Monday, March 7, 2011

Shirley Verrett Reissue is Reviving “'Where Have All the Flowers Gone' and featuring liner notes by poet Langston Hughes.”

[Listen: Life With Classical Music; Spring 2011]

AfriClassical has posted several stories about the late mezzo-soprano Shirley Verrett since she passed away November 5, 2010. The most recent was on Jan. 31, 2011: “Sony: 'Legacy of AMERICAN DIVA Shirley Verrett, Four Previously Unavailable Recordings Released February 1, 2011.'”

Volume 3, Number 1 is the Spring 2011 issue of Listen: Life With Classical Music, published by ArkivMusic.com. Pages 6 and 7 are devoted to a 2-page advertisement entitled: “Two Unique and Celebrated American Voices: Eight Classic Albums Now Available for the First Time Since the LP Era.” Page 6 continues: “One of the most distinctive and insightful opera artists of the 20th century: Shirley Verrett.”

“Falla's Seven Popular Spanish Songs and Songs by Granados / Nin / Montsalvatge / Turina
Verrett's solo debut recording for Red Seal displays her expressive power, as earthy as it is elegant, in a wide-ranging solo recital of the most beloved art songs of Spanish composers.

“Carnegie Hall Recital
Includes songs by Schubert, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff and Copland, as well as Mozart's brilliant “Alleluia” as an encore, recorded live January 30, 1965.

“Singin' in the Storm
A collection of protest songs which captures the mood of the mid-1960s, including spirituals, the Billie Holiday classic “Strange Fruit,” two songs by Kurt Weill, then-current protest favorites “If I Had a Hammer” and “Where Have All the Flowers Gone” and featuring liner notes by poet Langston Hughes.

“Vocal Music of Vivaldi
In repertoire she did not sing later in her career, Verret is haunting in selections from Vivaldi's rarely heard Stabat Mater at a time when Vivaldi's choral music was unknown to most listeners.

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