Pieces that have blown you away recently

[Kalevala]

One complete CD and other two works this time:

Exploring Martinu's works with orchestra has paid succulent dividends, and this riveting Supraphon CD featuring early works has been the highlight in my traversal at the moment. The only work I had heard previously was Czech Rhapsody for baritone, chorus, organ and orchestra, and once again, I got the most favourable impression of it. This is Martinu at his most decidedly patriotic and epic, 36 minutes of extraordinary music imbued with solemn and exultant choral passages and a stirring sense of drama pervading a big portion of the piece, which culminates in sheer grandeur. I loved every bit of it. The other two works, Nipponari and Magic Nights are song cycles to Japanese and Chinese texts respectively and they are the opposite of the aforementioned choral work: much more subtle, intimate, delicate, luxuriously orchestrated, above all the latter which is ridiculously ravishing, truly magical indeed. All in all, one of the most satisfying CDs I've heard lately.




Yesterday I got acquainted with some of Alun Hoddinott's symphonies that have been commercially recorded, namely 2, 3 and 5, which featured attractive dissonances, baleful atmospheres and practically zero traces of light or hope. His Symphony No. 6, on the other hand, incorporates ideas that have a more lyrical quality. Its opening has to be counted as one of the most haunting, eloquent and vividly atmospheric in the whole British/Welsh symphonic literature, it's just remarkable and has to be heard to be believed. What follows continues in that strident vein as in previous symphonies, but here the lyricism is more evident and that's what makes this symphony more special. Around the 15' part of the magic of the opening appears and ends up flowing into a climax that has goosebump-inducing nature (at least it did that for me). What a great moment. The work ends in a quiet, beautiful and poetic manner, something that I found quite spot on. A marvelous symphony, one that should be better known and it receives a wholly sympathetic performance.




Last, but not least, Alfano's Concerto for piano trio. Along with his two late-Romantic symphonies recorded on CPO, this exquisite chamber work is the most impressive composition I've heard by him. The music exudes a sort of poignant lyricism (mostly in the 1st movement) and memorable ideas regarding melody, rhythm and harmony. Each of its three movements is written in church modes, sometimes reminding me of the English pastoral vibe alla Moeran (which is not a bad thing I hasten to add). The music flows effortlessly and I think it feels inspired from first note to last. I saw that there's a new recording of this work on Brilliant Classics, so making a comparison would be interesting.

I've heard very good things about that Martinu CD.   

K

[kyjo]

Bernstein & Vienna Phil - Mahler 6
Perfect combination of conductor, orchestra and work. And I'm finally really getting into Mahler!

A tremendous, shatteringly powerful recording of my favorite Mahler symphony! It's not too often that I'm in the mood for Mahler these days, but when I am, this is one of the first recordings I reach for.

[kyjo]

Nadia Boulanger - Fantaisie variee pour piano et orchestre

Fascinating piece of music, superbly orchestrated.

+1 I recall a particularly magical, atmospheric section about halfway into the work. I've always regarded it as a real pity that Nadia basically stopped composing after her sister Lili's untimely death in 1918, and she went on to live all the way until 1979. Of course, she went on to become the pre-eminent composition teacher of the 20th century. BTW, that whole Sony album is fantastic regarding both the quality/interest of the repertoire and the performances/sound quality. Reynaldo Hahn's glittering, tuneful PC and Faure's gorgeously refined (but not lacking contrast or passion) Ballade and Fantaisie make for ideal companions to the N. Boulanger work.

[kyjo]

Add to that a favourite disc/download of Jeffrey and I......

...and a firm favourite of mine too! Superlative performances of two masterworks of the chamber music literature. Whilst the Bax quintet is a craggy, dramatic, symphonic juggernaut of a work easily on par with any of his symphonies, the Bridge is unfailingly beautiful and subtly melancholic, with magically fluid harmonies somewhat recalling Faure (but with an unmistakable British accent). 

[kyjo]

Now something on topic:

Tippett: Piano Sonatas

Is this the most fantastic piano sonata cycle to come from the British isles? I'd say, yes. Each of this four sonatas is a world unto itself, very different one from the another and it shows the progression in idiom very clearly, being the last two more demanding and complex. The first two delighted me the most, though. Anyone into piano sonatas from the 20th century could enjoy these works gratifyingly.

I could easily include Tippett's Piano Sonata No. 1 amongst my top 10 favorite piano sonatas - what a sparkling piece full of youthful wit and joie de vivre! I don't recall how many of the other sonatas I've listened to - maybe just No. 2? I recall it being quite a bit "tougher" than No. 1 but not without its own fascinations. 

[Symphonic Addict]

Agreed about performances on modern instruments. My favorite performances of Baroque/Classical Era music are those that combine "modern" beauty and fullness of sound with a rather HIP-influenced approach to crisp articulations and lively tempi.

