Search - John Williams :: John Williams: The Seville Concert

Williams: The Seville Concert

07/20/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"One of my favorite CDs. It's got good variety and great playing by Williams. Starting with "Sevilla," the main theme is charming enough, but it's the slow and quieter middle section that's exquisite--turn up the volume on that part to get the full ethereal effect. The Bach and Scarlatti are played with typical clarity and coloring by Williams. The Vivaldi concerto with strings is lively, although I've heard a more moving version of the largo section before. The "Sakura" variations adds some cultural music variety while including several guitar techniques (chords, harmonics, tremolo, etc.). The diabolical "Usher Waltz" has Williams appropriately racking nerves with string twanging and raking of chords. Of course, no collection could be without "Leyenda;" but I prefer an earlier (1960s?) recording by Williams, which has more power and intensity. "Sueno en la Floresta" by Barrios is a real beauty, and Williams gets to demonstrate his outstanding tremolo among other superhuman guitar techniques. Finally, there's the adagio of Rodrigo's "Concerto de Aranjuez." Although I've only heard a few recordings of "Aranjuez" among the dozens out there, I am extremely content with listening to just this one. Williams plays with the proper intensity in the right places. I also like the strong performance from the accompanying orchestra. The video of this concert is a treat also. I can "see" why some critics say Williams' plays without much emotion: his whole body seems always rigid while playing. But that shouldn't matter because all the emotion is channeled into those powerful fingers to produce rich, pianoforte-like sounds. Anyway, I strongly recommend this CD for lovers of classical music and guitar."

Yes

Person | hmm | 06/04/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"An excellent cd. definitly my favourite recording of the Vivaldi, an excellent Scarlatti, and the best "fall of the house of Usher" (beside Koshkin's own) i've yet heard.



However - I have to say I prefer Fernandez' interpretation of the Violin prelude; while nowhere near as clean as Williams' Fernandez' reccording seems to me to be a better interpretation of violin music, more "frenzied" if you like, and with a more exhilerating tempo.



Also there are better recordings of the Adagio. I'm a great fan of Williams but I think Rodrigo needs a less subtle approach. Williams is still very expressive though.



"

IMPECCABLE!

pisces1950 | Juncos, PR United States | 09/25/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"John Williams demonstrates his incredible technique, plus his strong control of the guitar in this CD. I also recommend the video, especially for those who have never had the pleasure of attending one of Williams' concerts. If you want to explore the "Segovia School", then Williams is your perfect choice, since he was one of Segovia's favorite students--and most successful. The repertoire chosen here is a "master class" in itself to aspiring guitarists of how to develop a program for a concert and/or CD. Great choice also for someone who just wants to listen to beautiful guitar music as they eat a gourmet dinner."