What were you listening to? (CLOSED)

[longears]

Wow! Really enjoying these Bridge quartets.

Gramophone loved them, too.  What else of his are you familiar with?

[Kullervo]

Gramophone loved them, too.  What else of his are you familiar with?

Nothing, this is my first time hearing him.

[longears]

Now playing:


I also recommend his tone poems conducted by Groves in the EMI British composers series.

[Kullervo]

Now playing:


I also recommend his tone poems conducted by Groves in the EMI British composers series.

Thank you. I've been on a chamber music kick as of late so I will probably pick up those trios next.

[Don]

On that subject I have to say that the habit of showing off women's glamour on cd covers puts me off big time. I resent it because it implies either that without this 'incentive' the artist wouldn't have sales, or that the potential buyer (me) cannot make a purchase decision based on purely musical grounds. Either way it's quite offensive.

I don't have any problem with it.  Guys like looking at "women's glamour" - no big deal.

[locrian]

I don't have any problem with it.  Guys like looking at "women's glamour" - no big deal.

Lilas Pastia must be easily offended.

[locrian]

LvB: Violin Sonata op. 30/3
Kreisler and Rachmaninoff

[locrian]

Schubert: V Son in A, D 574
Kreisler and Rachmaninoff

[Kullervo]

[Que]

Q

[Bogey]

Rudolf Serkin
The First Recordings
EMI

[Que]

Debussy - En blanc et noir, for 2 pianos L. 134
Gaby & Robert Casadesus

Fauré - Dolly, suite for piano 4 hands Op. 56
Gaby & Robert Casadesus

Fauré:
Préludes Op. 103 nos. 1, 3 and 5.
Nocturne no. 7 in C sharp minor, Op. 74
Barcarolle no. 5 in F sharp minor, Op. 66
Impromptu no. 5 in F sharp minor, Op. 102
Robert Casadesus

Ravel - Piano Concerto in D major for the left hand
Robert Casadesus, Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Eugene Ormandy

Q

[The new erato]

Today:

Saint-Saens: Pf trios 1-2, Naxos. Classy disc.

Schein: Diletti Pastorale, Cantus Cølln, Deutsche HM. Fine disc, but his cycle Istraels Brunnlein is a better work.

Disc 1 from A-Z of Great Pianists, Naxos. Lots of great pianism, I particularly liked Busoni and Fischer in Busoni, and Feinberg in Scriabin sonatat nr 2

Carter: Quartet 2, 4, Arditti on Etcetera. My first meeting with these works, and after years of hearing how difficult these are, I didn't find it difficult to listen to them at all.

Yesterday:
Røntgen: Viola sonatas and songs with viola on Etcetera. Strongly recommended!

Handel: Rodelinda, Curtis, DGG Archiv. Astounding music as always with vocal Handel.

Saint- Saens: Violin works, disc 1, Hoelscher/Derveaux. What an underrated composer!

Scarlatti: La Santissima Trinita, Europa Galante, Biondi

[George]

I like that one, Q! 

[RebLem]

In the week ending Saturday, 13 OCT 2007, I listened to the following:

