What are you listening 2 now?

[Spotted Horses]

Finishing off the Koechlin String Quartet traversal with the second quartet.



Unlike No 1 and 3, which are rather brief, this quartet is rather expansive, particularly the 17 minute long finale. Nevertheless, my impression of the second quartet is similar, wonderful control of the sonorities of the ensemble. The first movement, Adagio, is particularly noteworthy, seeming to be put together from continuous variation of an ostinato figure amid shifting harmonies.

[Mandryka]

Finishing off the Koechlin String Quartet traversal with the second quartet.



Unlike No 1 and 3, which are rather brief, this quartet is rather expansive, particularly the 17 minute long finale. Nevertheless, my impression of the second quartet is similar, wonderful control of the sonorities of the ensemble. The first movement, Adagio, is particularly noteworthy, seeming to be put together from continuous variation of an ostinato figure amid shifting harmonies.

My feeling -- no more than that, just an intuition -- is that the music is better than the performance. I haven't heard 1 and 3.

[Le Buisson Ardent]

NP:

Martin
Maria-Triptychon
Juliane Banse (soprano)
German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra
Christoph Poppen

[Le Buisson Ardent]

My feeling -- no more than that, just an intuition -- is that the music is better than the performance. I haven't heard 1 and 3.

The performance is excellent. I mean if this performance was all we have, then I'd be content. I seriously doubt there will another quartet that comes along and records it.

[Le Buisson Ardent]

Mentally preparing myself for the Pettersson BIS set I bought last night --- NP:

Pettersson
Symphony No. 13
BBC Scottish SO
Alun Francis

From this set -



I still think the Pettersson cycle on CPO is a miraculous achievement. I've never been too crazy about multi-conductor symphony cycles, but this one is very good. Symphony No. 13 is one of his most challenging symphonies, but I think Alun Francis makes a good case for it. Something else I'd like to make note of is where I believe BIS have CPO beat is in the audio quality. While the CPO recordings sound good, the BIS recordings (or, at least, the ones I already own from their Pettersson cycle) have much more depth in the overall soundstage, which that deeper bass presence is something that is vital in Pettersson's music.

[Spotted Horses]

My feeling -- no more than that, just an intuition -- is that the music is better than the performance. I haven't heard 1 and 3.

I didn't have that impression, but impossible to say until another quartet offers an alternative. I did find the recordings of 1 and 2 consistent with 3 and the quintet, which was recorded by a different ensemble.

[foxandpeng]

Steve Elcock
Symphony 8
Violin Concerto
Kenneth Woods
English SO
Nimbus

I like Elcock's symphonies - they are really starting to grow on me, and this most recent release is pleasingly ominous and dark.

[Le Buisson Ardent]

NP:

K. A. Hartmann
Kammerkonzert
Paul Meyer (clarinet), Conrad Muck (violin), Gernot Süssmuth (violone), Friedemann Weigle (viola), Hans-Jakob Eschenburg (cello)
Petersen Quartett, Munich Chamber Orchestra
Christoph Poppen

From this OOP recording -

[Lisztianwagner]

Johann Strauss II
Frauenkäferln
Bonbon-Polka
Spiralen
Künstler-Quadrille

Johannes Wildner & Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra

[Le Buisson Ardent]

NP:

Hindemith
Konzertmusik für Streicher und Blechbläser, Op. 50
BSO
Steinberg

From this OOP recording -

[Brian]

I've been vibing really well with Bernstein's Serenade lately. For many years, it seemed dry to me or a little aloof, aside from the big jazz tune in the finale. But now the whole thing cooks. Nice to be a little older and wiser!

[Linz]

Bruckner Symphony No. 7 in E Major, 1885 Version. Ed.Leopold Nowak, Bruckner Orchester Linz, Kurt Eichhorn

[ritter]

Some classic recordings of early music by Elliott Carter:

[Le Buisson Ardent]

Some classic recordings of early music by Elliott Carter:

I'll join you @ritter, but from this OOP set:

[ritter]

And now, Jean Hubeau playing Fauré's Nocturnes 1 through 9.

CD1 of this set:

[Iota]

Britten: Les Illuminations

Although this was originally written for soprano, I generally listen to it in its tenor incarnation, and that in combination with the formidable Jurowski at the helm, makes this feel a markedly different reading from the usual fare, somewhat heavier and darker, more Germanic perhaps. Sally Matthews really rolls her sleeves up and sends waves of Wagnerian-like energy crashing into every nook and cranny of the (live) venue, and Jurowski is detailed, imposing and simply brilliant.

[Todd]

4.

[Cato]

NP:

K. A. Hartmann
Kammerkonzert
Paul Meyer (clarinet), Conrad Muck (violin), Gernot Süssmuth (violone), Friedemann Weigle (viola), Hans-Jakob Eschenburg (cello)
Petersen Quartett, Munich Chamber Orchestra
Christoph Poppen

From this OOP recording -

Out Of Print drives me nuts, given our digital age and so on: how hard is it really to tell a computer to record a CD?!

Anyway, yes, this is another great work from Karl Amadeus Hartmann!

[Le Buisson Ardent]

Out Of Print drives me nuts, given our digital age and so on: how hard is it really to tell a computer to record a CD?!

Anyway, yes, this is another great work from Karl Amadeus Hartmann!

Hah...it appears that so much of my collection is OOP these days. But classical recordings are prone to go this route as long as I can remember and I'm sure many of you had to ensure this phenomenon well before my time on this planet.

And YES! I love K. A. Hartmann! Stupendous composer.

[Pohjolas Daughter]

NP:

Crumb
Otherworldly Resonances
Quattro Mani



Eerie work and wholly fascinating. I should spend more time with Crumb's work. I own most of these Bridge releases.

I only have a couple of his works but found them to be fascinating:  Black Angels (with the Kronos Quartet) and his Sonata for Solo Cello (Matt Haimovitz).

PD