The 12 Cellists of the Berlin Philharmonic - Round Midnight on CD

Description

You just can't help enjoying 'Round Midnight. If the notion of 12 cellos sitting in a studio to play "Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen" is off the wall, it is but one surprise in one of the most unlikely CDs. Would you expect Sir Simon Rattle to turn up speaking a rap part? You've got to believe it. The 12 Cellists of the Berlin Philharmonic started performing as a group 30 years ago with just one piece in their repertoire. Since then they have commissioned 30 new works. It is easy to see why composers would be drawn to them--listen to their way with "The Pink Panther Theme" and it would be hard to turn them down. It's not all tongue-in-cheek: Robert Brookmeyer's two-part Amerika 2002, In Memoriam exploits the plaintive, almost vocal, cello tone highly effectively, with a beautifully understated performance of a quiet, thoughtful work reflecting on the events of the previous year. The all-string soundworld is spiced here by the bugle and trumpet of Till Brönner, who also plays in the celebrated Thelonius Monk classic which gives the CD its title and brings it to an altogether satisfying close. 

Tracks:

1. Caravan
2. America
3. Nobody knows the trouble i've seen
4. Clap yo' hands
5. Theme from 'the pink panther'
6. Moonlight serenade
7. The flower is a key (a rap for mozart)
8. Prelude no. 2
9. Amerika 2002, in memoriam (part 1)
10. Amerika 2002, in memoriam (part 2)
11. Deep river
12. Ragtime
13. Spain
14. 'round midnight