Haydn's Haus

[71 dB]

But I'm not really able to comment, as this is the 'wrong end' of Haydn for me - I consider Op.20 was Haydn's peak and later Papa becomes progressively less interesting to me.

Interesting!! I only knew Op. 64 (Kodaly) and Op. 76 (Quartuor Mosaïques) and struggle to enjoy them so I never bothered to explore Haydn's String Quartets further thinking they just aren't my thing. Now I am streaming Op. 20/1 (Kodaly) on Spotify and holy shit! I am really liking it!  I have just tried too "modern" stuff to my liking! Thanks for this "enlightement" !  0:)

[Daverz]

If you don't mind lossy files and an older style Haydn playing from the 60s/70s (which I like very much, myself), I highly recommend the Vox "Mega" Box that combines the Dekany and Fine Arts Quartet Vox recordings.

https://www.amazon.com/Haydn-Complete-String-Quartets-VoxMegaBox/dp/B00YRDOGKQ

Qobuz has FLAC files, but I don't know if they are just upsampled versions of the MP3s.

https://open.qobuz.com/album/0047163598524

EDIT: I went ahead and bought the FLACs from Qobuz (only $8; I only paid something like $3 for the MP3s).  I can report the FLACs are not just upsampled MP3s, as shown on the spectrograms below.  These were generated by the app FakinTheFunk, a useful app for checking the quality of lossless files.

So I can confidently recommend the lossless downloads of this Vox set, if you can find them.  They are actually cheaper on Qobuz than the MP3s on Amazon.

[Madiel]

Please stop talking as if the Kodaly would put people off. We are partly having this conversation - not just a Haydn conversation, but any conversation on GMG at all - because about 30 years ago I bought the Kodaly op.76 on cassette.

[Gurn Blanston]

Please stop talking as if the Kodaly would put people off. We are partly having this conversation - not just a Haydn conversation, but any conversation on GMG at all - because about 30 years ago I bought the Kodaly op.76 on cassette.

They were my introduction to every Haydn SQ except for Op 76. I would still say today that if I had never gotten another CD of Haydn quartets, I would still feel the music was as fabulous and eminently listenable as when I bought those in the mid to early 90's. If the Kodaly on Naxos are all you have, you're doing perfectly OK, in my opinion.

[Mandryka]

But I'm not really able to comment, as this is the 'wrong end' of Haydn for me - I consider Op.20 was Haydn's peak and later Papa becomes progressively less interesting to me.

Yes me too, in this case my lack of interest in the music has stopped me from hearing it.

[Jo498]

Please stop talking as if the Kodaly would put people off. We are partly having this conversation - not just a Haydn conversation, but any conversation on GMG at all - because about 30 years ago I bought the Kodaly op.76 on cassette.

They could not put me off but neither could they convince me. The Kodaly's op.20,4-6 was among the first three or so Haydn quartet discs I bought around 1996 and I found it rather boring. The other disc I remember was a live one with the Lindsays, rough and sloppy but far more gripping. The third was a cheap disc with some Russian ensemble that included the "Rider" (not even sure about the rest, maybe the "Fifths" as well).
It is pprobably not relevant nowadays but in the 1990s the Penguine (or Gramophone or both) was totally enamored with the Kodaly Haydn, giving them most of them rosettes and 3 star gradings and hardly recommending anything else. Then there was the low Naxos price and for the newbie it was not clear that none of the Penguin guys was all that interested in Haydn, so solid and cheap was apparently enough for getting a top recommendation (they also recommended several of the rather mixed Haydn symphonies on Naxos), something they'd never have done with Beethoven or Sibelius symphonies, I think.

[Madiel]

Ahem. They did not give the same recommendation to all of the Kodaly. Op.76 was the top rating they gave. And as I still have a couple of old Penguin Guides I can tell you that they did not recommend op.20.

In other words, you're basically conflating your poor experience of an album in the series that the Penguin Guide said was one of the poorer ones with a statement about the entire series.

If you really want I can give you a blow by blow of the ratings that Kodaly got for different opuses as of the 2003 edition (I think that's the oldest complete book I still have), but I know for certain that in all editions, some opuses did not get 3 stars and I believe op.76 was the only one that ever got a Rosette. Certainly it wasn't most of them. You're just making stuff up, now.

EDIT: In fact in the 2003 edition op.20 gets the lowest rating from Penguin of any of the Kodaly albums. It was never recommended, so don't blame Penguin for you finding it boring.

[Mandryka]

I happened to listen to Kodaly op 20/3 a couple of months ago and I thought it was one of the better modern instrument recordings I'd heard at least from the point of view of their conception of the music. What I mean is, it was serious, which i think is good.

