Favorite Discoveries of 2008

[Daverz]

Even though I've had at least one Saygun CD (CPO) for over a year, it wasn't until recently that I gave his music a close listen.  His craftsmanship is on a very high level.

[Keemun]

Here is my version of ChamberNut's list. 

Keemun's Personal 2008 Classical Music Award - Nominees and *Winners

Composer of the Year

*Bach (tie)
Beethoven
*Bruckner (tie)
Dvorak
Mahler
Schmidt
Scriabin

Composer Discovery of the Year

Hovhaness
Langgaard
Magnard
Martinu
*Schmidt
Smetana
Strauss, R.
Suk

Orchestral Work of the Year (Symphony or Concerto)

Bruckner: Symphony No. 7
Bruckner: Symphony No. 8
Dvorak: Symphony No. 7
Mahler: Symphony No. 1
Mahler: Symphony No. 2
*Mahler: Symphony No. 3
Schmidt: Symphony No. 1
Scriabin: Symphony No. 2

Chamber Music Work of The Year

*Beethoven: Late String Quartets
Mendelssohn: String Quartets
Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 3

Solo Instrument Work of the Year

*Bach: Cello Suites
Bach: Goldberg Variations
Kodaly: Sonata for Unaccompanied Cello

Opera of the Year (on DVD)

*Puccini: La Boheme
Wagner: Die Meistersinger

Vocal/Choral Work of the Year (sacred or secular)

*Bach: Mass in B minor
Beethoven: Mass in C
Brahms: Ein Deutsches Requiem
Franck: Psyche
Mozart: Mass in C minor "The Great"
Schubert: Winterreise

[marvinbrown]

Thank you, Anne.  I love Wagner's use of motifs, so that makes me even more eager now to check out Die Meistersinger.   

  Hi ChamberNut,

  A few more points on Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg.  This opera is absolutely beautiful. All you have to do is listen to the overture and you will be instantly hooked.  Some of the most stunningly beautiful melodies are in that opera. Oh where do I begin, the overture, the Church chorus that follows it,  the Prize Song, the quintet in Act 4  0:) 0:). I can rant and rave about Die Meistersinger until cows come home! But I won't.  All I will say is that when it comes to opera (whether "comic", sad, or dramatic) Wagner  0:) is unmatched.  You really can't go wrong here  0:)!

  Happy Listening!

marvin

[Anne]

If anyone finds a Meistersinger conducted by Kubilick, use your lunch money and buy it!  It is excellent and the one our teacher for this opera recommended.  A little while later, and Kubilick's version was out of print.  What a shame!

His conducting reveals a beautiful passage right at the very beginning of Act 1 that I have not heard in some other versions.  There are 2 instruments that seem to interweave melodies between themselves almost as if the melodies were talking to each other.  At the end both instruments quickly scamper right up the scales.  Hope I described it correctly; I'm not good at this type of thing. 

Another gorgeous place in Kubilick's version is the prelude to act 3.  It is so poignant that it puts a lump in my throat every time I hear it again.

I can't remember if it is in act 1 or 2 but there is also a quote from Tristan in Meistersinger.

[J.Z. Herrenberg]

If anyone finds a Meistersinger conducted by Kubilick, use your lunch money and buy it!  It is excellent and the one our teacher for this opera recommended.  A little while later, and Kubilick's version was out of print.  What a shame!

His conducting reveals a beautiful passage right at the very beginning of Act 1 that I have not heard in some other versions.  There are 2 instruments that seem to interweave melodies between themselves almost as if the melodies were talking to each other.  At the end both instruments quickly scamper right up the scales.  Hope I described it correctly; I'm not good at this type of thing. 

Another gorgeous place in Kubilick's version is the prelude to act 3.  It is so gorgeous that it puts a lump in my throat every time I hear it again.

I can't remember if it is in act 1 or 2 but there is also a quote from Tristan in Meistersinger.

Thanks for the recommendation, Anne! That Tristan quote is in the 3rd Act, btw... 

[Anne]

Thanks for the recommendation, Anne! That Tristan quote is in the 3rd Act, btw... 

Thanks, Jezetha!

[Haffner]

Wagner: Parsifal, Die Meistersinger, Tristan und Isolde
DeBussy: Pelleas et Melisande
Barbirolli's Mahler
Anton Bruckner, all the symphonies but especially 7-9.

[Haffner]

  Hi ChamberNut,

  A few more points on Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg.  This opera is absolutely beautiful. All you have to do is listen to the overture and you will be instantly hooked.  Some of the most stunningly beautiful melodies are in that opera. Oh where do I begin, the overture, the Church chorus that follows it,  the Prize Song, the quintet in Act 4  0:) 0:). I can rant and rave about Die Meistersinger until cows come home! But I won't.  All I will say is that when it comes to opera (whether "comic", sad, or dramatic) Wagner  0:) is unmatched.  You really can't go wrong here  0:)!

