John Ringer - Rite of Spring: Dumbarton Oaks - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Wergo's Studio reihe series CD reissues continue with a classic recording of Stravinsky's last ballet, Agon, performed by the Sinfonie Orchester des Sedwestfunks, Baden-Baden conducted by Hans Rosbaud and originally released on LP in 1964. Agon was written.

The genius of Stephen Sondheim stems from the revered composer's ability to plumb universal human emotions even in the form of the most outré characters - be they cannibalistic barbers, presidential assassins, or fairy tale witches. The acclaimed vocalist Cyrille Aimée discovered that gift first-hand as she took a deep dive into the Sondheim songbook for her scintillating new album, Move On A Sondheim Adventure. What began as a celebration of a legendary Broadway songwriter became a work of cathartic autobiography as one song after another captured her deepest personal feelings.

Aaron Copland's suite from the ballet Appalachian Spring won him a Pulitzer Prize and global recognition. The famous Quaker song 'Simple Gifts' and the American ambience of this suite contrast with the more modernist Symphonic Ode, which conveys rugged grandeur through an uncompromising structural unity. Neglected since the late 1960s, Paul Creston's music was once amongst the most frequently performed of any American composer. His poetic Symphony No. 3 is an orchestral Life of Christ, movingly expressed through themes inspired by Gregorian chant.