Record Reviews

FRANK ZAPPA ~ FRANCESCO ZAPPA ZAPPA 3872 (Barcode: 824302387221) ~ USA ~ Classical Recorded: 1984 Released: 2012 This is a reissue / remaster of the 42nd album by iconic American guitarist / composer / bandleader / visionary Frank ZappaFind albums by this artist, originally released in 1984. It continues Zappa’s interest in Classical Music, which started with the “London Symphony OrchestraFind albums with this title” albums recorded a year earlier and “Boulez Conducts Zappa: The Perfect StrangerFind albums with this title” recorded the same year. The album presents ten compositions by 18th Century Italian cellist / composer Francesco ZappaFind albums by this artist, whose works were introduced to Zappa by clarinetist / copyist / Synclavier programmer David OckerFind albums by this artist, who worked with Zappa on his Classical Music projects. Since the music of Francesco Zappa (unrelated to Zappa himself) was barely known, Zappa decided not only to record it and release this album, but also published the music. The album is performed entirely using the Synclavier, making this the first Zappa album recorded entirely using this instrument, although Zappa did use it earlier on several albums. In Ocker’s liner notes, he describes the entire project in typical Zappaesque zany and highly humorous prose. This album remains amongst the least known of his works and perhaps also the most misunderstood. Zappa was obviously first interested in this music because of the composer’s family name, but he also felt a close affinity to his composing skills and talents. Not less importantly, he wanted to show the possibilities of the Synclavier, which represented the advancement in musical technology, of which Zappa was a great enthusiast and avid pioneer. Asked why he made this album, he answered that Francesco Zappa’s music, contemporary to Wolfgang Amadeus MozartFind albums by this artist, was “interesting and does a few strange things harmonically, which seem to be ahead of their time”, which of course best describes Zappa’s music as well. Overall, this album is another document of Zappa’s wide range of interest in all types of music and his dedication to unconventional projects. His Sisyphean workload during his lifetime produced an amazing variety of musical accomplishments, which scaled everything known about music as well as discovered new and uncharted territories, which at the end of the day made him the greatest musical Genius of the 20th Century and one of its most profound observers of the human nature. Side Note Frank Zappa created a vast recorded legacy during his lifetime, which is continuously being expanded using music recorded and stored in his extensive vault. The albums officially released and approved by Zappa are numbered sequentially in the "Official Release" series, from #001 to the last release so far #126. The albums between #001 to #062 were released during Zappa's lifetime and all the others were released posthumously. There are countless unofficial / bootleg releases on the market as well. Zappa's catalogue was remastered for CD release twice: in 1995 for the RykodiscFind albums on this label releases and again in 2012 for the ZappaFind albums on this label Records / UniversalFind albums on this label releases. The Zappa / Universal program includes 60 releases, which cover the entire catalog released during his lifetime (62 releases, except #013 "200 Motels" and the three Box Sets #043, #046 and #049 called "The Old Masters vol.I / II / III"), and 6 posthumous releases (#064, #065, #067, #068, #093 and #094), which were also included.

Updated: 22/09/2022Posted: 10/04/2022

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