What are you listening 2 now?

[Mirror Image]

NP:

Elgar
Sea Pictures, Op. 37
Janet Baker, mezzo-soprano
LSO
Barbirolli



Can anything else possibly be said about this masterful performance that hasn't been said already? Beyond this planet.

[Symphonic Addict]

+1 for both! The variety of influences present in the Casella 3rd Symphony is fascinating, as you note - the remarkably Nielsen/Holmboe-like opening, the poignant lyricism of the slow movement which almost sounds like a cross between Mahler and Barber (!), and the Prokofiev-like razor sharp rhythms of the third movement. And of course, I don't mean to imply that it's derivative.

Very well put, Kyle. I think it's my favorite Italian symphony ever.

[Symphonic Addict]

I approve of both of these selections too! I need to dig deeper into Casella - what I've heard of his I've found fascinating. And of course Prokofiev and Jarvi is always a winning combination!

Casella is a highly consistent composer. I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy the rest of his music, or at least most of it. The orchestral series on Naxos and Chandos are mandatory listens IMO.

[Symphonic Addict]

Elgar: Violin Sonata in E minor



The highlight here is the remarkable slow movement - which is by turns ghostly, nostalgic, and capricious. A magical creation. The first movement is passionate and noble, and if the finale is slightly less inspired than the preceding two movements, it still holds the attention.


Franck: Grand Trio Concertant (Piano Trio) no. 1, op. 1/1 in F-sharp minor



Absolutely stunning work!! I simply can't believe Franck wrote this when he was only 17 or 18 years old - and it's so incredibly ahead of its time for 1839/40. The first movement has an granitic, statuesque power that's quite unlike anything else in the repertoire, and it builds to an absolutely shattering climax. Perhaps even more remarkable is the finale, with its gloriously ecstatic main theme and tempestuous development section. It receives an absolutely smoking performance here!

For some reason, the only Elgar's major chamber work that has resonated with me thus far is his Piano Quintet. I'll need to spend more time with the Violin Sonata and String Quartet in the future.

I didn't know about the existence of those recordings of Franck's piano trios. Thanks for posting them, Kyle. And yes, that trio is a scorcher!

[Symphonic Addict]

Röntgen: Symphony No. 11 in G minor "Wirbel"

As usual with this composer, he manages to make these "conservative" works sound fresh, with purpose. A very short symphony, but certainly attractive too. I'm glad CPO is getting closer to finish this quite appealing symphonic cycle.

[Madiel]

Szymanowski, King Roger

[Que]

[Symphonic Addict]

No. 5-8 this morning. Great pieces. If you like Britten and Tippett with a dash of Bartok, then you should like this recording.

Those quartets were a revelation when I discovered them one year ago (or so). Concise and thoroughly meaningful.

[vandermolen]

I know that not everyone here thinks highly of this composer but I really love the Grand Concerto for Organ and Orchestra (2004), which I find moving, memorable and inspiriting. I've been playing it constantly recently. I often seem to like for works for organ and orchestra.

[Irons]

NP:

Elgar
Sea Pictures, Op. 37
Janet Baker, mezzo-soprano
LSO
Barbirolli



Can anything else possibly be said about this masterful performance that hasn't been said already? Beyond this planet.

+1

[Traverso]

NP:

Elgar
Sea Pictures, Op. 37
Janet Baker, mezzo-soprano
LSO
Barbirolli



Can anything else possibly be said about this masterful performance that hasn't been said already? Beyond this planet.

Indeed a great recording,I never felt the need to look for another performance,the timbre of her voice alone....

[Traverso]

Bach

[Traverso]

Richafort

Requiem and Motets

The first time I heard Richafort's requien ( more than 20 years ago) was during a radio broadcast as part of "Musica Sacra" in Maastricht.
It was then sung by the Tallis Scholars but as far as I know they never released it on CD.

[Harry]

Georg Philipp Telemann.

The Grand concertos for Mixed Instruments, volume II.

La Stagione Frankfurt, Michael Schneider.

[foxandpeng]

If memory serves, I was quite disappointed by Searle's symphonies last time I heard them (years ago). I'll pull them off the shelf for a dust up. Chances are I've changed my mind about his kind of modernism.

I've also been listening to these on and off for a week or so, and have been enjoying them more than I thought I might.

TD: this disc.



Well, my opinion of the first symphony (1953) is rather positive  . At least I can follow what's going on. It doesn't sound too modern for my ears. The very beginning even seems to borrow a theme from Die Walküre.

Night Music (1943) is an earlier work, a short orchestral nocturne dedicated to Webern, who never heard it because of his unexpected death. On Musicweb it's described as 'monster film music'. At least it earns a description. The 4th symphony from 1962 is undescribable. It is not actively unpleasant, but it tries hard in that direction. The notes state that « with the skeletal fabric of the Fourth symphony Searle had reached a stylistic crisis ». I'll bet he had.

By way of contrast I was reminded of Schoenberg's Variations op. 31: luminous shards of tones mingle with sinuous atonal lines without any clearly discernible design. It's only when it reaches its apex in the last variation that the impression one has heard a masterpiece dawns on the listener. Searle's effort is not on that level. When it comes to atonality and serialism the symphonies of Roberto Gerhard are more my kind of thing.

Webern and Schoenberg are unknowns to me, so I have no real frame of reference here, Having said that, I'm finding it really interesting to hear these works. I don't really have any meaningful comments at this stage because my listening is still early doors (if any of my contributions are ever really meaningful, that is), but I am intrigued to keep them spinning.

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Peter Mennin Quartet No. 2.

[Florestan]

All these works are delightful, with a special nod to the works I had not heard before: Massenet's Espada, a Spanish-themed ballet which is a hit parade from start to finish and Ambroise Thomas' overture to "Raymond, ou Le secret de la reine" (a The-Man-in-the-Iron-Mask opera no less), beautiful stuff too.



The catch here are not the concertos but the smaller works. I've listened to them for days in a row.



Rachmaninoff. Ashkenazy. 'Nuff said.

[Brian]

Yes, it's a 45-minute "Grand Concerto" for harp and orchestra in G minor! You know, exactly the thing you were expecting!

It's actually not bad! It sounds a little bit like a Paganini violin concerto or a Chopin piano concerto, but with a harp. Actually, a Chopin orchestral work is a really good comparison point. The final movement is a folksy "polacca a la svedese", i.e., "Polish a la Swedish." 

The backstory is very interesting. Pratté was a doubly made-up name. His family were Bohemians named Brát in the late 1700s, but his uppity father started a theater troupe and decided to make himself exotic by changing his Czech name in for the vaguely foreign-sounding Pratte. Unfortunately, said father was so abusive that young Anton ran away from home and disappeared for years, until dad died and his mom put advertisements in European newspapers begging her son to come home. When he did come home, he was a harp virtuoso, and also he had decided to banish his father's memory by adding an accent to the E.

This is apparently the first recording of anything by Pratté.

Amusingly honest comment by BIS CEO Robert von Bahr: "Whereas I feel that the solo works are a little longer than the material calls for, there is no doubt that this is a discovery for every harpist that can handle the difficulties."

[Mirror Image]

Indeed a great recording,I never felt the need to look for another performance,the timbre of her voice alone....

I own several others, but they don't quite measure up, although I did like the Alice Coote/Elder performance.

[Mirror Image]

Webern and Schoenberg are unknowns to me, so I have no real frame of reference here, Having said that, I'm finding it really interesting to hear these works. I don't really have any meaningful comments at this stage because my listening is still early doors (if any of my contributions are ever really meaningful, that is), but I am intrigued to keep them spinning.

What do you do think of Berg?