What are you listening 2 now?

[Undersea]

Current listening:




Tallis: Mass for 4 Voices

[Papy Oli]

Good morning all,

Completing last night's Zelenka with No.4, 5 & 6. Delightful.

A first listen to Zelenka's Trio Sonatas. No.1,2 & 3 initially.

[aligreto]

JS Bach: Coffee Cantata [Hogwood]





I think that Kirkby is wonderful in her role here; she sounds very convincing to me in her argument with her father.

[aligreto]

Good morning all,




Completing last night's Zelenka with No.4, 5 & 6. Delightful.

Delightful indeed, Olivier.

[ritter]

Revisiting CD 2 of Pierre-Laurent Aimard's intelligently programmed and wonderfully played "The Liszt Project" twofer:



Pieces from books I and III of Années de pèlerinage, interspersed with music by Bartók, Stroppa, Ravel and Messiaen.

[Papy Oli]

Another first listen:

Zemlinsky - String quartets (No.1 playing now)
Lasalle quartet

[aligreto]

Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 [Schmidt-Isserstedt]

I was introduced to this Beethoven cycle by my friend Jan [Traverso] some time ago. Initially, for some inexplicable reason at the time, I was not overly impressed with the cycle. However, for some reason the memory of the cycle stayed with me and I eventually listened to a YouTube version of the Schmidt-Isserstedt presentation of "The Choral Symphony". I was so impressed with that performance that I re-visited the entire cycle and thereafter fundamentally radically changed my opinion on the entire cycle. I do not know what or how I missed it on the first listen but I certainly was wrong there! The second listening session was transformative and illuminative and I would certainly encourage members to give this cycle a fair listen.

The opening movement of Symphony No. 9 is a continual search and probe. Schmidt-Isserstedt does a wonderful job in articulating this in the opening movement. The music is well driven and directed and the questions are very well asked by him. This movement is quite a wonderfully powerful, gripping and expressive presentation whilst still retaining its inherent lyricism. The second movement is also well driven and the orchestration is very well presented. The direction is taut but the music flows very well. The recorded sound is wonderfully, and suitably, big and expansive and it delivers the musical message very well. The slow movement of this symphony has always been, for me, a measure of how effective any given presentation of this work would be. A successful delivery requires sensitivity, lyricism and delicacy and lightness of touch for this movement to be a success. We have everything here with Schmidt-Isserstedt putting his own personal interpretation on the music. The final movement is suitably powerful in terms of its delivery. The incremental introductory build up is very well done; it is both powerful and smooth. The introduction of the main theme is subtle but effective and it is well developed. Another key aspect to the success of this movement is the quality of the soloists employed. For me, they were all a success. The Choral singing was also quite powerful, magnificent, very full and wonderfully sounding. The orchestral playing is excellent throughout. This is quite a magnificent presentation overall and something of a unique sounding interpretation and flavour which is also great!

[Que]

A very good friend once told me that I have the biggest Vivaldi collection he had ever seen...

Well, I'd better listen to some of it then! 

[Carlo Gesualdo]

Mandryka I want to tease ya whit the following currently listening of choice, How about La Colombina on glossa , the name of record is canciones, romance & sonetos -Secular vocal music from 16th century spain, how about this oneya, this one see , the amazing choice of composer here: Juan Vasquez, Juan Del Encina, Francisco Guerrero, Mateo Romero (a great name here) excellent CD heck it's glossa... what else can I see Glossa record make me smile in the early morning 

[Pohjolas Daughter]

I think you're right about that. I'm going through a breakup, and it's a difficult time for me. Mahler's 8th never struck me as the kind of music that would resonate with me in this place, but the universe can be full of surprises.

This work, which used to be my least favorite Mahler symphony as it is for many, clicked with me about a year and a half ago, and I'm grateful for it. These days it's the only Mahler I want to hear.

Sorry to hear about your breakup.  Listen to whatever comforts you..and perhaps make an extra effort (if needed) to get out for some walks/hikes.  Spending some time with Mother Nature can be a great healer and bringer of solace (plus gets those endorphins going too).

Warm wishes your way for both you and your former partner,

PD

[aligreto]

Mendelssohn: A Midsummer's Night Dream [Ashkenazy]

[Biffo]

Villa-Lobos: Symphony No 10 Amerindia - Sao Paolo Symphony Orchestra and Choir conducted by Isaac Karabtchevsky

[Todd]

[DavidW]

[Mandryka]

I think this is really challenging music, in that it challenges your conception of what Dufay's music is like, and indeed what music from the middle of the 15th century is like.  Totally unexpected twists and turns, vigorous phrasing - it is highly virtuosic extrovert stuff.

Two on a part, which is probably authentic but I can't help but wish it were one on a part. Recording quality is OK, without having quite the excellence of sound that their more recent recordings have. It's an unatmospheric, somehow neutral, sound - no sense of hall, and that seems a shame to me. The thing sounds more like a very good rehearsal than a fabulous concert.

The result is that, while acknowledging that musically this is very interesting, listening to it somehow doesn't add up to a great poetic experience for me.

One interesting factoid is that the whole mass is arguably attributable to Dufay, propers and ordinarium.

Well returning to this recording six hours later it sounds perfect, no problems with the sound, wonderful interpretation. No reservation.

So what's the difference? The sun is shining of course!

[Harry]

Georg Philipp Telemann.

The Grand concertos for Mixed instruments, Volume I.

La stagione Frankfurt, Michael Schneider.



Could not help myself, so playing this set again, out of spiritual necessity.

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Hindemith Violin Concerto. Midori/Eschenbach.

[vers la flamme]

Gustav Mahler: Symphony No.8 in E-flat major. Bernard Haitink, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, choirs, soloists

I think the RCOA is a more idiomatic Mahler orchestra than the Chicago Symphony, even if certain parts sound less powerful than in the Solti recording I've been listening to. I'm picking up on certain contrapuntal moments that kind of went over my head in previous recent listens. I'm not sure whether or not I've mentioned it before, but this Haitink recording is the one that finally made this symphony click for me.

[Mirror Image]

NP:

Glass
Violin Concerto
Kremer
Wiener Philharmoniker
Dohnányi

[ritter]

It's been too long since I last listened to Boulez....


The Quatuor Diotima plays the revised Livre pour quatuor.