What are you listening to now?

[Wakefield]

Haydn - Complete Piano Trios Vol. 8
Trio 1790
Annette Wehnert, violin [Anonymous, Southern Germany, Mid of the 17th century]
Mercedes Ruiz, violoncello [Caressa & Francais, Beginning of the 20th century]
Harald Hoeren, harpsichord [built by Klaus Ahrend, after Flemish models, ca. 1750]

CD1: Hob. 15 Nos. 41, 37 & C1

This heterogeneous mix of instruments sounds amazingly fine. Particularly the harpsichord, with a lovely harp sound. Execution is well-thought and exciting at the same time. 

[Opus106]

Yes, the statement was probably winky-worthy, but one could assume that musical instruments evolve to improve.

So that concerts could get over faster? Apart from certain obvious mechanical advantages in the development of some instruments, I don't think the entire history of musical instrument building can be generalised as an evolution toward some standard or goal (what would that be?). Preferences and taste have also played a role in the rise and decline.

[SonicMan46]

Handel, GF - Keyboard Suites w/ Ragna Schirmer; 3 disc set started yesterday & finishing this morning -

Mendelssohn, Felix - String Symphonies w/ Concerto Koln, plus a disc w/ Staier doing the PC A minor - coming up next!

 

[Sergeant Rock]

Preferences and taste have also played a role in the rise and decline.

Agree completely...and the patrons, composers and musicians in the late 18th century, early 19th had incredibly good taste. They proved that by dumping the hideous harpischord and clavichord and adopting the fortepiano and then the piano as the preferred instruments 

Sarge

[Wakefield]

Agree completely...and the patrons, composers and musicians in the late 18th century, early 19th had incredibly good taste. They proved that by dumping the hideous harpischord and clavichord and adopting the fortepiano and then the piano as the preferred instruments 

Sarge

No doubt, every new generation is owner of its own taste and a son of its own circumstances. Harpsichord and fortepiano are instruments of an era of craftmanship, without conservartories and, depending on our tastes, what it could be considered as an unacceptable lack of standardization of instruments. Piano is the great "monochromatic" instrument of the Industrialism, so like late-Classical/Romantic symphony is its natural form of composition. 

P.S.: Yes, I agree, I love sweeping generalizations. 

[Fafner]

No doubt, every new generation is owner of its own taste and a son of its own circumstances. Harpsichord and fortepiano are instruments of an era of craftmanship, without conservartories and, depending on our tastes, what it could be considered as an unacceptable lack of standardization of instruments. Piano is the great "monochromatic" instrument of the Industrialism, so like late-Classical/Romantic symphony is its natural form of composition. 

I have nothing against harpsichord. It sounds just fine in Don Giovanni and I actually just bought a recording of a Concerto for Harpsichord written by Kalabis in 1975.
I just prefer my Beethoven sonatas on a grand piano and Bach played on violins with metal strings. 

P.S.: Yes, I agree, I love sweeping generalizations. 

[Lisztianwagner]

Pyotr Il'ych Tchaikovsky
Symphony No.2

[asin]B000GW8AUE[/asin]

[jlaurson]

I just prefer my Beethoven sonatas on a grand piano and Bach played on violins with metal strings. 

Whatever it is that you don't like about HIP Bach, I don't think you should blame the strings. Those are rarely (never) the problem, wherever there is a problem. Style, technique, skill, bow... yes. But not gut, I don't think.  Now I must be off to a performance of Mahler's Second. With Mehta unfortunately.

[Sadko]

Seriously, I myself do not see the point (beyond academic curiosity) of using technologically inferior instruments and subjecting oneself to various other limitations of the time.
But I understand this is a loaded topic and I'll leave it at that. Perhaps I'll see the light some day.

So I think too. A harpsichord is a mature, perfect instrument in its own way, and there are many recordings of beautiful instruments I love. But the early stages of piano to my ear just sound like very bad pianos, which I can enjoy only very rarely.

[TheGSMoeller]

Haydn: Piano Sonata No. 59 in E flat, H16/49
Emanuel Ax

[Karl Henning]

Piston
Symphony № 2 (1943)
BSO
MTT

[TheGSMoeller]

Piston
Symphony № 2 (1943)
BSO
MTT

Way cool, Karl. 

[madaboutmahler]

Good evening, everyone!

Introduced to me by Karlo:
http://www.youtube.com/v/rm-Y7hg6sOw
Vaughan Williams: Romance for Harmonica, strings and piano.

What an extraordinary piece, hauntingly beautiful!!

[Papy Oli]

Bonsoir 

1st listen - Atterberg - Symphony No.7

Onto No.8 now.

[North Star]

Evening/afternoon, folks!

First-listen Thursday
Continuing with the RVW symphonies, the 9th is absolutely fantastic!

Vaughan Williams
Symphony no. 9
Boult & LPO

[asin]B005DZIM0M[/asin]

[listener]

Healy WILLAN   Piano Concerto in c
RACHMANINOFF  Piano Concerto 2 in c
Arthur Ozolins, piano    Toronto Symphony Orch.     Mario Bernardi, cond.
Both performances are fine, but the pairing of concertos in different keys would have been more effective.
BUXTEHUDE  Vol 4 of the series with Bine Bryndorf at the Düben organ, German Church, Stockholm
quarter-comma meantone tuning (I have no idea what that means exactly, but I like the bracing sound).

[Octave]

J.S. Bach: WEIMAR CANTATAS [Joshua Rifkin] (Dorian)

Not my first time to listen to this, but my first time to be disappointed.  I cannot place the reason why, and it's making me itch.  Slack direction?  Some aspects of the HIP conception that clip phrases more than my armchair lifestyle can handle?  Is it the singing? 
Since buying this, I've run across a couple accounts saying that this recording is inferior to the couple on Decca, which I don't know yet.  I might have made a slightly bum acquisition here. 

[Fafner]

Now:

Dvořák - Symphony No. 6
Seattle SO, Gerard Schwarz

[North Star]

First-listen Thursday

Liked this one a lot, too.

Vaughan Williams
Symphony no. 8
Boult & LPO

[asin]B005DZIM0M[/asin]



Now Schuman: Symphony No. 3 by Bernstein & NYPO, very nice indeed. I think this my second listen, after John's recommendation a couple of months ago.

[Karl Henning]

Excellent, Karlo!