What are you listening 2 now?

[Harry]

Jean Maillard. (1538-1570)
Missa Je Suis Desheritee, and other works, see for details back cover.
The Marian Consort, Rory McCleery.
Recorded 2013, at Merton Chapel, Oxford.

Impressive singing in Merton chapel that has a fine acoustic. The Marian Consort can be hit or miss, but apart from some microphones that cause some slight distortion, when the Females put some volume behind their voice. not troublesome, but that shows how important it is to install them in the right place. Jean Maillard is a Franco=Flemish composer I do not often encounter, which is an omission on my side for he composed beautiful music. A French composer from the Renaissance obviously, but of his life we know next to nothing. Might have lived and worked in Paris, and might have worked for the French court, and might have turned Protestant, but still we no know nothing about him. Only Six Masses have survived which is also next to nothing. Next in line would be his Motets...if I can find them

[Traverso]

Bach

Vol.9  CD 2

[Que]

Jean Maillard. (1538-1570)
Missa Je Suis Desheritee, and other works, see for details back cover.
The Marian Consort, Rory McCleery.
Recorded 2013, at Merton Chapel, Oxford.

Impressive singing in Merton chapel that has a fine acoustic. The Marian Consort can be hit or miss,[...]

I quite liked their Lusitano recording. Any others you would recommend?

[AnotherSpin]

Muffat - Armonico Tributo
Lars Ulrik Mortensen

[Harry]

I quite liked their Lusitano recording. Any others you would recommend?

I am in the process of listening to their recordings, together with the Maillard, and found both "Una Poesie Art", and "Adriatic" very much to my liking. The Lusitano is in my waiting queue

[Que]

For a Dutch (style) option, I think this 1999 recording by Bob van Asperen is 1st choice in the English Suites.

[Traverso]

For a Dutch (style) option, I think this 1999 recording by Bob van Asperen is 1st choice in the English Suites.

fortunately not double Dutch,fine recording...

[Que]

I am in the process of listening to their recordings, together with the Maillard, and found both "Una Poesie Art", and "Adriatic" very much to my liking. The Lusitano is in my waiting queue

I will follow your explorations! 

fortunately not double Dutch,fine recording...

During the Anglo-Dutch wars the English didn't quite like us and made up some snarky expressions about us, that have survived till this day... And they stole OUR gin (jenever)...   But somehow we never returned the favour. The expression "Double Dutch" to indicate an incomprehensible language, gibberish, is quite telling of the English foreign language skills at the time, since Dutch is linguistically so very close to English, though Frisian is even closer.

[Harry]

MISCHA SPOLIANSKY.
Orchestral Music.
See back cover for details.
Liepāja Symphony Orchestra, Paul Mann.
Recorded: 2021 in the Great Amber Concert Hall, Liepāja, Latvia


A rerun of a very fine recording (OOP). Brilliantly written music, and great performance. The "Boogie" is an orchestral marvel, perfectly orchestrated, I consider this a masterpiece, absolutely. "My husband and I" could have been written by Ruth Gipps, or Dorothy Carwithen by that matter The Symphony in five movements is a breath taking away piece too, the introduction shows again how brilliantly Spoliansky orchestrated. A deeply moving work. And O, boy the sound, so good........you have the orchestra literally in your listening room.

[Iota]

Ligeti: Piano Concerto
Jean-Frédéric Neuburger (piano), Les Siècles, François-Xavier Roth

Sometimes Ligeti creates tumbling, energetic textures (as in the Piano Etudes e.g) that are fine and do indeed dazzle, but I somehow don't quite connect with them. It is thus at times in this concerto too, though certainly not all the time, and I unequivocally salute Movements II and III for example, where Ligeti's imaginative genius shines clear. So a thumbs-up with the odd reservation. Superbly done by all involved, I've found F-X Roth generally very impressive in all I've heard from him.

[Traverso]

Vivaldi

6 Sonate Op.5

[AnotherSpin]

[Harry]

Madeleine Dring (1923– 1977).
Complete Works for Oboe.
See back cover for details.
Nicholas Daniel, Oboe
Adam Walker, flute.
Amy Harman, Bassoon.
Antonio Oyarzábal, Piano.
Recording venue Potton Hall, Dunwich, Suffolk; 7 –9 June 2024

Third rerun

As I said before, my choice this year as one of the best recordings, (music and performance) I heard. This music touches my heart and many things more. Brilliantly written pieces by a very talented woman, who was also intelligent, enormously versatile, everything she touched turned to success. and she did many things, apart from living to old age, the flower that was crushed in the bud, which to me is a very sad outcome. I am sure she would have written so much more. This disc is the epitome  of her talent. A vivacious driven composer with a bubbly genius living permanently inside her. And you still hear that. SOTA sound and performance.

[JBS]

I will follow your explorations! 

During the Anglo-Dutch wars the English didn't quite like us and made up some snarky expressions about us, that have survived till this day... And they stole OUR gin (jenever)...   But somehow we never returned the favour. The expression "Double Dutch" to indicate an incomprehensible language, gibberish, is quite telling of the English foreign language skills at the time, since Dutch is linguistically so very close to English, though Frisian is even closer.

There's also the fine art of jumping rope
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_Dutch_(jump_rope)

Although the term "Dutch" can sometimes mean German (ie Deutsch), as in "Pennsylvania Dutch".

[Harry]

Kalevi Aho, (1949)
Symphonic Dances. Hommage to Uuno Klami (2001).
Symphony No.11 for Six Percussionists and Orchestra.
Lahti Symphony Orchestra, Osmo Vanskä.
Recording: 2002, at the Sibelius Hall, Lathi, Finland.

An amazing composer and an impressive recording (SOTA). I simply love the nature of his music. the performance is in good hands with Vanskä and this Orchestra. More of this will be forthcoming, as I am bookmarking most of what is available on Qobuz.

[Que]

Lovely!

There's also the fine art of jumping rope
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_Dutch_(jump_rope)

I didn't know!

Although the term "Dutch" can sometimes mean German (ie Deutsch), as in "Pennsylvania Dutch"

I'd have to explain this to people many times.   And that the "Dutch" do not come from "Danmark", but live in "the Netherlands", also known as "Holland". Not blaming anyone - it's all utterly confusing.. in English, mind you.

Another confusing name is "Dutch" apple pie in the US. Which is actually German Apfelstreuselkuchen.

A REAL traditional Dutch apple pie (appeltaart) does not have a crumble topping and looks like this:



It also tastes different.

[Traverso]

A society filled with propaganda is a society filled with lies, you can't simplify things into bite-sized chunks without getting lost in puzzling pieces and crying out for a strong leader.

Louis Couperin

[Harry]

Giovanni Antonio Pandolfi Mealli.
Solo Sonatas, Opera Terza.
See details on the back cover.
Ars Antiqua Austria, Gunar Letzbor.
Recorded at the Castle of Ivanka pri Dunaji (Slovakia), 2010.

Letzbor knows how to realize the Italian's bizarre style like hardly anyone else I know or heard for that matter. The present recording is a good example for this. For the music is bizarre, extreme and strong in expression. The playing is superb and the instrumentalists are well placed in the Castle. The microphone however stood pretty close to the Violin, and is rather piercing and hard, so be careful with the volume or they cut right through your ears. But an interpretation not to be missed I would like to add.

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

Enticing 'salty' programme of works.

Absolutely. All wonderful works and performances.

[Der lächelnde Schatten]

NP: Mendelssohn Symphony No. 4 in A Major, Op. 90 "Italian"