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      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeAug 27th 2008 edited
    I hear a lot of complaints about the 'current state of film music', all those boring drone scores, and the generic compositions made on a computer. So, rather than complain about what we're not getting, why not start a thread about what we're neglecting, and for those with a taste for the more refined. wink

    Rather than give a simple list, a small (or long) description of the piece of music would be more helpful I think.

    I'll try to think of some suggestions tomorrow, but I'm sure I could leave it in the capable hands of some of our classical fans for now? I'm thinking Romantic and early 20th Century concert works will generally be the best suggestions for a film music fan since it was during this time that composers really started to explore the full sound of the orchestra. Of course there are many gems from earlier periods, but that just happens to be my preference.
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      CommentAuthorErik Woods
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008 edited
    The Classical Albums That I Own

    Adams, John - Harmonielehre
    Adams, John - John Adams: Violin Concerto; Shaker Loops
    Adams, John - On the Transmigration of Souls
    Adams, John - Road Movies
    Arkenstone, David - Inspired By Middle Earth
    Barry, John - The Beyondness of Things
    Barry, John - Eternal Echoes
    Berlioz, Hector - Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique
    Bruckner, Anton - Bruckner: Symphony No. 2 in C minor
    Bruckner, Anton - Bruckner: Symphony No. 6
    Copland, Aaron - The Copland Collection - Orchestral Works, 1948-71
    Dudley, Anne - Ancient and Modern
    Elfman, Danny - Serenada Schizophrana
    Elgar, Edward - Elgar: Symphony No. 1, Op. 55
    Giacchino, Michael - Camden 2000
    Giacchino, Michael - The Holy Cross Fight Song
    Glass, Philip - The Secret Agent
    Goldenthal, Elliot - Fire Water Paper: A Vietnam Oratorio
    Goldsmith, Jerry - Christus Apollo
    Herrmann, Bernard - Moby Dick/ For the Fallen
    Hindemith, Paul - Hindemith: Mathis Der Maler, Nobilissima Visione, Symphonic Metamorphosis
    Hisaishi, Joe - I Am
    Holdridge, Lee - Holdridge Conducts Holdridge
    Holst, Gustav - The Planets, Star Wars and Also Sprach Zarathustra
    I Salonisti - I Salonisti Play Film Music
    Ifukube, Akira - Symphonic Fantasia No.1
    Kamen, Michael - Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra (Live)
    Kamen, Michael - Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra (Tomoyasu Hotei)
    Kamen, Michael - Concerto for Saxophone and Orchestra
    Kamen, Michael - A New Moon in the Old Moon's Arms
    Kilar, Wojciech - Requiem Father Kolbe
    Korngold, Erich Wolfgang - Korngold: Between Two Worlds
    Korngold, Erich Wolfgang - Korngold: Symphony in F sharp / Einfache Lieder / Mariettas Lied
    Kunzel, Erich and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra - Chiller
    Kunzel, Erich and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra - Symphonic Spectacular
    Libera Boys Choir - Luminosa
    Mahler, Gustav - Mahler: Symphonies 6 & 8 (Disc 3)
    North, Alex - Romeo and Juliet
    Prokofiev, Sergei - The Best of Prokofiev
    Prokofiev, Sergei - Prokofiev: The Complete Symphonies 4CD set
    Prokofiev, Sergei - Sergei Prokofiev: The Originals
    Schumann, Robert - Schumann The Symphonies
    Shostakovich, Dimitri - Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5 & No. 9
    Siliotto, Carlo - The Dog's Master
    Stravinsky, Igor - The Rite of Spring / Firebird Suite
    Tchaikovsky, Peter - Symphonic Battle Scenes
    Ten Tenors, The - Here's To The Heroes
    Vangelis - Mythodea
    Vaughan Williams, Ralph - Vaughan Williams: A Sea Symphony
    Vaughan Williams, Ralph - Vaughan Williams: Symphonies
    Vaughan Williams, Ralph - Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 5 / Norfolk Rhapsody / The Lark Ascending
    Vaughan Williams, Ralph - Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 5 etc
    Vaughan Williams, Ralph - Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 9 / Job
    Wagner, Richard - The Best of Wagner
    Williams, John - The Concert Music of John Williams: Live!
    Williams, John - The Five Sacred Trees
    Williams, John - Soundings
    Williams, John - Treesong
    Williams, John - Yo-Yo Ma Plays the Music of John Williams

    -Erik-
    host and executive producer of THE CINEMATIC SOUND RADIO PODCAST | www.cinematicsound.net | www.facebook.com/cinematicsound | I HAVE TINNITUS!
    • CommentAuthorKing Rao
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008
    Erik Woods wrote

