x close

Haunted Heart

While countless fans flock to see soprano Renee Fleming's performances of the Countess in The Marriage of Figaro because she's got the voice and the dramatic ability to handle such meaty roles, the versatile singer throws her fans a curveball on Haunted Heart, singing popular standards and ballads as well as a few altered classical pieces. In her liner notes, Fleming calls this album a "look back at the road not taken" -- she played a weekly gig in a jazz club while in school. Nonetheless, her feel for the material here is undeniable. Interestingly, she drops her voice a full octave from her usual tessitura, and the change reveals a robust gospel-oriented approach filled with dramatic breaths and moans. The lyrical Fred Hersch (piano) and the idiosyncratic Bill Frisell (guitar) provide support, and both are adventurous jazz players who create subtle and uniquely haunting backdrops. It adds up to an interesting cross-section of ideas well carried off by the generous talents of all involved. --Tad Hendrickson

\

Interview with Renee Fleming
Renee Fleming speaks about recent projects, including her memoir The Inner Voice and her recent Handel CD, in our interview.

---

Customer Review:

Haunted Heart - Songs sung by Renee Fleming

This CD is quite outstanding. Im a great fan of Renee Fleming who in my view is the best soprano in the world today. I was simply amazed when listening to this CD which I obtained from Amazon.com. I did not think that she could sing in such a true jazz style. Many opera singers try to sing popular songs but they almost all sing in an operatic fashion. Renee sings with the aplomb of a true jazz singer. It is truly an amazing CD which I have now listened to over and over. The last track is incredible and powerful. Only criticism is that some tracks later in the CD could have been left out - somehow they dont fit in. But a wonderful CD to have. Only hope she makes another similar. Mike Woollam Pietermaritzburg South Africa

A nice change of pace

A good singer can handle a variety of genres, and Renee does so here with aplomb. Her covers of standards shows her expressiveness and depth. I'm not nuts about some of the arrangements, as they lend a lounge-lizardy air, but she's taken a song I've never particularly liked ('Midnight Sun') and made it lovely and haunting. Including some non-English-language tunes is an approach I applaud as well.

Genre-Busting Standards A Winner

Okay - I am no Renee Fleming fan. And I don't know much about classical music. I do know that Fleming is the piece de resistance of opera. What drew me to this cd was the cover photo and title. With a look at the song selections, I decided to give it a whirl.

Who, I thought, was this smoke-tinged woman dripping with sentimentality and late-night blues emanating from this record and how could she possibly set the opera world on its ear?

Since I can't compare this to her other more well-known works, all I can say is I was captivated. While not a perfect record, certainly a very good one. The alternate mix of jazz and classical is a bit disjointed but when Lady Fleming shines she really shines. Her interpretaion of "In My Life" is simply chilling in its emotionality - and she truly sounds like a diva of a different sort, a big bad blues diva. Likewise, "You've Changed" is charged with heat and longing. Other standouts: "The Moon's a Harsh Mistress" is a stunner and the title track pierces the heart indeed. Also, "Answer Me" is quintessential torch. The sparse piano (which is heavenly by the way) and guitar are in near perfect synch with Fleming's lower range. The combination is addictive.

Classical afficionados may be justly put off with her efforts, but surely jazz junkies can appreciate Fleming's genre-busting voice - I did. Haunting? Yes. However, I could have done without "My Cherie Amour".

---

Keywords: Classical; Classical Artists; Classical Crossover; Classical Vocals; Miscellaneous; Miscellaneous Music; Opera; Romantic Music for Voice and Keyboard; Solo Voice(s) and Orchestra; Song Collection for Solo Voice with Piano or Orchestra; United States of America; Vocal; Vocal Music;

