Haydn's Haus

[jlaurson]

It seems lik this is a reissue. Prestoclassical states that the concertos were recorded in 1997.

Should be; Poppen hasn't been the director of the MKO for decades.

[Jo498]

If one looks at amazon there are several oop issues of that recording from 98 and the early 2000s. The new one seems to be the 3rd issue or so.

[Gurn Blanston]

Going to a concert series in 1792 was pretty much the same as dropping in to Avery Fisher Hall or Wigmore Hall today, right?  Well, to start, you better damn sure have your horses parked pointing the right direction!

Already a tradition!

See what I found out about concerts this week.

Thanks,

[Old Listener]

Going to a concert series in 1792 was pretty much the same as dropping in to Avery Fisher Hall or Wigmore Hall today, right?  Well, to start, you better damn sure have your horses parked pointing the right direction!

Already a tradition!

See what I found out about concerts this week.

A very enjoyable and informative read.  I appreciated your description of the role of concerts in London society and of the way things were cartried out.

[Gurn Blanston]

A very enjoyable and informative read.  I appreciated your description of the role of concerts in London society and of the way things were cartried out.

Thank you very kindly. Nice to know someone reads it!      

I really liked working on that one, because after doing last year's essays, I had a lot of  questions myself which needed answering. It is the best of all when you learn something new and someone else does too! 

[Florestan]

Already a tradition!

Most interesting, Gurn. Thanks a lot!

I particularly liked the concert reviews. Brief, informative (for the connoiseurs) and elegantly written. Comparing them with today´s reviews, replete with bombastic nonsense, is quite amusing.

Oh, and this is a gem: "Prince Esterházy didn't run a for-profit business. For all of Haydn's career, he got paid whether there was anyone or no one at all in the audience, and at Eszterháza, anyone who wasn't otherwise occupied was free to attend the concerts or operas as long as they weren't unduly intoxicated." I can imagine the following exchange between, say, a footman and a gardener: - Hey, Johann, today´s our day off, I suggest we have some pints of beer later on! - Ermmm, you see, Fritz, I´d like that but tonight the Kapellmeister will present his new ouverture and I wouldn´t miss it for all the beer in the world! 

[Gurn Blanston]

Most interesting, Gurn. Thanks a lot!

I particularly liked the concert reviews. Brief, informative (for the connoiseurs) and elegantly written. Comparing them with today´s reviews, replete with bombastic nonsense, is quite amusing.

Oh, and this is a gem: "Prince Esterházy didn't run a for-profit business. For all of Haydn's career, he got paid whether there was anyone or no one at all in the audience, and at Eszterháza, anyone who wasn't otherwise occupied was free to attend the concerts or operas as long as they weren't unduly intoxicated." I can imagine the following exchange between, say, a footman and a gardener: - Hey, Johann, today´s our day off, I suggest we have some pints of beer later on! - Ermmm, you see, Fritz, I´d like that but tonight the Kapellmeister will present his new ouverture and I wouldn´t miss it for all the beer in the world! 

Merci beaucoup!

I liked the Times review quite a lot. It was good writing, really. The Times was relatively new back then, it had only recently taken up for its predecessor, but it was already clearly of a higher standard than its competition.

Well, it wouldn't have done to show up obviously intoxicated. The punishments meted out were still Medieval!  So put down the pint and let's off to the Opera House!

[Florestan]

Well, it wouldn't have done to show up obviously intoxicated. The punishments meted out were still Medieval!  So put down the pint and let's off to the Opera House!

Interestingly enough: from the point of view of getting the opportunity to listen to great music, one had more chances if one were a servant at the aristocratic estate of Eszterhaza than if one were a free man in bourgeois London. In this respect Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser seems to have yielded better results than God Save The King, apparently. 

[Gurn Blanston]

Interestingly enough: from the point of view of getting the opportunity to listen to great music, one had more chances if one were a servant at the aristocratic estate of Eszterhaza than if one were a free man in bourgeois London. In this respect Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser seems to have yielded better results than God Save The King, apparently. 

"Free man in bourgeois London" doesn't connote any degree of cultural advancement. I don't really imagine they wanted to go to the concert. They could hear all the music they wanted, and more to their liking, at any of the music gardens like Vauxhall. And for tuppence! I sincerely doubt they, like many of us, considered it a class issue. We must be careful of applying our modern values to a distinctly non-modern situation!   

[Florestan]

We must be careful of applying our modern values to a distinctly non-modern situation!   

That´s exactly what I  wanted (perhaps clumsily) to suggest.

[Madiel]

Interestingly enough: from the point of view of getting the opportunity to listen to great music, one had more chances if one were a servant at the aristocratic estate of Eszterhaza than if one were a free man in bourgeois London.

But one had more chance as a free man in London than as a free man anywhere else.

[Florestan]

But one had more chance as a free man in London than as a free man anywhere else.

Anywhere else except perhaps the Italian states, where going to the opera house was quite popular.

[Gurn Blanston]

What did Haydn go through to make a joke? What did his audience think of all that? Those are some questions I asked myself in this week's essay. I got some answers, amazingly! 

It was only a joke, I'm sorry I woke you!

Thanks for checking it out!

[Madiel]

I do think it was one of the great things about Haydn that he thought so much about what worked for his audiences. There's a lot of thought and effort behind his style.

[Karl Henning]

A lot of natural musical intelligence resides behind art whose surface is so apparently effortless.

Separately:  today is the day, of course, to enjoy the Savall DVD . . . .

[Gurn Blanston]

A lot of natural musical intelligence resides behind art whose surface is so apparently effortless.

Separately:  today is the day, of course, to enjoy the Savall DVD . . . .

Yes, and yes. I'm off on a short jaunt, Savall will wait for late afternoon. Looking forward to it, as I only watch it once a year.  0:)

[Karl Henning]

Good jaunting, sieur!

[Gurn Blanston]

Happy Birthday, Giuseppe! 

284 years young today!

[Karl Henning]

♫ We're havin' a party!

[SonicMan46]

Just left the post below in the listening thread which will soon be 'buried' - so a repeat here for those interested in the LHQ's recordings - Dave

Haydn, Joseph - String Quartets, Op. 50 w/ the London Haydn Quartet (LHQ) - just arrived today; I've been collecting this group from the start, and now up to 30 SQs recorded - there are 68 works in this genre listed HERE, including 12 quartets that precede Op. 9 (the first double CD released by this group), including 10 numbered ones listed as Op. 1 & 2 (also two unnumbered pieces), and apparently a spurious Op. 3 - as to the pre-Op. 9 sets, I have only the 10 mentioned in the Buchberger Quartet box (first 3 CDs).

Also, appears that the LHQ will be continuing the project as quoted below (Source) - for reviews and comments on the Op. 50 performance, see the attached PDF file.  Dave

Recording update: The next volume (op 50) in the Haydn series with Hyperion will shortly be released. Meanwhile LHQ is looking forward to continuing the collaboration with producer Philip Hobbs recording the following set (op 54 and op 55) this November.