Dreams
[CD]
Also available via download or stream at cdbaby or your favorite site
"What a wonderful CD this is, melodic, very contrasting throughout its 53-and-a-half minutes with not one track letting the side down. The playing and the recording are universally superb and I can unequivocally give this CD a huge thumbs up." - Chris Dumigan, Classical Guitar Magazine
"I'm not generally a fan of this repertory - it can be cloying and superficial from the wrong player - but she is nothing short of spectacular.
The key here is rhythm, and by that I mean something more than keeping time. Rhythm in all its complexity and subtlety is hard to truly master. And there is another element: accent. Not stressed notes, but knowing the culture, the language the music arises from.
Azuma has this music in her blood, and she has the finest time I've encountered in this music. The entire recording is solo, but she plays with such energy, precision, and flexibility that she sounds like she's supported by a rhythm section with a battery of percussion. It's irresistible.
Azuma's playing is superb, no matter what the technical demand of the percussive effects, virtuosic passages, or complex polyrhythms. Yet these are scenes of childhood, and there is a pervasive tenderness here." - Keaton, American Record Guide
"When we combine outstanding compositions with sophisticated performance, the most wonderful and beautiful music emerges. Dreams is a solo album with this, and many other rare qualities...beginning with the choice of repertoire, the excellent sound by GSP Recordings, and Cristina's heartfelt playing throughout. From the traditional 'viola caipira' (Brazilian ten string folk guitar) of the Brazilian countryside to the classical guitar and its contemporary composers like Carlo Domeniconi and Thierry Rougier, we enjoy a variety of moments where a wide range of children's (and adult) emotions are very clearly represented. However, Dreams is not a record for the little ones, despite its dedication to their games, dreams, illusions and other moments. My suite Jogos de Rua (Street Games) for example, describes games like Cabra-Cega (Blindman's Bluff), Lenco-Atras (Duck-Duck-Goose) and (Hide and Seek), where remembrances and sensations of my childhood are transformed in sounds. My intention was not to compose children's songs but, one day, I was 'toying' with my 'viola caipira' when the ideas came to my fingers naturally. I believe this was also Cristina's intention here. She wrote a piece kidding with a harmonized major scale, using a John Dowland melody (Come Heavy Sleep) in the middle of the piece, like Britten did in his Nocturnal. All pieces in this recording have been chosen to fit in this concept: not made for but dedicated to the children's universe." - Paulo Bellinati p>"Cristina Azuma's Dreams brings the timeless spirit of solo classical guitar performance to yet a new level of musical perfection." - Music Web Express 2000 (www.mwe3.com)
FROM THE LINER NOTES
This CD emerged from my desire to put into music, the different moods we experience when we become parents—the exaltation of birth, the sleepless nights, our dreams and the children’s dreams, the compassion, the solitude, the doubts, the joy we often feel with them. And also the games and the nursery songs which become part of our daily existence and in this case, this album, a source of musical inspiration. I am delighted to share with you this trip through a world which is moving and personal, through these carefully chosen pieces. I wish to thank the composers for their kind collaboration.
Norberto Pedreira is Argentinian. His nephew Manuel’s arrival was celebrated with this candombe rhythm. The original is for two guitars while this solo guitar arrangement is mine. With Belen, all the soulfulness of an encounter with a long lost child/daughter is expressed in an Argentinian zamba.
Marco Pereira used a double entendre with choro (meaning to cry, but also the Brazilian musical form) to compose and title his Choros de Juliana. The four pieces are recorded here together for the first time, each in a different choro style, all dedicated to his daughter Juliana.
Manu is the daughter of the great carioca choro musician Rogerio Souza.
Dreams is one of a trio of compositions that Sergio Assad wrote for his children.
The French composer Thierry Rougier wrote Pels Pichons (For Children), a series of three pieces inspired by popular Occitan (a culture from the south of France) songs. Translated, in the order of their occurrence here, the pieces are Two Lullabies, The Kid, and Maidens.
German/Italian composer Carlo Domeniconi says “Sogno Furioso is a lullaby for heroes—for children who fall asleep while dreaming of big adventures.”
Paulo Bellinati wrote a suite for the viola caipira (a typical Brazilian instrument of ten steel strings), inspired by children’s street games. Here we have two of these pieces: Lenço-atrás (Duck-Duck-Goose) and Esconde-esconde (Hide and Seek).
El Niño is a Venezuelan waltz, written by Antonio Lauro, dedicated to his son.
El Coyita (Little Indian in Quechua), the nickname of Atahualpa Yupanqui’s son, uses the traditional Argentinian rhythm el gato .
Roda Vida is my version of the famous Brazilian saying “being a mother is to suffer in paradise” with a little incidental occurrence of Britten’s Nocturnal passacalle line, inspired by John Dowland’s "Come Heavy Sleep."
Philippe Kadosch is a French composer and his composition Papa Chocho means “crazy father” in Chilean slang. I arranged this solo guitar version from the original for four different melodic instruments.
And finally, La Cajita de Musica (The Little Music Box) by the Uruguayan Isaias Savio.
Cristina Azuma
produced and recorded by dean kamei at ac studio (san francisco, california)
mixed and mastered by dk at gsp (daly city, california)
photos & graphics by dk
Another solo guitar CD by Cristina Azuma on GSP Rrecordings is "Contatos" (GSP1009CD) produced by Paulo Bellinati
ABOUT CRISTINA AZUMA
Following an approach rooted in high quality of interpretation and an original repertoire for guitar, Brazilian born Cristina Azuma is a renowned Brazilian guitarist with a career path that stands out in the classical guitar world.
