 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Kritzerland is proud to present its second-ever classical release, two amazing works by one amazing composer:
CLAUS OGERMAN
SYMPHONIC DANCES
SOME TIMES (BALLET)
Claus Ogerman conducting the New York Studio Symphony Orchestra
Claus Ogerman moved to the United States in 1959, where he immediately became one of the most prolific and in-demand arrangers/orchestrators for some of the most iconic artists of the 1960s, including Antonio Carlos Jobim, Wes Montgomery, Kai Winding, Cal Tjader, Stan Getz, Al Hirt, Wynton Kelly, Jimmy Smith, Oscar Peterson, and others, as well as singers such as Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, Jr., Astrud Gilberto, Lesley Gore, and Connie Francis. Additionally, he had several albums under his own name recorded for RCA. One of his finest achievements during that decade was his collaboration with the great jazz pianist Bill Evans, which resulted in the classic Bill Evans Trio with Symphony Orchestra, an album of astonishing depth and beauty, with Evans’ poetic piano weaving in and out of Ogerman’s magnificent arrangements of classical pieces by Faure, Bach, Chopin, and others. However, with no slight to the above-mentioned masters, the most beautiful track on the album is “Elegia,” written by Ogerman himself.
During the next two decades, Ogerman still arranged and orchestrated for such disparate artists as Barbra Streisand, George Benson, Michael Franks, Stephane Grappelli, Freddie Hubbard, Dr. John, and Stanley Turrentine, but he mostly devoted himself to serious composition. Two of his major achievements during that time included Symphonic Dances (1971) and his ballet score Some Times (1972), and they remain two of his greatest works. Symphonic Dances is a beautiful, textured, and haunting work that does exactly what Ogerman intended – stirs the emotions. Its moods and orchestral colors are hypnotic and mesmerizing. It’s like a film score to whatever film plays across your mind as you listen.
Some Times, a ballet score for large orchestra and jazz group, was commissioned by the American Ballet Theatre. The world premiere took place on July 14, 1972 at the New York State Theatre at Lincoln Center. The combining of symphonic music, jazz, and even a bit of rock, was fairly unique in the ballet world of 1972 and Ogerman did a masterful job of it. In 1977 he reworked Some Times and in so doing came up with a hit album, an instant classic, Gate of Dreams. In its pre-Gate of Dreams form, it’s a little leaner but just as evocative and beautiful. As with Symphonic Dreams, you can imagine this being a soundtrack to some movie of your own imagining. Considering Ogerman began his musical career scoring films in Germany, it’s rather surprising that some producer or director wasn’t smart enough to hand him film assignments here, although his work Symbiosis (another Bill Evans classic) was used to wonderful effect in Sideways.
These performances were first issued on CD back in 1992 on Bay Cities. Over the years that CD has become quite the collector’s item (cheapest copies on Amazon are just under a hundred bucks), so we thought it was high time to reissue it again and give it a fresh mastering, to celebrate the brilliance that was Claus Ogerman, who passed away in 2016 at the age of eighty-five.
Claus Ogerman – Symphonic Dances/Some Times is limited to 500 copies only and priced at $19.98, plus shipping. CDs will ship by the first week of November, but never fear, we’ve actually been averaging three to five weeks early in terms of shipping ahead of the official ship date. To place an order, see the cover, or hear audio samples, just visit www.kritzerland.com.
ATTENTION INDIEGOGO CONTRIBUTORS: IF YOU WANT TO RECEIVE THIS RELEASE YOU MUST OPT-IN BY SENDING US AN E-MAIL – SEND TO kritzerland@gmail.com. IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO RECEIVE IT, YOU DON”T NEED TO DO ANYTHING. IF YOU ARE NOT AN INDIEGOGO CONTRIBUTOR, ORDER AS YOU NORMALLY WOULD. THANK YOU.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
There you go again, Bruce! Releasing something surprising and enticing twice in a row, before I even got the last one in my hot little hands. Missed out on the original release (which is going for $75 smackers at best on Amazon right now), so this is a bargain! Or at least that's what I'll tell the wife.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Very nice x 2!
Ogerman's work with Jobim is gorgeous, I'd recommend you guys looking into it too.
Bruce, are you familiar with the Jobim album 'Uruba' ?
Side one is just ok, more vocals than I needed - but side 2 is the sort of melodic, symphonic writing we all know & love around here. Terrific stuff, that was what sold me on CO.
Good show, kudos, I'll have to hear this!
-Sean
Urubu is brilliant and so is his other Jobim album of the time, Terra Brasilia. I encourage the skeptical to listen to the samples - if they don't grab you then I don't know what  Sound has been improved from the Bay Cities release, which is now twenty-five years ago - James Nelson did a wonderful job of it. If you want to know the Claus that got me hooked on Claus forever it was the day I discovered Bill Evans Trio with Symphony Orchestra - purchased the very day it was released. That album, and most Claus albums, is a desert island disc - as is this one, frankly.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
Posted: |
Sep 22, 2017 - 11:42 AM
|
|
|
|
By: |
GoblinScore
(Member)
|
Urubu is brilliant and so is his other Jobim album of the time, Terra Brasilia. I encourage the skeptical to listen to the samples - if they don't grab you then I don't know what Sound has been improved from the Bay Cities release, which is now twenty-five years ago - James Nelson did a wonderful job of it. If you want to know the Claus that got me hooked on Claus forever it was the day I discovered Bill Evans Trio with Symphony Orchestra - purchased the very day it was released. That album, and most Claus albums, is a desert island disc - as is this one, frankly.
Thanks for this new, for me, record, and the Evans rec....& the reminder to revisit Terra, I know I have that somewhere here.
I missed the BC album, had no idea of it, and here I thought I was up to date on that catalogue!
-Sean
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Bay Cities release was one of our last classical releases.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Nice! As I have the Bay Cities I don't know how soon I'll get around to this upgrade, but I'm glad others are getting a chance at these excellent pieces and I like your new cover, which I think I'll utilize for iTunes.
Is there a list somewhere of the Bay Cities label catalogue (particularly the classical releases, as they won't be on soundtrackcollector.com)? The only classical title I ever got on Bay Cities was this Ogermann one, on Bruce's excellent recommendation.
Yavar
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
We did used to have little catalogs in the booklets - not sure how long those lasted. I think this list is complete:
https://www.discogs.com/label/104267-Bay-Cities
Of the classical stuff, I would highly recommend the very first Bay Cities release of Robert Ward's symphonies two and three and his piano concerto - the most beautiful, tuneful American classical music ever. I was already a huge fan and I started Bay Cities so we could issue this CD. I became very good friends with Ward and we issued quite a bit of his music, but this disc is the gold standard for Ward.
Of the others: Anything by Norman Dello Joio is great. The first Roy Harris disc is terrific, too. 1003, the Diamond, Thomson, and Hoiby album - the Hoiby alone is worth getting that disc for. Same with 1004 for the Homer Keller, which is also a classic American symphony. And 1005, the first of our Howard Hanson discs is absolutely fantastic.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Shipping on Monday. New release announcing that morning, too. Another Kritzerland first and a release that has much meaning for me personally and ends a thirty year quest to issue it.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
