What are you listening 2 now?

[Papy Oli]

Kodály: Sonata for Solo Cello, Op. 8

Janos Starker

[Todd]

Disc two.

[DavidW]

This is cutting edge chamber music, well worth the listen and Diotima seem to have focused on the music as to quote the literature: "a powerful testament to their 25-year collaboration with visionary composer Helmut Lachenmann".

[Nostromo]

Schubert works for piano 4-hands.

[Brian]

Grace Williams' orchestral music makes for a full disc of late romantic opulence and mysticism. Many of the subjects are old legends, ballads, and medieval sites. The biggest work, the nearly half-hour Four Illustrations for the Legend of Rhiannon, is my least favorite, rather long and uneventful. Then we get a 10-minute tone poem, Castell Caernarfon, that is definitely evocative of castles, chivalric events, and heroic quests. It's rather more old-fashioned than Bax's Tintagel, but you can imagine a bit of neo-medieval pomp in the ceremonial episodes. Because the brass and timpani are working hard all 10 minutes, there's also not a lot of dynamic contrast. Interesting and entertaining, however.

A set of four short Ballads follows. These are pretty clearly in the same soundworld as the Castell, including the pounding drums, distant church bells, and rather mystical "olde" melodies. The second Ballad is a warlike march with mean intentions, while the third is soft and lyrical, the first conventionally "pretty" music on the disc.

The CD ends with the string orchestra work Sea Sketches, which seems to be on its way to becoming Williams' signature work, since it has now been recorded at least four times. The contrast with the other music is remarkable. The other works appear superficially flashy, pictorial in bright colors. Sea Sketches is more impressionistic, like Vaughan Williams or even Sibelius (in the third movement). It's less obviously flashy and melodic, and I think much more rewarding.

I'm not sure whether the orchestra is underrehearsed throughout, or whether some of the writing itself is awkward and causes a bit of a disjointed sound at times.



Gosh, the Violin Concerto's first movement is lovely! It's so warm and expressive, an outpouring of romantic spirit with long, flowing lines that seem to make the idea of sections and subjects moot. The central cadenza is surprisingly adventurous and introduces the first signs of real tension and unrest. There's a natural lead-in to an even more serene, almost spooky slow movement, in which the violinist duets with a variety of wind soloists. The lowkey, just-below-surface minor key energy finally erupts in the finale, which has the same kind of mystical, once-upon-a-time energy as the music on the first CD. The ending is rather startling: a slow episode with the violinist gradually winding down a solo, then one single concluding orchestral chord. Overall, it's very interesting and very attractive. You could, perhaps, pair it with the Alwyn violin concerto.

One interesting note: this appears to be the first ever recording for 27-year-old Geneva Lewis, but the booklet says that she appears by courtesy of her label, Alpha Classics.

The Elegy for Strings is a short, nocturnal, somewhat eerie piece. Unfortunately, I wasn't much compelled by the outer movements of the Sinfonia concertante, a sort of hybrid piano concerto, although the slow movement is compellingly weird and dramatic (and maybe a little evocative of Szymanowski's work by the same name).

[Harry]

Grace Williams' orchestral music makes for a full disc of late romantic opulence and mysticism. Many of the subjects are old legends, ballads, and medieval sites. The biggest work, the nearly half-hour Four Illustrations for the Legend of Rhiannon, is my least favorite, rather long and uneventful. Then we get a 10-minute tone poem, Castell Caernarfon, that is definitely evocative of castles, chivalric events, and heroic quests. It's rather more old-fashioned than Bax's Tintagel, but you can imagine a bit of neo-medieval pomp in the ceremonial episodes. Because the brass and timpani are working hard all 10 minutes, there's also not a lot of dynamic contrast. Interesting and entertaining, however.

A set of four short Ballads follows. These are pretty clearly in the same soundworld as the Castell, including the pounding drums, distant church bells, and rather mystical "olde" melodies. The second Ballad is a warlike march with mean intentions, while the third is soft and lyrical, the first conventionally "pretty" music on the disc.

The CD ends with the string orchestra work Sea Sketches, which seems to be on its way to becoming Williams' signature work, since it has now been recorded at least four times. The contrast with the other music is remarkable. The other works appear superficially flashy, pictorial in bright colors. Sea Sketches is more impressionistic, like Vaughan Williams or even Sibelius (in the third movement). It's less obviously flashy and melodic, and I think much more rewarding.

