Search - Paul Hindemith, Samuel Barber, Benjamin Britten :: Music For Strings - Hindemith: Five Pieces Op. 44 / Barber: Adagio for Strings Op. 11 / Britten: Simple Symphony Op. 4 / Puccini: Crisantemi / Warlock: Capril Suite / Bartok: Rumanian Folk Dances

An archetypical, powerful and evoking collection.

Joseph J. Coplans | San Francisco, CA | 05/11/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This collection is a testament to the power of strings music. On a personal note, this cd launched my interest in strings music and I have explored many other composers because of the depth of this collection. Barber's Adagio for Strings is obviously well known --it is thoroughly imbedded in the pop culture, yet to me, the centerpiece of the cd is "Crisantemi" by Puccini. I have not as of yet ever heard a piece that can compare to the evoking quality of that music. I must say that this collection is very brooding and heavy, like a bath of ox blood. Crisantemi, stands alone, like a poetic garden admist the stone walls of a cemetary. I suppose the most important thing I can say about it is that this music so so sure of itself. Each composer is able to articulate a consise vocabulary of style, with a tremendous amount of emotion. I strongly encourage anyone with an interest in strings music to add this cd to their collection -- And after all of my purchases of Shostakovich, Barkok, Silvestrov music, I still return to collection as a staple."