What are you listening 2 now?

[Linz]

Christmas at Mainz Cathedral (Arrangements by Thomas Gabriel), Domkantorei St. Martin; Mainzer Domchor; Mädchenchor am Dom und St. Quintin; Mainzer Domorchester; Domkantorei St. Martin Mainz

[ChamberNut]

Now listening to disc 10 of this magnificent set, which includes music by Brouwer, Barrios, Ponce, Villa-Lobos, Gnattali, Grenet, Lauro and Piazzolla.

Including probably my favourite work for classical guitar, "La catedral", by Agustín Barrios Mangoré

[Karl Henning]

Strauss: Eine Alpensinfonie
Seiji Ozawa, Berliner Philharmoniker

How is this?

[Karl Henning]

Oh, the set as a whole is something I'm very happy with. Even if it doesn't include absolutely everything, it includes a heck of a lot. And I'm totally fascinated by the Ballets Russes. As mentioned by me far too many times, I've seen some of the original sets and costumes and it's an experience I treasure.

The power of Art.

[71 dB]

I have been listening to hardly any classical music lately (I've been mostly into Vaporwave music recently), but now I am listening to:

J.S. Bach - Cantatas BWV 38-40 - Helmuth Rilling

[Bachtoven]

Brilliant playing and superb sound (24/192 download).

[Spotted Horses]

Lutoslawski, Piano Sonata, Ewa Kupiec



My first exposure to Lutoslawski solo piano music. If I had to describe it in a word, it might be "hypnotic."

I stumbled on this after searching for albums from Kupiec, who I have come to appreciate very much.

[hopefullytrusting]

This week I'll be celebrating the superior string quartet aka the brass quintet:

Jean Bellon's Brass Quintet 2
Victor Ewald's Brass Quintet 1
David Sampson's Morning Music
Victor Ewald's Brass Quintet 2
David Sampson's Strata
Victor Ewald's Brass Quintet 3
Anthony Plog's Four Sketches
Victor Ewald's Brass Quintet 4
Anthony Plog's Mosaics
Jaclyn Breeze's Brass Quintet 6

After this, I have lined up:

Dvorak's String Quartets
Brahms's String Quartets
Schoenberg's String Quartets

After this, I'll be going on a Dvorak run. I'm feeling that I might be feeling Dvorak.

[Vox Maris]

NP:

Schreker
Vier kleine Stücke für großes Orchester
Bochumer Symphoniker
Steven Sloane

[Lisztianwagner]

Ralph Vaughan Williams
Hodie

Janet Baker, John Shirley-Quirk, Richard Lewis
Bach Choir, Westminster Abbey Choristers
David Willcocks & London Symphony Orchestra

[AnotherSpin]

How is this?

This is a good performance, listened with joy. The additional interest lay in comparing it with Ozawa's well-known version with the Vienna Philharmonic, even though comparing a live recording with a studio one is not always entirely fair. The difference in sound between the VP and the BP is well-known, and here it is quite apparent. Streaming eliminates the need to choose the "better" of the two, so I enjoy both recordings.

[Vox Maris]

NP:

Marx
Castelli Romani
David Lively, piano
Bochumer Symphoniker
Steven Sloane

[Karl Henning]

This is a good performance, listened with joy. The additional interest lay in comparing it with Ozawa's well-known version with the Vienna Philharmonic, even though comparing a live recording with a studio one is not always entirely fair. The difference in sound between the VP and the BP is well-known, and here it is quite apparent. Streaming eliminates the need to choose the "better" of the two, so I enjoy both recordings.

Дуже добре.

[Karl Henning]

[Linz]

Johann Sebastian Bach Christmas Oratorio, Christine Schäfer; Bernarda Fink; Werner Güra; Gerald Finley; Christian Gerhaher; Arnold Schoenberg Choir; Concentus Musicus Wien, Nikolaus Harnoncourt

[Iota]

When you're in the mood there's nothing quite like the Monteverdi madrigals, such expressive gorgeous music. Performed gorgeously here too (live recording, track list here).

[André]

An overall highly rewarding and enjoyable set. Just finished my first full traversal through it. Glad I got it.

I've had it for some time now but it's still unopened. Big boxes always suffer in the battle for a place in the listening queue. 😖

[SimonNZ]

[André]

Surprisingly conservative sounding stuff from this source. I have another disc of his orchestral music but if memory serves it was more original than this. That being said, the two piano and orchestra works (1898 and 1900) are extremely well written, full of good tunes and catchy virtuoso flourishes from the soloist. Before he was known as a conductor Andreae was a pianist of some reputation, playing his own works in many european cities.

His almost exact contemporary Artur Schnabel took an entirely different direction and penned very modern, even tough music. Andreae's output is very fine, but Schnabel's is on a different, higher plane altogether.

[Vox Maris]

Continuing with Ádám Fischer's Mahler cycle --- now playing the 3rd: