** “September Songs: The Music of Kurt Weill.” Various artists. (Sony Classical).

The personnel on this Weill recording--the soundtrack of another film, a sort of long-form music video made in 1994--is a motley bunch, each known in a corner of the entertainment galaxy, with only a few dedicated specialists in the Weill repertory. The CD may work crossover magic and enlist new devotees to the cause, but what a mix!

Lou Reed, Nick Cave, Elvis Costello and the Brodsky String Quartet, Teresa Stratas, Charlie Haden, Mary Margaret O’Hara, the Persuasions and Betty Carter--all doing what they do within their own styles. There are also ghostly historical contributions from some now gone: Weill himself, Lotte Lenya, Bertolt Brecht and, from 1994, the voice of William Burroughs reading a speech from “The Threepenny Opera.”

Each item makes a statement, but not surprisingly, the best of the bunch are the songs by soprano Stratas, who has made a considerable part of her reputation with Weill. Supported by pianist Richard Woitach and accordionist Joseph Macerollo in one instance and by conductor Gerard Schwarz and the Y Chamber Symphony, later, Stratas delivers the heart of the song.

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