Customer Reviews

Chanticleer: A Portrait

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As you can tell from the samples, the music here is amazing and covers a wide territory. It is less obvious that much of this is available on other CDs. I am confident, for example, that "We Shall Walk Through the Valley In Peace" is the same track that you will find on their phenomenal and highly recommended gospel collection, _Where the Sun Shall Never Go Down_, and I see a number of familiar-looking titles from other CDs. My advice is: if you're looking for a broad sample of the group's repertoire, then you can't go wrong here -- but if you've already got several Chanticleer albums, then you'll want to check your existing collection for potential duplications before buying this 'treasury.'

This is a marvelous singing group of all males with a little addition of Dawn Upshaw on a couple of pieces. They are thourally amazing at what they can sing with Male Voices usually unaccompanied. Obviously they have good strong Contra-Tenors that can manage the high notes without any problems. I would recommend this album to anyone who enjoys vocal music, unaccompanied and like Male Voices

If you liked Norman Luboff's Song's of the Sea's "Shenandoah", the price of this CD is worth it alone. That's why I ordered the CD. I heard Chanticleer's version and immediately ordered it. The rest is just the icing on the cake.

Then there is the one Kiri Tekanawa (sp?) offering, which is the only female voice on the recording.

Some great material truly shines on this album, but I wsih that the group had been a little less populist in their choice of repertoire. There is a little too many arrangements and folk-like material, with the exception of the wonderful "Dulaman", and I would like to have heard some more varied repertoire. That said this is an excellent starting point for this amazing group.

I've been a fan of Chanticleer since early in their career. I like them better when they stick to pre-classical music. There is something about the adult male soprano voice that does not sit well with me. It's too shrill, or harsh, or something. Boy sopranos are another story. The adult male soprano voice is great in pre-classical stuff, because it was probably written for castratas. Regardless, Chanticleer is always a treat.