What were you listening to? (CLOSED)

[Christo]

Considerably less appealing:

PHILIP GLASS: Symphony No.8  Bruckner Orchester Linz, Dennis Russell Davies (OMM)

Here we go again. Glass speaks of great "novelty" in the liner notes to the release of this Bruckner-Orchester-financed 8th Symphony (yet again, Davies has managed to persuade one of his employers to invest in a "new" piece by his old buddy, as he had done in Bonn before that, and in Stuttgart before Bonn, and ...) - yet somehow, the result sounds exactly the same as any other given Glass work that came before. Amazing consistency, if you ask me. Amazing mediocrity, too.  Thomas 

My only acquaintance with any of Glass' 'symphonies' came with the Naxos release of nos. 2 and 3. I was almost shocked to discover how little musical content there is in each, and started to wonder about the rest of them. Your warning is quite helpful. A week ago, I was forced to listen to recent, rather large scale, Glass piece when joining a colleague in a long distance car drive - and had the same experience. Is it only some of his film music that's worth a listen? Or anything else you would dare to recommend?

[Haffner]

My only acquaintance with any of Glass' 'symphonies' came with the Naxos release of nos. 2 and 3. I was almost shocked to discover how little musical content there is in each, and started to wonder about the rest of them. Your warning is quite helpful. A week ago, I was forced to listen to recent, rather large scale, Glass piece when joining a colleague in a long distance car drive - and had the same experience. Is it only some of his film music that's worth a listen? Or anything else you would dare to recommend?

You know, Christo, I'm very grateful you both warned me in regard to Glass, as I have been eyeing Einstein On the Beach recently... that doesn't mean I won't give him a chance, but I have other music which beckons toward purchase more attractively now.

[Haffner]

Beethoven's 9th Symphony (Karajan/1962 recording)



Had a bad fight with my girl last night. Love can be hard work at times, right? Listening to this, everything comes together into perfect, dazzling, joyous Light.


Accept no substitutes.

[bhodges]

Nick Brooke: You Feel This - Brooke is a young composer who loves manipulating other sounds electronically, editing them into small, nervous bursts, sometimes separated by silence.  Just heard 127 studies on a single orchestrion (played by the Paul Dresher Ensemble), in which he tries to duplicate the sound of an orchestrion, a 1920s "orchestra in a box," in this case combined with sampled calliope sounds.  Fascinating!  Followed this with Pemangku (for gamelan) and "You Feel This" from his opera, Tone Test, which premiered at the Lincoln Center Festival a few years ago. 

Verdi: Arias (Ramón Vargas/Eduardo Müller/Munich Radio)

--Bruce

[George]

Love can be hard work at times, right?

Right!

[Que]

Mahler IV with the NYPO and Irmgard Seefried ('53), coupled with Mozart's symphony no. 35 ("Haffner").
The performance is on evidence of the timings a bit slower than the Sony '45 recording with Desi Alban, yet seems to have a stronger pulse and has firmer orchestral playing with more drive, enhanced by the fuller sound. As a result of all, this the performance has a more optimistic feel to it than the '45.
Irmgard Seefried sings like the magnificent singer she was - luxurious in tone.

The sound is (very) good for a '53 live recording, thanks to the people at Tahra who must have used original sources - bless them!

And thank you, Drasko, for bringing this to my attention.

Q

[Sergeant Rock]

Mahler 7, Barenboim conducting the Staatskapelle Berlin in a live performance from the Philharmonie in Berlin (the concert I saw two weeks ago). Thanks to O Mensch for finding this mp3 version (at OperaShare).

Sarge

[Robert]

This morning its JUST BEEN a SZYMANOWSKI
Symphony 2 Kaspszyk
Symphony 3-4 Semkow
Harnasie Wit
Mazurkas Blumenthal
This is from a wonderful EMI double disc

Violin Concertos 1-2 Danczowska  Thanks to a rec by my buddy Maciek.....ahhh life is sweet....

[Robert]

Started my afternoon with a disc of Szymanowski and Lutoslawski

Symphony no. 4 Szymanowski

Piano Concerto Lutoslawski

Ewa Kupiec
James Judd
Bamberger Symphoniker...

[Drasko]

Mahler IV with the NYPO and Irmgard Seefried ('53), coupled with Mozart's symphony no. 35 ("Haffner").
The performance is on evidence of the timings a bit slower than the Sony '45 recording with Desi Alban, yet seems to have a stronger pulse and has firmer orchestral playing with more drive, enhanced by the fuller sound. As a result of all, this the performance has a more optimistic feel to it than the '45.
Irmgard Seefried sings like the magnificent singer she was - luxurious in tone.

The sound is (very) good for a '53 live recording, thanks to the people at Tahra who must have used original sources - bless them!

And thank you, Drasko, for bringing this to my attention.

Q

My pleasure 

[Don]

Just finished listening to the 2-cd set from Claves (vol. 1) of Schumann's piano music played by Finghin Collins - fine performances topped off with a wonderful Humoreske.  Wish that the rest of the performances were as good, but I'll take what I can get.

[Solitary Wanderer]

[George]

That's gotta be the tallest Naxos CD I have ever seen! 

[Siedler]

Beethoven 7th / Reiner/ CSO

[SimonGodders]

That was one of the first classical CD's I bought about ten years ago and still my favourite 'trout'

[Solitary Wanderer]

That's gotta be the tallest Naxos CD I have ever seen! 

Yeah, it looks more like a DVD!

[Solitary Wanderer]

That was one of the first classical CD's I bought about ten years ago and still my favourite 'trout'

Yes, I've owned 3 different versions, but this is easily my fave.

[Christo]

You know, Christo, I'm very grateful you both warned me in regard to Glass, as I have been eyeing Einstein On the Beach recently... that doesn't mean I won't give him a chance, but I have other music which beckons toward purchase more attractively now.

The warning actually came from Thomas - but I'm afraid we all more or less agree. Glass might be rather disappointing, and we all start wondering what, after all, there might be in his whole oeuvre. Others, often far less known, require more attention, no doubt.

I'm at present listening to British/American composer Richard Arnell's Third Symphony, and hope to buy his Second in short time. There's someone with something to tell - more so than Glass, in all probability.

[rubio]

I played CD1 from this Chopin collection, and what a fine one it is! Above all it includes the preludes performed by Cortot (from 1942-1943), and they went straight to the top for me - by far. I have the Arrau (live on Appian) and Moiseiwitsch (Appian), and they didn't really click 100 % for me. Probably I will need to revisit them as I have now fallen for these pieces. I like the whole package from Andante with it's high-quality CD-cover, long liner notes and excellent transfers. The piano tone from Cortot is so warm and seductive and his interpretation poetic. Generally I have a weak spot for historical recording when remastered like this. In a way it also takes me on a time travel, and a little nostalgi can sometimes be nice  (even if I was born in 1970...).

[karlhenning]

Andy, how fabulous that you've become a Prokofiev fan!