What are you listening 2 now?

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Now playing Ginastera Impresiones de la Puna



Ginastera at his most Impressionistic à la Debussy.

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Now playing Moeran String Quartet No. 2 in E flat major

[Selig]

Suite [IX] in g

A very fine suite from Froberger's Libro quarto.

[AnotherSpin]

I can help it, be sure of that. If something is not getting in my player or streamer it's her voice.    

Yes, Callas is like Tom Waits or olives – some can't stand them, while others feel completely the opposite!

[Roasted Swan]

Now playing Moeran String Quartet No. 2 in E flat major

I love that quartet - early or late - who cares!?

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

I love that quartet - early or late - who cares!?

Indeed. This SQ was actually his last chamber work --- composed between 1949 and 1950. It's a fantastic piece no doubt.

[Traverso]

So, if I understood correctly — Xenakis wanted to use his music to awaken the mind? That's an interesting take.

For me, one of the most powerful things about music is how it can calm a restless mind. It can give you a real break from thinking and just let you be.

I would not want to reduce art to a therapeutic frame.
Xenakis wants to break new ground and invites the listener to a new relationship with a sound world where the old beacons offer no support.
Listening without expectation, not anticipating on a theme, there is nothing that has already been filled in only a world of vibrations that only receive meaning when they break through the world of the known.
It is one great "Terra Incognita" just sound and our exploration of it in relation with our ability to listen.
Of course there is always the possibility that no awakening takes place but doors that are slammed shut.
There are still entire tribes of people today who run away when they hear classical music.
We may find that childish but we have little right to speak if we ourselves already dictate conditions that stimulate our willingness to listen.

[Brian]

Newly arrived from Europadisc and completing my collection of the Ancerl Gold Edition volumes I want to own (I now have about half of them).



Violin Concerto performance is excellent. Cello Concerto coming up next. Have never heard anything by Borkovec.

[Traverso]

Gubaidulina

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Propaganda lures people to a new "Promised Land" that does not exist.



Awakening the Mind
Many perceive music as mere melody and rhythm, offering a comforting backdrop to daily life. However, Xenakis challenged this notion, integrating complex mathematical concepts into his compositions. His immersive soundscapes evoke not only emotion but also intellectual curiosity. Imagine standing before a captivating canvas of sound intricately painted with formulas and designs, guiding listeners on an unprecedented auditory journey. For example, his iconic works, 'Metastasis', with its transformative glissandi, and 'Pithoprakta', which juxtaposes noise and silence, compel listeners to explore surreal sonic landscapes.


Xenakis

CD 1

I own this set as well. In fact, I own a good bit of Xenakis. Anyway, his music certainly inhabits a different aural universe. I don't make it a habit of listening to it too often of course, but if you want a palette cleanser after listening to Bach or Mozart, Xenakis' music provides more of a pressure wash which should take the skin right off with no problem.

[AnotherSpin]

I would not want to reduce art to a therapeutic frame.
Xenakis wants to break new ground and invites the listener to a new relationship with a sound world where the old beacons offer no support.
Listening without expectation, not anticipating on a theme, there is nothing that has already been filled in only a world of vibrations that only receive meaning when they break through the world of the known.
It is one great "Terra Incognita" just sound and our exploration of it in relation with our ability to listen.
Of course there is always the possibility that no awakening takes place but doors that are slammed shut.
There are still entire tribes of people today who run away when they hear classical music.
We may find that childish but we have little right to speak if we ourselves already dictate conditions that stimulate our willingness to listen.

It's not about therapy. I mean how music can break down made-up concepts and free us from getting stuck in the endless loop of our own thoughts.

Any 'breakthrough' experience is just an illusion. The world doesn't come and go; it's not real to begin with. When we talk about 'doors slamming shut,' it suggests that change is real. But focusing on 'new ways of relating to sound' might just be swapping one illusion for another.

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Before heading out for the day --- Mendelssohn Meeresstille und Glückliche Fahrt, Op. 27

[Traverso]

I own this set as well. In fact, I own a good bit of Xenakis. Anyway, his music certainly inhabits a different aural universe. I don't make it a habit of listening to it too often of course, but if you want a palette cleanser after listening to Bach or Mozart, Xenakis' music provides more of a pressure wash which should take the skin right off with no problem.

Of course, true words, we must be prepared to get lost every now and then, not to crawl back into our holes but to see it as an enrichment that there can be meaning even in the seemingly insignificant.
What it can evoke in ourselves in the apparent jumble of sounds.

[steve ridgway]

I own this set as well. In fact, I own a good bit of Xenakis. Anyway, his music certainly inhabits a different aural universe. I don't make it a habit of listening to it too often of course, but if you want a palette cleanser after listening to Bach or Mozart, Xenakis' music provides more of a pressure wash which should take the skin right off with no problem.

Xenakis sounds like a @Harry sound system kind of guy .

[Traverso]

It's not about therapy. I mean how music can break down made-up concepts and free us from getting stuck in the endless loop of our own thoughts.

Any 'breakthrough' experience is just an illusion. The world doesn't come and go; it's not real to begin with. When we talk about 'doors slamming shut,' it suggests that change is real. But focusing on 'new ways of relating to sound' might just be swapping one illusion for another.

It seems that illusion is the eternal thing....

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Of course, true words, we must be prepared to get lost every now and then, not to crawl back into our holes but to see it as an enrichment that there can be meaning even in the seemingly insignificant.
What it can evoke in ourselves in the apparent jumble of sounds.

There are only a handful of composers that make me think about matters of life beyond the music and Xenakis isn't one of them. Like I said, a fun listen, but hardly anything substantial for me or musically rewarding in the long-run.

[steve ridgway]

It seems that illusion is the eternal thing....

Yes, it's a creative art  .

[Traverso]

There are only a handful of composers that make me think about matters of life beyond the music and Xenakis isn't one of them. Like I said, a fun listen, but hardly anything substantial for me or musically rewarding in the long-run.

I have tried to make a case for Xenakis' music without declaring him my favorite composer. As you said, it can be refreshing to leave the beaten track every now and then.

Gubaidulina once said that she was fascinated by the sound of overtones that we hear when we slide two slates over each other.

[Traverso]

Yes, it's a creative art  .

There is little to hold on.....   One word can mean so many things....

[steve ridgway]

There is little to hold on.....   One word can mean so many things....

Laws with in built randomness - a brilliant way to produce ever changing, evolving complexity, surprising and beautiful appearances  .