Berio: Sequenzas [Box set]

Luciano Berio (Composer), Ensemble Intercontemporain (Orchestra), Alain Damiens (Performer), Pascal Gallois (Performer), Sophie Cherrier (Performer), Eliot Fisk (Performer), Frederique Cambreling (Performer), Laszlo Hadady (Performer), Florent Boffard (Performer), Luisa Castellani (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Alain Damiens, Pascal Gallois, Sophie Cherrier, Eliot Fisk, Frederique Cambreling, et al.
• Orchestra: Ensemble Intercontemporain
• Composer: Luciano Berio
• Audio CD (March 9, 1999)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 3
• Format: Box set
• Note on Boxed Sets: During shipping, discs in boxed sets occasionally become dislodged without damage. Please examine and play these discs. If you are not completely satisfied, we'll refund or replace your purchase.
• Label: Deutsche Grammophon
• ASIN: B00000I93T
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #284,224 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #30 in Music > Classical > Instruments > Brass > Trombone
  • #55 in Music > Classical > Instruments > Reeds & Winds > Saxophone
  • #98 in Music > Classical > Instruments > Strings > Harp

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great., July 24, 2005

By 

upabovebuildings.blogspot.com "EJS" (Poughkeepsie, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Berio: Sequenzas (Audio CD)

Written between 1958 and 1995, the Sequenzas are a kind of encyclopedia of 20th Century instrumental writing; Berio uses every kind of extended technique imaginable to produce a wide range of colors and textures. He obviously knows these instruments inside and out, writing works of great complexity and intricacy that also remain natural to their respective instruments. This does not mean that he does not challenge the prevailing notion of what is "natural." In his notes for the Sequenza II for Harp, Berio complains that "French 'impressionism' has left us with a rather limited vision of the harp, as if its most obvious characteristic were that of lending itself to the attentions of loosely robed girls with long blonde tresses, capable of drawing from it nothing more than seductive glissandi. But the harp also has another harder, stronger, more aggresive face." It must be said that Berio tends to illuminate the "aggresive face" of many of the instruments. The Sequenzas for violin and viola in particular dispell the notion that the most natural thing for them is to imitate the voice. Berio has a more unique vision of the instruments' capabilities.

The Ensemble InterContemporain is the creme de la creme of modern music groups. Listening to Christopher Desjardins shred in the Sequenza VI for Viola is particularly satisfying. He plays with as much passion as he does skill, bringing out the jarring shifts in mood suggested by the Edoardo Sanguinetti verse that accomanpanies the work: "my capricious fury was once your livid calm / my song will be your very slow silence." His is of course only one of many virtuoso performances in the set. The discs on the whole make a strong case for the composer, and, more generally, for the cause of modern music.

...from upabovebuildings.com

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great collection of hard-to-find music, November 23, 1999

By 

Rob Elliott (Houston, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Berio: Sequenzas (Audio CD)

These works are difficult to collect individually, and this was the first recording of Sequenza XII for Bassoon and Sequenza XIII for Accordion.

Unfortunately, Sequenza VIIb for Soprano Saxophone (1993) was omitted. It is available on BIS CD-640 "The Solitary Saxophone" by Claude Delangle.

I prefer Christian Lindberg's renditions of Sequenza V for Trombone, as found on BIS CD-258 "The Virtuoso Trombone" and CD-388 "The Solitary Trombone (they're different performances). He has perfected the playing-while-singing multiphonic effect, using it on several other pieces like Sandstrom's "Motorbike Concerto."

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning displays of virtuosity and harmonic development in what might stand as Berio's great achievements, July 4, 2008

By 

Christopher Culver - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Berio: Sequenzas (Audio CD)

I've had this 3-disc of Luciano Berio's Sequenzas performed by the soloists of the Ensemble Intercontemporain for a few years, but only now do I feel that I can review it. Berio's long series of instrumental pieces, the first 13 of which are present on this 1998 box set, are incredibly diverse and each a whole world unto itself, so it takes a while to truly appreciate this recording. Certainly the Berio neophyte would do best to start with a popular work like the "Sinfonia" (available on an excellent DG disc), but for those who enjoy his highly individual blend of Darmstadt modernism and constant reference to tradition, the Sequenzas are a major acheivement well worth getting to know.

All of the Sequenzas explore the extended techniques of their respective instruments. "Sequenza II" for harp goes beyond the late Romantic trend of writing just glissandi and has the performer producing percussive sounds on the body of the instrument. Perhaps the most unusual extended technique is "Sequenza X" for trumpet, where the performer directs his instrument into the body of a piano, producing sympathetic vibrations on its strings. Some of the virtuosity on display makes the performer seem godlike. In "Sequenza XII" for bassoon, the player must use circular breathing for its entire 18-minute span except for one quarter-note rest. "Sequenza VI" for viola consists of furious tremolo multistops requiring Paganini-like skills.

In terms of their music material, the Sequenzas are quite varied. Some of them tend to focus on one general idea. In "Sequenza VI" for viola, the soloist gradually elaborates on the same basic harmonic fields, with little snippets of melody appearing here and there and ultimately winning out in the end. "Sequenza VII" for oboe is a series of variations around one central note, held by "any other instrument" offstage. Others, however, have strong dramatical force. Berio was inspired to write "Sequenza V" for trombone by his memories of a great clown, and this piece has the soloist bumbling around in an amusing fashion. "Sequenza III" for soprano references everything from bel canto opera to jazz singing to absent-minded murmuring (and there are elaborate acting directions for live performance). "Sequenza XI" for guitar has a furious central section exploring the whole history of guitar repertoire before flowing into a calm ending.

Sure, not everything here is bound to please. I myself have never really taken to "Sequenza IV" for piano, and the first two Sequenzas, for flute and harp respectively, seem to be to lack the focus and energy of the rest of the set. Nonetheless, they generally rise above empty master class studies of instrumental performance to gripping music.

The Sequenzas formed the starting points for several ensemble works, such as the Chemins series and "Corale". If you like the Sequenzas, it's fascinating to see Berio reuse the soloist line while the orchestral accompaniment builds on top of it. Several of these extended works can be had on a budget Sony disc, where Pierre Boulez leads the Ensemble Intercontemporain with many of the same musicians as here.

There are two other recent recordings of the Sequenzas, and they both contain the entire set of Sequenzas as opposed to the 13 here. The Naxos release may seem attractive for that greater inclusion and its budget price, but it cannot compete with the caliber of performers and the IRCAM sound quality of this DG set. I've not yet heard the Mode box, but it does seem appealing for the performers present, the inclusion of the final Sequenza XIV for cello, and the presence of solo works outside the Sequenzas series.