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Fiesta- Gustavo Dudamel

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Fiesta is wonderful master piece. Gustavo Dudamel and his passion are all over this CD, every song is different and give you a different type of energy. As a young person classical music could appear as boring to me. Fiesta is an exceptional CD that make you feel empower and re-energized. Fiesta is classical music made exciting and fascinating. Mambo is my favorite track. Get yourself a nice gift and enjoy the most extraordinary music from Venezuela.

Fiesta

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Gustavo Dudamel demonstrates his excellence as a conductor, producing a superb CD with Venezuela's youth orchestra. If you enjoy Latin dance, you will really enjoy these selections--some of my favorite Latin composers.

WONDERFUL DRIVING MUSIC

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This CD is very, extremely energetic; particularly selection #4 (DANZON No.2 (Marquez)! What amazes me more is that the performing artists are youngsters! Their sound is 'superb' symphony-quality! A cup of hot coffee and this CD are major parts of my morning driving routine! By the time I get to work, I'm ready for the orders of the day! I strongly recommend this CD to anyone who is looking for a little 'oomph' in their ears!

Music

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Very well performed music but only a few tracks appealed to my tastes

One Of The Best Dudamel Recordings

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"Fiesta" released in 2008 stands as one of the best recordings to date by the young conductor Gustavo Dudamel and his youth orchestra of Simon Bolivar. I'm not that impressed with Dudamel's other recordings of Mahler, Beethoven, or Tchaikovsky. Hopefully, his tenure with the Los Angeles Philharmonic will surprise audiences with more Latin American repertoire. Whatever happens, "Fiesta" is a particuarly fine recording that, in my opinion, demostrates Dudamel's true musical vision.

Revueltas' "Sensemaya" opens up the program and is probably one of the greatest pieces of Mexican classical music ever written (next to Chavez's "Sinfonia India" of course). "Sensemaya" has a great Stravinsky-like feel to much of the piece. It's very strong rhythmically, but it is also very dynamic. As I have stated in another review, I heard someone refer to it has a Mexican "Bolero," but honestly this isn't a fair description. It's far from it. Another highlight for me were the Carreno and Estevez pieces. The Carreno piece, called "Marcaritena," has a beautiful melody that will linger in your mind for days after hearing it. The Estevez pieced "Mediodia En El Llano" also has a gorgeous melody and it comes to a great climax with a sweeping feel. The Ginastera composition "Estancia," is in suite form and is one of the most aggressive pieces of Latin American music I've ever heard. Ginastera was obviously influenced by Stravinsky, but he adds his own character and Argentinian influence to his music, which gives his music a very refreshing and exotic feel.

The performances from the Simon Bolivar Youth Orch. Of Venezuela are top-notch. The sound quality is also excellent.

I will say that I would have liked to hear some Carlos Chavez on this recording like maybe his "Sinfonia India," "Caballos de vapor," or "Sinfonia Romantica." Also curiously missing from the program were works by Villa-Lobos (a composer I consider one of the greatest of his generation). These are small gripes of course. This is a great recording and hopefully will signal more great things to come. Highly recommended.