What are you listening 2 now?

[steve ridgway]

Maderna - Notturno

[Que]

[steve ridgway]

Schnittke - Symphony No. 4

[Harry]

Cello Tales.
Antonio Fantinuoli (Cello), Ensemble Chiaroscuro.
Featuring Roberta Invernizzi.
2016 recording.



A Story is told here, hence the title...and at the same time, it's a journey to rediscover great composers and pioneers of music for cello. There was a painstaking amount of research before this recording came to fruition, and it bears fruit of the sweetest variation and intensity. All the works on this CD  have advanced the development of the cello, and so the program can well end with a bow to the "father of all cellists" Justus Johann Friedrich Dotzauer, totally unknown to me I must add. But that also is a fact with Giovanni Battista Degli Antonii, Domenico Gabrielli, Francesco Alborea. New discoveries, beautiful compositions, really well performed and recorded. An valuable asset to treasure, for these works are not often recorded.

[Irons]

Is that everything he wrote for violin and piano? In which case (Complete) Works for Violin and Piano.

TD

As Rubbra wrote a Phantasy for Two Violins and Piano Dutton couldn't really claim that.

[Harry]

Schnittke - Symphony No. 4

Love the Symphony on this disc, as all his orchestral works by the way!

[vandermolen]

Ben-Haim: Symphony No. 2 - Lahav Shani, Israel Philharmonic

As with his recording of the Symphony No. 1, Shani takes a more romantic approach to the music than Yinon on CPO.

Is that just a download? Great work!

[Harry]

Michele Mascitti (1664-1760)
Trio Sonatas opus.1 Nr.7-12.
Musica Elegentia, Matteo Chicchitti.

Michele Mascitti, a Baroque composer who was already highly regarded in his time and is rightly regarded as an important testimony to Italian instrumental music in 18th century France.
This world premiere recording of his trio sonatas opus 1, which were published in Paris in 1704, sheds light in particular on the composer's attempt to revive the tradition of the Corellian sonata and at the same time to do justice to the French "goût" of the dedicatee, the Duke d'Orléans. And in this respect he succeeded admirably. The opus 1 concerti are elegant inventive and creatively scored. They give instant pleasure. Performance and sound are really fine.

[Papy Oli]

Good morning all,

Beethoven - Clarinet Trio
De Peyer, Du Pré, Barenboim

[Harry]

Traveling Songs.
Christian Rivet (Lute & Guitar), Les Joueurs de Traverse , Flute consort.


This is a very interesting CD and great fun also. I skipped the pieces in which Marc Mauillon, chants and sings, which is quite a horrible experience. But the rest of the ensembles makes amends for this.
The array of composers is well chosen, and in effect perfectly performed. The acoustic of the  Church of Saint Jean-Baptiste de Chassignelles (Yonne) greatly enhances the musical experience. So recommended with caution, for those that need fair warning.

[Papy Oli]

Brahms: Clarinet Quintet in B minor, Op. 115
Boeykens Ensemble

[Harry]

Salut d'amour
Sueye Park, violin.
Love Derwinger, Piano.

A new sparkling star in the violinist sky! That it is. Sueye Park has everything at her disposal that makes her art into something that has the stratosphere as a goal. Truly a magnificent force as several recordings testify. Sueye Park follows in the footsteps of the great old icons of violin playing, who were all magicians and capable of elevating even these trifles to the status of works of art. Her album  transports us to a long-gone world of musical beauty which is simply irresistible. SOTA sound.
 

[Papy Oli]

Brahms
String Quartet No.3 in B-flat major, Op. 67

Alban Berg Quartet

[Madiel]

Mozart: 6 German Dances, K.571



Plus a little vocal quartet that gets landed with K.571a.

[Madiel]

Ravel: the orchestral arrangement of Pavane Pour Une Infante Défunte

[Madiel]

Ravel: Ma mère l'Oye (piano duet version)



After (finally!) listening to a different recording from the one I've had for years, it turns out my slightly cool assessment of the work isn't a deficiency of that recording, it's just not one of my favourites except for the final movement. And perhaps the 3rd. But really, the finale has always been where I've felt the most engaged with the music, and it turned out to be exactly the same here.

[Todd]

[Traverso]

Mozart

CD 5

[SonicMan46]

Last few days have been going through my Mozart Piano Sonatas on modern pianos (two recent versions which culled out several previous ones) - William Youn and Mao Fujita, invasion of young orientals (Korea & Japan, respectively) who have been well reviewed (see attachments if interested); my now remaining two collections are on period instruments, Ronald Brautigam and Kristian Bezuidenhout.  Dave

 

[hopefullytrusting]

Today's opening work is Axel Ruoff's Happy Birthday Variations for Organ played by Andreas Grasle
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=piniFwqUd4o

I came across this because of Piston who, according to Wikipedia, wrote a piano work of variations on the tune Happy Birthday - actually came across a few composers who did these, but found Ruoff's the most extensive and impressive - I mean it is on the organ. I will fully admit that I've not heard of Ruoff before yesterday, and having listened to a few of his other works, probably will never again, even though he is an excellent composer and composes for one of my favorite instruments - I just didn't click with what I heard - I may return later, who knows?

As to the piece itself, it is fairly straightforward and easy to follow. The piece was composed for his publishing house, I believe, at their behest for his 80th birthday, and you can tell he had a fun time putting the organ through its paces, and you can also tell that he had not lost a step - that he was still on top of his game, compositionally. Smartly, he saves the best variation for last, but Variation 10: Grave is when we first see, in my opinion, a complete transformation of Happy Birthday into something otherworldly.

The last variation will shock no one who is a fan of the organ - it is a fugue, as the organ is the powerhouse of counterpoint, and it is fairly complex one at that - perhaps, the ironic twist, of how the simplest of tunes can be deceptively difficult, or that even the lowest of works can be made majesterial.

High recommendation.