What are some of your favorite "pre-Paris" Haydn symphonies, Cesar? I've watched some of Hurwitz's "Haydn Symphony Crusade" videos where he waxes lyrical about each symphony for over half an hour, but whenever he plays the sound samples I'm kind of underwhelmed - I can't really hear the remarkable musical features that he (and others) enthuse about. Overall, I've found that my favorite Haydn often lies outside the symphonies. Above all, it goes without saying that his string quartets are a tremendous series, even some of the earlier ones (especially the Op. 20), and his piano trios and choral works also contain great riches to discover.

Some of my favorite Haydn symphonies other than the Paris and London ones: 7-9, 12, 22, 31, 39-45, 48, 49, 53, 57-60, 63, 65, 67, 71-73 and 76.

I really like many of his symphonies, string quartets and masses (not familiar with his piano sonatas at all, although I do know some of his piano trios), but I'm not the die-hard fan of them, mostly because my main musical interests don't lie into the Classical period.

[DavidW]

I really like many of his symphonies, string quartets and masses (not familiar with his piano sonatas at all, although I do know some of his piano trios), but I'm not the die-hard fan of them, mostly because my main musical interests don't lie into the Classical period.

The piano sonatas are worth listening to IMO. The Haydn and London sonatas are on par with Beethoven IMHO. Here are some good recordings:




And the cello concertos, trumpet concerto and sinfonia concertante are also worth a listen.

[Daverz]

What are some of your favorite "pre-Paris" Haydn symphonies, Cesar? I've watched some of Hurwitz's "Haydn Symphony Crusade" videos

Well, that's one way to sap any interest.

Back when there were fewer choices, I would listen to the same CDs over and over again, which is more conducive to absorbing the music than our era of having an enormous selection of recordings for each symphony at our fingertips.

I'm really bad with remembering the numbers, but some that stand out are

6-8, 22, 26, 31, 45, 48, 49 ... those all have nicknames, and then I get a bit fuzzy about the numbers.  60 "Il Distrato" is famous, and I really like 80.  The nicknamed ones aren't always the best ones.

It's easier to recommend recordings in general:

Mackerras (31, 45)
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Marriner's box on Eloquence
Pinnock's Sturm und Drang set
Nick McGegan (57, 67, 68)
Max Goberman's partial set

And Heidelberger Sinfoniker for a complete, modern set.

[Symphonic Addict]

The piano sonatas are worth listening to IMO. The Haydn and London sonatas are on par with Beethoven IMHO. Here are some good recordings:




And the cello concertos, trumpet concerto and sinfonia concertante are also worth a listen.

Thanks for the suggestions, and those concertos are supremely enjoyable. I had forgot to mention them.

[Brian]

What are some of your favorite "pre-Paris" Haydn symphonies, Cesar?

67 and 80!!! 67's slow movement ends with an all-timer of a Haydn quirk that is also an amazing bit of orchestration history. The McGegan album that Daverz recommends is pure gold from first to last with a trio of great symphonies (57, 67, 68) in great HIP performances.

80 is one of Haydn's weirdest and wildest with all sorts of crazy syncopations, key changes, excessive repeats (in the trio), and general hijinks.

49 is also famous for its very dark mood, and 60 for its comedy, including a finale where the strings all retune!

[DavidW]

Here are the two good starter sets for pre-Paris Haydn symphonies IMO (Harnoncourt and Pinnock):

[kyjo]

Truth be told, the only Mozart opera I've heard (and seen, on DVD) so far is The Magic Flute. I guess that Don Giovanni does contain that important dose of drama I often seek in music.

Definitely don't hesitate to listen to Don Giovanni, Cesar! Whilst the majority of the music is written in Mozart's typically mellifluous style, that only makes the more dramatic, minor-key moments all the more gripping. In particular ,the scene near the end where the eponymous Don descends into Hell contains some of Mozart's darkest (even scariest!), most exciting music. The way Mozart musically depicts the different characters and their relationships to each other throughout the opera is nothing short of masterful. A few years ago, I had the great opportunity to play in the pit orchestra for a production of the opera and it gave me a real appreciation for the work which I probably wouldn't have gotten through just listening to it. BTW, I highly recommend this recording led by Gardiner:



Despite the performers involved, I didn't find the performance too HIP for my tastes.

[Christo]

Almost half a century ago, in the late 1970s, I heard a piece by Michel Colombier on the radio, but I didn't remember the title. A few themes and motifs have always lingered in my mind. Now I discovered on YouTube that it was the Sextet Opus 335 for Organ and Brass, which apparently was once released on LP but never on CD. It is with intense pleasure that I listen to it again -- I find it just as haunting as I did back then.

