What are you listening 2 now?

[steve ridgway]

Penderecki: A Polish Requiem. Loud and powerful, this "requiem for the sufferings of the Polish nation" evoked the wrath of God and the horrors of history most effectively but never got beyond it to a better place. So not a good CD to wallow in when feeling down .

[asin] B000675OFS[/asin]

[j winter]

Started the day with some Mozart from Krips, then moved on to Vaughan Williams... it's a very serene morning in these parts...

[SymphonicAddict]

Holst's harshest critic - his daughter Imogen - conceded that the 2nd movement "Elegy in Memoriam William Morris" was easily the best section of the work.  Of the 3 complete recordings (The Elegy is on a Lyrita disc too) this Bostock is easily the weakest both Davis on Chandos and Faletta on Naxos make a much stroinger case for the whole work....

Haven't heard other recordings of that work yet. I didn't feel anything particularly bad on the Bostock, though.

[SymphonicAddict]

Penderecki: A Polish Requiem. Loud and powerful, this "requiem for the sufferings of the Polish nation" evoked the wrath of God and the horrors of history most effectively but never got beyond it to a better place. So not a good CD to wallow in when feeling down .

[asin] B000675OFS[/asin]

Sounds interesting. Penderecki is a master in choral music.

[Traverso]

Are you enjoying the Koopman set as much as the Leonhardt/Harnoncourt?   

Q

Interesting question, to be honest, I still prefer the Harnoncourt / Leonhardt recordings. Despite all the limitations, they have a freshness and a greater appeal. Koopman,no matter how beautiful it is, sounds in comparison  more casual,  Leonhardt and Harnoncourt are more penetrating and make you more part of the heart of the cantatas and that is what really matters.
I like to listen to all the recordings in this set and after that the recordings with  Sigiswald Kuijken ( accent) so I'm quite busy for the time being with these cantatas.
No doubt that after that (or sooner) I will return to my favorite performances   

[Todd]

Another listen, this time through cans.  Listened to thusly, the slow movement of the Concerto comes off better, but it is still the solo works that fare best.

[Que]

Interesting question, to be honest, I still prefer the Harnoncourt / Leonhardt recordings. Despite all the limitations, they have a freshness and a greater appeal. Koopman,no matter how beautiful it is, sounds in comparison  more casual,  Leonhardt and Harnoncourt are more penetrating and make you more part of the heart of the cantatas and that is what really matters.

You're a man after my own heart. 

Q

[steve ridgway]

First listen to Schnittke's Requiem which arrived today. Much more uplifting with catchy tunes, nice choir accompanied mainly by organ, percussion and even rock instruments in one section. And not too long. Some of it would make great film or TV music.

[asin] B000000B1R[/asin]

[steve ridgway]

And on to the Concerto For Piano And Strings - wow Schnittke sure packs a lot into his pieces and just the right mix of "right" and "wrong" sounding notes if you know what I mean  .

[asin] B000000B1R[/asin]

[amw]

I have a lot of recordings of the final Beethoven trilogy but I keep coming back to Pescia, and it's hard to pinpoint exactly why. His 109 came up just now, a few hours after the live Tanglewood 109 from Claudio Arrau, and it's an almost total contrast—if that explains anything about the relative style of the performances.

[San Antone]

The Sleeping Beauty (Ballet Trancriptions) - Prokofiev, Tchaikovsky   
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66   
The Nutcracker, Op. 71
Ten Piano Pieces from Romeo and Juliet, Op. 75
Claire Huangci

[Traverso]

You're a man after my own heart. 

Q

It is remarkable that none of the later recordings even come close. Max van Egmond and Kurt Equiluz to name just two are irreplaceable.
Maarten 't Hart (writer and Bach conaisseur) rated these recordings negatively and even recommended the Suzuki instead of that of Koopman.
It's all to polished and the ritmic almost dancing puls is vanished.
The Harnoncourt / Leonhardt edition has an almost magical attraction.
Some of the boy sopranos are really wonderful and I wouldn't miss it for the world.
Koopman is beautiful but I "love" the Harnoncourt/Leonhardt set. 

[André]

[San Antone]

I have a lot of recordings of the final Beethoven trilogy but I keep coming back to Pescia, and it's hard to pinpoint exactly why. His 109 came up just now, a few hours after the live Tanglewood 109 from Claudio Arrau, and it's an almost total contrast—if that explains anything about the relative style of the performances.

Cédric Pescia is someone I've just been listening to - and enjoying the journey quite a bit.  He has recorded a significant amount of Bach, as well as Schumann.  One recording in particular I want to highlight is this one:



Clara & Robert Schumann : Works for Violin, Viola & Piano
Nurit Stark | Cédric Pescia

[Alek Hidell]

Cédric Pescia is someone I've just been listening to - and enjoying the journey quite a bit.  He has recorded a significant amount of Bach, as well as Schumann.  One recording in particular I want to highlight is this one:



Clara & Robert Schumann : Works for Violin, Viola & Piano
Nurit Stark | Cédric Pescia

Interesting that Claves chose a shot from the film Song of Love as the cover. A somewhat dubious decision if you ask me. Someone might think that the photo is of the performers, or that the album is some kind of soundtrack. Or even that it's a real photo of Robert and Clara.

[j winter]

Superb

[Todd]

Multiple choice question - this baroque compilation from Nils Mönkemeyer:

A.) Kicks ass
B.) Is stupendously well performed by everyone involved
C.) Is in SOTA sound
D.) Delights from first note to last
E.) All of the above

[Mirror Image]

Superb

Very nice!

[Mirror Image]

Started the day with some Mozart from Krips, then moved on to Vaughan Williams... it's a very serene morning in these parts...

The only problem I have with this recording are the incessant grunts coming from Sir Colin in which he earned the nickname Sir Grunts-A-Lot.

[SimonNZ]

on the radio: Symphony no.1