael Schonwandt, Danish National Radio Symphony Orchestra. Dacapo Records 8.224156. The early-20th-century Danish composer Carl Nielsen was unusually prolific. He not only wrote six symphonies, he did...

O Magnum Mysterium.(Review)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... O Magnum Mysterium. Robert Shaw, Robert Shaw Festival Singers and the Robert Chamber Singers. Telarc CD-80531. The past few years have seen Telarc repackaging quite a lot of their old material and reissuing it under a new name. In the case...

Queen: A Night at the Opera. DCC Compact Classics GZS-1144.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Queen: A Night at the Opera. DCC Compact Classics GZS-1144. DCC's publicity blurb for Queen's A Night at the Opera begins, "Available for the first time on 24 karat gold CD...." It's one thing for DCC to feel a sense of relief that their...

Queensryche: Empire. DCC Compact Classics GZS-1138.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Queensryche: Empire. DCC Compact Classics GZS-1138. With the demise of Mobile Fidelity, known primarily as a rock-and-roll company, DCC has stepped in to fill the gold-mastering rock void. Or maybe it's just coincidence that DCC's first two...

Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 3; Sonata No. 2. Vladimir Horowitz, piano; Eugene Ormandy, New York Philharmonic. RCA 09026-63681-2.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 3; Sonata No. 2. Vladimir Horowitz, piano; Eugene Ormandy, New York Philharmonic. RCA 09026-63681-2. This may be one of the most underrated albums of all time. I don't usually like live recordings, but this...

Respighi: Feste romane; Pini di Roma; Rimsky-Korsakov: Le Coq d'or, suite. Lorin Maazel, the Cleveland Orchestra. Decca Legends 289 466 993-2.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Respighi: Feste romane; Pini di Roma; Rimsky-Korsakov: Le Coq d'or, suite. Lorin Maazel, the Cleveland Orchestra. Decca Legends 289 466 993-2. Let's ignore the "Roman Festivals," which are mostly noisy and bombastic, and concentrate on...

Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade; Russian Easter Overture; Debussy: La Mer. Erich Leinsdorf, Los Angeles Concert Arts Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestras. EMI 7243 5 67314 2 4.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade; Russian Easter Overture; Debussy: La Mer. Erich Leinsdorf, Los Angeles Concert Arts Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestras. EMI 7243 5 67314 2 4. EMI forge merrily on with their FDS, Full...

Salter and Skinner: Mystery and Horror. Marco Polo 8.225124.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Salter and Skinner: Mystery and Horror. Marco Polo 8.225124. Marco Polo continue their merry way with the reconstruction and recording of old film scores. They seem to be about the only ones interested in preserving this near-ancient...

Webb: Cat People. William T. Stromberg, Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra. Marco Polo 8.225125.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Webb: Cat People. William T. Stromberg, Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra. Marco Polo 8.225125. Marco Polo continue their merry way with the reconstruction and recording of old film scores. They seem to be about the only ones interested in...

Schumann: Piano concerto; Piano Quintet. Maria Joao Pires, piano; Claudio Abbado, Chamber Orchestra of Europe. DG 289 463 179-2.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Schumann: Piano Concerto; Piano Quintet. Maria Joao Pires, piano; Claudio Abbado, Chamber Orchestra of Europe. DG 289 463 179-2. Old war horses never die. For those folks who don't already own a copy of Schumann's venerable classic, this...

Serene Ecstasy: The Light and Sorrow of Orthodox Russia. Spiritual Revival Choir of Moscow. Delos DE 3264.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Serene Ecstasy: The Light and Sorrow of Orthodox Russia. Spiritual Revival Choir of Moscow. Delos DE 3264. First, this is not one of those Virtual Reality surround-sound things that Delos have mostly been issuing lately. It's a straight...

Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony; Schnittke: Concerto for Piano and Strings. Constantine Orbelian, pianist and conductor; Moscow Chamber Orchestra. Delos DE 3259.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Shostakovich: Chamber Symphony; Schnittke: Concerto for Piano and Strings. Constantine Orbelian, pianist and conductor; Moscow Chamber Orchestra. Delos DE 3259. This disc prepares you for the unyielding material it contains by declaring on...

Stravinsky: Petrouchka; Le Chant du rossignol; Feu d'artifice. Lorin Maazel, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. RCA 74321-57127-2.(Review)
January 1, 2001... Stravinsky: Petrouchka; Le Chant du rossignol; Feu d'artifice. Lorin Maazel, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. RCA 74321-57127-2. In the disc's main attraction, Lorin Maazel leads the VPO in a languorous performance of Stravinsky's original...