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| Osvaldo Golijov: Oceana | 
 enlarge | Creators: Osvaldo Golijov, Robert Spano, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra And Chorus, Jay Anderson, John Dearman, Scott Tennant, Elizabeth Remy Johnson, Jamey Haddad, Dawn Upshaw, Luciana Souza
Label: Deutsche Grammophon
Category: Music
List Price: $16.98
Buy New: $7.50
You Save: $9.48 (56%)
Buy New/Used from $7.50
Avg. Customer Rating:  (12 reviews)
Sales Rank: 2603
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 5 x 0.5
MPN: 000906902
UPC: 028947764267
EAN: 0028947764267
ASIN: B000PDZQS8
Release Date: July 10, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Tracks:
| • | Call | | • | First Wave: 'Oceana Nupical, Cadera De Las Islas' - Rain Train Interlude | | • | Second Wave: 'Quiero Oir Lo Invisible' | | • | Second Call | | • | Third Wave: 'Oceana, Reclina Tu Noche En El Castillo' | | • | Aria: 'Tengo Hambre De No Ser Sino Piedra Marina' | | • | Chorale Of the Reef: 'Oceana, Dame Las Conchas Del Arrecife' | | • | I | | • | II | | • | Night Of the Flying Horses: Close Your Eyes - Doina - Gallop | | • | Lua Descolorida | | • | How Slow the Wind |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
This stunning new CD of music by Argentine composer Osvaldo Golijov is a beauty. The title work, Oceana, is scored for instruments (with prominent guitars and percussion), chorus, and solo vocalist (here, the remarkable samba and jazz stylist Luciana Souza). It sets a poem by Pablo Neruda that praises the transcendent power and beauty of the ocean. Filled with dancing rhythms, the work ebbs and flows, ever-moving and fascinating at every turn. The Kronos Quartet then plays Tenebrae, a two-movement lamentation with long, almost Verdian melodies. Three Songs, sung by Dawn Upshaw, ends the CD. One is a tale about the sad fate of Jews and Gypsies during World War II. The second, "Colorless Moon," is a stunning dirge, and the last, a poem by Emily Dickinson, is also a lament about the inevitability of death. Please don't assume from these descriptions that this disc is depressing. This is stunning, original music that uplifts, and it is performed superbly by all involved. A must. --Robert Levine
Album Description
Oceana is the key work of this album, a composition for orchestra, three guitars, harp and voice, filled with Latin and jazz sounds. It is performed by the acclaimed Los Angeles Guitar Quartet, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra under conductor Robert Spano (also on Ainadamar), and the multiple Grammy nominated Brazilian jazz singer Luciana Souza. This piece was Golijov's first commission of a choral work in the spirit of J.S. Bach and became a source of inspiration for La Pasion segun San Marcos (St. Mark Passion), a future release on DG. Tenebrae is a collaboration with the famous Kronos Quartet--one of the most influential ensembles of our time. The meditative work in two movements "is about pain," says Golijov, "but pain seen from inside and from a distance." Despite being Golijov's reflection on today's tormented world, Tenebrae is a work of radiant beauty that offers consolation and a prayer for peace.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 7 more reviews...
 The songs are the key. February 28, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I was very curious about this cd and almost picked it up in a store. I decided to check it out online (where I purchased it after streaming a bit) instead. The main offering ('Oceana') was immediately forgettable. It had some interesting sounds but nothing that sticks with you. I still sometimes will play it as something to have on, as some of the rhythms are fun. The main piece is followed up with Kronos Quartet playing a two movement quartet entitled 'Tenebrae'. Initially I was really drawn to this piece. I still like it very much. Its slow and sombre. Not for every mood, but skillfully played and recorded. The three songs, as sung by Dawn Upshaw, are what really shine here. Especially the third one.
In closing I would recomend this cd, so long as you understand it is a mixed offering.
