Songs 1

This CD is the first of a new cycle of Ives's songs on the budget-priced Naxos label. The format of the series mirrors the audacity and creativity of the music. The songs are arranged in alphabetical order which presents them in a way which is musically random. Songs from Ives's youth are interspersed with works of his maturity. In addition the songs are performed by a collection of young singers, ranging from bass to soprano with a countertenor included for good measure. There is a similar variety of pianists and other accompanists. Thus, this recording features 13 vocalists accompanied by four different pianists, a string quartet, an organ, and a glockenspiel on 29 Ives songs beginning with the "A's" (actually with the numbers in a half-minute song called "1.2.3" and ending in the "C's" with an Ives Lullaby, the "Cradle Song" of 1919.