Violinist Daniel Hope perhaps overestimates the degree to which American music is terra incognita for his European listenership; West Side Story has had many London productions, and for a long time, Gershwin was more common on European concert music programs than he was stateside. "We know a piece is from America the moment we hear it," Hope says, "But what makes music sound American?" One may not get an answer to this here, despite Hope's being pictured in front of a 1960s Ford Fairlane, but he does offer an attractive ...
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Violinist Daniel Hope perhaps overestimates the degree to which American music is terra incognita for his European listenership; West Side Story has had many London productions, and for a long time, Gershwin was more common on European concert music programs than he was stateside. "We know a piece is from America the moment we hear it," Hope says, "But what makes music sound American?" One may not get an answer to this here, despite Hope's being pictured in front of a 1960s Ford Fairlane, but he does offer an attractive range of vernacular-tinged American pieces, arranged for violin and orchestra by Paul Bateman with a variety of accompaniments. (The West Side Story Suite here is not the same as the one performed by Joshua Bell some years ago.) The jazzy Gershwin Song Suite doesn't work so well; the violin isn't integrated with what's happening in the jazz trio, and a similar problem appears in A Change Is Gonna Come, despite a fine vocal by Joy Denalane. However, the rest of the program is very strong. Hope moves into music where the violin fits logically, including longer sets of tunes by Bernstein and Weill, a piece of Ellington's Black, Brown & Beige (the program might have benefited from a few more of these), and more "classical" selections by Copland. The final America the Beautiful is pure Hope, schmaltzily appealing. Hope's Zürcher Kammerorchester by now has very supple responses to what he is doing. This is a release that will please Hope's growing cadre of fans. ~ James Manheim, Rovi
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