Lynd Ward Featured in Fine Books & Collections Magazine

Fine Books & Collections magazine reviews Library of America's two-volume set of Lynd Ward's novels, Six Novels in Woodcuts. Be sure to pick up the magazine to read the article.

A new documentary on Lynd Ward will be presented this spring by Michael Maglaras and 217 Films. View the screening schedule at this link. More information at www.two17films.com.

Music Web International Reviews Vol. 1 of The Complete Delius Songbook

"Mark Stone is rising fast in the ranks of baritones and has been heard in opera on both sides of the Atlantic. He has a powerful and affecting voice and puts a lot of thought into his conception of each song. His stated intention is to record all the Delius songs and this is good news..." ~ William Kreindler, Music Web International

Don't miss this informative review of The Complete Delius Songbook: Volume One. 217 Records is proud to be a part of this significant musical accomplishment by Mark Stone and Stone Records. Read the full review and view the tracklist at this link. Purchase the CD at this link. Look for Volume 2 coming soon.

American Record Guide Reviews The Delius Songbook

217 Records is proud to support Stone Records' The Complete Delius Songbook - Volume 1.



American Record Guide
November / December 2011 Issue

Delius: Songs 1
Mark Stone, bar; Stephen Barlow, p
Stone 80062 – 79 minutes

At long last, here is a project to record all of the composer’s songs for voice and piano. It is to encompass two volumes. Stone’s own record company has already released some impressive recitals of music by George Butterworth, Ronald Corp., and others. This will be the first time all of Delius’s 61 surviving songs have been recorded.

While many of these songs appear in collections with female performers, Stone has convincingly argued that the tests are basically gender neutral, perhaps leaning more towards the male voice. Benjamin Luxon included 12 songs on his excellent Chandon recital (J/F 1989), and other male singers have included a few as well. Not to be forgotten are the recitals of Felicity, Lott, Ruth Golden, and Yvonne Kenny. While hardly as comprehensive, they are well worth having.

Stone has decided to sing all of these songs in English, including sever in new translation (including his own). Delius, as a cosmopolitan, was well versed in German, French, and the Scandinavian languages, and there are some who will lament the use of translations. Others will applaud the decision to stick with English. Although full texts and translations are supplied, Stone is a master of skillful diction, and the clarity of the recording assures that everything is clearly understood. Moreover, his pleasant voice is ideally suited to the music, and his interpretive and expressive skills, matched beautifully by pianist Stephen Barlow, open one’s ears to this treasure trove.

Delius as songwriter combines his unique harmonic and melodic language to shape his structures. With a few exceptions the songs are relatively short and never overstay their welcome. Sometimes, as in ‘Spring, the Sweet Spring’ a song can seem embarrassingly twee, but this is partly owing to the Thomas Nashe lyrics. Most of the time the songs are quite lovely and express emotions in a heartbreaking and subtle way. Since Delius loved mountains it is not surprising that ‘Over the Mountains High’ and ‘Mountain Life’ benefit particularly well from his ever-shifting harmonies. The three songs based on poems by Shelley are very dramatic and full of love’s yearning, with emotions laid bare. The texts range all over the place with six of the 27 in this volume by the Norwegian Bjornstjerne Bjornson.

Stone has supplied his own fascinating notes and perceptive comments on each son. Both the Delius and the John Ireland Trusts are to be thanked for their sponsorship of this important recording project. Given the many hours of immense pleasure I have derived from this well filled disc, I am eager to hear Volume 2.

~ BECKER

New Lynd Ward Documentary in Production

Follow this link to view the trailer for the forthcoming documentary from 217 Films "O Brother Man: The Life and Work of Lynd Ward."

This new film by Michael Maglaras tells the story of Lynd Ward, the acknowledged father of the American graphic novel and one of the most prolific graphic artists, book illustrators, and printmakers in the history of American art.

A brilliant storyteller and engraver in wood, Lynd Ward was also a man with a deep social conscience. His works are a chronicle of American life in the 20th century.

"O Brother Man" will feature more than 150 wood engravings, drawings, and illustrations by this important American artist and storyteller.

Premieres March 2012. Follow this link for the screening schedule.

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Frederick Delius Songbook CD: U.S. Release

Read press release online at this link.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

217 Records

Contact:
Tami Kennedy
207-838-0816
tami@maine.rr.com



Volume One of the Frederick Delius Songbook to be Released in the United States this September

ASHFORD, CONNECTICUT (August 22, 2011) – In honor of the 150th anniversary of the birth of the great English composer Frederick Delius (1862-1934), The Complete Delius Songbook – Volume 1 will be released as a CD in the U.S. on September 13, 2011. This is the first volume in a two-volume series that will comprise the first-ever complete recording of all 61 surviving songs of Frederick Delius for voice and piano.

