Before Jean-Pierre Rampal appeared on the music scene in the 1950s, wind players were rarely hired as soloists with orchestras. This legendary French flute virtuoso broke through that barrier with his astonishing talent, flair, and commanding stage presence, attaining the kind of visibility previously enjoyed only by pianists and violinists. He regularly filled the world’s largest concert halls for his recitals and chamber performances. Rampal was the father figure of the flute renaissance in the 20th century which restored the instrument to the exalted position it held during the 18th century. He also became one the world’s most recorded artists, commanding all the essential repertoire of his instrument but equally embracing previously unknown works, his own discoveries, jazz, pop, folk and contemporary works. Virtually anything written for the flute or plausibly adapted for it was grist for his mill. In his autobiography Rampal referred to the discography that brought him numerous prizes and awards as being so enormous that not even he could keep track of it. In 1969, he began recording for CBS, and in 1979 he signed an exclusive contract with the label. To mark his 100th birthday, Sony Classical released in a 56-CD box set the first complete edition of Jean-Pierre Rampal’s recordings for CBS, RCA, and Sony Classical. SET CONTENTS: DISC 1: Mozart: Flute QuartetsDISC 2: Bach FamilyDISC 3: Bolling: Suite for Flute and Jazz PianoDISC 4/5: Rampal and Lagoya in ConcertDISC 6: Vivaldi/TelemannDISC 7: Bolling: "Picnic Suite"DISC 8: Mozart: Flute Quartets K. 285 & K. 298/Divertimento K. 334DISC 9: Carnaval de Rampal (Showpieces)DISC 10: Schubert: Sonata In A Minor/Moscheles: Sonata concertanteDISC 11: Pastorales De NoelDISC 12: Dvořák, Feld, Martinů: From Prague With Love DISC 13: Japanese Melodies, Vol. IIIDISC 14: Haydn: DivertimentosDISC 15: Sonatas of J.S. Bach and sonsDISC 16: Jean-Pierre Rampal plays Scott JoplinDISC 17: Weber: Sonatas for Violin and PianoDISC 18: Bach: Concerto for Flute, Strings and Basso ContinuoDISC 19: Vivaldi: Six Concertos for FluteDISC 20: Fascinatin' Rampal: Jean-Pierre Rampal plays GershwinDISC 21/22: Bach: Sonatas and Partita for FluteDISC 23/24: Haydn: ConcertosDISC 25: The Flute at The Court of Frederick The GreatDISC 26: Night at The Opera: The Magic FluteDISC 27: Chants de Noel / Children’s SongsDISC 28: Mozart: SonatasDISC 29: Bolling: Suite No. 2 For Flute and Jazz Piano TrioDISC 30: Mozart: The Flute QuartetsDISC 31: Telemann: Overture/ConcertosDISC 32: Telemann, Kuhlau, Bach, Mozart, DopplerDISC 33: Kuhlau: Flute QuintetsDISC 34: Mozart: Concerto for Flute and Harp/Sinfonia concertanteDISC 35: Carulli: Flute Concerto and moreDISC 36: Concertos for Two FlutesDISC 37/38: C.P.E. Bach: The Complete Flute ConcertosDISC 39: Mozart: Flute ConcertosDISC 40: Music for Flute and HarpDISC 41: Mozart,Telemann, J.C. Bach, ReichaDISC 42: Vivaldi: 6 Double ConcertosDISC 43: Rameau: Pièces de clavecin en ConcertsDISC 44: Italian Flute ConcertosDISC 45: Mozart: Divertimento, K.334/Adagio And Rondo, K.617/Andante, K.616/Quintet, K.557DISC 46: Haydn: London TriosDISC 47: Vivaldi: The Four SeasonsDISC 48: Kathleen Battle and Jean-Pierre Rampal in ConcertDISC 49: Pla: Catalan Flute Music of the 18th CenturyDISC 50: Boccherini: Flute QuintetsDISC 51: CollaborationsDISC 52: Mozart: Symphonies Nos. 36 & 38 – Jean Pierre Rampal, conductorDISC 53: Carulli/Haydn: Guitar Concertos – Jean Pierre Rampal, conductorDISC 54: Bolling: Suite for Chamber Orchestra and Jazz Piano Trio – J.P. Rampal, conductorDISC 55: Romantic Harp Concertos – J.P. Rampal, conductorDISC 56: Mozart: March/Serenade K. 250 “Haffner” – J.P. Rampal, conductor REVIEW: Flautist Jean-Pierre Rampal brought the instrument to new prominence, proving its enormous potential in a wide range of repertoire. Sony’s new collection, ‘The Complete CBS Masterworks Recordings’, opens to a benchmark 1969 recording of the Mozart flute quartets where Rampal joins forces with Isaac Stern, Alexander Schneider, and Leonard Rose, and ends with more Mozart – and more Stern – for a keenly played 1994 version of Mozart’s Haffner Serenade. Especially noteworthy are three Kuhlau flute quintets where Rampal joins forces with the Juilliard Quartet: this is superior music, beautifully performed and recorded. Contemporary repertoire is represented in the first instance by a colorfully inventive and well-performed Penderecki Concerto under the composer’s own direction, surely the best ‘modern’ piece in the set. Rampal enjoyed a fruitful musical relationship with the French jazz pianist, composer and arranger Claude Bolling. Of those pieces included in the set, I’d gravitate first to the Suite for chamber orchestra and jazz piano trio, with its classical resonances; on the other hand, programs devoted to Scott Joplin rags and Gershwin (including a musically pointless abbreviation of An American in Paris) are best left in the box. I’m all for creative crossover but the Gershwin in particular misfires, musically. Still, to be landed with just two ‘duffs’ in a collection of 56 CDs is pretty good going. As you can imagine, some of the featured repertoire appears more than once but there are sufficient differences in approach between alternative recordings to justify spending time comparing. What’s most interesting is the typically wide range of music on offer, some of it of exceptional quality. Overall, this is a most enjoyable set, sturdily boxed, with original jacket sleeves that include readable spines, and a hardcover 220-page accompanying book that will give you informative annotations and all the discographical information you need. As diverting collections go, this is certainly one to consider. -- Gramophone (Rob Cowan)
Related
Related
Related
Related