What are you listening 2 now?

[Papy Oli]

Bach - Cantata 'Schweigt stille, plaudert nicht' BWV 211 "Coffee Cantata"
(Rilling)

[Que]

New acquisition, first listen.

Marin Marais.
Premier Livre de Pieces de Viole.
Pieces a une et Deux Violes, Premier Livre (1686)

Francois Joubert Caillet, Bass Viol.
L' Acheron.

Absolutely stunning performance, in very good sound. By now I can say its highly recommendable. Marais does not come much better as this. And what an intro to this disc with the first track, "Sujet Diversitez" its breathtaking really.

I had this set playing (off Spotify) all of yesterday morning, and I really liked it! 

It's going to be a lot of Marais, but it is all superb. Can there be too much of a good thing? 

[Harry]

I had this set playing (off Spotify) all of yesterday morning, and I really liked it! 

It's going to be a lot of Marais, but it is all superb. Can there be too much of a good thing? 

No! not in this case. All three volumes are lined up now to be played

[Que]

This set is a highlight in my collection, not one weak CD in the set, for me that is!

The absolute highlight for me are the striking performances of the Madrigali by the Cappella Mediteranea. The Chansons by Doulce Memoire are pretty excellent too. I can live with it because the repertoire is rare and the execution is impeccable, but I definitely have some hesitations about the big, opulent quasi-Baroque performances of the Motetti by the Chœur de Chambre de Namur. Stick to Baroque, is my advice to them. 

[Que]

My collection is lacking a recording of Purcell's harpsichord suites.

So I'm browsing Spotify for a favourite.   First up:



This is going to be a strong contender, I can already tell.

http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2018/Aug/Purcell_suites_1437.htm

[Papy Oli]

Bach - Cantata BWV 63 'Christen, ätzet diesen Tag'
(Richter)

[Harry]

Benjamin Britten.
Orchestral Works, Volume VI.

Sinfonietta.
Britten Sinfonia, Daniel Harding.
Recorded in 1997.

Russian Funeral.
Suite on English Folk Tunes: A time there was....
City of Birmingham SO, Simon Rattle.
Peter Walden, Cor Anglais.
Recorded in 1984 & 1994.

Matinees Musicales, First & Second Suite after Rossini.
English Chamber Orchestra, Alexander Gibson.
Recorded in 1982.

Rossini Suite.
Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Stuart Bedford.
Recorded in 1988.

The Sinfonietta is a fine piece, very atmospheric and gentle. Lots of twists and turns in melodic lines, and some fine solo parts for winds. The performance is quite good as is sound. I did not perceive Daniel Harding as a conductor, but he is doing well.

The Russian Funeral is a composition hard for me to place. There is not much Russian in it, and there is not really any musical narrative to talk about. A less engaging piece therefore. 

Suite on English Folk Tunes: A time there was.... is a nice pastoral work, quirky at times, and some frolicking amongst the members of the orchestra. Again nice solo parts for wind instruments. Good performance and sound.

Matinees Musicales, First & Second Suite after Rossini, are fun to listen to, and I admire the scoring. The melodies are engaging, but to me it is music that diverts the mind in a pleasant way, but not more than that. Good sound and performance.

Rossini Suite is the original version of Soirees musicales, and as such is well scored and melodious, but I do not give a fig about the added vocals by the Boys of the Choir of Paisley Abbey.

[Harry]

The absolute highlight for me are the striking performances of the Madrigali by the Cappella Mediteranea. The Chansons by Doulce Memoire are pretty excellent too. I can live with it because the repertoire is rare and the execution is impeccable, but I definitely have some hesitations about the big, opulent quasi-Baroque performances of the Motetti by the Chœur de Chambre de Namur. Stick to Baroque, is my advice to them. 

Yes this detail was also the only thing that bothered me a little.

[aligreto]

Taneyev: Symphony No. 1 [T. Sanderling]





This is new music for me. My first impression is that it is very lyrical but quite deliberate and emphatic music, without being assertive or overbearing, and it can be quite thrilling and engaging. It is packed full of big themes throughout the work. Taneyev has a very unique voice and musical language and the orchestration is excellent. I like the musical language and the musical style of this work. What a remarkable and mature work from an eighteen year old man.

[aligreto]

Bach - Cantata 'Schweigt stille, plaudert nicht' BWV 211 "Coffee Cantata"
(Rilling)

The  "Coffee Cantata" is a bit different, eh? 

[Papy Oli]

The  "Coffee Cantata" is a bit different, eh? 

Quite but still very entertaining, I enjoyed that particular version 

[Mandryka]

My collection is lacking a recording of Purcell's harpsichord suites.

So I'm browsing Spotify for a favourite.   First up:



This is going to be a strong contender, I can already tell.

http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2018/Aug/Purcell_suites_1437.htm

I like it very much!

[Mandryka]

This is absolutely wonderful. There's a crazy psychedelic cuckoo and a weird type of Indian wailing. Wonderful. Everyone should hear it now.

[Fëanor]

Always an easy pleasure listening ...

Anton Arensky:  Piano Trios Nos. 1 & 2 ~ Borodin Trio

[aligreto]

Buckley: In Winter Light  [Feeley/Dowdall]





This is a work for Alto Flute and Guitar. Apparently it was written during Winter which may help to explain the dark and somewhat bleak tones, and sonorities of the first movement. This movement is basically a dialogue by the alto flute which is underscored by the guitar accompaniment. Both instruments set and deliver the mood, tone and atmosphere of the movement.
The pace of the music picks up in the second movement. The music and the scoring is more fluid than that of the first movement. The interaction of the two instruments is enhanced here; they both play an equal part in the delivery of the musical message in their interplay.
This is a fine work that encapsulates the best of the sonorities of both instruments. The work is very well presented here.

[Artem]

Berg. 7 Frühe Lieder. Very Mahlerian. I like it.

[steve ridgway]

This is absolutely wonderful. There's a crazy psychedelic cuckoo and a weird type of Indian wailing. Wonderful. Everyone should hear it now.

I found it on archive.org a few months ago and it is great fun. The 5 players use 54 instruments including foghorn, spaghetti tube with trumpet mouthpiece, 20 meters of garden hose with plastic funnel, antelope horn, sitar, banjo, plucked rubber bands, organ pipes blown by mouth, taishokoto, ocarina, bass balalaika, bass mouth-organ, brass tubes, siren, tortoise shells, nose-flute, bassdrum, telephone, brass tubes, and musical box.

[Mirror Image]

Berg. 7 Frühe Lieder. Very Mahlerian. I like it.

Lovely!

Thread duty -

Prokofiev
Suite from The Buffoon
Scottish National Orch.
Järvi

[steve ridgway]

That wasn't a recommendation!

After reading Hutchinson, Mark (2014) Dreams, Gardens, Mirrors: Layers of Narrative in Takemitsu's Quotation of Dream. Contemporary Music Review, 33 (4) I can see I'm going to have to at least listen to Debussy's La Mer properly.

[Mirror Image]

After reading Hutchinson, Mark (2014) Dreams, Gardens, Mirrors: Layers of Narrative in Takemitsu's Quotation of Dream. Contemporary Music Review, 33 (4) I can see I'm going to have to at least listen to Debussy's La Mer properly.

Takemitsu is very much the meeting place of Debussy, Webern and Messiaen, but with his own Japanese aesthetic thrown into the mix.