Stories » Warts-and-all, Ron Howard's 'PAVAROTTI' is about as well-crafted a documentary as one could ask for / we are MOVIE GEEKS

Stories for July 20, 2019

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    Lyn Stanley - London With A Twist, Live At Bernie's is solidly swingin / Contemporary Fusion Reviews
     
    Posted At : July 18, 2019 12:00 AM

    When it comes to ultra-hip solidly swinging jazz vocals, Ms. Stanley has no equal… she's no stranger to our pages… my latest review of her work was for her "London Calling" album, where she got very high marks.  Her performance on Bobby Troup's jazz classic "Route 66" video below is just superb……the video production is totally professional, & will give you some real insights into the hipness we cruised through when we took that route back in the day…  In addition to Lyn's stunning vocals, you'll also hear Otmaro Ruiz, piano; Mike Lang, piano; Chuck Berghofer, bass; Aaron Serfaty, drums; John Chiodini, guitar and Luis Conte, percussion… swingin' & rockin' songs like "Pink Cadillac" will have you tappin' your toes & finger-poppin' right along with the group… I predict this one will be getting some MAJOR spins on jazz stations all across the globe. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d; min-height: 14.0px} READ THE FULL Contemporary Fusion Review

  • Yolanda Kondonassis - American Rapture is a delicious sampling of neoromanticism / New Music Buff
     
    Posted At : July 17, 2019 12:00 AM

    Two contemporary world premieres paired with Samuel Barber's masterful First Symphony make this disc a delicious sampling of neoromanticism in American music. The standout here, and the main reason to buy this disc is the glorious Jennifer Higdon Harp Concerto (2017).  Higdon, the third woman to win a Pulitzer Prize (by my count) is clearly schooled in a wide variety of compositional techniques which she uses judiciously.  She is unabashedly a romantic but her sound is hardly retro.  She, like many well trained and talented composers, uses her many skills and techniques judiciously.  Nothing experimental here, just good writing for both orchestra and soloist. The recording on Cleveland based Azica records is well recorded and all the music supports repeated listenings where the attractive surface of the music gives way to more detail.  All in all a CD that fans of Jennifer Higdon, Yolanda Kondonassis, and American Romanticism will want to own. READ THE FULL NEW MUSIC BUFF REVIEW p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d; min-height: 14.0px}

  • Nadia Shpachenko - The Poetry of Places is a superb assemblage of works that explores architecture as inspiration / I CARE IF YOU LISTEN
     
    Posted At : July 16, 2019 12:00 AM

    Multi-GRAMMY nominated pianist Nadia Shpachenko reflects on the role of the concert hall in the liner notes for her recent Reference Recordings album The Poetry of Places: "The hall is the most important instrument…we spend a great deal of time learning to embrace the space, learning what our pieces mean in the space, how our interpretation must change because of where we are." An album of solo and duo piano, electronics, and percussion, The Poetry of Places is a superb assemblage of works by various composers. Each piece, inspired by a particular building, weaves together a collage of place and time, and Shpachenko's evocative interpretations bring insight to the composers' visions in collaboration with pianist Joanne Pearce Martin and percussionists Nick Terry and Cory Hills. READ THE FULL I CARE IF YOU LISTEN REVIEW p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d}

  • Paula Cole's 'Hope is Everywhere' is everything a feel-good resistance anthem needs / riff magazine - Tuesday Tracks
     
    Posted At : July 16, 2019 12:00 AM

    Vacation time is here, there or right around the corner-and if you're in San Francisco, Karl the Fog is back! It's time to get out of dodge and find the sunshine, so who has time to sit at home and check out new music? That summer playlist won't make itself, so we have done the compiling while you're hitting the beach. We're happy to bring you the latest, greatest new songs in this weekly segment. Here's to some good listening to start your week off right. Paula Cole released her album bonus track in support of the LGBTQ+ community. "Hope Is Everywhere" starts out as a slow jam, but becomes a call to arms. As the song swells with beautiful keyboards, the message sinks in. Five minutes into the 10-minute cut, its tone changes to a funky disco anthem. It's impossible to not respond to the infectious activism as Cole sings, "You can't stop a hurricane of justice." "Lyrically it is a message to those who are experiencing undue discrimination, intimidation and legal abuse in our current political climate," Cole said in a news release. Rachel's Pick: There are times that it's almost impossible to make a choice. The first time I heard "The Fog and the Noise" and the guitars hit me, I could not get the song out of my head. Even so, Paula Cole's "Hope is Everywhere" is everything a feel-good resistance anthem needs. This song exudes hopefulness and empowerment and yes, hope is everywhere. It's a dance anthem, it's pure joy and pure love. Most importantly, it brings happiness! p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d; min-height: 14.0px} SEE riff magazine - Tuesday Tracks PAGE


