What were you listening to? (CLOSED)

[Coopmv]

Now playing CD1 from this set, which arrived from MDT over a month ago.  It is Karajan at Bayreuth ...

[Opus106]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KbexgVhmT4

Ah. Very informative.

[ChamberNut]

And I've changed the text in my avatar. Revolution!

I like it Valentino! 

Thread duty - Remembering Haydn

String Quartet in G major, op. 77/1
String Quartet in F major, op. 77/2
String Quartet in D minor, op.103 (unfinished)
Quartettsatz 'Der Greis', Hob.XXV c:5

L'Archibudelli
Sony Classical

String Quartet in E flat major, op. 20/1
String Quartet in C major, op. 20/2
String Quartet in G minor, op. 20/3

Kodaly Quartet
Naxos

PS - I love the 'Fuga a soggetti' mvts of the Op. 20 quartets, present in # 2, 5 and 6.  My pet name for them are the 'Soggy Fugues' 

[Solitary Wanderer]

First listen to this post modern clarinet concerto which will be performed by the NZSO in two weeks time 

[bhodges]

Last night.....

DVD

Shostakovich

Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk

Katerina Lvovna Ismailova - Eva-Maria Westbroek
Sergey - Christopher Ventris
Boris Timofeyevich Ismailov & Old Convict - Vladimir Vaneev
Zinovy Borisovich Ismailov - Ludovit Ludha
Aksinya & Female Convict - Carole Wilson

Chorus de De Nederlandse Opera
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Mariss Jansons
Opus Arte

Pretty awesome! 

A fantastic production, isn't it!  Definitely a top recommendation, and not just for the piece but for opera DVDs in general.  And IMHO the singers and ensemble are so electrifying, you could just listen without the video and still be perfectly happy.  Would *love* to have caught this live...

--Bruce

[ChamberNut]

A fantastic production, isn't it!  Definitely a top recommendation, and not just for the piece but for opera DVDs in general.  And IMHO the singers and ensemble are so electrifying, you could just listen without the video and still be perfectly happy.  Would *love* to have caught this live...

--Bruce

A great production indeed Bruce! 

[Coopmv]

This CD artwork reminds me of the replacment shaving heads for my Norelco

[Daverz]

Thought I'd give the Valek Martinu box another chance.  Sound in 1 is still a blurry mess.  2 is OK.  The sound in 3 & 4 is better still, if not exceptional.  Perhaps I let the bad sound in 1 color my impression of the whole box.  On to 5 & 6 (though I doubt any 6 can match Munch/Boston on a Japanese RCA CD).

[DavidRoss]

Oh, poor kitty! Why do you subject her to bombastic orchestral dissonance? Give her her chamber music!!

What kind of cat is she?

Now in, Kempff playing the same three sonatas. The Buchbinder strikes me as very intimate playing, the Kempff as bigger.

Since acquiring Buchbinder's fine traversal of Mozart PCs, I've been listening to his Beethoven sonatas again and am finding them much to my liking--more reserved, introspective, technique never calling attention to itself as if to say, "Hey--look what I can do."  In general, Kempff seems to me more lyrical, more sentimental (in a good way), whereas Buchbinder is more classically neutral--intellectual, perhaps...but not dry.

Kitty is an almost pure black Siamese mix with an amusing vocal range capable of expressing surprising shades of meaning.  She'll be ten at years end.  I'm almost ashamed to admit the huge place that cat has in my heart.  For her sake (and mine!):

[karlhenning]

Last night.....

DVD

Shostakovich

Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk

Katerina Lvovna Ismailova - Eva-Maria Westbroek
Sergey - Christopher Ventris
Boris Timofeyevich Ismailov & Old Convict - Vladimir Vaneev
Zinovy Borisovich Ismailov - Ludovit Ludha
Aksinya & Female Convict - Carole Wilson

Chorus de De Nederlandse Opera
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Mariss Jansons
Opus Arte

Pretty awesome! 

