Babbitt: Soli E Duettini;

Milton Babbitt (Artist), The Group for Contemporary Music (Artist), William Purvis (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 23, 1996)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Koch Int'l Classics
• ASIN: B000001SIW
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #698,925 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Soli e Duettini: Around The Horn

2. Soli e Duettini: Around The Horn

3. Soli e Duettini: Four Cavalier Settings

4. Soli e Duettini: Four Cavalier Settings

5. Soli e Duettini: Four Cavalier Settings

6. Soli e Duettini: Four Cavalier Settings

7. Soli e Duettini: None But The Lonely Flute

8. Soli e Duettini: Whirled Series

9. Soli e Duettini: Homily

10. Soli e Duettini: Beaten Paths

See all 12 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Soli e Duettini: Melismata

2. Soli e Duettini: On Having Been And Still Being An American Composer

3. Soli e Duettini: On Having Been And Still Being An American Composer

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Dry wit, both played and spoken, December 8, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Babbitt: Soli E Duettini; (Audio CD)

Once again, it appears that a musical bigot has infected the musical reviews process by posting the same one-star review for every work by a particular composer he or she could find. I am curious as to whether Mr. Walrus is not the same Mr. Diderot who pulled the same prank on Schoenberg awhile back. Perhaps not. This one appears to be even less intelligent.

As for the music, while it certainly is not heart-on-sleeve, it is dry and witty in an almost neoclassical fashion, as one should typically expect from Babbitt. But there is also a more immediately appealing lyricism not always present in some of his earlier works. This cd is perhaps ideal for those who do not otherwise know Babbitt's music. "Whirled Series," a jazzy duet for saxophone and piano, stands out in particular for its overall sunny charm.

This recording comes with an second disc that includes Babbitt reading his essay "On Having Been and Still Being an American Composer." His prose is analogous to his music; it is highly refined, with a wonderfully haughty sense of Latinate rhythms and internal rhymes. (Babbitt is infamous for his bad puns.) Listening to this essay should give listeners a good idea as to what Babbitt is like in person and enrich their appreciation for his music, as it has done for me.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best Babbitt CD yet!, August 11, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Babbitt: Soli E Duettini; (Audio CD)

Gems! Beautiful performances by some of the finest musicians in the United States. These works are typical Babbitt, witty and elegant. Essential disc.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars beautiful and varied selection, sensual and profound, May 20, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Babbitt: Soli E Duettini; (Audio CD)

"Play it again, Sam", Babbitt's solo piece for viola stands out for me. Extraordinarily concise and perfectly balanced, it conveys almost every human emotion, captured in jagged, elegant lines. The other compositions are no less beautiful and profound. Babbitt's music is not at all arid or passionless. Each composition on this CD teems with life and charm.