Handel...The Harmonious Blacksmith Of Music

Started by Dancing Divertimentian, April 06, 2007, 06:36:56 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

The new erato

Quote from: Jo498 on January 09, 2016, 01:38:37 AM
Strictly speaking, his first oratorios would be the two italian pieces "La Resurrezione" and "Trionfo del tempo ed il disinganno" written when Handel was in his early 20s in Italy.

They are both fantastic pieces but rather different from the later English oratorios: Very "Italian", that is brilliant, virtuoso solo singing (also some virtuoso passages for instruments, the short sinfonia from the "Trionfo" was probably one of the first pieces with a concertante keyboard (organ) ever), hardly any choral passages.
As a longsuffering Handelian I prefer him in an Italian mode, and those two you mention are my favorite Handel oratorios.

Jo498

I think that some of the later more choral-dominated oratorios are deservedly famous, even when the overall dramaturgy might sag sometimes. E.g. "Solomon" does not really have much action to speak of (except the "harlot scene"), but the choruses are simply amazing and it is funny when Handel almost self-ironically lets Solomon give the Queen of Sheba an entertainment with 4? choral pieces each depicting a different affect/mood.

But the early italian pieces certainly deserve to be better known, although there are fortunately pretty good recordings around.
Maybe Handel basically copies the style of Alessandro Scarlatti and other older italian composers (whereas the specific stylistic fusion of the 1730-50s oratorios is his more individual "voice") but they are brilliantly done and lots of fun. And the same is true for the shorter Italian cantatas as well as the Dixit Dominus (and a few other motets/psalm settings from the Italian period).
Tout le malheur des hommes vient d'une seule chose, qui est de ne savoir pas demeurer en repos, dans une chambre.
- Blaise Pascal

The new erato

Quote from: The new erato on January 09, 2016, 01:42:21 AM
As a longsuffering Handelian I prefer him in an Italian mode, and those two you mention are my favorite Handel oratorios.
When speaking of his Italian mode, I am of course including his operas! Though I very much agree with your latest post.

jlaurson


Latest on Forbes.com:

Classical CD Of The Week: Handel At His Most English


If "no plot, no characters, no dialogue" (Ruth Smith) doesn't sound like a promising
premise for an entertaining musical work, think again: We listen to the music primarily
as it is (as we do with many very popular but daft operas and their excuses of a plot),
but if we chose to follow the text or listen carefully, we find ourselves immersed in an
enchanted literary world – very distant from ours, but beguiling...


http://www.forbes.com/sites/jenslaurson/2016/06/23/classical-cd-of-the-week-handel-at-his-most-english/#2c0582f8343d

jlaurson


latest on Forbes:

Emmanuelle Haïm Can Handel The Vienna Philharmonic

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jenslaurson/2016/09/19/emmanuelle-haim-can-handel-the-vienna-philharmonic/#7a9ac3e11d2e


Unusual and in a way typical for the Theater-an-der-Wien, which likes to think outside the box.
Emmanuelle Haïm, the third woman[1] to ever conduct the Vienna Philharmonic (or at least a
small, baroque-ensemble sized section thereof), had conducted the same George Frideric Handel
program at the Lucerne Festival and repeated it here: A first half of orchestral works and the solo
cantata Il delirio amoroso (HWV 99) in the second half.


André

Ok, 'fess up time.

I own thousands of cds, and a small but representative Handel selection (some 40 discs, mostly vocal).

But no Royal Fireworks Music  ???

Not that I'm unfamiliar with the piece, far from it. But, like many such works that have (over the years) come in all kinds of various guises (in this case: MI, PI, gaudy, strict, joyful, noisy, mellifluous, exploding with the sound of timpani, drowned under a 24-strong bassoon complement etc), I never got around to settle for a particular approach.

I have noticed that in recent years some italian baroque ensembles have recorded it. My curiosity is piqued.

I would welcome recommendations that go beyond the tried and true (Gardiner, Leppard, Pinnock - yaaawn).

Any suggestions ?

North Star

Not that I really know this repertoire well, but Savall is surely worth consideration.

[asin]B0015KGJMM[/asin]
"Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it." - Confucius

My photographs on Flickr

Jo498

Savall's is great.
Of the wind, brass, drums version I only have Pinnock's (and have not listened to it for ages as I prefer the version including strings).

[asin]B00VW66YX8[/asin] [asin]B001GT18FA[/asin] [asin]B000025QH3[/asin] [asin]B0027DWABK[/asin]

I have not heard Zefiro's (as far as I know the same recording appeared on Arcana and dhm) but this is probably one of the "wild italian" readings and their disc with the water music (+ Telemann's Hamburger Ebb und Flut) is great and I highly recommend it, it might even beat the classic Musica Antiqua Telemann recording.
Another one with a great coupling (concerti a due cori, IMO better than the Fireworks and Water musics and far less known) is Tafelmusik/Sony although this is certainly more restrained than Zefiro and more in the Pinnock/Gardiner vein. I actually recommend it more for the concerti a due cori (and it has the best cover after Savall's ;)) but it might have been superseded by Zefiro as well.

I still keep Leppard's because to me it seems more pompous than any of the others I have.
Tout le malheur des hommes vient d'une seule chose, qui est de ne savoir pas demeurer en repos, dans une chambre.
- Blaise Pascal

HIPster

Quote from: Jo498 on March 05, 2017, 12:09:52 AM
Savall's is great.

