What are you listening 2 now?

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Disc 2 from this set:

[Sergeant Rock]

Shostakovich String Quartets Nos. 3 & 4 played by the Mandelring




Sarge

[ritter]

I couldn't wait any longer:

Boulez
Pli selon pli
Christine Schäfer (soprano)
Ensemble Intercontemporain
Boulez



Exquisite!

Isn't it? A glorious achievement.

And good evening to you, John!

THREAD DUTY:

Ernest Bour conducts Debussy (La mer, Khamma and Jeux).


This La mer (never my favourite Debussy work) is sounding quite wonderful....

[Symphonic Addict]

Enescu - Symphonies 1 & 3 (Foster/EMI); Chamber Symphony (Lintu/Ondine)

Truly authoritative renditions those by foster and his orchestra. Symphony No. 3 is amazing, the display of sonorities and sensuous gestures with a huge orchestra are to die for. The wordless chorus in the mystical 3rd movement is wonderfully effective. The Chamber Symphony is another different work, practically the antithesis of the No. 3 in all the ways: shorter, with less instruments, in a more austere idiom. I can't say I enjoyed it as much as Nos. 1 & 3, but it was worth listening.

[André]

Some 1950s radio recordings by conductor Erich Kleiber. These are from some of Germany's various broadcasting outfits in Hamburg, Cologne etc. They boast excellent technical broadcast quality sound. German sound engineers were at the top of the game and the sound is often surprisingly clear and wide ranging.

Beethoven: symphony no 5 (Cologne). Powerful and dynamic, with the emphasis on dramatic progression, the transformation of darkness into blinding light. Kleiber père succeeds in making the finale the climactic movement of the work. It is less excitable than his son's famous WP version, but more imposing, sweeping all before it. I prefer a few others above this, but it's one of the greats.

Beethoven: Pastoral  (Cologne). Here the close-up sound tends to bring a certain harshness to the sound. I prefer when the textures are more transparent. The very intense string playing doesn't let enough light shine through. It is just too intense for my taste, like downing an entire 85% cocoa chocolate bar.

Strauss: Till Eulenspiegel. 2 versions, one from the NDR (Hamburg), one from Cologne. The NDR version is by a country mile the very best I've ever heard. This Till is no prankster, but a vicious thug, a real maniac wreaking havoc wherever he goes. The Hamburg orchestra play as if possessed and the recording is spectacular for its vintage. The Cologne version is very much along the same lines but the realization falls short of the Hamburg musical miracle.

Schubert: symphony no 9. Kleiber's intensity must have inspired Karajan in his DG recording. Personally I find it a bit unrelenting, with not enough air around the musical phrases. Come the finale and I felt almost exhausted way before the movement ended. For that work I think that Suitner is the model of how force and delicacy, drive and relaxation ought to be balanced.

[vandermolen]

Ireland
Mai-Dun, Symphonic Rhapsody
London Phil
Thomson

My favourite Ireland work in a wonderfully atmospheric recording.

[vandermolen]

Ralph Vaughan Williams (Boult)

Towards the Unknown Region
Dona Nobis Pacem

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DNP is a great favourite of mine. Saw it live at the proms a while back.

[Mirror Image]

Kosmogonia from this recording:



About this recording:

Unnerving, intense, bloodcurdling, sinister, dramatic – the music of "Kosmogonia" features Penderecki's famous, unorthodox instrumental techniques, and some of the darkest music ever composed.

Hailed by The Guardian as "Poland's greatest living composer", Krzysztof Penderecki is the maestro behind the unforgettable, disturbing music on The Shining (including 'De Natura Sonoris No. 2', featured here). A complex tapestry of sound with striking use of pizzicato and flexatone, with aggressive barrages from brass and percussion, dissonant woodwind chords, spoken and hissing sounds, fervent strings, swirling organ, climactic choral and solo vocals.

Krzysztof Penderecki's unique music has featured in films such as: The Shining, The Exorcist, Children Of Men, The People Under The Stairs, Shutter Island, and many more.

Thanks to the estate of Krzysztof Penderecki, Cold Spring are honoured to present this masterpiece in digital format for the first time since the 1974 vinyl release. Sympathetically remastered for CD by Denis Blackham and Martin Bowes.