But it's all so subjective, I can't see the point behind Mosaïques for example.

[amw]

I have all the Auryns but can't recommend them as a go-to unless the set becomes available as a cheaper box or you're ok with digital piracy (the lack of the first one may lead to the second one). They are probably the best overall set though.

More specific recommendations:

Op.20 - Chiaroscuro, Pellegrini, Hagen
Op.33 - Casals, Apponyi
Op.50 - Nomos, London Haydn Quartet, Amati
Op.54 - Parkanyi, LHQ
Op.55 - LHQ
Op.64 - Doric
Op.71 - the early Auryn recording (before their complete cycle)
Op.74 -
Op.76 - Takács, potentially Chiaroscuro when done

I think at this point 50 is my favourite opus and definitely the one where I have the most recordings.

I have not heard the Kodály Quartet in a long time but I used to have their Op.76 and it was pretty good (no longer have it because I got rid of most of my MP3s to save space, and I'd checked it out from the library before I knew how to rip losslessly)

[Madiel]

I have all the Auryns but can't recommend them as a go-to unless the set becomes available as a cheaper box or you're ok with digital piracy (the lack of the first one may lead to the second one). They are probably the best overall set though.

More specific recommendations:

Op.20 - Chiaroscuro, Pellegrini, Hagen
Op.33 - Casals, Apponyi
Op.50 - Nomos, London Haydn Quartet, Amati
Op.54 - Parkanyi, LHQ
Op.55 - LHQ
Op.64 - Doric
Op.71 - the early Auryn recording (before their complete cycle)
Op.74 -
Op.76 - Takács, potentially Chiaroscuro when done

I think at this point 50 is my favourite opus and definitely the one where I have the most recordings.

I have not heard the Kodály Quartet in a long time but I used to have their Op.76 and it was pretty good (no longer have it because I got rid of most of my MP3s to save space, and I'd checked it out from the library before I knew how to rip losslessly)

So does this mean you think op.54/55 is one of the LHQ's best efforts?

[71 dB]

The Kodaly's op.20,4-6 was among the first three or so Haydn quartet discs I bought around 1996 and I found it rather boring. The other disc I remember was a live one with the Lindsays, rough and sloppy but far more gripping.

I don't believe Naxos' philosophy is to be rough, sloppy but gripping... 

[amw]

So does this mean you think op.54/55 is one of the LHQ's best efforts?

Yes, although I like all of their recordings generally so I may not be the most reliable source here. I remember the 54/55 and 64 being probably their strongest recordings though (although 20 and 33 are also good if you're interested in hearing alternative, somewhat "classicising" takes on these works).

[71 dB]

I have all the Auryns but can't recommend them as a go-to unless the set becomes available as a cheaper box or you're ok with digital piracy (the lack of the first one may lead to the second one). They are probably the best overall set though.

More specific recommendations:

Op.20 - Chiaroscuro, Pellegrini, Hagen
Op.33 - Casals, Apponyi
Op.50 - Nomos, London Haydn Quartet, Amati
Op.54 - Parkanyi, LHQ
Op.55 - LHQ
Op.64 - Doric
Op.71 - the early Auryn recording (before their complete cycle)
Op.74 -
Op.76 - Takács, potentially Chiaroscuro when done

I think at this point 50 is my favourite opus and definitely the one where I have the most recordings.

I have not heard the Kodály Quartet in a long time but I used to have their Op.76 and it was pretty good (no longer have it because I got rid of most of my MP3s to save space, and I'd checked it out from the library before I knew how to rip losslessly)

I am constantly amazed how people have time and money to be able to do lists like this. I would probably do this myself if Haydn was the only composer in the universe. Haydn was scary prolific, one the reasons I have never gotten well into his music. It's too much...  ...but now I discoved Op. 20.   

[amw]

I am constantly amazed how people have time and money to be able to do lists like this.

I multitask, mostly. I'm never really "just" listening to music (except at bedtime when I'll put it on to play overnight). Also I've done a lot of music piracy (and ripping library CDs, borrowing CDs from other people, etc).

(+ also I suppose I always am listening analytically because that's what I've been trained to do)

[Jo498]

Ahem. They did not give the same recommendation to all of the Kodaly. Op.76 was the top rating they gave. And as I still have a couple of old Penguin Guides I can tell you that they did not recommend op.20.

In other words, you're basically conflating your poor experience of an album in the series that the Penguin Guide said was one of the poorer ones with a statement about the entire series.