I have not heard Zefiro's (as far as I know the same recording appeared on Arcana and dhm) but this is probably one of the "wild italian" readings and their disc with the water music (+ Telemann's Hamburger Ebb und Flut) is great and I highly recommend it, it might even beat the classic Musica Antiqua Telemann recording.
Another one with a great coupling (concerti a due cori, IMO better than the Fireworks and Water musics and far less known) is Tafelmusik/Sony although this is certainly more restrained than Zefiro and more in the Pinnock/Gardiner vein. I actually recommend it more for the concerti a due cori (and it has the best cover after Savall's ;)) but it might have been superseded by Zefiro as well.

I still keep Leppard's because to me it seems more pompous than any of the others I have.

Jo498 picks some of my own recommendations.

I'll add this very fine Italian group to the mix:

[asin]B0019BCKMU[/asin]

This is the recording I reach for the most for the Water Music, often just letting the Fireworks play (some of my least favorite Handel).

Zefiro's Handel/Telemann/Handel program is very effective.  A close second for me in the Water Music category.

I think Paul Dombrecht's group has recorded the Fireworks, perhaps? 

Cheers.  :)
Wise words from Que:

Never waste a good reason for a purchase....  ;)

Jo498

#89
Yes, Dombrecht has it also coupled with two concerti a due cori. The disc is also found in an older Vanguard incarnation as "Ceremonial Music". This is pretty good but I sold it in a phase of slimming down the collection, slightly preferring Tafelmusik and Savall. And I am not all that fond of the Fireworks either, except for La paix which is one my favorite pieces ever, and furthermore I usually find the HIP recordings too slimmed down. As I said above, that's why I still keep Leppard's around. (Marriner's is also not pompous enough despite modern instruments.)
Tout le malheur des hommes vient d'une seule chose, qui est de ne savoir pas demeurer en repos, dans une chambre.
- Blaise Pascal


milk

Quote from: Bogey on March 28, 2014, 07:45:45 AM
Another wonderful disc that is entering the tray:



Handel's chamber music is some of my favorite.  Harry sent me some Brilliant recordings many moons ago and those hooked me.
I've a hard time getting into this, partly because of the way it's recorded. Are there any other recommended recordings of this? HIP ones?

Jo498

Christie/Kurosaki is more intimate and has the organ in a few pieces (I think it skips some of the dubious works). One caveat is that the original edition is copy protected (one of a handful of such disks that found their way into my collection) but this might not affect more recent editions.
The one on Brilliant (crd) is rather minimalist and sometimes a little dry. I have not heard any others, except for the odd sonata in a mixed anthology.
Tout le malheur des hommes vient d'une seule chose, qui est de ne savoir pas demeurer en repos, dans une chambre.
- Blaise Pascal

milk

Quote from: Jo498 on January 10, 2019, 03:32:25 AM
Christie/Kurosaki is more intimate and has the organ in a few pieces (I think it skips some of the dubious works). One caveat is that the original edition is copy protected (one of a handful of such disks that found their way into my collection) but this might not affect more recent editions.
The one on Brilliant (crd) is rather minimalist and sometimes a little dry. I have not heard any others, except for the odd sonata in a mixed anthology.
Thanks!

Jo498

This one has a new cover, so I'd expect that it  is without copy protection. It has 7 sonatas, some of dubious authenticity.

[asin]B003XSXLMK[/asin]

This is the one reissued on Brilliant. It has only 4 violin sonatas, apparently the only ones certainly by Handel and certainly for violin. It is so minimalist that in one sonata they play with violin and cello only, no keyboard. (I eventually got rid of it, only kept two discs with trio sonatas from the brilliant edition).

[asin]B000025W42[/asin]

My favorite mixed chamber disc with Handel is this one, it includes one violin sonata d minor 359a.

[asin]B000OY6ITY[/asin]
Tout le malheur des hommes vient d'une seule chose, qui est de ne savoir pas demeurer en repos, dans une chambre.
- Blaise Pascal

kyjo

I heard Zadok the Priest on the radio recently and had forgotten what a stirring work it is!
"Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music" - Sergei Rachmaninoff

SurprisedByBeauty

Arguably a new Reference Recording. Not "The Best"... but an excellent standard against which to judge others. (If one wanted to judge in the first place, I suppose.  ;D)



A (Very!) Fine #Messiah From Václav Luks and Collegium 1704

https://classicstoday.com/review/a-fine-messiah-from-vaclav-luks-and-collegium-1704/

vers la flamme

I'm learning the Sarabande from his D minor harpsichord suite. Very nice piece.

Quote from: kyjo on January 10, 2019, 09:43:50 AM
I heard Zadok the Priest on the radio recently and had forgotten what a stirring work it is!
Indeed a killer piece! Almost enough to sway me to Monarchism! :P

Jo498

In European soccer they arranged a bit of Zadok as the incidental music for the "Champions league". Quite ludicrous, but it still retains some of the power of the original.
Tout le malheur des hommes vient d'une seule chose, qui est de ne savoir pas demeurer en repos, dans une chambre.
- Blaise Pascal

SurprisedByBeauty