  • Anna Shelest Interview KEDT
     
    Posted At : July 16, 2019 12:00 AM

      Inbox x   Amanda Bloom, Crossover Media Mon, Jul 15, 3:55 PM (16 hours ago) to me   soundcloud link: https://soundcloud.com/crossovermedia/anna-shelest-interview-w-kedts-stewart-jacoby/s-YpJ79   soundcloud embed:  p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d; min-height: 14.0px}

  • Anna Shelest discusses 'Donna Voce' with KPR
     
    Posted At : July 16, 2019 12:00 AM

    Donna Voce is Anna Shelest's first release featuring virtuosic repertoire by women composers from the last three centuries. The program sheds light on the under-explored territory of piano repertoire and makes the case that the music of female composers, many of whom were virtuoso pianists, is as relevant today as the music of their male counterparts. Works contained on the recording are by; Clara Schumann, Fanny Mendelssohn, Cecile Chaminade, Amy Beach, Lili Boulanger, and Chiayu Hsu. The Ukrainian pianist discusses these famous 19th-20th century female pianist composers with Michael Keelan. They also discuss the different roles each figure had in the musical life of her time and one present-day work for good measure. 
    LISTEN p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d} p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #4d4d4d; min-height: 14.0px}

  • Listen to PublicRadio90's 'Classiclectic Connection' in conversation with Sung-Won Yang
     
    Posted At : July 16, 2019 12:00 AM

    The Johann Sebastian Bach Cello Suites are one of the most frequently performed pieces for unaccompanied cello, and also some of the most recognizable solo pieces ever written for the instrument.  Cellist Sung-Won Yang recorded these pieces for the first time on a 2005 release from EMI, and then in 2017, he was allowed the opportunity to record these pieces again, but in a 19th century French church (specifically, the Notre Dame de Bon Secours in Paris). Kurt Hauswirth, the host of Michigan's Public Radio 90's Classiclectic, had an opportunity to speak to Sung-Won about his experience coming back to recording the Bach Cello Suites for a second time in a new environment; he also spoke about his love of Bach's music, and gives his advice to young cellists. READ THE ARTICLE & LISTEN TO THE CONVERSATION

Top 10 for Jul

  • Joe Alexander Shepherd :

    Beautiful Girl

     An English composer and pianist whose minimalist contemporary-classical works invoke names like Ludovico Einaudi, Michael Nyman, and Dustin O'Halloran, Joe Alexander Shepherd is a native of York and a graduate from Paul McCartney's acclaimed Academy of Music in Liverpool.
  • Laurence Hobgood :

    t e s s e t e r r a

     The Laurence Hobgood Trio with string quartet ETHEL "Two impressive things stand out: how enormous his arrangements make the string quartet sound, and how fluidly these seven musicians blend together.
  • Keith Jarrett :

    J.S. Bach - The Well-Tempered Clavier, LIVE

     In February 1987, Keith Jarrett recorded, on piano, the first book of The Well-Tempered Clavier by Johann Sebastian Bach.
  • Philip Bailey :

    Love Will Find A Way

     Philip Bailey, the legendary falsetto voice, Grammy Award winner and co-founder of Earth, Wind & Fire announces his upcoming solo album Love Will Find A Way via Verve Records on June 21 with the release of the first single "Billy Jack," which he co-produced with Robert Glasper.
  • Chloe Flower :

    Get What U Get

     After sending shockwaves through the socialsphere following her electrifying performance alongside Cardi B at the 2019 Grammy Awards, high-energy performance pianist Chloe Flower releases her first-ever original single on Sony Music Masterworks.
  • Hildur Guonadottir :

    Chernobyl - Music From The HBO Miniseries

     Based on an untold true story, "Chernobyl" is a five-part miniseries airing on HBO.
  • Angelique Kidjo :

    Celia

     On April 19, Angélique Kidjo will release Celia (Verve/Universal Music France), an album that honors Celia Cruz, widely known as "the Queen of Salsa" and the most popular Latin artist of the 20thcentury.
  • Camila Meza :

    Ambar

     Today, multitalented vocalist, songwriter and instrumentalist Camila Meza releases her debut album on Sony Music Masterworks, Ámbar.
  • Luciano Pavarotti :

    PAVAROTTI OMP

     From the filmmaking team behind the highly-acclaimed documentary The Beatles: Eight Days A Week - The Touring Years, PAVAROTTI is a riveting film that lifts the curtain on the icon who brought opera to the people.
  • The Stan Getz Quartet :

    Getz at The Gate

     On November 26, 1961, saxophonist Stan Getz and his relatively new quartet of Steve Kuhn, John Neves, and Roy Haynes performed at New York's Village Gate.

