Search - Louis Moreau Gottschalk, Richard Rosenberg, Hot Springs Music Festival :: Gottschalk: A Night in the Tropics

The birth of american music

F. Behrens | Keene, NH USA | 02/15/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If all of the 11 cuts on the Naxos release of (8.559036) are listed as "arr." or "orch." by thus and so, it is because Gottschalk wrote primarily for the piano. But as it is with Gershwin and Kern, the music sounds good in any arrangement; and I found this CD to be very delightful listening indeed. The Hot Springs Music Festival under Richard Rosenberg gives us an hour of such short selections as "Celebre Tarantelle," "Tournament Galop," "Berceuse," and the title piece "Noche en los Tropicos." There is endless fascination in hearing how this composer (who died in 1869) was "the first to capture the syncopated music of South Louisiana and the Caribbean in enduring works that anticipate ragtime and jazz by half a century" [liner notes]. I received a thank you phone call from a Florida reader who was sent by one of my Amazon.com reviews to a CD of Gottschalk's music in the original piano versions and who found her first exposure to this composer a revelation. Perhaps this Naxos album will have a similar effect on many of you.Note: the title on the CD album is not the same as that listed on this website. I find that recording companies have stopped giving definite names to their sets and you will find the titles on the spines and on the covers different in too many cases. Why?"

Just plain fun

Ryan Richards | Midland, MI United States | 12/12/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'm not sure how other reviewers could have found this music weak and naive--too much Schönberg, maybe? Or maybe they were trying to delve its musical profundity, when in fact this music isn't profound and doesn't claim to be. It's just energetic, fun music from a composer who wasn't content to color within the Classical-era lines. If you can imagine "Creole Classical," in fact, that's a good description of this CD. Although the bulk of the album consists of rollicking showtunes (most of which feature the piano as the dominant instrument, since most of the songs are orchestral arrangements of piano pieces), there are some surprisingly tender, lyrical moments as well. The whole album is imbued with an intriguingly pre-Jazz flavor that combines with the classical structure to create some of the best moments in American music: catchy, energetic and always entertaining. For those moments when Beethoven (or Schönberg) is too much depth for one day, this CD is the perfect alternative... particularly at this price."

Enjoyable and Fun Taste of America!

Kevin S. Currie | Richmond, VA | 04/30/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Every once in a while, I like to buy a CD of a composer I'm not familiar with (and with NAXOS's low prices, why not?). When I got home and listened to this one, once wasn't enough. I listened twice through. This CD is real fun!! In his day, Gottschalk was called "the Chopin of Creoles." Most of his writing was for the piano and this CD is generally short piano pieces arranged for orchestra. The music mixes strong folk melodies and New Orleans Creole inspired syncopation with the European Classical tradition- the result being a distinctly american divertimenti. The music as a whole is very motif oriented with a touch of variation and some interesting arrangement twists. While and orchestral CD, the piano gets a lot of attention, giving us some nice interplay between the two.The only complaint I have is that the CD was recorded at a music festival where professional musicians are playing side by side with selected 'pre-professionals.' I'm not a snob and normally it wouldn't bother me, but Gottschalk's unusual syncopation tends to be unprofessionally slopppy at times. Fortunately, any mistakes are in the supporting insturments. No star shall be subtracted because NAXOS has done such a great job giving us a quality CD at a good price."