Copland and Bernstein: The Composer as performer

Advantages: good accoustic definition, paced, broody, relentless, emotional
Disadvantages: none

...Like Vivaldies evergreen "Four Seasons", Barber's Addagio has caught the imagination of the populist Naughties culture when it was recently resampled & mixed into a more contemporary format a few months ago. however, it is to the original Barber piece that I really find one of the most highly charged & emotional scores anywhere. it is not a piece to brighten the heart & mind, it is quite the opposite. Depending on your frame of mind this can be quite a depressing score but it has the uncanny facility to carry you wherever your mind wants to take you. Although slow all the way through, it feels as if it flies by in no time at all, but so good is the power of the performance that you have to repeat the track over & over because your emotions want to be carried further & further away. This is Barber's most noted score and deserves its... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Excellent piece - real emotion
Disadvantages: none

...to that exist. It show the pain the composer was feeling as he wrote the piece, largely because of the many deaths in his family. The work must be played as a stream of emotions, not a a series of notes on a page. The best recording I have heard is that with Leonard Bernstein conducting the Vienna Philharmonic. Bernstein was a conductor who truely understood the music and felt whist he was conducting what Mahler felt whilst he was composing.... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful

Advantages: Wonderful music apturing the essence of the film
Disadvantages: NOne

...Elmer Bernstein died Thursday last on 19th August 2004 aged 82 years old. The American composer is a legend in film composing. Over a period of 50 + years, Bernstein wrote over 200 film and television scores. His music enjoyed and treasured by many. Amongst his many memorable soundtracks is that of the Great Escape made in 1963. The film the Great Escape was based on a true story. Bernstein’s expressive and emotive score gives tribute to the heroic story and the individuals involved. The music follows the film’s action through it’s disappointments and hopes. The film is one of the most famous and best loved of the many WW2 films that exist. It relates the determination, resourcefulness and strength-of-mind of a group of prisoner of wars. The track, “Various Troubles”, particularly highlights the problems faced by the prisoners... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful