Title : Happy Birthday
Author : Schnittke, Alfred
Release Date : 20030128
Binding : Audio CD
Regular Price : $16.98
Amazon.com Price : $13.48
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Editorial Reviews : To celebrate its sixth anniversary as an ensemble, Kremerata Baltica presents a light, loving, and musically interesting confection. After an opening polka by Schnittke (who knew he could be so frothy?), we get 11 variations on the song 'Happy Birthday' by Peter Heidrich, à la Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, and Brahms, and some dance movements. Delightful. Elsewhere, Franz Waxman's Variations on 'Auld lang syne' are as clever as they are unexpected and charming. More variations--this time on 'God save the King' by the 19th century composers Ghys and Servais--afford Kremer and cellist Marta Sudraba a fine time, and Teddy Bor's brief riff on Mozart's omnipresent 'Eine kleine nachtmusik' is a hoot. There's more, but the point is made: Classical music can be fun and sophisticated, and Kremer and his group remain virtuosi, one and all. --Robert Levine
