What are you listening 2 now?

[Todd]

[Harry]

New acquisition.

Henry Cotter Nixon.
Complete Orchestral Works, Volume II.

The Witch of Esgair, Romantic operetta. (Ferenc Nagy, Euphonium)
Concert Stück, for Piano and Orchestra. (Ian Hobson Piano)
May Day, Scherzo.
Dance of the Sea Nymphs, Pizzicato for Strings.
Concert Overture No. 2, Anima et Fide.

Kodaly PO, Paul Mann.

Very approachable music, from a composer who should never have been forgotten.

[Mirror Image]

NP:

Britten
Double Concerto
Anthony Marwood - violin, Lawrence Power - viola
BBC Scottish SO
Volkov

[Mirror Image]

Alfred Schnittke: Music from the Films My Past & Thoughts, Agony, The End of St. Petersburg, and The Master & Margarita. Frank Strobel, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin

The whole disc. Really hits the spot right now, for whatever reason.

Again, the Schnittke film music set on Capriccio is calling your name.

[Mirror Image]

A nice disc. I was just listening to The Song of the Forest the other day. I wouldn't say this is a "great" Shostakovich work, but it had some fantastic moments throughout. The Execution of Stepan Razin, on the other hand, is top-drawer Shostakovich.

[Karl Henning]

CD 22:

Mendelssohn
Cto for Vn, Pf & Strings in d minor
Cto for Vn & Strings in d minor
With guests Gidon Kremer & Martha Argerich

[Mirror Image]

NP:

Schnittke
Glass Harmonica
Berlin RSO
Strobel

[VonStupp]

Felix Mendelssohn
A Midsummer Night's Dream, op. 21 (Overture) & 61 (Incidental Music)

Soloists, Chorus, & Speakers
New Zealand SO - James Judd

My, I find Mendelssohn's music commanding, yet he was so short lived. The overture, and some of the other numbers here remain miniature masterpieces to my ears.

There are so many different iterations of Mendelssohn's Midsummer on record. Just the orchestral numbers, with choir and soloists, with spoken portions by a single person, or as here, with a whole cast of character actors. Plus, conductors rearrange or cut movements as they wish, so rarely does any one recording mimic another.

This is the first time I have heard Mendelssohn's Midsummer with a cast of multiple voice actors, although the complete incidental music has been widely available. The earliest I remember hearing was Previn on EMI with a boys choir. I think I prefer the intimacy of a single speaker traversing all of the spoken roles, if it is included, but it depends on the abilities of that actor - Judy Dench and Kenneth Branaugh come to mind.

This particular recording is a bit jarring; the orchestral music was recorded in 2003, adding the vocal portions in 2007 in New Zealand, and the acting was put together in London in 2009, but different speakers are also available on a different Naxos release if you want spoken German instead.

[Todd]

Still jumping around the big box.  Disc 48, some Schubert.  It's of Grumiaux quality.

[André]

Piano? Harpsichord?

Harpsichord. Scarlatti on the piano is like drinking skimmed milk - you don't if you can avoid it. 

[Harry]

Julius Ernst Wilhelm Fucik.

Orchestral works.

Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Neeme Järvi.
SACD recording

Uplifting works, well composed, one of the best SACD recordings I heard so far from Chandos. Järvi is the man for this kind of repertoire.

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Rabaud: Mârouf, savetier du Caire.

[Karl Henning]

Scarlatti, or not?

https://www.youtube.com/v/yzoJXyjBhU0

[vandermolen]

Barber: Toccata Festiva Op. 36 [Alsop]

That's one of the great Barber discs in my opinion Fergus.

Now playing (new arrival inexpensive box set)
Dutilleux: Symphony No.1

[vandermolen]

Again, the Schnittke film music set on Capriccio is calling your name.

That's a great CD John!

[vers la flamme]

William Walton: Hamlet, A Shakespeare Scenario. Neville Marriner, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, w/ narration from Sir John Gielgud

First listen. This CD was a blind purchase from a local bookstore. Wow, I like it. Guess I'm in a film music kind of mood today...

[SonicMan46]

Byrd, William (c. 1540-1623) - Vocal Music - except for a few recordings, most of my Byrd is instrumental/keyboard music, so just received the 'pile' below from BRO (about $30 USD total), so will be my afternoon's listening -    Dave

     

[Todd]

Perhaps the best recording Kapustin's piano music will ever receive.  I just wish I liked the music more.

[Iota]

Chopin: Preludes


Enchanting playing from Ms. Kobayashi who really brings these pieces to life with exquisite technique and affectingly fresh sensibility. I suffer from Chopin fatigue at times alas (having overplayed it as pianist and listener in the days when it felt like there was no such thing as overplaying anything that I liked) and AK is the first pianist who has managed to properly shake the dust off the Preludes and make them seem like new again for me. A very pleasant feeling and am exceedingly grateful to her for that.

This may of course also have sth to do with a propitious mood, so will listen with interest a second time. But whatever transpires from that, there's no taking away from the thoughtful and charming elements in her playing, and am looking forward to seeing what else she has on offer.

[André]

The Mother of all CB recordings... 0:)