What are you listening to now?

[Karl Henning]

Christmas Carols written by Nielsen in 1923.

Birthday boy!

[Madiel]

Birthday boy!

Is he? I had no idea. Sheer coincidence.

[Madiel]

One thing about Chopin which is usually overlooked is that he was a child prodigy, having written his first Polonaises at the tender age of 7. Until he reached 17, his catalogue comprised also mazurkas, rondos, variations, nocturnes, ecossaises and a waltz. They might not be just as good as his mature works, but they already display unmistakable Chopinesque traits and by the very first bars one can tell the composer. El Bacha plays with panache and commitment and brings forth convincingly the youthful freshness and the blossoming poetry of these charming works. My only quibble is with the sound which, although by no means bad, doesn't seem to do full justice to El Bacha's tone.

This is the first in a 10-cd series of Chopin's complete solo piano works recorded by El Bacha in chronological order of their writing. It promises to be a fascinating, hugely rewarding journey.



This, on the other hand, has spectacular sound and might be a strong contender for the best recording of anything by anyone. Fialkowska is completely at home in Chopin's soundworld and idiom and her music-making is superlative. I look forward to hearing the other two volumes.

Interesting that someone is going chronological. It won't surprise you to know I've done my own chronological excursion.

The early works have all the glitter and brilliance very quickly. What they don't quite have, it feels to me, is the power.

[Florestan]

Interesting that someone is going chronological. It won't surprise you to know I've done my own chronological excursion.

It's precisely you whom I thought about when embarking on this project. 

The early works have all the glitter and brilliance very quickly. What they don't quite have, it feels to me, is the power.

Agreed.

[king ubu]

First listen ... Jaroussky is amazing, but possibly still not an ideal choice for Orfeo, not quite as much of a seducer and enticer as should be, a bit too acidic in tone and not sumptuous enough (Janet Baker anyone?) ... but his singing per se is first rate as usual. Amanda Forstythe (Euridice) and Emöke Baráth (L'amore) are both great in their short-ish appearances ... and so is the performance by I Barocchisti under the baton of Diego Fasolis.

[Madiel]

It's precisely you whom I thought about when embarking on this project. 

We might be the only two people here who think this is an interesting way to go. We're certainly two of the people who talk about it the most. 

[Todd]

[Florestan]

We might be the only two people here who think this is an interesting way to go. We're certainly two of the people who talk about it the most. 

TD

Halep and Stephens moaning and groaning at the French Open. Go, Simona! 

[vandermolen]

Some very enjoyable first listens so far this Saturday

Charpentier
Motets pour le Grand Dauphin (Splendeurs de Versailles CD 5)
Anne Magouët (dessus), Sarah Breton (bas-dessus), Edwin Crossley-Mercer (basse)
Ensemble Pierre Robert
Frédéric Desenclos
[asin]B001MUJSTQ[/asin]
[asin]B01M0QREWR[/asin]

Holmboe
Symphony No. 1 for chamber orchestra, Op. 4 (1935)
Aarhus Symphony Orchestra
Owain Arwel Hughes
[asin]B000027DT8[/asin]

Tubin
Symphony No. 5 in B minor (1946)
Bamberg Symphony
Neeme Järvi
[asin]B000079AZT[/asin]

Tubin's 5th Symphony is the last of my favourites until we get to No.10.
I like them all but 1-5 and 10 are the ones I especially like. I'm aware that some consider No.6 to be the greatest, as with Bax's 6th Symphony which I do not like as much as symphonies 1-5 and 7. Tubin's No.5 has a very moving slow movement, especially the ending.

[Traverso]

Messiaen

[Mahlerian]

Schumann: Kreisleriana
Alfred Brendel

No pic this time; I picked this CD up for a few hundred yen in Japan and it's a bare bones cheap disc, about as stripped down as those old Laserlight CDs (but with better sound and performance, of course).

