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Philip Glass: The Concerto Project, Vol. 1 | 
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| Creators: Julian Lloyd Webber, Philip Glass, Gerard Schwarz, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
Label: Orange Mountain Music
Category: Music
List Price: $18.99
Buy New: $9.55
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Rating:  8 reviews
Sales Rank: 112712
Format: Import
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 5 x 0.5
MPN: 14
UPC: 801837001426
EAN: 0801837001426
ASIN: B0002X4UBA
Release Date: September 11, 2004
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Condition: Brand new Item. CD, DVD, Book, VHS more than 400 000 titles to choose from. ALL days Low Price !
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| Tracks:
| • | Concerto for Cello and Orchestra - Movement I | | • | Concerto for Cello and Orchestra - Movement II | | • | Concerto for Cello and Orchestra - Movement III | | • | Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists and Orchestra - Movement I | | • | Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists and Orchestra - Movement II | | • | Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists and Orchestra - Cadenza | | • | Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists and Orchestra - Movement III |
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Product Description
CONCERTO PROJECT 1 This is the first of a series of four CDs that Philip Glass and Orange Mountain Music have planned entitled The Concerto Project, No. I-IV Each disc contains two concerti. Omm0014 features Julian Lloyd Webber with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Gerard Schwarz performining Concerto for Cello and Orchestra and Evelyn Glennie and Jonathan Haas performing Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists and Orchestra also with Gerard Schwarz conducting the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. World-class soloists, excellent orchestra, excellent conducting and the beautiful sounding Philharmonic Hall in Liverpool, together with major compositions from the world s preeminent composer, Philip Glass.
Album Details
Recorded in January 2004 at the Orchestra's Acoustically Magnificent Home of the Philharmonic Hall in Liverpool, this Superb Release Marks Another Landmark in the Development of Philip Glass' Orange Mountain Music Label. The First Release in the Four Volume Concerto Project Brings Together a Top English Orchestra with Two of the Country's Best Known Classical Instrumentalists, Together with the Paganini of Thetimpani, Jonathan Haas. With an Exclusive Booklet, this Release Signals an Elevation in the Profile of this Already Important Label.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Bang the drum showily May 14, 2008
TSK (NY)
The cello concerto is, for Glass, surprisingly lyrical. Nothing earth shaking, but not bad, and certainly well played. The kettledrum business, I'm afraid, is the most appalling piece of cheese, featuring a series of orchestral themes that seem to have been lifted from bad B-movies. That opening motif, which sounds like it should accompany marauding Vikings as their ship approaches the coast, makes me wince. I had the curious experience of hearing this piece the other day in concert, played by far lesser talents than these, and I was struck by how so much tympanic fury signified precisely nothing. No doubt the electric presence of Evelyn Glennie in all her barefoot glory would go a long way toward making this piece tolerable in concert. But this is not a DVD, alas. However, I give the record an extra star for great sound quality. If for some reason you crave a ton of aimless kettle bashing, well, here it is, backed by music suitable for a Siegfried & Roy stage show.
 timpani duet with only one timpanist October 31, 2007
Jerry Eadeh (North Las Vegas, NV United States)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I love Philip Glass and his music, but as a timpanist, I am a bit dissapointed in Evelyn Glennie and Jonathan Hass. The two do not play well together, and I feel that one was a much stronger player than the other. I am assuming that Evelyn Glennie was the weaker of the two because she is a percussionist and not strictly a Timpanist like Mr. Hass, although I could be wrong. I have seen Ms. Glennie live and she is an amazing marimba player, so she can perform. But one set of timps sounded thin and I even heard some rim shots. I feel that this should have been recorded with two professional timpanist, that play every day, just timpani. It would have been a real treat if one player was Duff style and the other Goodman style. It seems this album was trying for some kind of commercial appeal by choosing Glennie.
Timpanists excel March 9, 2007
R. Kay (NAPLES. FL)
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
The concerto for two tympanists and orchestra was worth the price of the disc.
 Two fantastic concertos August 9, 2006
Russ (Richmond, VA)
11 out of 12 found this review helpful
Unlike certain individuals within the more "sophisticated" crowd, I am not afraid to admit that I like the minimalist music of Philip Glass (b. 1937). Glass' style is very distinct, making use of recurring arpeggios, recurring syncopated patterns and recurring melodic ideas. I used to the word "recurring" three times in the previous sentence to emphasize that repetition is an important element of Glass' music. This would spell trouble for most composers, but Glass pulls this off by continually driving the music forward to achieve greater intensity and incorporating fascinating harmonic shifts that give his music an almost hypnotic quality.
