Top 10 Classical Albums Of 2010 by TOM HUIZENGA

Deceptive Cadence
Top 10 Classical Albums Of 2010 by TOM HUIZENGA
Top 10 Classical Records of 2010
This was a
particularly fine
year for fans of
singing, which
would explain why
half of the list
below features
vocal music.
We had at least two promising debut CDs. Early in the year,
soprano Sondra Radvanovsky released her all-Verdi disc,
proving that she could soon become a top contender in the
lyrico-spinto repertoire, very much in the Renata Tebaldi
mold. And in October, the exciting Italian tenor Vittorio
Grigolo's debut disc gives hope to all who patiently wait for the
next Pavarotti. He's got that Pavarotti "ping" in his voice.
It was also a good year for indie-classical, and especially New
Amsterdam Records. The enterprising alt-classical label
released several pleasing discs by young composer-performers
who adroitly straddle the post-rock and classical genres.
But perhaps the most surprising release for me was Alexander Melnikov's two-disc
traversal of the Preludes and Fugues, Op. 87 by Dmitri Shostakovich. His recording
lifted a veil from these sometimes misunderstood, underplayed works. Melnikov's
combination of intelligence, insight and amazing fingers pushes this album straight
to the top.
The Best Music Of
2010: Complete
Coverage
Enlarge
1. Shostakovich, 'The Preludes And Fugues, Op. 87'
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Artist: Alexander Melnikov
Song: Prelude And Fugue In A Major
It's funny how the right musician can illuminate a piece and suddenly, like
flipping on a light switch, everything becomes visible. For decades, pianist
Tatiana Nikolaeva's recordings of Shostakovich's Preludes and Fugues, Op. 87
were considered the benchmark. But Alexander Melnikov has changed all that:
His brilliant new recording liberates all of the poetry, ferocity and mysticism in
these pieces, many of which sound far from the composer's twitchy, sardonic
style. He paints the 7th Prelude and Fugue with open-air simplicity and
watercolor freshness. Shostakovich pushed J.S. Bach's sturdy prelude and
fugue formula to new heights, and Melnikov has pushed that into the light.
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Song: Il Trovatore: D'amor sull' ali rosee
Hearing an incredible new voice for the first time in concert is a particular thrill
for me. Soprano Sondra Radvanovsky at the Kennedy Center this spring was a
blow-away moment. Just after that, she released an extraordinary all-Verdi CD.
Radvanovsky opens her mouth and huge streams of sound soar like giant bolts
of multicolored fabric -- shimmering silver, azure blue. These days, very few
sopranos have what Radvanovsky has in her voice: generous size and weight,
dramatic intensity, dynamic control and coloring. It's a combination essential for
singing Verdi's greatest soprano roles. If Radvanovsky continues at this level,
we'll have a major new star on our hands.
2. Sondra Radvanovsky, 'Verdi Arias'
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Artist: Berlin Philharmonic
Song: Tevot, For Orchestra (excerpt)
Thomas Ades is a triple threat. Not yet 40, the London-born musician is a
conductor, pianist and, few would deny, one of our greatest living composers.
Tevot, scored for an oversized orchestra, is a work of art that pulls you into its
vortex, beginning with twinkling filaments of strings and gradually building to
hulking, twisted dances, careening winds and crushing percussion. Midway
through, we find ourselves floating -- Ades compares it to a journey through the
chaos of outer space -- which finally gives way to a gorgeous, Richard
Straussian repose. You can't excerpt this 22-minute piece. You need to hop on
for the full, astounding ride.
3. Thomas Ades, 'Tevot, etc.'
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Song: Torna ai felici di' (from 'Le Villi')
Anticipating the next Pavarotti or Domingo has become something of a tiresome
pastime for opera fanatics. Hopes were high for the incredible Rolando Villazon,
but he has all but burned himself out. Now, another strong ray of hope has
appeared: Vittorio Grigolo. Not only is his new CD, The Italian Tenor, a stunning
debut, but I've also seen him on stage twice and, believe me, he's the real deal.
