Here are my picks and predictions for then Classical Music
Categories for the 58th Annual Grammy Awards. Usually, I look for likenesses and
labels. There are a lot of older voting
members in this branch of the Academy and historically they seem to go with
those who have been around a bit.
Best
Orchestral Performance
• Bruckner: Symphony No. 4
Manfred Honeck, conductor (Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra)
[Reference Recordings]
• Dutilleux: Métaboles; L'Arbre Des Songes; Symphony No. 2, 'Le Double'
Ludovic Morlot, conductor (Seattle Symphony)
[Seattle Symphony Media]
• Shostakovich: Under Stalin's Shadow - Symphony No. 10
Andris Nelsons, conductor (Boston Symphony Orchestra)
[Deutsche Grammophon]
• Spirit Of The American Range
Carlos Kalmar, conductor (The Oregon Symphony)
[Pentatone]
• Zhou Long & Chen Yi: Symphony 'Humen 1839'
Darrell Ang, conductor (New Zealand Symphony Orchestra)
[Naxos]
My Pick and Prediction:
• Shostakovich:
Under Stalin's Shadow - Symphony No. 10
Andris Nelsons, conductor (Boston Symphony Orchestra)
[Deutsche Grammophon]
~
Best
Opera Recording
• Janáček: Jenůfa
Donald Runnicles, conductor; Will Hartmann, Michaela Kaune
and Jennifer Larmore; Magdalena Herbst, producer (Orchestra Of The Deutsche
Oper Berlin; Chorus Of The Deutsche Oper Berlin)
[Arthaus]
• Monteverdi: Il Ritorno D'Ulisse In Patria
Martin Pearlman, conductor; Fernando Guimarães and
Jennifer Rivera; Thomas C. Moore, producer (Boston Baroque)
[Linn Records]
• Mozart: Die Entführung Aus Dem Serail
Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor; Diana Damrau, Paul
Schweinester and Rolando Villazón; Sid McLauchlan, producer (Chamber
Orchestra Of Europe)
[Deutsche Grammophon]
• Ravel: L'Enfant Et Les Sortilèges; Shéhérazade
Seiji Ozawa, conductor; Isabel Leonard; Dominic Fyfe,
producer (Saito Kinen Orchestra; SKF Matsumoto Chorus and SKF Matsumoto
Children's Chorus)
[Decca]
• Steffani: Niobe, Regina Di Tebe
Paul O'Dette and Stephen Stubbs, conductors; Karina
Gauvinand Philippe Jaroussky; Renate Wolter-Seevers, producer (Boston Early
Music Festival Orchestra)
[Erato]
• Monteverdi: Il Ritorno D'Ulisse In Patria
Martin Pearlman, conductor; Fernando Guimarães and
Jennifer Rivera; Thomas C. Moore, producer (Boston Baroque)
[Linn Records]
~
Best
Choral Performance
• Beethoven: Missa Solemnis
Bernard Haitink, conductor; Peter Dijkstra, chorus master
(Anton Barachovsky, Genia Kühmeier, Elisabeth Kulman, Hanno Müller-Brachmann
and Mark Padmore; Symphonieorchester Des Bayerischen Rundfunks; Chor Des
Bayerischen Rundfunks)
[BR Klassik]
• Monteverdi: Vespers Of 1610
Harry Christophers, conductor (Jeremy Budd, Grace
Davidson, Ben Davies, Mark Dobell, Eamonn Dougan and Charlotte Mobbs; The
Sixteen)
[Coro]
• Pablo Neruda - The Poet Sings
Craig Hella Johnson, conductor (James K. Bass, Laura
Mercado-Wright, Eric Neuville & Lauren Snouffer; Faith DeBow and Stephen
Redfield; Conspirare)
[Harmonia Mundi]
• Paulus: Far In The Heavens
Eric Holtan, conductor (Sara Fraker, Matthew Goinz, Thea
Lobo, Owen McIntosh, Kathryn Mueller and Christine Vivona; True Concord
Orchestra; True Concord Voices)
[Reference Recordings]
• Rachmaninoff: All-Night Vigil
Charles Bruffy, conductor (Paul Davidson, Frank Fleschner,
Toby Vaughn Kidd, Bryan Pinkall, Julia Scozzafava, Bryan Taylor and Joseph
Warner; Kansas City Chorale and Phoenix Chorale)
[Chandos]
My Pick:
• Monteverdi: Vespers
Of 1610
Harry Christophers, conductor (Jeremy Budd, Grace
Davidson, Ben Davies, Mark Dobell, Eamonn Dougan and Charlotte Mobbs; The
Sixteen)
[Coro]
• Rachmaninoff:
All-Night Vigil
Charles Bruffy, conductor (Paul Davidson, Frank Fleschner,
Toby Vaughn Kidd, Bryan Pinkall, Julia Scozzafava, Bryan Taylor & Joseph
Warner; Kansas City Chorale and Phoenix Chorale)
[Chandos]
Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble
Performance
• Brahms: The Piano Trios
Tanja Tetzlaff, Christian Tetzlaff and Lars Vogt
[Ondine]
• Filament
Eighth Blackbird
[Cedille Records]
• Flaherty: Airdancing For Toy Piano, Piano and Electronics
Nadia Shpachenko and Genevieve Feiwen Lee
Track from: Woman At The New Piano
[Reference Recordings]
• Render
Brad Wells and Roomful Of Teeth
[New Amsterdam Records]
• Shostakovich: Piano Quintet and String Quartet No. 2
Takács Quartet and Marc-André Hamelin
[Hyperion]
My Pick and Prediction:
• Shostakovich: Piano Quintet and String Quartet No. 2
Takács Quartet and Marc André Hamelin
[Hyperion]
Best Classical Instrumental Solo
• Dutilleux: Violin Concerto, L'Arbre Des Songes
Augustin Hadelich; Ludovic Morlot, conductor (Seattle
Symphony)
Track from: Dutilleux: Métaboles; L'Arbre Des Songes;
Symphony No. 2, 'Le Double'
[Seattle Symphony Media]
• Grieg & Moszkowski: Piano Concertos
Joseph Moog; Nicholas Milton, conductor (Deutsche Radio
Philharmonie Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern)
[Onyx Classics]
• Mozart: Keyboard Music, Vol. 7
Kristian Bezuidenhout
[Harmonia Mnudi]
• Rachmaninov Variations
Daniil Trifonov (The Philadelphia Orchestra)
[Deutsche Grammophon]
• Rzewski: The People United Will Never Be Defeated!