  Happy Listening!

marvin

The resigned overture of Act III is just incredible: strings flowing against then with each other, intertwining like tendrils of the most comforting pipe tobacco smoke. Fantastic.

[karlhenning]

Rakhmaninov's Second Symphony
Mennin's Seventh Symphony
Martinů Symphonies

AND! most of the Braga Santos Symphonies

[Ten thumbs]

2008 was definitely the year of Bonis' Septet. It doesn't need any of those annoying adjectives, only a pair of appreciative ears.
Also a rediscovery if you like: Scriabin's 2nd Piano Sonata. I love that pulsating finale.

[marvinbrown]

The resigned overture of Act III is just incredible: strings flowing against then with each other, intertwining like tendrils of the most comforting pipe tobacco smoke. Fantastic.

  Absolutely  0:)!

[Opus106]

Listening to the concerto in C minor, I just realised I had missed a rather important name: Rachmaninoff! (The works with piano, actually. Yet to explore the purely orchestral works.)

Oh, I'm listening to the version with Kissin, LSO and Gergiev.

[DavidRoss]

First that comes to mind is the MTT/SFS Mahler cycle.  I had not heard any of these recordings before.  Once started, I couldn't get enough of them and purchased all (including Das Lied von der Erde, with Thomas Hampson singing the Christa Ludwig role far better than I would have imagined).  The 8th has not been issued yet, but otherwise the cycle is complete.  Speaking of Mahler 8, another lovely find was Nagano's recording of it.  And at Sarge's behest I finally picked up the late Lenny Mahler set and on DGG and love it as well. 

Also following Sarge's lead I finally plumped for the late Lenny DGG Sibelius recordings and loved them, too.  Indulgent, yes, but...intoxicating!

[Brahmsian]

ChamberNut's personal 2008 Classical Music Award nominees and *winners

Composer of the Year

*Bruckner
Wagner
R. Strauss
Haydn
Shostakovich

Box set of the Year (5 or more CDs)

*Wagner - Solti's Ring
Bruckner - Nine Symphonies
Strauss R. - Orchestral Works
Mozart - Piano Concerti
Tchaikovsky - Symphonies Box Set

Album of the Year (small set - 4 CDs or less)

*Mozart - String Quintets
Taneyev - String Quartet 1 & 3
Brahms - Cello Sonatas
Beethoven - String Trios
Coleridge-Taylor - Piano Quintet, Ballade, Violin Sonata

Orchestral Work of the Year (Symphony or Concerto)

*Bruckner - Symphony No. 8
Tchaikovsky - Symphony No. 5
Brahms - Piano Concerto No. 1
Mahler - Symphony No. 2
Dvorak - Cello Concerto

Chamber Music Work of The Year

Franck - Violin Sonata
*Taneyev - String Quartet
Coleridge-Taylor - Piano Quintet
Schubert - String Quintet
Dvorak - String Quartet No. 10

Solo Instrument Work of the Year

Bach - Sonata No. 1 for solo violin
Bach - Partita No. 2 for solo violin
*Beethoven - Piano Sonata No. 29, "Hammerklavier"
Schubert - Fantay in F minor for 4 hands
Brahms - Piano Sonata No. 3

Opera of the Year

Mozart - Don Giovanni
Strauss, R. - Salome
Wagner - Tristan und Isolde
Wagner - Parsifal
*Wagner - Siegfried

Prelude or Overture of the Year

Mozart - Don Giovanni
Wagner - Das Rheingold - Act I
*Wagner - Die Walkure - Act I
Wagner - Siegfried - Act II
Wagner - Parsifal - Act I

Sacred Work of the Year

Berlioz - Requiem
Faure - Requiem
Mozart - Requiem
Brahms - Ein Deutsches Requiem
*Bruckner - Te Deum

Live performance attended of the Year

Mendelssohn - Octet
*Tchaikovsky - Symphony No. 2 "Little Russian"
Mahler - Symphony No. 5
Tchaikovsky - Symphony No. 5
Schumann - Piano Quintet

Purchase of the Year

Wagner - The Ring (Levine/Met)
*Strauss, R. - Orchestral Works (Kempe/Staatskapelle Dresden)
Mozart - Piano Concertos (Anda, DG)
Tchaikovsky - Symphonies (Muti, Brilliant)
Mozart - 4 Great Operas (Don Giovanni, Cosi fan tutte, Marriage of Figaro, Magic Flute) - (Mackerras, Scottich CO)

Thinking about my 2009 favorites.....