Your Top 5 Favorite Honegger Works

[Wanderer]

Let's see, let's see...

In number one position (by a wide margin), Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher...

...followed by (in no particular order):
- Symphony No. 4, " Deliciæ Basilienses"
- Six poèmes de Guillaume Apollinaire (particularly the third one, Automne)
- Pastorale d'été
- Une cantate de Noël

Ι'd choose Le Roi David or the Cello Concerto instead of the Pastorale d'été, otherwise the same list for me as well (including the clear preference of Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher over the others).

[kyjo]

Cello Concerto
Le roi David (just wish there wasn't so much damn narration! )
Pastorale d'été
Sonatina for Violin and Cello
Symphony no. 3 Liturgique

Bonus: Cantate de Noël

Must listen to Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher which I expect is an impressive work.

[Mirror Image]

Cello Concerto
Le roi David (just wish there wasn't so much damn narration! )
Pastorale d'été
Sonatina for Violin and Cello
Symphony no. 3 Liturgique

Bonus: Cantate de Noël

Must listen to Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher which I expect is an impressive work.

Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher is a masterpiece. I'm actually quite surprised you haven't heard it. Listen to the Baudo performance on Supraphon. It's stunning.

[kyjo]

Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher is a masterpiece. I'm actually quite surprised you haven't heard it. Listen to the Baudo performance on Supraphon. It's stunning.

Will do, John! It's certainly one of my most egregious "blind spots" along with, of course, Szymanowski's 2nd Symphony!

[vandermolen]

Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher is a masterpiece. I'm actually quite surprised you haven't heard it. Listen to the Baudo performance on Supraphon. It's stunning.

+1 Baudo is best.

[Mirror Image]

+1 Baudo is best.

I bought the Ozawa and Rilling recordings recently, but haven't heard those, but, yes, Baudo is excellent. I also like this more recent one:

[Iota]

https://www.youtube.com/v/W4T3jO1WMmM

Hmm, sounds good ..

[Mirror Image]

https://www.youtube.com/v/W4T3jO1WMmM

Hmm, sounds good ..

It's available on CD and DVD. I sprung for the CD and, yes, it's quite a fine performance.

[Iota]

Having not heard the work before, I had a listen (with a few distractions) to the Cotillard recording above, and I agree it seems very fine. I wanted to hear the Baudo after all that's been said about it here, though sadly it wasn't available on my streaming sites, though I see it's on youtube so may give that a go.
Initial impression of the work is that it's a great piece, deserving of all the plaudits it's received above. Glad to have yet again been guided to a little packet of treasure by the forces of GMG. 

[Uhor]

Pacific 231
Symphony 4 'Delights of Basel'
Pastorale d'été
Symphony No. 2
Cello Concerto

Unsure about the oratorios. Chamber music is pretty good too.

[ritter]

Having not heard the work before, I had a listen (with a few distractions) to the Cotillard recording above, and I agree it seems very fine. I wanted to hear the Baudo after all that's been said about it here, though sadly it wasn't available on my streaming sites, though I see it's on youtube so may give that a go.
Initial impression of the work is that it's a great piece, deserving of all the plaudits it's received above. Glad to have yet again been guided to a little packet of treasure by the forces of GMG. 

Indeed, Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher is a thrilling piece (both Honegger's music and Claudel's text). There's many very good recordings of the piece.

For those interested in watching a stage version, though, I take the liberty of recommending this DVD:


The staging is rather spare, but what Sylvie Testud achieves in the title rôle is mesmerising. A tour de force of an interpretation (within a very successful performance of the work as a whole, which brings it brilliantly to life).

[Iota]

Indeed, Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher is a thrilling piece (both Honegger's music and Claudel's text).

Yes indeed, I was reading yesterday that Honegger himself was effusive about Claudel's text, his music being a mere servant of it. 
Interesting also that Claudel initially said no after a meeting with Honegger, finding the idea too complicated, but on the train on the way home he had a sudden burst of inspiration and the text was finished a few days later!

