TAVENER - TAVENER: A PORTRAIT CD

SKU/Barcode: 636943815229

A deluxe sampler covering the work of nearly 40 years, John Tavener: A Portrait has much to offer, including 19 musical tracks, a 46-minute interview with the composer, and a biographical essay detailing the key events and ideas in his life and work. Of primary interest is the premiere recording of Tavener's intense Prayer of the Heart, convincingly performed by Icelandic pop singer Bj rk and the Brodsky Quartet. The text of the Orthodox Christian 'Jesus Prayer' -- in Greek, Church Slavonic, Coptic, and English -- is set in fairly static sequences, which gradually progress through a spiritual scheme of halting trepidation, ecstatic aspiration, and, ultimately, serene acceptance. Bj rk was chosen by Tavener for her unschooled and unaffected singing style, and it is clear that her emotionally exposed performance meets his expectations. While her raw and breathy delivery may not suit everyone's taste, Bj rk deserves credit for plumbing the work's expressive depths and bringing off a difficult, highly inflected vocal line with assurance and authenticity. Naxos, in coordination with Coro, Nimbus Records, Divine Art, NMC, and Reference Recordings, has put together a handsome package that may lead listeners to seek out the original albums from which this disc was compiled, and further explore the evolution of England's most esoteric composer.

1. In Alium Eileen Hulse
2. To A Child Dancing In The Wind Heidi Grant Murphy
3. The Lamb Choir Of St. Johns College Cambridge
4. The Tyger Choir Of St. Johns College Cambridge
5. Movement 1: Fos I Doxa The Sixteen
6. Movement 2: Piu Intensita The Sixteen
7. Mandelion For Organ Extract Kevin Bowyer
8. Chant For Guitar Extract Jonathan Richards
9. Ikon Of Saint Cuthbert Of Lindisfatne Ian Shaw
10. The Protecting Veil For Cello And Orchestra Maria Kliegel
11. Mary Of Egypt Stephen Varcoe
12. Akhmatova Songs For Soprano And String Quartet Patricia Rozario
13. Solemn The Vanbrugh Quartet
14. [Rehearsal Letter I] The Vanbrugh Quartet
15. Song For Athene Choir Of St Johns College Cambridge
16. Zodiacs For Piano Thalia Myers
17. Prayer Of The Heart Brodsky Quartet
18. Movement 2: Eros Jorja Fleezanis
19. Mother And Child Nigel Short
20. My Earliest Musical Memories... John Tavener
21. I Saw In The Russian Orthodox Churck... John Tavener
22. I