Nikos Skalkottas

[snyprrr]

Where can I get that Philips/Holliger disc for less than $1000?

It's just incredible... anyone/

I'm in shock

[Karl Henning]

I finally have the Philips CD of the 'Cycle-Concert', with Holliger&Co. The Sonata Concertante for bassoon and piano is the centrepiece, flanked by two Concertinos, and then two small "jazzy" buts. Well, I've had problems with Skalkottas in the past, but I've always had this album in mind.

It's pretty overwhelming!

Skalkottas is sort of "better than Schoenberg" in a way, you'd have to hear it. I really have a hard time with his bigger ensembles, but this recital is perfect! And exhausting!

I've tried a few items today, and before, and I just come away feeling that there's just too much unrelieved intensity, but here, with the instrumentation, all things become clear, as of a mesh that these items are. Sooo many notes!!

whew!!


I'd say this is a Masterpiece concert.

So! You found it for less than $1,000!

So have I, this morning, so I have pulled the trigger.  You can be a deplorable influence, you know.

[snyprrr]

So! You found it for less than $1,000!

So have I, this morning, so I have pulled the trigger.  You can be a deplorable influence, you know.

For some reason I'm thinking with your Wuorinen connections, this music might be right up your alley.  If you're not ready, you may be shocked at the invention of this "modern Mozart". LISTEN TO THE WHOLE DISC IN ONE SITTING as it is meant. Exhausting and vitally alive and wholly marked by the hand of Skalkottas. Maybe listen to Atherton Schoenberg to warm up...

[Karl Henning]

Oh, indeed, I do love it.

[snyprrr]

Oh, indeed, I do love it.

I really need to know what you think here because his process seems soooo different  than anyone else... I can actually hear what the commentator meant when he said Skalkottas was a modern day Mozart. Mozart, of all people, but, I get it. Huh!!

Bruno Canino is a monster here, AND did you noticed the beautifully tucked piano recording that renders all those chunky and clanky piano parts as if they were ambrosia? Had the recording suffered from a too-bright and aggressive piano image, this recording might actually be hard to listen to, but, it is simply one of the best Philips piano images I've ever heard (and 'live' at that!), much different than the Philips/Kocsis sound, which is also drool worthy.

ahhhhhhhhhh...

[Wanderer]

Cross-posting from the WAYLT thread.

Staying on Mediterranean shores, but moving eastwards from Italy to Greece, with Nikos Skalkottas' String Quartets No. 3 & No. 4 (played by the New Hellenic Quartet).

Oh, this is stunning. Here's a composer of dodecaphonic music which brims with humanity and passion, doesn't sound labored or mechanical and gives this often thorny language an acutely expressive, poignant, multi-layered voice, particularly rewarding repeated listening. In his dodecaphonic works, he did not adhere to strict Schoenbergian orthodoxy, but developed over the years his own style which explored the idiom more freely and widely (e.g. he used more than one tone rows per composition). His violin concerto was written on the same year as Schoenberg's (by that time, it had been years since their last contact) and his piano concerti predate Schoenberg's by several years. A unique voice well worth exploring and did I mention that these quartets are stunning? I did? Good. 😎

[Wanderer]

Crossposting from WAYLTN thread:


They [Skalkottas' 3 piano concertos] were written before Schönberg's, in Skalkottas' personal dodecaphonic idiom. I think they're all exceptional, immensely powerful works and they complement Schönberg's very well. I often like to listen to them all in succession, like a cycle.

Skalkottas 1: https://open.spotify.com/album/5OjaLOhR9GJDhoU1RowvSG?si=w-brV8aeTsyC_nn6AQAjDw

Skalkottas 2: https://open.spotify.com/album/4Hvt6uLeVju7ui0T6utUWB?si=y_UsvlgoQkuFx0Dd0K6Eqg

Skalkottas 3: https://open.spotify.com/album/6eA2fKWFOZdgCBpSq8zVDx?si=DjircGrZRjCWzRyzI1vMOA

Schönberg: https://open.spotify.com/album/2c5o95mPdT3bssm8lZafki?si=G7CBZ9TkTwSEo9W78rR1zw

[Brian]

BUMP:

 

This BIS CD is now so out of print it is not listed at all for purchase or streaming on Qobuz, Presto, or eClassical (BIS' own outlet!).

[kyjo]

BUMP:

This BIS CD is now so out of print it is not listed at all for purchase or streaming on Qobuz, Presto, or eClassical (BIS' own outlet!).

Well, that's a damn shame, considering how delightful the 36 Greek Dances are! There does appear to be a more recent Naxos release (which I haven't heard) containing the first series of dances plus other works:



One presumes that Naxos will eventually be recording the remainder of the dances? In any case, I have heard and been thoroughly delighted by this Naxos CD:



The Sinfonietta is a bright, breezy, tuneful work which at one point has a "big tune" (in the 1st movement, I believe) that reminds me of George Lloyd, of all people! And the Classical Symphony is a (surprisingly) substantial work for wind orchestra in slightly more serious vein. I'm not always the biggest fan of works for this medium, but my attention was held throughout due to the inventive textures Skalkottas employs. The 4 Images which round out the disc are succinct, colorful, and folksy. I will say that the performances here leave a bit to be desired - I could imagine more energy and technical brilliance injected into this music.

I must confess than I'm almost completely unfamiliar with Skalkottas' 12-tone works, which of course comprise the bulk of his output. I'm generally not the most receptive to music written in this style, but does anyone have recommendations for his most accessible 12-tone works?

[Karl Henning]

Well, that's a damn shame, considering how delightful the 36 Greek Dances are! There does appear to be a more recent Naxos release (which I haven't heard) containing the first series of dances plus other works:



One presumes that Naxos will eventually be recording the remainder of the dances? In any case, I have heard and been thoroughly delighted by this Naxos CD:



The Sinfonietta is a bright, breezy, tuneful work which at one point has a "big tune" (in the 1st movement, I believe) that reminds me of George Lloyd, of all people! And the Classical Symphony is a (surprisingly) substantial work for wind orchestra in slightly more serious vein. I'm not always the biggest fan of works for this medium, but my attention was held throughout due to the inventive textures Skalkottas employs. The 4 Images which round out the disc are succinct, colorful, and folksy. I will say that the performances here leave a bit to be desired - I could imagine more energy and technical brilliance injected into this music.

I must confess than I'm almost completely unfamiliar with Skalkottas' 12-tone works, which of course comprise the bulk of his output. I'm generally not the most receptive to music written in this style, but does anyone have recommendations for his most accessible 12-tone works?

Presuming anything of Naxos strikes me as an iffy practice, Kyle.

[Wanderer]

...does anyone have recommendations for his most accessible 12-tone works?

You can start with the Violin Concerto, the Piano Concerto No. 2 (all three are superb), or the String Quartets Nos. 3 & 4.