Foss: Griffelkin

Aaron Engebreth (Performer), Drew Poling (Performer), Lukas Foss (Composer), Gil Rose (Conductor), Glorivy Arroyo (Performer), Lynn Torgove (Performer), Misa Ann Iwama (Performer), Boston Modern Orchestra Project (Orchestra), Anne Carolyn Bird (Performer), Anne Harley (Performer), Elizabeth Keusch (Performer), Emily Browder (Performer), Janna Baty (Performer), Kendra Colton (Performer), Yeghishe Manucharyan (Performer), Alison Howe (Performer), Charlotte Oldsman (Performer), Elinor Broadman (Performer), Nikolai van Krusenstiern (Performer), Rebekah Shaughnessy (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Aaron Engebreth, Drew Poling, Glorivy Arroyo, Lynn Torgove, Misa Ann Iwama, et al.
• Orchestra: Boston Modern Orchestra Project
• Conductor: Gil Rose
• Composer: Lukas Foss
• Audio CD (May 20, 2003)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Chandos
• ASIN: B00008WQB5
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #570,946 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars All music was modern once, October 19, 2009

By 

kakistocracy "kakistocracy" (Omaha, NE United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Foss: Griffelkin (Audio CD)

The previous reviewer regards (See their list of reviews) the Britten War Requiem (a masterpiece with many recordings) as "Grating and discordant; typical Britten". Why modern music haters listen to modern music, let alone review it, is beyond me--maybe they think they can make it go away. Guess you'll have to form your own opinion on this one.

9 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars The devil made them do it!, May 10, 2004

By 

OperaOnline.us "OperaOnline.us" (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Foss: Griffelkin (Audio CD)

Gil Rose and the Boston Modern Orchestra Project with the able augmentation of the Back Bay Chorale and members of the Boston Children's Opera, have given a truly brilliant technical rendition of this uninspiring opera in three acts by Lukas Foss. The production notes say it all: "He (Foss) wrote in the style that was his own in the mid-1950s: rhythmically vivid, harmonically varied with a modern tonal idiom, and rich in instrumental colour." All the code words are there to stay away, but I ventured forth, nonetheless, and listened, patiently, reading, waiting for something to happen, anything to redeem this horrible, disappointing work. There was nothing, save superb performances all around and wonderful voices of the entire case - crisp, understandable, flawless, but for what purpose? The CD is a technical achievement worthy of high merit as are the performances all around. It is all wasted, however, on a musical score that has not one single theme that can be remembered or cherished for the moment it creates. It is incredible that this production is supposed to entertain children. I was a child once, and in some ways, still am, but this wouldn't have done it for me then or now. Sadly, the libretto by Alastair Reid is quite good, and as noted, the orchestration gives meaning to the words, superbly done. There are some who may like this modernistic approach to music, where the emphasis seems to be on impressing other composers and technicians, but the fun of opera, is supposed to be in its enjoyment, or at least I thought it was. Sorry, Chandos, this one's a clunker, not because of anything you did, but because of the horrible score you were working with. If the devil did come to earth in the form of a ten year old boy named, Griffelkin, he could do no worse banging a piano in our ears for 105 minutes and probably produce the same result. In that respect, Chandos did the devil's work, and succeeded in a sort of disappointing way.