Rihm's Wolf Gang

[petrarch]

His enormous output and bewildering variety of styles and
sounds make Rihm a true original, and worth getting to know

How much of Rihm's Oeuvre do you know? 0, 5, 10, 25, 50, 75, 100%?

[petrarch]

Did you happen to hit that all-Stockhausen concert at ATH, or was it cancelled because of Sandy?

It was cancelled.

[petrarch]

Rihm's String Quartet No. 13 with the Arditti String Quartet:

http://www.youtube.com/v/KAtIDwg85nA

Rihm in conversation with Lucas Fels about his string quartets:

http://www.youtube.com/v/lIsATkFMv2I

[San Antone]

I've known about Rihm for a long time but only recently have I begun to listen to his music in earnest.  I like what I've heard so far, these especially:

[asin]B004EHLMQG[/asin]

[asin]B006ZV6XB8[/asin]

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[asin]B0000630QB[/asin]

[Octave]

Thanks everyone for contributions to this most useful thread; I actually have what I thought was a nice chunk of Rihm recordings, and this thread has presented one right have another that I don't know.  The man looks entirely too cheerful and impish to be such a runaway workaholic.  Ah! but maybe that is the source of his joy.  I wonder what kind of chair he composes in.

There was some discussion a while back about two discs with violin/piano music (CPO and MDG), with a passing appreciation of the CPO by Lethe-Sara.  Has anyone had time to listen to the brand new Naxos disc, which is much longer than at least that (CPO) disc?  Is it worth having?

 
Rihm: COMPLETE MUSIC FOR VIOLIN AND PIANO [Yang/Rimmer - Naxos, 2012]

And who on earth could release a Rihm disc with 'complete' in the title? 

[relm1]

Has anyone managed to hear Rihm's Symphony No. 3 from 1977?  I'm looking for a recording so if someone can point me to how to get it I would appreciate it.

[kyjo]

Since this thread has been "bumped".......

The only work of Rihm's that I've heard is his Violin Concerto Gesunges Zeit (performed by Mutter/Levine and coupled with their excellent performance of the Berg VC). I haven't heard it in a while, but I remember rather liking it. For some reason, I've never bothered exploring his other music, much of which has been recorded by Hanssler Classic. Do those more familiar with his music have any recommendations for me on where to start exploring it? Thanks in advance.

[relm1]

Since this thread has been "bumped".......

The only work of Rihm's that I've heard is his Violin Concerto Gesunges Zeit (performed by Mutter/Levine and coupled with their excellent performance of the Berg VC). I haven't heard it in a while, but I remember rather liking it. For some reason, I've never bothered exploring his other music, much of which has been recorded by Hanssler Classic. Do those more familiar with his music have any recommendations for me on where to start exploring it? Thanks in advance.

I'd recommend these as all being strong works, exciting, well played/recorded, and representative of his style(s):

Rihm: Dis-Kontur / Lichtzwang / Sub-Kontur:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002VQ54KC/ref=s9_simh_gw_p340_d0_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=020MTYW2ZTSGBVVAR96M&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1389517282&pf_rd_i=507846

Symphonies Nos. 1 And 2 / Nachtwach / Vers Une Symphonie Fleuve III / Raumauge:
http://www.amazon.com/Rihm-W-Symphonies-Nachtwach-Symphonie/dp/B002VVZ7KY/ref=pd_sim_dmusic_a_2

La musique creuse le ciel - Über-Schrift:
http://www.amazon.com/Rihm-musique-creuse-ciel-%C3%9Cber-Schrift/dp/B00DYP3GJA/ref=sr_1_13?s=dmusic&ie=UTF8&qid=1377459769&sr=1-13&keywords=rihm

It does require patient, focused listening.  For example, in Dis-Kontur, there are moments of extremely loud percussion that seem too long and I get worn out but just then it switches to something beautiful.  I posted this another forum that I think helps show his place in Germanic tradition:

There are parts of Henze and Rihm's output where their connection to the tradition of Beethoven and Mahler is clear.   To me, each of these excerpts represent the same artistic effort of expanding harmonic vocabulary within a vividly dramatic way… they seem to be saying the same thing in their time and in their own way which indicates a connection, an influence.

Please listen to the following links for about 45 seconds each:

Beethoven: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MF1KRUYiUjM&feature=player_detailpage#t=660s
Mahler: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=ikTni7DPROM#t=499s
Rihm: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=t_ClwNU1XyU#t=101s

I'm not just pointing to these excerpts as just having superficial similarities but notice the same dramatic instinct – the near total silence before the devastating (within their time period) harmonic crashes; the thickness of the orchestration, the transitional purposes of these dramatic moments.  These composers are dramatists.   When I first heard the Rihm symphony, this combination of pathos and harmonic intensity sounded familiar but also new just as the Mahler did to his contemporaries and the same with Beethoven.  It sounds shocking but somewhat approachable because it has an established framework from which it drew from.

