Customer Reviews

Symphony 2 / Violin Concerto

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'm normally not much of a fan of Leonard Slatkin. But this recording displays the best conducting I've yet heard from him. Hanson's symphony is one of the most beautiful pieces written. And Oliveira does a technically flawless job at Barber's violin concerto. I was surprisingly more please with this recording than I ever hoped to be.

I originally purchased this CD because I had seen Olivera perform the Barber in concert and really enjoyed the performance. What was a pleasant surprise was listening to Slatkin and the St. Louis Symphony's performance of the Hanson Symphony #2. Outstanding! I listen to this CD over and over. I have listened to other recordings of this work (e.g., the composer himself, Gerard Schwarz-Seattle Symphony) and Slatkin's is by far the definitive interpretation. A classic-highest recommendation!

There isn't much to say except:

1. You can get other wonderful renditions of the Barber Violin Concerto. But this one is just as wonderful as the rest. And the rest probably don't have either the beautiful sound or the most idiomatic orchestral accompaniment that this one does. (The little piano interjections still give me goosebumps!). If you were wondering, the violin soloist won the Gold Medal at the Tchaikowsky competition!

2. The symphony is, well, WOW. Great music, great orchestra, great playing, great interpretation, great great great great! Forget Hanson's own recording with his scrawny orchestra on Mercury--I bet you'd want this one after you've heard it.

One of my favorite discs. Ever.

There are many excellent recordings of the oft-recorded Barber violin concerto and there are several outstanding recordings of Howard Hanson's wonderful "Romantic" symphony. In my experience, this is the only CD that mates as outstanding version of both.

Elmer Oliviera owes no debt to any of the big name violinits that have recorded the Barber. He is the equal of Hahn, Bell, Stern and Shahan in this wonderful concerto, which I have seen performed live a couple times. I have actually never heard a bad performance of the music and Olviera's performance is as good as any.

He receives outstanding support from the underrated St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and Leonard Slatkin, who turn in what is probably today's best recording of Hanson's symphony. For me, this is the best of all American symphonies. Hanson was born American to Swedish parents and is sometimes considered Scandanavian. Still, he earned his reputation as an American composer at the Rochester School of Music in upstate New York, where he was the first to record this wonderful music.

Both the symphony and the Barber concerto have a large romantic moment in common. It occurs two-thirds of the way through the concerto's first movement and most of the way through the symphony. It is the zenith of expression in both creations and links them as American kin for me.

While there are many great recordings of the Barber out there, none in my experience link that performance with any composition as fulfilling as this symphony. I think the best version of the Barber is Stern's with Bernstein's unmatched orchestral support. You can buy that recording linked to outstanding versions of Barber's cello and piano concerti, if that is your taste.

Still, I think this recording presents a more longlasting value if you are interested in having the most complete CD on your shelf at home.

this american classical music cd fills many voids. firtsly, the barber concerto was shamefully neglected for two decades until elmar olivera produced this superb version accompanied wonderfully by leonard slatkin. this sparkling performances easily matches the old and previously deleted stern bernstein lp. much the same comment can be made about leonard slatkin's fine expansive rendition of hanson's second symphony romantic. the composer's own version is a classic with the eastman rochester orchestra responding beautifully. however, the magnificent st. louis symphony adds its own virtuoso emphasis to this fine score. listeners would well to get this fine sounding cd.

at the end credits for the film ALIEN- a fine film needing a slightly larger budget.
I thought it perfect, far more appropriate than the cliched "space" music J Goldsmith had concocted, may he RIP. After the nightmare encountered by the surviving character, the music seems a release from the tension, as we bore witness to a string of sad, almost personal tragedies-yet the piece ends with an unexpected single menacing note-before soothing us back to sleep and safety again. First class film and end piece to it

Everyone should buy this disc. Both pieces are both excellent examples of 20th.century American music. Melodic, emotional and totally satisfying, even if a bit tainted by Hollywod in my opinion. Good sound quality.

I discovered this beautiful piece of music when watching the end of the Ridley Scott movie, Alien. Hanson's music was so very appropriate for the ending of that movie. Every time I hear this particular part of Hanson's symphony that was in the movie, I get choked up.

This later version of Hanson's #2 is an improvement over the original recording made with Hanson as the conductor of his own music in the late 1950's. This new version has real flair and style that the older version lacked.

This morning I was listening to Public Radio and what I heard I thought sounded a lot like the soundtrack to a '70s sci-fi movie. I could see an alien landscape with carnivorous plants and soforth. As the music went on I realized it was a seventies movie soundtrack. It was the Alien soundtrack! I was very excited since you only rarely hear soundtracks and I think some of the best modern classical music can be found there (Michael Nyman, Philip Glass). However, you can imagine my surprise to discover that, no this was not the Alien soundtrack, but a song called Symphony Number 2 by Howard Hanson.

My first reaction was that Hanson had plagerized Jerry Goldsmith's music or vice versa, but lest I pull an Anne Coulter and fail to research my observations before spewing them as gospel truth, I put in my Alien DVD and watched the credits. Sure enough, Symphony Number 2 by Howard Hanson was listed as "incidental music".

This is really a wonderful song and so fits the movie that in hearing you can just feel Sygourney Weaver's relief as the Alien is blown out the space lock. I highly recommend it and the movie.