Rota's Roundtable

[vandermolen]

Have been greatly enjoying this CD - especially Symphony No.1. This is quite sunny music but not superficial. I find echoes of Respighi, Braga Santos and Vaughan Williams in Symphony No.1:

[Symphonic Addict]

Earlier I was listening to orchestral selections from 'Il Gattopardo' from this set (Muti conducting the Filarmonica della Scala):



Gosh, how intensely impassioned this is!! It's not the first time Rota manages to impress me this way, this man was a genuinely talented composer. Those soaring melodies don't go unnoticed, it's hard not to be moved by them.

No doubts why Rota is one of the greatest Italian composers (at least I do think so).

[kyjo]

Recently discovered Rota's two delightful PCs in this wonderfully played and recorded disc:




The E minor concerto, subtitled Piccolo mondo antico, is a lushly Romantic score in a quasi-Rachmaninoffian vein, while the C major concerto is a more neoclassical affair with (marginally) tarter harmonies and playful rhythms. As per usual with this composer, neither work makes any pretense towards depth or complexity, and none the worse for that. Thoroughly delicious stuff!

[Symphonic Addict]

Recently discovered Rota's two delightful PCs in this wonderfully played and recorded disc:




The E minor concerto, subtitled Piccolo mondo antico, is a lushly Romantic score in a quasi-Rachmaninoffian vein, while the C major concerto is a more neoclassical affair with (marginally) tarter harmonies and playful rhythms. As per usual with this composer, neither work makes any pretense towards depth or complexity, and none the worse for that. Thoroughly delicious stuff!

Good stuff, Kyle! Count me as another fan of his several concertos. The first two symphonies and the Sinfonia sopra una canzone d'amore contain great material as well. The 3rd is a let-down, I don't know what happened to him when composed it, it doesn't sound that inspired.

[atardecer]

Thanks for the listening recommendations of Rota.

Found this spirited performance of the Piano Concerto in C major:

And then this recording of the composer himself playing some of his preludes live in Rome 1965:

Very nice music.

[brewski]

Totally missed this 2019 release, with Riccardo Chailly and the Filarmonica della Scala in Nino Rota music from Fellini films. Right now listening to the enchanting strains from Amarcord. The film's original soundtrack is perfectly fine, but Rota's score is given a high gloss with these forces, and it's great to hear it recorded in 21st-century sound.

-Bruce

[Symphonic Addict]

That's certainly a most entertaining disc. The suite from 'I Clowns' might be a tad excessive in its uninhibited good humour and exhilaration, but then again, what could we expect from a title like that?

[Roy Bland]

Good stuff, Kyle! Count me as another fan of his several concertos. The first two symphonies and the Sinfonia sopra una canzone d'amore contain great material as well. The 3rd is a let-down, I don't know what happened to him when composed it, it doesn't sound that inspired.

This version IMHO is superior

First movement of Symphony n°3 reminds RVW in strings use

[Symphonic Addict]

This version IMHO is superior

First movement of Symphony n°3 reminds RVW in strings use

That is the recording I know and yes, I don't doubt that it's better performed.

As for the Vaughan Williams connection, I feel it more vivid in the Symphony No. 1.