What are you listening to now?

[Karl Henning]

Very good, but with Block and Larrocha out there, very good just doesn't strike me as quite good enough.

Tough crowd.

[Sergeant Rock]

Bruckner Symphony No.5 B flat, Dennis Russell Davies conducting the Bruckner Orchester Linz




Sarge

[Spineur]

I'm a bit of a fanboy of Rostropovich, so I was weirded out to find I'd never heard of this recording (even stranger, this is one of my favorite pieces). I haven't listened to it with headphones yet, so I withhold judgement, but all sounds typically emotional from Rosty.

This concerto just isnt a concerto, more a sonata for cello and orchestra.  I have it by du Pré, Ophélie Gaillard, Paul Tortelier and I always have the same feeling.  Elgar enigma variations are the same way, but are musically more interesting.  Not my favorite Schumann

[AndyD.]

This concerto just isnt a concerto, more a sonata for cello and orchestra.  I have it by du Pré, Ophélie Gaillard, Paul Tortelier and I always have the same feeling.  Elgar enigma variations are the same way, but are musically more interesting.  Not my favorite Schumann

Ah. Geez, I promise I'll never like that piece again. BAAAAD Schumann (cracking up).

Bruckner Symphony No.5 B flat, Dennis Russell Davies conducting the Bruckner Orchester Linz




Sarge

Oo, haven't heard Davies' Bruckner yet. I still alternate (depending on my mood) between the Wand and Karajan dvds (the latter from the 70s) and Celibidache (in an undisturbed room, with headphones).

[Karl Henning]

This concerto just isnt a concerto, more a sonata for cello and orchestra.

I agree that it is a creative approach to the genre.

Ah. Geez, I promise I'll never like that piece again. BAAAAD Schumann (cracking up).

Damn his eyes for not phoning it in!

[AndyD.]

I agree that it is a creative approach to the genre.

Damn his eyes for not phoning it in!

https://youtu.be/fe9EZh85gwE

[Sergeant Rock]

Oo, haven't heard Davies' Bruckner yet. I still alternate (depending on my mood) between the Wand and Karajan dvds (the latter from the 70s) and Celibidache (in an undisturbed room, with headphones).

First listen (I think) to Davies' B5. Did not grab me. I'll have to research Monkey Greg's comments (I believe he's the one who recommended it, with caveats) to understand what he heard in it. Then I'll give it another go. I do love Davies' B6.

Sarge

[AndyD.]

First listen (I think) to Davies' B5. Did not grab me. I'll have to research Monkey Greg's comments (I believe he's the one who recommended it, with caveats) to understand what he heard in it. Then I'll give it another go. I do love Davies' B6.

Sarge

Hmmm, I am getting my Amazon cart for the week ready, I'm going to look that up. The sixth is one of Bruckner's I never got into as much (I'm mostly an odd numbered guy for Bruckner and Beethoven symphs), so it's give me a fresh chance with that symphony. Thanks for the rec, Sarge.

Loving my Rosty Schumann CC again! Wheeee!

[aligreto]

Liszt: Les Préludes....

[aligreto]

A general comment would be that there is some very nice organ playing on the CD; somebody did comment on this fact but I cannot remember who.

Premont. 

Q

Thank you for that Que; hat tip to Premont 

[NikF]

Brahms Horn Trio: Ashkenazy, Perlman, Tuckwell

[asin]B000KQGOBS[/asin]

[Todd]

My first time listening to Zlata Chochieva.  Here is Rachmaninoff's Etudes Tableaux in all their late romantic glory.  Chochieva plays with such command that even the fastest and most bravura passages sound almost relaxed and easy.  Her tone is full and warm, with hefty but not bloated bass.  Little felicities are sprinkled liberally throughout.  To the extent I have a reference recording of this work/these works, this would almost certainly be it. 

The "almost" is due to sound.  It is fully modern, but it is oddly balanced to the left channel.  The opening piece is almost all left channel.  (I swiftly switched to my tuner to make sure something hadn't happened to my stereo, and then set it to mono to make sure the transport or DAC hadn't been damaged.)

This caveat allows me to rate this only Wow-minus.  But what a Wow-minus.

[Mirror Image]

Now:



Listening to the 6th. Fabulous performance.

[Mirror Image]

Hmmm, I am getting my Amazon cart for the week ready, I'm going to look that up. The sixth is one of Bruckner's I never got into as much (I'm mostly an odd numbered guy for Bruckner and Beethoven symphs), so it's give me a fresh chance with that symphony. Thanks for the rec, Sarge.

The only Bruckner symphonies I never given much of a listen to are 0 & 00. Of all the symphonies from the 1st to the 9th, the 3rd may be the one I'm having the most difficult time appreciating. Bruckner's 6th, however, is very much worth your time. It shows the composer working in a different frame of mind than any of its' predecessors. There's almost a Neoclassical lightness to the symphony, with the exception of the Adagio. That Scherzo is one of my favorites and sounds difficult to pull off well.

[HIPster]

Hovhaness - Celestial Fantasy
Stratton/Slovak Radio Orchestra

[asin]B00000AFJQ[/asin]

[prémont]

Premont. 

Q


Thank you for that Que; hat tip to Premont 

Always at your service. 

[Kontrapunctus]

Disc No.5.

[Karl Henning]

Hovhaness - Celestial Fantasy
Stratton/Slovak Radio Orchestra

A. What do you think?

B. Unrelated to the Celestial Gate Symphony?

[Todd]

Courtesy of Amazon and Uber teaming up for quick delivery, a good, live First.  Not my favorite, perhaps, but the late 80s vintage demonstrates that Abbado sure did inherit a mighty fine orchestra from Fluffy.

[AndyD.]

Courtesy of Amazon and Uber teaming up for quick delivery, a good, live First.  Not my favorite, perhaps, but the late 80s vintage demonstrates that Abbado sure did inherit a mighty fine orchestra from Fluffy.

Abbado did a fine job on dvd with the 9th imo, more than worth checking out.