What are you listening 2 now?

[Mirror Image]

I'll have to revisit this piece on the strength of your enthusiasm, John. I don't have strong memories of it.

Its a wonderfully atmospheric work, Cesar. I've really come to enjoy much of the Roussel I've heard through the years.

[VonStupp]

PI Tchaikovsky
Piano Concerto 1 in b-flat minor, op. 23

Denis Matsuev, piano
Mariinsky Orchestra - Valery Gergiev

VS

[foxandpeng]

Anton Bruckner
Symphony 0 'Nullte' (ed. Nowak)
Mario Venzago
Tapiola Sinfonietta

It has been a while since I've heard any Bruckner. I appreciate the prompt from the enjoyment of others 🙂

[SonicMan46]

Mendelssohn, Felix - Songs w/o Words performed by Daniel Gortler - BOY, I've culled out so many of these and finally found one that was enjoyable (for me) - Gortler an Israeli pianist - reviews attached for those interested.  Dave

[Symphonic Addict]

Gubaidulina: String Quartet No. 1

Baleful, insect-music-like, haunting. It reminds me of Schnittke, Lutoslawski, Bartók, late Bacewicz and Penderecki. Fascinating!

[Symphonic Addict]

And another vote for the Roussel Festin. Though I do not know that recording, I can vouch for the Georges Prêtre version, with the Orchestre National de France, which is charming, and comes with the equally delightful Bacchus et Ariane.

--Bruce

Bacchus et Ariane is another winner and it had to inspire Prokofiev in some way because I hear notable similarities and gestures between both.

[Symphonic Addict]

I'm in!

Roussel
Le festin d'araignée, Op. 17
Cz Phil
Košler

What did you think?

[Symphonic Addict]

Its a wonderfully atmospheric work, Cesar. I've really come to enjoy much of the Roussel I've heard through the years.

I'll report when I'm listening to it tonight. Sounds like a real treat.

[Madiel]

What do you do when it's close to 3am and you have no real interest in sleeping?

Why, you create another Ashkenazy Chopin LP of course.



Side A: Waltzes op.64 / Mazurkas op.63 / Polonaise-Faintasie op.61
Side B: Mazurkas 67/2, 67/4 and 68/4 / Nocturnes op.62 / Barcarolle

All very late works... if anything from a composer in his 30s should be considered late.

I finally started drifting in and out of sleep during the Polonaise-Faintasie. So starting again as lunchtime music.

Edit: Op.64/3 is one of the few performances I don't really like across Ashkenazy's entire Chopin set of 13 CDs.

Second edit: Whereas I completely love his Nocturnes, for the strength and power they have. They're not wispy pieces in his hands, but operatic night-songs. Perhaps I'd take the first section of 62/2 a fraction slower, but otherwise both op.55 and 62 have been thoroughly enjoyable.

[Karl Henning]

What did you think?

I like it well.

[foxandpeng]

Anton Bruckner
Symphony 1
Heinz Rögner
Rundfunk Sinfonieorcestra Berlin
Brilliant Classics

[Todd]

Disc two, music for harpsichord and violin from Duphly, Francoeur, Chabran, De Mondeville, Leclair, and Le Blanc.  All of the music is entirely new to me.  The whole disc is a pure delight.  This apparently marks the first CD release of this recording, so here's a case of a record label doing something perfectly right. 

[Traverso]

How is the performance?

This is one of the few Gesualdo recordings I Have.It is sung by some of the best singers in the field.Ik like it very much.It is one of the very few recordings Parrott made on the Sony label.

[bhodges]

Gubaidulina: String Quartet No. 1 (Royal String Quartet, live recording from 2021) - Fantastic. Alert, invigorating, and all in wonderfully clear audio and video. At the link below, they do all four of Gubaidulina's quartets, live, part of the group's annual festival.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbeS-PUaqDo

Their website is pretty cool, too: https://royalstringquartet.pl/

--Bruce

[Symphonic Addict]

Gubaidulina: String Quartet No. 1 (Royal String Quartet, live recording from 2021) - Fantastic. Alert, invigorating, and all in wonderfully clear audio and video. At the link below, they do all four of Gubaidulina's quartets, live, part of the group's annual festival.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbeS-PUaqDo

Their website is pretty cool, too: https://royalstringquartet.pl/

--Bruce

Terrific, Bruce!

[Symphonic Addict]

Dvorak: Symphony No. 2

Muscular, very Wagnerian-like sort of performance, and very assertive. Truth be told, Dvorak rarely disappoints seriously and intentionally. This amazing second symphony is a proof of the "precocious" in terms of symphony numbering and the talent of this joyful man!

[JBS]

Repeat listen

[Mirror Image]

NP: Strauss Eine Alpensinfonie, Op. 64 (Sinopoli)



An exhilarating performance.

[Symphonic Addict]

Sibelius: Pohjola's Daughter

The lovely Daughter has made more sense this time to me, and there are memorable melodies I wasn't catching other occasions. Quite an evocative performance




Taneyev: Piano Quintet

A towering masterpiece. The intensity of this work and rendition move me strongly.




Rawsthorne: Piano Concerto No. 2



A fine work, if less quirky than the PC No. 1. There are many eloquent moments throughout.

[listener]

MASCAGNI in Concert
Gianandrea Noseda  leading a Turin Teatro Regio orchestra in short pieces by the composer of Cavalleria Rusticana
TOURNEMIRE: Organ Symphony 1, COCHEREAU: Improvisations on Alouette, gentille alouette
David Briggs,  Henry Willis organ of St. George's Hall, Liverpool