What are you listening 2 now?

[Papy Oli]

Hindemith - Symphony "Mathis Der Mahler"

[Harry]

Gabriel Pierne.
Orchestral Works Volume I.

In general I like the music very much, but I have some trouble with the performance of the piano concerto. Too rough and aggressively played, no poetry apart in the softer moments, of which there are precious few. Bavouzet has too much energy for my taste, and in my view misses of lot of details by his loud interpretation. Apart from this it is not well recorded. So a hit and miss .

[Traverso]

Bizet

Les pêcheurs de Perles

[Biffo]

Sibelius: Pohjola's Daughter Symphonic Fantasia - London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir Colin Davis

[Spotted Horses]

Maconchy String Quartet No 4.



Another lovely work. I just find I like the way she puts music together, building on motifs and free counterpoint. The slow movement, leading without break to a presto finale is the most compelling part of this quartet. Well performed and recorded.

I discovered Maconchy years ago when I listened to her clarinet quartet, then some orchestral music. I've had these recordings for so long, I wonder why it took me so long to get around to them. A mention on GMG was the trigger.

[Harry]

Johann Ludwig Krebs.
Complete Works for Organ.
CD I from XI.
Felix Friedrich plays on the Trost Organ der Schlosskirche Altenburg. (1739)
Stimmhöhe: 468 Hz bei 15 C.
Stimmungsart: Ungleichschwebend nach Neidhardt I.


Still the best interpretation on CD. State of the Art recording.

[Brian]

Brian, which recording of the piano concertos would you recommend?

My favorite is Lortie on Chandos for bold muscle and great sound, but Malikova and Collard/Previn are excellent too. The new Naxos set with Descharmes is nice but spread across three CDs rather than two, and Alexandre Kantorow has made a promising start. And of course in Concerto No. 4 one must have Casadesus.

[Papy Oli]

[Spotted Horses]

While he's having a day of supreme popularity at GMG, I can disclose Saint-Saëns was my #3 most listened to composer in the year 2021 - after never previously cracking the top 20. It was a year of discovery in general for romantic French composers like Massenet, Delibes, Fauré, and Duparc, for me, but the CSS Big Box and his amazing cycle of piano concertos powered him to the front of the pack.

The concerti, particularly the piano concerti, made an impression, but mostly Saint-Saens doesn't resonate strongly with me. You list of French composers was jarring to me, "Massenet, Delibes, Fauré, and Duparc." Like listing luxury cars, "Yugo, Fiat, Ferrari and Kia." 

[MusicTurner]

From the Westminster set. Sound is so-so.

High-voltage performance

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Godfried Devreese SY1. F. Devreese/Moscow.

[MusicTurner]

The concerti, particularly the piano concerti, made an impression, but mostly Saint-Saens doesn't resonate strongly with me. You list of French composers was jarring to me, "Massenet, Delibes, Fauré, and Duparc." Like listing luxury cars, "Yugo, Fiat, Ferrari and Kia." 

I've got the old Saint-Saens PC sets (Entremont, Collard, Ciccolini, Tacchino, Roge) and some supplementary ones, such as 2x fiery Rubinstein, a Gilels and a Sokolov in no.2, a very old Cortot, Casadesus and G.Johannesen in no.4, plus no.5 with Jaquinot/Fistoulari (rather special and quite slow) and Richter/Kondrashin. They all have qualities, IMHO.

[Harry]

Anton Bruckner.
Symphony No. 8 in C minor. (Version 1896)

Konzerthausorchester Berlin, Mario Venzago.

[Mirror Image]

NP: Enescu Octet in C major, Op. 7 (Vilde Frang/Erik Schumann/Gabriel Le Magadure et. al.)

[Spotted Horses]

I've got the old Saint-Saens PC sets (Entremont, Collard, Ciccolini, Tacchino, Roge) and some supplementary ones, such as 2x fiery Rubinstein, a Gilels and a Sokolov in no.2, a very old Cortot, Casadesus and G.Johannesen in no.4, plus no.5 with Jaquinot/Fistoulari (rather special and quite slow) and Richter/Kondrashin. They all have qualities, IMHO.

Last time I listened I was alternating between Ciccolini/Baudo and Roge/Dutiot. Both sets are very good, IMO.