1, 2. 10/10 Soloists of the [Chicago Symphony] Orchestra III, Volume 21 of "From the Archives," a 2 CD set issued 4/2007 of performances of the Chicago Symphony recorded for radio broadcast. Recordings were made in Orchestra Hall, Chicago, except as noted. CD 1—a) Vivaldi: Concerto for 2 Trumpets in C Major, F. IX #1 (7:27)—Antonio Janigro, cond., Adolph "Bud" Herseth, Vincent Cichowicz, trumpets, June 6, 1966. b) Vivladi: Piccolo Concerto in C Major, F. VI #4 (10:08 )—Antonio Janigro, cond., Walfrid Kujala, piccolo, June 6, 1966. c) Mozart: Oboe Concerto in C Major, K. 271 (21:13)—Christoph Eschenbach, cond., Alex Klein, oboe, June 26, 1997 at Ravinia Festival, Highland Park, IL. d) Gould, Morton: Pavane from American Symphonette # 2 (3:09)—Morton Gould, cond., Adolph "Bud" Herseth, trumpet, January 29, 1966. e) Gould, Morton: Flute Concerto (27:37)---Sir Georg Solti, cond., Donald Peck, flute—recorded April 18 & 20, 1985. This was a world premiere performance of a work commissioned by Peck. f) Fisher/Gould: Chicago (song, here played without vocalist) (2:14)—Daniel Barenboim, cond., Larry Combs, clarinet, recorded September 21, 1991, Petrillo Music Shell, Grant Park, Chicago. CD 2—a) Korngold: Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 35 (26:25)—Mariss Jansons, cond., Samuel Magad, violin—recorded February 20 & 26, 1994 b) Rozsa: Sinfonia Concertante for Violin, Cello, & Orchestra, Op. 29 (34:03) ---Jean Martinon, cond., Victor Aitay, violin, Frank Miller, cello, recorded September 22, 1966 at Mandel Hall, University of Chicago c) Verbal tribute to Frank Miller, principal cellist of the CSO, by Sir Georg Solti, on January 16, 1986, ten days after Miller's death. (2:05) d) Elgar: Nimrod, a variation from Variations on an original theme, Op. 36 aka the Enigma Variations (4:08 )—Sir Georg Solti, cond. (A Miller favorite, performed as part of the tribute to him). e) Boulez: Messagesquisse for seven cellos (8:24)—Daniel Barenboim, cond., John Sharp, Stephen Balderston, Philip Blum, Loren Brown, Richard Hirschl, Jonathan Pegis, & Gary Stucka, cellos. Recorded Sept 22, 1994.

Of special interest here is the musicianship of Frank Miller. He was a professional cellist from 1930-1985. a span of 55 years. Born in 1912, he studied at the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia, and joined the Philadelphia Orchestra under Leopold Stokowski in 1930 at age 18. In 1935, he went to the Minneapolis Symphony (now renamed the Minnesota Symphony) as principal cellist under Eugene Ormandy, and from 1940-1954 he was principal cellist in the NBC Symphony under Arturo Toscanini. This, of course, was particularly impressive, as the cello was Toscanini's own instrument, and Toscanini made a number of RCA recordings with him as soloist. After Miller did a 2 year stint with the Casals Festival in Puerto Rico, Fritz Reiner invited him to join the Chicago Symphony, and there he stayed, from 1959 until 1985, shortly before his death on January 6, 1986. From 1962-1984, he was also MD of the Evanston Symphony, a community symphony orchestra, in Evanston, IL, just north of Chicago. In 1964, he co-founded and became MD of the Savoyaires, an amateur North Shore Gilbert and Sullivan troupe. Although the Chicago Symphony gave him carte blanche to purchase at their expense any expensive old cello in the world, he preferred modern cellos. He came to Chicago with a 1941 Paul Pilat cello, and while in Chicago, he bought and played several cellos made by Fritz Reuter & Sons. All his instruments seem to have been modeled on old instruments made by Matteo Gofriller. Although he was briefly persuaded to play the 1731 Stradivarius "Braga" cello in the CSO's collection of old instruments, he went back to his modern cellos. It is a measure of the esteem in which Miller was held that January 16, 1986 is the only occasion in Sir Georg Solti's entire career as a conductor when he spoke to an audience before beginning a concert.

3. 10/10 Bach, J.S.: Cantatas 148 (18:22), 149 (19:06), 150 (15:21), 141 (18:09)—Helmuth Rilling, cond. usual suspects.—hanssler CD, Vol. 46 of CBE, recorded 1971—1984.

3. 10/10 Bach, J.S.: 16 organ works from Weimar, Kothen, & Leipzig periods (59:16)—S. 537, 539, 547, 573, 590, 691, 696-699, 701, 703, 704, 728, 735, & 753—Bine Katrine Bryndorf. organist. hanssler CD, Vol. 96 of CBE. Rec 1999.

