CD-Charts Position 1
Average Rating:

The Light in the Piazza (2005 Original Broadway Cast)

from: Nonesuch

Release Date May 24, 2005
... was my reaction to the music, a few numbers into the LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA (when they still were playing the full overture). After performing for some months on a cruise ship - and bearing in mind what is said about how you enjoy your travels even more when you remember them - that's exactly what I said to a companion: it feels like travel.

There's not much to add to the favorable words elsewhere in these pages,but a few thoughts:

Some like barbecue, some like sushi, some like both. Good thing to remember when voting for President,by the way.

I will say that my favorite scores are those that keep growing on me (WEST SIDE STORY as well as THE MUSIC MAN) - and LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA reveals something new at ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 2
Average Rating:

Jardim abandonado

from: Nonesuch

Release Date September 18, 2007
The music in this CD is pleasant and the guitar playing is good but the whole CD felt more like elevator music than serious music which brings out the individuality of these artists. Not much of the music stuck in my head or had me marveling at the beauty of a tune or the virtuosity of the artists.

CD-Charts Position 3
Average Rating:

Floyd Collins (1996 Original Off-Broadway Cast)

by: Adam Guettel, Christopher Innvar, Jason Danieley

Release Date March 18, 1997
I live in West Virginia, only seventy miles from where this story takes place. I've been exposed to Appalachian rhythms since I was born.

And right off the bat, as soon as the beautiful melody kicks in on "The Call", it's immediately apparent that Guettel knows what he's doing. The gorgeous orchestrations sweep carefree from tempo to tempo, making brilliant use of Appalachian fiddle, banjo, and acoustic guitar, in addition to more traditional musical theater instrumentation. The melodies in each song careen along, bouncing off different musical genres, taking bits and pieces here and there, and with seemingly no regard for traditional song structure. The end result is genuinely American - Guettel can evoke more emotion and history in a single piano ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 4
Average Rating:

Myths And Hymns (1998 Off-Broadway Cast, Originally Saturn Returns)

by: Adam Guettel, Todd Ellison, Audra McDonald, Darius de Haas

Release Date March 30, 1999
This is an amazing work of emotional, passionate, and very creative music. Its facinating melodies are very complex and its themes are powerful. This is a masterpiece of artful composition, but it is not a CD for those with frivolous tastes. It is very beautiful and involved music so if you dwell on the music of Hairspray or Grease, this is definately not an item for you, but if you really appriciate the true purpose of music then I am confident that you'll fall in love with Guettel's work!

CD-Charts Position 5
Average Rating:

Bright Eyed Joy: The Songs of Ricky Ian Gordon

by: Audra McDonald, Dawn Upshaw, Todd Ellison, Judy Blazer, Ted Sperling, Kenneth Burward-Hoy, Jesse Levy, Lawrence Feldman, Darius de Haas

Release Date April 24, 2001
Ricky Ian Gordon is a very talented composer and poet, and the songs on "Bright Eyed Joy" display his magnificent gifts. There is not a contemporary composer who has his talent of fitting text to music, and the singers on this disc bring his compositions alive. Track 17, "Once I Was," will make you weep!