[Symphonic Addict]

Definitely don't hesitate to listen to Don Giovanni, Cesar! Whilst the majority of the music is written in Mozart's typically mellifluous style, that only makes the more dramatic, minor-key moments all the more gripping. In particular ,the scene near the end where the eponymous Don descends into Hell contains some of Mozart's darkest (even scariest!), most exciting music. The way Mozart musically depicts the different characters and their relationships to each other throughout the opera is nothing short of masterful. A few years ago, I had the great opportunity to play in the pit orchestra for a production of the opera and it gave me a real appreciation for the work which I probably wouldn't have gotten through just listening to it. BTW, I highly recommend this recording led by Gardiner:



Despite the performers involved, I didn't find the performance too HIP for my tastes.

Sounds like it's a must-hear, Kyle. I need to get around that opera in due time for sure.

[Der Schattenmann]

A work that has blown me away is John Williams' Heartwood. This work is written for cello and orchestra. Such a haunting atmosphere and the harmonic element of this music truly impressed me. I'm becoming more and more interested in Williams' concert works. Thankfully, a good many of them have been recorded and I have them on CD. There is still a large swarth of Williams' concert music (incl. concerti, orchestral and chamber music) that haven't been recorded. Anyway, I've always been a sucker for his film scores, but his concert works have a different character to them and this reveals his wide stylistic range as a composer.

[relm1]

A work that has blown me away is John Williams' Heartwood. This work is written for cello and orchestra. Such a haunting atmosphere and the harmonic element of this music truly impressed me. I'm becoming more and more interested in Williams' concert works. Thankfully, a good many of them have been recorded and I have them on CD. There is still a large swarth of Williams' concert music (incl. concerti, orchestral and chamber music) that haven't been recorded. Anyway, I've always been a sucker for his film scores, but his concert works have a different character to them and this reveals his wide stylistic range as a composer.

Williams' Piano Concerto premiered this month and Yo-yo Ma said JW is working on a second cello concerto for him!  At the age of 93 he's not slowing down!

[Roasted Swan]

Williams' Piano Concerto premiered this month and Yo-yo Ma said JW is working on a second cello concerto for him!  At the age of 93 he's not slowing down!

Which is probably why he has been so successful - not happy to sit on his laurels!

[pjme]

Almost half a century ago, in the late 1970s, I heard a piece by Michel Colombier on the radio, but I didn't remember the title. A few themes and motifs have always lingered in my mind. Now I discovered on YouTube that it was the Sextet Opus 335 for Organ and Brass, which apparently was once released on LP but never on CD. It is with intense pleasure that I listen to it again -- I find it just as haunting as I did back then.
 

Monsieur Colombier is absolutely new to me, but then I never knew that he left such an enormous legacy, mainly as a composer for films and as arranger.
His French Wiki page gives a very detailed biography and names plenty of famous people he worked with: Serge Gainsbourg, Petula Clarck, Sacha Distel, Barbara, France Gall... Claude Lelouch, jean Pierre Melville, Philippe Labro, Twyla Tharp, Pierre Henry... Madonna....etc, etc.
He worked and lived in the USA and died in Santa Monica.

Apparently, there are some symphonic works


Musique symphonique1
1963 : Trois mouvements dans le style classique, pour orchestre à cordes1
1970 : Wings, pour orchestre, chœurs, voix, ensemble jazz-rock et trio à cordes électrifié
1982 : Nuit et Solitude, adagio pour orchestre
1983 : La couleur du temps, pour petit orchestre1
1983 : Une chambre en ville, suite symphonique d'après la musique du film de Jacques Demy
1984 : Staccato, pour orchestre
1992 : Celebration, huit danses pour orchestre et chœurs
A concerto for the Labèque sisters is also mentioned

That (short) brass-organ sextet is indeed quite captivating.

[Symphonic Addict]

These pieces had elicited quite a strong impression the last time I took a break from this site, but I had never posted about it in here:


Maria Bach: Chamber music

Playing entire recordings containing multiple pieces is something I don't usually do (I'd rather listen to specific works given my mood at the moment). Today I wanted to make an exception with this disc. I don't regret. This is a winning program, but more importantly, stupendous music by a virtually unknown composer. Maria Bach (1896-1978) was an Austrian composer who studied at the Vienna Academy of Music under Joseph Marx.

The music on the CD has a late-Romantic/post-Romantic feel to it for the most part. Both the Cello Sonata and the Suite for cello solo feature music with piquant gestures that are balanced by others more nonchalant and eloquent. There's a good contrast in the musical content in both works that makes them a quite compelling listen. However, if those two works made a favorable impression, the Piano Quintet in A minor 'Wolgaquintett' does it even more so. This is absolutely sublime, ravishing, lovely to the bone. From the very beginning one can foreshadow the gorgeousness to come, and it shows galore. The first movement is tinged with some impressionist touches and hints of what seems to be Fauré. That movement alone is extremely beautiful. The second movement (and longest one of the piece) comprises variations on the famous Song of the Volga Boatmen (hence its title), and it's another enchanting utterance, this time imbued with more lively passages. The third and final movement features the most joyous ideas, including a rousing finale. For me, this work is a revelation.

