What are you listening to now?

[aligreto]

Mendelssohn: Elijah [Sargent] Finishing off this large scale work with LP 2 of this 2 LP set





This is a strong, powerful work and it is given a buoyant and dramatic performance here with atmospheric singing from all concerned.

[Todd]

Very interventionist Mozart, so probably not for everyone, but quite lovely.  The two decade old recording sounds splendid, with the 1906 Steinway sounding bright and clean. 

[GioCar]

That's a most interesting article, Gio. Thanks for the link. 

So, we have all three versions of the cantata available on CD (i.e., Soleil des eaux 2, 3 & 4, as the IRCAM article names them), and only the original incidental music version remains unavailable.

Soleil des eaux "2":
[asin]B00005M0QU[/asin]
Soleil des eaux "3":


Soleil des eaux "4":

This is the recording included in the "Oeuvres Complètes" box on DG.

Oddily the IRCAM page mentions just one recording, also confusing the various versions: Enregistrement : troisième version (1958) : BBC Singers, BBC Symphony Orchestra London, direction : Pierre Boulez, 4 cds Erato 2292-45494-2
This is actually the fourth and final version 

[steve ridgway]

Not too impressed by the sentimental strings of Requiem but it was listenable, now on November Steps which is much more interesting with the Japanese instruments. Although it's getting towards the end now and about time the orchestra came back in for some contrast .

[asin]B000I8OFYG[/asin]

Oh, not until the last 90 seconds .

Got nearly to the end of the CD but those strings never really went away, most of it sounded annoyingly reminiscent of film themes .

[GioCar]

Now, from the quintessential romantic Liszt back to Boulez/Char: Le Marteau sans maître.
A huge leap that makes me appreciate the Boulez masterpiece even more.

Still on the CD3 of the Boulez set

P.S. maybe an upstream thought: the early Boulez definitely is more interesting that the late.

[aligreto]

Stravinsky: Symphony of Psalms [Stravinsky]

[JBS]

More Mendelssohn: Elijah [Sargent]





LP 1 of this 2 LP set.

Is that sung in English or German?  I believe all my recordings of that work are in German.
Currently
CD 1
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The first two symphonies, in F Op 29 "Poetique" and in c minor Op. 32 "Tragique", dated 1879/80 and 1882/83.
Stoutly part of the Central European symphonic tradition. Whoever likes Dvorak or Schumann symphonies will probably like these--although Hamerik's music would not be mistaken for theirs.

[Todd]

[Kontrapunctus]

This certainly lives up to the praised heaped upon it. Masterful playing and superb sound (24/192 FLAC).

[JBS]

 Catching up...
Been giving these a relisten. First time through I found them a bit bland. This time I felt them to be, not great, but good solid musicmaking. I won't call them a must have but if you find them at a cheap price, the money will not be wasted.
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[Todd]

Variable.  Sometimes (too?) hard-hitting, sometimes fantastic (as in "fantasy"), and sometimes restrained and sublime.  Love the Berlin Classics piano sound every time I hear it.

[Daverz]

Symphonies 7 & 8

[asin] B019STIIHA[/asin]

I program out the spoken part of the 7th (here done by Ralph Richardson). 

Previn's 8 is certainly more lush than the Bakels recording that I'm probably most used to, and seems to look backward to the earlier symphonies.  In Bakels interpretation it always seemed much more of a break from VW's earlier style.

[Que]

Morning listening - rerun:

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Q

[vandermolen]

Stravinsky: Symphony of Psalms [Stravinsky]

Heard this on the radio the other day. I'd forgotten how good it is. I have Ansermet's old recording which I'll be playing soon.

[king ubu]

still not back to regular posting/reading here, alas ... too many things (including concerts) going on ... but over the weekend, I played some recent (2018) releases again:





short notes:

Frang's Bartók is quite romantic, big, beautiful - a bit too polished for my taste I think, but that concert isn't so familiar to me yet ... the Enescu octet however is wonderful, and having heard the same (almost?) line-up do it in concert, I'm happy to have it on CD as well now. (First listen to the disc.)

The Hahn (first listen) is wonderful - and really has me wish she'd do BWV 1004-1006 again. I'm not that very fond of the early disc, but the new one really struck me as beautiful.

The Levit (first listen) then is outstanding. The entire programme took form after the loss of a friend, and it's indeed a brooding and darkish recital, spread over two discs. Not virtuoso stuff (at least not the flashy kind) at all, rather an inward, quiet album, but it flows beautifully. In an interview I found online he mentions that recording the Busoni concerto is planned ...

Then the Bach (second or third spin) ... after another wonderful disc by the Ricercar Consort earlier this year, as well as some recent Herreweghe, this is another mighty fine addition, I think. Got to revisit it soon.

The Dussek is pleasant (that is if you don't mind two cranky fortepianos chugging along) enough ... but I think for the piano concertos, the two disc by Howard Shelley on Hyperion are indeed quite a bit better, uncluttered and clear, "classical" indeed, and probably just as intimate as far as chamber music making goes ... either way, I'm still up for any new Dussek. The two chamber works that follow, I skipped on this third listen, but that's because it was cooking time and I needed voices again after dinner, so I went on with ...

The Sampson (third or fourth spin), which is downright gorgeous - quite possibly so far my favourite album of the year. Beautifully sung (minimal accent here and there, not enough to distract me), and beautifully played, and beautifully recorded (I'm listening to the CD layer only, no SACD player around).

[Florestan]

KV 304 & KV 310

[Traverso]

Richard Strauss

Vier Letzte Lieder
Die Heiligen drie Könige aus Morgenland
Cappricio
Metamorphosen

Anna Tomova-Sintow soprano

[Karl Henning]

Weinberg
Sonata for Clarinet & Piano, Op.28
Artists of the Royal Concertgebouworkest

[Traverso]

KV 304 & KV 310

Lupu and Goldberg,a classic in my opinion.

[Florestan]

Op. 80