What are you listening to now?

[André]

Nice.

Excellent 'regional' performances of Bach, Haydn and Mozart choral masterpieces are a dime a dozen in Germany and Austria, often more authentic in scale and feeling than those churned out from big festivals and large cities. The balance between the festive and the intimate, the celebratory and the genial comes naturally thanks to longstanding local performance traditions. The gradual shift toward period performance details has taken place unobtrusively. Indeed, there is no dearth of excellence and up-to-date date musicianship away from the big centres. Local choir and orchestra are often under the direction of the same conductor. Their combined forces know the repertoire, hall acoustics and each other's sonorities intimately.

In this 1997 Freiburg performance the continuo in the recitatives is realized by a beautiful, piquant hammerflügel. The solo voices have clean, clear tone and definition and choral/orchestral balances are expertly handled. There are many telling details which enliven the proceedings. I thoroughly enjoyed this performance.

[JBS]

Landed today, first listen earlier tonight



The Shostakovich  (CC 1) was well done, on the level of some much more famous ones.
The Garrido was too modernist for me, at least on first hearing.
The Kinsella is a great work, well performed here, recommended to all concertophiles.

[Roy Bland]

A student of Respighi

[Mirror Image]

Lutoslawski
Fanfare for Los Angeles Philharmonic
Piano Concerto
Chantefleurs et Chantefables
Symphony No. 2
Paul Crossley, piano
Dawn Upshaw, soprano
Esa-Pekka Salonen, conductor
Los Angeles Philharmonic

[Mandryka]

Hilger Kespohl plays organ works by Matthias Weckmann on the Arp Schnitger organ, St. Pancratius Kirche, Neuenfelde.(Label MDG)

The organ was restored 2015/17 by Kristian Wegscheider, Dresden, Contains 34 stops on two manuals and pedal. Tuning: Modified mean tone (1/5 komma), 3/4 tone above a'.The organ really sounds like a Schnitger organ, something like the organ in Norden.

Kespohl knows this organ very well and delivers a stylish, detached and no-nonsense interpretation throughout The recorded sound is colorful and realistic.

Much recommended.

Thanks, I could see the sound was good from the samples online, but the interpretations were harder to take a view on, but I have now succumbed to temptation and ordered it.

[Harry]

Thanks, I could see the sound was good from the samples online, but the interpretations were harder to take a view on, but I have now succumbed to temptation and ordered it.

Me too.

[Florestan]

First listen to this. Love it.

[SimonNZ]

[ritter]

First listen to this vintage recording of Die Meistersinger (Act I only today):

[asin]B01MDP6H5E[/asin]
This is quite outstanding, by far the best I've ever listened to by  Hans Knappertsbusch; detailed phrasing, clarity of textures (which highlights the contrapuntal richness of this dazzling score), and great singing from all soloists (with particular attention to the diction--every word is understood!). A great recording.

[Biffo]

Roussel: Aeneas - Ballet for chorus and orchestra - Orchestre National de l'ORTF & Ensemble des choeurs de l'ORTF conducted by Jean Martinon

[Papy Oli]

Good afternoon all,

Continuing the maiden run through the Arnold Penny cycle with symphonies 5&6.

Really enjoyable.

[Mandryka]

Does anyone have the booklet for this? Is it interesting? Care to summarise/scan it for me?

[Mandryka]

First listen to this vintage recording of Die Meistersinger (Act I only today):

[asin]B01MDP6H5E[/asin]
This is quite outstanding, by far the best I've ever listened to by  Hans Knappertsbusch; detailed phrasing, clarity of textures (which highlights the contrapuntal richness of this dazzling score), and great singing from all soloists (with particular attention to the diction--every word is understood!). A great recording.

I like Paul Schoeffler very much.

[Mandryka]

If you don't have this one I can upload it for you, it's very good!

[Madiel]

The Nielsen.

[cilgwyn]

The 1907,complete recording,of Pagliacci;which may,or may not,be conducted by the composer?!! We may never know? The good news is,that he was,actually,at the recording sessions! (Let's hope?!! ) Ward Marston describes this as one of the best sounding acoustic recordings he has ever heard. (And Chatterton,with which it's paired,as the best!!) The sound is certainly better than anything I've heard from this period.  And miles better than those Pathe recordings! The famous chorus sounds wonderful. You can almost picture them singing their hearts out. People who've been dead for a very long time! The vividness of the "sound picture" making it all the stranger! The transience of life,as they say! A bit like a time machine in a small box! Or about the nearest you can get;short of inventing one,or finding a way (like in,Jack Finney's novel,Time & Again!) These performances are certainly full of vigour and life! Once your ears accustom themselves to the sound,it is,certainly,more than just a document! The booklet provided,with this 2 cd set, is,as usual,a model of it's kind;with lots of interesting photographs and  information about the performers! Excellent! (And I'm not a big fan of Italian opera!!)

[ritter]

More from the Albert Roussel box. Michel Plasson conducts the Orfeón Donostiarra and the Toulouse Capitole Orchestra, with soloists Nathalie Stutzmann, Nicolai Gedda and José van Dam, in Évocations, op. 15.

[asin]B07M6TL69W[/asin]

Sounds very engaging so far. Sort of "grand impressionism" (in technicolor  ). I knew the piece from a Czech recording, but it didn't really make much of an impact on me at the time. BTW, the Orfeón Donostiarra is considered a national treasure here in Spain, and they certainly are a fine choir, but they really needed a better language coach in those years. Their German and French pronunciations were (still are?) atrocious both on record and live. 

[San Antone]

Mozart: Die Zauberflote (The Magic Flute)
Claudio Abbado, Mahler Chamber Orchestra
Rene Papé, Erika Miklosa, Dorothea Roschmann, Christoph Strehl, Hanno Muller-Brachmann, Julia Kleiter, Kurt Azesberger

[Mirror Image]

Cage
The Seasons
Metamorphosis
In A Landscape
Ophelia
Two Pieces
Quest
Two Pieces
Herbert Henck, piano

[Artem]