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Michael Shapiro's flute concerto: 'In the Light of the Sun' is richly layered and endlessly rewarding / Review Graveyard

Michael Shapiro has written over 100 works for orchestral, theatrical, film, chamber, choral, and vocal forces and conducts internationally. His music has been performed by many of the world’s great orchestras (including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra in the UK) and performers in North America and Europe. Much of his music is recorded and available on major platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music and is regularly broadcast throughout the world, including SiriusXM, National Public Radio, BBC, CBC, ABC-Australia, Polskie Radio, and over 50 commercial radio stations in North America. His score for the classic film Frankenstein is his most popular work and has been performed over 60 times internationally including the premieres recently of the new operatic version at the LA Opera and Atlanta Opera. His music is exclusively published by Universal Edition/Wien.

The search for inspiration is a never-ending and vital journey in a person's life. In the case of Stathis Karapanos, he was able to find this inspiration by playing the flute. He studied at the National Conservatory in Athens, the University of Music in Karlsruhe, and the Conservatoire National Supérieurde Musique et de Danse de Paris and has had teachers and mentors such as Pirmin Grehl, Mathieu Dufour, Vangelis Papathanassiou, Petra Müllejans, Henrick Wiese, Peter Lukas Graf, as well as Philippe Bernold. After his graduation, he was appointed principal flute of the Athens State Orchestra. Since 2018, Stathis Karapanos has been invited to perform with renowned conductors such as Zubin Mehta, Christoph Eschenbach, Michael Shapiro, Valery Gergiev, Yutaka Sado and orchestras like the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, Mariinsky Theater Orchestra, Kremerata Baltica between others. As a chamber musician, he has been invited to perform with artists such as Gidon Kremer, Vilde Frang, Matthias Goerne, Nicolas Altstaedt, Daniel Hope, Chen Reiss and Marisol Montalvo.  

Stathis has received several awards such as the "Leonard Bernstein Award" of the Schleswig Holstein Music Festival, the "Lotto Prize" of the Rheingau Festival and in 2021, was accepted into the Development Programme of the Orpheum Foundation for the Advancement of Young Soloists.

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra’s mission to enrich lives through orchestral experiences that are uncompromising in their excellence and inclusive in their appeal, places it at the forefront of music-making in the UK and internationally. Typically performing approximately 200 concerts a year and with a worldwide live and online audience of more than 60 million people, the Orchestra is proud to embrace a broad repertoire and reach a diverse audience. Whilst artistic integrity remains paramount, the RPO is unafraid to push boundaries and is equally at home recording video game, film and television soundtracks and working with pop stars, as it is touring the world performing the great symphonic repertoire.
 

1. Moderato 7:29
2. Andante 6:01
3. Presto  7:57

Review Graveyard's Darren Rea writres…..Paumanok Records releases Michael Shapiro's latest classical album, In the Light of the Sun: Concerto for Flute and Orchestra. Shapiro has written over 100 works for orchestral, theatrical, film, chamber, choral, and vocal forces and conducts internationally. His score for the classic film Frankenstein is his most popular work and has been performed over 60 times internationally including the premieres recently of the new operatic version at the LA Opera and Atlanta Opera...

Michael Shapiro's In the Light of the Sun: Concerto for Flute and Orchestra is an intricate work in three movements (3 tracks - 17 min, 16 sec).

On a technical note, whilst this is performed by both the flutist Stathis Karapanos and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, I have to admit that on the first listen I was sure it was computer generated by a program like Cubase. Even knowing that's not the case, I still find the sound of the production to be a little on the synth side.

From the opening segment to the closing notes, this work never lets up. Thematically it's bursting with many memorable segments. It's richly layered and endlessly rewarding. I still can't fathom why on earth this sounds so much like it resides within the belly of a PC rather than being the product of an orchestra.

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