What are you listening 2 now?

Started by Gurn Blanston, September 23, 2019, 05:45:22 AM

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vers la flamme

Quote from: aligreto on September 19, 2021, 05:34:32 AM
Beethoven: Symphony No. 4 [Schmidt-Isserstedt]





Some regard this symphony as looking back towards the Classical tradition. I do not agree with that view. To me it is more a pause for breath and contemplation between what went before and what was yet to come. Yes, there are certainly nods back in that direction but there are too many elements of the musical language of the fourth that have their origin in the third for me to see it any other way. This is another wonderfully powerful work; different, as they all were, but very alluring and attractive.

The Symphony starts with a Haydnesque slow introduction. This prolonged slow, dark, brooding introduction belies what is to come. With a series of chords the orchestra ultimately breaks free and launches into a light and sunny theme. The writing for the woodwinds is particularly wonderful in this movement. There is also great dynamic range in this movement coupled with great energy and drive.

The Adagio contains really lovely music. The first theme on the flutes with that typical Mozartian throbbing accompaniment on the violins is very beautiful as is that second haunting theme played on the clarinet. The violins ultimately take up the melancholy running. Those woodwinds return and we gradually make our way towards a graceful conclusion.

The third movement is designated "Menuetto" but for all intents and purposes it is  Scherzo. This is indeed a "Minuet" that is far removed from the elegant and graceful examples by both Haydn and Mozart. The other unusual aspect here is the somewhat lengthy Trio section.

The final movement expresses the vital force of Beethoven. It is restless and energetic, bursting with vitality and forward drive.

I have a similar view of the 4th as yours. One of my favorite symphonies of Beethoven's. Thanks for the interesting words. I've never heard Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt's Beethoven, but I've heard good things.

André



Disc 3.

K464 and 465. The disc is completed by the violin sonata K301 (Petr Messiereur and Stanislav Bogunia, recorded in a very different acoustic).

The Talichs are wonderful in the harmonic creases of Mozart's slow movements (K464 has a glorious Andante). In the more volatile K465 I would have wished for a tad more extroversion.

ritter

#49802
Sylvano Bussotti in memoriam

Arturo Tamayo conducts The Rara Requiem (vocal and instrumental soloists, Orchestra and Chorus of the Teatro La Fenice).


Arguably its composer's best know work, The Rara Requiem (from 1969) is not a setting of the Latin Requiem mass text, but rather a huge canvas with —purposefully unintelligible— words from antiquity to the time of composition. It's only one many works by Bussotti with "Rara" in its title (its not quite certain what "Rara" represents), but seems to be a summation of the works that preceded it. Be that as it may, this is a very seductive score, full of musical riches and inventiveness, and one that has an unmistakably "Bussotian" sound world.

There's a lot of random / performer-dependent aspects to this piece (and most of Bussotti's work AFAIK), as he eschewed traditional music notation in favour of very "graphic" scores which I understand leave a lot up to the performers' . This is a page from The Rara Requiem:



This is the second commercial recording the piece received (the first one, on DG under Gianpiero Taverna, was with which I discovered the composer —on LP— some 40 years ago), and is very accomplished, Arturo Tamayo being a champion of Bussotti's music and a very convincing conductor of 20th century avant-garde repertoire.


vandermolen

#49803
Penderecki: Symphony No.3
First listen. Difficult to take in at first hearing but my attention was held throughout. I'm very glad to have heard it and look forward to doing so again although I'm not sure how well it held together as an integrated work. I gather that it was composed over a number of years and, to me, it sounded disjointed in places and without the sense of inevitability of the greatest symphonies - I didn't, for example, find the ending especially convincing. However, overall, it's a most impressive work and my grateful thanks to John (MI) for giving me the opportunity to explore the work of Penderecki. Up until now I only knew the St Luke Passion - presented, as a double LP set, to my brother and myself many decades ago by our Polish au pair girl (we didn't make much sense of it) and the 'Christmas Symphony', which I rather enjoyed on LP:
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

Que

Quote from: Traverso on September 19, 2021, 09:26:01 AM
I wish you the best of luck but you will see that it is not easy to find  :)

Well, thank you - I'll need it.. :)

André

Quote from: vandermolen on September 19, 2021, 12:10:48 PM
Penderecki: Symphony No.3
First listen. Difficult to take in at first hearing but my attention was held throughout. I'm very glad to have heard it and look forward to doing so again although I'm not sure how well it held together as an integrated work. I gather that it was composed over a number of years and, to me, it sounded disjointed in places and without the sense of inevitability of the greatest symphonies - I didn't, for example, find the ending especially convincing. However, overall, it's a most impressive work and my grateful thanks to John (MI) for giving me the opportunity to explore the work of Penderecki. Up until now I only knew the St Luke Passion - presented, as a double LP set, to my brother and myself many decades ago by our Polish au pair girl (we didn't make much sense of it) and the 'Christmas Symphony', which I rather enjoyed on LP:


I really like the symphonies and various concerti by Penderecki. There are more expensive versions on various polish labels, but I find the Naxos series provide excellent value.

André



From one of Canada's most constantly inspired composers. The 'named' work is for violin and orchestra.

ritter

More Bussotti before calling it a night...



La Passion selon Sade, extraits de concert. Elise Ross (sop.) and instrumental soloists under the direction of Marcello Panni.


VonStupp

#49808
Quote from: André on September 19, 2021, 12:25:58 PM


From one of Canada's most constantly inspired composers. The 'named' work is for violin and orchestra.