If you really want I can give you a blow by blow of the ratings that Kodaly got for different opuses as of the 2003 edition (I think that's the oldest complete book I still have), but I know for certain that in all editions, some opuses did not get 3 stars and I believe op.76 was the only one that ever got a Rosette. Certainly it wasn't most of them. You're just making stuff up, now.

EDIT: In fact in the 2003 edition op.20 gets the lowest rating from Penguin of any of the Kodaly albums. It was never recommended, so don't blame Penguin for you finding it boring.

I am not going to dispute this although I cannot check if these ratings were already the same in 1995 or maybe revised. But if you still have those Penguin guides you should be able to confirm how much they generally love the Kodaly. "Only" one Rosette, so what, there were plenty of 3 star or 2.5 star ratings. The general impression one received (at least in ca. 95/96) was that they were standard/top recommendations, I think for some opus numbers they hardly bothered to mention anyone besides Kodaly.
If you are so satisfied with the Kodaly, why not simply get the rest of theirs? Cheap, available separately, what's not to like?

[Madiel]

Yes, although I like all of their recordings generally so I may not be the most reliable source here. I remember the 54/55 and 64 being probably their strongest recordings though (although 20 and 33 are also good if you're interested in hearing alternative, somewhat "classicising" takes on these works).

Thanks. The first thing I tried sampling (first track of the op.9 album) just sounded dreadful to me. The brief sample of 54/55 was considerably better so I might go explore that one. Not least because, in the plan I'm gradually cobbling together, I don't yet have a clear candidate for that set of works.

Of course I might just throw the whole plan away and pick up the Kodaly box...

[Madiel]

If you are so satisfied with the Kodaly, why not simply get the rest of theirs?

You might want to turn down the contrast so you can see shades of grey again. You're now doing to me EXACTLY what someone else did to you.

[Madiel]

Is anyone familiar with this?

[Jo498]

I am constantly amazed how people have time and money to be able to do lists like this. I would probably do this myself if Haydn was the only composer in the universe. Haydn was scary prolific, one the reasons I have never gotten well into his music. It's too much...  ...but now I discoved Op. 20.   

You have to consider over how much time people do this. (And money has become a lesser concern with streaming and grey sources). Also, how much more some people might be interested in certain works, e.g. Haydn quartets. I got the Angeles box in the early 2000s. I am not sure, but I think I had roughly half of the pieces before on disc, so we are talking about 20-25 years (considering that I maybe bought the first Haydn quartet disc 1995)
Besides this I have or have had the following physically on my shelves (bought discs, not copies or downloads) with those in brackets I got rid of again. I have listened to all of them with the exception of a few in the Amadeus and Pro Arte boxes (I am not listing all the historical Pro Arte because that's too much work, see below)

op.1 Petersen
op.3 etc. Kodaly
op.9 Festetics, Buchberger
op.17 Festetics, Auryn, (Kodaly 3,5,6)
op.20 Hagen, Tatrai, Mosaiques (Festetics, Kodaly 4-6)
op.33 Weller, Casals, Auryn, Apponyi (Buchberger)
op.50 Festetics, Amati (Nomos)
op.51 Cherubini, Mosaiques, Amadeus
op.54 Endellion, Amadeus, Festetics, (Juilliard as LP dubs)
op.55 Amadeus, Festetics, Panocha
op.64 Caspar da Salo, Festetics, Amadeus, Mosaiques (1,3,6) (Festetics (old), Orlando 4-6)
op.71 Auryn (old), Festetics, Amadeus, Griller
op.74 Festetics, Amadeus, Griller
op.76 Tatrai, Carmina, Mosaiques, Eder(2-4), (Tokyo)
op.77 Mosaiques, Archibudelli, Amati

1 disc Anthologies; Hagen, 2xSchuppanzigh, 2xJerusalem, Hungarian, 2xLindsay, Janacek, Juilliard

[asin]B071FL96LX[/asin]

[71 dB]

I multitask, mostly. I'm never really "just" listening to music (except at bedtime when I'll put it on to play overnight). Also I've done a lot of music piracy (and ripping library CDs, borrowing CDs from other people, etc).

(+ also I suppose I always am listening analytically because that's what I've been trained to do)

I used to listen to music almost all the time ~20 years ago, but nowadays I almost prefer silence. 1-2 hours of music per day seems to be enough.  Multitasking weakens my ability to listen analytically, but it depents on what I do. For example when I write posts here concentrating on music is difficult because a lot of my brain power goes to "linguistic" tasks, But I can watch TV without sound while listening to music, because those use different areas in my brain.