John Greenleaf Whittier Bicentennial Recording Project Releases 'Barbara Frietchie & Other Poems'

In honor of the 200th anniversary of the birth of master poet John Greenleaf Whittier, 217 Records announces the release of a new CD recording of Whittier's poetry, "Barbara Frietchie & Other Poems." This CD is Volume II. of the Whittier Bicentennial Recording Project. Volume I. is Whittier's master work, "Snow-Bound."

Greenwich, CT (PRWeb) February 8, 2007 -- In honor of the 200th anniversary of the birth of master poet John Greenleaf Whittier, 217 Records announces the release of a new CD recording of Whittier's poetry. This CD is Volume II. of the Whittier Bicentennial Recording Project.

"Barbara Frietchie & Other Poems" includes 12 of Whittier's most beloved poems, including "The Pressed Gentian," "Burning Driftwood" and "The Barefoot Boy." All poems are read by Michael Maglaras. Listen to an excerpt from "Barbara Frietchie": http://cdbaby.com/cd/maglaras2

This project is a labor of love for 217 Records founder Michael Maglaras. He has devoted the last two years of his life to the study and recording of the works of this New England master with one goal in mind: to reintroduce Whittier to a new, wider audience and promote the rediscovery of his work.

Volume 1 of the Whittier Bicentennial Recording Project, "Snow-Bound," (released in 2006) is dedicated entirely to Whittier's lyric masterpiece of the same title. This CD is the first contemporary recording of this epic poem. Listen to an excerpt from "Snow-Bound": http://cdbaby.com/cd/maglaras

"In the mid to late 19th century, Haverhill, Massachusetts-born Whittier was one of the most famous men in America; schools closed to honor his birthday. Statesman, ardent abolitionist, poet of the first rank, and one of the founders of the Republican party, his poems were read and memorized throughout America and much of the English-speaking world," said Maglaras. "Whittier lived to be 85. In his early years, he lived an eventful life; in middle age he established his reputation by selling 20,000 copies of the poem 'Snow-Bound' within the first few months. In his old age, he was revered as America's 'fireside poet,' while continuing to produce work of incomparable quality that speaks to our age as distinctly as it spoke to his own."

http://www.two17records.com

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