She has been giving concerts since she was 16, as a soloist, in chamber music and with orchestra, first in Brazil, then in different countries of the Americas, Europe and the Far East. Among her recent collaborations, she records and plays with Paulo Bellinati (duo classical and serenade guitar) and Françoise Johannel (duo baroque guitar and spanish baroque harp).
Her solo recordings have received international awards, including the "Indie Awards" (the American selection of the 5 best solo CDs of the year, as judged by specialized critics).
Cristina Azuma is also a Doctor of Musicology from the Sorbonne University, specialist in the late 17th Century. She has recorded a CD of works for Baroque Guitar by the Spanish composer, Santiago de Murcia, for the Frame Company.
| Track 1 | Y Llego Manuel! (N. Pedreira) |
|---|---|
| Track 2 | Pixula (M. Pereira) |
| Track 3 | Doas Brecairolas (T. Rougier) |
| Track 4 | L'ome Pichon (T. Rougier) |
| Track 5 | Hilhas (t. Rougier) |
| Track 6 | Chamego (M. Pereira) |
| Track 7 | Manu (R. Souza) |
| Track 8 | Micuim (M. Pereira) |
| Track 9 | Sarara (M. Pereira) |
| Track 10 | Dreams (S. Assad) |
| Track 11 | Sogno furioso II (C. Domeniconi) |
| Track 12 | Esconde-esconde (P. Bellinati) |
| Track 13 | Lenco-atras (P. Bellinati) |
| Track 14 | El Nino (A. Lauro) |
| Track 15 | Roda Vida (C. Azuma) |
| Track 16 | El Coyita (A. Yupanqui) |
| Track 17 | Zamba para Belen (N. Pedreira) |
| Track 18 | Papa Chocho (P. Kadosch) |
| Track 19 | La Cajita de Musica (I. Savio) |
| Featured Product | No |
| Maker/Manufacturer/Artist | AZUMA, CRISTINA |
| Availability | Available |
| Description | FROM THE LINER NOTES This CD emerged from my desire to put into music, the different moods we experience when we become parents—the exaltation of birth, the sleepless nights, our dreams and the children’s dreams, the compassion, the solitude, the doubts, the joy we often feel with them. And also the games and the nursery songs which become part of our daily existence and in this case, this album, a source of musical inspiration. I am delighted to share with you this trip through a world which is moving and personal, through these carefully chosen pieces. I wish to thank the composers for their kind collaboration. Norberto Pedreira is Argentinian. His nephew Manuel’s arrival was celebrated with this candombe rhythm. The original is for two guitars while this solo guitar arrangement is mine. With Belen, all the soulfulness of an encounter with a long lost child/daughter is expressed in an Argentinian zamba. Marco Pereira used a double entendre with choro (meaning to cry, but also the Brazilian musical form) to compose and title his Choros de Juliana. The four pieces are recorded here together for the first time, each in a different choro style, all dedicated to his daughter Juliana. Manu is the daughter of the great carioca choro musician Rogerio Souza. Dreams is one of a trio of compositions that Sergio Assad wrote for his children. The French composer Thierry Rougier wrote Pels Pichons (For Children), a series of three pieces inspired by popular Occitan (a culture from the south of France) songs. Translated, in the order of their occurrence here, the pieces are Two Lullabies, The Kid, and Maidens. German/Italian composer Carlo Domeniconi says “Sogno Furioso is a lullaby for heroes—for children who fall asleep while dreaming of big adventures.” Paulo Bellinati wrote a suite for the viola caipira (a typical Brazilian instrument of ten steel strings), inspired by children’s street games. Here we have two of these pieces: Lenço-atrás (Duck-Duck-Goose) and Esconde-esconde (Hide and Seek). El Niño is a Venezuelan waltz, written by Antonio Lauro, dedicated to his son. El Coyita (Little Indian in Quechua), the nickname of Atahualpa Yupanqui’s son, uses the traditional Argentinian rhythm el gato . Roda Vida is my version of the famous Brazilian saying “being a mother is to suffer in paradise” with a little incidental occurrence of Britten’s Nocturnal passacalle line, inspired by John Dowland’s "Come Heavy Sleep." Philippe Kadosch is a French composer and his composition Papa Chocho means “crazy father” in Chilean slang. I arranged this solo guitar version from the original for four different melodic instruments. And finally, La Cajita de Musica (The Little Music Box) by the Uruguayan Isaias Savio. Cristina Azuma produced and recorded by dean kamei at ac studio (san francisco, california)
Another solo guitar CD by Cristina Azuma on GSP Rrecordings is "Contatos" (GSP1009CD) produced by Paulo Bellinati ABOUT CRISTINA AZUMA Following an approach rooted in high quality of interpretation and an original repertoire for guitar, Brazilian born Cristina Azuma is a renowned Brazilian guitarist with a career path that stands out in the classical guitar world. She has been giving concerts since she was 16, as a soloist, in chamber music and with orchestra, first in Brazil, then in different countries of the Americas, Europe and the Far East. Among her recent collaborations, she records and plays with Paulo Bellinati (duo classical and serenade guitar) and Françoise Johannel (duo baroque guitar and spanish baroque harp). Her solo recordings have received international awards, including the "Indie Awards" (the American selection of the 5 best solo CDs of the year, as judged by specialized critics). Cristina Azuma is also a Doctor of Musicology from the Sorbonne University, specialist in the late 17th Century. She has recorded a CD of works for Baroque Guitar by the Spanish composer, Santiago de Murcia, for the Frame Company. |