Arnold Rosner: Orchestral Music, Volume Two
The musical language of the New York-based Arnold Rosner (1945–2013) clothes the modal harmony and rhythm of pre-Baroque polyphony in rich Romantic colours, producing a style that is instantly recognisable and immediately appealing. This second Toccata Classics album of his orchestral music contrasts the high-spirited Unraveling Dances – a rhapsody with more than a nod to Ravel’s Bolero – with the powerful symphonic suite Five Ko-ans for Orchestra and Rosner’s dramatic, dark, hieratic setting of Kafka’s The Parable of the Law for baritone and orchestra.
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Nick Palmer, conductor
Christopher Burchett, baritone (Track 7)
Listen To This Recording:
-
Five Ko-ans for Orchestra, Op. 65 (1976)
- Five Ko-ans for Orchestra, Op. 65: No. 1 Music of Changes
- Five Ko-ans for Orchestra, Op. 65: No. 2 Ricercare
- Five Ko-ans for Orchestra, Op. 65: No. 3 Ostinato
- Five Ko-ans for Orchestra, Op. 65: No. 4 Music of Stillness
- Five Ko-ans for Orchestra, Op. 65: No. 5 Isorhythmic Motet
- Unraveling Dances, Op. 122 (2007)
- The Parable of the Law, Op. 97 (1993)
FIRST RECORDINGS
MusicWeb International :
‘Rosner wrote serious tonal music and the performances on this disc and its recording qualities are a superb compliment to Rosner’s achievement. There is nothing circus-like, trivial or superficial in his output.’
Rob Barnett, MusicWeb International
Classical Net :
‘[Unraveling Dances] is a terrific showpiece, as long as Bolero itself, and – if I may add – dances with greater forward impulse. […]
I look on the [The Parable of the Law] as a bit of a compositional miracle – clearing every hurdle, compelling a listener to stay on the ride until the end, despite the solemnity of the subject matter and the lack of obvious opportunities for bon-bons. This work alone convinces me of Rosner’s natural power. […]
Beautifully scored, [the Ostinato] has both a Middle Ages and Middle Eastern flavor. What a Bruckner adagio does for others, this does for me. […]
All three scores demand a top-flight orchestra, and fortunately not only does the London Philharmonic qualify, it has become one of the world’s great “reading” orchestras. So here you have three tremendous scores well done in good sound. What are you waiting for?’
—Steve Schwartz, Classical Net
Gapplegate Classical-Modern Music Review :
‘And as I emerge from the intensive listening of said album I must say I am beguiled, impressed with Rosner’s true vision and orchestrational grasp.
Three compositions provide three appealing and dynamic musical worlds. […]
Listing to this volume a good number of times, I emerge with a clear sense of the Rosner musical personality, not so much a cross-section of a number of modern developments and the past, instead a conscious refashioning from what has been and a fertile inventive imagination. Nick Palmer and the London Philharmonic give us impressive and heartfelt readings of the works. Very recommended.’
—Grego Applegate Edwards, Gapplegate Classical-Modern Music Review