What are you listening to now?

[André]

Ligeti, second quartet. Arditti SQ


https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=yYExhTXeGLs

[ritter]

[asin]B000PAAHCQ[/asin]

Pounds the table! What do you think of the work(s)/performance(s) so far, Rafael.
...

I must confess I came out of this first hearing of the Malipiero SQs (only 'No. 1, Rispetti e strambotti' and No. 2, 'Stornelli e ballate' so far) with mixed feelings. Perhaps I was not in the mood for this particular kind of "aggressive neoclassicism" last night, but the musics's angularity and jaggedness, and curious formal configuration (single movements with distinct episodes following each other in relatively quick succession) struck me in a not altogether positive way. But I will continue to explore this set, and revisit these first two SQs sometime soon ( when I'm better disposed to the idiom?).

THREAD DUTY:

Inspired by Ainsi la nuit's superb post in the relevant composer thread, revisiting one of Pierre Boulez's lesser known works, Livre pour quatuor:



Revisiting Boulez's music is like returning home after a long absence (in my case, in the obscurer realms of the Italian operatic repertoire    ). Despite its mammoth size (a total duration of ca. 45', but the longest single section is just short of 12'), this is Boulez at his most webernian . The members of the (stunning) Quatuour Diotima perceptively point out how from the "extreme complexity, comes a delightful perfume, and the music turns out to be incredibly poetic". And yes, this may be Boulez the "angry young man" (the piece is from 1949, revised in 2012), but the trademark sensuousness of the composer can be appreciated even here, in the relatively ascetic medium of the SQ (no "L'après-midi d'un vibraphone" here  ).

[mc ukrneal]

Now playing ~

[asin]B000M05URG[/asin]

A recent purchase.  Sounds wonderful. 

The clips on this sound quite wonderful. I have a disc of Dall'Abaco, but this will definitely be one I acquire at some point. Thanks!

[Judith]

Something a little different.

Brahms Sonata in F Minor opus 120 no 1 for viola and piano.
Roberto Diaz
Jeremy Denk

Shame the viola seems to be the "blacksheep" of the family even though it has a beautiful sound of its own

[Que]

Now playing ~

[asin]B000M05URG[/asin]

A recent purchase.  Sounds wonderful. 

The clips on this sound quite wonderful. I have a disc of Dall'Abaco, but this will definitely be one I acquire at some point. Thanks!

Strong recommendation for Opus 6 by the same ensemble & conductor:

[asin]B001JK7URG[/asin]
Q

[RebLem]

On Thursday, 20 APR 2018, I listened to CD 2 in the Previn cycle of the Vaughan Williams Symphonies, and the other two works on the CD.   Then, for comparison with the Previn Vaughan Williams London Symphony, I listened to the two other recordings of that symphony in my collection.


1)  Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958):  |Tr. 1-4.  Symphony 2 "A London Symphony" (1911-13) (46'20)  |Tr. 5-7.  Concerto Accademico for Violin & Orchestra in D Minor  (15'59)  |Tr. 8.  The Wasps: Overture (8'59)--Andre Previn, cond., London Symphony Orch., James Oliver Buswell IV, violin (Tr. 5-7).  CD 2 of a 6 CD RCA set of the VW Symphonies by these forces.


2)  The Adrian Boult recording of the VW 2, London Philharmonic Orch.  (43'01)  Rec. MAR 1971 Kingsway Hall, London.  On CD 2 of an 8 CD set of the symphonies + some other orchestral works.


3)  A performance of the London Symphony by The Chicago Symphony Orch. cond. by Malcolm Sargent on 6 JUL 1967 @ Ravinia.  Sargent died 3 OCT 1967, less than 3 months after this performance.  (44'20).  On CD 7 of the 10 CD set "Chicago Symphony Orchestra in the 20th century" issued by the CSO

The Previn box includes a lavish 104 page booklet in English, German, & French.  So why has it no information on recording dates or venues?   ONLY THE SHADOW KNOWS!
From Wikipedia,
A London Symphony (1911–13) which the composer later observed might more accurately be called a "symphony by a Londoner", is for the most part not overtly pictorial in its presentation of London. Vaughan Williams insisted that it is "self-expressive, and must stand or fall as 'absolute' music". There are some references to the urban soundscape: brief impressions of street music, with the sound of the barrel organ mimicked by the orchestra; the characteristic chant of the lavender-seller; the jingle of hansom cabs; and the chimes of Big Ben played by harp and clarinet.  But commentators have heard—and the composer never denied or confirmed—some social comment in sinister echoes at the end of the scherzo and an orchestral outburst of pain and despair at the opening of the finale.  Schwartz comments that the symphony, in its "unified presentation of widely heterogeneous elements", is "very much like the city itself". Vaughan Williams said in his later years that this was his favourite of the symphonies.