[vandermolen]

The Ireland Piano Concerto and Delius Piano Concerto, Lane, LLoyd-Jones, Ulster



The Ireland is an interesting piece. The first movement alternates lyrical material with faster dramatic material. The slow movement begins with a wonderfully dissonant chorale-style theme for strings (strong functional dissonance, in that 20th century English string music way) which leads without break to a lively, dance-like close. Thoroughly enjoyed.

The Delius is more conventional than some of his works, and features obvious "American" (African-American) themes, similar to Dvorak's use of them in some passages of the New World Symphony and the "American" string quartet. A work I will have to spend more time with.

I'm glad that this disc has been a hit with you.

[vandermolen]

I've always been fond of Haitink/Decca. That would be my first choice.

Thank you!

[vandermolen]

Moeran - Symphony in G Minor (Boult)

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Great disc!

[Mirror Image]

Isn't it? A glorious achievement.

And good evening to you, John!

THREAD DUTY:

Ernest Bour conducts Debussy (La mer, Khamma and Jeux).


This La mer (never my favourite Debussy work) is sounding quite wonderful....

Indeed, Rafael and good day to you as well. I'm with you on La Mer --- it's a gorgeous work, but, in terms of Debussy's orchestral music, I'll always be partial to Jeux, although I do like Nocturnes a lot as well.

[Mirror Image]

Enescu - Symphonies 1 & 3 (Foster/EMI); Chamber Symphony (Lintu/Ondine)

Truly authoritative renditions those by foster and his orchestra. Symphony No. 3 is amazing, the display of sonorities and sensuous gestures with a huge orchestra are to die for. The wordless chorus in the mystical 3rd movement is wonderfully effective. The Chamber Symphony is another different work, practically the antithesis of the No. 3 in all the ways: shorter, with less instruments, in a more austere idiom. I can't say I enjoyed it as much as Nos. 1 & 3, but it was worth listening.

In terms of orchestral music, the Chamber Symphony is one of Enescu's greatest achievements, IMHO. I don't think the Lintu performance is too good --- check out the Foster on Claves. Give this performance a listen. I have a problem with Lintu as a conductor and I know it's my own bias, but I just don't think he's anything to write home about. The next Salonen or Boulez? I think not!

[San Antone]

First listen

Bruno Maderna : Requiem - Frank Beermann

Bruno Madernas Requiem was long considered lost and was indeed only premiered in the Teatro la Fenice in Venice in November 2009 about 36 years after his death. In 1943, Maderna was called up for military service and fought as a partisan against Italys erstwhile allies, the Germans. He was taken prisoner by the SS, who interrogated him in Dachau and released him shortly afterwards. At that moment, it was the only possibility to write a requiem and then to die, Maderna said later. The Requiem suggests an intensive study of the models in the genre, e.g. those by Giuseppe Verdi and Hector Berlioz. At the same time, as a War Requiem the work is a pacifist manifesto.

[ritter]

And to round off tonight's listening, some vintage Boulez: the world premiere performance, in 1950, of the second version of Le soleil des eaux, conducted by the great Roger Désormière (info on the different versions of Le soleil... discussed here).

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[Symphonic Addict]

Symphonies 1 & 2




Harpsichord concerto

Such an energetic and fun work. I love this!!

[Symphonic Addict]

In terms of orchestral music, the Chamber Symphony is one of Enescu's greatest achievements, IMHO. I don't think the Lintu performance is too good --- check out the Foster on Claves. Give this performance a listen. I have a problem with Lintu as a conductor and I know it's my own bias, but I just don't think he's anything to write home about. The next Salonen or Boulez? I think not!

I'll keep it in mind, John. Thanks, although I'll wait some time for that.

[SimonNZ]

[Carlo Gesualdo]

Dear SimonNZ this Lassus by Huelgas ensemble is exquisite  a pure delight, the Pierre de Manchicourt of same ensemble is stunning, tonight I'm listening to Manchicourt on Choir for church of advent, great so sweet offering, wonderful, don't forget to visit Pierre de Manchicourt works, there excellent.

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Szymanowski
Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 35
Konstanty Kulka, violin
Jerzy Maksymiuk
Polish RNSO