Volume 24 Issue 7 - April 2019

is suitably understated, Ũtviklingssang, composed by Bley in Norway
not Finland, opposes Altschul’s press rolls and bass drum booms with
Haarla’s recital-ready formalism that preserves the narrative.
Fealty to a single influencer isn’t the only
way to express admiration and adaptation
of the concepts pioneered by earlier musicians.
That ‘s what distinguishes Danish
drummer Kresten Osgood’s two-CD Plays
Jazz (ILK Music ILK 28LP ilkmusic.com)
from the other discs here. Working with a
tight, balanced quintet of trumpeter Erik
Kimestad, tenor saxophonist Mads Egetoft, pianist Jeppe Zeeberg
and bassist Matthias Petri, the five roar with the same inventiveness
and ferocity through familiar standards, lesser-known compositions
and a few originals by the drummer. Although the band plays well
enough on compositions by the likes of Eric Dolphy and Thelonious
Monk (whose Friday the 13th, spurred by Osgood’s vigorous ruffs
and pops, becomes more brawny and atonal than the original)
notable triumphs result with its permutation on lesser-known gems.
James Cotton’s Blues in My Sleep is revamped from bedrock blues to
improv. A snaky bass line propels the theme, which is spangled with
brass discord and strangled reed slurs and comes to an unexpected
halt. Jerome Cooper’s Monk Funk emphasizes the second word in
the title via raspy, Southwestern near-R&B from the saxophonist
and rugged percussion slaps. Egetoft’s sour-sounding solo prevents
Kimestad’s graceful modulations on Randy Weston’s Little Niles
from becoming too slippery, as do Zeeberg’s clipped piano lines.
Finally Osgood’s Tchicai in Heaven, named for the Danish New
Thing saxophonist, not only shows off his percussion prowess with
an introduction based around press rolls and hi-hat smacks, but
also includes sparse piano emphasis that highlights Monk’s influence
on the avant garde and through it, contemporary European and
American jazz.
Each of these discs salutes earlier innovators, but in such a way that
matches individuality with influence.
Old Wine,
New Bottles
Fine Old Recordings Re-Released
BRUCE SURTEES
Universal Music, owner of DG, Decca,
Phillips and others has been reissuing
existing sets and creating new ones for
re-release together with everything on an
included single Blu-ray disc. Early releases
included the complete Solti Ring Cycle,
soon followed by the complete Karajan Ring
from Berlin. Then the Complete Beethoven
Symphonies under Karajan from 1962. Just
to hand are The Complete Symphonies of Anton Bruckner played by
the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (Decca 4834660, 10 CDs plus
one Blu-ray disc).
These are the versions plus the Te Deum in distinguished performances
with Bernard Haitink conducting issued by Phillips, recorded
between 1963 and 1972. The Te Deum dates from September 1966
with soprano Elly Ameling, contralto Anna Reynolds, tenor Horst
Hoffmann, bass Guus Hoekman and The Netherlands Radio Choir.
Bruckner collectors like to know what performing version is
employed, so for them, No.1 uses the Linz 1866; No.2 the Haas 1938;
No.3 the second version 1877; No.4 the 1878 with the 1880 finale;
No.6 original 1881 version; No.8 the Haas 1939 and No.9 the original
1894 edition. At the time of these recordings Philips’ producer Jaap
van Ginneken did not care to employ the then-latest noise reduction
circuits. Instead, if I recall correctly, he increased the level of
high frequencies’ overall volume where the hiss lay, taking it back
down on replay. That he was correct is amply demonstrated by these
discs that display natural dynamics, a wide frequency response and
are free of any sonic manipulations. As usual, Haitink is predictably
professional and without editorializing allows the music to speak
for itself.
We always have the greatest expectations
of any new film from biographer
Bruno Monsaingeon. His 2017 biography
of Mstislav Rostropovich, The
Indomitable Bow, has just been released
by Naxos on both DVD and Blu-ray video
(Naxos 2.110583 DVD). Rostropovich is
visited over the span of his life, first as a
baby in his father’s cello case. His adult
years include playing with Prokofiev and
Shostakovich and standing by them when
they were totally banned. Prokofiev introduces
him to Sviatoslav Richter with
whom he developed a long association.
Conductor Gennady Rozhdestvensky tells of Rostropovich’s first
visit to Prague where he played the Dvořák concerto conducted by
Václav Talich, “That was the great breakthrough which launched
him onto the international scene. He became famous worldwide.”
As Rostropovich states, “In that system going abroad was
like a breath of fresh air, a great privilege. I was the third musician,
after Gilels and Oistrakh, to go to America. It was amazing!
From that point on, I was a ‘somebody.’” There were later political
dictates from Moscow that stood in his path and also blocked
soprano Galina Vishneskaya, his wife. His Russian citizenship was
revoked but later reinstated through the intercession of his friend
Yehudi Menuhin.
There is so much more here to learn and enjoy. Rich with interviews
and great music, this is video is not to be missed. There are bonus
in-concert tracks: The Rococo Variations, variation VII through the
end (Paris, Ozawa, 1986), Beethoven’s Archduke Trio with Wilhelm
Kempff and Yehudi Menuhin (Paris,1974) and the Sarabande from the
Bach Cello Suite No.2 (1969). Also, there are 40 minutes of unique
conversations with Olga Rostropovich, Elena Rostropovich, Natalia
and Ignat Solzhenitsyn elaborating on the extraordinary, poignant
friendship and bond between Rostropovich and Aleksandr
Solzhenitsyn.
In this 150th anniversary year of the death
of Hector Berlioz (1803-1869) the flood
of new issues and even more re-issues is
about to flow. One such is a live performance
from 1953, the 150th anniversary of
Berlioz’ birth, of The Damnation of Faust
conducted by Sir Malcolm Sargent (Cameo
Classics, CC9108, 2CDs). Intriguing, as
two names rarely mentioned in the same
sentence are Berlioz and Sargent. This is an English-language
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