L.A. Guitar Quartet: Dances from Renaissance to Nutcracker
Album Description
All of the arrangements on this album were made by LAGQ members. Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite was arranged by Andrew York, who explains in the booklet notes that he first arranged part of the suite for two guitars, which worked musically but was hard to play. So, as he explains: “The ideal solution was to redo the work for guitar quartet, allowing a more complete translation of the complexities of the orchestral score, which could be balanced among four guitars. Two dances remain as duets — the “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy,” played here by Bill Kanengiser and Scott Tennant; and “Arabian Dance,” in which John Dearman and I are the players.”… Click For Great Discounts >>
L.A. Guitar Quartet: Dances from Renaissance to Nutcracker
Tagged with: Dances • from • Guitar • L.A. • Nutcracker • Quartet • Renaissance
I initially purchased this disk for the Christmas season but quickly it became one of my favorites year-round. The arrangements are perfect and provide a harmonic experience beyond comparison. Classical guitar with a fresh approach to some old favorites.
Rating: 5 / 5
It just doesn’t get better than this. If you want to hear Tchaikovsky played by super classical guitarists, this is the CD for you. Its the BEST!
Rating: 5 / 5
If you are a music teacher this CD is a must. If you aren’t, it STILL is a must. This CD is full of light but amazing classical guitar. I can hardly wait to pop it in at Christmas. Even if you aren’t a huge fan of classical guitar I bet this will amaze you so much you’ll want to keep listening. LAGQ flawlessly performs countless dances you’ll wonder how they do it. The music classroom can use the Renaissance music for medieval topics and dances. A great CD to have for some high quality back ground music – relaxing music.
Rating: 4 / 5
The Los Angeles Guitar Quartet’s Nutcracker Suite is a triumph for guitar arrangement. This selection is an excellent choice for one’s holiday listening enjoyment. In the Renaissance dance suites included here, the L.A.G.Q. masterfully utilize a number of the percussive timbres available on the body of the classical guitar to complete the instrumentation and invoke the spirit of the pieces. Though the recording is not as loud as most of the other L.A.G.Q. recordings, the quality of the performances more than makes up for it.
Rating: 4 / 5