What were you listening to? (CLOSED)

[listener]

SHOSTAKOVICH Piano Concertos 1 & 2
Eugene List, piano     Berlin Opera Orch., Georg Ludwig Jochum, cond.;  Vienna State Opera Orch., Victor Desarzens, cond.
awful Canadian pressing, and balances weird.  Violins split left 1st - right 2nd really noticeable in #1 but there's only a trumpet with the strings, no percussion at all.  Nice works for an introduction for a Shosty newby..
I think I'll save for a Gergiev/Mariinsky Orch. appearance in October here playing #1
HOLBORNE  program of almains, pavan, galliards on period instruments by the Extempore String Esemble

[haydnguy]

This set was recorded in the mid to late 60's by the RCO with Jochum.  I think the Beethoven Symphonies Bernard Haitink recorded with the RCO in the 70's may be better than the last cycle he recorded with the LSO, which I have in my collection.  Unfortunately, the cycle Haitink recorded with the RCO on Philips has been OOP for a while ...

It's odd but a good Beethoven cycle has been one of the hardest things for me to find!

[Coopmv]

It's odd but a good Beethoven cycle has been one of the hardest things for me to find!

I have the Karajan BPO 63 cycle, which many consider the best Beethoven cycle out there.  I have both the redbook and the SACD version and a total of 24 Beethoven Symphonies cycles.

[Conor71]

Besides this EMI Jochum set and the Wand set, I also have the set by Masur and the set by Karajan in the following mega box ...

Nice! - I am quite interested in Karajan's Bruckner and have considered buying his set a few times!.
Is K's Bruckner good Coop and are some of the symphonies split over 2 discs like the stand-alone Bruckner cycle?.

[Conor71]

Sibelius: Symphony No. 4 In A Minor, Op. 63

Continuing with my recent Sibelius re-listens 

[haydnguy]

I guess this would be one and the same???

[Mirror Image]

Hey MI - I just have the Chailly and Jochum/EMI Boxset's and have'nt heard any of Wands versions. I see he has a good value boxset released recently - do you have have/enjoy his Cycle?

Yes, I own most of Wand's Bruckner recordings (he's made a lot): the Cologne Radio Symphony cycle (on RCA), the NDR Symphony Orchestra (on DVD and CD, the DVD recorded concerts he made towards the end of his life), the Berlin Philharmonic recordings (on RCA), and the Munich Philharmonic (on Profil). Yes, needless to say, I'm a fan. They are essential to my Bruckner collection.

[Conor71]

Sibelius: The Tempest Suites, Op. 109

I've only played this Disc a couple of times before - well overdue a re-listen!

[Mirror Image]

Nice! - I am quite interested in Karajan's Bruckner and have considered buying his set a few times!.
Is K's Bruckner good Coop and are some of the symphonies split over 2 discs like the stand-alone Bruckner cycle?.

I would reconsider getting Karajan's Bruckner cycle. The recordings are in scrappy audio and don't give full justice to Karajan's performances. They haven't even been remastered, so this tells me that DG knows they can't repair the horrendous audio. I own all of Karajan's Bruckner recordings and have found his Vienna Philharmonic performances of both the 7th and 8th on DG to be the best, though he did turn in an excellent performance with the BPO of the 7th on EMI but the audio is a little questionable on this recording too.

[Mirror Image]

M.I., have you ever heard Jochum's Beethoven cycle? I got it but I'm not totally sold on it. I don't know if it's the sound or the playing. 

No and it should be noted that I'm not a big fan of Beethoven anyway, so I doubt I would enjoy it.

[Que]

First run of this. I'm spoiled by all the new goodies on my shelves.

The set from jpc did not come in shrinkwrap and had apparently collecting some dust in storage. But after a gentle wipe off, it looked fine. More than fine is the thick hardcover booklet - it's nice to be able to read liner notes in Dutch for a change!

It is a multi-performer set, the first disc is played by Leo van Doeselaar and Pieter van Dijk on the Van Hagerbeer organ in the Pieterskerk, Leiden. An organ I've heard in real life (I went to university in Leiden).

Q

[Brian]

I guess this would be one and the same???

Doubtful! There are three Karajan/Berlin cycles; I don't know which one that is. I've got '62-3 also and while it is indeed excellent and was a landmark in recording history, there are now plenty of cycles offering orchestral playing to equal or excel that of the '60s BPO in cutting-edge sound.

I'd say that for this trait.................................................go with this cycle:
Big, romantic Beethoven w/ lavish orchestral sound......Barenboim/Staatskapelle Berlin
Period performance practice...........................................Bruggen (OOP) or Immerseel/Anima Eterna
Always satisfying, middle-ground, Karajan's heir?.........Abbado/BPO (the red box)
Thrilling rhythmic precision and textural clarity...............Skrowaczewski, Paavo Jarvi, or Immerseel

[Que]

I'm so taken by Chiara Banchini's typical Italianate highly spirited playing with a the same time a mellow and sensuous tone (like Enrico Gatti or Enrico Onofri) that I bought this blindly. I'm glad I did.



EDIT: Oh wow, this scores high on the ranking of Italian Baroque violin solo repertoire! (Continuo accompaniment here) And a magnificent performance.

Q

[Lethevich]

I own all of Karajan's Bruckner recordings and have found his Vienna Philharmonic performances of both the 7th and 8th on DG to be the best, though he did turn in an excellent performance with the BPO of the 7th on EMI but the audio is a little questionable on this recording too.

Do you know his 4th on EMI? It's such an impressive recording and a rare chance to hear the BP in its prime un-marred by DG sound.

[Henk]

Handel - Tamerlano

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[SonicMan46]

Chopin - Mazurkas & Schubert - Piano Trios et al; the latter on PIs w/ Crawford on ca. 1835 restored Graf piano - 

 

[Antoine Marchand]

Now listening to Beethoven's piano sonata No. 17 ("The Tempest"), played by Wilhelm Kempff from this set:



Box II - Disc 5. Rec. 9/1964

(Last night Brendel III and Paul Lewis. I prefer Brendel's objectivity over Kempff and Lewis).

Schubert - Piano Trios et al; the latter on PIs w/ Crawford on ca. 1835 restored Graf piano - 

I have considered this set for awhile and your comments in The Corner sound enticing, Dave... I think I will search for it tonight on NML; anyway, after Kempff, I will again listen to this one:



   

[DavidW]

Bach preludes and fugues bwv 531-535 performed by Stockmeier, love the sound of the organ, and I like his playing.  That was a couple of days ago.  Yesterday I listened to Bach's WTC Book 2 #1-12 performed by Berben.  Too fast for me, too ornamented.  I can't really make sense of the music when played this way.

I started the day with Harnoncourt/CoE performing Beethoven's Creatures of Prometheus (the whole thng).  Superb!

[Lethevich]

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[DavidW]

Oh Haydnguy that Jochum set sounds pretty exaggerated, you might want to try something more middle of the road.  My favorite cycle is Blomstedt, neither too fast nor too slow.  Not overly romanticized (Jochum, Barenboim, Walter etc), nor really fast (Abbado, Rattle, Zinman, Jarvi etc), nor PI (an acquired taste).

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