[Christo]

Some very enjoyable first listens so far this Saturday

Holmboe
Symphony No. 1 for chamber orchestra, Op. 4 (1935)
Aarhus Symphony Orchestra
Owain Arwel Hughes
[asin]B000027DT8[/asin]
Tubin
Symphony No. 5 in B minor (1946)
Bamberg Symphony
Neeme Järvi
[asin]B000079AZT[/asin]

Both symphonic cycles are among my absolute favourites, as often stated before. I was lucky enough to 'discover' them both from the very beginning and vividly recall the sensation of playing each new installment of the series (and the large amount of money they would cost). Tubin came first, and made me travel to Estonia and visit one of his old friends in Stockholm. During the same trip, I payed Holmboe a visit in his country house in the north of Sjaelland (made use of the tape for a radio documentary). Sweet memories. 

[SonicMan46]

Coming up soon - the two new arrivals below - BUT, have to listen to NPR's 'Wait, Wait.....Don't Tell Me' - wife & I love the show -   Dave

 

[Mahlerian]

Schmidt: Quintet for piano and strings in G
Reiner Keuschnig, Josef Hell, Perter Wachter, Peter Pecha, Gerhard Iberer
[asin]B000028B1W[/asin]

[North Star]

Tubin's 5th Symphony is the last of my favourites until we get to No.10.
I like them all but 1-5 and 10 are the ones I especially like. I'm aware that some consider No.6 to be the greatest, as with Bax's 6th Symphony which I do not like as much as symphonies 1-5 and 7. Tubin's No.5 has a very moving slow movement, especially the ending.

I'll keep that in mind if I enjoy the alter ones less  0:)

Both symphonic cycles are among my absolute favourites, as often stated before. I was lucky enough to 'discover' them both from the very beginning and vividly recall the sensation of playing each new installment of the series (and the large amount of money they would cost). Tubin came first, and made me travel to Estonia and visit one of his old friends in Stockholm. During the same trip, I payed Holmboe a visit in his country house in the north of Sjaelland (made use of the tape for a radio documentary). Sweet memories. 

I'm sure there are a few members here who would have liked to meet Holmboe. I like the String Quartets and Chamber Symphonies, and the Chamber Concertos I've heard so far, very much indeed, and I've no doubt I'll enjoy the symphonies too. I'm enjoying the Tubin too, but he's a composer I wasn't really familiar with before.

[Traverso]

Bach Cantatas 


CD 59

[prémont]

Oh gosh... I realized only now that there are about 20 (!) Buxtehude Organ cycles, not five or six, as I thought.

Yes, there are a lot complete sets. The ones I know are:

Alain (only LP)
Rogg (LP and only partially on CD)
Kraft
Saorgin
Vernet
Spang-Hanssen
Bryndorf
Herrick
Vogel
Rübsam
Koopman
Stella
Naxos set
Foccroulle
Lebrun
Chapuis
Stender
Schauerte
Bønnerup

I wonder if Bouchard made a set long time ago.

Maybe you can find more? Maybe some obscure Dutch release?


As far as I know, neither Finn Viderø, Alf Linder nor Jørgen-Ernst Hansen made anything approaching complete sets, and this was BTW in the days of vinyl.

[Wanderer]

.[asin]B007KKKFVC[/asin]

[André]

Unfavourable reviews from french quarters, 10/10 on Classicstoday. How stimulating! This generous disc (81 minutes) offers a full symphonic programme. In addition the the symphony, we get the 24 minute tone poem Ce qu'on entend sur la montagne, based on a poem by Victor Hugo, as well as a 5 movement orchestral selection of from his opera Hulda, itself based on another literary source, a play by norwegian writer Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson. So, kudos to Arming and the enterprising Fuga Libera label for logical yet imaginative programming.

My own response toward this release is squarely congruent with David Hurwitz' laudatory review. Superb music, splendid execution, warmly spacious sound and exciting conducting. The only fly in the ointment is that the works should have been presented in reverse order (ending with the symphony) just as would be the case in a real concert. Other than that, this is a strong candidate for Purchase of the Year !

[Wanderer]

.[asin]B0083FRA4S[/asin]

Symphony No.3