4. 10/10 Beethoven: 3 CD Brilliant set of 3 sacred choral works. CD 1 & 2--Missa Solemnis in D Major, Op. 123 (87:51)—Carlo Maria Giulini, cond., London Phil Orch, New Philharmonia Chorus, Heather Harper, soprano, Janet Baker, mezzo-soprano, Robert Tear, tenor, Hans Sotin, bass.. CD 2—Mass in C Major, Op. 86 ( 48:13)---Carlo Maria Giulini, cond. New Philharmonia Orch & Chorus, Elly Ameling, soprano, Janet Baker, mezzo-soprano, Theo Altmeyer, tenor, Marius Rintzler, bass. CD 3—Christus am Oelberge (Christ on the Mount of Olives, Op 85 (53:52)---Helmuth Rilling, cond., Bach-Collegium Stuttgart, Gaechinger Kantorei, Stuttgart, Maria Venuti, Soprano (Seraph), Keith Lewis, tenor (Jesus), Michel Brodard, bass (Petrus)—CDs 1 & 2 recorded 1970, CD 3 in 1994. This whole set is well worth getting, but especially wonderful is the Missa Solemnis. It is way too slow, I must tell you, but Giulini's phrasing is absolutely enchantingly gorgeous throughout.

5,6,7,8,9,10,11—10/10 Schumann: Solo piano works, a collection—Vladimir Ashkenazy, piano---7 CD Decca set. CD 1—Arabesque, Op. 18 (6:29), Papillons, Op. 2 (15:13), Symphonic Etudes, Op. 13 (24:43) CD 2—Carnaval, Op. 9 (29:35), Humoreske, Op. 20 (25:28 ), Novellette, Op. 21/1 (4:52), Novellette, Op. 21/2 (5:44) CD 3---Waldszenen (Forest scenes), Op. 82 (21:44), Kinderszenen (Scenes from childhood), Op. 15 (19:13), Sonata # 1 in F sharp minor, Op. 11 (32:55) CD 4---Phantasiestucke, Op. 12 (27:19), Blumenstuck, Op. 19 (5:58 ), Davidsbundlertanze, Op. 6 (37:29) CD 5---Kreisleriana, Op. 16 (31:07), Novellette, Op. 21/8 (10:49), Sonata # 2 in G minor, Op. 22 (16:39) CD 6---"Abegg" Variations, Op. 1 (7:45), Fantasie in C major, Op. 17 (30:11), Faschingsschwank aus Wien, Op. 26 (19:58 ) CD 7---Bunte Blatter, Op. 99 (35:23), Nachtstucke, Op. 23 (17:55), 3 Romanzen, Op. 28 (14:04).

This Ashkenazy set is an excellent selection of most of Schumann's major works for solo piano. One notes an affecting talent for melody, and, in many pieces, a great aesthetic sense without the need for virtuoso display. This is evident from the very beginning, with his Op. 1, the "Abegg" Variations. But, of course, though many of these performances are lovely and affecting, they are not the be all and end all of Schumann discography. I found that Ashkenazy's Davidsbundlertanze, for example, is not as good as the Aeschbacher performance on KASP records I reviewed a number of weeks ago.

[bhodges]

Shostakovich: Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk (Jansons/Concertgebouw/Netherlands Opera) - What a fantastic production this is!  The three principals are excellent, especially Eva-Maria Westbroek in the title role (below), who not only has a voice up for the task, but acts up a storm.  Jansons and the orchestra hammer out the score with precision and unbelievable power.

Anyone who likes the composer should definitely investigate this, which is filled with some of his most riveting music.  It has quickly become one of my favorite opera DVDs.

--Bruce

[locrian]

Schubert: Moments musicaux - Kempff

[Lilas Pastia]

Lilas Pastia must be easily offended.

Far from it (you just don't know how far, actually).