This recording features baritone Mark Stone accompanied by Stephen Barlow on piano. Michael Maglaras of 217 Records is Executive Producer. Produced and released first in the United Kingdom on July 18, 2011 on the Stone Records label, and produced in association with 217 Records, this eventual two-volume journey through the Delius songbook will be a delight to listeners everywhere.

“We at 217 Records cannot imagine a finer exponent of the English art song than baritone Mark Stone. That he possesses a superb instrument is clear to everyone who knows his work. But he is also a singer of rare intelligence and refinement, and this recording bears his unmistakable stamp,” said Michael Maglaras. “Stephen Barlow is the logical successor to Gerald Moore. He is a great English pianist who brings not only gracious support to this undertaking, but helps create, in every song, an immediate sense of both the drama and the deeper meaning of Delius’s work.”

Volume 1, which includes first-time recordings of five of these songs, features all of Delius’s songs to English and Norwegian texts, the latter being sung in English translation. Delius was fascinated and heavily influenced by Norwegian culture, as is evidenced by the large number of Norwegian poems he chose to set, including the ever popular songs Twilight Fancies and Young Venevil.

Volume 1’s booklet contains the full texts, together with the original Norwegian poetry and extensive notes for each song. This major classical music release is supported by the Delius Society and the Ireland Trust. Volume 2 is expected to be released in early 2012. 217 Records’ Michael Maglaras will also serve as Executive Producer of this release.

The Complete Delius Songbook - Volume 1 is available for purchase on the websites of Amazon http://ow.ly/65IG8 and Stone Records http://www.stonerecords.co.uk/.

What they’re saying:
“Stone’s engagingly natural style and immaculate diction are supported by Barlow’s sympathetic playing.” ~ The Sunday Times

“Stone proves an expert guide – not just by uncovering little-known manuscripts, but by investing Delius’s songs with verve and variety of mood.” ~ Financial Times

More about Mark Stone and Stephen Barlow: The UK’s Mark Stone is critically acclaimed for his performances on stage and in concert. His forthcoming engagements include debuts at La Scala, Oper Köln and Deutsche Oper, Berlin as well as return visits to the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden and The Opera Company of Philadelphia. In recital with Stephen Barlow, he has been described as "a baritone of extraordinary elegance and unforced expressiveness...versatile in his response to the varying stylistic demands” with Barlow “accompanying his voice with a genuine feeling for tone-colour and shape". View a video of Stone and Barlow rehearsing at this link.

More about 217 Records: Located in Ashford, Connecticut, 217 Records is an independent label specializing in alternative rock, jazz, and spoken word recordings. Founder Michael Maglaras was trained as an opera singer in the United States and Europe and has performed widely as a singer and opera director. Among other recordings of note, 217 Records’ discography includes a complete recording of Longfellow's The Song of Hiawatha, as well as two volumes of the Whittier Bicentennial Recording Project.

On the Web:
Stone Records -- www.stonerecords.co.uk
217 Records -- www.two17records.com
217 Films – www.two17films.com

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The Sunday Times Reviews new Frederick Delius Songbook CD

Mark Stone, Stephen Barlow (piano)
Stone Records
Just under half of Delius’s 61 seldom programmed songs are recorded, so we can expect another volume to complete his “songbook”. The likeable British baritone Mark Stone is the founder-owner of Stone Records, but this is more than a vanity project (he is also making a Wolf edition, in which he has not participated), because he specialises in the undervalued territory of English song. He even sings Delius’s settings of Norwegian or German texts in English translations — several by Peter Pears and one of his own. The highlights here are the Four Old English Lyrics, to words by Shakespeare and Ben Jonson, among others, in which Stone’s engagingly natural style and immaculate diction are supported by Barlow’s sympathetic playing. HC

Frederick Delius Remembered

Andrew Clark reviews the new CD "The Complete Delius Songbook - Volume 1" in the Financial Times.

Next year marks the 150th anniversary of Delius’s birth, but don’t expect the music business to take any note: the Bradford-born composer, who spent most of his life in self-imposed exile from England, remains deeply unfashionable. Hats off, then, to baritone Mark Stone – best known as a suave Eisenstein (Die Fledermaus) – for compiling a two-CD Delius songbook, the first volume of which contains a few surprises.... Continue reading the article at this link.

This CD was released in the UK in July and will be released in the US on September 13. It is available for purchase on the websites of Amazon and Stone Records.

Featuring baritone Mark Stone and Stephen Barlow on piano. Produced in association with 217 Records and supported by the Delius Society and the Ireland Trust.