Search - Charles Ives, Richard Bernas, Music Projects/London :: When the Moon (Song Sets for Orchestra)

Ives at his best

Joe Barron | Philadelphia, PA, | 06/14/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I finished listening to this CD a little while ago and I'm still glowing. It's a creative bit of programming in a well-performed, well-engineered reaslization. First come Ives's pieces for chamber orchestra, grouped as he intended into his idiosyncratic "sets." Then come the same pieces again, in the same order, in their versions for voice and piano. Some of the orchestral music. such as "Evening" was unknown to me. Others, like "Charlie Rutledge," I knew only as songs. (The orchestral arrangement of "Rutledge" is an eye-opener--it's like Copland by way of Varese.) Loveliest of all is the voice of the soprano Susan Narucki. Her interpretation of the Se'er (Set No. 1) seemed rather strident on first hearing, but in the softer, slower songs she gave me chills, esp. "Like a Sick Eagle" and "The Indians." The CD also includes a fine rendition of the Set for Theater Orchestra. Conductor Richard Bernas and his ensemble do well by the broken, sad-yet-happy ragtime of "In the Inn." The only omission in the collection is a vocal performance of "In the Cage"--the first of the three pieces. The other two don't have vocals counterparts, but "In the Cage" does, and one wonders why Bernas and company decided not to include it.I have always believed that some of Ives's best music can be found in his pieces for chamber orchestra, in which, surprisingly, he uses his signature quotation technique only sparingly. Most of the tunes are original. The music is undiluted Ives, and it is wonderful."

Ives, the Recycler

Robert W. Allen | Northfield Falls, Vermont United States | 11/05/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It is a well-known fact that many composers have gotten into the habit of rewriting and/or recycling older compositions as something new. For example, Handel recycled a lot of his organ concertos as concertos for harp and/or harpsichord, as well as a number of recorder sonatas. Ives was very keen on recycling his own works in different formats. One only has to peruse certain of the Ives songs, for instance, to realize that some of that material showed up in his symphonies. His fourth symphony alone sports two movements which were recycled: one from the first string quartet, and one from a song.
It is refreshing to see, at last, a collection which demonstrates so thoroughly Ives's process of recycling not only his own tunes but other people's as well. In particular I was pleased to see that this recording includes "Calcium Light Night" which uses George F. Root's "Tramp! Tramp! Tramp!" Also we have what is perhaps the first recording on CD of The Pond, which Ives wrote as a tribute to his father who used to play "Kathleen Mavourneen" on the trumpet at a pond near their home in Danbury, Connecticut. I was surprised to learn that Ives had rewritten The Pond not just once but twice.
I find myself in agreement, by the way, with the other reviewer concerning the omission of the song "The Cage" which is a lovely and very brief song. However, this particular song is available on other recordings of Ives's work, such as the recording of Ives songs by Jan deGaetani and Gilbert Kalish, so I didn't miss it that much."

A "Must" for Ives fans

Ypres1918 | Western Pennsylvania, USA | 07/20/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I could go on and on about Ives, but it would be rather pointless in this case. The bare-bones facts of the matter is that this is an excellent disc and is a must for those whose Ives collection needs fleshed out with some of the smaller and more elusive works."