The musical and technical excellence of the 2016 Grammy Award winners makes this a great year for audiophiles. Not only are 28 of the albums / compositions that won awards in multiple categories available for download from HDTracks, virtually all in hi-rez (from 44.1/24 to 192/24), but just as many if not more are available for streaming and download in hi-rez and/or full CD quality from both ClassicsOnlineHD and Tidal.
Equally available for hi-rez streaming and download, as well as purchase in disc form, is the 2016 Grammy winner of "Best Classical Compendium," Naxos's Paulus: Three Places Of Enlightenment; Veil Of Tears & Grand Concerto, performed by Giancarlo Guerrero and the Nashville Symphony. Clearly the members of the Recording Academy wished to honor one of America's great choral composers.
Of other classical entries that won awards, both the "Best Orchestral Performance," Deutsche Grammophon's Shostakovich: Under Stalin's Shadow—Symphony No. 10 from Andris Nelsons and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and "Best Choral Performance," Chandos' Rachmaninoff: All-Night Vigil from Charles Bruffy and the combined Kansas City and Phoenix Chorales, can be found on HDTracks and, in the case of the former, Tidal. "Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance," Cedille Records' Filament from Eighth Blackbird, can be downloaded in hi-rez directly from the label's website. And "Best Classical Instrumental Solo," violinist Augustin Hadelich's performance of Dutilleux's Violin Concerto, "L'Arbre Des Songes," which can be found on Seattle Symphony Media's second Dutilleux disc, Dutilleux: Métaboles; L'Arbre Des Songes; Symphony No.2, 'Le Double,' performed by Ludovic Morlot and the Seattle Symphony, can be both streamed and downloaded in hi-rez from Classics Online HD.
The Grammys also honored two engineers well known by the audiophile community. Winner of "Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical," Alabama Shakes' Sound & Color, once again points the spotlight on fabled mastering engineer, Bob Ludwig. And "Best Engineered Album, Classical," George Manahan and the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra's recording of Laura Karpman and Langston Hughes' Ask Your Mama, was recorded by a team headed by Grammy and Skywalker Sound luminary, Leslie Ann Jones.
Among the other goodies are, for "Best Historical Album," Stereophile "Recording of the Month, January 2015," Bob Dylan and the Band's The Basement Tapes Complete: The Bootleg Series Vol. 11. Then there's "Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album," Stereophile "Recording of the Month, September 2015," the Maria Schneider Orchestra's The Thompson Fields, and "Best Jazz Vocal Album," Cécille McLorin Salvant's For One to Love, which is available in various resolutions via Cookie Marenco's Downloads Now!. Finally, you'll find a passel of excellent recordings from "Producer of the Year, Classical," the legendary Judith Sherman.
More glorious, Grammy Award-winning music is available to purchase, download and stream than ever before. And that includes a host of nominees that, for reasons more political than musical, didn't walk away with Grammys this year.
Accepting the award for the Reference Fresh! Paulus CD were (from right–left): producer Peter Rutenberg, Dorothy Dyer Vanek, who commissioned the work and funded the project, Eric Holtan of True Concord Voices & Orchestra, and his wife Eloisa Holtan. (Photo: Jan Mancuso)
Take, for example, the music that received the Grammy for "Best Contemporary Classical Composition," the late Stephen Paulus' (1949–2014) six-movement "Prayers & Remembrances." Composed to commemorate the 10th Anniversary of the 9/11 bombings, the work is part of Fresh! by Reference Recordings' all-Paulus album, Paulus: Far in the Heavens. Performed by Eric Holtan's True Concord Voices & Orchestra, it also can be streamed in full-CD quality on ClassicsOnline HD. The recording can be considered definitive, given that Paulus supervised the recording sessions just six weeks before he suffered the major stroke that led to his death.
Of other classical entries that won awards, both the "Best Orchestral Performance," Deutsche Grammophon's Shostakovich: Under Stalin's Shadow—Symphony No. 10 from Andris Nelsons and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and "Best Choral Performance," Chandos' Rachmaninoff: All-Night Vigil from Charles Bruffy and the combined Kansas City and Phoenix Chorales, can be found on HDTracks and, in the case of the former, Tidal. "Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance," Cedille Records' Filament from Eighth Blackbird, can be downloaded in hi-rez directly from the label's website. And "Best Classical Instrumental Solo," violinist Augustin Hadelich's performance of Dutilleux's Violin Concerto, "L'Arbre Des Songes," which can be found on Seattle Symphony Media's second Dutilleux disc, Dutilleux: Métaboles; L'Arbre Des Songes; Symphony No.2, 'Le Double,' performed by Ludovic Morlot and the Seattle Symphony, can be both streamed and downloaded in hi-rez from Classics Online HD.
The Grammys also honored two engineers well known by the audiophile community. Winner of "Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical," Alabama Shakes' Sound & Color, once again points the spotlight on fabled mastering engineer, Bob Ludwig. And "Best Engineered Album, Classical," George Manahan and the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra's recording of Laura Karpman and Langston Hughes' Ask Your Mama, was recorded by a team headed by Grammy and Skywalker Sound luminary, Leslie Ann Jones.
Among the other goodies are, for "Best Historical Album," Stereophile "Recording of the Month, January 2015," Bob Dylan and the Band's The Basement Tapes Complete: The Bootleg Series Vol. 11. Then there's "Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album," Stereophile "Recording of the Month, September 2015," the Maria Schneider Orchestra's The Thompson Fields, and "Best Jazz Vocal Album," Cécille McLorin Salvant's For One to Love, which is available in various resolutions via Cookie Marenco's Downloads Now!. Finally, you'll find a passel of excellent recordings from "Producer of the Year, Classical," the legendary Judith Sherman.
More glorious, Grammy Award-winning music is available to purchase, download and stream than ever before. And that includes a host of nominees that, for reasons more political than musical, didn't walk away with Grammys this year.
