American Masters: Harris, Thompson, Diamond

David [6] Diamond (Composer), Roy Harris (Composer), Randall Thompson (Composer), Leonard Bernstein (Conductor), New York Philharmonic (Orchestra)

Product Details

• Orchestra: New York Philharmonic
• Conductor: Leonard Bernstein
• Composer: David [6] Diamond, Roy Harris, Randall Thompson
• Audio CD (July 14, 1998)
• SPARS Code: ADD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B000009CYH
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #118,868 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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  #9 in	Music > Classical > Featured Composers, A-Z > ( H ) > Harris, Roy
  #9 in	Music > Classical > Historical Periods > Modern, 20th, & 21st Century > Composers > Harris, Roy - Works by Harris
  #18 in	Music > Classical > Featured Composers, A-Z > ( T ) > Thompson, Randall

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best Harris Third Available, December 16, 2000

By A Customer

This a great CD. The sound is incredible and the works have been greatly underrated. They deserve a place in e4veryome's collection, not just those interested in American music.

There are two Bernstein Harris 3rds readily available at present (not counting the one issued by the NY Philharmonic in one of its 10-CD special editions) and this is the better of the two. The performance is sleeker and more rousing and the sound is more open and inviting. Even the coupling is better: Schuman's 3rd (on DG) is pleasant, but the Diamond and Thompson symphonies offered here will leave you wondering why these works aren't a staple of American orchestras. Highly recommended.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Love It Or Leave It!, November 26, 2000

By	"jdflynnno" (New Orleans, LA) - See all my reviews

I don't know if this CD is in the top five of all-time American symphonic recordings. Heck, it might be in the top two! All three of these symphonies are great, especially, of course, Harris' Third Symphony. I feared hearing that symphony at one time because I thought it might be overrated. It isn't. And this recording from the 1960s might even be better than Bernstein's later digital recording on DG, as good as that one is. I don't find Thompson's symphony dull as some, and Diamond's symphony is a cut above many (sorry about the pun!). Diamond, in fact, might be one of the most underrated composers ever. I'll put it this way, hoss -- This is All-American music recorded by the All-American team of Bernstein and the NYPO. If you are interested in American symphonic music, to not have purchased this CD is simply un-American!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Recording of Thompson's 2nd Symphony, January 17, 2007

By	Tyler Ochoa (Dublin, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Randall Thompson's Symphony No. 2 is one of my favorite pieces, and this is the best recording of it of the three available. It is an American masterpiece, very melodic, but also rhythmically complex (in movements 1 and 3) and challenging to perform. Contrary to the uninformed comments of "hh01", the symphony was NOT written to fulfill the requirements of a doctorate in music (Thompson did receive an honorary doctorate a year after the Symphony premiered, but that was not the reason for its creation); and while the first four notes of the finale are indeed the same as "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," that is a complete coincidence, as the symphony was written twelve years BEFORE the song.
The CD also contains wonderful performances of the Harris Third and Diamond Fourth Symphonies, which are great companions to the Thompson.