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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: $8.90
You Save: $8.08 (48%)
Buy New/Used from $7.95
Avg. Customer Rating:  (13 reviews)
Sales Rank: 3092
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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| Customer Reviews:
 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!
THE MUSIC OF THE SPHERES September 17, 2007
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
WHAT CAN ONE SAY ABOUT GOLIJOV'S MUSIC? FROM AIDANAMAR TO THE PASSION ACCORDING TO SAINT MATTHEW, IT IS VIOLENT, SUBLIME, BUT ABOVE ALL, EXTATIC. NAMES LIKE ROBERT MORAN, STEVE REICH, JOHN ADAMS AND MY BELOVED PHILLIP GLASS COME TO MIND. BUT GOLIJOV STRIKES A DEEPER CHORD, ACTING AS A SORT OF HERMES, A GUIDE TO OTHER WORLDS.
I AM A POET. I GET LOST IN HIS MUSIC AND RETURN WITH THE WORDS I NEED.
 The songs are the high point; the main event is trendy to a fault September 14, 2007
12 out of 17 found this review helpful
Golijov is in danger of being priased for music that strikes me as glib and slick. The main work here, "Ocieana,' begins with a blatant appeal of pop taste: strumming guitars against a taped background of waves softly lapping the shore. I can't consider this a serious effort. The subsequent chorale parts hark back to Golijo's breakthrough work, the St. Mark Passion, with various Latin rhythms and lots of shouting in the manner of uncultivated folk singing. It's an idiom that he has taken to the bank a few times too often. If you listen past the sound effects and the atmospheric jazz singing by soloist Luciana Souza (which is set to run-of-the-mill Brazilian riffs), it's hard to hear what the shouting is about except for the desperation among classical record companies to manufacture a crossover hit.
Matters improve musically in the second half of the program. Golojov's strength lies in somber moodmaking and plaintive vocal lines based on klezmer, Sephardic, and NOrth African sources. We get the mournful part in Tenebrae, a two-movement elegy for string quartet. It's quite conservative compared with similar efforts from Ligeti, Lutoslawski, and others, but the arching melodic ines feel sincere and bring moving results.
I was waiting, however, for the three songs that end the CD, having heard a smapling here in Santa Fe two summers ago. Dawn UPshaw has proved to be Golijov's greatest champion, and here again she captures his mournful tone beautifully. All three songs are on the high level of Upshaw's last Golijov release, Ayre. The powerful symphonic music that accompanies the songs is conducted with commitment by Robert Spano. As stand-alones, these songs fully deserve five stars, and yet I wonder how such a capable composer can be satisfied with semi-junk like Oceana.
 The Usual Suspects August 28, 2007
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
This is a very enjoyable disc. While I find "Oceana" a bit overworked, the performances of "Tenebrae" and especially "Three Songs" are quite good. The Kronos Quartet once again demonstrate unrivaled control and expressiveness on their instruments. Dawn Upshaw is still at her best here. Her voice is a treasure, and the "Three Songs" show off the beauty, lyricism, and uniqueness that makes her voice stand above the rest.
a great CD August 27, 2007
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
This is a great work by Golijov. the passion is there and the orchestration is unpredictable. It is both majestic and at the same time intimate. the vocalist in the oceana CD is good. it would have been wonderful if she played margarita is golijov's ainadamar. she was not overwhelmed by golijov's orchestration. however, for oceana, this is not really something new. for more passionate and interesting listening, try ainadamar or st. mark's passion (both by golijov).
the interesting works actually here are the intimate quartets. \\
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