|
|
17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ethereal, March 21, 2001
This collection is a must, even if you previously thought you had no particular taste for traditional Japanese music. The melodies are placid and contemplative. Ideal for reflective moments, or to relax. I'm motivated to try more of Rampal's Japanese recordings.While Rampal gets top billing, Laskine on the harp is just as prominent, and as excellent, in performing these works. The playing time of the CD (sadly, only a modest 44 minutes) is about equal measures solo flute, solo harp and harp/flute duet. The same performances on this CD also are available on Sony catalogue #34568, "Japanese Melodies for Flute and Harp." The tradeoff is that this Denon CD costs ... less, but the Sony-labelled product has one more track, Haru No Umi (track 1 thereon, for an extra 7 minutes). As many readers will know, CBS sold its record labels to Sony back in the '90s, I believe when they were acquired by Westinghouse. While the vast majority of the old CBS/Columbia recordings have been repackaged under the Sony label (see especially the budget priced Sony Essential Classics series that's chock full of gems), the CBS and Columbia marques also are still used by Sony. Sometimes the same recordings are sold simultaneously under these various labels, albeit with different pairings and cover art. Most confusing. Here's more. The Denon label, under which this CD is published, is an alias of Columbia Records Japan. Whether this ultimately is owned by Sony as well these days, I do not know. The point is that you should find a number of the same performances packaged under Denon that you can get under Sony, CBS or Columbia.
|