New from Oregon and looking for local enthusiast.

[jWags818]

 I'm male, 49 and am a Mechanical Engineer. I got into classical music about 9 or so years ago. I took violin lessons for 3 years but pain in my hand forced me to quit. So then I bought a Cello! And took lessons for about a year. We moved and I quit playing but recently I opened it up, went to tune it and broke a string by turning the wrong peg! Whoops. New string on the way and I intend to start playing again. If anyone in the Albany area is also a Cello player I'd love to hear from you.
I also tinker with stereo electronics. I have built my own headphone amp (tube solidstate hybrid) and have a nice Marantz SACD player and a collection of music over 560 disc. Its all in my cubical att work as that is where I get my best listening done.
I am a big fan of Beethoven. I like mostly older classical. The only 20th century composers I like so far are Shostakovich (Love him) Greig, Elgar, Prokofiev and I am certain one or two more I am forgetting. But the modern stuff without a melody like Bartok I just can't get into.
I would like to hook up and email some local people near me and share music with each other and talk music etc.. Of course anyone else living anywhere in the world is welcome to chat me up as well.

Glad to be here!

Jeff

[North Star]

Hi Jeff, welcome to GMG!

Bartók's music does indeed have melodies, especially in works like the Dance Suite, the rhapsodies, or the violin duos.

Have you heard Sibelius, Rakhmaninov, Ravel, Martinů, Janácek, Villa-Lobos, Vaughan Williams, or Copland? Their music certainly has melodies.

[bhodges]

Hello, Jeff, and welcome to GMG. And echoing North Star's comments above!

--Bruce

[jWags818]

Hi Jeff, welcome to GMG!

Bartók's music does indeed have melodies, especially in works like the Dance Suite, the rhapsodies, or the violin duos.

Have you heard Sibelius, Rakhmaninov, Ravel, Martinů, Janácek, Villa-Lobos, Vaughan Williams, or Copland? Their music certainly has melodies.

I wasn't meaning to bag on Bartok. I just didn't care much for the pieces I have heard.
Now let's see...
I love Sibelius and Rachmaninoff as well as Ravel.I only have one Martinu recording and one Janacek. So not a lot to say about them. I have some Copeland but it just never really grabbed me. I do however like the Williams pieces I have heard.

It just seems to me that many (not all) modern composers try so hard to be unique that the music becomes very unapproachable. Esp the first few years of listening to Classical Music.

I look forward to meeting some new people here and I really hope to find a few locals to go to concerts with. My wife does not care for Classical. She listens to Country music which personally I do not care much for. So I often go to concerts alone. Finding a couple people to go to more concerts with would be great!

Jeff

[Hollywood]

Hi there Jeff. Greetings from a L.A. Lady living in Beethoven's Heiligenstadt. Welcome to the forum. 

[Christo]

Hi Jeff, welcome to GMG!

Bartók's music does indeed have melodies, especially in works like the Dance Suite, the rhapsodies, or the violin duos. Have you heard Sibelius, Rakhmaninov, Ravel, Martinů, Janácek, Villa-Lobos, Vaughan Williams, or Copland? Their music certainly has melodies.

They have! Perhaps even more so they are found in abundance with modern-not-too-modern composers like Braga Santos, Tubin, Barber, Falla, Finzi, Khatchaturian, Kodály, Arnold. Enjoy! 

[Wanderer]

Welcome, Jeff!

[aligreto]

Welcome, Jeff, and good luck with that 'cello!