[kyjo]

Many thanks, relm1!

[Octave]

Lachenmannen
Da Wolf, feelin' hilarious....and still such a large glass of beer to finish.  Unfortunately no YT of schlager-beltin' dudes.

[Mirror Image]

Lachenmannen
Da Wolf, feelin' hilarious....and still such a large glass of beer to finish.  Unfortunately no YT of schlager-beltin' dudes.

I bet he's a fun person to be around. I've seen many interviews with him and he's always quite humble and humorous. His music, however, offers a different image altogether. It sounds nothing like the man looks.

[not edward]

In some ways it seems funny that Rihm and Lachnemann are such good friends. One's highly prolific, the other is the exact opposite. One's clearly a Romantic at heart; the other writes music as a critique of his cultural inheritance. Yet both write music that sounds completely and utterly German.

[Octave]

In some ways it seems funny that Rihm and Lachnemann are such good friends. One's highly prolific, the other is the exact opposite. One's clearly a Romantic at heart; the other writes music as a critique of his cultural inheritance. Yet both write music that sounds completely and utterly German.

I have one of my phantom memories of hearing about and perhaps reading excerpts (in English translation) of a 'defense'/appreciation of Lachenmann's music, by Rihm.  Some cursory searches just now are not calling this document up, but if it's available in English, I would like to read it. 
Maybe it was no single document but a general stance he took in the press for a while.  My memory was that Rihm was doing this when Lachenmann's music had a much more [??] dangerous reputation.  (My Berliner friend told me about the turn of the century, when all the punk kids would come out for the rare night of Neue Musik Night at the opera house or wherever.)

[Mirror Image]

Since Rihm has been under my radar more recently, I bought this a few nights ago:



Has anyone here heard this? I read that this is his 'salute' to Brahms or something to that effect.

[snyprrr]

Any Rihm news?... discoveries?... new thoughts?

[not edward]

I've been spending some time with most of the Rihm quartets this week (I don't have recordings of 1, 2, 11 or 13), and I'm coming to the conclusion that I've rather underrated this cycle. In particular, what's impressed me is how different many of the quartets are: expressionist/neo-Romantic in the 3rd; consciously epic in scale and momentum in the 5th and 6th; textural and experimental in the 7th; withdrawn and introspective in the 8th and 12th; quirkily humorous in the 10th.

It's been a fun ride; guess I need to pick up the Wergo recording of the long-delayed 11th. Meanwhile, hopefully the Ardittis will record the 13th soon.

[snyprrr]

I've been spending some time with most of the Rihm quartets this week (I don't have recordings of 1, 2, 11 or 13), and I'm coming to the conclusion that I've rather underrated this cycle. In particular, what's impressed me is how different many of the quartets are: expressionist/neo-Romantic in the 3rd; consciously epic in scale and momentum in the 5th and 6th; textural and experimental in the 7th; withdrawn and introspective in the 8th and 12th; quirkily humorous in the 10th.

It's been a fun ride; guess I need to pick up the Wergo recording of the long-delayed 11th. Meanwhile, hopefully the Ardittis will record the 13th soon.

I thought No.9 ("Number Nine"!) was quite different. It has some interesting harmonic work in the first mvmt. No.11 sounds full-blown Romantic to me.

No.7 seemed interesting, No.6 is very long...

I do like the "paper" bit in No.8- a wonderful sound in the middle of an SQ.


I really think we could use a second Cycle though...

[torut]

I found this Lieder album unexpectedly good. Clare Lesser's vibrato-less voice is very pure and beautiful. The songs may not be melodious in a traditional sense, but there are many tuneful moments, rarely screaming or screeching, unlike typical avant-garde vocal pieces. The piano accompaniment is occasionally dissonance or atonal, but the vocal is so clean that it does not sound unnatural at all. Mostly the music is quiet and contemplative except for some climaxes. I believe that the performers are fitted for the works very well.

Wolfgang Rihm Lieder - Clare Lesser, David Lesser
[asin]B00016W86M[/asin]

[snyprrr]

I found this Lieder album unexpectedly good. Clare Lesser's vibrato-less voice is very pure and beautiful. The songs may not be melodious in a traditional sense, but there are many tuneful moments, rarely screaming or screeching, unlike typical avant-garde vocal pieces. The piano accompaniment is occasionally dissonance or atonal, but the vocal is so clean that it does not sound unnatural at all. Mostly the music is quiet and contemplative except for some climaxes. I believe that the performers are fitted for the works very well.

Wolfgang Rihm Lieder - Clare Lesser, David Lesser
[asin]B00016W86M[/asin]

Modern Lieder- scary!!! You make a good case for the rainy afternoon, though!

[Artem]

I've also been listening to Rhim's lieder recently, but on the follwing cd, which i found quite good.

[asin]B0051T1KOK[/asin]