What are you listening 2 now?

[ChamberNut]

Indeed, fine works. Among her chamber music, the two Piano Quintets, the Piano Trio No. 1 and the Sextet for piano and winds are also quite compelling.

Farrenc's Nonet is a terrific work! I had the pleasure of my local orchestra performing a streamable pandemic concert a few years ago and I really enjoyed it.

[classicalgeek]

Indeed, fine works. Among her chamber music, the two Piano Quintets, the Piano Trio No. 1 and the Sextet for piano and winds are also quite compelling.

Farrenc's Nonet is a terrific work! I had the pleasure of my local orchestra performing a streamable pandemic concert a few years ago and I really enjoyed it.

Thank you for the recommendations! It's definitely on my radar to check out Farrenc's chamber music.

TD:
Erkki Salmenhaara
Suomi-Finland
La fille en mini-jupe
Adagietto
Le bateau ivre
Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra
Eri Klas
(on CD)



Still deciding what I think...

[Todd]

Disc five of six.  The high quality persists.

[Linz]

Bruckner Symphony No. 5 in B-Flat Major, 1878 Version Ed. Robert Haas, Günter Wand Münchner Philharmonker

[vers la flamme]

Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No.13 in B-flat minor, op.113, "Babi Yar". Vasily Petrenko, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir, w/ Alexander Vinogradov (baritone)

This symphony has taken a long time to get to know. But I'm starting to really admire it. This is such a damn good Shostakovich cycle; I'm completely satisfied with it.

[vers la flamme]

Ludwig van Beethoven: String Quartet No.16 in F major, op.135. Belcea Quartet

Amazing performance of an amazing work, which I was prompted to listen to while reading the book The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera, which repeatedly juxtaposes extreme raunchiness with many references to this quartet.

[Symphonic Addict]

Veress was a Hungarian composer (1907-92). Térszili Katicza is a ballet in one act based on Hungarian folk tales and it's a quite entertaining and fun work, whilst the Sinfonia Minneapolitana (his 2nd Symphony) has more modernistic touches, yet the musical language manages to be captivating. A winning combination of works. This CD is a good introduction to this composer I reckon.

[Keemun]

Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5 (Kurt Sanderling / Berliner Sinfonie-Orcheste)

[Symphonic Addict]

Czerny: String Quartet in A-flat major

This supposedly is his 28th SQ, but I doubt about the numbering of these works since there's no a real quantity and order of them. Besides that, this is a strong and lovely work brilliantly performed. 

[Peter Power Pop]

Now playing:



Ralph Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis. Eugene Ormandy, Philadelphia Orchestra

For some reason the Tallis Fantasia was playing in my head on the drive home, so it is the first thing I'm listening to after work. This CD was sent to me by accident once, several years ago, but I'm glad it was because I've grown to like it far more than whatever it was I was supposed to get in its stead Definitely the best disc of English music by American forces in my collection.

Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra recorded The Planets for television in 1977. (It was released on DVD in 2008.) For me, it's by far the best performance of The Planets on video.

[Mapman]

For Schumann's birthday, Dichterliebe, Op. 48
Bonney, Pappano

[SimonNZ]

[SimonNZ]

Disc one: 93, 94, 103

[Harry]

Andreas Hammerschmidt. (1611-1675)
"The Forgotten Hammerschmidt".

Ach Jesus Stirbt.
VOX LUMINIS,  Lionel Meunier.
Zsuzsi Tóth & Caroline Weynants: sopranos I
Stefanie True & Victoria Cassano: sopranos II
Daniel Elgersma & Alexander Chance: countertenors
Raphael Höhn & João Moreira: tenors I
Jacob Lawrence & Philippe Froeliger: tenors II
Sebastian Myrus, Lionel Meunier & Matthew Baker: basses.

with the participation of
CLEMATIS
Stéphanie de Failly & Amandine Solano: violins.
Ellie Nimeroski & Jorlen Vega Garcia: violas.
Sarah Van Oudenhove: violone.
Recording: Gedinne, église Notre-Dame, September 2019.

This ensemble has my votes. The many recordings I already heard from this ensemble tells me that the choice of voices is near perfect, and they blend well together. They yet have to disappoint me. As it is this Hammerschmidt disc is mesmerizing, and totally convincing in expressing the spiritual meaning of "Ach Jesus Stirbt". Articulated they caress the words and meaning into a synthesis that elates the music into higher spheres. Maybe he is not a great innovator but he certainly writes beautiful music, worth exploring anytime. Well recorded too. A clear winner for me, and heartily recommended.

[vandermolen]

William Alwyn.
Symphony No.5 "Hydriotaphia"
Sinfonietta for Strings.
London SO, Richard Hickox.

Short but a powerful fifth symphony, one of my favourites, and well performed it is, and those bells in the last movement, "Tempo di Marcia Funebre", gave me pleasant shudders. But then again all the movements are impressive, so I also have to mention the third movement "Allegro con Fuoco", how Arnold's art has grown into perfection. Stunning and amazing.
Actually the Sinfonietta strikes me as the sixth symphony, for it has all the musical requirements. It is also a work which keeps the mind captured in a web of musical bliss. I am really pleased with the performances.
 

Hearing Alwyn conduct this work on the radio c.1980 led to me writing him a fan letter c/o Lyrita telling him how much I enjoyed the broadcast and listening to his other symphonies on Lyrita. He sent a charming reply.

[Harry]

Anthoni van Noordt. (1619-1675)
Tabulatuurboeck van Psalmen en Fantasyen (1659).
Fantasias 1-6; Psalmen 2, 5, 6, 7, 15, 22, 24, 38, 50, 65, 66, 100, 116, 119; Daphne.
Sources: Tabulatuurboeck van Psalmen en Fantasyen. Amsterdam: Willem van Beau-
mont, 1659/ Camphuysen Manuscript/ Lübbenauer Tabulatur.
 
Leon Berben, Organ.
Instrument: Hagerbeer organ (1634) in the Pieterskerk, Leiden. a1 = 417 Hz (at 18°C), meantone temperament.
Recorded 22–25 January 2022 at the Pieterskerk, Leiden, The Netherlands.

This is very good! To start with the magnificent organ, visual and sound are impressive, and Berben puts the right amount of energy and contemplation in perspective. I always had a soft spot for Anthoni van Noordt's organ works, and it is realized without blemish, and well worth investigating by organ buffs, like me

[Harry]

Hearing Alwyn conduct this work on the radio c.1980 led to me writing him a fan letter c/o Lyrita telling him how much I enjoyed the broadcast and listening to his other symphonies on Lyrita. He sent a charming reply.

 Its a good thing if you can share your enthusiasm about the composer's music with the very man himself, I envy you having established a link to him.

[Irons]

Edward Elgar
Cockaigne Overture
In the South

Georg Solti & London Philharmonic Orchestra

I have not heard Solti's 'In The South' but would imagine music ideally suited to him.

[Harry]

I have not heard Solti's 'In The South' but would imagine music ideally suited to him.

Well I certainly think so, had this set for quite a while and remember to have enjoyed it immensely.

[Harry]

Hearing Alwyn conduct this work on the radio c.1980 led to me writing him a fan letter c/o Lyrita telling him how much I enjoyed the broadcast and listening to his other symphonies on Lyrita. He sent a charming reply.

But then again all the movements are impressive, so I also have to mention the third movement "Allegro con Fuoco", how Arnold's art has grown into perfection. Stunning and amazing.


Corrected the mistake in my post, instead of Arnold it had to be Alwyn, of course I should have seen that, but Arnold was uppermost in my mind that day, so I readily made the mistake.