    Artist - Album


    Was this a mistake or is there really a concert composer called "Artist" who composed a work called "Album"?
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      CommentAuthorErik Woods
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008
    King Rao wrote
    Erik Woods wrote

    Artist - Album


    Was this a mistake or is there really a concert composer called "Artist" who composed a work called "Album"?


    biggrin Forgot to take that out when exporting the list from Excel

    -Erik-
    host and executive producer of THE CINEMATIC SOUND RADIO PODCAST | www.cinematicsound.net | www.facebook.com/cinematicsound | I HAVE TINNITUS!
  1. Some of the classical highlights for me from the last few years:

    - Dharma at Big Sur (electric violin concerto) / My Father Knew Charles Ives (John Adams)
    - New Impossibilities (Silk Road Ensemble - Yo Yo Ma et al)
    - Symphony 2 for string orchestra / Suite from the Red Violin (John Corigliano)
    - Concerto for Violin and Orchestra (Corigliano) (complete Red Violin concerto)
    - Oceana / Tenebrae / Three Songs (Osvaldo Golijov)
    - Symphonic Impressions of Oman (Lalo Schifrin)
    - Letters from Argentina (Lalo Schifrin)
    - Symphony 8 (Philip Glass)

    There are also a couple of things that have never had proper releases, but there's no point listing them. (I know this is a list, by the way. I hope to come back and put some more flesh on its bones soon.)
    A butterfly thinks therefore I am
    • CommentAuthortjguitar
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008
    Kunzel, Erich and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra - Symphonic Spectacular



    You don't have "Orchestral Spectaculars" as well?


    http://www.amazon.com/Orchestral-Specta … B000003CTO
    • CommentAuthorTimmer
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008 edited
    Excellent thread Steven cool

    I'll be adding to this thread with some detailed descriptions and suggestions.

    Erik, I was quite surprised by your list? You have a lot more "classical" works than you gave an impression of.
    On Friday I ate a lot of dust and appeared orange near the end of the day ~ Bregt
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      CommentAuthorErik Woods
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008
    Timmer wrote
    Excellent thread Steven cool

    I'll be adding to this thread with some detailed descriptions and suggestions.

    Erik, I was quite surprised by your list? You have a lot more "classical" works than you gave an impression of.


    The thing is... I don't listen to it. Well, most of it. biggrin

    -Erik-
    host and executive producer of THE CINEMATIC SOUND RADIO PODCAST | www.cinematicsound.net | www.facebook.com/cinematicsound | I HAVE TINNITUS!
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      CommentAuthorsdtom
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008
    There is a whole world to explore as far as classical music is concerned.
    Thomas smile
    listen to more classical music!
    • CommentAuthorTimmer
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008
    Erik Woods wrote
    Timmer wrote
    Excellent thread Steven cool

    I'll be adding to this thread with some detailed descriptions and suggestions.

    Erik, I was quite surprised by your list? You have a lot more "classical" works than you gave an impression of.


    The thing is... I don't listen to it. Well, most of it. biggrin

    -Erik-


    This MUST be rectified!! slant wink
    On Friday I ate a lot of dust and appeared orange near the end of the day ~ Bregt
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      CommentAuthorErik Woods
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008
    sdtom wrote
    There is a whole world to explore as far as classical music is concerned.
    Thomas smile


    Which is why we have opened this thread for people like me who need recommendations.

    HELP!

    -Erik-
    host and executive producer of THE CINEMATIC SOUND RADIO PODCAST | www.cinematicsound.net | www.facebook.com/cinematicsound | I HAVE TINNITUS!
    •  
      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008 edited
    First thing to do is give The Lark Ascending your full and undivided attention! It starts off quiet and atonal (if that's the right word to use) but then flourishes into the kind of beauty and power Vaughan Williams was famous for. Definitely one of my favourite pieces of music ever composed!

    I'll get the obvious suggestions (and some of my favourites) out the way first for this thread:

    Georges Bizet (October 25, 1838 – June 3, 1875)

    Carmen Suite I & II

    Very much a thematic work, so for a film music fan it would feel very much familiar in terms of structure. Also, you might here a bit of Horner's Zorro in there. Actually, you definitely will.


    Aaron Copland (November 14, 1900 – December 2, 1990)

    Rodeo

    The first of two ballet scores I would suggest, fans of Fievel Goes West would appreciate this one. (Horner again!)

    Appalachian Spring

    So much fun these pieces are and certainly well worth a listen if you like your Western scores, Copland must have been one of the biggest influences on Western scores.


    Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky (May 7 [O.S. April 25] 1840 – November 6 [O.S. October 25] 1893)

    The Nutcracker Suite

    An absolute must. No way to get around it, this should be in every orchestral music fan's collection! If you like your music melodic , memorable and magical, this is the piece for you. So many famous and recognisable tunes from just one suite.... just magnificent. The essential playlist for Christmas.

    Symphony No. 6 - 2nd Movement

    Let's just say if you liked the music in Minority Report (i.e. not the score), you'll love this. wink


    Gustav Theodore Holst (21 September 1874 – 25 May 1934)

    The Planets Suite

    Another absolute must, I told you I was going to get the obvious out of the way! Makes me proud to be British this music does. It's of particular significance to film music fans since The Planets has been one of the most influential pieces ever written.


    Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns (9 October 1835 – 16 December 1921)

    Carnival Of The Animals

    Let's just say this is to Saint-Saëns as The Nutcracker Suite is to Tchaikovsky. Perhaps another one of those works that a film music fan would feel 'comfortable' with. Melodies in abundance!


    Johann Strauss II (October 25, 1825 – June 3, 1899)

    By The Beautiful Blue Danube Waltz

    Aka the theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey or when Homer opens a packet of crisps in space and has to eat them. wink Another must have.

    Die Fledermaus - Act 1. Overture

    Aka the music from Tom & Jerry and the Hollywood Bowl. Rarely has more catchy and FUN a piece of music ever been composed!


    George Gershwin (September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937)

    An American In Paris

    One of young Gershwin's most famous pieces, and for good reason. And orchestras love playing this 17 minute piece just because of the shear fun it is to play and to listen to. I love Gershwin's style of orchestral jazz, a composer who had such an untimely death and would surely have gone to even more amazing things.


    Edvard Hagerup Grieg (15 June 1843 – 4 September 1907)

    In The Hall Of The Mountain King

    For those who live in Britain or know of the advert, it's theme music used for Alton Towers. I'm sure most people have heard this tune, but not all can place it. So here it is, a very famous unknown tune. (Generally for non-classical fans it tends to be 'unknown', stating the obvious there.)


    Johann Strauss I (March 14, 1804 – September 25, 1849)

    Rudetsky March

    Father of Strauss II, the family seemed to excel in ridiculously catchy melodies. One of the versions I have has the audience clapping to the beat, so its definitely a crowd pleaser this one.


    ...oh man, so much to suggest. I'll stop there for the moment.
    • CommentAuthorTimmer
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008 edited
    With all due respect, forget Steven's recommendation of In The Hall of The Mountain King and instead go for PEER GYNT which is the source of the piece and based on Henrik Ibsen's drama of a young lad who's a bit of a dreamer and a boaster, a bit of a Billy Liar cum Don Juan, this whole work which is split into two suites plays just like a film score with not a single track running much over six minutes. Starting with the sublimely beautiful Morning Mood, a piece that is so descriptive that if this doesn't make you feel fresh and happy then you must have a heart of stone. And not forgetting of course, the highlight piece of Steven's recommendation In The Hall of The Mountain King which, as he said, will probably be familiar to everybody.

    The version I have is Herbert Von Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic.
    On Friday I ate a lot of dust and appeared orange near the end of the day ~ Bregt
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      CommentAuthorsdtom
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008
    I've tried with Erik who I consider a good friend. To get him to listen more than once in awhile is difficult. The two obvious ones that come to my mind are The Red Pony and Sinfonia Antarctica. Both of these classical works are performed in the films Red Pony and Scott of the Antarctic. I believe the Red Pony is included in the Copland work he already has.
    Thomas smile
    listen to more classical music!
  2. When it comes to Copland, Lincoln Portrait seems an obligatory work. THough on the other hand, if you listen to Saving Private Ryan, you already know it...
    http://www.filmmusic.pl - Polish Film Music Review Website
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      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008 edited
    This thread will be good for me too, there's so much I haven't heard from many of the composers I love (obviously rolleyes ).

    I tend to only have a few pieces by many composers rather than the other way round. So I have a very general view of classical music instead of a detailed, specific one. I "only" have about 9-10 days of classical music in my library (and lots more that needs to be ripped).
    So bring in the suggestions! punk
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      CommentAuthorsdtom
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008
    Steven start with this one.

    http://sdtom.wordpress.com/2007/12/01/m … n-copland/

    an outstanding CD

    Thomas smile
    listen to more classical music!
    • CommentAuthorTimmer
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008
    Steven wrote
    This thread will be good for me too, there's so much I haven't heard from many of the composers I love (obviously rolleyes ).

