Worst looking CD/LP artwork

[prémont]

Yes, I get the point of the cover.

No, that doesn't excuse its strangeness and artificiality.

The point of the cover rests in the score mr. Møldrup holds in his hand. It displays a simpler version, he has made of the allemande from the D-major suite. He plays this simplified version first and uses Bach's ornamented version for the repeat. An excellent interpretation of all the suites BTW.

[Peter Power Pop]

My guess would be [the exclamation mark] comes from one of the lyrics?

Maybe, but that doesn't stop me thinking that's actor Colin Firth on the cover and it's a still from an upcoming movie starring Colin as Gubbins the moody landowner secretly in love with Griselda, the heartbroken daughter of the recently deceased Muggins, who had been under the employ of Gubbins until an accident involving a lace doily one stormy night on the Moors.

I say that partly because Bridge is from the right era to be setting English poems with a tendency towards exclamation marks...

I must admit that I don't usually associate exclamation points with the Romantic movement. For example, whenever I think of Romantic music I don't think Eroica!, Hammerklavier!, Spring Sonata! etc.

[Biffo]

....into the deepest sea! only has 4 out of 24 settings of English poets the rest are German, Finnish or Norwegian. The single Bridge song is 'Come to me in my dreams', a setting of 'Longing' by Matthew Arnold - the poem has two exclamation marks and one question mark. It seems the album title, ellipsis and exclamation mark included, is down to the marketing department of the record company.

Here is Sarah Wegener singing the Bridge - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToxcwpzWy60

[Madiel]

The general point I was trying to make was missed two times in a row. Once by citing instrumental works from a century earlier, and once by focusing on a single track. Impressive. Although partly caused by the generality and my attempt to ground it. If I could actually find the lyrics of all the songs I would have checked them.

[Peter Power Pop]

The general point I was trying to make was missed two times in a row. Once by citing instrumental works from a century earlier, and once by focusing on a single track. Impressive. Although partly caused by the generality and my attempt to ground it. If I could actually find the lyrics of all the songs I would have checked them.

I'm sure exclamation marks were used all over the place in all sorts of poetry in the Romantic/Gothic era (or in whatever era* they appeared), but for one to appear so large on the cover of a classical music album I thought was funny, especially when the photo used on the cover is so gloomy.


(*I'm happy to admit my complete ignorance of matters poetic.)

[Brian]

A little googling reveals that it is an unconventional concerto in which the soloist moves around the stage like an actor, following stage directions.  Probably the cover depicts a scene from the "play."

I certainly concur with the consensus the it is unappealing.

I meant to write this in his dedicated composer thread, but many of Widmann's recent works (including two on that disc and a clarinet concerto) involve the soloist screaming. It may have once been a novelty - I have at least one prim and proper recording of a European orchestra refusing to shout "Mambo!" in the West Side Story suite - but Widmann needs to consider that his novelty might be getting stale.

[kishnevi]

I meant to write this in his dedicated composer thread, but many of Widmann's recent works (including two on that disc and a clarinet concerto) involve the soloist screaming. It may have once been a novelty - I have at least one prim and proper recording of a European orchestra refusing to shout "Mambo!" in the West Side Story suite - but Widmann needs to consider that his novelty might be getting stale.

He's been paying too much attention to Stockhausen...

[SimonNZ]

[Madiel]

It was a different time...

[Peter Power Pop]

Golly.

[Florestan]

I must admit that I don't usually associate exclamation points with the Romantic movement. For example, whenever I think of Romantic music I don't think Eroica!, Hammerklavier!, Spring Sonata! etc.

Maybe because they are not particularly Romantic? 

[André]

Not bad looking, but a very peculiar choice of composers for a set devoted to russian piano concertos...

[DaveF]

Not bad looking, but a very peculiar choice of composers for a set devoted to russian piano concertos...

Brilliant's website fudges it by saying that the composers are from both Imperial and Soviet Russia - hence the echt Deutsch Scharwenka who just happened to be born in what is now Poland.  Or even Medtner, whose 3rd concerto was composed near Birmingham.  It looks like a rather good set, although finding track-listings isn't easy - even Brilliant's website doesn't list the composers, and you'd need a fairly in-depth knowledge of Russian music to know who composed a 4th concerto in D minor, Op.70 (surely that's Dvořák's 7th symphony?)

[André]

I'm sure Scharwenka, Khatchaturian and especially the Prime Minister of Poland, Ignacy Jan Paderewski would raise an eyebrow, too.

[mc ukrneal]

Brilliant's website fudges it by saying that the composers are from both Imperial and Soviet Russia - hence the echt Deutsch Scharwenka who just happened to be born in what is now Poland.  Or even Medtner, whose 3rd concerto was composed near Birmingham.  It looks like a rather good set, although finding track-listings isn't easy - even Brilliant's website doesn't list the composers, and you'd need a fairly in-depth knowledge of Russian music to know who composed a 4th concerto in D minor, Op.70 (surely that's Dvořák's 7th symphony?)

Rubinstein

[71 dB]

I fixed the cover art for you folks. 

[André]

Brilliant !

[kishnevi]

Courtesy New Releases thread


Why hello down there, little man...

[motoboy]

Yikes!

[71 dB]

Heino once again...