What are you listening 2 now?

[Lisztianwagner]

Revisiting this CD after many years, and struck again by how fantastic Elliott Carter's Clarinet Concerto and Symphonia: sum fluxae pretium spei.

Superb renditions under Oliver Knussen and soloist Michael Collins in the concerto. One of the greatest CDs of Carter's music I know.

I'll join, I don't think I have listened to those Carter's works yet!

On youtube:
Elliott Carter
Clarinet Concerto
Symphonia: sum fluxae pretium spei

Michael Collins (clarinet)
Oliver Knussen & London Sinfonietta

[vers la flamme]

Eladia Blázquez, Carlos Moscardini, Astor Piazzolla, etc.: Tangos Argentinos. Victor Villadangos

[vandermolen]

Ralph Vaughan Williams
Symphony 8 in d minor
Symphony 9 in e minor
London SO - Bryden Thomson

Pitched percussion and saxophones! I don't remember much of VW's late symphonies, but innovation is there.
VS

Thomson's performance of the 9th in particular is one of the best.

[ritter]

An opera I haven't listened to in many years, but that again makes a very strong impression:



Othmar Schoeck is a composer I don't really appreciate that much, but Penthesilea(on Kleist) is quite something. The alternation of the lyrical (or autumnal, as this is the word that comes to my mind in much of Schoeck's music) and the downright savage, of the spoken and the sung, and of the hugely scored and the almost chamber-like, is very, very effective, and the work is really beautiful (despite its gory story — next to it, Elektra appears as tame as L'Elisir d'amore  ).

I got this recording, with a very convincing Yvonne Naef in the title rôle and conducted by Mario Venzago, several years ago, but I think I hadn't listened to it until now. It seems to include more music —95 minutes spread over two CDs— than the other one I have in my collection (Helga Dernesch under Gerd Albrecht live from Salzburg, on a single CD —as are other recordings I know about—.

Really enjoying this!

[Symphonic Addict]

Foss: Symphonies 3 and 4

An interesting evolution in this cycle, from very tonal and uplifting to sparse and strange, albeit never forbidding. The 3rd is a good work, but the 4th felt a little odd and not very convincing. Another recording of the work is needed to make a better assessment.

[Todd]

Goin' all classic classical.

[Peter Power Pop]

I'm listening to Billie Eilish, but it turns out she's performing Holst!

https://www.classicfm.com/composers/holst/billie-eilish-goldwing-hymn/

The first half of that track reminded me of this:

[Symphonic Addict]

Kabalevsky: Cello Sonata in B-flat major

Despite the B-flat major key could indicate good spirits, it's not a happy work by any means, rather a relentless, serious, rigurous piece. Reaching the ending there's a very stormy passage that shatters the speakers! A powerful performance.

[SimonNZ]

[foxandpeng]

Alan Hovhaness
Symphony 60 'To the Appalachian Mountains'
Gerald Schwarz
Berlin RSO
Naxos

Night music

[Symphonic Addict]

Steinberg: Symphony No. 1

It's hard to imagine this performance to be bettered (no more recordings of this work yet), it's really vigorous and assertive.

[Keemun]

Rachmaninoff: Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini (Rubinstein, piano/Reiner/CSO)

This is quite good and I am enjoying it more than I expected.

[Symphonic Addict]

Reznicek: Symphony No. 4 in F minor

I have to invoke the famous sentence: this is an underrated composer. There's much to enjoy in this symphony, including a funeral march for the death of a comedian and a theme-and-variation movement that ends with a fugue. Good stuff.

[SonicMan46]

Moving back to disc two.  More good stuff.  While not a complete set, this giant blob o' Haydn stands with the best of the other big blobs o' Haydn I've heard, namely Hamelin, Bavouzet, and Brendel though it's rather different than any of those.  It's more openly interventionist, but all works well.  I have high hopes for the other six discs.

I really ought to finish off the Bavouzet Haydn set, which I stopped buying at volume five.  It's better than McCabe and the stylistically limited Brautigam, whom I like less as time passes.  Beghin's cycle is fine but gimmicky.

Hi Todd - thanks for your comments on Pienaar - just setup a Spotify playlist which will be tomorrow's listening - currently own 3 sets - Brautigam, Beghin, & Derzhavina on a modern piano - have your heard her?  I've been interested in Bavouzet but have not done a listen yet.  Dave

[Symphonic Addict]

Suk: Symphony No. 1

Such an inspiriting and memorable composition.

[atardecer]

An interesting video of Bernard Herrmann conducting and discussing composers Carl Ruggles and Charles Ives:

[Que]

Another recording by Hopkinson Smith I didn't know, with English lute music:

[vandermolen]

Steinberg: Symphony No. 1

It's hard to imagine this performance to be bettered (no more recordings of this work yet), it's really vigorous and assertive.

Although my favourites Cesar are 2 (DGG) and 4 'Turksib' (Dutton). He is IMO a most underrated composer - usually remembered as the son-in-law of Rimsky-Korsakov and the teacher of Shostakovich.

[vandermolen]

An interesting video of Bernard Herrmann conducting and discussing composers Carl Ruggles and Charles Ives:

When the young Herrmann asked Ives for advice about how to perform his (Ives's) music, the older man replied 'if you find any of my music boring - just add in something of your own'. I love that anecdote.

[Madiel]

My sister's community orchestra playing Mendelssohn's 1st symphony and Tchaikovsky's 5th.