What are you listening 2 now?

[Harry]

As one of the last viol virtuosos, Carl Friedrich Abel (1723-1787) was celebrated by his contemporaries as a soloist and composer in equal measure, and rightly so. Stunning virtuosic works, played with fire, and approached philosophical.  Paolo Pandolfo delivers a dazzling rendition of Abel's incredibly inventive music, which repeatedly defies rigid categorization as "baroque" or "classical", but make a huge impression nevertheless. Tis well recorded too, another success story for Pandolfo. 80 minutes of sheer pleasure.

[Papy Oli]

Some Mendelssohn.

[PaulR]

Shostakovich:  Piano Trio #2 in E Minor

[Roasted Swan]

Two very contrasting discs but both fine in their own ways.  First;



The latest (a couple of months ago) in the Naxos series of reconstructions of Shostakovich scores for film and theatre.  This has a lot going for it - premiere recordings, very well played and recorded with real dedication by all.  BUT it does beg the question about the need to record this kind of music in "complete" form.  A LOT of the cues are very short - effective in context I'm sure but as a listening experience fragmentary in the extreme.  Then also a lot of cues reference the same melodic/thematic material.  Obviously Shostakovich was brilliant at writing effective/apt music but the same tune 'dressed up' different wears thin even from his pen.  So interesting as a reference-type recording but not sure it makes for a rewarding listen from start to end.

Then;



Just charming.  This proves just how good and enjoyable music by a 2nd tier composer can be.  Rowely was never a mould breaker or musical revolutionary.  Just the reverse - this is quite gentle but genuinely attractive music beautifully played and recorded.  The 2 Nocturnes are especially effective.  Miniatures was probably what Rowley did best.  Remembered today - if at all - for his collections of teaching material.  Worth some attention when all you want is beauty and reflection......

[PaulR]

Shostakovich: The Golden Age

[Brian]

The best Florence Price album I have tried so far. She worked at her best in smaller forms, and the Violin Concerto No. 2 and Piano Concerto are both 16-minute miniatures in rhapsodic single movements.

The second violin concerto is a sort of modified rondo with two main themes linking the episodes. I didn't much like the religious one around 11', but I'm not a religious guy. And I really enjoyed the rest. The overall mood is joyful late romanticism, with a light, dancing touch, and one unusual bit or orchestration, the frequent use of celesta to accompany the violin.

The piano concerto begins with the kinds of melodies that sounded "American" when Dvorak used them. By the time Price was writing, in the 1930s, they were clearly rather conservative, overtaken by jazz etc., but they are still earnest and attractive. Then we get a very appealing slow section - Saint-Saens meets Americana - and a delightful ragtime finale.

Dances in the Canebrakes is a trio of piano dances, here orchestrated by William Grant Still. I prefer the piano version, but it's still fun.

Now, back to Violin Concerto No. 1. This is more typical of her large-scale works: it wanders all over the place, in what the booklet claims is a free adaptation of sonata form that continually develops itself. The music is squarely romantic-era in style, and the violin part sounds good to play. It is pleasant background music and unfailingly nice, but not super memorable, either.

There is one fun meta feature to this larger work. One of the cadenzas very directly quotes Tchaikovsky's concerto at length. When it ends and Price's main theme returns, I have to say the result is kind of delightful. She knows she's subverting your expectations. It happens again in the first movement's coda - a quote of Tchaikovsky for soloist and full orchestra, which goes in a totally different direction from the original.

It's nice to encounter a Price orchestral album played with total commitment by all the musicians. A lot of Price recordings sound half-hearted, and the previous Jeter-led albums use a semi-professional orchestra. Fanny Clamagirand and Han Chen are world-caliber soloists. Recommended for the two shorter concertos, which form a half hour of goodness.

[Harry]

Two very contrasting discs but both fine in their own ways.  First;



The latest (a couple of months ago) in the Naxos series of reconstructions of Shostakovich scores for film and theatre.  This has a lot going for it - premiere recordings, very well played and recorded with real dedication by all.  BUT it does beg the question about the need to record this kind of music in "complete" form.  A LOT of the cues are very short - effective in context I'm sure but as a listening experience fragmentary in the extreme.  Then also a lot of cues reference the same melodic/thematic material.  Obviously Shostakovich was brilliant at writing effective/apt music but the same tune 'dressed up' different wears thin even from his pen.  So interesting as a reference-type recording but not sure it makes for a rewarding listen from start to end.

Then;



Just charming.  This proves just how good and enjoyable music by a 2nd tier composer can be.  Rowely was never a mould breaker or musical revolutionary.  Just the reverse - this is quite gentle but genuinely attractive music beautifully played and recorded.  The 2 Nocturnes are especially effective.  Miniatures was probably what Rowley did best.  Remembered today - if at all - for his collections of teaching material.  Worth some attention when all you want is beauty and reflection......

Alec Rowley is recorded on the label Dutton, and they do not believe in the streaming phenomenon, so alas this recording is not for me to listen, a pity, I like "" beauty and reflection......"

[Florestan]

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[Florestan]

[Kalevala]

There are two Gheorghiu sopranos: Angela (61, the most famous one) and Teodora (48, the one listed on the cover). They are not relatives. Which one do you guys refer to?

I was referring to Angela; I had missed that it was Teodora.  I hadn't (haven't) heard anything newish of hers in years.

K

[AnotherSpin]

[Spotted Horses]

CPE Bach, Spanyi, Vol 1, first selection



Wonderful vivid stuff. Interesting instrument.

[AnotherSpin]

[Linz]

Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 2 in C minor. "Resurrection"
Concertgebouw Orchestra, Otto Klemperer

[DavidW]

[Linz]

Anton Bruckner Mass No. 3  in F Minor
Margaret  Price, sopprano, Doris Soffel, alto, Peter Straka, tenor,  Matthias Hölle, bass
Phihrmonischer Chor München
Münchner Philharmoniker, Sergiu Celibidache

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Hovhaness: Music for Harp. Kondonassis.


@Karl Henning and friends, flute in the recording reminds me of Japanese shakuhachi sometimes.

[andolink]

Today's listening - -

Ulrich Kreppein (b. 1979-): ensemble works (2007-2010)



Per Nørgård (1932-2025): Symphony No. 3



Benjammin Britten (1913-76): Spring Symphony

[Karl Henning]

Hovhaness: Music for Harp. Kondonassis.


@Karl Henning and friends, flute in the recording reminds me of Japanese shakuhachi sometimes.

A lovely album!

[JBS]

I've started going through this set again.
At the moment CD 3
Songs written in Liepzig May-July 1840



Dichterliebe Opus 48*
Four songs originally intended to be part of Opus 48*
Vier Duette Opus 34**
Frauenliebe und -Leben Opus 42***

*Sung by Christopher Maltman
**Sung by Dorothea Röschmann and Ian Bostridge
***Sung by Julian Banse