What are you listening 2 now?

[vers la flamme]

I'm a huge fan of Jarrett's improvisatory piano works, I listened to the Köln Concert every night for about a year. But his Shostakovich, Bach, and Händel recordings all left me cold.

[Traverso]

Tchaikovsky

Monteux in top form

[Harry]

New Arrival, First listen.

John Bull. Organ and Keyboard Works.
Walsingham.

Siegbert Rampe, Organ, Harpsichord, Virginal & Clavichord.

An impressive array of beautiful instruments on this CD, all well recorded and perfectly tuned. To hear all this musical might is a privilege for me, and I feel most fortunate that I can. And it gets even better if you have matching equipment, to get the maximum audio quality. MDG did well!
The music by John Bull did not reach my ears before this one, factually this is my first CD with his music, apart from a few composition scattered over many CD'S.
The booklet is a dream too, with all the possible info you want of the instruments and the technical details, registrations, temperament and pitch, plus all the dates of their history.
Happy with it, as Premont already predicted. Its for me a best purchase of 2019.
I have many MDG organ CD'S but seem to have missed this one. Corrected.

[San Antone]

Sei Solo - The Sonatas and Partitas for Violin Solo
Thomas Zehetmair

Using period instruments, the album was recorded at Propstei St. Gerold and is issued as a double CD.



ECM New Series has become one of my favorite record labels.  I have enjoyed their regular jazz label since the '70s, but ever since they began releasing non-jazz on the New Series label my appreciation has exploded.  Every release is something I have enjoyed, and I can't say that for very many labels.  Glossa is another one, and the Naive label often puts out recordings I like, as well as  Zig Zag.

The production quality of these four labels I think is a cut above most others, from the cover art to the engineering, not to mention the choice of repertory and artists on their rosters, everything is touched with quality.  I am glad they are able to exist in a very competitive field.

[Mandryka]

New Arrival, First listen.

John Bull. Organ and Keyboard Works.
Walsingham.

Siegbert Rampe, Organ, Harpsichord, Virginal & Clavichord.

An impressive array of beautiful instruments on this CD, all well recorded and perfectly tuned. To hear all this musical might is a privilege for me, and I feel most fortunate that I can. And it gets even better if you have matching equipment, to get the maximum audio quality. MDG did well!
The music by John Bull did not reach my ears before this one, factually this is my first CD with his music, apart from a few composition scattered over many CD'S.
The booklet is a dream too, with all the possible info you want of the instruments and the technical details, registrations, temperament and pitch, plus all the dates of their history.
Happy with it, as Premont already predicted. Its for me a best purchase of 2019.
I have many MDG organ CD'S but seem to have missed this one. Corrected.

I think this is the only performance on record of Bull's Walsingham variations on an organ.

[vers la flamme]

I think this is the only performance on record of Bull's Walsingham variations on an organ.

Check your PMs

[steve ridgway]

Nono - No hay caminos, hay que caminar...

[asin] B00004WKJG[/asin]

[Que]

Q

[San Antone]

[Traverso]

Chopin

Polonaises

[Mirror Image]

I don't like big boxes like that but that looks like a steal. I'm sure there are enough great Poulenc recordings in the Erato/EMI/Warner catalogue to make that worthwhile. Still I'll need to spend some more time with the Poulenc recordings I have already before making that jump.

Yes, spend more time with Poulenc. His oeuvre is very much worth your time and this Erato set is steal, indeed.

[Que]

A basset clarinet in authentic style! 

[Ken B]

If a minority opinion, it is in no wise wrong. I respect his Shostakovich rather than love it, but my respect is in full earnest. I revisit it now and again.

That's well put. Tatiana has my love in this stuff, but I have several excellent versions.

[Mirror Image]

Debussy
Violin Sonata in G minor
Isabelle Faust (violin), Alexander Melnikov (piano)



I'll probably end up listening to this entire recording because all of this music is so close to my heart, but I do need to listen to other music, especially music I haven't heard yet. The performances in this recording are all exemplary. I would say this recording and the 2-CD set of mélodies are the gems in this Debussy Harmonia Mundi series. Many of the solo piano recordings in this series are quite good but they don't erase my mind of Jacobs, Kocsis, Egorov, Ciccolini, etc.

A special note: The packaging in all of these Debussy Harmonia Mundi recordings is first-rate. Each issue gets it's own cardboard box (like a small box set would for example) and each issue have nice booklets. The presentation just won me over. A feather in Harmonia Mundi's cap for sure.

[j winter]

In anticipation of the large Bruno-Walter-Box-Set-sized box under the tree... (here's hoping it's not a case of baked beans...  )



The Strauss is very good, Walter brings out a great deal of passion from the strings, and the whole thing flows beautifully from start to finish.  The sound is a bit rougher on the Mahler but still serviceable, and the performance is swift and full of energy, almost sprightly. 

Not a top recommendation due to the sonics -- both of these pieces benefit enormously IMO from a modern recording that can bring out the details in the orchestration -- but if you're OK with live mono recordings, these are quite nice...

[steve ridgway]

Nono - La lontananza nostalgica utopica futura.

[asin] B00004WKJI[/asin]

[Karl Henning]

Debussy
Violin Sonata in G minor
Isabelle Faust (violin), Alexander Melnikov (piano)

Très bien!

[Mirror Image]

Très bien!

Absolument!

[kyjo]

I picked up in a local charity Shop this box



6 well filled discs in classic performances - a lot of duplication with discs I already own but a cheap and convenient way to have the bulk of Holst's best music in one place.  Only Savitri as a nailed-on masterpiece is missing.  So I've been on a Holst-a-thon for a few days.  Goodness me there is good music here and very fine performances.  I'd forgotten just how good in every sense the choral works - with orchestra and unaccompanied - are.  The Baccholian Singers of London were a scratch/elite group of top male solo singers and their singing is excellent.  Also fine Hymn of Jesus from the under-rated Sir Charles Groves.  Still struggle a bit with the Choral Symphony but overall an excellent set throughout.....

Indeed, Holst was a master of choral music. It is incomprehensible to me that The Planets has been recorded countless times while a masterpiece such as The Cloud Messenger (not even included in that EMI set) has only one commercial recording (Hickox on Chandos)...

[kyjo]

Q

Great stuff! Kalinnikov's tragic early death robbed the world of a great talent.