What are you listening 2 now?

[Symphonic Addict]

Four Scandinavian concertante works:

Ludvig Norman: Concert Piece for piano and orchestra
Adolf Wiklund: Concert Piece for piano and orchestra
Ture Rangström: Ballad for piano and orchestra
Louis Glass: Fantasy for piano and orchestra

The Rangström and Glass stood out the most, very cool structurally speaking. Even though I don't hear much Rangström frequently, I was able to detect distinctive gestures of his style. And speaking of Glass, I wonder what happened to the missing recordings of his symphonies 1, 2 and 6 on CPO. That's been a great series so far.

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Now playing Britten The Turn of the Screw, Op. 54



About The Turn of the Screw:

Some have called it "the perfect opera libretto." Mrs. Myfanwy Piper provided Britten with an adaptation of the novella by Henry James; this wordy, ambiguous text is magically turned into a concise psychological thriller about a governess placed in charge of two orphaned children at the estate of their uncle. The uncle is unwilling to provide any parenting. He simply orders the governess not to bother him about anything having to do with the children. Isolated at the estate, the governess soon perceives that two malevolent ghosts (of the master's valet and of the former governess) are fighting her for the very souls of the children. In a final confrontation, the girl is taken away from harm by the old housekeeper, but the boy's final struggle to renounce the evil influence proves too much for him, and he dies. Were there really ghosts, or was the psychological struggle actually an outgrowth of the repressed sexuality of the governess? James' novella is ambiguous; Britten seems on the surface to cast the ghosts as real (his opera gives them voices and words to sing, which James did not do), but there is enough of a question that it can be staged either way. The dramatic and musical form is masterly. One theme, twisting its way around all notes of the scale, dominates the opera, whose 15 scenes and prologue each constitute a variation on the theme. Doubt creeps in slowly in Act One, as scenes of idyllic upper-class country life are subtly darkened by references to death until the ghosts finally appear and call to the children. Act Two presents a struggle between the ghosts and the governess, with the tension tightening each step of the way. Britten uses only 13 instruments and six voices in this opera, but he creates a breathtaking variety of sounds from these resources. Because of its small scale the work is not played in the larger opera houses very often, but it is accepted as a masterpiece of the growing genre of chamber opera.

[Article taken from All Music Guide]

[Daverz]

Recent releases in heavy rotation:

Koechlin: Symphony No. 1 (his own arrangement of his String Quartet)

Gorgeous music.  The orchestra is unfamiliar, but they play beautifully here.

Martinu & Husa: Chamber music for clarinet

I had not heard this Martinu piece before.  Good, but I wouldn't say it's top drawer Martinu.

The Husa works start out tonal and then get tougher and less tonally centered as they progress in composition date.  But he's always musical and compelling.

[DavidW]

Of the three versions of the Concerto posted on the Frankfurt Radio Symphony's YouTube channel, I might like Urbański's take the best, though it would be a tough call.

Definitely want to hear his 4th Symphony, too, after a bit of a break from hearing it last weekend.

What think you of the NDR recording?

It was excellent, especially the concerto and suite. I prefer Salonen in the 4th, but it was still good.

[Symphonic Addict]

More Nordic music:

Holmboe: String Quartets 1 and 2 (Nightingale SQ)

It must have been ages since my last listen to the entire body of these works. I didn't remember how striking the first two quartets are, and excellently played to boot. Succulent music.

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Now playing Bruckner's 6th

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

More Nordic music:

Holmboe: String Quartets 1 and 2 (Nightingale SQ)

It must have been ages since my last listen to the entire body of these works. I didn't remember how striking the first two quartets are, and excellently played to boot. Succulent music.

How do you feel about Holmboe's music in general? He's a composer I'm rather lukewarm about, but his music must've meant something to me as I've got a good sized collection of it.

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Last work for the night --- Debussy Trois Poèmes de Stéphane Mallarmé

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Alright, one more work --- Debussy Jeux

[steve ridgway]

Kagel - Das Konzert

[AnotherSpin]

Listening to a lot of Bach's organ music — as I have for about a week now — has one curious side effect: all other music begins to sound oddly out of place.

[Mandryka]

Henze: Antifone, Scorribanda sinfonica sopra la tomba di una maratona and Erlkönig. Orchesterfantasie aus 'Le Fils de l'air'

Quite strong works, above all Scorribanda and Erlkönig. This composer continues surprising me for good.

This in the same series as the Nott you know is also worth a listen

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2cyKKAjtDI6IuPp1NkBA4F

[Que]

Rerun, this time on disc. I was somewhat less impressed by volume 1 (Fra Bernardo) with Missa Cuiusvis Toni & Missa Prolationum.
To make it more confusing: volume 1 on ORF is not identical, since it contains Missa L'homme Armé & Missa Prolationum....

[Harry]

Accordato
Habsburg Violin music.
Ex Vienna.
Gunar Letzbor Violin.
Ars Antiqua Austria.
Recording: 11-14 February 2015, Augustiner stift St. Florian, Altomonte saal, (Austria)
Cover picture: Bernardo Bellotto (Il Canaletto) "Vienna, Dominican Church" (1759/60).


A performance for concentrated listening, anyone who gets involved will be richly rewarded. Letzbor creates all kind of colours by a meticulous attention to details, aided by musicians who clearly share the same ideas. Manuscript XIV 726 from the Vienna Minorite Convent is one of the most important sources of Austrian Baroque music and is a musical treasure trove, and I agree by what I hear. Three programs from the more than one hundred works that shed light on various aspects of Austrian violin music. Transmitted works and works for scordatura violin which I like enormously. A very good recording to boot.