[mb-style] RFC[?]: Update Classical Style Guide to account for'recital discs'

[Dave Smey]

On Tue, October 3, 2006 3:09 am, Frederic Da Vitoria said:

> Quite, and this is why I suggested we should put limits. We could say for
> example that we should be careful not create artificial groups, or we are
> going to have a proliferation of classical groups (this conductor with
> that
> orchestra, this conductor with this orchestra and that soloist, this
> singer
> with that singer...).
>
Yes, agreed, that would be bad, though my language of "can be attributed
to a *single* performer or group" would seem to address that.

There *is* a certain intuitive hierarchy of who counts, though.  Somebody
cited a violin & piano recital on Naxos, for instance - it would seem that
the violinist should "count" and the accompanist not.  For a handful of
concerti with the same soloist, conductor, and orch (and different
composers), the soloist would count.  For conductor & orch, the conductor
should count.

But I'm just goofing off, here - I agree that an important principle
should be not to create new groupings - if you can't decide who to file it
under, it is VA.  I agree that something to that effect should go into the
language.

Also, Alexander contributed draft language.  The part that really goes
beyond what I proposed is:

"...that artist may be designated the ReleaseArtist if any one of the
following conditions is met:

* The tracks on the release, while all composed by one artist, are parts
of multiple works, several of which are not present in their complete form
or are drawn from different groups ("selections" or "highlights")"

I am not crazy about this, but I'll admit that it is largely due to my
strong composer-over-performer bias.  I have a few discs which would seem
to fall under this category but I definitely shelve by composer:

Madeline Forte Plays Piano Music Of Messiaen
http://musicbrainz.org/release/5019bbbd-c48f-4962-aad3-8a314b112531.html

(She plays selections from the Preludes and Vingt Regards... but does not
"finish" either one.  The tracks are interspersed with commentary written
by her husband who is a well-known academic.)

Wagner: Overtures & Preludes (disc 2)
http://musicbrainz.org/release/bd817f69-b604-4428-86ca-8382b060d9af.html

(I think I have vol. 1 of this which in not in MB.  It's the Met Orchestra
w/ James Levine.  Levine's giant head is on the cover and so perhaps one
would be tempted to credit it to him, though they should not IMO.)

OTOH, what are some examples that would definitely feel like "recitals"
and not a composer document?  I guess we are talking opera here, like

Lorraine Hunt Lieberson ~ Handel Arias
http://www.amazon.com/Lorraine-Hunt-Lieberson-Handel-Arias/dp/B00022LZW8/

Mozart Arias would be another likely album.  I don't know, I would feel
very comfortable shelving these under their composers (next to the other
complete vocal works like Masses, Oratorios, Operas and Opera Highlights),
but I guess if I had a lot of opera soloist discs I might feel
differently.

Anybody want to weigh in with more examples, or "vote" differently on these?

Cheers,
-DS