Bach's idiom may not be entirely distinctive, but I don't mind given the quality, craftsmanship and exceptional beauty of the music. I see there's another recording on CPO that also includes the Piano Quintet and the Cello Sonata + a String Quintet. Releases like this one encourages me to never lose interest discovering new music.




Valentin Silvestrov: Requiem für Larissa

This is by a wide margin the best work I've heard by Silvestrov so far. You hardly can't ask for anything more deeply felt, poignant, heartbreaking and eventually, consoling. I was especially impressed by the Agnus Dei and the fifth movement Proshchai svite. Stunningly beautiful. A sincere hommage to the composer's wife who had passed away.




Manuel de Falla: Atlántida

For long I had avoided this work due to partly a misconception about it, believing that its musical content was austere and not as approachable as any of his ballets. I was wrong, I was missing an extraordinary composition all this time, certainly Falla's most ambitious utterance. Not only is its intensity and evocative lyric parts (e.g. La Salve en el mar and La nit suprema, utterly mesmerizing) the main attractions here, but also a sort of primitive atmosphere that permeates it. Another relevant detail is the convincing and natural job Ernesto Halffter did at completing it. If that were not enough, both the performance and recording are exemplary.




Thomas de Hartmann: Violin Concerto

This is not the first time that a piece by this composer gets high praises from me. Previously it had been his Symphonie-Poèmes Nos. 1 and 3. Today the turn is for his extraordinary Violin Concerto, a memorable work of absolute inspiration, stupendous orchestration and brilliant and effective construction. The first movement alone, interspersing soulful passages with others more glowing, shows how a skilled composer he was. In the movements 3 and 4 he incorporates some exotic touches here and there that highlight the colourful nature of it. This work has all what a great late-Romantic concerto should contain. It's performed by no other than Joshua Bell as the soloist, and one feels that he really appropriated the piece. The Cello Concerto on the same disc is at a the same or similar level of inspiration and it's not to be missed either.

Thomas de Hartmann has been one of the best discoveries in the last years to me and I am thankful for the exposure he deservedly has received.




Steven Gerber: His six string quartets

It's not the first time that I post about this composer on this thread. Previously it had been about a Chandos disc of orchestral music. The first three string quartets feature aggresivity and a relentless nature that become overwhelming, let alone some unnerving cacophony. The next three quartets manage to captivate by mildly different reasons. These don't convey that intense fierceness, rather what I felt is a sense of humanity that is not too much dissimilar to that present in Vasks's style, albeit mixed with a certain forcefulness. The 4th SQ struck me like especially interesting. This is the kind of stuff that Danny could enjoy quite a bit I reckon.




Franz Liszt: Duo Sonata for violin and piano, S. 127

Why I waited for so long to explore Liszt's chamber music! This piece is just brilliant, splendidly written for both instruments and with the unmistakable Liszt stamp. A very fun piece that is not devoid of some delicate and lyrical passages. Supremely enjoyable to say the least. This is a spectacular performance, btw!




Désiré Pâque: His three piano trios and other two works

On a previous occasion I had posted about some of the string quartets by this Belgian composer finding them excellent and pretty personal in a sort of late-Romantic style. The turn now is for the piano trios. They share that magnificent, eloquent, distinctive quality that makes one wonder: had I listened to anything similar before? Is this music derivative? Definitely these pieces were written with purpose, utmost finesse, having some mild attractive dissonances here and there, and a exquisite sense of lyricism, and they don't tend to unfold in a traditional way, it's music that just seems to flow naturally. The other two pieces that are not mere fillers are Adagio sostenuto for violin and piano and Lento cantabile for cello and piano. It's really nice when a practically unknown composer receives some attention with performances of the caliber as this one.




Kenneth Fuchs: String Quartets 2, 3 and 4

Three neo-romantic quartets imbued with seductive lyricism to some extent, forceful gestures, comforting warmth when needed and rather unpredictable turns. What struck me the most is that sense of journey they possess, the ongoing action, the transition between passages and how they develop keep your attention focused. Really interesting music by an American composer I seldom know.

[Que]

Picked up during my visit to Brussels:



Songs from a collection of Spanish songs from the first half of the 17th century, taken as a souvenir from his trip to Madrid in 1624/25 by Wolfgang Wilhelm, count of Neuburg and Duke of Bavaria. Done to perfection by La Colombina.