 Gorgeous Embracing Experience January 18, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
This is a gorgeous experience, musically, poetically. There is the presence of a great artist -- working with exceptional vocal and instrumental artists and deriving word/image focus from passionate tender rough vibrant poetry and song - that embraced me in a transcendent yet life affirming experience. The roots and yearnings of a people in their culture, their land, their oceans, their traditions, their generations, made personal - speak through. The fine abstract elements create a new universe in which to experience what is essential, unalloyed, rich. I am with this body of work as if it were a great living love in my life. In truth, it is.
Osvaldo Golijov: Oceana
Golijov continues to impress January 7, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Osvaldo Golijov is a terrific composer, bringing exciting new sounds and influences to concert music. If you've not experienced his music, it's an eclectic delight, with primary influences ranging from Argentina, Jewish tradition, and western classical music (with occasional digital elements for good measure). This is substantial, imaginative, superbly crafted music that also manages to be a very accessible and enjoyable.
The performances are first rate, Bob Spano is very gifted conductor and all of the performers are outstanding. Highly recommended for those looking for some fun, adventure, and real stimulation in their listening experiences!
Osvaldo Golijov: The Alchemist January 6, 2008
204 out of 210 found this review helpful
Argentine born Osvaldo Golijov is one of today's more important composers, a gifted artist who is unafraid to combine elements of jazz, ritual, Latin American rhythms, and Jewish elements in his disparate works. At times critics of his work point a finger to his excesses, but that has been done before (Mahler, Strauss, Rachmaninov, etc) and the composers find the golden mean that makes their music durable.
This recording combines three quite different works. The title piece is bristling with percussion and guitars and some very sensuous singing by Luciana Souza as well as choral work (the Gwinnett Young Singers) and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus conducted by Robert Spano. It is theatrical, exhilarating, and endlessly exciting. The second work 'Tenebrae' is a work that deals with inner sadness and is played with consummate skill by the Kronos Quartet. Despite the elegiac aspect of the music it is never less than beautiful and actually uplifting, full of hope.
The final set 'Three Songs' is quite simply a masterpiece. Set to three poems by Sally Potter, Rosalia de Castro and Emily Dickinson, the work is for soprano and full orchestra and while the texts deal with tragedy and death, the emotional response to this elegant writing is transcendentally beautiful. Dawn Upshaw owns this cycle and this recording one of her most beautiful - in a collection of splendid recordings! For this listener this work is the most successful and most moving on the CD. Golijov is young and already a master. One wonders what he will embrace next! Grady Harp, January 08
Best New Music Out There! October 5, 2007
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
Golijov is one of the best composers of art music out there today. His style has been called 'maximalist' in other reviews, which I understand to mean he incorporates a vast variety of stylistic influences into his music. Oceana was composed for a Bach festival, and the choral movements especially reflect that. But latin, flamenco, and other modern techniques are used in a manner that is less eclectic than cohesively energetic. Bach can be seen again in the piece for string quartet, which is by far the calmest thing for string quartet I've heard from Golijov (check out the CD 'Yiddishbuk' - which shows Golijov's modern and Jewish side). The three songs for orchestra are breathtaking. 'Lua descolorida' can be found in the midst of Golijov's St. Mark Passion, and Lullaby and Doina can be found on the Yiddishbuk CD in instrumental arrangement, but these newly orchestrated versions capture a new tenderness and wild gypsy abandon that aren't as clear in the other versions. 'How slow the wind' in English, is a stunning performance by Dawn Upshaw. That piece is also available as a cello piece on an album by Maya Beiser. This performance gives it a much more 'alive' feel.
All in all, this is a very good recording of several works by Osvaldo Golijov. It gives a good representation of the breadth of his style, from flamenco to minimalism to eastern european. It is essential for anyone who is following Golijov's rise, and a good CD to get aquainted with his music. If you liked Ainadamar, (his opera that won two grammies) you will like this.
The liner notes also promise a new recording of the St. Mark Passion to be released soon!
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