Charlie Rose

REMant  12/06/2008 01:00 AM Report

I don't know what to say about Yo-Yo Ma's ventures. A lot of it, is that, of course, classical music has been on the outs now for at least a decade, leaving more artists than ever scrambling to make a living. Part of it is that only a very few of Ma's classical recordings have received great critical acclaim. He is generally considered to be too detached, and that's the opinion I had of him when I first heard him playing Brahms with Joshua Bell. I have never liked the thin sound of his 'cello, which was Leonard Rose's. Rose, however, seems to have been appreciated much more playing it. It is true though that not many American artists and orchestras are liked by the critics, most of whom nowadays are Brits. So it is perhaps a good thing that he, or his record co, has been running around imposing on various popular artists like James Taylor. His Brazilian recording in this vein is very nice. Taylor, on the other hand, is universally liked for his folksy, upbeat style, and of course his distinctive voice, which seems an imperative for media achievment these days, like a tattoo on a Playmate. I should mention that many foreign labels have released more, and particularly more less well known, classical music in the past couple of decades than ever before, but that is not the American way.