Pierre Boulez's insightful interpretations of Varèse's music were important additions to a once meager catalog of recordings. The 1977 release of Ionisation, Arcana, and Amériques came as a revelation and redressed the false impressions other wooden and inept performances had left of these pieces. Boulez's recordings have vivid details, room for the music to breathe, and disciplined organization in which nothing is obscured. Of the works performed by the New York Philharmonic, Arcana is transparent and brutally direct, and ...
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Pierre Boulez's insightful interpretations of Varèse's music were important additions to a once meager catalog of recordings. The 1977 release of Ionisation, Arcana, and Amériques came as a revelation and redressed the false impressions other wooden and inept performances had left of these pieces. Boulez's recordings have vivid details, room for the music to breathe, and disciplined organization in which nothing is obscured. Of the works performed by the New York Philharmonic, Arcana is transparent and brutally direct, and Amériques is rich and filled with foreboding. Ionisation is spacious and reverberant, with all of the rhythmic details placed in high relief. The 1984 recordings by the Ensemble InterContemporain continue Boulez's reassessment of Varèse's oeuvre. Octandre is played with a degree of playfulness rarely found in other performances. The marvelous sonorities of Offrandes are well-suited to the texts' surrealist imagery, and Rachel Yakar's singing is light and unpretentious. Intégrales,...
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Seller's Description:
Fair. Ex-Library rental. Disc(s) are professionally cleaned and may contain only light scratches that do not effect functionality. Includes disc(s), case, booklet, and back artwork. Disc(s), case, booklet, and back artwork may contain library/security stickers and ink writing. Case and artwork may show some wear. Case may not be an original jewel case. All disc(s) are authentic.