The Transfiguration of Giovanni Baudino
John A. Carollo
Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra | Petr Vronský conductor
OVERVIEW
John A. Carollo’s newest release, THE TRANSFIGURATION OF GIOVANNI BAUDINO is a fascinating mixture of music written for different orchestral instrumentations and with wildly varying intended emotional responses. The composer himself may best define the intangible aspect of his music’s emotive intentions, writing, “I have always preferred to let music speak for itself. We each derive our own unique personal meanings from our listening experiences and most of it is felt viscerally.”
The visceral is, in the case of much of the music presented on this release, never far away. Carollo’s writing for strings in the five movements of The Rhetoric and Mythos of Belief emphasizes the tremulous and melodic, yielding a varied but consistently inspired musical color palette. Throughout this lengthy work the hues of the string ensemble sound tend toward the amber, allowing the luster and huskiness of the lower voices to often become a focal point. In these lush textures, slowly unfolding melodic materials easily maintain primacy of placement, and the many harmonic voices of the ensemble combine in a refined coherency.
Likewise, the works presented on THE TRANSFIGURATION OF GIOVANNI BAUDINO featuring full orchestra each, in turn, define their own aural landscapes. The title track is defined by scampering, freewheeling melodic materials that make their way throughout the instruments of the orchestra. Skirting the edges of tonality, the piece takes full advantage of the many timbres and orchestral coloring that can be achieved by a large ensemble. This, like Carollo’s other works, has a structural resiliency that both embraces and simultaneously defies the melodic and harmonic materials that constitute it.
It can be hard to paint the six works making up THE TRANSFIGURATION OF GIOVANNI BAUDINO with a single brush. Do You Have an E.R. for Music?, another orchestral work, couldn’t be farther in emotional intention or impact from The Rhetoric and Mythos of Belief, yet somehow the two pieces exist admirably as separate sides of a single coin in this collection of Carollo’s works. The composer’s dexterous control of the orchestra shines on this release, and the impassioned playing of the Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra, under the direction of Petr Vronský, only accentuates the sheer strength of Carollo’s compositions.
HIGHLIGHTS
Ampersand, Carollo’s first CD was awarded ‘Best Classical CD’ at the 10th Annual Hawaii Music Awards Ceremony in 2006.
THE TRANSFIGURATION OF GIOVANNI BAUDINO marks two PARMA Recordings milestones. It is the 500th PARMA album released and is also PARMA’s first album to be simultaneously released on vinyl.
Carollo was a participant in PARMA Recordings’ groundbreaking November 2015 recording session in Havana, Cuba. His Burlesque was featured on the June 2016 album ABRAZO: THE HAVANA SESSIONS.
The composer’s musical training included studies with Dr. Robert Wehrman.
Before retiring to compose fulltime, Carollo had a long career as a mental health professional for the state of Hawaii, having received a master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from San Diego State University.
Of past Carollo album STARRY NIGHT FOR STRING ORCHESTRA a reviewer wrote, “This is a starry night with meteors and perhaps an exploding star in the midst of it!”
CREDITS
The Rhetoric and Mythos of Belief
Do You Have an E.R. for Music?
Symphony No. 2 (The Circle of Fire)
Move Towards the Light (Your Destiny Awaits You)
Recorded November 22 - 26, 2016 at Reduta Hall in Olomouc CZ
Recording Session Producer Vít Mužík
Recording Session Engineers Aleš Dvořák
The Transfiguration of Giovanni Baudino
Recorded September 12, 2016 at Reduta Hall in Olomouc CZ
Recording Session Producer Vít Mužík
Recording Session Engineers Aleš Dvořák, Jan Košulič
Let Freedom Ring for orchestra
Recorded March 1, 2016 at Reduta Hall in Olomouc CZ
Recording Session Producer Vít Mužík
Recording Session Engineer Pavel Kuncar
Cover Artwork - The Mad Composer
Alex Gross - alexgross.com
Executive Producer Bob Lord
Executive A&R Sam Renshaw
A&R Chris Robinson
Audio Director Jeff LeRoy
Editing, Mixing & Mastering Shaun Michaud
Recording Session Manager Levi Brown
Engineering Manager Lucas Paquette
Design & Marketing Director Brett Picknell
Graphic Design Emily Roulo
Marketing Samantha Granville
ALSO ON NAVONA
Transcendence in the Age of War
John A. Carollo
Release Date: August 25, 2017
DIGIPAK
Catalog #: NV6109
VINYL
Catalog #: NV6110
TRACK LISTING - DIGIPAK
Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra | Petr Vronský conductor
The Rhetoric and Mythos of BelieF
01 Part I - Profondo
02 Part II - Animato - Largo
03 Part III - Tranquillo - (Existential Loneliness, as a background for joy and sorrow)
04 Part IV - Misterioso/Meditativo (Your Heart Rests Within Mine)
05 Part V - Intenso
06 The Transfiguration of Giovanni Baudino
07 Let Freedom Ring
08 Do You Have an E.R. for Music?
Symphony No. 2 (The Circle of Fire)
09 I. A Recording is the Antithesis of his Aesthetic
10 II. Line and Polyphony
11 III. The Rein Which Resists Allegory Run Riot
12 Move Towards the Light (Your Destiny Awaits You)
TRACK LISTING - VINYL
Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra | Petr Vronský conductor
SIDE A
The Rhetoric and Mythos of BelieF
Part I - Profondo
Part II - Animato - Largo
Part III - Tranquillo - (Existential Loneliness, as a background for joy and sorrow)
SIDE B
The Rhetoric and Mythos of Belief
Part IV - Misterioso/Meditativo (Your Heart Rests Within Mine)
Part V - Intenso
The Transfiguration of Giovanni Baudino
SIDE C
Symphony No. 2 (The Circle of Fire)
I. A Recording is the Antithesis of his Aesthetic
II. Line and Polyphony
III. The Rein Which Resists Allegory Run Riot
SIDE D
Let Freedom Ring
Do You Have an E.R. for Music?
Move Towards the Light (Your Destiny Awaits You)
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