Customer Reviews

Kronos Caravan

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

In these days when multiculturalism is being forced upon too many with sledgehammer effect, it is good to recall how Nonesuch has been offering wonderful recordings of music from other lands for decades now. An excellent example has reached me by way of a pre-release copy called <Kronos Caravan>. It is described in the press release as an all-premiere recording, which collects new music from Portugal and Argentina, India to the Middle East, Mexico and the United States; and it offers us "collaborations with renowned musicians from around the world in diverse repertoire unified by arrangements of Osvaldo Golijov."

Most of this is exciting stuff, some of it quite beautiful at the same time. Of course I cannot vouch for the authenticity of any of it; but I can assure you that the Kronos Quartet is never below their standards here. They are, to be sure, joined by various musicians on 5 of the 10 tracks. The liner notes, which I assume will be the same when the fully packaged product is released, are copious and informative.

Kronos has made an album to remember with Caravan. There is a wide variety of cultural music represented and all are performed admirably. My favorites are from the Middle East; however, the Carlos Paredes piece is excellent. The songs are slightly eccentric and full of energy. For any classical music lover who needs to get out of the 'same old' styles and composers, this is a necessity. I can't recommend it highly enough.

The positive part is that this is really good but I rank their last "Nuevo" higher because that one holds togheter better.

This is mostly middle eastern/central europe stuff and even if I THINK I know way some argentinian/portuguise tracks are in this (because of that argentininan tango has it roots in middle europe.. portugal cobining bandelon with portuguese fado) it feels misplaced here but artisticially it is very good performed anyway and... hows about "Miserlou Twist" then.. well composer of that old hit has his roots in Libanon so.. :-).

Anyway is this very good, fun, well played and sound, production is also something extra.

You be pleased with this if you like stringquartets with more of a folklore style but my advice is that you by this togheter with Nuevo then you have two great great discs.

People used to Kronos cooperation with Glass, Steve Riech should like this but it is def. NOT minimalism att all.

Kronos clocks in with another world music/art music masterpiece and shows us all that the art music of the future can't hide behind Western tradition any more. All these pieces are strong for what they are-- of course, I'll warn that, as always this is a 'something for everyone' disc and there's no guarantee you'll be tapping your toes to every track... but you'll be fascinated by this very inexpensive ticket for a trip around the world with no long plane flight or suchlike. I'm also, once again, spellbound by the consistency of Kronos's playing-- they truly have a 'sound' that is recognizable: energetic, timbrally balanced, and right on in tuning. You can tell they believe in all this music; rest assured it's been hand picked. Buy this now and check out everything else by Kronos while you're at it-- I especially recommend Different Trains, The Philip Glass Quartets, and the Released/Unreleased Retrospective Discs... Enjoy!

The Kronos Quartet, known for performing Western classical music, has taken a world tour with Caravan, their new CD containing works from South America, India, Portugal, and the Middle East, among other places. Arab-American composer Ali Jihad Racy composed a piece called Ecstasy that was performed by the quartet joined by Racy on the nay and Arab percussionist Souhail Kaspar.  One of the dozen works on the disc, Ecstasy is known to Arab listeners as tarab, reaching a state of joy derived from the music, often linked to Sufi traditions. Racy wrote beautiful long solo for the cello before he joins in on the rim-blown reed flute called nay, to Kaspar's steady beat on the tar.  A master nay player, Racy makes his audience feel the wind of the east come out of his wind instrument.

Kronos Quartet's last accomplishment - Caravan - got me hooked from the very first time I listened to it.

I highly recommend it to those who wish to "get acquainted" with the KQ and don't know which CD to start from. This one, in my opinion, is more apt to satisfy the average music consumer than others by the KQ. Caravan has got a terrific vitality to it, a dynamism I haven't found in any of the other KQ CDs I've listened to so far. Also, in some tracks, it's got a rock-like sound to it, that will be familiar to those who - like myself - have always loved popular music but have just began approaching classical music.

