Giovanni Gabrieli: Canzon Per Sonare No. 1 La Spiritata
Giovanni Gabrieli: Ottavo Tono
Giovanni Gabrieli: Nono Tono
Giovanni Gabrieli: Decimo Tono
Giovanni Gabrieli: Canzon Per Sonare No. 3 Intonazioni D'organo
Giovanni Gabrieli: Undicesimo Tono
Giovanni Gabrieli: Duodecimo Tono
Giovanni Gabrieli: Canzon Per Sonare No. 4
Giovanni Gabrieli: Fantasia In The Sixth Tone
Giovanni Gabrieli: Tocata In D Minor
Giovanni Gabrieli: Canzon Prima In G Major
Giovanni Gabrieli: Canzon Seconda In C Major
Giovanni Gabrieli: Canzon Terza In A Minor
Giovanni Gabrieli: Canzon Quarta In G Minor
Giovanni Gabrieli: Canzon Quinta In G Minor
Giovanni Gabrieli: Toccata In G Major
Venice was a good place to be in the 17th century if you liked to hang out in church--not that you had much choice in those days. Gabrieli's reputation rests on his "polychoral" compositions: works for several choirs, a ... more »choir being any size group of voices or instruments. For example, a sacred composition for three choirs might have two brass groups and one chorus, or two choruses and one brass ensemble. The idea was to keep things flexible to allow for changing local conditions. The result, in any case, was a magnificent "question and answer" style of writing, in which great blocks of harmony challenged each other from opposite sides of San Marco Cathedral. If this sort of thing intrigues you, then you owe it to yourself to hear this terrific collection. It's a cosmic experience. --David Hurwitz« less
Venice was a good place to be in the 17th century if you liked to hang out in church--not that you had much choice in those days. Gabrieli's reputation rests on his "polychoral" compositions: works for several choirs, a choir being any size group of voices or instruments. For example, a sacred composition for three choirs might have two brass groups and one chorus, or two choruses and one brass ensemble. The idea was to keep things flexible to allow for changing local conditions. The result, in any case, was a magnificent "question and answer" style of writing, in which great blocks of harmony challenged each other from opposite sides of San Marco Cathedral. If this sort of thing intrigues you, then you owe it to yourself to hear this terrific collection. It's a cosmic experience. --David Hurwitz
"This is one of the top handful of brass albums available. It is a once-in-a-lifetime recording - many of America's top brass players reading through polyphonic music of Gabrielli. Playing, intonation, and ensemble are all exactly what you should expect: outstanding. Also, this album is not the result of hours upon hours in the studio - the rehearsal and recording took place in a total of nine hours (the Chicago/ Cleveland/ Philadelpia brass ensemble part). That aspect adds further to this CD's special place in the listening catalogue.This CD falls basically into two parts: the Chicago/ Cleveland/ Philadelpia brass ensemble and E. Power Biggs/ Boston Brass Ensemble. I find the triple brass group to be more of the attraction than the organ and smaller brass group. E. Power Biggs has numerous other recordings, but this is the only one made by the combined forces of three of America's top brass sections. The 13 tracks of Gabrielli are more than worth the price. Still, with the inclusion of Armado Ghitalla from Boston, the performer list for this album reads like a "Who's Who" of American orchestral brass players.Don't be thrown off by the thin neckties on the cover - fashion may have moved on, but the musical strength of this album has not wavered at all. Notes are detailed and excellent, and the price is lower than more recent but lesser quality CDs. If you buy one album of brass instruments, this should be it."
I got this off a horn players digest and ordered my copy...
acola@westell.com | chicago | 09/15/1998
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Hello everyone, I have a reccomendation........... BUY "THE ANTIPHONAL MUSIC OF GABRIELI"...... Recorded in 1959 and 1968 with the Philadelphia Brass Ensemble, The Cleveland Brass Ensemble, and the Chicago Brass ensemble... all playing together, guess who the horn players are? Mason Jones, Dale Clevenger, and Myron Bloom. This recording is simply incredible... it is a MUST buy for everyone, I have never heard such fine brass playing, the unity and sense of ensemble is incredible, and the musicality is amazing. It is even incredible that somehow they got all of the legends from Chicago, Cleveland, and Philadelphia together to make this recording back then....anyways.. this is definetely a must hear, it's probably the best CD I have added to my collection. The CD is digitally remastered by Sony... providing a rather unique surround sound... the different ensembles come in through different sides of your headset or speakers as you would hear them if you were at the live performance... its truly amazing.... BUY IT!!"
A VERY special album
Michael Pollitz | Orlando | 08/02/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"If you've been into brass for 40 years, you probably already know that this is a very unusual gathering of the top of the top!
My only complaint is with the web site sound samples being MONO !
This album is in STEREO and really portrays the placement of the 3 major antiphonal quintets! You won't be disapointed."
Absolute Must Buy
K. Fay | Seattle, WA | 04/10/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I had this on vinyl as a youngster. When I saw, had to buy to see if it was anywhere near as good as I remembered.Wow.Formula - Guys in Philly call up their friends in Cleveland and Chicago for a day of Gabrieli. Nine hours start to finish - rehearsal, recording, don't bother tuning up.Herseth, Jacobs, Clevenger, Johnson, Adelstein, Jones, these are Men of Brass. Glorious.Playing this stuff on modern instruments - and perhaps stylistically closer to Mahler than original performance - may offend the purists. I don't care a whit. This is as good as it gets, ever.If you are a brass player, BUY THIS NOW."
Purists look elsewhere... All else, buy now!
Henry Mautner | Ludlow, KY, USA | 07/16/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Imagine a pastry chef of a future age who sees a perfect color picture of an historical artifact known as a "hamburger." Using this image, he perfectly recreates it using the tool of his trade, the primary ingredients being meringue for the bun and mousse for the burger. The result is absolutely delicious - in fact, a superlative dessert.
Sometime later, a legitimate hamburger recipe is discovered. The pastry chef is roundly derided for his "recreation," an historically inaccurate artifact. He is disgraced.
But happy. As are the many millions who continue to enjoy his concoction.
For genuine hamburger, look elsewhere - this is not Gabrieli as heard in St. Marks' during the Renaissance. But for one of the most spectacular musical "desserts" you will ever enjoy, click the "buy" button immediately. Brass players have rightly sung their Hosannas to this recording since its release in the late 1960's, but you don't have to be a brass player to be almost literally "blown away" by some of the most exciting playing of any sort ever released on a commercial recording.
The documentation is even better in this CD re-release than it was for the original LP, including not only the original liner notes confessing the logistical near-impossibility of getting the three finest orchestral brass sections in the world together in one room for a full weekend of recording, but additional commentary from a performing participant and great contemporary brass players who - in a very real sense - owe their own spectacular careers to the inspiration they received from this release.
But most of all there is the music. The players - the brass sections of the Philadelphia, Chicago, and Cleveland Orchestras - had never before worked together, and rehearsed and recorded the entire LP in nine hours over the course of one weekend. The immediate cameraderie and spontaneity are clearly evident, eclipsed only by the fact that these were some of the finest virtuoso musicians in history, regardless of instrument. My personal advice is to wait until you will bother nobody, turn the knob to "11" (with a nod to "Spinal Tap"), and let your bones vibrate and your spine tingle.
And don't forget to lick your fingers!
A delectable bonus is the organ and brass music from a second release featuring E. Power Biggs and members of the Boston Symphony from the same era. This would be an excellent release in its own right, with particularly fine playing from solo trumpeter Armando Ghitalla, but - to be fair - it was unwise to pair it with one of the most storied brass recordings in history.