Thirty three and a third.

[aligreto]

Back to back.



Five years separate Alwyn's 1st Symphony and 1st String Quartet. I enjoyed the quartet more which has a melody in the third movement to die for, heartfelt and beautiful. I had difficulty following the symphony, finding it a bit diffuse. I'm sure repeated plays will reveal itself to me.

The sleeve illustration of Chandos LP, The Torrents of Spring is by William Alwyn.

Very nice indeed.
I am not at all familiar with the Alwyn String Quartets.

[Irons]

Very nice indeed.
I am not at all familiar with the Alwyn String Quartets.

I find Alwyn a conundrum. But interested enough in planning next month to visit his grave at the Suffolk village of Blythburgh.

The Adagio of the 1st SQ. It starts to get interesting at 3.45.   https://youtu.be/hfbiZxnewx4?t=3

[Irons]

Back to back.



Sparer then the 1st Symphony. Two movements, which simply put are search and found. The restless agitation of the opening movement is particularly thrilling.



The title of the second string quartet "Spring Waters" is misleading. This is not a jolly romp by a stream but inspired by Turgenev's novel of the same title. Composed when Alwyn reached his 70th  year - "My careless years, My precious days" I found Alwyn's quartet extremely profound, written with the insight of a composer in his eighth decade. Although the Turgenev quote above made me stop and think, one from Alwyn himself even more so ...... "and the work ends on a triumphant note - death is not defeat".   

[aligreto]

The Classical Mandoline: Music by Beethoven & Hummel





This is music scored for the mandolin and fortepiano. Both of the sonorities work well together.  In terms of the quality of the musical compositions Beethoven has it by a long head here although both works are interesting in their own right.

[aligreto]

I find Alwyn a conundrum. But interested enough in planning next month to visit his grave at the Suffolk village of Blythburgh.

The Adagio of the 1st SQ. It starts to get interesting at 3.45.   https://youtu.be/hfbiZxnewx4?t=3

Thank you. I will listen to that later.

[aligreto]

Back to back.



Sparer then the 1st Symphony. Two movements, which simply put are search and found. The restless agitation of the opening movement is particularly thrilling.



The title of the second string quartet "Spring Waters" is misleading. This is not a jolly romp by a stream but inspired by Turgenev's novel of the same title. Composed when Alwyn reached his 70th  year - "My careless years, My precious days" I found Alwyn's quartet extremely profound, written with the insight of a composer in his eighth decade. Although the Turgenev quote above made me stop and think, one from Alwyn himself even more so ...... "and the work ends on a triumphant note - death is not defeat".

Great artwork on both albums!

[aligreto]

Music for the Musical Clock [Soni Ventorum Wind Quintet]


      


This is music written by both Haydn and Beethoven for the cutting edge of mechanical technology of the time. This is beguiling music from both composers appropriately transposed for a Wind Quintet.

[aligreto]

I find Alwyn a conundrum. But interested enough in planning next month to visit his grave at the Suffolk village of Blythburgh.

The Adagio of the 1st SQ. It starts to get interesting at 3.45.   https://youtu.be/hfbiZxnewx4?t=3

Yes, it certainly does. What a wonderful piece of String Quartet writing this entire movement is.
Thank you for posting the link.
Enjoy your planned visit.
Perhaps a photo or two for the Alwyn thread? 

[Irons]

Yes, it certainly does. What a wonderful piece of String Quartet writing this entire movement is.
Thank you for posting the link.
Enjoy your planned visit.
Perhaps a photo or two for the Alwyn thread? 

Delighted you liked the piece, Fergus. I found the Blythburgh connection here -

http://landofllostcontent.blogspot.com/2022/06/william-alwyn-movements-for-piano-1961.html

Which is a stone's throw from Aldborough where I will be staying.

Keep the interesting vinyl posts coming. Each so far is not on my shelves. Oryx I find particularly interesting. A label, your post a typical example, prepared to explore repertoire the majors for commercial reasons would not.   

[fbjim]

Anyone have experience with record cleaning machines? Been meaning to invest in some because surface noise just kills the listening experience in a way it doesn't with say, rock.

