Media Madness

New Music

The Rochester area weather is singled out for many things – humid summers, gorgeous fall foliage, “lake effect” snow storms and the equally beautiful first days of real spring.  We have film and street fests such as ImageOut and Corn Hill which occur once a year – but all year round we have the brightest of Rochester’s own – the diverse Rochester music scene and especially the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra.

The music compact disc collection at the Henrietta Public Library has just purchased the Rochester Philharmonic’s newest chart stopper: Jon Nakamatsu’s wonderful rendition of George Gershwin’s Piano Concerto in F.  Conducted by Jeff Tyzik, the disc also includes Gershwin’s Cuban Overture and the perennial favorite Rhapsody in Blue.  This wonderfully engineered SACD recording made at the Eastman Theater in July 2006 peaked at number three on Billboard’s Classical Chart and has been on the chart for 17 weeks.  This jazzy, spirited, and wonderfully vibrant enhanced CD conjures up all the best of Tin Pan Alley’s sounds and atmosphere!  Tyzik and the RPO nail the Gershwin sound – check it out – or better yet go buy it!!

Pianist Nakamatsu has also captured the fire and storm of the incredibly difficult “Rach 3” accompanied by the RPO and conducted by Maestro Christopher Seaman.  Popularized in the movie Shine starring Geoffrey Rush, this third piano concerto by Sergei Rachmaninov is played with gusto and virtuosity.  This disc also includes the equally robust and melodic Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.

These are only two examples of the wonderful works performed and recorded by the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. The library owns many other discs composed by such RPO luminaries as Howard Hanson, David Diamond, and of course we have that other guy, Chuck Mangione.

Make sure you come in and check out our music CD collection, classical, pop, jazz or rock – its all here at the Henrietta Public Library!

Nancy R. Maxwell
Audio-Visual Librarian
October, 2007