Search - Franz Welser-Most, Ernst Kovacic :: HK Gruber: Frankenstein!!

Gruber is amazing!

Robert Paterson | New York, NY, USA | 09/28/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"What a wonderful CD! Inevitably, there will be other versions of this work that are recorded as history goes on, but it's hard to imagine any group topping this version which has Gruber as chansonnier. He is unbelievably entertaining and quite simply amazing! The sounds he makes with his own voice and the way he narrates his own work are hilarious, dramatic, scary and shocking-all at the same time!Years ago, I had the opportunity to play percussion in a performance of this fun but challenging work. The percussionist is required to play toy musical instruments, inflate and pops paper bags, etc. The other players play musical toys as well. In fact, the publisher often sends out special toys that the players need to use when a performance of this work is scheduled. But this is all done tastefully and as an integral part of the music, not just for cheesy effect.As a composer, whenever people give me the old "new music sounds bad" garbage, this is one of the recordings I recommend. I also know that to write music that is truly funny and get away with it is very difficult. Gruber definitely succeeds. You would have to have a personality as dry as the Sahara to not find this work entertaining. This would be the perfect gift for a classical musician-or anyone else- around Halloween. In a word: fantastic. Go buy it!"

Wickedly Good

Mark Jordan | Gambier, Ohio, USA | 09/13/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you have a wicked sense of humor, get this disc. "Frankenstein!!" is a modern classic written in the 1970's, which somehow captured the mad fun and cynical gloom of the time all at once. After many other cerebral, expiramental pieces have joined the detritus of time, this piece will be remembered as a witty yet appropriately twisted portrait of the late 20th century. Just so you know what you're in for: H.K. Gruber sings these songs himself, in his own distinctive voice. It ain't pretty, but then again, it isn't meant to be. After all, what other song cycle has songs about baby monsters, gives instructions on how to be John Wayne, and portrays Batman and Robin as getting up out of the same bed in the morning. All this with (can it be?!?) actual memorable tunes. The support from Franz Welser-Most and the orchestra is sleek and cuttingly apt. Watch out for the large dynamic range of the recording, though."

Outrageous Fun (with Shadows)

Mark Jordan | Gambier, Ohio, USA | 03/01/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Imagine a satirical song cycle setting mock nursery rhymes about monsters and superheroes and rats and John Wayne. And then toss that idea out the window, because "Frankenstein! " is even more fun and strange than what you may have imagined. The piece, written in the late 1970's, is a triumph of slightly warped imagination, as brilliant as it is unexpected. After years as a professional bass player and leader of oh-so-SERIOUS avant-garde groups, Nali Gruber stunned everyone when he began to write music that freely crosses traditional classical, avant-garde classical, and popular music styles. But there's more to this music than satire and laughs (though there's no shortage of those!). Underlying the high spirits is a masterful sense of musical cohesion-- Gruber writes tightly knit music with the sure timing of a performer. And the flashes of wistfulness and darkness make it clear that there are indeed serious thoughts beneath all the crazy colors. The performance is ideal: Gruber himself sings the songs in an inimitable mad-cabaret manner, and the orchestra is led with crisp wit by the perceptive Franz Welser-Most. Not to be missed!"