[Irons]

Anyone have experience with record cleaning machines? Been meaning to invest in some because surface noise just kills the listening experience in a way it doesn't with say, rock.

For a committed collector of the LP record a RCM is a great investment. But it is possible that something else is going on if surface noise is such a problem for you. It never ceases to amaze how well looked after pre-loved classical records are down the years, I think this is down to the type of buyer who purchased the record in the first place. I use a RCM (Loricraft) but I would be able to enjoy my collection without one. Excessive surface noise can be a pointer to an imbalance in the system, for example simply a poor earthing setup of TT/tonearm/cartridge can amplify surface noise. Also a mismatch of tonearm and cartridge. Or simply the cartridge itself. I would disconnect all cables and clean the plugs, experiment with the system's earth paying special attention to the TT as you may be hearing vinyl static.
Before making a not small investment on a RCM make sure all is well otherwise you may be in for a disappointment.   

[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

Anyone have experience with record cleaning machines? Been meaning to invest in some because surface noise just kills the listening experience in a way it doesn't with say, rock.

A few years ago, I got a Spin-Clean which is the cheapo option (about $60). It's made a huge difference. I tested it on some records I was planning to throw out due to surface noise. After a spin in the Spin-Clean, that surface noise was gone. An excellent investment, and proof that audio doesn't have to bankrupt you to be effective.

[vandermolen]

Back to back.



Sparer then the 1st Symphony. Two movements, which simply put are search and found. The restless agitation of the opening movement is particularly thrilling.



The title of the second string quartet "Spring Waters" is misleading. This is not a jolly romp by a stream but inspired by Turgenev's novel of the same title. Composed when Alwyn reached his 70th  year - "My careless years, My precious days" I found Alwyn's quartet extremely profound, written with the insight of a composer in his eighth decade. Although the Turgenev quote above made me stop and think, one from Alwyn himself even more so ...... "and the work ends on a triumphant note - death is not defeat".

Most interesting Lol. Can we have a photograph of Alwyn's grave please. The 2nd Symphony is arguably the best and IMO Alwyn's is the best performance on disc. I hardly know the SQs, so, I need to rectify that.

[vandermolen]

Delighted you liked the piece, Fergus. I found the Blythburgh connection here -

http://landofllostcontent.blogspot.com/2022/06/william-alwyn-movements-for-piano-1961.html

Which is a stone's throw from Aldborough where I will be staying.

Keep the interesting vinyl posts coming. Each so far is not on my shelves. Oryx I find particularly interesting. A label, your post a typical example, prepared to explore repertoire the majors for commercial reasons would not.   

That's a really interesting website of which I was unaware - thanks for alerting us to it Lol.

[Irons]

Most interesting Lol. Can we have a photograph of Alwyn's grave please. The 2nd Symphony is arguably the best and IMO Alwyn's is the best performance on disc. I hardly know the SQs, so, I need to rectify that.

I don't know why Jeffrey but I seem drawn to graves, as long as it is not my own I guess OK.

[vandermolen]

I don't know why Jeffrey but I seem drawn to graves, as long as it is not my own I guess OK.

My brother went to visit the grave of Bax when he was on holiday in Ireland.

[aligreto]

Anyone have experience with record cleaning machines? Been meaning to invest in some because surface noise just kills the listening experience in a way it doesn't with say, rock.

Yes, I use an Okki Nokki cleaning machine.





Yes, it does make a real difference with a dirty record.
However, it is only one part of a vinyl regime, as you will be aware, that includes handling, storage and stylus care.
The Okki Nokki is an effective vacuum record cleaner and comes in at an entry level price for this type of machine.
It also comes in black if that is your preference.

[Irons]

My brother went to visit the grave of Bax when he was on holiday in Ireland.

County Cork a perfect resting place for Arnold.

[aligreto]

Ivan Moravec: Live





Excellent and passionate playing from Moravec.


Supraphon was always a label that I admired for the interesting and engaging music and musicians which they issued.

[Irons]

Ivan Moravec: Live





Excellent and passionate playing from Moravec.


Supraphon was always a label that I admired for the interesting and engaging music and musicians which they issued.

PD where are you? (watching tennis I expect). She is a big Moravec fan.