With a good amount of the Pavarotti "ping," Grigolo's voice is awash in Italian
4. Vittorio Grigolo, 'The Italian Tenor'
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sunshine, and, if he guards his vocal resources carefully, he may just be our
next super-tenor.
Song: Laulusild, for chorus
Baltic Runes, another rock-solid collaboration (the 11th) between director Paul
Hillier and the virtuosic Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, jubilantly
underscores the innovation found in choral writing from greater Scandinavia,
where singing traditions are much stronger than they are here. For example,
take the fascinating style from Lapland called yoik. It's really more of a verb --
you "yoik" someone by creating his or her essence in a mélange of yelping and
swooping. Veljo Tormis, Estonia's preeminent living composer, is justly wellrepresented
on this fascinating disc. His luminous Laulusild (Bridge of Song)
builds on a foundation of soft male voices until the entire chorus, in full cry,
swirls in interlocking parts.
5. Baltic Runes, 'Estonian Philharmonic Chamber
Choir'
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Song: I Am Coming For My Things
Classical music is thriving these days, thanks in part to young, smart musicians
like Missy Mazzoli, who feels equally comfortable playing clubs and concert
halls. Mazzoli is the composer, keyboardist and bandleader of the all-female,
Brooklyn-based quintet Victoire. Along with violin, clarinet, bass and keyboards,
Mazzoli confidently weaves in electronics, vocals and found sound to create a
fresh, sometimes quirky sound that you might call alt-chamber music. "I Am
Coming for My Things" is a hazy dreamscape composed with dashes of straightahead
chamber music, minimalism and rock.
6. Victoire, 'Cathedral City'
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Song: D'Amor al dolce impero (from Armida)
Joyce DiDonato calls herself the "Yankee Diva" on her blog. It's a testament to
her down-home, girl-next-door nature. But there's nothing ordinary or common
about her singing. This mezzo-soprano is one of today's most exciting opera
singers; she's at the top of her game right now and in demand around the world.
Gramophone magazine just named her Artist of the Year. With her naturalsounding
instrument of cream and brushed silver, listen to what she can do with
a single word, like "feconde" at 2:18 into this aria from Rossini's Armida. This all-
Rossini disc is the second killer arias record from DiDonato, following last year's
excellent all-Handel disc.
7. Joyce DiDonato, 'Colbran, The Muse'
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Song: Sonata In C Minor: I. Allegro
I suppose it’s possible that Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach wrote a dull piece of
music, but I've not encountered it. He was the second of J.S. Bach's four
8. Danny Driver, 'C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonatas'
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musical sons, and, for me, by far the most interesting. C.P.E.'s music always
sounds fresh and propulsive, often with something loopy thrown in. Listen to the
odd key changes, jerky stops and starts and wide swings of loud and soft in this
sonata, played with elegant wit by British pianist Danny Driver. These so-called
quirks would later become standard practice for composers such as Mozart,
Haydn and later Beethoven.
This album is available from Hyperion Records' site..
Song: The Creed
Ukrainian composer Valentin Silvestrov occasionally gets bundled, along with
Arvo Part, John Tavener and Henryk Gorecki, into the pigeon hole loosely called
the "god squad" -- composers who produce quantities of evocative, sacred
choral music. Silvestrov has a special bag of hauntingly beautiful vocal tricks.
Listen to the glowing halos of sound (produced by the excellent Kiev Chamber
Choir) that hover over the music, shimmering like moonlight on black water.
Never mind that these are liturgical songs -- the CD provides no texts -- and just
bask in their trembling aura.
