What are you listening 2 now?

[Lisztianwagner]

Sergei Prokofiev
Violin Concerto No.1

Janine Jansen (violin)
Klaus Mäkelä & Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra

[Karl Henning]

[ritter]

Jean Hubeau plays Fauré: 7 Short Pieces, op. 84, 9 Preludes, op. 103, 4 Waltz-Caprices, and Mazurka.

CD4 of this set:

[Brian]

I like the Cello Sonata more every time I hear it. This performance is slightly on the faster side (22 minutes) but what stands out is the fullness and richness of both performers' tone. A collaboration of two equals - and heavyweights at that.

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Now playing Ifukube Ritmica Ostinata



After Takemitsu, Ifukube is no doubt my favorite Japanese composer. He has such an original and identifiable style. So many of the Japanese composers I've heard like through the Naxos series of Japanese composers sound like second-rate/third-rate European composers. I don't get this with Takemitsu or Ifukube. Of course, there are some notable exceptions like Yoshimatsu, Akutagawa and Satoh, but most of the other ones I've heard sound like Shostakovich, Prokofiev or Stravinsky clones.

[Que]

Jean Hubeau plays Fauré: 7 Short Pieces, op. 84, 9 Preludes, op. 103, 4 Waltz-Caprices, and Mazurka.

CD4 of this set:

Is Hubeau your preferred pianist in Fauré?

[ritter]

Is Hubeau your preferred pianist in Fauré?

I don't think I have a preferred pianist in Fauré, as I don't like the music that much as to seek out many different interpretations of it. IIRC, I have Hubeau and Jean Doyen as complete sets, and sundry recordings by Esteban Sánchez, Vlado Perlemuter, and Éric Heidsieck. Hubeau's traversal has been in my collection since it was first released 35 years ago, so I feel close to it, yes. 

EDIT: I've just checked, and I also have one half (including the Nocturnes) of Jean-Philippe Collard's complete recording on EMI —inherited from my father-, a CD by Louis Lortie (for unusual transcriptions), and the Preludes with Pierre-Alain Volondat (for the prelude to Pénélope in the composer's own piano reduction).

[Karl Henning]

I like the Cello Sonata more every time I hear it. This performance is slightly on the faster side (22 minutes) but what stands out is the fullness and richness of both performers' tone. A collaboration of two equals - and heavyweights at that.

I haven't istened to this in a long time, so: Maisky/Argerich

[Linz]

Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 6 in B Minor, Op. 74 "Pathétique"
USSR State Symphony Orchestra, Evgeny Svetlanov

[André]

A very entertaining piano recital, featuring suites by Alberto Ginastera, Heitor Villa-Lobos, and Bolivian composer Marvin Sandi (whom I have never heard of before; he became a philosopher instead of a musician and died at age 30 in 1968), plus Schumann's Davidsbundlertanze. The South American works are terrific, and wonderfully played. The Schumann is interpreted to convey a similar dancing mood.

Genuin is one of my favourite labels. They feature new artists in interesting repertoire as well as some well-known ones (Badura-Skoda).

[JBS]

A Presto order landed today.
First into the player

CD 1
Op 18/3 in D
Op 18/1 in F

The quartets are presented in order of composition

[Linz]

Bela Bartök Bluebeard"s Castle
Cornelia Kallisch, Mezzosoprano, Peter Fried, Baritone
Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart des SWR, Peter Eötvös

[brewski]

Kodály: Concerto for Orchestra, Dances of Galánta, Dances of Marosszék (Ormandy/Philadelphia). Another "wow" from these forces during the 1960s. I don't recall ever hearing the Dances of Marosszék.

[VonStupp]

I really like Edward Gardner's Britten series on Chandos. I'm going to listen to his Peter Grimes tomorrow night. Have you heard it?

Alas, this is my first of Gardner's Britten. I think I have others in my queue. Do you have preferences or is his series consistent enough to hear most of it?
VS

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Alas, this is my first of Gardner's Britten. I think I have others in my queue. Do you have preferences or is his series consistent enough to hear most of it?
VS

His Britten series is pretty consistent. There are three orchestral recordings plus Peter Grimes, which, coincidently, I'm listening to right now. I actually hope he gets around to recording more of Britten at some juncture. He seems to be doing a Tippett series right now on the LPO house label.

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Now playing Britten Peter Grimes, Op. 33

[André]

I put post-its with a date on them on the discs I listen to. That tells me that I last listened to this extraordinary set in April 2019.

After 6 years it's more of an impression than a remembrance that remained before I put the first disc in the player. Listening to these discs again rekindles the impression (entirely favourable), but the remembrance jug needed to be refilled. I was awed once again by the dissonances and angst of the 5th symphony - a terrific performance under Schmidt-Isserstedt, in excellent mono sound. I just listened to it today. The impression was similar to hearing Honegger's third symphony: excitement, awe and amazement.

Prospero Classical is about to release the first ever recording of the first symphony. All the others (2-6) are contained in the CPO box set, in quite good sound (mono and stereo). Future releases will have to give their A-game to top the artistic and historical value of this set.

[steve ridgway]

Ligeti - Hungarian Etudes

[Madiel]

Mozart: String Quintet no.2 in C minor



Mozart completed a set of 3 quintets by arranging his C minor wind serenade. And even though I've now heard the original wind version... it's really difficult while listening to the string quintet to imagine it as anything other than string music.

[steve ridgway]

Murail - C'est Un Jardin Secret