Back in the eighties it became very popular to incorporate classical influences in metal. Especially after Yngwie came out, everybody had to do some classical stuff on the electric guitar. Some even went so far as to play classical pieces in metal versions and composers such as
Bach,
Paganini and
Chopin were used and abused in countless variations, some very good and some less good.
Alex Masi has on his cd
In the name of Mozart chosen to transcribe a lot of Mozart's most famous pieces to guitar. Acoustic guitar, notably. Most pieces are performed with just Masi on guitar and bass.
Apparently, Masi was some kind of shredder in the shredder days. I have never heard of him before but judging from his performance on the acoustic guitar, he is a guite capable guitarist.
Since the music is written by Mozart, it is of course a work of a genius and there is no need to speak of the brilliant compositions and the amazing talent of the composer so instead I will review it as I would a normal classical cd. It is not quite so, since it has been re-arranged for guitar and bass but all in all, Masi stays pretty close to the original.
First of all, it irritates me that he plays on a steel-string guitar. It is of course much easier to play on a western guitar, especially when you have to play fast and go up pretty high on the fretboard, but the sound makes me think of Eric Clapton's acoustic sound. And classical and blues at the same time does not work for me! It also sounds like Yngwie's acoustic guitar, which I don't like either. If you want it to sound classical, play on a classical guitar! Masi may be holding a classical guitar on the cover of the cd but it is certainly not that one he is playing on the cd.
If I had worn a hat, I would have tipped it for mr. Masi with respect to the amount of work he must have put into this cd. The pieces are played very well and wih feeling. Every now and then, he adds a bluesy phrasing which was definitely not there originally on Mozart's music. While it is kind of funny to hear the first time, it is irritating when you hear it next time and next time again because it doesn't fit with the music. Luckily he just does this a few places.
In short, take a chance with this cd if you like to hear classical music played on guitar. Most of the time there are at least two guitars and a bass so it feels more like a band-effort than a solo guitar cd. But bear in mind that the guitar sound is from a western guitar which gives it a sound that I don't identify with classical music. I enjoy much more the way the singing sound of a distorted guitar can come close to the feeling of a violin. Granted, electrical distorted guitars would probably not have worked here since there are a lot of soft passages which would have been difficult to phrase the same way with distortion.
I choose to rate this cd with a 5. Though the production, the sound and the musicianship is of high standards, there is just something that is not completely right here. Anyways, give it a chance if you think you can overcome the Eric Clapton sound.
Written by
Tajs Tuesday, June 29, 2004
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