Tagged: CD Picks

Michael Torke: Tahiti

Who says classical music has to be profound to be enjoyable? If you listen to classical music to "chill out," this disc is for you - with the composer's stamp of approval. Michael Torke says that he "always wanted to write a composition that would inspire a woman - coming home from a long day of work - to draw a bath, light candles, and listen to it on her pink iPod." And he has, times two, with "Tahiti," the title composition, and "Fiji" - fun pieces with a depth that listeners can explore.
 

John Williams: Greatest Hits 1969-1999

A lone violin plays a simple, haunting melody, and you think of the people: the many taken away, the few saved, and the one who saved the few. His name is Schindler, and the violin plays. This forlorn, soft, heart-rending music--performed here by Itzhak Perlman--is by John Williams, the king of Hollywood composers. It transforms the movie, because as sad as Schindler's List is, it is the sweetness of the music that drives the sadness deeper. John Williams makes magic happen in front of our eyes. That's what he does.

Giacomo Gates: The Revolution Will Be Jazz - The Songs of Gil Scott-Heron

The ever-witty vocalist Giacomo Gates is usually compared to Eddie Jefferson or Jon Hendricks when it comes to style. If not those artists, he's compared to instrumentalists due to his mastery of Vocalese. That being said, I'm sure you're wondering how the art of the late Gil Scott-Heron can even be associated with Gates.
 

Carmen McRae: The Great American Songbook