The Previn recording is very laid back and contemplative, and the slowest of these performances.  The Boult is energetic and full of drama and excitement.  The Sargent seems to steer a middle course.  One peculiarity is that it begins and ends quietly, very much like the Shostokovich Eleventh Symphony.
One of the principal attractions of this program is the insight it gives into the life of Malcolm Sargent (29 APR 1895--3 OCT 1967), and his last two concerts, which happened to be with the CSO @ Ravinia.  The Wikipedia article on his life reveals the following:
By the mid-1960s his health began to deteriorate. His final conducting appearances were on 6 and 8 July 1967, leading the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at the Ravinia Festival. On 6 July Sargent conducted Holst's The Perfect Fool, Henryk Wieniawski's Second Violin Concerto with Itzhak Perlman, and Vaughan Williams's A London Symphony. On 8 July he led Vaughan Williams's Overture to The Wasps, Delius's The Walk to the Paradise Garden, Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 4 with David Bar-Illan, and Sibelius's Symphony No. 2.
Sargent underwent surgery in July 1967 for pancreatic cancer but made a valedictory appearance at the end of the last night of the Proms in September that year, handing over the baton to his successor, Colin Davis. He died two weeks later, at the age of 72.  He was buried in Stamford cemetery alongside members of his family.
So this performance is from the penultimate concert of Sargent's life.  Here is what the liner notes from the CSO release say about this performance:
Malcolm Sargent's only CSO appearances were two Ravinia Festival concerts in July, 1967.  The highlight of his first concert was Vaughan Williams's London Symphony, a bracing reading that does not slight the work's poetic moments.  Despite his affinity for the composer (he premiered the Ninth Symphony and the Oboe Concerto) Sargent made no recordings of Vaughan Williams symphonies.  He secured enthusiastic response from the CSO in a relatively unfamiliar score, and confirmed his own description of the symphony as depicting "the power, the glamour, the striving and achievement of a great city."
Reviewer Thomas Willis referred to Sargent's youthful elegance at seventy-two, but these concerts were among his last [actually, the were his very last two concerts].  CSO members sensed his declining health.  Sargent was too ill upon returning to England to lead the Proms season.  He bravely left his sickbed to speak at the Proms Last Night, but succumbed to cancer on October 3, 1967.

[Karl Henning]

Something a little different.

Brahms Sonata in F Minor opus 120 no 1 for viola and piano.
Roberto Diaz
Jeremy Denk

Shame the viola seems to be the "blacksheep" of the family even though it has a beautiful sound of its own

I love viola.

But . . . the Op.120 are clarinet sonatas . . . that said, I do not blame violists for wanting to play them.

[Florestan]

I love viola.

But . . . the Op.120 are clarinet sonatas . . . that said, I do not blame violists for wanting to play them.

Afaik, Brahms himself transcribed them for the viola, so it's as legit as it gets. 

[North Star]

THREAD DUTY:

Inspired by Ainsi la nuit's superb post in the relevant composer thread, revisiting one of Pierre Boulez's lesser known works, Livre pour quatuor:

Revisiting Boulez's music is like returning home after a long absence (in my case, in the obscurer realms of the Italian operatic repertoire    ). Despite its mammoth size (a total duration of ca. 45', but the longest single section is just short of 12'), this is Boulez at his most webernian . The members of the (stunning) Quatuour Diotima perceptively point out how from the "extreme complexity, comes a delightful perfume, and the music turns out to be incredibly poetic". And yes, this may be Boulez the "angry young man" (the piece is from 1949, revised in 2012), but the trademark sensuousness of the composer can be appreciated even here, in the relatively ascetic medium of the SQ (no "L'après-midi d'un vibraphone" here  ).