---

---

x close

The Opera Band

The debut of the young, classically trained international quintet of sopranos Jo Appleby and Tsakane Valentine, tenors David Habbin and Geoff Swell, and basso Nick Garret offers up a familiar take on the crossover formula that has enriched everyone from genre pioneers The Three Tenors to Russell Watson and beyond. While their occasionally electro-pumped rhythms and youth-angled marketing shtick ("The world's first opera band!") may borrow a page from Opera Babes and Bond, it still manages to evoke the spirit (if not the letter) of its eclectic classical sources. And if the world hasn't exactly been burning for yet another dramatized update of Turandot's melodic "Nessun Dorma," The Pearl Fishers, or--for that matter--"Unchained Melody," Amici Forever's takes on the pop side of the crossover equation are indeed promising, recasting Alex North's "Unchained.." ("Senza Catene") and their reworked theme to the miniseries Band of Brothers("Requiem for a Soldier") in a successful, neo-classical light. If Neopolitan-shaded originals like "Canto Alla Vita" and "Vita Mia" sound like Josh Groban clones, their glorious harmonic vocal reworkings of Faure's "Pavane" ("Whisper of Angels") and Elgar's "Enigma Variations" ("Nimrod: Lux Aeterna") bristle with an ambitious sense of adventure that's missing from much of their crossover competition. Serious opera buffs may still quarrel with the daring "impurity" of it all, but if Amici Forever prod a few more pimply punters to peruse Puccini, won't it all have been worth it? --Jerry McCulley

---

Customer Review:

Opera for a new generation!

This quintet of gorgeous young singers from Europe and South Africa bring opera to a new generation who is so familiar with pop bands and pop singers. Their looks alone are enough to turn heads as well as their voices which blend well. I've seen Amici Forever perform live and the choreography and sets really bring a fresh perspective to what most people would think of as stuffy old opera. Each singer takes turns singing lead vocals on each song and they don't over power each other's vocals like Il Divo.
Definitely give this album a try!

Not for purists

Why do purists even sample CDs like this one? There's plenty of warning on the liner notes. I like classical opera and often listen and even attend when the opportunity presents itself. But I like Amici too. Why does classical music have to always be presented in the same old way? It's beautiful done many ways by many artists. (Except Sarah Brightman and Josh Groban - just MHO. If you admire them, that's great. That's what music is all about.) Amici's productions are lovely and new, and I for one enjoy hearing opera without all the earnestness and bellowing once in a while.

Incredibly moving and beautifully produced

I never write music reviews, but I'm making an exception in this case. As the daughter of an opera singer, and a musician myself, I grew up with a lot of the music on this CD. All I can say is it is one of the most moving albums I now own. The voices compliment each other, the delivery appears effortless, the musical arrangements excellent. I sincerely hope we get the opportunity to hear more of Amici. I, for one, will be standing in line waiting for their next CD on the day it is released.

---

Keywords: Anthem; Choral; Choral Music; Classical; Classical Artists; Classical Crossover; Czech Romantic Opera; French Romantic Opera; German/Austrian Classical Period Opera; Italian Romantic Opera; Miscellaneous; Miscellaneous Music; Opera; Opera / Operetta / Oratorio; Vocal; Vocal Music;

---

---

x close

Occasion: Connick on Piano, Vol. 2

This new recording by pianist/vocalist/actor Harry Connick recording on Branford Marsalis's label, is a delightful and diverse, thirteen track saxophone/piano duet. In this setting, these New Orleans homeboys display their dizzying interplay and invention with the kind of ease that can only come from years of friendship. Marsalis’s throaty tenor and silken soprano lines blend beautifully with Connick’s Errol Garner meets Thelonious Monk and Professor Longhair pianisms. On "Valentine’s Day" and "Virgoid" Connick’s left hand is steady, with a trace of the Latin tinge. It's beautifully contrasted by the the Broadway-type tunes, "I Like Love More" and "All Things." The pianist's performance on Marsalis’s "Steve Lacy" – an atmospheric elegy to the late sax giant – and the boppish title track -- proves that, to the contrary, familiarity breeds good jazz, not contempt. It also reminds us that there’s more to Connick than Independence Day, When Harry Met Sally, or Hope Floats. --Eugene Holley, Jr.

---

Customer Review:

Brilliant

A great CD for all you Jazz fans. The more I listen to it, the more I like it.

Harrt Connik Jr. Ocassions

I was disappointed. I love both Harry and w. Marsalis when they play good old straight ahead jazz, innovating old standards, for instance. But here we have little bits of abstractions, doodling, finger paintings, if you will. I kept impatiently waiting for them to get on with it. For God's sake guys! Play something!

Great music

I love Harry Connick Jr. I really discovered him about 5 years ago and love his music. I have all his albums and also saw him in person. Great piano player. Never disappointed by his music. great to listen as background while hitting the keys on the computer . Any time is great listening to Harry.

---

Keywords: Jazz; Pop; Pop Vocals; Swing; Traditional Pop; United States of America;

---

---

x close

The Understanding

In 2002, the Norwegian duo of Svein Berge and Torbjorn Brundtland found a sweet spot between wispy Moon Safari-style pop and Boards of Canada-like atmospherics on the widely-admired Melody A.M. The Understanding sounds relatively absent-minded, careening around the room like a panicky fly. Some of it works well; the bouncy "Only This Moment" resembles Fischerspooner at their silliest (and thus, most fun), while "49 Percent" gets a huge lift from a New Jack vocal courtesy of Chelonis R. Jones. But the record is too often thwarted by syrupy synth-pop ("Follow My Ruin") as well as the lack of shifty downtempo rhythms and avant-garde underpinnings that kept Melody so pleasantly grounded. They haven’t lost their knack for subtle hooks and well-placed cross-rhythms, like the slippery keyboard squibble that glides its way into "What Else Is There?" But the sophomore curse is hard to overcome, and though there’s plenty here to recommend, Berge and Brundtland aren’t able to break the spell. –Matthew Cooke

---

Futures

Limited Edition;

---

Customer Review:

Pure Norwegian Bliss... Get the "repeat" button ready!

I originally heard of the Norwegian group Royksopp when visiting Amsterdam. I had MTV Europe on in my hotel room (MTV Europe actually still plays music, what a concept!) and I saw the video for "Poor Leno" and was instantly hooked. Of course, when you hear a song so instantly infectious to your ears, you think, how the heck can they possibly follow this up?

The answer is "The Understanding," an absolute gem of a disc that builds on the bands beginnings and takes their music one step beyond, creating swirling cinematic melodies coupled with beautiful, emotive, yet understated vocals. The first single and video, "Only This Moment" is sublime. (Be sure to check out the video online at the Astralwerks website.) The song is plaintive, emotional, melancholy, and at the same time "funky", albeit in a Norwegian Electronica sort of way.

I have had this disc for two weeks and it has yet to leave my CD player. Call it electronica, dance, downtempo,or whatever you like... this music is gorgeous and cinematic. Music based in electronica can sometimes be cold and inaccessible, but Royksopp know how to put emotion in their music. Royksopp's music is rather hard to categorize... Let's call it "Norwegian Bliss".

Note: The limited edition 2CD set is worth the extra few dollars! It includes bonus tracks, mainly instrumental, unavailable elsewhere.

The understanding of why different could be mediocre

Fist of all, Royksopp's newest album "The Understanding", does not suck by any means. It is a great album that shows the musical duo's depth. It also shows their ability to evolve and make a sound that is entirely unique (just like with their first album.)But just like with evolution, there is always something that gets left behind. In the case of The Understanding, it seems as though the older, raw, retro-synthish, old-skool electro-popish Royksopp that we all came to love so much, grew up and matured into something that we arent sure how to deal with. Maybe I will learn to love the new evolved Royksopp as much as the old one, hopefully. But I dont think I could ever give up those days of listening to Melody A.M. on vinyl,,,,,,,ahhhh how nostalgic! But hey, dont think that the new album is not worth picking up, any true Royksopp fan needs it....So check it out, and maybe you will see that I was wrong!

Excellent, but unexpected

The Melody A.M. album is one of my all-time favorites. Something about it transcends any particular genre, and I find that I can listen to it in the company of other electronic music, pop, world, classical or jazz and it just feels... at home.

The Understanding is an entirely different story. While some tracks sound "characteristically Röyksopp," many sound like they're by a different duo altogether. That's not to say the album isn't fantastic, but the sound wasn't quite what I was expecting. I agree with those who label this album as a little more "pop" or a little more "dance" than the "electronic" label of Melody.

The bonus tracks are interesting, but not really all that exciting (at least after listening to them all twice through). Choosing between this and the standard album (with its more appropriate CD-insert booklet) should be the hardest part for you. Definitely pick this up.

---

Keywords: Ambient Breakbeat; Club/Dance; Dance; Dance Music; Downbeat; Euro-Dance; Pop; Trip-Hop;

---

---