What were you listening to? (CLOSED)

[Mirror Image]

Now:

[asin]B00000JLEW[/asin]

A nice mixture of Kodaly works. Fischer clearly shows an affinity for Kodaly's idiom.

[Scarpia]

Gone through this CD again.

[asin]B000IMVNDI[/asin]

All three selections are interesting, but my initial impression that that Symphony of Psalms in this recording is truly revelatory.

[Mirror Image]

Gone through this CD again.

[asin]B000IMVNDI[/asin]

All three selections are interesting, but my initial impression that that Symphony of Psalms in this recording is truly revelatory.

I'm glad you found a performance of Symphony of Psalms you can finally connect with. As I have been telling you, it's a great work, but it's also a work that is very difficult to get right. The music is so angular while the angelic chorus soars over these disjointed rhythms, it's just hard to nail the work without letting one extreme dominate the other. It's all about finding that right balance. I like Gielen's recording a lot, but I have found that the performance of Symphony of Psalms lacks the extra bit of energy that Stravinsky put into his performance. Boulez's account on DG is very good, but it's a little sluggish for me. Another version I have enjoyed, and this has been recently, is James O'Donnell's performance on Hyperion with the City of London Sinfonia. In fact, this recording was just fantastic all-around. It had a wonderful reading of the Mass that just hit me and made me realize the beauty of the score.

[listener]

Antiphonies  (no hyphen, not about purists)
BRAHMS transcr. LEMARE  Academic Festival Overture BACH Pastorale in F, BWV.590
MENDELSSOHN Organ Sonata 5   ROGER-DUCASSE Pastorale in F
Wm MATHIAS Antiphonies  PEETERS Aria  GOWERS Toccata
Timothy Bryam-Wigfield, Willis organ at Winchester Cathedral
2 32-ft  and 9 16-ft stops in the pedals and more 16-footers scattered throughout the 5 manuals give this machine a lot of oomph that it shows off in pieces that contrast quiet pastoral music with.. the other.
lp  SHOSTAKOVICH Piano Sonata 2, op. 64 (sic)   actually op. 61
BACH French Suite no. 5 in G
Emil Gilels, piano
unexpectedly lyrical Shostakovich.  mono copy, not a problem with solo piano music
BERLIOZ  Harold in Italy
Nobuko Imai, viola     London Symphony O.     Colin Davis

[Que]

Good morning! A great set to frequently return to - it always surprises and never dissapoints.

Q

[mc ukrneal]

A few years ago, I bought the cd below to check out Ropartz, a composer I had never heard of at the time. I enjoyed the disc enough that I figured I would pick up the second disc of symphonies when I saw it for a decent price. Unfortunately, these don't go on sale that oftern or for great prices, so I am still waiting. The music is imaginative and evocative. The amazon review is quite informative if there is interest...
[asin]B000BUEGRM[/asin]

[The new erato]

A few years ago, I bought the cd below to check out Ropartz, a composer I had never heard of at the time. I enjoyed the disc enough that I figured I would pick up the second disc of symphonies when I saw it for a decent price. Unfortunately, these don't go on sale that oftern or for great prices, so I am still waiting. The music is imaginative and evocative. The amazon review is quite informative if there is interest...
[asin]B000BUEGRM[/asin]

And the orchestra doesn't play like nancyboys?

[mc ukrneal]

And the orchestra doesn't play like nancyboys?

Sorry? Not sure what you mean or if you are joking. The orchestra play just fine if that was what you are asking. The music doesn't have too much bombast (it will never be mistaken for Bruckner - that's for sure), but they play everything fully, with atmosphere and feeling.

[The new erato]

Orchestre symphonique et lyrique de Nancy. Guess most male members are Nancy boys.

