Hello! Another new person

[wppwah]

Hi all. I've been stalking this forum for some time and finally decided to join. I really started listening to classical music about a year and a half ago... and can't seem to stop. I'm mostly interested in Romantic, Impressionist, and avant-garde trends, but I'm partial to much earlier music as well, e.g. Gombert, Palestrina, etc. Glad to see that at least some technologically-minded people are also interested in classical music!

Also, I seem to have some trouble posting -- my posts don't show up immediately. (This is normal, right?)

[Gurn Blanston]

Hi all. I've been stalking this forum for some time and finally decided to join. I really started listening to classical music about a year and a half ago... and can't seem to stop. I'm mostly interested in Romantic, Impressionist, and avant-garde trends, but I'm partial to much earlier music as well, e.g. Gombert, Palestrina, etc. Glad to see that at least some technologically-minded people are also interested in classical music!

Also, I seem to have some trouble posting -- my posts don't show up immediately. (This is normal, right?)

Welcome. Yes, normal enough. Your first post has to be approved by a moderator before you can move on. This is supposedly helpful for keeping out the riff-raff and robo-spam objects. Maybe so.

[Brahmsian]

Hello, and a warm welcome to you at GMG! 

[mc ukrneal]

Hi all. I've been stalking this forum for some time and finally decided to join. I really started listening to classical music about a year and a half ago... and can't seem to stop. I'm mostly interested in Romantic, Impressionist, and avant-garde trends, but I'm partial to much earlier music as well, e.g. Gombert, Palestrina, etc. Glad to see that at least some technologically-minded people are also interested in classical music!

Also, I seem to have some trouble posting -- my posts don't show up immediately. (This is normal, right?)

Welcome to the forums!

Posts should appear immediately.  Not sure what might be happening. Perhaps you need to refresh the page? In any case, I'm sure you'll get that sorted, and you'll find a plethera of people to discuss all the styles you like (and more).

[Mirror Image]

Hi all. I've been stalking this forum for some time and finally decided to join. I really started listening to classical music about a year and a half ago... and can't seem to stop. I'm mostly interested in Romantic, Impressionist, and avant-garde trends, but I'm partial to much earlier music as well, e.g. Gombert, Palestrina, etc. Glad to see that at least some technologically-minded people are also interested in classical music!

Also, I seem to have some trouble posting -- my posts don't show up immediately. (This is normal, right?)

Welcome aboard! Nice avatar of Dukas! I'm really into the Impressionism as well, so anytime you feel like discussing it, then don't hesitate to send me a pm.

[david johnson]

hi! 

dj

[Hollywood]

Howdy and welcome to the forum. 

[sospiro]

Hi wppwah & welcome.

This is a great place to meet & discuss good music. 

Looking forward to reading your contributions.

[karlhenning]

Welcome!

[jowcol]

Welcome-- if you like the impressionists, are you fond of Koechlin?  He's been one of my best discoveries in the last couple of years.

Don't be shy!

[wppwah]

I can honestly only say I'm familiar with Koechlin's orchestration of Debussy's Khamma. Do you recommend any of his works in particular?

[jowcol]

I can honestly only say I'm familiar with Koechlin's orchestration of Debussy's Khamma. Do you recommend any of his works in particular?

The Jungle Book is a great place to start.   
The fullest collection is here, but you may need to pick it up used:
http://www.amazon.com/Jungle-Book-Koechlin/dp/B00000E6Q8

This verision seems to be in print and also sells by download:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000045ZG/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_2?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B00000E6Q8&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0BWY9HYP992C56GRX2J8

The Track Spring in the Forest is the one'd I'd focus on first.

Some of the other orchestral works (Dr. Fabricus and Buisson Ardent) as also really great.  About the only disappointment I've had with his orchestral works were the Persian hours-- the piano version seemed to work better for me.

I'd also say that his solo piano work is the only impressionist piano work that moves me as much as Debussy's.  This disc is out of print, but available used, and has teh Paysages et Marines and  L'Ancienne Maison de Campagne  which I really love.

http://www.amazon.com/Charles-Koechlin-Landscapes-Seascapes-Chromatique/dp/B000001RSJ/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1281369880&sr=1-4

There are some other versions floating around which should be worth your while, and teh piano verision of Persian Hours is very good.

[Franco]

I'm mostly interested in Romantic, Impressionist, and avant-garde trends, but I'm partial to much earlier music as well, e.g. Gombert, Palestrina, etc.

Welcome to GMG!

We share some interests, specifically avant garde trends and early music - both are faves of mine as well. 

This year I began to listen to some composers who I'd heard of but not heard: Sciarrino, Scelsi, Lachenmann, Kurtag and Rihm.  I would highly recommend (if you have not yet heard his music) Salvatore Sciarrino, particularly, as a contemporary composer doing what I consider very exciting work.

[Brian]

Welcome! Love the avatar, but how do you pronounce your name? "Wuh - pwah"?

[CD]

Welcome.

[wppwah]

Thanks for the welcome, everyone.

Maybe I should mention that I'm almost always using Spotify to listen to music, so I don't typically have access to many different recordings of the same work (and sometimes never any recordings of a particularly obscure work). As a college student not even majoring in music, buying CDs tends to be prohibitively expensive, so I make do how I can.

But, jowcol, I did manage to find quite a few Koechlin pieces on Spotify. Docteur Fabricius really surprised me, especially in the effortless way Koechlin incorporates the ondes martenot into the thick, colorful orchestration... though I have to admit I'm still getting used to the strange ways in which his music unfolds. I heard La course de primtemps, too, and... well, I think I need to listen to it again to really get it! Koechlin's impressionism is really, really eclectic, isn't it? Even when he veers from a Wagner-esque moment into the throes of atonality, it never feels overly harsh to me. He has some unique harmonic passages that are wonderfully orchestrated. And as for his piano music, Paysages et Marines is gorgeous... though his melodies feel so much more abstract than Debussy's, despite the similar atmosphere between the two of them. Not that that's a bad thing, but it'll take more listening to pull me in all the way, I figure.

Thanks for suggesting Sciarrino, Franco. I've not heard anything by him at all (or anyone else you mentioned, save Rihm.) I can't say that my knowledge of the avant-garde is as extensive as that of other movements, but I do usually enjoy, or at least find interesting, experimental works. A quick check on Spotify doesn't show very much by Sciarrino, but I do see some of his piano music -- I'm listening to some of his Nocturnes right now, and his use of silence and tapping on the piano is quite fascinating. I'll have to look further into him at some point.

Yes, Brian, I suppose that's how you'd say it. I didn't really give any thought to how to pronounce my username when I registered, unfortunately.

Sorry if I'm not very active in this forum for a while, then suddenly have a ton to say all at once. I'm a rather distracted individual in general... not the best trait in someone trying to explore classical music, but I try my best.

[jowcol]

No need to apologize for periods of activity followed by silence-- we all have lives... (I hope)

I agree about you impressions of Koechlin-- his orchestration is pretty amazing, but hard to take in in a couple of listens.  (He wrote several volumes on Orchestration-- fascinating character).  He also did mix a lot in with "pure" impressionism-- it's a shame he hasn't gotten much recognition-- he was probably not "modern enough" starting in the 20s.

[Brian]

As a college student not even majoring in music, buying CDs tends to be prohibitively expensive, so I make do how I can.

That's exactly my situation - history student, but instead of Spotify I use my university's subscription to Naxos Music Library (since I live in the United States).

[Saul]

Welcome!

[DavidRoss]

Welcome aboard, whippie!  We look forward to your sharing your journey of discovery with us!