What were you listening to? (CLOSED)

[Opus106]

Liszt
Paganini Etude No. 3
Darre

My fingers hurt even when listening to it. And I'm not even a pianist!

[karlhenning]

Vaughan Williams
Flos campi
Paul Silverthorne, viola
Bournemouth Symphony Chorus
Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
Paul Daniel

[lukeottevanger]

A delicious piece, eh, Karl?

[karlhenning]

A delicious piece, eh, Karl?

Marvelous!

[Keemun]

Beethoven: Concerto for piano, violin, cello & orchestra in C major ("Triple Concerto") (Isaac Stern, violin; Leonard Rose, cello; Eugene Istoman, piano; Eugene Ormandy; Philadelphia Orchestra)

[Harry]

My first run through of this composer, and What I hear I like.

[Harry]

It is not negatively meant against you John

Objectionable sentences have been removed.

uffeviking 

Yes I expected that much from you Uffe, since you have a liking towards me.
Thanks to you my tenure at GMG will be over soon.

[Que]

Terrific Scarlatti playing! 

Q

[Que]

Que, my friend I hope you are well, and if you find time, tell me something about this recording.

Harry, I am well - thanks.

In short, this 3CD-set is superb. If you like Victoria's Requiem, no need to hesitate,
Will post more impressions as soon as I have time.

Q

[karlhenning]

. . . the consummated gentleman!

Hmm.  You'll want to observe a distinction between consummate & consummated.

[The new erato]

Hmm.  You'll want to observe a distinction between consummate & consummated.

Harry looks pretty consummated to me by the look of M's avatar.

[The new erato]

Now playing: disc 2 of vol 6 of Gardiner Bach cantata traversal. Nothing like some Bach to drive the aggression away. This series is an quite outstanding achievement.

[Brian]

This is a piece written ahead of it's time, and I'm not sure if it's time ever came or is yet to come.  For me, Corroboree is definitely an exploration piece, its drama is unquestionable.  In 'Procession of the Totems and Closng Ceremony' it is easy to see the Aboriginies getting fairly animated as they come to the end of their rendition of 'The Dreaming Stories.'
Antill was a Clarinet player too, and it being one of my favourite instruments, we can hear it quite prominently here and there throughout the entire performance.
Corroboree presents a deep and primitive spirituality for us to grapple with, the horrors and beauties of nature play their part in the Aboriginal singing and dancing cremonies which are presented here in a way the 'English' functioning mind can better understand.  There are Earthy spirits and unearthy firmaments in this work (wind, rain, morning star...) and they are alive and animated, combining and culminating into a fullness of a numinous Aboriginal mindset.
The quality of the recording here is first class, and the conductor and orchestra seem to be in complete accordance with what it is they must achieve here - and the result will be hard to beat.

Verdict:  A fine work that should have its day NOW.

I'm very glad to read this analysis and verdict, mahler10th! It's insightful and makes me want to play the work again with a few new things to listen for.
My one complaint about the disc is the enormous ten-second gaps between tracks...

[karlhenning]

I'm very glad to read this analysis and verdict, mahler10th! It's insightful and makes me want to play the work again with a few new things to listen for.
My one complaint about the disc is the enormous ten-second gaps between tracks...

Good to see you, Brian!

Such unusually long gaps, I wonder if they were specified by the composer.  A kind of underscoring of the "be comfortable with silence" idea.

Or, maybe not.

[Opus106]

Nothing like some Bach to drive the aggression away.

BWV 1080
Emerson String Quartet

[greg]

The Karajan Alpensinfonie that Groovemaster G-Daddy-Dawg sent me is the first recording that made the piece RESONATE (note the capitol letters) in me. After having been weirded out by what was for me an uninspirational Strauss on Naxos, the Karajan set was pure bliss. This morning I listened all the way through the Karajan recording for the eleventh time and was just floored all over again.

However, I admit to a) not having the actual score handy and b) not having heard any other interpretation. The b) I'll be taking care of very soon (another, generous poster is helping me). The a) is a hop skip and jump to the local library. From M.'s comments on the scoring, I'm very curious as to how much room for interpretation there really is. I seem to recall Strauss as being more lenient score-wise than, say, WAGNER (laughing).

You seriously didn't know you can get this score online for free?
http://imslp.info/files/imglnks/usimg/8/8a/IMSLP20542-PMLP12189-Strauss_-_Eine_Alpensinfonie__Op._64__orch._score_.pdf

I've only heard a MIDI version of this core, but man! I was quite amazed...... possibly the finest Strauss I've heard- an undeniable masterpiece, not to mention one of the very most complex scores I've ever read through.

[Peregrine]

Listening to my Scarlatti playlist on my iPod/Zeppelin combo. Tipo, Pletnev, Demidenko, Pogorelich

[Moldyoldie]

On a virgin voyage with Einar Englund...

Englund: Symphony No. 4 "Nostalgic"; Symphony No. 5 "Fennica"; The Great Wall of China
Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra
Eri Klas, cond.
ONDINE
Englund's Symphony No. 4 (1976) is in four movements, only one of which can be described as uptempo, which takes the listener on an emotional ride on orchestral strings with occasional respites emanating from a colorful plethora of percussion.  This one presents some fascinating sounds and aural "pictures" evocative of time and remembrance.  Englund quotes Sibelius's Tapiola in the movement labeled "Nostalgia" from whence the symphony derives its sobriquet.

The single movement Symphony No. 5 (1977) utilizes a full orchestra in evoking the composer's terrible WWII experiences in an alternating fast/slow/fast/slow sequence which is very reminiscent of Shostakovich's most harrowing and powerful symphonic utterances.

The eight-part The Great Wall of China (1949) is music for an obviously parodistic play which includes a rumba, a tango, jazz, a gong, and a "March a la Shostakovich" -- great fun!

The 24-bit recording is incredibly vivid and one can't imagine performances more committed or convincing.  This is a composer I'm definitely going to explore further!

[Subotnick]

Awesome recording and perfect for that purpose.

Indeed. After just 1 listen it's on my "to buy" list.

TTFN.
Me.

P.S.

Oops! That's in reference to the Holst disc I was listening to this morning. Hammersmith, Egdon Heath (and I'm tempted to say "Mornington Crescent"!  ), Somerset Rhapsody and my favourite piece, Invocation For Cello And Orchestra.

[Subotnick]

The more I listen to Hovhaness, the more I like him.  First time I've heard the 25th and the first time I've heard Hovhaness conduct his own work. Should be interesting.



TTFN.
Me.