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| Paper Music | 
 enlarge | Creators: Peter Howard, Johann Sebastian Bach, Luigi Boccherini, Gabriel Faure, Felix Mendelssohn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Igor Stravinsky, Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky, Antonio Vivaldi, Bobby Mcferrin, Layton James, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Label: Sony
Category: Music
List Price: $11.98
Buy New: $1.53
You Save: $10.45 (87%)
Buy New/Used/Collectible from $1.53
Avg. Customer Rating:  (9 reviews)
Sales Rank: 32802
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 5 x 0.5
MPN: 64600
UPC: 074646460023
EAN: 0074646460023
ASIN: B000002A9Q
Release Date: July 25, 1995
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 6-9 of 9 | | « PREV | | |
Bobby McFerrin can do it all January 13, 2000
4 out of 7 found this review helpful
I listen to artist such as Bootsy Collins, Jimi Hendrix, and Funkadelic. I never listened to classical or even considered it. I just happened to pick up this cd and give it a try. I remember Bobby McFerrin from "Don't Worry, Be Happy" and decided to buy this cd. Man! This cd has added another demension to music for me. I don't know much about classical music but thanks to this cd I plan on learning and listening to much more. This cd kind of has a jazzy essence to it. Its like McFerrin added some of his own jazzy grooves to the classical writings. Bobby McFerrin is a very talented musican, vocalist, and conductor.
 Not the best work by McFerrin January 4, 2000
7 out of 9 found this review helpful
"Paper Music" disappointed me. Very likely, McFerrin (who is renowned for his amazing skill as a vocalist) thinks that he is well versed in conducting, too. In my opinion, by aiming to show his talent as a conductor, he decided to limit his vocal performance. So he only sings in half of the tracks and, besides, he is miserly with his vocal invention. Unluckily, as neither his conducting is very original nor his voice is let free to amaze us, the final result is, on the whole, rather modest.
Paper Music challenges stereotypes October 5, 1998
10 out of 11 found this review helpful
Paper Music isn't for purists, but if you're among those of us who believe that mixing the new with the old can be good for classical music, and win new audience members besides, then you might consider hearing Bobby McFerrin's 1995 recording with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra. In recent years, the artist popularly known for "Don't Worry, Be Happy," has made a name in the classical world, perhaps most notably with Hush, his best-selling collaboration with cellist Yo-Yo Ma. Paper Music witnesses McFerrin in a new role--conductor as well as vocal acrobat. He appears as soloist in only half of the recorded tracks; as John Schaefer remarks in the album's liner notes, this is "very much a conductor's record." From the opening bars of the first track, we sense that McFerrin has not missed his calling. Unafraid to unleash the fire that's in Mozart, he draws a tight, spirited performance of the Overture to The Marriage of Figaro, in which we are struck by the tremendous force of the piece's many rhythmic jolts. Mozart gets further tribute later in the entire Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, a rather uneventful addition to the slew of recordings available of this piece, which is unfortunate considering the sizable percentage of space it takes up on the CD. The only other selections in which McFerrin rests his vocal folds are the Minuetto and Finale from Stravinsky's Pulcinella Suite, and the Scherzo from Mendelssohn's A Midsummer Night's Dream--both faithful performances of these composers at their best. Ultimately, the non-vocal tracks are not the album's selling points, and, admittedly, not being able to see McFerrin conduct, one wonders how frequently to credit him for the sound of the SPCO. Boccherini's Menuet from String Quintet No. 1, arranged for string orchestra, flute, and voice, is the first we hear of McFerrin's "instrumental vocals." I almost felt betrayed when I heard his "second voice" sequenced a third away in the trio section. So much for a "live" performance. Nevertheless I was pleased with the result. It is in the violin concerti by Vivaldi and Bach that we witness the amazing facility with which McFerrin executes ornaments, arpeggios, and other vocal feats. Among the most impressive moments are the stunningly fast Alberti-like passages in the third movement of the Vivaldi, and the long fortspinnung lines sustained in the Bach. Although sometimes McFerrin's voice does not "sing out" to the extent that a violin might (especially in the louder and faster moments of the concerti), we can hardly fault him for that; after all, he's the one that has breached what we thought were inherent limitations to the vocal instrument. Acrobatics aside, the most convincingly musical moments are in the more lyrical selections (one would even say the more "vocal" selections), viz. the middle movement of the Vivaldi, Tchaikovsky's Andante Cantabile, and the highlight of the album, Faure's Pavane. It is in this piece that McFerrin's voice is most suited to its role. Particularly striking is his final note. We can hardly tell where his voice ends and the clarinet begins; the effect is superhuman. Paper Music breaks stereotypes, not only of what the human voice can do, but of who does classical music and how it's supposed to be done. If classical music is to have any impact on today's culture, it must sustain dialogue with it. Thanks to Bobby McFerrin for doing his part. Oh, and if you were wondering what the title means, it's a term used by some African musicians--whose music exists among the people, as performed, as enjoyed, as alive--for the idea that music could be trapped and stored on paper--a peculiar concept indeed.
 A New Twist On An Old Concept September 14, 1998
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Classical musicians have always tried to breathe new life into tradtional pieces, always with limited success. That is, until Bobby McFerrin. With the small but vibrant St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, McFerrin combines the worlds best classical pieces and music's most beautiful instrument--the human voice--into a harmonious treat. I had heard the Pavane by Faure many times, before, but McFerrin's vocals in lue of a solo violin adds a totally new demension to the work. Likewise the last piece by Tchaikovsky is beautifully haunting with his vocals. I highly recommend this album to anyone who loves the classics, but admires a contemporary twist.
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