Warts-and-all, Ron Howard's 'PAVAROTTI' is about as well-crafted a documentary as one could ask for / we are MOVIE GEEKS

Posted: June 21, 2019 12:00 AM | By: Admin
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In PAVAROTTI, director Ron Howard spotlights opera superstar Luciano Pavarotti, the most famous tenor of the past 50 years, so famous that even people who had never heard an opera knew his name. Even if you don't know anything about opera, you have probably heard of the Three Tenors – Luciano Pavarotti, Jose Carreras and Placido Domingo. If you are an opera fan, you know Pavarotti as one the great voices, the best tenor of the second half the last century and beginning of this one. Ron Howard's affectionate but honest documentary has something for both of those audiences.

Director Ron Howard's PAVAROTTI is about as well-crafted and entertaining a biographical documentary as one could ask for, hitting the highlights of the singer's career, his strengths and failings, and telling his personal story. It is a warts-and-all documentary, that looks beneath the famous exterior but which still leaves the audience feeling like they have gained an understanding of the man and a sense of why he has was both a great artist and a beloved star.

READ THE FULL we are MOVIE GEEKS REVIEW

Crossover Media Projects with Luciano Pavarotti

  • Luciano Pavarotti

    PAVAROTTI OMP

    From the filmmaking team behind the highly-acclaimed documentary The Beatles: Eight Days A Week - The Touring Years, PAVAROTTI is a riveting film that lifts the curtain on the icon who brought opera to the people. Academy Award winner Ron Howard puts audiences front row center for an exploration of The Voice...The Man...The Legend. Luciano Pavarotti gave his life to the music and a voice to the world. This cinematic event features history-making performances and intimate interviews, including never-before-seen footage and cutting-edge Dolby Atmos technology. 

    A CBS Films Polygram Entertainment Brian Grazer presentation, PAVAROTTI is an Imagine Entertainment and White Horse Pictures production. 

    DIRECTED BY: Ron Howard 

    WRITTEN BY: Mark Monroe 

    PRODUCED BY: Nigel Sinclair, Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, Michael Rosenberg, Jeanne Elfant Festa 

    OPENING IN THEATERS LIMITED ON JUNE 7, 2019 

  • Luciano Pavarotti

    PAVAROTTI - THE GREATEST HITS

    To coincide with the theatrical release of the highly anticipated Ron Howard-directed documentary "Pavarotti," Decca Records releases the new 3-CD best of collection titled Pavarotti: The Greatest Hits from Decca/UMG. The complementary releases both feature previously unreleased music and superstar duets with the likes of Bono, Elton John, James Brown, Lou Reed, and more.

    Pavarotti's incredible repertoire can be explored in depth with the new three-disc/digital best of collection, Pavarotti: The Greatest Hits, which serves as a companion to the soundtrack and film. The anthology features 67 of the world-renowned tenor's most well-known recordings and collaborations and includes the best of his "Opera Arias," "Italian Songs & Sacred Arias" and"Great Duets." Fittingly opening with his iconic performance of "Nessun dorma," the "Opera Arias" disc spans the opera legend's entire career and includes beloved performances from "La bohéme," "Rigoletto," "Pagliacci," "Tosca," "Carmen" and"Madama Butterfly." More than 20 of Pavarotti's most powerful works including "O Sole Mio," "Caruso," "Volare," "O Holy Night," "Mama" and"Funiculì, funiculà" are collected together on "Italian Songs & Sacred Arias."

  • Luciano Pavarotti

    The 50 Greatest Tracks

    Pavarotti 50 Greatest Tracks commemorates Luciano Pavarotti's 50th anniversary with Decca Records, and an unforgettable legacy of recorded music from one of the greatest voices of our time.  This definitive collection encompasses iconic Pavarotti selections,  including ‘Nessun Dorma,'‘Caruso,' ‘La Donna E Mobile,'and ‘Granada,' to incredible duets with fellow superstars Frank Sinatra, Bono, Eric Clapton and Sting.  Numerous milestones in the late-opera star's unprecedented career are captured here, including the first ever recording of Pavarotti's voice. The historic recording of the aria from La Bohème, ‘Che gelida manina' (‘Your tiny hand is frozen'), has been lying dormant in the archives for 50 years, only now to be unearthed by Pavarotti's widow, Nicoletta Mantovani Pavarotti, re-mastered and made commercially available for the first time. The 50 Greatest Tracks will be available October 22nd in the U.S. on Decca. 

    16 New 'ON' this week: 46 Total
    SYND:     PRI/Classical 24
    Direct: SiriusXM, Music Choice
    Markets include: New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, Philadelphia, Wash DC, Cleveland, Minneapolis, Denver, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Detroit
    Online: WGOE