Some have faulted Glass for continuing his reliance on the techniques mentioned above (for decades!). So first off, anyone looking for a radical new direction in Glass' music will be disappointed with this release. While others, such as myself, who enjoy Glass' unique style, will surely love this CD. Rest assured, arpeggios abound, and syncopated motifs propel the music forward.
Of the two concertos, the Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists (premiered in 2000) is probably the one that will compel people to purchase this album. A concerto for a percussion instrument is a bit of an oddity. And this concerto, scored for nine timpani played by two timpanists, is pretty much what you would expect. It is intense, it is propulsive and it is aggressive. Glass doesn't seem too keen on exploring the subtleties of the timpani here. The music begins at a good clip with pounding timpani at forte, banging out the movement's theme in 5/4 time. Although, the themes employed by Glass vary in their intensity, the timpani part itself continues its aggressive, perhaps primitive, pounding until the conclusion of the movement. Now how do you compose a slow movement for nine timpani? Not an easy feat, but Glass pulls it off the (for the most part) by composing a processional that gradually builds in intensity to a climax, which then fades away. The finale of the concerto is similar to the opening movement. Lots of aggressive, percussive playing is to be found here. The syncopated opening theme of this movement, to me, has a decidedly Nordic feel to it. In short, this concerto is fantastic and will not disappoint percussion enthusiasts or admirers of Glass' style, just as long as they don't expect this piece to be something it is not. It's a timpani concerto.
Although this CD will be purchased for the timpani concerto, I think after a couple of listenings, the more reflective cello concerto (premiered in 2001) will prove equally interesting; and possibly more so. The mood of the first two movements is somber, with the rhythmic intensity of the timpani concerto nowhere to be found. However, the music is no less fascinating, with Glass' distinctive harmonic modulations and characteristic orchestration. The themes themselves are weightier and more substantial than the ones from Glass' earlier days, but repetition is still an important element to this concerto. The slow movement is especially lovely. This movement does last 14 minutes, for some reason, but is none the worse for it, as the cello's expressive recurring theme never gets stale. Things heat up a bit more in the finale, with the previously released violin concerto coming to mind. Julian Lloyd Weber, does well navigating through the sixteenth-note-laden solo part, while the percussion section, especially the castanet player, propels the music forward with repetitive rhythmic ideas. My only quibble with this piece is the ending, which is very abrupt, as if Glass was unplugged or blew a fuse in the midst of his syncopating. However, Glass' tendency to conclude with sudden, harmonically bizarre, codas is one of his "trademarks." Like a car going down a hill with no brakes, Glass' music has no problem sustaining its forward momentum; however its halt isn't pretty.
Despite this, this disc has my full recommendation. The reflective cello concerto contrasts nicely against the assertive timpani concerto. This is fascinating music that will appeal to all (except those who take themselves too seriously) and deserves a place in the library of any acquirer of recent classical music.
55:12
This is my story why I bought and fell in love with this album. December 26, 2005
Shota Hanai (Torrance, CA)
12 out of 12 found this review helpful
I still remember the incredible sensation I felt one night listening to Philip Glass' "Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists and Orchestra" for the first time on my car radio.
It happend about a year ago. After dining at Hooters in Santa Monica with some of my drumline friends, I hopped back into my car, turned on the engine, and all the sudden, the sound of timpani filled the car! I mean LOTS and LOTS of it! Listening to the orchestral accompaniment, I knew it was a concerto piece... a very modern concerto piece. The music was simply mesmerizing, with the orchestra playing rather refreshingly consonant chords, while the drums were struck all over the place, at times arpeggiating, and at times singing the melody. It either had to be a soloist playing so many drums, or even two playing them.
I simply had to know what this strange new piece was, so I listened throughout my whole drive on the dark highways and freeways back home. Lasting pretty long, I knew I must have listened from the first movement. As the music progressed, there was a slower movement, the followed by a huge cadenza featuring the timpani, before another fast movement. By the time I reached home, the music came to an exhilirating close, and listened like an eager student... "Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists and Orchestra by Philip Glass ("Philip Glass? Really?", the soloists being Jonathan Haas and Evelyn Glennie ("Evelyn Glennie? I know her!"), with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic under Gerald Schwartz."
I never hesistated by buy the album featuring this work. It only took days for me to find the right album with the right performers (well, this IS the only performance so far, being a premiere recording).
As a percussionist (with timpani being my favorite instrument), I bought this album just for the Timpani piece... obviously. Based on the booklet, the soloists Jonathan Haas (dubbed the "Paganini of Timpani") and Evelyn Glennie (probably THE best percussionist in the world), played on seven drums each, so that's FOURTEEN total! The work did prove a challenge to the performers, but the recording came out very well.
If you love timpani, then you'll absolutely love this work. Guaranteed! I truly cherish the work, and I am hoping to play it in the future to show my obsession with my favorite percussion instrument.
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