Sigma Alpha Iota

Winter 2020 30 PAN PIPES REVIEWS A TO Z Amernet String Quartet plays Judith Lang Zaimont Misha Vitenson & Franz Felkl, violins; Michael Klotz, viola; Jason Calloway, cello; & John Wilson, piano. MSR Classics, MS 1709 Judith Lang Zaimont's dramatic string works are played with great emotion and skill by the Amernet String Quartet. Zaimont includes tonal and atonal elements in her compositions, with changes in texture, instrumental color, and overall tone driving her works. The Amernet String Quartet, which has performed across the globe and won numerous awards, is currently Ensemble-in-Residence at Florida International University in Miami. BLACK SWANS Black classical music performers (1917-1922). Parnassus Records, PACD 96067 Original performances by accomplished black vocalists and instrumentalists, including Harry Burleigh, Florence Cole-Talbert, and Roland Hayes, among others. The sound quality of these 25 pre-microphone recordings has been improved with new software, allowing for an enjoyable listening experience minus any "scratchy record" sound often associated with the time period. BEYOND THE TRAVELER Piano Music by Composers f rom Arkansas.pasadena Works by Hilliard, Price, Nancarrow, & Bryant. Cole Burger, piano. MSR Classics, MS 1686 A native of Arkansas, pianist Cole Burger has performed internationally and teaches at the College of Musical Arts at Bowling Green State University. The four works presented on the recording are enjoyable and diverse, from John Hilliard's quirky 2 Preludes, 3 Fugues and 1 Postlude to the short, multi-metered Tango? by Conlon Nancarrow. HOMAGES & REMEMBRANCES Works by Turok, Mozart, Debussy, Adler, Espag, and Mussorgsky. James Adler, piano; Cain-Oscar Bergeron, flute. Albany Records, TROY 1781 Pianist-Composer James Adler presents an album inspired by the passing of his older brother, Norman, who originally encouraged his musical studies. Included is the premier recording of Adler's Elegy for Norman for flute and piano. Additional pieces by Debussy, Mozart, and others round out the theme of remembrance. JIMMY LÓPEZ BELLIDO: SYMPHONIC CANVAS Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, Miguel Harth-Bedoya, conductor. MSR Classics, MS 1737 Award-winning composer Jimmy López Bellido presents his Symphony No. 1: The Travails of Persiles and Sigismunda (based on Miguel de Cervantes' novel), and Bel Canto: A Symphonic Canvas (a suite adapted from his much lauded opera). Currently the composer-in-residence at the Houston Symphony Orchestra, López studied in Lima, Helsinki, and Berkeley. The works are dramatic, incorporating Latin American musical elements at times, and engage the emotions of the listener. PORTRAITS IN GUITAR Simonne Draper, composer - guitar and electronic orchestra with Patrik Henel and Helena Slavíková, guitars; Jirí Zmek, percussion. MSR Classics, MS 1719 Born in the former Czechoslovakia, Simonne Draper was raised in Moravia, where she was influenced by the music of Leoš Janáček, Antonin Dvořák, and Bedřich Smetana. Her works are well-balanced between the solo guitar and electronic orchestra, showcase the many extended techniques of the guitar, and very enjoyable.

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