What are you listening 2 now?

[Karl Henning]

Vagn Holmboe
Complete String Quartets
SQ #4
Kontra Quartet
Da Capo

I'm in!

[Mirror Image]

Great CD John. I like the Concerto for Double String Orchestra. The Suite for the Birthday of Prince Charles and the first two symphonies. I met some old colleagues for a pub lunch yesterday. One of them worked for Mrs Tippett (the composer's mother) in his youth, as a gardener. The composer found him fast asleep in a wheelbarrow in the garden one day. 

Hah! That's pretty funny, Jeffrey.

[Symphonic Addict]

And this has been my general problem with Vasks. He wrote some lovely music, but too often I feel the music needs more tension and some kind of dramatic narrative. But that's just this dumb guy's opinion.

Symphonies 2 and 3 and the dramatic Piano Quartet have more contrast in their respective movements.

[Mirror Image]

Symphonies 2 and 3 and the dramatic Piano Quartet have more contrast in their respective movements.

I don't like any of the symphonies I've heard from Vasks as I tried again several months ago and found them unsuccessful.

[Karl Henning]

Vagn Holmboe
Complete String Quartets
SQ #4
Kontra Quartet
Da Capo

I love the Adagio affettuoso, especially!

[André]

Nos 6, 8 and 15. End of series.

[André]

Fine performances from orchestra and chorus. I wish the latter had not intoned Te decet hymnus, Deus, in Sion as a shouting match, ff. But otherwise they are a fine group. Szell conducts with flair for the work's colour, but little sympathy for the many lyrical moments which require a less rigid hand. This work, above any other in the choral literature stands or falls by its quartet of soloists, and they are a distinguished lot. Soprano Gabriela Tucci, a big name at the time in Italy, sings with great beauty of tone and impressive power. Janet Baker emotes profusely, but her voice is in excellent shape. Tenor Pierre Duval is both strong and plangent, his intonation questionable at times. The glory of this recording is bass Martti Talvela, who pulverizes the heathen and the damned with frightening power. The sound of this 1968 live recording is very good. When Szell switched to EMI they very much to record a Requiem with him, but he died before.

[Karl Henning]

Been too long since I listened to Holmboe. so:

Symphony № 8, « Sinfonia Boreale » Op. 56 M. 172 (1952)

[Linz]

Rachmaninov's op. 5 and op.17 with Previn and Ashkenazy

[Karl Henning]

CD 16

Cello Concerti

in b minor, RV 424
in g minor, RV 416
in a minor, RV 418
in F, RV 412
in c minor, RV 401
in G, RV 413

[ritter]

Two favourite Stravinsky works, Agon and the Dumbarton Oaks Concerto, with Robert Craft conducting the Orchestra of Saint Luke's.

From this CD:

[Iota]

I like the Concerto for Double String Orchestra. The Suite for the Birthday of Prince Charles and the first two symphonies. I met some old colleagues for a pub lunch yesterday. One of them worked for Mrs Tippett (the composer's mother) in his youth, as a gardener. The composer found him fast asleep in a wheelbarrow in the garden one day. 

Haha, thanks, a gem of a vignette!


TD:



Dowland: Lachrimae, "Seaven Teares"

Fretwork


As lovely as you might expect such music, in such hands to be.

[Que]

TD:



Dowland: Lachrimae, "Seaven Teares"

Fretwork


As lovely as you might expect such music, in such hands to be.

Perfect.

[Linz]

Rachmaninov's Vepers

[Iota]

Perfect.

Feels that way. 

[classicalgeek]

Last night, finally had a chance to dig in the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra cube, with a couple of old favorites:

Dvorak
Serenade for Strings
Serenade for Winds
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra






Performances as great as I remember! Maybe I could have used a larger body of strings in the Serenade for Strings... but when the performance is as immaculate as Orpheus's, that's almost not worth complaining about. Can't wait to listen to the rest!

[Karl Henning]

Two favourite Stravinsky works, Agon and the Dumbarton Oaks Concerto, with Robert Craft conducting the Orchestra of Saint Luke's.

From this CD:

Love that disc! Good evening, Rafael!

[Karl Henning]

Last night, finally had a chance to dig in the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra cube, with a couple of old favorites:

Dvorak
Serenade for Strings
Serenade for Winds
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra






Performances as great as I remember! Maybe I could have used a larger body of strings in the Serenade for Strings... but when the performance is as immaculate as Orpheus's, that's almost not worth complaining about. Can't wait to listen to the rest!

(* pounds the table *)

[ritter]

Love that disc! Good evening, Rafael!

Good evening, Karl!

Well, couldn't just listen to those two works, so I've also played the Scherzo à la russe (another favourite) and am now listening to Scènes de ballet (IMHO a minor work with —uncharacteristically for Igor Feodorovich— rather kitsch moments, but I'm kinda fond of it)...

[Florestan]

uncharacteristically for Igor Feodorovich— rather kitsch moments

Petrushka anyone? I mean, could you get more kitschy than quoting Joseph Lanner in full? 

I haste to add that Petrushka is my very favorite Stravinsky work hands down, not least precisely because of that Lanner quote --- followed by Pulcinella, not least because of those kitschy Pergolesi quotes in full.

The jury is still out on the third place.

EDIT: I'd really and honestly rather listen to Joseph Lanner and Pergolesi than Stravinsky...