The Ensemble's premiere recording, a Naxos DVD, features two classical American documentaries: The Plow that Broke the Plains and The River, with newly recorded soundtracks (the famous Virgil Thomson scores).
Pare Lorentz's The Plow that Broke the Plains (1936) and The River (1937) are landmark American documentary films. Aesthetically, they break new ground in seamlessly marrying pictorial imagery, symphonic music, and poetic free verse, all realized with supreme artistry. Ideologically, they indelibly encapsulate the strivings of Franklin Delano Roosevelt' s 'New Deal.'
Virgil Thomson's scores for both films are among the most famous ever composed for the movies. Aaron Copland praised the music for The Plow for its 'frankness and openness of feeling,' calling it 'fresher, more simple, and more personal' than the Hollywood norm. He called the music for The River' a lesson in how to treat Americana.'
Click here to see the trailer on youtube
Click here to hear the NPR piece on this project
Click here to go to the NPR story page
Click here to download reviews from the New York Times, the Washington Post, NPR, and many others!
Click here to download the DVD booklet
Click here to support the Post-Classical Ensemble by buying a copy of the DVD for $21.50 and the CD for $11.50 (shipping included).