[vandermolen]

I bought the Ozawa and Rilling recordings recently, but haven't heard those, but, yes, Baudo is excellent. I also like this more recent one:

Me too.

[André]

What a great picture!

Well, that's Honegger doing his Mermoz impersonation. The french aviator was a great inspiration to the composer.

[The new erato]

I've put this in the player:



I haven't listened to this in this millenium. (Edit: I find this too noisy and slightly too chaotic for its own good, though undoubtedly powerful. It may be the recording - is it live? Very reverberant sound as well)

BTW in 2011 I visited Rouen and the square where the stake was.

Crosspost from the listening thread.

[ritter]

I've put this in the player:



I haven't listened to this in this millenium. (Edit: I find this too noisy and slightly too chaotic for its own good, though undoubtedly powerful. It may be the recording - is it live? Very reverberant sound as well)

BTW in 2011 I visited Rouen and the square where the stake was.

Crosspost from the listening thread.

AFAIK, it is live, from the Saint-Dénis basilica North of Paris. So yes, the reverberation seems to be an inevitable consequence of the recording conditions.

I got to know the work on LP with the Baudo recording on Supraphon, which is highly regarded by many, but doesn't fully convince me. Then, on CD, it was first this Ozawa set, which I like very much. I have several other ones in my collection: the pioneering Ormandy on Columbia / Pristine Audio, which is not competitive as it lacks the ondes Martenot --apparently, the instrument was not available in the US when the recording was made--, the Soustrot on Alpha --very good overall--, the Cochereau from Nice on Solstice --fine--, the Rilling on Hänssler --also a top recommendation IMHO--, and the Altinoglu on DVD I mentioned above --which remains my favourite because of Sylvie Testud's heroine.

I'm looking forward to seeing the piece staged here in Madrid at the Teatro Real later this season (the curtain raiser will be Debussy's La Damoiselle Élue, so the whole program is very attractive to me!). 

[The new erato]

Slightly envious of that, and thanks for the reply. Hopefully I'm going to San Sebastian and Llanes in June, I've lost my heart to that part of Spain.

[ritter]

.... Hopefully I'm going to San Sebastian and Llanes in June, I've lost my heart to that part of Spain.

June is the best time of the year to visit the Northern Coast! Enjoy!

[The new erato]

June is the best time of the year to visit the Northern Coast! Enjoy!

Thanks. Yes I know. Have been there twice. Completely in love withe the area (and the Pyrenees as well). With luck I may be able to extend the visit to Salamanca, another place that completely bowled me over.

And I've met lots of extremely friendly Spanish tourists escaping from the heat and drinking along ther Mediterranean coast.

[André]

AFAIK, it is live, from the Saint-Dénis basilica North of Paris. So yes, the reverberation seems to be an inevitable consequence of the recording conditions.

I got to know the work on LP with the Baudo recording on Supraphon, which is highly regarded by many, but doesn't fully convince me. Then, on CD, it was first this Ozawa set, which I like very much. I have several other ones in my collection: the pioneering Ormandy on Columbia / Pristine Audio, which is not competitive as it lacks the ondes Martenot --apparently, the instrument was not available in the US when the recording was made--, the Soustrot on Alpha --very good overall--, the Cochereau from Nice on Solstice --fine--, the Rilling on Hänssler --also a top recommendation IMHO--, and the Altinoglu on DVD I mentioned above --which remains my favourite because of Sylvie Testud's heroine.

I'm looking forward to seeing the piece staged here in Madrid at the Teatro Real later this season (the curtain raiser will be Debussy's La Damoiselle Élue, so the whole program is very attractive to me!). 

Jeanne is a work that greatly benefits from a staged concert presentation (good lighting and a few backdrops are all that's necessary). That's how it was presented here in Montréal (Nagano conducting, Carole Bouquet as Jeanne). Claudel's text draws the listener in with great dramatic force. There was nothing else on the program. Very impressive evening.