9. Valentin Silvestrov, 'Sacred Works'
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Artist: Bang On A Can
Song: 2x5: III. Fast
Steve Reich may be labeled a "minimalist" composer, but the works on this
recording are far more "maximal" than simple repeating chords and mutating
melodies. This disc presents two recent Reich works featuring groups of
musicians playing "against" taped versions of themselves. Double Sextet -- for
strings, winds, keyboard and percussion -- won the 2009 Pulitzer Prize. In the
more recent work, 2x5, Reich said he wanted to write for rock instruments
(electric bass, piano, drums, guitar), and was especially keen on interlocking the
electric bass parts. The sparkling result is something like a cross between a
1970s prog-rock band (King Crimson, for example) and Reich's own brand of
minimalism.
10. Steve Reich, 'Double Sextet, 2x5'
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Top 10 Classical Albums Of 2010 : Deceptive Cadence : NPR Page 4 of 6
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NPR Listener (21stCenturyMusicFan) wrote:
Sunday, December 19, 2010 10:53:52 AM
KoKo Paterson (The_Talking_Ape) wrote:
Saturday, December 18, 2010 12:05:46 AM
Leandro Martins (Alchemist2012) wrote:
Wednesday, December 15, 2010 11:26:49 PM
David Calechman (Spikeg) wrote:
Tuesday, December 14, 2010 1:13:03 PM
Bobi Rinehart (BRinehart) wrote:
Tuesday, December 07, 2010 7:39:07 PM
Soyeon Hwang (Soyeonia) wrote:
Sunday, December 05, 2010 9:00:57 AM
Ronald Nolan (funster12) wrote:
Wednesday, December 01, 2010 11:10:07 PM
Matthew Owen (Mysterio) wrote:
Recent First
I do not see any big deal about having two discs from the Harmonia Mundi label on this list--
great music is great music.
I certainly cannot wait to hear Danny Driver's take on CPE Bach (Pletnev's set was very
riveting), and hope to eventually get around to hearing Alexander Melnikov's version of the
Preludes and Fugues.
Concerning the Reich--I was deeply disappointed that lack of rehearsal time caused Eighth
Blackbird to have to cancel the performance of the Double Sextet while they were here in
Dallas. The 2x5 reference to King Crimson is not entirely accurate. They are known as a "70s"
band, but the first recording that integrated Steve Reich's influence (Discipline) was recorded
and released in 1981. It was great to hear that Reich (likely unintentially) returned the favor.
Recommend (0)
In the Victoire bit, the violinist and clarinetist both let their pitch go flat at various times,
obviously intentionally. Why do they do that? It is irritating.
Recommend (0)
Maybe we are just stocked on the past while great composers are composing and no one is
listening, until perhaps 200 years from now...
Recommend (0)
Let's hear it for vocal music! Given your impeccable taste I'm going to seek out these
recordings. I do need some variety, even I can't live on Afro-Cuban music alone.
Recommend (0)
Granted there are some great selections listed here but where is Zuill Bailey's Bach Cello
Suites (2010). That is number one on my list!
Recommend (0)
Thank you so much for these fantastic selectioin, Top 10 Classical albums of 2010. I wanna
share them to my facebook friends. Happy Holidays!
Recommend (0)
Great selection, and fun to learn about the new artists. Happy Holidays!
Recommend (1)
A fantastic selection, covering a wide range of styles and approaches. The Melnikov disc
totally deserves the top slot, and Danny Driver's CPE Bach is positively electric. I too miss the
Higdon Concerto disc (Hahn's best so far), but the Ades disc is possibly more'current.' Well
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Top 10 Classical Albums Of 2010 : Deceptive Cadence : NPR Page 5 of 6
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Wednesday, December 01, 2010 9:16:54 PM
Charlie Haid (CharlieHaid) wrote:
Wednesday, December 01, 2010 8:57:04 PM
W Berger (Wberger) wrote:
Wednesday, December 01, 2010 1:13:17 PM
done as usual, NPR - and thanks for your steadfast support of classical music.
Recommend (1)
Great choice of Classic Albums. The H Mundi people must be very proud and happy. Your
relationship with them enhances it all!
Recommend (0)
No Higdon Concertos?
Recommend (6)
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