What are you listening 2 now?

[Daverz]

Boccherini: String Quintet in F minor, G348.  Several recordings on Qobuz.

It was a recording of this by the Karski Quartet & Raphael Feye that really perked up my ears.  Their tone is rather aggresively HIP and in a very resonant acoustic, but the performance is very passionate and really makes this sound like one of Boccherini's best quintets. 

I also listened to recordings by the Sarasa Ensemble on Naxos and the Elisa Baciocchi String Quartet on the Da Vinci label, but neither of those were as engaging.

Finally, came "home" to the older recording by the Vanbrugh Quartet on Naxos Hyperion who play on modern instruments with, thankfully, vibrato and good acoustics.  Not as passionate as the Karski, but still better than the others above and easier to listen to.

[Symphonic Addict]

Weingartner: Symphony No. 3

It may not be as thematically memorable as his first two symphonies, but this one features truly imposing moments, e.g. the tremendous climax in the slow movement with an organ included. The recording is incredible too.

[JBS]

I'd passingly assumed the cover image was a portrait of Louise Farrenc but evidently not;



so I have no idea why this image was chosen......

I think the face is the face of Ms. Farrenc, but for no obvious reason costumed from the Gibson Girl era.  The painting you posted, by Luigi Rubio, (more precisely, the head from that painting) appears in the booklet.

TD
From the Warner Lars Vogt box; there are a number of CDs recorded at the Heimbach Festival Vogt founded and directed, so two of them tonight, mostly Brahms: the First Piano Trio, and the First and Third Piano Quartets, with a Haydn trio for flute, cello, and piano.


[The Dvorak appears later in the box; the Schubert being Vogt-less not at all.]

[Mirror Image]

NP:

Tchaikovsky
Symphony No. 5 in E minor, Op. 64
New York Philharmonic
Bernstein

From this OOP recording -



I bought all of the Tchaikovsky Bernstein Royal Edition recordings awhile back and they are all glorious. Bernstein was in his element in Tchaikovsky. These have been remastered and what's interesting is when Sony reissued Bernstein's Tchaikovsky in one of those budget sets, it wasn't remastered.

[Symphonic Addict]

Bowen: Viola Concerto

An exuberant concerto I previously had underestimated. Bowen had great skills for orchestration and this work proves that.




Tveitt: Harp Concerto No. 2

I don't know many harp concertos from Nordic lands, but Tveitt's is really a fine exemplar. I like the doleful, tragic character of it, where the movement Memorias dolorosas contains the most poignant music. Just fabulous.

[Mirror Image]

NP:

Shostakovich
String Quartet No. 6 in G major, Op. 101
Emerson String Quartet

From this set -

[Mirror Image]

Tveitt: Harp Concerto No. 2

I don't know many harp concertos from Nordic lands, but Tveitt's is really a fine exemplar. I like the doleful, tragic character of it, where the movement Memorias dolorosas contains the most poignant music. Just fabulous.

That is a fine disc. I should revisit it. Nykken, for me, is a masterpiece of symphonic tone-painting.

[AnotherSpin]

Op. 106

[Mirror Image]

Last work for the night:

Villa-Lobos
Rudá, "Dio d'amore"
Slovak RSO
Roberto Duarte



I think this is the only recording of his work. I remember the member snyprr (spelling?) called Villa-Lobos' music "everything but the kitchen sink jungle music". I think it's an apt description of this particular work. The front cover painting by Henri Rousseau is appropriate to say the least.

[Mandryka]

As satisfying and distinctive an op 131 as any I have heard - Quartetto di Cremona is an excellent sounding ensemble and they have been given  a good quality recording.

[Harry]

Nicola Antonio Porpora.
Violin sonatas,op.12- Nr.2,4,5,8,11,12.
Recorded:2000.
See back cover for info.

Porpora is not often recorded, at least not his Violin Sonatas. Anton Steck makes it worthwhile. His fabulous technique and thoughtful approach lets one discover all the felicities this music holds, and those are many. Rich ornamentations, textbook use of musical rhetoric and great melodic inventiveness, make this music a compendium of late Baroque means of expression. Good sound.

 

[Cato]

In America, "Decoration Day" (i.e. for decorating graves at the cemetery, especially after the Civil War) was a special time, captured musically by Charles Ives:

Here is an explanation of today's significance:

https://www.abmc.gov/news-events/news/decoration-day-memorial-day-american-tradition-nearly-150-years


 

[vandermolen]

Agreed. In almost every case I prefer Boulez' earlier recordings on Columbia (Sony) to the later recordings on DG.

I agree

[vandermolen]

NP:

Shostakovich
String Quartet No. 6 in G major, Op. 101
Emerson String Quartet

From this set -

Nice looking set John.

[vandermolen]

Bowen: Viola Concerto

An exuberant concerto I previously had underestimated. Bowen had great skills for orchestration and this work proves that.




Tveitt: Harp Concerto No. 2

I don't know many harp concertos from Nordic lands, but Tveitt's is really a fine exemplar. I like the doleful, tragic character of it, where the movement Memorias dolorosas contains the most poignant music. Just fabulous.

I've never got on well with Bowen's music but I must try again.

[Harry]

Dietrich Buxtehude.
The Complete Organ Works.
CD 1 from 6.
Bux 156, 211, 148, 191, 192, 137, 189,188, 144, 217, 145, 174, 197, 223, 182, 157.
Eric Lebrun plays on the organ of St. Mary's Church, Helsingor, Denmark, built between 1634 and 1636 by Johan Lorentz.
Temperament: quarter-comma meantone? Pitch: ?
Recorded between 2005-2006.
No PDF file, so no info about registrations pitch and temperament.

When you are streaming older material you may count yourself lucky if you get a PDF file. That would be my only criticism, that record companies do not find it necessary to provide info on top of the recording itself.
I have to say what I hear sounds very good indeed. The Organ is a gem, the playing is clear, and meticulous, and very well recorded. If the rest is like this, I will gladly try to get this set, with booklet and all.

[Harry]

I've never got on well with Bowen's music but I must try again.

York Bowen is a composer well liked by me. I am somewhat puzzled why you never got on with him.

[DavidW]

Last night's listening!

Bruckner 8 Boulez-- a very good performance.  Surprisingly warm and not the overly analytical and transparent approach that I think Boulez is stereotyped as having.

Mahler 2 Bychkov-- this conductor has received a great deal of attention and praise from the Mahler forum.  I think most people avoid him due to Hurwitz and his cult following poo-pooing Bychkov's Mahler.  Or so the Mahler forumites have said.  This performance is swift, powerful, and not overly sentimental.  I really like it, and will give his fourth a listen soonish.

[AnotherSpin]

Harmonies poétiques et religieuses

[SonicMan46]

Last night, finished my Goldbergs perusal with my 'piano versions' of which I kept the 3 below - there are so many other excellent historic and more recent recordings of these works on a modern keyboard, but even with my rather weak culling efforts, I still own 9 versions of these works -      - yes, I know others likely have dozens and some maybe even 100!    Reviews of the ladies attached for those interested.  Dave

P.S. Janssen is in the 20-disc box, so can I add another 'male' performer like Perahia?