What are you listening 2 now?

[Symphonic Addict]

Is this your recommended recording?

Presto classical has a sale on Hyperion at the moment, and they have three different albums with the Elgar quintet on them.

The Chandos recording I posted is superb all around, so I can confidently recommend it. The other recordings you mention got rave reviews too, so you can't go wrong with any of them.

[Symphonic Addict]

Speaking of Hyperion...

Bowen: Piano Sonatas 4-6

These sonatas sound more English, so much so that I was reminded of Bax in some passages.

[AnotherSpin]

My understanding is that the only way to praise God is through being blissful. It need not to be verbal – in fact, it can't be verbal. Words are so futile so empty, words can't contain it.

- Osho

[Symphonic Addict]

Jaëll: Her two piano concertos (in D minor and C minor respectively)

Two very strong piano concertos here. Whereas the first one feels Brahmsian in spirit (quite imposing it is), the second one seems redolent of Liszt with a more free form. Many of these women composers really had something interesting to say even if their music is not always distinctive and Marie Jaëll (1846-1925) is one of them judging by these magnificent and memorable works.

[steve ridgway]

Nono – Liebeslied

[AnotherSpin]

[steve ridgway]

While the server was unresponsive...

Penderecki - Canticum Canticorum Salomonis

[steve ridgway]

Just now...

Maderna - Piano Concerto

[Wanderer]

For one reason or another, I don't own many boxed sets and certainly not as many as I crave. I knew a classical fan who - with just a very few exceptions - ONLY collected boxes! His tastes were wide-ranging and he would get a nearly maniacal look in his eyes discussing them - they were what he termed "treasure chests of sound" and I felt like I was in the presence of a demented pirate from the Caribbean. Though I didn't catch the box bug from him, I do now refer to them as "treasure chests of sound", this one esp., even though there are disappointments engineering-wise; still, Kapell's playing is so captivating I hardly notice.  Of course, I'm heading straight for Prokofiev's 3rd PC and then Khachaturian's PC, the latter causing quite a stir when first released. Check him out in this recording of Mozart's 17th PC https://slippedisc.com/2021/04/unheard-william-kapell-concerto/.  I sure wish Kapell had recorded Mozart's 8th Piano Sonata (my favorite of the bunch) but you know what they say about wishes...

I remember ordering this exquisite set of recordings when it was first released (along with some other CDs from the Australian Eloquence label) from Australia (I forget exactly from where - a very well-stocked antipodean online store) and then how I had to waste an entire working day clearing it through customs at Athens Airport. The courier service was charging an astronomical fee to handle it themselves and deliver it to my door. I recall the endless bureaucracy, the ridiculous trail of paperwork going back and forth, the labyrinthine process, the string of small fees here and there, the waiting and the vast expanses of the warehouses. Of course, as an experience, it was utterly memorable - and the final outcome a success: the duty was ridiculously low after all and the total cost of the whole ordeal was much cheaper than buying the box from a physical store (remember those?) or any other online store (which would not have it anyway). As for the adventure itself, a friend tagged along through it all out of curiosity and solidarity; once it was over, we sat down for a meal at one of the area's famous tavernas, renowned for their lamb chops and spit-roasted meats (they're so far from the city center that you only visit them on weekend outings to the Mesogaia region). Whenever I listen to these excellent recordings, that little escapade comes rushing back to mind.

[Wanderer]

[steve ridgway]

Cowell - Deep Color

[steve ridgway]

Berio - O King

[steve ridgway]

Isang Yun - Tuyaux Sonores For Organ

[Roasted Swan]

Unfortunately, just for my personal taste, I liked the first track and then liked each successive track less and less. Rather boring in places. The orchestra sounds like a small opera pit ensemble.

What a shame!  That looked like an interesting disc......

[steve ridgway]

Schoenberg - String Quartet 4

[Irons]

Liszt: Piano Concerto No.1

[AnotherSpin]

Listening once again to the excellent album recommended by @prémont. It remains convincing across various volume levels, perhaps due to the quality of the recording, the playback chain, or both. Then again, it might simply be the calm weather, or the quiet night without Russians and their drones.

[Harry]

Listening once again to the excellent album recommended by @prémont. It remains convincing across various volume levels, perhaps due to the quality of the recording, the playback chain, or both. Then again, it might simply be the calm weather, or the quiet night without Russians and their drones.

Centaur is not known for its good sound quality, but on the basis of your notes I will try it. The music I know well, this ensemble is a great question mark for me.

[Que]

I unfortunately have no time for the entire thing, but will return to it later. It opens and closes with a motet by Walter Frye, with songs in between - some regrettably in instrumental transcription. A class act.

https://www.classicstoday.com/review/review-3175/

[AnotherSpin]

Centaur is not known for its good sound quality, but on the basis of your notes I will try it. The music I know well, this ensemble is a great question mark for me.

I rather suspect your audio system might make all flaws a bit too obvious... Or perhaps quite the opposite.  

What I really meant was that the musical material comes across as very convincing to my ear, rather than referring to any strictly audiophile merits.