CD-Charts Position 1
Average Rating:

Henryk Gorecki: Symphony 3 "Sorrowful Songs"

from: Nonesuch

Release Date May 05, 1992
I am not a trained musician and cannot speak in such terms. However, I can speak to the emotion I felt as I listened to this music. I find this work particularly moving from the near silence of the beginning of the first movement to the plaintive prayer to Our Lady in the last. To me this is a piece of quiet power; the gradual crescendo of sound to Dawn Upshaw's first soaring soprano and gradual decrescendo to near silence in the first movement, the soulful prayer to the Holy Mother in the second movement. In the third movement where one might expect anger I heard the despairing lament and final quiet resolution. I do not speak Polish but am familiar with the sounds of the language. Dawn Upshaw sings with such clarity that I was able to follow ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 2
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Osvaldo Golijov: Oceana

from: Deutsche Grammophon

Release Date July 10, 2007
Golijov is all the rage nowadays. Hailed by the New Yorker and the New York Times as the next big thing in classical music, he has all the right credentials to appeal to our politically-correct aesthetic. He's Argentinian, Jewish and American all at the same time. We love the idea of mixed cultural influences, I suppose because it satisfies our liberal longing for a world where everyone gets along just fine.
I have enjoyed other Golijov productions, although I doubt his ultimate talent. He's not up there with the greats. In this collection, I realized that he is a superb collector of other peoples' themes and inspirations -- rather than a bone fide creator of his own. There is one movement, superbly sung by Dawn Upshaw, where the setting ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 3
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Osvaldo Golijov: Ainadamar

from: Deutsche Grammophon

Release Date May 09, 2006
The rhythms are exciting, some of the orchestration is clever and well-done. Listening to the CD overcomes some of the problems of a live production: achieving a balance between acoustic and amplified music, overcoming the lack of contrast (almost all women's voices) and utter lack of dramatic movement (nothing happens). The voices are good and perform the music well. Still, there is not much here for them to work with and the result is mediocre.

The music, while catchy at first, is simple, undeveloped and repetitive. The story lacks drama and movement. It is essentially a reverie on Lorca, not the man, his poetry, his sexuality, his art or politics but just some tired ahistorical cliches about freedom and fighting facism climaxing in his assassination. ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 4
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The Power & The Majesty: Essential Choral Classics

by: Robert Shaw Festival Singers, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Choruses

Release Date January 24, 1995
A wonderful album. I have several copies of Handel's Messiah, but the performance of the Hallelujah Chorus by Robert Shaw's singers is exceptional, outstanding. I was inspired to have my young son listen to this album: Verdi's "Dies Irae", Orff's "O Fortuna", and Handel's "Hallelujah Chorus".

Notice that there are 3 versions of "Dies Irae" on this album. It's nice to hear others. I am not normally a fan of Requiems. I will say that I do like Bach's Mass in B Minor and the Kyrie Eleison excerpted here is beautiful.

CD-Charts Position 5
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Vivaldi: Gloria; Bach: Magnificat

from: Telarc

Release Date May 19, 1989
Of all the performances of the Vivaldi Gloria I have listened to, I like this the best. Clarity, emphasis, orchestra, soloists - all excellent. A balanced performance. The Bach is a bonus...

CD-Charts Position 6
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Donizetti: L'Elisir D'Amore

by: Gaetano Donizetti, James Levine, Luciano Pavarotti, Kathleen Battle, The Metropolitan Opera Chorus & Opera, Enzo Dara, Dawn Upshaw Leo Nucci

Release Date November 10, 1990
Turn the lights off, relax in your favourite chair and sip a glass of fine wine. Press play close your eyes and enjoy !!. This is without doubt one of the definitive productions of this Opera by Donizetti. The Quality of the cast (The late great Pavarotti and Battle) and the recording itself oozes out of every pore of this cd. Ignore the supporting cast as per other reviews.just let the music and lyrics flow through you as the mins drift by.I would recommend that you buy this recording , no matter the costto your pocket. The haunting quality of Una Fortima Lagrima is worth the money on its own.

CD-Charts Position 7
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Osvaldo Golijov: Ayre

by: Osvaldo Golijov, Dawn Upshaw, Luciano Berio, Folk Songs

Release Date September 27, 2005
I was present for a performance of Ayre in New York a couple of years ago. It's a song cycle drawing on several different cultural and historical traditions -- Christian, Muslim, Jewish and of course the composer's native South America. The performance was quite exhilirating. The music is mostly tuneful and the orchstration very interesting.
Still, I can't help wondering if this is the kind of music that will last. Will people still be listening to Ayre 100 years from now? I'm not sure. I hear geat talent and skill -- but do I hear genius? Again, I'm not convinced. Sometimes, I have the feeling of being manipulated. This music is very politically correct, especially the long lament for the Palestinians at the center of this work.
One thing is for sure: Dawn ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 8
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Franz Joseph Haydn: The Creation

by: Franz Joseph Haydn, Donna Carter, John Cheek, Jon Humphrey, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Robert Shaw

Release Date October 27, 1992
This oratorio is excellent. From a musical viewpoint, the orchestration, vocal work, and overall technics of this work are superbly done. In the spiritual sense, this oratorio manages to get the real feel of the Creation. You can see God's awesome works being performed before your eyes. When the final chorus is sung you leave with a greater sense of God and power.
One piece that is very well sung and is particularly uplifting is the hymn of thanks and praise to God which Adam and Eve sing. One thing I like about this work is that the fall of man into sin is not included. The Creation is the Creation, and we don't have to think of sin being in the world.
The soloists are some of the finest in the world, and robert Shaw is at his best with another superb recording.
I rate ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 9
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Schubert: Masses Nos. 2 & 6

from: Telarc

Release Date May 07, 1990
Schubert: Masses Nos. 2 & 6 Absolute choral purity and diction make this another of Robert Shaw's exquisite recordings. Perfect in every way.

CD-Charts Position 10
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Christmas with Chanticleer (Featuring Dawn Upshaw)

from: Teldec

Release Date October 16, 2001
Chanticleer is an incredibly musical and blended clear-tone vocal group that performs each piece on the album with perfection and insightful musicianship. Overall, the album is very peaceful and perfect for getting your head and spirit out of the chaos of the Christmas season and really brings your focus back to the beauty of the Christmas. All of the arrangements are beautiful, and my favorite is Hugo Distler's variations on "Lo How a Rose E'er Blooming" (in German, Es ist ein Ros entsprungen). The close and weaving harmonies make this piece and others songs you want to listen closely to, and not just have them playing in the background of your Christmas party.