Music of Edward Joseph Collins, Vol. V

Frank Almond (violin), Jeffrey Sykes (piano), Elizabeth Buccheri (piano), Patrice Michaels (soprano), Frances Karp (cello)

Catalog #: TROY0641
Release Date: February 1, 2004
Format: Digital
Chamber

This is the first recording of Collin's songs and instrumental duos, including the 1933 Suite for Violoncello and Piano, a major addition to the repertoire for this combination of instruments. Born in Joliet, Illinois, Collins studied piano with Ganz in Chicago and composition with Bruch and Humperdinck in Europe. A 1912 Berlin debut and subsequent concerts in the USA and Europe earned strong critical praise. Collins was hired as an assistant conductor for the Bayreuth Festival in 1914; that engagement was ended by World War I and service in the US Army. After the War, Collins began a teaching career in Chicago, continuing to conduct, perform and compose. His music attracted the attention of Chicago Symphony Orchestra Music Director Frederick Stock, who conducted many of Collins's orchestral compositions. Those include a symphony, three piano concerti, and a secular cantata. Collins also composed dozens of songs, piano solo works and other chamber music. The songs presented on this CD were composed between 1917 and 1944. As a former opera house assistant conductor at New York's Century Opera and at the Bayreuth Festival, Collins understood voices and had a thorough appreciation for the best of them. Having coached many singers, he knew what to expect in regard to range, color, tessitura and expression. He did not, therefore, approach song writing as if composing for instrumentalists. A man who was an avid reader of the classics, he brought a literate acuity to his choice of texts and even wrote some fine ones himself; the best songs merit the attention of any sensitive singer.

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Track Listing

Title Composer Performer
Arabesque Edward Collins Frank Almond, violin, Jeffrey Sykes, piano
Suite for Violoncello and Piano Edward Collins Parry Karp, cello, Jeffrey Sykes, piano
Prayer Edward Collins Parry Karp, cello, Jeffrey Sykes, piano
The Daffodils Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano
The Pines Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano
The Wooded Lake Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano
Death of the Leaves Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano
Butterflies Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano
Magdalene Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano
To a Little Child Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano
Prayer for C.H.S. Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano
The Faded Violet Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano
Music When Soft Voices Die Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano
The Fog Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano
The Bayadre Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano
A Piper Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano
Annabel Lee Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano
Song and Suds Edward Collins Patrice Michaels, soprano, Elizabeth Buccheri, piano

Reviews

  • "Collins is a composer of sensitivity and power."

    – American Record Guide

*Album cover provided for Editorial use only. ©Albany Records. The Albany Imprint is a registered trademark of PARMA Recordings LLC. The views and opinions expressed in this media are those of the artist and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views and opinions held by PARMA Recordings LLC and its label imprints, subsidiaries, and affiliates.