Stephen Albert: In Concordiam; TreeStone

Stephen J. [Composer] Albert (Composer), Gerard Schwarz (Conductor), New York Chamber Symphony (Orchestra), Seattle Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra), Lucy Shelton (Performer), David Gordon (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Lucy Shelton, David Gordon
• Orchestra: New York Chamber Symphony, Seattle Symphony Orchestra
• Conductor: Gerard Schwarz
• Composer: Stephen J. [Composer] Albert
• Audio CD (December 11, 1992)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Delos Records
• ASIN: B0000006WJ
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #557,940 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. In Concordiam, For Violin And Orchestra

2. TreeStone, For Soprano, Tenor And Chamber Orchestra: Part I: I Am Leafy Speafing

3. TreeStone, For Soprano, Tenor And Chamber Orchestra: Part I: A Grand Funferall

4. TreeStone, For Soprano, Tenor And Chamber Orchestra: Part I: Sea Birds

5. TreeStone, For Soprano, Tenor And Chamber Orchestra: Part II: Trisopher Tristan

6. TreeStone, For Soprano, Tenor And Chamber Orchestra: Part II: Fallen Griefs

7. TreeStone, For Soprano, Tenor And Chamber Orchestra: Part II: Anna Livia Plurabelle

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Hints of what might have been, November 21, 2007

By 

Personne (Rocky Mountain West) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Stephen Albert: In Concordiam; TreeStone (Audio CD)

In the middle of a quietly productive career, Stephen Albert was killed in a car crash. While he left behind a good-sized body of work (not to mention a Pulitzer Prize), it's easy to wonder what else he might have done. I think it is fair to say that Albert was not a particularly innovative composer: still his music is worth more than a casual hearing. He was a quite capable orchestrator--indeed many aspects of his orchestration are reminiscent of Jacob Druckman (but considerably less gratuitous). His musical language is an extended tonality which was a popular coin of the realm in the middle part of the century. While his influences are often more than a little evident, his musical rhetoric is clear and well-integrated. This music makes considerably more sense than the tepid tonalism that currently passes for contemporary music in many of our halls.

Of the two pieces on this CD, the violin concerto "Concordium" is the less successful. The roles of the violin and orchestra are typically romantic in nature. The shadow of the Stravinsky violin concerto looms large in the background. There's nothing wrong with the piece, but it seems to be unaware of many other concerti in the 20th century.

"TreeStone" a song cycle for soprano and tenor (based on James Joyce) made me deeply sad that Albert didn't have a dozen operas under his belt. His writing for the voice--particularly the tenor--is knowledgeable and sympathetic. Each song setting brings out such a sense of individuality that you can easily imagine characters on stage. While the influence of Benjamin Britten is often in evidence, you could do a lot worse.

It is a pity that this CD, along with most other recordings of Albert's work, is already out of print. It is less than 20 years since his death. While nothing that changed musical history, it is worthy work that deserves to be heard.