But on certain principles I don't budge. My opinion is that a majority of males are are quite retarded when it comes to gender equality and, unfortunately the younger ones are often the worse in that regard.

Granted, it's a contentious view, and I don't want to start a discussion on the subject, so I'll keep it shut from now .

[Lilas Pastia]

Been listening to the André Cluytens entry to EMI'S Great Conductors issue.  Here are the contents:

       Disque 01 - Bizet:  Symphony In C Major: I. Allegro Vivo     (29')
                     Debussy: Images Pour Orchestre                      (35')
                     Ravel: La Valse - Poème Chorégraphique            (12')    
   Disque 02 -  Schumann:   Manfred Overture, Op.115               (12')
                    Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique, Op 14               (49' - no first movement repeat)
                    Wagner: Lohengrin: Prelude To Act III                (03')
                    Moussorgsky: Boris Godunov: Coronation Scene - Prologue, Scene II (11')

The producer's intent was probably to show that he was equally at home in French, German and Russian repertoire, which is of course true and quite well documented. But this particular mixture just doesn't work in presenting the conductor's best work on disc. First, I think that stuff that is already widely available should be avoided (his Beethoven symphonies, Carmen, Faust, Fauré Requiem, Shostakovich PC and Symphony 11 for example). EMI does rather well by that. But to make sure they cover the whole gamut they resort to the rather strange idea of by giving us the Manfred Overture, a really insignificant work, and the Lohengrin Prelude, which everybody else has recorded, from Arturo Fiedler to Arturo Toscanini. As the booklet admits, Cluytens recorded Schumann's symphonies 3 and 4, which have never been reissued. If EMI wanted to showcase his German affinities, THAT would have been a much better choice than the 3 minutes Lohengrin snippet we get here (complete Wagner operas conducted by him are easy to come by). Admittedly, this is one of the most exciting interpretations I've ever heard. He and the Orcheste du Théatre national de l'Opéra knock Wagner's socks off.  And, for the Russian repertoire, wouldn't it have been better to choose one of those recordings that have never surfaced on cd, like his Rimsky Schéhérazade, Capricico espagnol or Russian Easter Overture?

My choice would have been rather different. Anyhow, that sort of thing will never be to anyone's taste, so, stepping off the soap box:

- The Bizet symphony is splendid, but so are many others, from Munch (RPO) to Marriner to Lopez-Cobos. It needs bounce, spring, a degre of languid abandon in the slow movement, an rossinian high spirits throughout. Cluytens and the orchestra are equal to the ask, but alas, the sound is not, and this of all works should give the impression that it's airborne and light as a feather. The sound here congests and distorts in loud passages (Studio des Champs-Élysées, 1953). Beautiful, but sunk by the recording's limitations.
- The Debussy Images are from the acoustically resonant and flattering Salle Wagram, 1963 vintage. I'm not a Debussy fan, and this has always struck me as a rather overworked impressionist musical grammar book. I much prefer Nocturnes and Jeux (which Cluytens did record).
- Ravel's La Valse is not from the integral set the conductor recorded. It's a volatile and expertly turned Kingsway Hall, Philharmonia Orchestra production from 1958.
- The live Fantastique is from a 1964 Tokyo concert with the Orchestre de la Société des concerts du Conservatoire. And splendid it is, a winning entry in all respects. The last movement's high jinks rival Harry Potter's best efforts. That's a Wow in my book, and the Tokyo audience righty erupts in well deserved (and highly inhabitual) cheers.

So, if they had asked me  , this is what I would have chosen to represent Cluyten's art at its unduplicated best:

- Debussy: Jeux
- Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique
- Roussel: Festin de l'Araignée
-Rimsky: Russian Easter Overture and Capriccio espagnol.
- Tchaikovsky: symphony no. 2 (this is a work which, with its strong winds and brass 'face' would particularly benefit from French orchestral timbres, ).

[Solitary Wanderer]

Disc.1. PC #1



SACD



Sinfonia da Requiem