Catalogue

Summary:

Harking back to a golden era in recording, when the ensembles of the Eastman School of Music under the baton of the legendary Frederick Fennell made dozens of pioneering recordings for Mercury Living Presence, the Eastman Wind Ensemble celebrates its 60^th anniversary with its first recording for AVIE Records featuring two seminal works by Stravinsky. The composer’s music figured early on in the EWE’s history – his Symphonies for Wind Instruments was performed in 1951 on a program conducted by Frederick Fennell that led to the establishment of the Eastman Wind Ensemble. And in 1966, at the age of 83, Stravinsky made his one and only visit to the Eastman School of Music, overseeing performances of several of his works. Under Mark Scatterday, who continues in the prestigious lineage as only the fourth conductor in the EWE’s history, the superior student ensemble performs Stravinsky’s Octet, while Eastman Virtuosi, made up of the Eastman School’s renowned faculty members, turn in a devilishly fine rendition of A Soldier’s Tale. Jan Opalach delivers an exceptionally nuanced narration as well as portraying the folk tale’s two protagonists, Joseph the soldier and the Devil.

Tracklist:

IGOR STRAVINSKY (1882–1971)

Octet for Wind Instruments, K.041
1. I. Sinfonia (4:04)
2. II. Tema con variazioni (8:00)
3. III. Finale

Eastman Wind Ensemble
Mark Davis Scatterday, conductor

L’Histoire du Soldat (The Soldier’s Tale), K.029 (45:11)
Spoken texts by Charles-Ferdinand Ramuz (1878–1947)

Part I
4. Introduction (The Soldier’s March)
5. Narration (“Take a break…”)
6. Music to Scene I
7. Narration (“Give me your fiddle…”)
8. Music to Scene II
9. Narration (“Well, what will you do now…”)
10. Music to Scene IIIa
11. Narration (“I have been proud…”)
12. Music to Scene IIIb
13. Narration (“How much, how much…”)

Part II
14. Introduction (The Soldier’s March)
15. Narration (“He doesn’t know himself…”)
16. The Royal March
17. Narration (“Tomorrow is the day…”)
18. The Little Concert
19. Narration (“The princess’s room…”)
20. Three Dances – Tango, Waltz, Ragtime
21. Narration (“The soldier and the princess…”)
22. The Devil’s Dance
23. Narration (“The devil, bewitched…”)
24. The Little Chorale
25. The Devil’s Song
26. Great Chorale
27. Narration (“Suppose, suppose we went there…”)
28. Triumphal March of the Devil

Jan Opalach, narrator | Eastman Virtuosi
Mark Davis Scatterday, conductor

Total duration: 60:57

Octet: Recorded 11–12 May 2011, Eastman East Wing / Engineer: John Truebger · Producer: Christopher Unger
L’histoire du Soldat: Recorded 2 September 2011, Eastman East Wing Engineer: John Truebger · Producer: Jeff Tyzik / Production assistants: Christopher Unger and Reed Chamberlin / Post-production: John Truebger
Mastering: Randy Merrill at Scott Hull Mastering, Inc / Masterdisk, New York, NY