[Lethevich]

.[asin]B0037YHO8W[/asin]

A rather delightful release - the music has a pleasant density which makes the Brahms influence refreshingly well-followed (often so-called followers sound lighter and more like Mendelssohn). There is a touch of Dvořák in some of the well-sprung passages, and overall the pieces fall somewhere between these two. The first has such a charming and spirited opening movement, and the performances are very fine.

Really? I attended the Dutch - ahem - premiere, about a year ago. And felt rather disappointed ...

Same - I've given it several more shots and it's proven to be guff.

And the orchestra doesn't play like nancyboys?

The full title in French sounds even more so

[Christo]

Perhaps the most moving homage to (his teacher) Vaughan Williams ever - Stanley Bate's Viola Concerto (1944-46), in itself an outstanding achievement by a remarkable composer:

                 

[FideLeo]

Coro spezzato! 

[asin]B00103E52A[/asin]

[asin]0300148747[/asin]

[mahler10th]

Rautavaara - Symphony 5
Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Max Pommer
[asin]B000003770[/asin]
Huge and deep gestures to the most profound questions you ask yourself.  Written in 1986, it transcends the boundaries of time and space - watch out!

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

A few years ago, I bought the cd below to check out Ropartz, a composer I had never heard of at the time. I enjoyed the disc enough that I figured I would pick up the second disc of symphonies when I saw it for a decent price. Unfortunately, these don't go on sale that oftern or for great prices, so I am still waiting. The music is imaginative and evocative. The amazon review is quite informative if there is interest...

Ropartz was a a friend of Albéric Magnard's, whose symphonies and tone poems I love very much. I think I have this disc still waiting for me, too. Here is Barnett's review on Musicweb:

http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2005/Nov05/Ropartz_1&4_1C1093.htm

[Florestan]

High time to redress the sad situation of never ever having heard this opera, so I picked a performance which is considered one of the finest --- and after hearing the first act I am indeed spellbound.

(Detailed reviews can be found here and here)

Now on to my own thoughts.

The plot, to begin with. It is said to be stupid and banal. I couldn't disagree more. What's so banal about a sleepwalking maid in a Swiss village of yore? Were they the norm back then? Sleepwalking might very well be "banal" for modern sensibilities, but certainly was a big thrill in Bellini's days. Stupid? Yes, if simplicity of mind and soul, jealousy, love triangles and happy-endings are stupid --- but then half of the world's best literary works are stupid. 

What I especially liked is the intertwining of the characters, both themselves and the chorus, in a kind of swirl. These people are not the embodiment of some general principle, nor are they concerned with the grand scheme of humanity's fate, nor is their job to carry on some heroic struggle --- they are simple, flesh-and-blood human beings caught in the middle of drama of love and (perceived) betrayal which unfolds because of a little understood (back then) psychological condition. That the setting is a "cozy village" (pace Drogulus  ) surrounded by picturesque scenery only adds to the thrill.

In general I believe that operatic librettos ar judged too harsh, without taking in account their historical context. And frankly, I don't see why a story like the one at hand is less credible or less worth telling than Wagner's stories.   

Then, the music --- or should it be first and foremost? Either way, it's divine. I always marvel at two things: (a) Bellini's melodic gift (has he ever penned anything that's not at least hummable and at best singable out loud?) and (b) his intimate, chamber-like orchestration, able to evoke the whole gamut of human emotions and passions with the utmost economy of instrumental forces --- a flute and two strings are more than enough to express the exhilarating joys of love, while a horn solo brings all the mystery and excitement of the sun setting over the wooded mountains.

I've had repeatedly on repeat (pun intended) three moments:

- Prendi: l'anel ti dono, the betrothal aria and duet of Elvino and Amina. There is so much serenity, so much purity and such a great feeling of genuine, simple and true love as to make the joy almost unbearable. The perfect blending of Callas and Nicola Monti voices makes for an ecstatic experience. I can't help praising once again Bellini's sense of orchestration: in the climax of what should be counted among the most sublime love duets in the whole operatic repertoire, the orchestra is silent: the whole world is reduced to these two lovers who soar above the earth into the realm of pure bliss.

