What are you listening 2 now?

[AnotherSpin]

[Harry]

Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber (1644–1704)
Complete Violin Sonatas – 1681
Bojan Čičić, Violin.
The Illyria Consort.
Recorded 2024, St Martin's Church, East Woodhay, Hampshire.
Streaming: 96kHz/24bit. SOTA sound.

Among the great treasures of 17th-century violin music, Biber's 1681 Sonatae Violino Solo occupy a singular place. These eight sonatas, along with the two appended partitas, are his earliest published works and already show the extravagant inventiveness, fiery virtuosity, and rhetorical boldness that would define his later masterpieces like the Mystery Sonatas. In 1681, the violin was still shaking off its courtly image, and Biber's bold scordatura techniques, striking contrasts, and free-form movements helped to shape the instrument's expressive future.

I've heard a fair share of interpretations of these sonatas, but Bojan Čičić and his Illyria Consort truly leave the others in the dust. The concentration is total, the phrasing alive with dramatic insight. Čičić's bowing is simply glorious—fluid, clean, and effortless in articulation—and the tone, pure and warm, never loses tension or focus. He moves through Biber's labyrinthine twists as if the music were pouring from his very breath.

The ensemble matches him at every step: alert, sensitive, and never ornamental. They breathe the music as one, making the architecture shimmer from within. The result is not just historically informed performance—it is historical imagination realized.

The recording quality is nothing short of state-of-the-art. With remarkable depth, detail, and intimacy, it presents the musicians in a soundstage that is both expansive and close-knit. You hear not just notes, but intentions. A triumph on every front—this is Biber played with heart, brains, and no small dose of fire.

Biber's sonatas, like the finest architecture of their time, are built to awe and endure. But brilliance alone does not suffice—it must be animated, humanised. That is precisely what Bojan Čičić and the Illyria Consort achieve: not simply executing the notes, but releasing the spirit within. It is a kind of resurrection, really. The kind only music affords.

[prémont]

The Vici organ, later and somewhat brasher in tone, felt less suited to some of the pieces, at times bordering on the overbearing. But that is, of course, my own impression—others might find its clarity invigorating.
All in all, this is a valuable release, especially for those drawn to the textures and temperaments of early Italian organ craftsmanship. And perhaps my fellow organ aficionado Poul might weigh in here—no doubt with a keener ear for registrations and pipe voicing than mine?

I agree fully with your assessment of the two used organs. The (anonymous???) Nacchini / Daci organ (1762) sounds more period in relation to the music than the Stefano Vici organ (1782). This relates to the character of the organs, but also to the temperament (which the booklet doesn't mention). In my ears The Nacchini / Daci organ is tuned in meantone 1/4 comma or something very similar, while the Vicci organ seems to be tuned in a more "modern" modification, just how you suppose.

The booklet from the label's home page:
https://www.discantica.it/img/discantica/libretti/libretto318.pdf

[steve ridgway]

Stravinsky - Threni

Totally different to the jazzy music but I enjoyed this strange choral piece very much  .

[AnotherSpin]

Leipziger Choräle (I)

[Harry]

Leipziger Choräle (I)

Very good choice. Soon I will return to these recordings, because it gives me great joy to undergo Bach through the master of the instrument.

[Spotted Horses]

A bit peculiar that, despite being a huge admirer of Bacewicz, I just now realized that there is another string quartet cycle by the Lutoslawski Quartet. I've always listened to the Silesian Quartet on Chandos.



String Quartet No 1 sparkles, with the outer movements in a prickly Neo-baroque/Neo-classical style. Only the middle movement left me somewhat baffled.

My delight at discovering the Lutoslawski Quartet's recordings of Bacewicz has turned to ashes. I decided to queue up the middle movement (which I found baffling in the Lutoslawski Quartet's recording) in the Silesian Quartet recording. Nothing baffling about it, it is marvelous! In the Lutoskawski Quartet's recording it is so sotto voce that I couldn't hear anything, even turning the volume up, with some bizarrely loud outbursts. No such problem with the Silesian Quartet recording. Haunting, dissonant harmonies. The outer movements are find in both recordings, but the Silesian Quartet struck me as a bit more convincing.

Moving on the the second quartet (in the Silesian Quartet recording) another brilliant work and another haunting slow movement. And I noticed that the slow movement, which comes in at 8 minutes in the Silesian recording is 12 minutes in the Lutoslawski Quartet recording. What's up with that? I'm not even going to try to listen to the Lutoslawski Quartet's recording.

[DavidW]

Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber (1644–1704)
Complete Violin Sonatas – 1681
Bojan Čičić, Violin.
The Illyria Consort.
Recorded 2024, St Martin's Church, East Woodhay, Hampshire.
Streaming: 96kHz/24bit. SOTA sound.

I've had that on my favorites Qobuz list ever since I saw it on the new releases. But I had not listened yet, and your enthusiastic review is pushing it up. Today or tomorrow.

[DavidW]

Very good choice. Soon I will return to these recordings, because it gives me great joy to undergo Bach through the master of the instrument.

I'm happy to stream them, but I'm excited to buy a box set in the future. It will go right alongside Foccroulle and Koopman.

[brewski]

A farewell concert from conductor Mikko Franck and the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, with pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet.

Holst: Choral hymns from the Rig Veda
Saint-Saëns: Piano Concerto No. 5 "The Egyptian"
Ravel: Pavane pour une infante défunte
Fauré: Elégie Op. 24
Camille Pépin: Inlandsis (on behalf of Radio France)
R. Strauss: Don Juan

[Que]

Another discovery in the world of early music.

Great music! Also try:

[Harry]

I'm happy to stream them, but I'm excited to buy a box set in the future. It will go right alongside Foccroulle and Koopman.

This I should do too, but I took leave from buying CD'S, and by the way it sounds better through my streamers, (have 2 of them, the Lumin U2 and the Bricasti M 5). I invested in Roon and Qobuz and that on it self cost a buck or two, although compared to buying CD utter peanuts.

[Harry]

Great music! Also try:

Seconded!

[AnotherSpin]

Great music! Also try:

Thank you! I listened to Merulo in recordings by Molardi a couple of days ago, apparently forgot to post it in this thread .

[Que]

Thank you! I listened to Merulo in recordings by Molardi a couple of days ago, apparently forgot to post it in this thread .

Hope you liked it!    It's an approach from a different angle than Tasini. And DIVOX delivers amazing recording quality.

[AnotherSpin]

Hope you liked it!    It's an approach from a different angle than Tasini. And DIVOX delivers amazing recording quality.

Yes, I liked it. To be honest, I don't have much experience with this kind of music yet, and I'm still at the stage where I tend to like almost everything. Or, to look at it another way - what is there in the music of that era not to like?

[Linz]

Anton BrucknerSymphony No. 1 in C Minor, 1877 Linz version with revisions - Ed. Leopold Nowak
Staatskapelle Berlin, Daniel Barenboin

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Alessandro Scarlatti, various music.

[Linz]

Franz Joseph Haydn Mass in B flat major, "Harmony"
Ilona Tokody soprano Klara Takacs alto, Denes Gulyas tenor, Jozsef Gregor bass
Chor und Orchester der philoharmonie Bratslava, Janos Ferensik
Michael Haydn Missa Sancti Joanis \Nepomucent MH 182
Kammerchor Cantemus
Deutsche Kammerakademie, Werner Chrihardt

[Mister Sharpe]

Hopping aboard the Scriabin Express for the White Mass and Black Mass Sonatas.  I like Lettberg's performances of both, a lot, but for better or for worse my muscle brain is filled to the brim with Horowitz's recordings which I overdosed on years ago.