I'm not sure whether the orchestra is underrehearsed throughout, or whether some of the writing itself is awkward and causes a bit of a disjointed sound at times.



Gosh, the Violin Concerto's first movement is lovely! It's so warm and expressive, an outpouring of romantic spirit with long, flowing lines that seem to make the idea of sections and subjects moot. The central cadenza is surprisingly adventurous and introduces the first signs of real tension and unrest. There's a natural lead-in to an even more serene, almost spooky slow movement, in which the violinist duets with a variety of wind soloists. The lowkey, just-below-surface minor key energy finally erupts in the finale, which has the same kind of mystical, once-upon-a-time energy as the music on the first CD. The ending is rather startling: a slow episode with the violinist gradually winding down a solo, then one single concluding orchestral chord. Overall, it's very interesting and very attractive. You could, perhaps, pair it with the Alwyn violin concerto.

One interesting note: this appears to be the first ever recording for 27-year-old Geneva Lewis, but the booklet says that she appears by courtesy of her label, Alpha Classics.

The Elegy for Strings is a short, nocturnal, somewhat eerie piece. Unfortunately, I wasn't much compelled by the outer movements of the Sinfonia concertante, a sort of hybrid piano concerto, although the slow movement is compellingly weird and dramatic (and maybe a little evocative of Szymanowski's work by the same name).

I found the sound so so, not as rich in details as I expected and a bit cluttered in the strings. However I found no real weaknesses in the music, and loved all the pieces. This I thought about the first disc you posted, I have to look if the Lyrita is already on Qobuz.

[ritter]

Pulled this CD off my shelves to listen to the Brahms's Triumphlied, as it is yet another setting of an excerpt from the Book of Revelation.



Pfui Teufel! 

[ritter]

Something I am much more attuned to than the Brahms mentioned above: Bruno Maderna conducts the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra in his Quadrivium.

From this CD:

[Brian]

I found the sound so so, not as rich in details as I expected and a bit cluttered in the strings. However I found no real weaknesses in the music, and loved all the pieces. This I thought about the first disc you posted, I have to look if the Lyrita is already on Qobuz.

Yes, I found the Lyrita on Qobuz this morning! Agreed about the detail of the sound. The new BIS recording of Sea Sketches has much better sound for example.

[DavidW]

[Linz]

Claude Debussy Suite Bergamasque
Pour le Piano - Sarabande
La plus que lente (Valse)
Valse romantique
Claudio Arrau

[Harry]

Yes, I found the Lyrita on Qobuz this morning! Agreed about the detail of the sound. The new BIS recording of Sea Sketches has much better sound for example.

Not so in the Netherlands. I bookmarked the BIS recording and two Naxos CD' s with Chamber music.

[Linz]

Anton Bruckner Symphony No. 7 in E Major, 1885 Version. Ed.Leopold Nowak
SWR Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra, Sergiu Celibidache

[Nostromo]

The music on this SACD is of visceral intensity, with stunning sound. Every BMOP I own or have heard at least have fantastic sound.

[Mandryka]

His performance certainly has gravitas, but is indeed colourful and elegant at the same time. I find it a multilayered, expansive approach. I feel it is best to take this one suite at a time.

There's some extraordinary playing. Listen to track 40, sarabande G 97 in G (CD 2 track 17.)   Indeed the following chaconne G 96 is special too. I'm going to ignore your advice and listen to the next harpsichord suite now.

I'm wondering whether you'll find it too slow? I've just got the impression that you like fast harpsichord playing. Maybe your word "gravitas" is a better choice.

[PaulR]

Mussorgsky: Songs and Dances of Death

[brewski]

This is cutting edge chamber music, well worth the listen and Diotima seem to have focused on the music as to quote the literature: "a powerful testament to their 25-year collaboration with visionary composer Helmut Lachenmann".

Thanks for the alert! Though I have heard these works, I haven't yet heard them with Diotima, and they are a formidable group. PS, you're just in time to get a headstart on Lachenmann's 90th birthday, which is Thursday.

[brewski]

Lately VOCES8 has caught my ear, and today they uploaded 90 minutes of works old and new. As a capella vocal groups go, they must be one of the best at the moment.

[Papy Oli]

Beethoven
Symphony no.3
Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt - Wiener Phil.

Mvts I & II.

The rest will follow tomorrow.

[PaulR]

Bruckner: Symphony #8 in C Minor