Ursula Oppens (Jerome Lowenthal)
[Cedille Records]
My Pick and Prediction:
• Dutilleux:
Violin Concerto, L'Arbre Des Songes
Augustin Hadelich; Ludovic Morlot, conductor (Seattle
Symphony)
Track from: Dutilleux: Métaboles; L'Arbre Des Songes;
Symphony No. 2, 'Le Double'
[Seattle Symphony Media]
Best Classical Solo Vocal Album
• Beethoven: An Die Ferne Geliebte; Haydn: English Songs; Mozart: Masonic
Cantata
Mark Padmore; Kristian Bezuidenhout, accompanist
[Harmonia Mundi]
• Joyce and Tony - Live From Wigmore Hall
Joyce DiDonato; Antonio Pappano, accompanist
[Erato]
• Nessun Dorma - The Puccini Album
Jonas Kaufmann; Antonio Pappano, conductor (Kristīne
Opolais, Antonio Pirozzi and Massimo Simeoli; Coro Dell'Accademia Nazionale
Di Santa Cecilia; Orchestra Dell'Accademia Nazionale Di Santa Cecilia)
[Sony Classical]
• Rouse: Seeing; Kabir Padavali
Talise Trevigne; David Alan Miller, conductor (Orion
Weiss; Albany Symphony)
[Naxos]
• St. Petersburg
Cecilia Bartoli; Diego Fasolis, conductor (I Barocchisti)
[Decca]
GREAT CATEGORY!
My Pick:
• Nessun Dorma -
The Puccini Album
Jonas Kaufmann; Antonio Pappano, conductor (Kristīne
Opolais, Antonio Pirozzi and Massimo Simeoli; Coro Dell'Accademia Nazionale
Di Santa Cecilia; Orchestra Dell'Accademia Nazionale Di Santa Cecilia)
[Sony Classical]
• St. Petersburg
Cecilia Bartoli; Diego Fasolis, conductor (I Barocchisti)
[Decca]
Best
Classical Compendium
• As Dreams Fall Apart - The Golden Age Of Jewish Stage And Film Music
(1925-1955)
New Budapest Orpheum Society; Jim Ginsburg, producer
[Cedille Records]
• Ask Your Mama
George Manahan, conductor; Judith Sherman, producer
[Avie Records]
• Handel: L'Allegro, Il Penseroso Ed Il Moderato, 1740
Paul McCreesh, conductor; Nicholas Parker, producer
[Signum Classics]
• Paulus: Three Places Of Enlightenment; Veil Of Tears and Grand Concerto
Giancarlo Guerrero, conductor; Tim Handley, producer
[Naxos]
• Woman At The New Piano
Nadia Shpachenko; Marina A. Ledin and Victor Ledin, producers
[Reference Recordings]
My Pick:
• Paulus: Three
Places Of Enlightenment; Veil Of Tears and Grand Concerto
Giancarlo Guerrero, conductor; Tim Handley, producer
[Naxos]
• Woman At The
New Piano
Nadia Shpachenko; Marina A. Ledin and Victor Ledin, producers
[Reference Recordings]
Either one could win and I would be satisfied. SO glad I discovered these two albums.
Best Contemporary Classical Composition
• Barry: The Importance Of Being Earnest
Gerald Barry, composer (Thomas Adès, Barbara Hannigan,
Katalin Károlyi, Hilary Summers, Peter Tantsits and Birmingham Contemporary
Music Group)
[NMC Recordings]
• Norman: Play
Andrew Norman, composer (Gil Rose and Boston Modern
Orchestra Project)
Track from: Norman: Play
[BMOP/Sound]
• Paulus: Prayers & Remembrances
Stephen Paulus, composer (Eric Holtan, True Concord Voices
and Orchestra)
Track from: Paulus: Far In The Heavens
[Reference Recordings]
• Tower: Stroke
Joan Tower, composer (Giancarlo Guerrero, Cho-Liang Lin
and Nashville Symphony)
Track from: Tower: Violin Concerto; Stroke; Chamber Dance
[Naxos]
• Wolfe: Anthracite Fields
Julia Wolfe, composer (Julian Wachner, The Choir Of
Trinity Wall Street and Bang On A Can All-Stars)
[Cantaloupe Music]
• Paulus: Prayers
& Remembrances
Stephen Paulus, composer (Eric Holtan, True Concord Voices
and Orchestra)
Track from: Paulus: Far In The Heavens
[Reference Recordings]
Rest in Peace,
Stephen Paulus – too bad you couldn’t live to get the Grammy Awards you are going
to win this year! Bravo and Thank YOU for your beautiful and
inspiring works.
THE
58TH ANNUAL GRAMMY AWARDS will be telecast live on CBS, Monday
February 15, 2016 at 8PM/EST – PM/PST.
For everything GRAMMY, including a Full List of this year’s Nominees
visit their website at http://www.grammy.com/