[Florestan]

While he's having a day of supreme popularity at GMG, I can disclose Saint-Saëns was my #3 most listened to composer in the year 2021 - after never previously cracking the top 20. It was a year of discovery in general for romantic French composers like Massenet, Delibes, Fauré, and Duparc, for me, but the CSS Big Box and his amazing cycle of piano concertos powered him to the front of the pack.

The French Romantic composer which I discovered last year was Auber, and boy do I like his music! Sort of a French Rossini. I think Tchaikovsky hit the nail on the head about him:

Like all good composers of the French school, Auber stands out for the elegant clarity of his harmonization, an abundance of delightful and rhythmically striking melodies, sensible moderation in the use of outward effects, and for his beautiful instrumentation. What you cannot expect to find in Auber, though, are passionateness, moments of tempestuous yearning and powerful inspiration. In his works he appears before us as the same smart, cheerful, intelligent and well-bred Frenchman that he was in real life.

There was something about him which makes one think of the gallant petits-maîtres and marquises of the previous century. A kind of armour-plating made up of aristocratic impassivity and scepticism protected Auber from the Romantic ravings and fanciful sentimentality which were so much in vogue in his youth and which had such a strong effect on artists of a different temperament, such as Berlioz for example. That is why the attractive qualities of this French composer nowhere manifest themselves more strongly than in his comic operas, especially in those whose plot is taken from high society life.

If opera is not your thing, try the Overtures and Ballet Music series on Naxos (6 vols for the time being, includes a Violin Concerto which is not half bad either). Sparkling, gay, wll-crafted and supremely tuneful music that should be right up your alley.

[Brian]

The concerti, particularly the piano concerti, made an impression, but mostly Saint-Saens doesn't resonate strongly with me. You list of French composers was jarring to me, "Massenet, Delibes, Fauré, and Duparc." Like listing luxury cars, "Yugo, Fiat, Ferrari and Kia." 

And who exactly is supposed to be Yugo?!? Fauré is of course superior in depth and expression, but I think in general, as the pandemic year dragged on into a second year and time/life became a mindless blur of getting up and going to bed, I stopped seeking refuge in music of great analytic depth and started seeking it in easy thrills, big tunes, and for that matter a lot of dumb comedy TV from the UK as well. Seemingly all I wanted were French pieces where the cymbal crashes at the same time as the bass drum thwacks, and more episodes of Taskmaster and Bake Off. Chabrier, too, can't forget him. And there was an Auber ballet or two in there.

[Florestan]

And who exactly is supposed to be Yugo?!? Fauré is of course superior in depth and expression, but I think in general, as the pandemic year dragged on into a second year and time/life became a mindless blur of getting up and going to bed, I stopped seeking refuge in music of great analytic depth and started seeking it in easy thrills, big tunes, and for that matter a lot of dumb comedy TV from the UK as well. Seemingly all I wanted were French pieces where the cymbal crashes at the same time as the bass drum thwacks, and more episodes of Taskmaster and Bake Off. Chabrier, too, can't forget him. And there was an Auber ballet or two in there.

Busoni once made the astute observation that profundity is related not to the content of a feeling or emotion but to its intensity and went on saying that someone who completely immerses themselves in the insouciant gaiety of the Venice carnival experiences something no less profound than if they were to listen to Matthaeus-Passion --- or something like that, I quote from memory.

[André]

In the car yesterday, heard on the radio: finale of no 90 with Weil/Tafelmusik. A riot ! That movement has one of Haydn's patented 'false endings' that brings the musical boil back with a vengeance. I figured I should listen to the whole thing. It's one of Haydn's least known late works. The first movement, too, has a false ending. What a jokester Haydn was !

[Spotted Horses]

And who exactly is supposed to be Yugo?!? Fauré is of course superior in depth and expression, but I think in general, as the pandemic year dragged on into a second year and time/life became a mindless blur of getting up and going to bed, I stopped seeking refuge in music of great analytic depth and started seeking it in easy thrills, big tunes, and for that matter a lot of dumb comedy TV from the UK as well. Seemingly all I wanted were French pieces where the cymbal crashes at the same time as the bass drum thwacks, and more episodes of Taskmaster and Bake Off. Chabrier, too, can't forget him. And there was an Auber ballet or two in there.

Cars were a poor analogy. Maybe closer to "The Office, Parks and Recreation, Breaking Bad, 30 Rock."