(* pounds the table, scattering a plate of mushrooms *)

[karlhenning]

First listen to this post modern clarinet concerto which will be performed by the NZSO in two weeks time 

Excellent piece! Excellent disc!

[imperfection]

Trying to find out what Mahler changed/added. Have never heard any of these works (original Schumann ones) before.

[George]

Op. 27/1

Then, I may compare the stereo and mono Moonlight sonatas by Kempff.

[Bogey]

Op. 27/1

Then, I may compare the stereo and mono Moonlight sonatas by Kempff.

*munches on popcorn waiting with great anticipation for review*

[Coopmv]

*munches on popcorn waiting with great anticipation for review*

So Kempff recorded two sets of Beethoven Piano Sonatas?  I have the stereo set ...

[George]

*munches on popcorn waiting with great anticipation for review*

The stereo is the clear winner for me, Bill. More urgency in the finale, more "light" in the central movement and better use of rubato in the first movement.

[Coopmv]

Now playing this CD right off the shelf, an older recording ...

[Lilas Pastia]

Sampling the Kraus 1953 Bayreuth Ring (Walküre and Götterdämmerung). I didn't expect the sound to be any more than tolerable, but it's actually quite good. Astrid Varnay's Hojotohos are awesomely sung. Brünnhilde's battle cry is usually belted and petulant (with singers suited for the part) or screeched and suggesting despair rather than exultation (most other sopranos). Varnay's pinpoint rythmic accuracy and concentration of tone are ear-opening. In any case, I yet have to hear the operas in their entirety, but it bodes well for complete listening - indeed, it'll pass ahead of Levine's Met cycle that is still languishing on the shelves (only got through the tedious Prologue so far).

King Karajan Of The Strings in Tchaikovsky 5 (1964) and Haydn's Creation. The Tchaikovsky is mostly successful, with a particularly felicitous mix of drive and verve in the finale. The first movement is very good, the middle ones ho-hum (too much string sauce). Excellent recording. This is better than the companion 4th from that set of symphonies 4-6. If memory serves, the 1964 Berlin 6th is Karajan's most restrained and elegiac reading, an approach I like when it's well done. We'll see.

The Creation is one of the maestro's most celebrated recordings, and with good reason. When it's good, it's unassalaible. But it's not always that good. The string section is simply too large. Nimbleness and transparency are ingredients that were never in Karajan's armoury. They are sorely lacking here. The big allegro sections have a pesante feel to them and although it clocks in at the exact same timing as other versions I have (Dorati and Keilberth) it feels slower. Everything is smartly and powerfully done in the big orchestral and choral set-pieces. Powerful timpani and brass perfectly complement Karajan's chosen orchestral conception.

The chorus is remarkable troughout, in tune with Karajan's concept. I have changed my mind about Janowitz' Uriel and Eva. I now find her intimidatingly glacial and unmoving, if technically awesome. I don't think more perfect singing and purer tones will ever be achieved in this part, but I miss a sense of elation and joy. Berry is excellent, as is of course Wunderlich. They, too, bring an instrumental perfection to their singing. Was that Karajan's way? The many wind solos are simply out of this world in their tonal perfection. At the time (1966?) the BPO's wind principals were James Galway, Lothar Koch and Karl Leister, all great soloists in their own rigth.

[Fëanor]

Schubert: Piano Sonata in B flat, D.960 ... part of myself education series

• Sviatoslav Richter
• Alfred Brendel
• Murray Perahia

Richter strikes me as emotionally affected as well as a a bit languid.  Perahia is a paled on the other hand.  Brendel somewhere between and maybe a little faster paced overall.  I think I like Brendel the best.

[George]

Schubert: Piano Sonata in B flat, D.960 ... part of myself education series

• Sviatoslav Richter
• Alfred Brendel
• Murray Perahia

Richter strikes me as emotionally affected as well as a a bit languid.  Perahia is a paled on the other hand.  Brendel somewhere between and maybe a little faster paced overall.  I think I like Brendel the best.

Which Richter was it?