    I tend to only have a few pieces by many composers rather than the other way round. So I have a very general view of classical music instead of a detailed, specific one. I "only" have about 9-10 days of classical music in my library (and lots more that needs to be ripped).
    So bring in the suggestions! punk


    There's still an awful lot for myself to discover too, I'm always checking out peoples recommendations.
    Steven, I'm presuming you only have In The Hall of The Mountain King as part of a compilation?

    p.s. Did you also know there's a choral / orchestral version!?
    On Friday I ate a lot of dust and appeared orange near the end of the day ~ Bregt
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      CommentAuthorWilliam
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008 edited
    Here's a list of some of my favorites:

    1. Full works:

    Elgar, Edward
    Cello Concerto
    Pomp and Circumstance Marches

    Grieg, Edvard
    In the Hall of the Mountain King
    Piano Concerto

    Holst, Gustav
    The Mystic Trumpeter
    The Planets

    Mahler, Gustav
    Symphony No. 1 "Titan"
    Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection"
    Symphony No. 4
    Symphony No. 5
    Symphony No. 6 "Tragic"
    Symphony No. 7
    Symphony No. 9

    Mussorgsky, Modest
    Pictures at an Exhibition
    Night on the Bare Mountain/Night On Bald Mountain/A Night On Bald Mountain

    Orff, Carl
    Carmina Burana

    Rachmaninov, Sergei
    Symphony No. 2

    Schumann, Robert
    Symphony No. 3 "Rhenish"

    Sibelius, Jean
    Symphony No. 5

    Strauss, Richard
    Ein Heldenleben

    Stravinsky, Igor
    The Firebird Suite
    The Rite of Spring

    Tchaikovsky, Pyotr
    The Nutcracker Suite
    Symphony No. 4
    Symphony No. 6

    Walton, William
    Symphony No. 1

    2. Lesser parts (arias, overtures, etc.) of larger works (mostly operas, in this case):

    Puccini, Giacomo
    Turandot: Act III: Nessun dorma

    Wagner, Richard
    Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg: Overture
    Lohengrin: Prelude, Act III
    Rienzi: Overture
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      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008
    Can you elaborate? Endless lists are ultimately pointless since readers won't be able to discriminate between the choices. The idea is to help them, not burden them. wink (Including me.)
    •  
      CommentAuthorWilliam
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008
    Steven wrote
    Can you elaborate? Endless lists are ultimately pointless since readers won't be able to discriminate between the choices. The idea is to help them, not burden them. wink (Including me.)


    Good idea... I'll be back to do just that later. Going in the pool, now. wink
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      CommentAuthorplindboe
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008 edited
    Steven wrote
    why not start a thread about what we're neglecting, and for those with a taste for the more refined.


    ^
    |
    |
    FAIL!

    Peter wink
    •  
      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008 edited
    Epic fail. Wow, didn't occur to me to do a search, I was so sure there had never been a thread about it before? Obviously I was mistaken.

    But thread police be dammed, this thread is STAYING. slant
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      CommentAuthorplindboe
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008
    Steven wrote
    Epic fail. Wow, didn't occur to me to do a search, I was so sure there had never been a thread about it before? Obviously I was mistaken.


    Hehe.

    Let's just keep this one running, there's been many interesting recommendations so far. I just wanted to try out that FAIL internet meme.

    Personally I've always enjoyed Mendelssohn's 2nd violin concerto. Gorgeous stuff!

    Peter smile
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      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008 edited
    Antonín Leopold Dvorák (September 8, 1841 – May 1, 1904)

    Slavonic Dances

    Another set of relatively short movements, 8 in total, each with very separate musical identities yet obviously connected and each brimming with catchy melodies. Very easy listen for the film music fan, and they truly do deserve the name 'Slavonic Dances'.
  3. When it comes to Dvorak, I would recommend the Ninth Symphony and Cello Concerto. Interestingly, the theme from Cello Concerto was expanded by Goldsmith as the main epic theme from The 13th Warrior.
    http://www.filmmusic.pl - Polish Film Music Review Website
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      CommentAuthorsdtom
    • CommentTimeAug 28th 2008
    I strongly urge you Steven to pick up the Copland CD I recommended to Timmer and start with that one.
    Thomas smile
    listen to more classical music!
    •  
      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeAug 29th 2008
    Oh don't worry, I've already taken your suggestion to heart. wink
    •  
      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeAug 29th 2008 edited
    PawelStroinski wrote
    When it comes to Dvorak, I would recommend the Ninth Symphony and Cello Concerto. Interestingly, the theme from Cello Concerto was expanded by Goldsmith as the main epic theme from The 13th Warrior.


