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An opera from Fascist Italy, Gino Marinuzzi’s Palla de’ Mozzi receives a splendid world-premiere recording. Should you listen despite its pedigree?
“Farewell” is the shortest album in the series, but it is perhaps the most provocative in the way it calmly muses, philosophically, on the form that togetherness can take – as it exists and as it dissolves.
This is one of those 75-minute plays where you have to remind yourself to breathe.
The saxophonist has the slithery facility of a bebopper, but I also hear something of the forthright stance of Coltrane in his playing, despite the rhythmic complexity of his writing — and his distinctively varied use of his Puerto Rican background.
Appreciating Stephen Sondheim’s achievement does not mean loving all of his shows. A Little Night Music may just be one of his musicals that should be politely nudged aside.
To my ears, these beautifully recorded improvisations — with their unique sequences of tones and subtle interactions — are never less than intriguing.
This prequel is the rare instance of a horror film, in this case a prequel, that is better than its predecessor.
A world-premiere recording of Richard Flury’s fascinating 1935 opera about love, deceit, and the possibility of forgiveness.
Age certainly wasn’t an issue in terms of energy. Elvis Costello played for a solid two hours with barely a break, running through four decades of music with a heavy emphasis on the old favorites.
Arts Commentary: Arts Criticism — Stuck in the Bunker
Arts critics are not expected to take the cultural temperature; they are there to reinforce the assumption that the business of the arts in America is … business.
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