Caravan's apparent simplicity of form mustn't deceive, however: yes, it is easy to listen to, and, yes, it is likely to satisfy unrefined listeners as well as sophisticated ones, but it is not an unchallenging work. Rather, I see it as multi-layered, stratified, allowing different levels of understanding.

My favorite track is Terry Riley's "Cortejo Funebre en el Monte Diablo," a perfect combination of past and present, of classical and "industrial" sounds. I can't praise this track enough: I find it alone to be well worth the price of the entire CD.

Caravan is definitely, and overall, a "five star" CD.

I've never been a fan of classical music. Being forced to listen to Mozart and such growing up in school, ugh, school has made me gain a deep hatred of famous classical composers and the like. Never thought I would ever get into classical music because it was all killed to me.

Then I heard of Kronos Quartet. They were raved about on a movie review for "Requiem for a Dream," which they are mostly responsible for the entire score on. So, I decided to give them a bit of a chance. I bought three of their albums, "Early Music," and "Kronos Quartet performs Phillip Glass." The most important of all of these is "Caravan."

The last CD I listened to, I was a little afraid to, because I figured I'd enjoy Western pieces a little more, and probably wouldn't like the more 'world' sound this album seems to say it has.

I couldn't have been more wrong, from the opening track, "Pannoia Boundless," I was in love, raving about it to everyone I knew. Every track seems to have an energy that oozes from within it, these dynamics that manage to grab me and toss me around every time. Even the weakest track, being "Cortejo Funebre en el Monte Diablo," because of the horribly synth-sounding beats, horns, and bells, still has a certain power after you get past the horrible intro of the song.

Either way, Kronos Caravan is a great listen for anyone just dabbling in classical string quartets and wants something a little more high power and intrusive than your average "background music."

This CD is great in many ways. There is beatiful music from all over the world on this one. It's interesting 'cause it's rather easy listened, but still very deep and vital. "Pannonia Boundless" and "Turceasca" was the first two tracks to capture me. After that you discover the beauty of the other tracks. The themes of the songs are very clear and they work fine both as headphone-music as background-music. Get this one!

According to the press and liner notes, this album is intended to chart a sort of musical journey, obviously reflected by the title. Such a concept is highly suspect - eclecticism for its own sake (or more likely for the sake of capturing the widest consumer base) very rarely leads to meaningful, cohesive art, possibly because the best art comes "from within", that is, from within an individual's or a group's experience, not simply the surface reflection of ethnic stereotypes. Add to this the antequated notion that a caucasian string quartet can "capture" the world's sounds for YOUR discerning ears, and you have a piece of sheer mediocrity.

Osvaldo Golijov's arrangements excel at highlighting various effects of instrumental combinations. That's a plus. However, these performances are mostly shorn of whatever vitality is inherent in the compositions, by the quartet's lack of rhythmic unity and attack - some of these takes sound like tentative rehearsals. The worst in this respect has to be "Aaj Ki Raat". Anyone who knows Indian film music is aware of its energy and manic quality. This performance, however, has none of that, opting instead for a navel-gazing lack of dynamism that actually serves to bury the melodic theme, in lieu of which we are given the sound of tablas, which even Zakir Hussain can't make jive with the ennervated ensemble.

Not surprisingly, the only impassioned performance is "Turceasca", likely because most of the music is played by Taraf de Haidouks, a Romanian Gypsy ensemble that lends its "quaint" and "primitive" spunk to the tastemaker quartet, producing a "rousing, olde country" stewe.

Anyone with an interest in music beyond her/his borders should pick up the real thing, spend a little money, force her/himself to get used to its strangeness, and maybe she/he will come away a little wiser. Oh, yes, purchase an honest classical disc next time, as well.

Kronos Caravan was a dissapointment and a waste of money. I can only stand to listen to two of the tracks. Most of the tracks are an annoying blend of too many strings and what ever instrument the guest artist is playing.I never want to listen to any of the music from the cultures represented on this cd.