What were you listening to? (CLOSED)

[wilhelm]

CD 1:
Piano Sonata No.1 in C, K.279
Piano Sonata No.2 in F, K.280
Piano Sonata No.3 in B flat, K.281
 

[Harry]

Anton Stepanovich Arensky.

Piano Trios No. 1 & 2.

Borodin Trio.

Totally surprised by the quality of this performance, I sit in awe. Never heard the Elegia from the first trio so beautifully. And the gorgeous recording deserves all praise, as the cellist Yuli Turovsky. What a fine tone he produces. As a ensemble they play together immaculate.
The fire in the finale of the first trio, is awesome, after the elegy comes as a liberation.

[Peregrine]

Mahler 1/Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra/Kondrashin

[Harry]

Ernest John Moeran.

SQ No. 1 in A minor.

Fantasy Quartet for Oboe and Strings in one movement.

Sonata for Violin and Piano in E minor.

Sarah Francis, Oboe.
Members of the English String Quartet.
Melbourne String Quartet.

These recordings from 1982-85 are completely remastered, and the difference you can hear to avantage. The performance are lively and fiery at times, but always in the service of this beautiful music.
Me, being a great admirer of his Orchestral works, fell victim to these fine chamberworks today. I realized how important a composer he is in the array of British composers, after hearing his Violin concerto again. It is time Moeran gets the praise he is earning by right, and on the basis of his oeuvre.
And this disc will do, as any other, for denying his due after sampling his SQ would be ridiculous, the man is a genius amongst others.
The SQ is a small wonder to me, with its first movement showing you all the gorgeous colors Moeran has to give, and tops that with the Andante con moto, second movement. I had acquired all his Orchestral works long ago, and its about time I listen to them again.

[karlhenning]

Pyotr Ilyich
Violin Concerto in D, Opus 35
Gidon Kremer
Wiener Philharmoniker
Maazel

[karlhenning]

Pyotr Ilyich
Capriccio italien, Opus 45
Minneapolis Symphony
Dorati

[longears]

Dvorák, Panocha Quartet.

Wilhelm--I've been listening to her earlier cycle a lot lately and like it very much.  Are you familiar with both, and if so how would you characterize them in relation to one another?

[Peregrine]

Schubert D.894 - Sokolov

[Harry]

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Festival Overture on the Danish National Hymn, opus 15.

Hamlet opus 67bis. Overture and Incidental Music.

Janis Kelly, Soprano.
Derek Hammond-Stroud, Baritone.
LSO/Geoffrey Simon.

This recording from 1981, was since long on my list, and finally I bought it for a good price, and listening to it, I would have paid full price for it, had I only known how good it is. Now I know!
The recording is state of the art, with a immense dept in the Orchestra, in fact the best I heard, amongst all I have. The detail is amazing, and the performance is not to be beaten. Geoffrey Simon is a conductor I admired, and almost all he recorded is treasured by me.
The Festival overture is derivative of many other pieces Tchaikovsky wrote, so not that remarkable, but Hamlet is a different palette of color alltogether. I simply adore this music, with many fine melodies, and the spirit, all I expect from him. Easily my disc of the month

[karlhenning]

Oh, that does sound good, Harry (speaking as someone else listening to Tchaikovsky at present).

[Harry]

Oh, that does sound good, Harry (speaking as someone else listening to Tchaikovsky at present).

Yes I noticed that Karl.

[greg]

Shostakovich- 14th and 15th string quartets

every once in a while i listen to one or two of these string quartets, hopefully someday i'll actually be able to memorize them or at least tell them apart. He wrote so many that it's not easy at first. The 15th is starting to take shape in my head, that section with the single note fade-ins really helps.

[Hector]

A beautiful recording of the Prokofiev and some nice encores.

This very recording of the Prokofiev was played on R3 the other day. It is a terrific performance recorded when Schippers was 27!

His early death was a great loss.

For me just downloaded to iPod a Martinu concert from Supraphon, the Czech PO and Belohlavek consisting, among others, of the Rhapsody for large orchestra and the Sinfonia Concertante for two orchestras.

[Harry]

Ernest Bloch.

Complete Works for Violin and Piano.

Sonate No. 1 & 2.

Latica Honda-Rosenberg, Violin.
Avner Arad, Piano.

This two fer from Oehms is a fine recording made in 1999, and gives a good impression of this difficult composer. These are by no means easy pieces, and must be taken in small quantities. To grasp his intense writing, one must be very concentrated. Fiery, passionate, and dense writing makes it a rough path to thread, but will soften after being for a while in this idiom.
I found the Andante moderato from the second sonata ravishing.

[not edward]

I'm not entirely convinced by either the performances or the music here.

[Harry]

Georg Philipp Telemann.

Matthauspassion 1754.

Martin Klietman, Tenor.
Klaus Mertens, Bass.
Kammerchor Cantamus Halle.
Capella Savaria/Pal Nemeth.
Mannerchor bouquet Vocalis Halle.

This NCA recording is yet a fine one. Apart from a unidentified Judas sung by a counter tenor of doubtfull quality. Made in 1993 the sound is clear and has a good perspective. The choirs used on this recording are not that exceptional, average I would say, but the rest of the soloists are very good. A strange assembly of artists , but it works in a very primitive way. For me this has something that draws me quite near this piece.

[Kullervo]

Yesterday:

Schumann - 4th and "Manfred" Overture (Szell/Cleveland)

Chausson - Poème (Dutoit/Montreal/Juillet)

[greg]

http://www.youtube.com/watch/v/X0Vk2jFNVQI
music from my all-time favorite video game  0:)

[karlhenning]

Georg Philipp Telemann.

Matthauspassion 1754.

Hey! It's not time, Harry! 

[karlhenning]

Last night, and again this morning:

Hindemith
Kammermusik nr. 4 for solo violin and large chamber orchestra, Opus 36 No. 3

Prokofiev
Violin Concerto No. 1 in D, Opus 19

Igor Oistrakh / USSR Symphony / Rozhdestvensky