Music : RCA : Brian Asawa - Vocalise / Marriner, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields

/ Brian Asawa - Vocalise / Marriner, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields - RCA

  

from: RCA

RCA : Brian Asawa - Vocalise / Marriner, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields

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Binding: Audio CD
EAN: 0090266890323
Label: RCA
Manufacturer: RCA
Number Of Discs: 1
Publisher: RCA
Release Date: March 09, 1999
Studio: RCA



Disc 1:
  1. Songs (3) for voice & piano, Op. 18: No.2, Le Voyageur
  2. Nocturne, song for voice & piano in E flat major, Op. 43/2
  3. Arpège, song for voice & piano in E minor, Op. 76/2
  4. Cinq Mélodies 'de Venise', song cycle for voice & piano, Op. 58: No.2, En Sourdine
  5. Pavane, for orchestra & chorus ad lib in F sharp minor, Op. 50
  6. Poems (6) of Goethe, for voice & piano, Op. 18: No.5, Das Veilchen
  7. Songs (9) of Goethe, for voice & piano, Op. 6: No.2, Mailied
  8. Songs (9) of Goethe, for voice & piano, Op. 6: No.5, Aus "Claudine von Villa-Bella"
  9. Songs (12) of Goethe, for voice & piano, Op.15: No.4, Aus 'Erwin und Elmire'
  10. Suite-Vocalise, for voice & piano, Op. 41/2
  11. Cançao do Amor, for voice & orchestra (arranged from Floresta do Amazonas), A. 546
  12. Pálida Madona, song for voice & piano (Canções típicas brasileiras No. 8), A. 159/8
  13. Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5, for voice & 8 cellos, A. 389: Aria
  14. I wait for thee, song for voice & piano, Op. 14/1: No.1, I Wait for Thee
  15. She is as lovely as the noon, song for voice & piano, Op. 14/9: No.9, As Fair as Noon
  16. To her, song for voice & piano, Op. 38/2: No.2, To Her
  17. In the silence of the secret night, song for voice & piano, Op. 4/3: No.3, In the Silent Night
  18. Vocalise, song for voice & piano, Op. 34/14: No.14, Vocalise
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Editorial Review:

Amazon.com:
During the planning stages of this project, someone should have thought more seriously about the question, "Why are we doing this?" This collection of "vocalises and newly orchestrated songs" by Fauré, Medtner, Villa-Lobos, and Rachmaninoff, as impressive as it is for its ambition and concept, amounts to a disconcerting mismatch of voice and music. Countertenor Brian Asawa delivers plenty of pretty sounds, but he just doesn't have the emotional range or dramatic tools to make convincing interpretations. Technically, he is nearly flawless, but there's a sameness to every sweetly sung selection. In the famous and oft-performed "Pavane" by Fauré, you're distracted by Asawa's covered, unnatural-sounding quality and his inability to get precisely together with the melody line in the orchestra. This back-of-the-throat sound also gets in the way of clarity in the songs with texts--we can't really hear what these pieces are about. You'll enjoy this recording best if you just focus on the lush sound and skip the awkwardly executed "Suite-Vocalise" by Medtner. --David Vernier


Customer Reviews
Average Rating: out of 5 stars

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - My God! My God!!!
Mr. Asawa is flawless on this album, but then again I may be biased since he is one of my favorite Countertenors and since I am a starting Countertenor myself. I particularly fell in love with Villa-Lobos''Cancao do amor,'and 'Bachinas Brasilieras.' Not to mention ALL of the works by Rachmaninov; YES even the vocalise!

Mr. Asawa's voice is deliciously full and sensual as well as smooth. I agree with the above person who wrote that we should review this based on the fact that he as a ... Read More


Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - Countertenor achievement
We may have heard some of these pieces performed by female singers but I have never heard them performed by any countertenor. Aside from his daring, Mr. Asawa displays amazing (I'll even confess 'enviable') skill and artistry. His "pretty" voice (as it is touted....and his voice IS gorgeously endearing) is indisputable, and though I don't hold him as the authority on Rachmaninov's 'Vocalise', for example (for me that authority belongs to Anna Moffo), I appreciate his 'take' on it. This is the countertenor ... Read More


Rating: 2 out of 5 stars - Loss of time
I almost laughed with the Villa-Lobos cantilena. The same with En Sourdine. This sort of music was meant to be sung by someone who sounds like a human being. If he wants to get into non-baroque repertoire, he should get some composer to write it for him.


Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - I don't know what some of you are talking about!
I don't know what some of you are talking about! This is one of the best countertenors in the world and you make him sound like Charlotte Church (yes, that is a "CC" insult). His tone is very full and indicative of how good countertenors should sound. He has performed at the Met and won many prestigious awards. People need to get off their overly macho high-horses and realize that some men sing in the alto/mezzo range. Stop critisizing because he is a countertenor and listen to the voice! Also, ... Read More


Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - Opera News Recital Album of the Year!...I agree
Vocalise was just named the recital album of the year by Opera News and I couldn't agree with them more. This is a very well-deserved recognition for an excellent album by an exceptional vocal talent.

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RCA : Brian Asawa - Vocalise / Marriner, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields