What are you listening to now?

[vandermolen]

Stanford: Symphony No. 3 [Handley]





One gets what one would expect from this work i.e. jaunty, lyrical, and appealing Irish flavoured orchestrated melodies. What one also gets is really wonderful orchestration and harmonies. The scoring throughout the work is very appealing and atmospheric.

My favourite Stanford work (I also like Symphony 5) along with the Irish Rhapsody No.4. I prefer Norman Del Mar's version of the Symphony No.3.

[Ghost of Baron Scarpia]

I have both the Stott set and the Hewitt disc. They are great each in its own way; of course Stott is more valuable since it's complete. Also have the Doyen and Collard sets but haven't got to listen to them yet so I can't comment.

And: welcome back!

Thanks, happy to be back to a functioning site.

[Traverso]

 Ligeti

Lontano

Berliner Philharmoniker  Jonathan Nott

[Traverso]

John Tavener

Great singing of a great choir.

[Ghost of Baron Scarpia]

My favourite Stanford work (I also like Symphony 5) along with the Irish Rhapsody No.4. I prefer Norman Del Mar's version of the Symphony No.3.

I find myself struggling to appreciate Stanford (recently listened to the 2nd symphony). Strikes me as a bit stiff and stodgy.

[Jamie]

I have to be in the right mood to appreciate this...perhaps anything...but this morning is one of those moments and so Jeux vénitiens from this...

[SymphonicAddict]

Composed in 1944/45 and conveying a strong sense of looming collapse interspersed with moments of tranquility. It does show the influence of Bruckner,Mahler and Richard Strauss but has a unique atmosphere which I fine appealing:
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This is a terrific symphony. I can also hear chiefly some echoes of Bruckner, Mahler and Wagner. It's a huge building of brooding music, and its length is not a disadvantage. Do you have the Barenboim/Chicago SO recording?

[aligreto]

Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5 [von Karajan]





No. 5 has an overwhelming sense of sadness, tragedy and fatalism portrayed through beautiful melodies which are ravishingly played here.

[aligreto]

My favourite Stanford work (I also like Symphony 5) along with the Irish Rhapsody No.4. I prefer Norman Del Mar's version of the Symphony No.3.

I do not know it as I only have the Handley version.

[NikF]

Shostakovich: The Limpid Stream - Rozhdestvensky/Stockholm Royal Orchestra.

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[vandermolen]

Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5 [von Karajan]





No. 5 has an overwhelming sense of sadness, tragedy and fatalism portrayed through beautiful melodies which are ravishingly played here.

I've also been listening to Symphony 5 (Stokowski) and finding it much more affecting than usual. Hearing it live recently probably made a difference.

[vandermolen]

This is a terrific symphony. I can also hear chiefly some echoes of Bruckner, Mahler and Wagner. It's a huge building of brooding music, and its length is not a disadvantage. Do you have the Barenboim/Chicago SO recording?

Yes, I have the Barenboim version as well.

[aligreto]

JC Bach: Piano Trio Op. 15 Nos. 1 & 2 [Trio 1790]





I was particularly taken with No. 2, both the music and the performance.

[aligreto]

I've also been listening to Symphony 5 (Stokowski) and finding it much more affecting than usual. Hearing it live recently probably made a difference.

Perhaps it is the mood we both find ourselves in at this point in time 

[SymphonicAddict]

Symphony No. 2

Weingartner is a composer whose music I find so delectable, and this marvelous symphony is a perfect example of his craftsmanship. Gorgeous melodies, uplifting writing with a bit of the Bruckner grandeur.

[bhodges]

More from this lovely box of Haydn piano trios with the Beaux Arts Trio. Hard to choose a favorite; lately I've just put on one of the 9 discs at random.

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--Bruce

[Kontrapunctus]

Fantastic playing and very good sound. (The mics pick up a lot of finger noise and breathing, though.)

 

[SymphonicAddict]

A first-rate disc with some passionate and elegant music. If you like Saint-Saëns or Godard, you'll find these pieces a good treat.




Well-humored and tuneful music with plenty of good vibes. There are some extraordinary lovely works such as Levenszomer, Frühlingsgewalt and Romantic Intermezzo, and others with an incredible spark like Cyrano de Bergerac, Saul en David and the Sinfonietta. It's infectious music, not apt for bitter moods 

A couple of discs worth acquiring.

[Alek Hidell]

Have listened to 1-3 and am now in the midst of 4. I was especially impressed with the First (and I see that he was only 22 at its composition). But this is clearly some music that I'm going to need to live with awhile; there's a lot to take in. Clearly in a late-Romantic vein, all four of these works feel huge - not necessarily because of their length (they're long, but at an average of 50 minutes, he seems almost parsimonious compared to some late-Romantic composers - Mahler and Bruckner have barely finished clearing their throats at that point!) - but simply because there's something mountainous, something imposing, about them.

This is definitely a purchase I don't regret. I'll be returning to this one.

[André]

Shaw does justice to these works but his generic conception does not leave an indelible impression.



This was the first digital recording on BBC Legends (1984). The sound is indeed very good. The audience is commendably silent. Matacic always conducted the 1877 version of the score - my favourite. The Philharmonia plays well - I doubt they had much familiarity with the work and indeed, there is no trace of another recording before or since. Matacic conducts with a sure hand, without making much of the occasion. The finale in particular needs to be knit mote tightly than it is here: of all the versions listed in John Berky's discography, this is one of the slowest, without an attendant gain in spaciousness and authority.