Good evening, Rafael! Livre is probably among my favourite Boulez. I have some radio broadcasts of the Diotimas playing parts (1, 2 & 6) of the work, each in a concert paired with late Beethoven and Schönberg, and I can well imagine that their complete recording is every bit as stunning as the ensemble's 2nd VS box.

Thread-duty - fresh from the mail
Satie
Complete piano music, disc 1
Thibaudet
[asin]B00008RWRB[/asin]

[Spineur]

I've been streaming this one for the last couple of days and agree, simply superb disc. A bit resonant acoustic, as all Versailles recordings, but well recorded.

Gave another spin to de Lalande Majesté CD.  I agree with you with the bright slightly resonant sound, but it fits the Te Deum beautifully.  Remember that it was to the glory of Louis the XIV.  You woudnt imagine a subdued and dull sound for Le roi soleil would you ?  It is more of the problem with the motets - it sorts of quashes out religious faith.

Now I am eagerly waiting for Rameau, Nais, which from the reviews I have read is one of the best Rameau ever recorded.

[aligreto]

Pettersson: Symphony No. 6 [Trojahn]





Symphony No. 6 is a momentous work. It is dramatic and intense. The sound world is complex but exciting and very rewarding aurally. Yes, tension abounds but it is always atmospheric and captivating. I really like the scoring and the resultant orchestral textures which obviously help to create the atmosphere, tone and mood of the work. The constant tension strives for a resolution and we ultimately achieve one, of sorts, at the conclusion. Yes the work could be construed as over long but it is ultimately captivating, compelling and gripping in its intensity.

[ritter]

Good evening, Rafael! Livre is probably among my favourite Boulez. I have some radio broadcasts of the Diotimas playing parts (1, 2 & 6) of the work, each in a concert paired with late Beethoven and Schönberg, and I can well imagine that their complete recording is every bit as stunning as the ensemble's 2nd VS box

Good evening, Karlo! Those couplings made by the Diotimas must work wonderfully...That reminds me, I must revisit their 2nd Viennese School box, which IIRC I got dirt cheap thanks to a tip from you, and which is magnificent.

[Traverso]

Bach Cantatas

CD 13


The opening of BWV 207A sounds like Charpentier.

[North Star]

Good evening, Karlo! Those couplings made by the Diotimas must dork wonderfully...That reminds me, I must revisit their 2nd Viennese School box, which IIRC I got dirt cheap thanks to a tip from you, and which is magnificent.

I don't think they dork the music at all... Seriously, I did indeed find the programs very fine indeed. And, yes, that was a great bargain.

[ritter]

I don't think they dork the music at all... Seriously, I did indeed find the programs very fine indeed. And, yes, that was a great bargain.

Fixed...auto-correct often goes awry, churning out the bizarrest of phrases...

[Turner]

Various, mostly historical Janacek recordings in this CD box, including Haefliger in Diary of One Who Disappeared, 1954 recording, Talich in Taras Bulba; Bakala in Glagolithic Mass etc.

https://www.discogs.com/Leo%C5%A1-Jan%C3%A1%C4%8Dek-Meister-Der-Sprachmelodie-Master-Of-Intonation/release/6967529


The piano works with Kayahara were okayish, but not more than that, IMO.

[Traverso]

 
A recent purchase.  Sounds wonderful. 
[/quote]


Just ordered myself 

[North Star]

Fixed...auto-correct often goes awry, churning out the bizarrest of phrases...

I like the idea that the auto-correct assumes you mean to say 'dork' when you type work.  0:)

Thread-duty
Schubert
Zwei Scherzi, D593
Piano Sonata in C major 'Reliquie', D840
Jan Vermeulen (fortepiano Nannette Streicher, Vienna 1825)
[asin]B00JDZK0CQ[/asin]

[Spineur]

Giving another spin to Liszt: Die heilige Legende von St Elizabeth

[asin]B000W9EM4O[/asin]

A nice work from the mature Liszt (he was 54 at the creation).  Not as many excess as in his symphonic poems and some lovely vocal parts.

[Christo]

Czeslaw MAREK (1891-1985)
Suite for Orchestra op. 25   Méditations op. 14   Sinfonia op. 28
The Philharmonia Orchestra London     Gary Brain, cond.

Am discovering the Opuses 25 and 28 now, in the Guild lable release of the same recording, both pieces very convincing IMHO: