What are you listening to now?

[prémont]

Bach: Organ works, David Goode (Signum).



A nice disc with some of the truly great Bach organ works.
Rather straightforward no-nonsense playing which suits me fine, but in the chorales (BWV 654, 682 and 622) I miss the devotion and serenity of f.i. Bram Beekman or Bert Matter.

https://www.amazon.com/J-S-Bach-Freiberg-Cathedral-Germany/dp/B00CKC2LYE/?tag=goodmusicguideco

Particularly I like his Passacaglia.

He has embarked upon a Bach integral on a neo-baroque organ. Three volumes so far.

http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/Signum/SIGCD803

[NikF]

Mahler: Symphony No. 6 - Kubelik/Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra.

e: thinking of purchasing the Solti cycle. Right now I have both the Bernstein cycles and the Kubelik and feel the Solti might be an interesting alternative.

[Marc]

Particularly I like his Passacaglia.

He has embarked upon a Bach integral on a neo-baroque organ. Three volumes so far.

http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/Signum/SIGCD803

Toccata BWV 564 is getting a very convincing performance, too, IMO.
A bit light-weight, but I actually like that.

I know about his integral, but... (sigh) for the time being, I'm not diving into it.

[SurprisedByBeauty]

Particularly I like his Passacaglia.

He has embarked upon a Bach integral on a neo-baroque organ. Three volumes so far.

http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/Signum/SIGCD803

Silence, tempter! Silence!    

[Marc]

Silence, tempter! Silence!    

(SAY-NO-MORE.)

[Marc]

Mahler: Symphony No. 6 - Kubelik/Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra.

e: thinking of purchasing the Solti cycle. Right now I have both the Bernstein cycles and the Kubelik and feel the Solti might be an interesting alternative.

Ah, Mahler and his Dead Conductor's Society... but you're right: they're all worthwhile.

[Sergeant Rock]

Bartok String Quartet No.4 played by the Emerson




Sarge

[prémont]

Toccata BWV 564 is getting a very convincing performance, too, IMO.
A bit light-weight, but I actually like that.

I know about his integral, but... (sigh) for the time being, I'm not diving into it.

Nor am I. Maybe I change my mind - do not know.

[Todd]

Disc two.  More energized elegance.  12/1 finishes up the first trio in fine fashion, but the first two Op 30 sonatas are the stars of the show.  Fouchenneret and Descharmes are no speed demons overall, but their tempi sound just right, and the slow movements are really well done.  Restrained and tasteful, and oh so expressive.  Both slow movements are superb, but the slow movement for 30/1 was more moving than normal for me.  They can do gruffer humor, as they do in the Allegro co brio of 30/2, and they can do light romantic, as in the Scherzo of said sonata, and beefier romantic as in the Finale.  The first disc was very strong; the second is stronger yet.

[aligreto]

Beethoven: Septet, Op. 20 [Vienna Octet Members]....

[SurprisedByBeauty]

Mahler: Symphony No. 6 - Kubelik/Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra.

e: thinking of purchasing the Solti cycle. Right now I have both the Bernstein cycles and the Kubelik and feel the Solti might be an interesting alternative.

Ah, Mahler and his Dead Conductor's Society... but you're right: they're all worthwhile.

Hehe... I agree, half-heartedly. Kubelik, yes, I suppose it is almost essential, because it is such a good and yet finger-print-free way of getting into the music. And the performance are darn good. Bernstein I, well... the world says Yay; I say: overrated... if Bernstein, one might as well enjoy his lusher, 'conducting-my-own-emotions' versions on DG. (Except for the 4th, which is torpedoed by a small boy.)

Solti, however [looks over shoulder to make sure Sarge isn't standing right behind me], Puh-Lease! 

Sufficient to just get his Sixth and Seventh (and yes, Sarge has opened my ears to these two stunning performances) and leave it at that... and instead exploring  -- and this is what Marc is hinting at -- one of the many tremendous, great-sounding, superbly-played cycles from the last 30, 20, 10 years.

[aligreto]

e: thinking of purchasing the Solti cycle. Right now I have both the Bernstein cycles and the Kubelik and feel the Solti might be an interesting alternative.

The Solti cycle is an easy recommendation. I personally prefer it over the Kubelik cycle; a different approach to Kubelik, which is what you are after.

[NikF]

The Solti cycle is an easy recommendation. I personally prefer it over the Kubelik cycle; a different approach to Kubelik, which is what you are after.

Thanks. Yeah, in my limited knowledge of the Major cycles I find the Kubelik to be more middle of the road. So if the Solti is a far different interpretation I'll probably go with that.

e: browser issues mean I just noticed the comments by SurprisedByBeauty. Thanks for those - including the "...and yet finger-print-free way of getting into the music" way of describing it.

[HIPster]

Some spirited morning Vivaldi:

[asin]B00006BHDB[/asin]

[Spineur]

Finally getting around watching this marvelous performance which has been sitting on my shelf for many many month



"Bernstein était en très grande forme ce soir la..."

[Obradovic]

It sounds very polite I think. I'm not a Satie expert but it sounds rather tame and comme-il-faut. What exactly Satie shouldn't be... methinks...

[André]

All over the place. Great pianissimo. Harsh. Jury not in, but will write about my experience before long.

Re: the Elbphilharmonie. Normally a new concert hall will take the better of 2 years before everything in it has been adjusted, from acoustical panels to orchestra seating, to name 2 obvious items, but also the musicians themselves: they have to adjust tone production and ensemble playing to acoustic brightness/dullness, reverberation time, how well they can hear each other, etc.

Concert conditions and Recordings released in 2 years' time will probably sound markedly different than at this very early stage.

[André]

Thanks, Que and Spineur for your answers !

Thanks also to vandermolen who, for years (many of them, actually!) has tirelessly advocated Glazunov's The king of the Jews. For years I had a lukewarm reaction to his symphonies (still do, as a matter of fact), but this music has turned the tide around for me.

[SurprisedByBeauty]

Re: the Elbphilharmonie. Normally a new concert hall will take the better of 2 years before everything in it has been adjusted, from acoustical panels to orchestra seating, to name 2 obvious items, but also the musicians themselves: they have to adjust tone production and ensemble playing to acoustic brightness/dullness, reverberation time, how well they can hear each other, etc.

Concert conditions and Recordings released in 2 years' time will probably sound markedly different than at this very early stage.

You're preaching to the choir. It's absurd to think that one knows everything or even a lot about the hall, after one concert. Only that it isn't -- no surprise -- an out-of-the-box acoustic miracle and that it is extremely bright.
Only the panel-adjustment might be difficult: The hall is not built in such a way as to accommodate any.

Here's my first of several reports, FYI: Review: Hamburg Elbphilharmonie Opening And G.F.Haas World Premiere

[André]

Great report !

Montreal's new Symphony Hall's acoustics surprised many at first by its brightness and variability of acoustical experiences (depending on the area of the hall you were seating in). Now everything has been smoothed out for the best. Well, almost. It is a tad lively. But the previous hall (the old Salle Wilfrid Pelletier) had such dead sound that nothing could improve it.