What are you listening to now?

[Brian]

Do we have a favorite Christmas recordings thread?

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This morning I'm listening to two absolutely great albums from 2015:



I have the best job on earth. The fact that neither of these is likely to make my Recording of the Year list just speaks to how much good stuff there was. I'm especially keen on the FPZ Mozart, which combines all the lessons of period performance with the always-amazing Bavarian Radio Symphony. It strikes a perfect HIP-modern balance. Plus, FPZ has performed each Mozart concerto over THREE HUNDRED times, and he's using Fritz Kreisler's violin. Wunderbar.

[Wanderer]

.[asin]B00YQJWAKY[/asin]

[aligreto]

Handel: Messiah highlights....

[ZauberdrachenNr.7]

Here are two of my favorite 'Holiday' recordings:

Thanks, John, I have the Bernstein recording and agree it's wonderful.  Must look into that Chandos VW.

[ZauberdrachenNr.7]

And now :

[asin]B000083LQM[/asin]

[Todd]

From the big box.  Light, orchestrally lovely, good soloists, well-executed, but I can't get into kids singing in the choir.

[Mirror Image]

Thanks, John, I have the Bernstein recording and agree it's wonderful.  Must look into that Chandos VW.

You're welcome, Zauber. Yeah, you'll definitely enjoy that RVW. I'm getting into the Christmas spirit already.

Thread duty:



Listening to The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra. Great performance.

[North Star]

From the EMI Collector's Edition

Britten
Canticles
Ian Bostridge, David Daniels, Christopher Maltman
Julius Drake, Aline Brewer, Timothy Brown
[asin]B00005UV9G[/asin]

[aligreto]

[SimonNZ]

Haydn Divertimenti - Consortium Classicum

[SimonNZ]

Olga Podgaiskaja's Uroboros - Aleksandr Vysotski, cond.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4b6vDpUGgE

*very highly recommended

Is there any chance anyone's curiousty was piqued and gave this a listen?

[aligreto]

[Mirror Image]

Is there any chance anyone's curiousty was piqued and gave this a listen?

Nope.

Now:



Listening to Sospiri. Just beautiful.

[vandermolen]

Nope.

Now:



Listening to Sospiri. Just beautiful.

Great looking Elgar set.
For me:
[asin]B000AV622Y[/asin]

[Mirror Image]

Great looking Elgar set.
For me:
[asin]B000AV622Y[/asin]

Indeed, Jeffrey. Love Durufle by the way. Too bad he didn't compose very much, I suppose we're lucky to have what we have.

[kishnevi]

First Listen First Day
[asin]B00EPRJ4GA[/asin]
Lontano, and now the VC.
Too early to comment on the musicianship, but the sonics is certainly the best I have heard with a Ligeti recording.

[SimonNZ]

Nope.

<rolleyes> well...thanks for taking the time to reply

[listener]

new disc: ZEMLINSKY The Mermaid - revised version (longer by about 5 minutes than Chailly or Conlon), Sinfonietta op. 23 arr. for chamber orch.
Helsinki Philharmonic Orch.     Storgårds, cond. an odd coupling - an unearthed original version and a transcribed one. [asin]B00SVF1FBO[/asin]
and misc pieces for piano 4 hands, 18 of 'em so they're all quite short. Among them Florent SCHMITT: Munich op. 28/8 and Home, Sweet Home op. 26/9, CHABRIER: Cortège Burlesque, CZERNY: Variations on "My Lodging Is in the Cold Ground" op.552, + MOSZKOWSKY, SCHUBERT, GRIEG, DVOŘÁK and CASELLA
Isabel Beyer and Harvey Dagul

[kishnevi]

First Listen First Day
[asin]B00EPRJ4GA[/asin]
Lontano, and now the VC.
Too early to comment on the musicianship, but the sonics is certainly the best I have heard with a Ligeti recording.

Having heard the full CD, I can't say this is a reference recording but the sonics, by being excellent, have an impact:  inner voices and textures are much more apparent than in other recordings.

Now, another first listen for First Day
[asin]B003X859P2[/asin]

[aligreto]

Is there any chance anyone's curiousty was piqued and gave this a listen?

<rolleyes> well...thanks for taking the time to reply

Your sense of disenchantment roused my interest so I gave it a listen. TBH the musical language of the piece is not one that I fully comprehend but I must say that I did enjoy the work.