Interesting, and how is this music?

I heard he passed this past week, but I remember little from him and have no recordings. I know in the 70's and 80's I could expect R. Murray Schafer to appear on student band and orchestra festivals because he wrote approachable music, but also integrated aleatoric and other modern elements not typical of the main repertoire for young people.

The one choral piece I have sung by Schafer, I think it was called Gamelan, was really tough.

VS
"All the good music has already been written by people with wigs and stuff."

VonStupp

Felix Mendelssohn
Symphony 3 'Scottish', op. 56

The Cleveland Orchestra - Christoph von Dohnányi


Continuing on with much more Mendelssohn.



Quote from: VonStupp on September 19, 2021, 11:02:09 AM
Felix Mendelssohn
Die Erste Walpurgisnacht, op. 60

Soloists
Cleveland Orch. & Chorus - Christoph von Dohnányi
(rec. 1988)

Mendelssohn's cantata about Druids pulling a nighttime prank on the overbearing Christians is a hoot. At the very least, the overture should stand as an equal to his other more famous ones.

As usual from this time, Cleveland sounds great under Dohnányi.
"All the good music has already been written by people with wigs and stuff."

SonicMan46

Quote from: Mandryka on September 19, 2021, 09:32:31 AM
You're like that autodidact guy in Sartre's Nausée who's working his way through all the books in the National Library of France alphabetically

Well, glad that my 'early music' collection is not large (and not listening to everything) - now it is divided into two sections: 1) Alphabetically by composer; and 2) Compilation discs w/ multiple composers, arranged by performance group - will plan to go through that one too, but probably no more than 50 discs -  :laugh:  Dave

aligreto

Josquin Desprez: Dufay Ensemble





Déploration
Benedicta Es. Caelorum Regina
Miserere Mei Deus


aligreto

Quote from: Brewski on September 19, 2021, 10:55:37 AM

His [Horenstein] Nielsen 5 was my introduction, and an incredible one.


Agreed - a particularly fine presentation of the Nielsen 5.

aligreto

Quote from: ultralinear on September 19, 2021, 11:06:05 AM
Mine too.  Nielsen - Bruckner - Mahler - some great performances.  Always worth seeking out anything by Horenstein.

This Shostakovich 5th is also right up there with the very best, my only reservation being the occasionally congested 1952 mono sound - probably quite a lot of compression was applied.  The interpretation is dead straight - not celebratory, not sarcastic - just a wonderful thing to hear.

The Janáček is jaw-dropping.  One of those wind-it-up-to-11-and-stand-back experiences.

Good to read of more appreciation for Horenstein. Many years ago when I started collecting one of my early philosophies was indeed "Always worth seeking out anything by Horenstein".

aligreto

Quote from: vers la flamme on September 19, 2021, 11:11:21 AM
I have a similar view of the 4th as yours. One of my favorite symphonies of Beethoven's. Thanks for the interesting words. I've never heard Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt's Beethoven, but I've heard good things.

The Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt Beethoven cycle is well worth investigating. I have to confess that I did not fully appreciate it on first hearing but I have lately grown to appreciate Schmidt-Isserstedt's interpretations and presentations of this music.

Karl Henning

CD 24:

Movements for Pf & Orch
Octet
Suite from L'histoire du soldat
Karl Henning, Ph.D.
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston MA
http://www.karlhenning.com/
[Matisse] was interested neither in fending off opposition,
nor in competing for the favor of wayward friends.
His only competition was with himself. — Françoise Gilot

Karl Henning

CD 28:

"Wolferl"

Eine kleine Nachtmusik, K. 525

Divertimertimento in Eb, K. 252 (240a)

Divertimertimento in D, K. 131
Karl Henning, Ph.D.
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston MA
http://www.karlhenning.com/
[Matisse] was interested neither in fending off opposition,
nor in competing for the favor of wayward friends.
His only competition was with himself. — Françoise Gilot

Bachtoven

This is part of a series of works written for Segovia that he never recorded and possibly never played.


Brahmsian

Quote from: vandermolen on September 19, 2021, 12:10:48 PM
Penderecki: Symphony No.3
First listen. Difficult to take in at first hearing but my attention was held throughout. I'm very glad to have heard it and look forward to doing so again although I'm not sure how well it held together as an integrated work. I gather that it was composed over a number of years and, to me, it sounded disjointed in places and without the sense of inevitability of the greatest symphonies - I didn't, for example, find the ending especially convincing. However, overall, it's a most impressive work and my grateful thanks to John (MI) for giving me the opportunity to explore the work of Penderecki. Up until now I only knew the St Luke Passion - presented, as a double LP set, to my brother and myself many decades ago by our Polish au pair girl (we didn't make much sense of it) and the 'Christmas Symphony', which I rather enjoyed on LP:


Good on you, Jeffrey! I do love the 3rd symphony and it gets better with repeated listens, where you will definitely feel the cohesion of the work.

I encourage you to try Symphony No. 5! Like I commented earlier this week, it reminded me of a Shostakovich Symphony No. 2 and 11 hybrid, yet distinctively Penderecki's voice.

VonStupp

#49819
Felix Mendelssohn
5 Overtures

Gewandhaus - Kurt Masur
(rec. 1974)

Masur's were always some of the finest sets of Mendelssohn's Overtures for me.

"All the good music has already been written by people with wigs and stuff."