What are you listening 2 now?

[classicalgeek]

I share your  enthousiasme for this recording. 

It's excellent! van Beinum's Brahms is really special!

[Traverso]

It's excellent! van Beinum's Brahms is really special!

I shall listen to the symphonies ,starting tomorrow .

[Karl Henning]

Thank you for posting that one, Karl. It was most enjoyable.

Cheers, Fergus!

[VonStupp]

Benjamin Britten
A Boy Was Born, op. 3

Lichfield Cathedral Choristers
Finzi Singers - Paul Spicer

A 30-minute, a cappella choral theme and variations. This work would be interesting to dive into the score, for unlike an instrumental theme and variations, I don't hear the progression at all.

VS

[Mirror Image]

NP:

Vaughan Williams
Symphony No. 8 in D minor
LPO
Jurowski

[foxandpeng]

Ian Krouse
Symphony #5 'A Journey Towards Peace'
Jong Hoon Bae
Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra
Naxos

This is definitely a winner for me, even considering I'm not a huge fan of vocal contributions to symphonies. The whole disc is excellent, but the late hour sadly means a shortened listen!

[classicalgeek]

A blistering Shostakovich 5:

Shostakovich
Symphony no. 5
London Symphony Orchestra
Andre Previn
(on Spotify)



Not the best played, perhaps, but this performance makes up for it in terms of sheer power!

[JBS]

Symphonies 1, 3 and 5. From Spotify.

This is better than I expected. Ashkenazy keeps meticulous articulation in perfect balance with sprightly tempi and fine winds/strings balance. Beautiful and exciting. Might buy the set.

And I just finished this set with CD3, the Second, which gets the best performance I remember hearing

The First also gets a very impressive performance here.  The Third and Fourth are good, but no better than many others. The Fifth restores the cut in the final movement, like Nezet-Seguin did, but it's not nearly as impressive on first hearing as YNS's recording. So a mixed bag.


Then on to a first listen to this recording of the two greatest piano concerti ever written, the Third and the Fourth.

[classicalgeek]

Then on to a first listen to this recording of the two greatest piano concerti ever written, the Third and the Fourth.

I concur with you there! No. 4 is easily my favorite Beethoven piano concerto and one of my top piano concertos overall. So achingly gorgeous throughout - even in the finale (that second theme!) No. 3 is a masterpiece in its own right. The slow movement is absolutely beautiful.

Just finished, for me, a composer I haven't heard much of at all:

Georges Auric
Phedre (complete ballet)
Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra
Arturo Tamayo
(on Spotify)



A world apart from the first ballet I heard today (Alfven's Bergakungen)! But just as stunningly orchestrated - I was in places reminded of Prokofiev and Stravinsky, but it had a sound world all its own. The orchestra was good but not great - I'd love to hear a top orchestra (say, a Concertgebouw or a Boston Symphony) have a go at it!

[Symphonic Addict]

Far as Diamond is concerned I am virgin territory. The Naxos notes are miniscule so don't even attempt them. I'm quite happy though in my ignorance and let his music work its magic - or not. Interesting that 3 didn't work for you and I took note of Jeffrey's comment that he likes the first four. I have symphonies 1,2 & 4 on my shelves (+ Violin Concerto) so are the music Gods being kind to me and stop here, or explore further?

Definitely the first 4 symphonies are stunning, just that I did feel that day I wasn't in the right mood for that symphony. You could enjoy the most accesible string quartets. They contain gorgeous and poignant music.

[Mirror Image]

A little concert program I devised:

Brahms: Tragische Ouvertüre (Tragic Overture), Op. 81
Schoenberg: Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4
Mendelssohn: Ein Sommernachtstraum (Midsummer Night's Dream), Op. 21

Encore:

Schnittke: (K)ein Sommernachtstraum

From these recordings -

[Symphonic Addict]

That's a great CD! It couples two of Honegger's finest works - both very moving.

+1

[Symphonic Addict]

I sort of know what you mean. But, Diamond's 3rd Symphony is easily my favorite of his symphonies. Or maybe I'm just a sucker for orchestral works with a prominent piano part! My other preferred works of Diamond's are Rounds for string orchestra, the incidental music to Romeo and Juliet, and the String Quartet no. 3. His slow movements in these works have a nostalgic, elegiac quality which is quite touching.

I need to familiarize with other of his works. Some string quartets impressed me largely, and as you say, those slow movements are to die for.

[Symphonic Addict]

It's been a while since I listened to Tennstedt's Mahler... I might have to revisit it soon!

TD:
As recommended by Cesar (Symphonic Addict), the complete Bergakungen

Alfven
Bergakungen (complete ballet)
Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
Yevgeny Svetlanov
(on Spotify)



Absolutely delightful! Great tunes, stunning orchestration, and a top-notch performance too. Some ballets seem to lose a bit of their effect without the dancing (I listened to Glazunov's complete Raymonda a while back, and while it was easy on the ears in the best of ways, I couldn't help but think something was missing) - but not Bergakungen. Just beautiful music from first note to last. Thanks Cesar!

Glad to read, classical geek! By knowing your tastes, I was suspecting you were going to enjoy it very much.

[Mirror Image]

I need to familiarize with other of his works. Some string quartets impressed me largely, and as you say, those slow movements are to die for.

FWIW, I love Diamond's earlier works, but don't think much of his later pieces. The lyricism is lost and there's just nothing that allures me quite like say the 3rd and 4th symphonies or that most gorgeous of all his SQs: the 3rd. And, yes, the slow movements are exquisite.

[Symphonic Addict]

FWIW, I love Diamond's earlier works, but don't think much of his later pieces. The lyricism is lost and there's just nothing that allures me quite like say the 3rd and 4th symphonies or that most gorgeous of all his SQs: the 3rd. And, yes, the slow movements are exquisite.

Indeed, his late works are too dissonant for my taste. I'm much more interested in the lyric, soulful and vital Diamond.

[André]

It's been a while since I listened to Tennstedt's Mahler... I might have to revisit it soon!

TD:
As recommended by Cesar (Symphonic Addict), the complete Bergakungen

Alfven
Bergakungen (complete ballet)
Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
Yevgeny Svetlanov
(on Spotify)



Absolutely delightful! Great tunes, stunning orchestration, and a top-notch performance too. Some ballets seem to lose a bit of their effect without the dancing (I listened to Glazunov's complete Raymonda a while back, and while it was easy on the ears in the best of ways, I couldn't help but think something was missing) - but not Bergakungen. Just beautiful music from first note to last. Thanks Cesar!

That recording is a great favourite of mine. Just as good is Svetlanov's version of the second symphony on the same label.

[Mirror Image]

Indeed, his late works are too dissonant for my taste. I'm much more interested in the lyric, soulful and vital Diamond.

As you know, I have no trouble with dissonance, but rather, what a composer does with the dissonance and Diamond's more terse works aren't too interesting, IMHO. Now, Schuman's 9th symphony, on the other hand, is f****** great! I also think highly of Copland's forays into 12-tone music like Connotations and Inscape.

[Linz]

I am listening to Wand's Bruckner 6

[vandermolen]

FWIW, I love Diamond's earlier works, but don't think much of his later pieces. The lyricism is lost and there's just nothing that allures me quite like say the 3rd and 4th symphonies or that most gorgeous of all his SQs: the 3rd. And, yes, the slow movements are exquisite.

+1

NP
Bloch 'Sacred Service' (LPO/LPO Choir etc. Bloch)
Sections of this remind me of the choral works of Vaughan Williams as well as the soundtrack to Hollywood biblical epics. It's my favourite work by Bloch, although I like his work generally.