New Releases

[Todd]

Now that is a Big Box. Wonder how many discs it will contain and how many pounds it will cost weigh 

477 discs, 36.4 pounds.  (No, I don't know the actual disc count.)  Buy that and the DFD boat anchor box, and you would have enough core rep to last you until the mid-2030s.

[Spotted Horses]

Now that is a Big Box. Wonder how many discs it will contain and how many pounds it will cost weigh 

Maybe not as enormous as you would think, since there were a substantial number of Haitink recordings that weren't RCO. The Liszt was LPO, a lot of the re-recording of repertoire was BPO, etc.

A worthy release, but I've accumulated a substantial amount of Haitink over the years.

[Mandryka]

Ludger Brümmer does granular synthesis.

[Madiel]

I don't think this has been mentioned here yet:

I can imagine it being rather worthy, even though I doubt I'm in the market for a box that big.

[Brian]

MORE SEPTEMBER STUFF








Brahms - String Quintet Op. 111 arranged for horn and string quartet
Glazunov - Idyll and Serenade arranged
Sibelius - String Trio arranged





This is NOT the conductor John Wilson but a young American pianist.
"featuring the world-premiere recording of the title track, MTT's three-movement suite for piano, Upon Further Reflection. MTT explains innumerable influences that are embedded throughout the work, including the piano music of Debussy and Schumann, bossa nova, gamelan, ragas, Monteverdi, Berg and Peggy Lee's rendition of the song Alley Cat, all of which "flowed together in a way that seemed completely natural... to me anyway.""

[Brian]

BUT WAIT THERE'S EVEN MORE





"The place of Domenico Scarlatti in the history of 18th century music is certainly exceptional. This exquisite and imaginative group of works is included in the fourteenth volume of Scarlatti's manuscript sonatas preserved in the Marciana Library in Venice. Although known as keyboard sonatas, research reveals that they were very likely to have been conceived for performance on the violin – multi-movement works, often showing the presence of figured bass accompaniment, rapid changes of register and numerous passages better suited to a violin than a keyboard instrument all support the theory. This is flashy and virtuosic writing for violin at its finest."



"Bernard Van Dieren (1887-1936) was essentially self-taught as a composer, though friendships with Schoenberg, Busoni, Sorabji, Walton and Lambert all obliquely indicate by association both the technical confidence of his work as well as the variegated colours of his harmonic palette. He was born in Rotterdam but fell in love with and then married a pupil of Busoni's, Frida Kindler, who gave the first performances of most of his piano music. While earlier works such as the powerful Toccata approach Schoenbergian atonality in their tightly woven chromaticism, Van Dieren's world is at root a diatonic one, stretching rather than breaking tonalities with a post-Wagnerian sensibility often comparable to the music of Delius."

[JBS]

Oooh...

Can totally unknown works by totally unknown composers be considered "classics"? I'm pretty sure I've never heard of either Bristow or Fry before

Any way of knowing if the pianist is related in some way to the composer?

[San Antone]

Can totally unknown works by totally unknown composers be considered "classics"? I'm pretty sure I've never heard of either Bristow or Fry before

This is actually a very exciting release of major works by two important (but overlooked) American composers from the mid-19th century.  Both of these men held major posts in the American Classical music community and promoted support of American Classical composers and music, and were well-known during their lifetimes.

Any new recording of their works is deserving of notice and support.

[Todd]

Any way of knowing if the pianist is related in some way to the composer?

Try contacting him on LinkedIn.

[staxomega]

MORE SEPTEMBER STUFF

Should be interesting from a historical perspective to hear the first complete set of Debussy's Preludes. This along with Todd mentioning the 1951 Debussy recordings make this a good year for fans.

I rarely listen to Gieseking's Debussy recordings but this is more because I think Debussy needs modern recording quality to capture the spirit of the music. Or at least tape era recordings without the gross distortion on the EMI recordings.

Oooh...

I hope it's recorded well and with performances as good as the USSR State Symphony cycle.

BUT WAIT THERE'S EVEN MORE

A Visions de l'amen to eagerly look forward to

[Todd]

Should be interesting from a historical perspective to hear the first complete set of Debussy's Preludes. This along with Todd mentioning the 1951 Debussy recordings make this a good year for fans.

I rarely listen to Gieseking's Debussy recordings but this is more because I think Debussy needs modern recording quality to capture the spirit of the music. Or at least tape era recordings without the gross distortion on the EMI recordings.

The recordings have been around in various guises since they were made.  The 30s Preludes are among the very best ever recorded, and certainly better than Gieseking's last, most famous traversal. 

[Brian]

The Fry Niagara symphony was one of the very earliest Naxos American Classics. ClassicsToday review (by Victor Carr Jr.)

Any way of knowing if the pianist is related in some way to the composer?

Try contacting him on LinkedIn.

Yes, I just checked the press materials and it says "his ancestor". Maybe he can perform a duo with cellist Christian Benda.

Yes.   Depending on the dates, it's possible I was in the audience for that 4th.  If so, it'll be interesting to compare it with my memory.  (And the 4 other Rozhdestvensky recordings... )

Symphony No. 4: 9 September 1978, Royal Albert Hall
Symphony No. 11: 4 October 1997, Bridgewater Hall, Manchester

[Karl Henning]

This is actually a very exciting release of major works by two important (but overlooked) American composers from the mid-19th century.  Both of these men held major posts in the American Classical music community and promoted support of American Classical composers and music, and were well-known during their lifetimes.

Any new recording of their works is deserving of notice and support.

Most interesting.

[Roasted Swan]

The Fry Niagara symphony was one of the very earliest Naxos American Classics. ClassicsToday review (by Victor Carr Jr.)

I enjoyed that Naxos/Fry release - the coupling of Santa Claus Symphony is fun too.  The Niagara Symphony is only around a quarter hour so I don't know if the coupling is considerably more substantial.  The Naxos release features the RSNO in fine form so Botstein's student orchestra have quite a high bar to beat in playing terms......

[Operafreak]

August 25, 2022

[Mookalafalas]

August 25, 2022

  That is worth keeping an eye on.  One of the few conductors George Szell spoke very highly of. I have some of his Haydn, and it's marvelous.

[Spotted Horses]

  That is worth keeping an eye on.  One of the few conductors George Szell spoke very highly of. I have some of his Haydn, and it's marvelous.

I have some of the Brahms on Philips duo releases. Magnificent.

[vandermolen]

I also like the look of that ICA DSCH CD as it features my two favourite symphonies (4 and 11) but as I've just ordered the new Kabelac 'Mystery of Time' CD and one of the early Martinu Orchestral music CDs on Toccata I'm resisting temptation for now.

[Karl Henning]

Cross-post:

The Naxos Alsop/Prokofiev box: Jewel-cases or (hopefully) not? Anyone know?

[DavidW]

Cross-post:

The Naxos Alsop/Prokofiev box: Jewel-cases or (hopefully) not? Anyone know?

I already have most of them individually from BRO.