Various Artists - My Choice - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

To celebrate 30 years of the Concert Spirituel, Hervé Niquet pays homage to the French musical patrimony of the 17th and 18th centuries, to whose exploration he remains passionately devoted. In close collaboration with Benoit Dratwicki and the Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles - which also celebrated it's 30th anniversary in 2018 -they have devised an intriguingly unconventional programme idea. Following the example of Louis XIV, who in 1671 asked Lully to create a Ballet of ballets consisting of extracts from the thirty or so ballets that the composer had put on at court, they have conceived 'An Imaginary Opera,' a veritable 'Opera of Operas' around thirty extracts, with well-known repertoire alongside rarities - some completely unknown and unpublished - have been put together to create a plot centered around three dramatic archetypes of the period a princess in love, a witch queen (her rival) and a courageous prince. All the themes of French baroque opera are illustrated in turn, according to the rules of the genre battle, tempest, sorcery, love duets, religious invocations, and sleep. The virtuoso arias, dazzling ballets and imposing ceremonial choruses are by Lully and Rameau, naturally - but also by Campra, Marais, Bertin de La Doué, Destouches, Stück, Gervais, Colin de Blamont, Rebel, Francœur, Montéclair, Leclair and Dauvergne. Brilliantly brought to life by the very finest of today's baroque lyric artists, this recording was made at the Opéra Royal de Versailles.

Bassist Charles Fambrough's InchUpright CitizenInch was first released in 1997 on the NuGroove Records tag. The company went out of business before the CD had a chance to reach it's full audience, and it's being reissued here by Random Chance Records. This nine track album of contemporary, smooth jazz most notably features the late Grover Washington Jr.. on soprano sax. Other artists of note are vocalist Jon Lucien, Alex Bugnon, George Duke, Mulgrew Miller, Bruce Barth on keyboards/piano, and Gerald Albright on alto sax - it's a high quality roster of musicians who are playing rhythmic and melodic original compositions.

Various Artists - Music / Various [COMPACT DISCS] date 04/23/2002