Lester Young Kansas City

Definitive edition of the recordings made by Lester Young in 1938-1944 for the legendary Commodore, Signature and Keynote labels.

For Robert Altman's Kansas City film, since the story was centered in 1934 Kansas City, Altman wanted to have younger musicians depict top jazz artists of the era playing at one of the legendary jam sessions. He recruited many of today's top modernists and, although they used arrangements based on older recordings, they did not have to necessarily improvise in the style of the time. Actually, it is surprising how close the musicians often come, recapturing not just the music of the period but the adventurous spirit of such immortals as Coleman Hawkins, Ben Webster, and Lester Young. A dozen songs from the film are on this very enjoyable and unique CD, which features such players as trumpeter Nicholas Payton, clarinetist Don Byron, guitarists Russell Malone and Mark Whitfield, pianists Geri Allen and Cyrus Chestnut, altoists Jesse Davis and David "Fathead" Newman, and four of today's great tenors: James Carter, Craig Handy, David Murray, and Joshua Redman. In addition, Kevin Mahogany sings "I Left My Baby." Although there are some audience shouts on a couple of the pieces, this is one soundtrack album that very much stands up on its own.

Benjamin Britten - Britten's Orchestra
Kansas City Symphony Orchestra / Michael Stern (conductor)
SACD ISO: 3,33 GB (Stereo/MCH) | FLAC Stereo @ 24bit/88.2kHz: 984 MB | 5% Rec. Info
Label/Cat#: Reference Recordings # RR-120SACD | Country/Year: Europe 2003 | Artwork
Genre: Classical | Style: Early 20th Century, Contemporary

"…I feel with this recording, Michael Stern and the Kansas City Orchestra are now major player's in the classical music world. Superb!! Highly recommended." ~sa-cd.net

One of the chief characteristics of Benjamin Britten's music is his masterful and highly distinctive orchestration, and the works on this album are among his most prized for that hallmark of his originality: the Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra, the Sinfonia da requiem, and the Four Sea Interludes and Passacaglia from the opera Peter Grimes.