    I'll have to give them a listen, can't remember if I've listened to them before? (Simply because I will sometimes play something by a certain composer and not look at the name.) Reason I suggest something like Slavonic Dances is because of the short movements, very easily accessible for a non-classically inclined music fan.

    Edit: Having just listened to an excerpt from the Ninth Symphony, you're absolutely right! I'd recommend it 100%. (And I remember that I'm very familiar with... but obviously not the name. rolleyes )
  4. Elaborating on a few of my choices above. I was trying to pick very recent stuff that would only have come out in the last three years or so.

    - Dharma at Big Sur (electric violin concerto) / My Father Knew Charles Ives (John Adams)
    This was a double album that came out 2 years ago. Dharma at Big Sur is a musical portrait of sorts of a Californian Buddhist community (Adams is based in California), and the electric violin soli suit the serenity one would expect from that subject. For me the real treasure here is the three movement My Father Knew Charles Ives. Charles Ives was an early 20th century American composer based in New England, and his music often interpolated the melodies of others in a dense polyphonic texture where the sources became bent beyond recognition (but not always). The most famous work of his, which has been used in many films, is the solemn tone poem 'The Unanswered Question' - where musical ideas float over the listener in something a bit more like a collage than a conventional composition. Now Adams' father didn't actually know Charles Ives, but they would have walked the same streets of New England, and had similar temperaments. The Adams composition attempts a collage composition in the spirit of Ives, but charged with the composer's own minimalist energy. You'll appreciate it more if you know a bit of Ives' work.

    - New Impossibilities (Silk Road Ensemble - Yo Yo Ma et al)
    This is the third Silk Road album from Yo Yo Ma's ensemble, and I reckon it equals the first, featuring fewer compositions of longer length than the more fragmented second album (which was of course excellent in its own way). The highlight for me is the ensemble's reworking of Osvaldo Golijov's 'Night of the Flying Horses' for far earthier tone colours that anyone would have heard it before. There are other pleasures however - 'Arabian Waltz' is spirited and energetic; 'Song of the Eight Unruly Poets' could be an action cue with its syncopated percussion and brass; 'The Silent City' has a great pulsating string rhythm; and this album's performance of the lengthy 'Ambush from Ten sides' is definitely another highpoint. You have to like 'world music', or music constructed from authentic period instruments to really enjoy this stuff. (There's no soft string backing here.) Lots of energy.
    Samples should be available from the three albums here: http://www.silkroadproject.org/music/re … ities.html

    - Symphony 2 for string orchestra / Suite from the Red Violin (John Corigliano)
    I reviewed this album when it came out:
    http://www.musicweb-international.com/f … suite.html
    The five points of the symphony are a great journey. In 'Scherzo', you're racing somewhere with incredible speed, flying in the face of all danger. 'Nocturne' is a serene night in Morocco, the string voices approximating the blending of mullah voices calling all to prayer. 'Fugue' is an unusual asymmetrically-structured fugue where all serenity unravels. 'Postlude' reveals where we really were all along - a man dying of AIDS in the back of an ambulance, his life flashing before his eyes. This piece just wrecks me. It was a string quartet by Corigliano that he later expanded for full string orchestra (moments of it still feature a quartet at the centre), and he won the Pulitzer for it. It's not an easy listen at times - Corigliano is one of the key post-romantic composers of our time, mixing avante-garde harshness with the emotional intensity of late Romantic composition. As with his pupil Goldenthal, there are some very harsh edges.
    The suite from the Red Violin probably doesn't need to be talked up - if you like that score, you'll already know if you want more of it. I think this suite works a bit better than the full concerto.

    - Oceana / Tenebrae / Three Songs (Osvaldo Golijov)
    I started to look into Golijov when I heard he was going to be scoring Coppola's Youth without Youth. (Note: he's also doing Tetro, Coppola's next film.) This was the album I started with, and it contains three works. Tenebrae is the highlight for me, a serenely beautiful two-movement work for string quartet. The Three Songs, which feature Dawn Upshaw, are also superb - containing much more than mere songs. The songs feature fine orchestrations and some great non-vocal moments as well - the highlight being the incredible 'Night of the Flying Horses', goes from a lullaby to a memorable two minute allegro finale. 'How Slow the Wind' is a reworking of a cello piece he wrote called 'Mariel', and its a haunting piece either way. 'Oceana' - the main work of the album - is one that I haven't quite warmed to, probably due to my lack of enthusiasm for classical choral music. It's growing on me with its multiple choirs, soloists, and Latin rhythms, but I would recommend this album for the other two works, which make it more than worth it.

    More on the others later.
    A butterfly thinks therefore I am