- Vi ravviso, o luoghi ameni, in which Count Rodolfo sings the praises of the village and it surroundings. Nicola Zaccaria infuses it with a really bucolic feeling and convincingly delivers all the joyous fatigue of a traveller who's just arrived at an inn after climbing heights, passing through forests and descending slopes.

- A fosco cielo, a notte bruna, a chorus of the peasants describing a nocturnal phantom haunting the village with disheveled hair and burning eyes. It's mezzo-voce and orchestrally soft --- all the more effective. Oh, did I mention it's also one of the melodies that I'm sure will stick in my head forever?

Finally, the sound. It's 1957 mono, but I didn't mind the remastering at all, although one quibble I do have: the chorus is rather boxed in, especially when they sing together with the soloists. Turning the volume higher should solve this problem, though (perhaps creating a new one with the neighbors ).

I'm only too happy with this purchase (2 CDs for € 6 / $8.5) and cannot recommend it highly enough. 

The problem is now I also want a good, modern stereo version of it. Any recs? (It could be DVD as well). TIA.

[Keemun]

Bruckner
Symphony No. 8
Maazel
BPO

[asin]B000040OCD[/asin]

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

High time to redress the sad situation of never ever having heard this opera, so I picked a performance which is considered one of the finest --- and after hearing the first act I am indeed spellbound.

Your thoughts are a great read, Eusebius! I can almost hear the music, which I don't know. I'll have to redress that one day... Wagner admired Bellini, btw...

[Willoughby earl of Itacarius]

This is the second time I play several recordings from this box, and no doubt I will play some more later, for I think this a wonderful assembly of different composers in not to beat performances, and wonderful sound, and furthermore it comes at a bargain offer. I strongly advise you not to miss it on any counts, even though you might have some of the works already in different interpretations.

CD 1.

Handel.

Concerto Grosso in D major, opus 6, No.5, and opus 3, No. 4a.

Crisp playing, well articulated, sassy tempi, and wonderful detailing. Yummy.


"Silete Venti" HWV 242. Motet.

Emma Kirkby sounds like a dream, a bell like voice, clear as the morning air, wonderful pronunciation, seamless breathing, 26 minutes of pure joy.

CD II.

Thomas Augustin Arne.

Concerto No. 3 in A major for Harpsichord, two Oboes and Strings.

Peter Seymour plays the stars from heaven in this concert, with a well articulated instrument, probably German, and brings forth so much delight and joy that it had me spellbound for almost 22 minutes, with well judged tempi, and very lucid playing from the orchestra. I will certainly put that on my list of favourites.

Johann Christian Bach.

Symphony in d major, Overture to the opera, "La Clemenza di Scipione".
Symphony in E major, for double orchestra, opus 18, No. 5.

Wonderful performances, as good as the CPO recordings, very crip playing, and well judged tempi.

Joseph Martin Kraus.

Symphony in C minor.

This is the piece the resistance, I so love the melodic context of this work that I kept playing it, and in my opinion and definition, this is a master piece. So well is it written that I think it is without par. Spellbound I was and am, one could say.
The sound on these CD's  is superb, and not a foot wrong in the interpretations.
Marvelous.

[Scarpia]

High time to redress the sad situation of never ever having heard this opera, so I picked a performance which is considered one of the finest --- and after hearing the first act I am indeed spellbound.

That's this one, no?

[asin]B000002RXR[/asin]

I wonder if Brilliant licensed it from EMI, or just decided it is out of copyright and issued it as public domain material.

[The new erato]

BACH, JOHANN LUDWIG Trauermusik. Anna Prohaska, Ivonne Fuchs, Maximilian Schmitt, Andreas Wolf. RIAS Kammerchor, Akademie fur Alte Musik Berlin. Hans-Christoph Rademann. Harmonia Mundi

An extremely fine disc. Very good music, flawless playing, fine recording....