What are you listening 2 now?

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NP: Villa-Lobos Quintette Instrumental



One of my favorite Villa-Lobos works. Absolutely enchanting.

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Kosaku Yamada: Nagauta Symphony / Meiji Symphony / Maria Magdalena.

[VonStupp]

Thanks!

I noticed that the list of composers is a wee bit thin: e.g. Pachelbel is not there, nor is Johann David Heinchen, whom they once promoted as an unknown Bach!

Wee bit thin, for sure! I tried searching for the concert hall favorites Bruckner and Mahler. There weren't any Bruckner recordings, and Mahler was only represented by his Fifth Symphony from Maurice Abravanel. The others I glanced at seemed curio performances.

I think I still have a few CDs which were originally Chandos recordings, but licensed to MHS. I assumed they were a record club akin to Columbia and BMG.
VS

[Linz]

Gustav Mahler Das lied von der Erde
Ernst Haefliger, Nan Merriman, Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam, Eugen Jochum

[DavidW]

I admire your perseverance in this endeavor. I never made it past disc 5 --- not because of the music, which I adore, or of the performance, which I find excellent, but because I lose patience rather quickly with such large box sets. 

Yeah, the trick is to dabble. Just pick up one volume when the mood hits you. I still enjoy closing my eyes and drawing randomly from the Mozart Edition.

[Florestan]

Yeah, the trick is to dabble. Just pick up one volume when the mood hits you. I still enjoy closing my eyes and drawing randomly from the Mozart Edition.

Philips or Brilliant Classics?

[DavidW]

Philips or Brilliant Classics?

Brilliant. I don't think I've ever seen the Philips on sale, I had just the string quartet volume with Quartet Italiano (a great box btw).

[Florestan]

Brilliant. I don't think I've ever seen the Philips on sale, I had just the string quartet volume with Quartet Italiano (a great box btw).

I have the complete Philips --- digital, that is. 🤓

[Mister Sharpe]

I noticed that it is from the old Musical Heritage Society!

What a fine company that was: they were not averse to promoting obscure works, which was a wonderful mission!

Agree wholeheartedly!  Their mission was indeed a sacred one: nothing less than the promulgation and popularization of Classical Music. Their prices were affordable (I thought), their pressings good (no one would regard them as "audiophile" - mostly because of their licensing of older, sometimes historic, recordings of other labels' holdings - lots and lots from Erato! - thought less marketable), and they were brilliant at bringing interesting, if often lesser known, works to the fore that would have languished otherwise. How exciting it was get their mailings and catalog.  They issued jazz recordings, too, through a subsidiary.  Little known fact, their co-founder Mischa Naida, also co-founded Westminster Records which I'm fond of.  Don't know much about Passionato, which took over MHS' catalog and more. I should find out. 

[Cato]

Agree wholeheartedly!  Their mission was indeed a sacred one: nothing less than the promulgation and popularization of Classical Music. Their prices were affordable (I thought), their pressings good (no one would regard them as "audiophile" - mostly because of their licensing of older, sometimes historic, recordings of other labels' holdings - lots and lots from Erato! - thought less marketable), and they were brilliant at bringing interesting, if often lesser known, works to the fore that would have languished otherwise. How exciting it was get their mailings and catalog.  They issued jazz recordings, too, through a subsidiary.  Little known fact, their co-founder Mischa Naida, also co-founded Westminster Records which I'm fond of.  Don't know much about Passionato, which took over MHS' catalog and more. I should find out. 

The Musical Heritage Society introduced me to Louis Vierne: I bought his complete symphonies for organ (played by Pierre Labric) from them and was ever more thrilled, enchanted, and ebullient as I listened to each record!

Possibly the originals were from ERATO ?

Speaking of which:

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NP: Berg Lyrische Suite

[Symphonic Addict]

I have to say I am not as great a Martinu fan as many on this forum. However this is a great disc - I love all the comically po-faced "jazz" works.  Real wit I think.

Many works of Martinu can be rather similar each other because of the syncopated rhythms he often employed, I suppose, and hence they also tend to be quite energetic, propulsive, so many can get tired quickly. I unreservedly love his music. The irresistible spark and wit as you say that impregnate their works allure me galore, not to say his ear for orchestration, sonorities and imaginative combination of instruments, among other features.

[Mister Sharpe]

The Musical Heritage Society introduced me to Louis Vierne: I bought his complete symphonies for organ (played by Pierre Labric) from them and was ever more thrilled, enchanted, and ebullient as I listened to each record!

Possibly the originals were from ERATO ?

So glad you're a fan!  MHS licensed recordings from lots of small labels, like Grand Orgue which is where your Vierne Organ Symphonies came from. They did in fact eventually secure much of Erato - all good stuff! - I'd sure like to see some of the licensing paperwork for their agreements.  That must have been a full-time legal job!  Maybe several full-time legal jobs.  One of my purchases back then that I was most enthused about - and still own - is the Festival Consort Renaissance of the Cittern.  So much fun.  I share your interest in Vierne along with other French composers of that time and place : Godard, Koechlin, Pierné, Ropartz, Tournemire, and to a lesser extent: d'Ollone. Underappreciated geniuses, selon moi. Those and more are given regular airplay on Bru Zane radio, dedicated to French nineteenth century music to 1920 (they cheat a little chronologically sometimes):  https://bru-zane.com/en/classical-radio/ 

[Mister Sharpe]

Listening now to Bru Zane online radio, a performance of Ravel's Piano Trio by the Trio George Sand, my introduction to this group and I must say I am thoroughly impressed!  An intensely moving interpretation, delicate yet spirited and surefooted (so easy to go astray in this work). Among the very best I've heard of the Ravel trio (and I've heard a lot of them!).  Anyone else here similarly enchanted by it?

[Cato]

So glad you're a fan!  MHS licensed recordings from lots of small labels, like Grand Orgue which is where your Vierne Organ Symphonies came from. ...

  I share your interest in Vierne along with other French composers of that time and place : Godard, Koechlin, Pierné, Ropartz, Tournemire, ... d'Ollone. Underappreciated geniuses, selon moi. Those and more are given regular airplay on Bru Zane radio, dedicated to French nineteenth century music to 1920 (they cheat a little chronologically sometimes): https://bru-zane.com/en/classical-radio/

Many thanks for that link!

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NP: Mahler's 5th

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NP: Crumb Black Angels

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NP: Debussy Préludes, Book I

From this set -

[AnotherSpin]

18 Chorale Preludes "Leipziger"

Gillian Weir

[steve ridgway]

Webern - Passacaglia