[.ca] Hanson Conducts Hanson

One of America's best artists:
This recording is both wholly entertaining and inexpensive to buy. Mr. Hanson does a superb job conducting, as it is easy to hear the melodic line and recurring themes. I find this to be very good reading music (I usually listen to his 'First in e minor' it while reading the Lord of the Ring Trilogy).

Glorious music by a great American composer:
The late Howard Hanson was one of the most important figures in contemporary American music. As an administrator and educator, he laid the foundations for modern music education in a university setting. As a conductor, he championed the American composer and even recorded works by McPhee, Sessions, and other progressive composers. As a composer, however, he was a conservative. Hanson did not adopt serialism. Nor did he adopt many of the methods of modern composition. There are moments of bitonality, even in the Symphony No. 2 "Romantic". He was a throwback to an earlier age. The influence of Sibelius, the composer's hero is particularly striking, particularly in his use of form. He studied with Respighi, and this accounts for his incredible command of orchestration. His work definitely does deserve a revival. It is well crafted music. It would be loved by any audience in American today. Hopefully, these recordings will help towards a Hanson revival.

Classics revived:
These two well-known works and performances arrive beautifully refurbished by Wilma Cozart from her own taping sessions, for the world's delectation and simple delight. Curiously, the Nordic seems somewhat dated now, more of an occasional piece in the vein of Harris's Folksong Symphony and others from the 1930s and 40s. In this time of cultural diversity as an everyday American discussion point, the work seems a tad ethnocentric, culturally correct, and postsecondary-academic. There's no question as to the quality of the performance which makes you give the work your heartfelt consideration. There is no question about the Second being one of the great American symphonies (and there's a huge list of them). It is superbly elegant, musical, rapturous, and rewarding. It is a hauntingly restorative work that, with its breadth and sweep, propels you out and above the mundane cares of your own squalid and routine sphere, and builds your resolve to strike out of and live more fully. As such, it's a remarkable musico-philosophical example. Again, the performance is above reproach, thrilling, virtuoso, full of comittment, fully up to the considerable merits of the material. The Lament is a fine example of Hanson's choral production. The music is remarkable in how it follows the text closely (and reminds one strongly of the composer's opera Merry Mount and its textual integrity). I can't imagine this great work being performed by any group other than a university or even high school chorus...it cries out for youth's optimism and desire for accomplishment. The Eastman chorus is brilliant, with well-expressed enthusiasm and outstanding tone, diction and mimicry, all the qualities of a fine Italian opera chorus. The orchestra is no less, but less-featured, and one would be hard-pressed to come up with one to suggest as an alternative! Overall, this is an outstanding disk that can be welcomed with relief as the performances' initial vinyl issues languish and deteriorate on world collectors' shelves.

A Fine Example of Classical Americana:
This collection is desirable because Hanson directs the Rochester Orchestra himself, and the digital sound reproduction on this particular recording is exceptional. There are few pieces of music by American composers as definitive of the national spirit as Symphony no. 2. Lyrical, easily accessible to the classical neophyte, evoking universal emotions, this piece feels like a film score. The real jewel on this disc, however, is the impassioned performance of 'Song of Democracy.' Borrowing from two Walt Whitman poems, it is a work of extreme irony. It expresses the highest aspirations of a young republic, and given the moral direction taken by this country over the past 40 years, becomes a bittersweet reminder of shattered dreams.

A Classic:
This CD is a classic. Hanson's First speaks of the rugged grandeur of the Finnish north with its rushing glissandos in the strings, its broad chords in the brass, and its nuances in the woodwinds. His Second is more thematic in content. Hanson is not afraid to show emotion in this music, and he uses it here with unforgettable craftsmanship. Everyone should get this CD.

• Symphony No. 1 In E Minor, Op. 21 'Nordic': 1. First Movement: Andante solenne - Allegro con forza
• Symphony No. 1 In E Minor, Op. 21 'Nordic': 2. Second Movement: Andante teneramente, con semplicita
• Symphony No. 1 In E Minor, Op. 21 'Nordic': 3. Third Movement: Allegro Con fuoco
• Symphony No. 2, Op. 30 'Romantic': 1. Adagio; Allegro Moderato
• Symphony No. 2, Op. 30 'Romantic': 2. Andante Con tenerezza
• Symphony No. 2, Op. 30 'Romantic': 3. Allegro Con brio
• Song Of Democracy