Tango Notturno - Isabel Bayrakdarian - Soprano, 2007 !
Isabel Bayrakdarian (born 1974 in Zahle, Lebanon) is a Grammy Award-nominated Armenian-Canadian opera singer.
ISABEL BAYRAKDARIAN: "TANGO NOTTURNO"
Music of Piazzolla, Gardel, Weill, Gade, et al. Tango Ensemble, Kradjian, piano/arranger. Texts and translations. CBC Records/Les Disques SRC MVCD 1176
Review written by Joshua Rosenblum:
Soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian is the latest classical artist to respond to the siren song of the tango with a CD compilation, and it's clear from the opening bars of the first track, Armenian composer Arno Babadjanian's "Tcheknagh Yeraz," that we'll be in good hands with her. She sings luxuriantly and passionately, with a richly pulsing mezzo quality in her lower and middle registers and a ringing fullness on top. She also responds with unforced, idiomatic vocal colorings to the demands of the texts and melodies. Her range — dynamic, timbral and dramatic — is impressive at every turn, as is her command of the six languages represented here.
Nary a track falls flat. Among the standouts are Carlos Gardel's classic "Por Una Cabeza" and Kurt Weill's sinuous "Youkali," to which Bayrakdarian brings equal doses of fire and world-weariness, without sacrificing any vocal luster. Astor Piazzolla's "Che Tango Che" has a rhythmically fragmented vocal line that reflects the violence of the lyric; Bayrakdarian chews it up gleefully, practically turning the song into a one-act play in the process. Farid El-Atrache's "Ya Zahratan Fee Khayali" provides an unexpected Middle Eastern take on the tango, one of many examples on the disc of the appeal the form has had for composers worldwide.
Bayrakdarian is accompanied by the eight-member Tango Ensemble, led by pianist Serouj Kradjian, to whom she happens to be married. Kradjian is responsible for most of the arrangements; others were contributed by the bandoneon player Fabián Carbone, or by the two in collaboration. The arrangements are outstanding and expertly played by the Ensemble. About a third of the tracks are instrumental only, including Jacob Gade's famous "Jalousie" and two intriguing Piazzolla pieces ("Verano Porteño" and "Invierno Porteño") that pay homage to Vivaldi's "Four Seasons." "Oblivion," a signature Piazzolla number, is rendered as a haunting vocalise. The title track, "Tango Notturno," by Hans-Otto Borgmann, from a film of the same name, could almost be mistaken for Kurt Weill; Bayrakdarian caresses its phrases lovingly and dispenses some teasing rubato. This disc stands up well to repeated listenings; indeed, it's downright habit-forming.
ISABEL BAYRAKDARIAN: "TANGO NOTTURNO"
Music of Piazzolla, Gardel, Weill, Gade, et al. Tango Ensemble, Kradjian, piano/arranger. Texts and translations. CBC Records/Les Disques SRC MVCD 1176
Review written by Joshua Rosenblum:
Soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian is the latest classical artist to respond to the siren song of the tango with a CD compilation, and it's clear from the opening bars of the first track, Armenian composer Arno Babadjanian's "Tcheknagh Yeraz," that we'll be in good hands with her. She sings luxuriantly and passionately, with a richly pulsing mezzo quality in her lower and middle registers and a ringing fullness on top. She also responds with unforced, idiomatic vocal colorings to the demands of the texts and melodies. Her range — dynamic, timbral and dramatic — is impressive at every turn, as is her command of the six languages represented here.
Nary a track falls flat. Among the standouts are Carlos Gardel's classic "Por Una Cabeza" and Kurt Weill's sinuous "Youkali," to which Bayrakdarian brings equal doses of fire and world-weariness, without sacrificing any vocal luster. Astor Piazzolla's "Che Tango Che" has a rhythmically fragmented vocal line that reflects the violence of the lyric; Bayrakdarian chews it up gleefully, practically turning the song into a one-act play in the process. Farid El-Atrache's "Ya Zahratan Fee Khayali" provides an unexpected Middle Eastern take on the tango, one of many examples on the disc of the appeal the form has had for composers worldwide.
Bayrakdarian is accompanied by the eight-member Tango Ensemble, led by pianist Serouj Kradjian, to whom she happens to be married. Kradjian is responsible for most of the arrangements; others were contributed by the bandoneon player Fabián Carbone, or by the two in collaboration. The arrangements are outstanding and expertly played by the Ensemble. About a third of the tracks are instrumental only, including Jacob Gade's famous "Jalousie" and two intriguing Piazzolla pieces ("Verano Porteño" and "Invierno Porteño") that pay homage to Vivaldi's "Four Seasons." "Oblivion," a signature Piazzolla number, is rendered as a haunting vocalise. The title track, "Tango Notturno," by Hans-Otto Borgmann, from a film of the same name, could almost be mistaken for Kurt Weill; Bayrakdarian caresses its phrases lovingly and dispenses some teasing rubato. This disc stands up well to repeated listenings; indeed, it's downright habit-forming.