Customer Rating:  
Summary: Hovhaness' Guitar Concerto is a winner
Comment: Much as I love certain works of Alan Hovhaness, his symphonies start to sound the same after a while. The Guitar Concerto (the first) is written in a colorful, creative style with less repetition than some other works. It is peaceful, like most of Hovhaness music, but has a slight edge to it as well. The short piece Khrimian Hairig is also highly engaging. If you are new to Hovhaness you'll like Symphony #60 but for me it is the other two pieces that make this disc special.
Customer Rating:
Summary: A first-rate guitar concerto
Comment: This CD contains a first-rate guitar concerto, one that I hope joins the standard repetoire. The rest is excellent Hovhaness. All-in-all, a good addition to a Hovhaness collection.
Customer Rating:
Summary: When do we get more?
Comment: Naxos is doing us all a favor in issuing these CD's of Hovhaness' music. This one is superb. The guitar concerto is first rate and deserves to become a Western classical music repertory piece. It is that good. The Symphony # 60 is also superb and Khrimian Hairig is a must hear piece. Now, when do we get a recording of the Violin Concerto? I was at the premiere, and it remains a piece I would love to have in my collection of recordings.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Illuminating music by the master musician of a generation.
Comment: It will be another sleepless night. Quite by accident I stumbled upon this CD which contains excellent performances of several more works of Alan Hovhaness that I did not know. It arrived today in the mail with the last of the Harry Potter series. While my 11 year old daughter devours the words of the writer of her generation, I sit downstairs in my basement office, transported by the sounds of the master musician of my generation. The music coming from my aged stereo is music of such beauty, such grace and such wonder that it will not leave me. The sounds will play in my soul throughout the night: While others in the house sleep, I will hear in silence his Christmas Symphony, his haunting Prayer of St. Gregory, the mysterious and oh, so lovely, Khrimian Hairig, a testament to the faith of the Armenian people, so excellently performed on this CD, and the majesty of the 60th Symphony, now my favorite, and one of his later compositions.
Hovhaness was a true artist. He was somehow able to go beyond composition; it is as if he revealed music itself, the purpose, the essence of music beneath the notes. I think I understand what his wife meant when she called him "music itself". So yes, I do indeed recommend this CD and pray that I will discover more like it. The music is illuminating; the performances are flawless. Surely there will be other nights in which to sleep.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Superb Introduction to Hovhaness
Comment: This is a superb introduction to the works of Alan Hovhaness, a long-neglected 20th Century American Composer. The Trumpet Concerto (Khrimian Hairig) is well-played and has a serious thoughtful quality to it. This work should be performed more often by orchestras. The Guitar Concerto is also entertaining and well-played and deserves more playing time with larger orchestras. The Symphony No. 60 (!) is a work more typically associated with Hovhaness - upbeat positive music with no ties to the modern school of classical music. The conductor Gerard Schwartz has spent much of his career championing the works of lesser known American composers and does a great job here. The recording is excellent as well.
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