What were you listening to? (CLOSED)

[Lilas Pastia]

Schubert will be for tomorrow. Right now it's Messiaen's Catalogue d'Oiseaux and, not for the first time with this composer, I'm wondering what the fuss is all about. Some day, a composer will write an Everglades' Notebook and it will probably sound just like this.

[springrite]

Good day to you my friend!

How are the Alkan recordings on Marco Polo Paul?

They are pretty good overall. The best one among those would be the Ecquisses (sp?) CD.

[Harry]

They are pretty good overall. The best one among those would be the Ecquisses (sp?) CD.

Hmmmmm, well I will order some of it then.
Thanks Paul
And how is our princess doing?

[Harry]

CPE Bach.
Vocal Works.
Zur einfuhrung des H.P. Gasie WQ 250. (1785)
Wer ist so wurdig als Du, WQ 222. (1774)
Der Herr lebt, WQ 251.

Barbara Schlick, Hilke Helling, Wilfried Jochens, Gotthold Schwarz.
Rheinische Kantorei & Das Kleine Konzert, <Hermann Max>


All in all, this is quite a delightful disc, apart from the sometimes wobbly and feeble voice of <Schlick> I was never a great admirer of her voice, and this disc proves my point. That's strictly personal though.
The rest of the cast is good, and the orchestral accompaniment is most excellent. As is the recording from 1987, taped in the Immanuels Church in Wuppertal-Barmen, a Church I know well, since had in girl there in Wuppertal, who went to this church on a regular basis, and she took me with her. That is however a few years ago, but I remember well, for she always had very warm hands when she clasped mine. 
This box proves to be pricelesss.

[Harry]

Luigi Boccherini
Symphonies.
No. 13 in c major, opus 37 No. 1
No. 15 in D minor, opus 37 No. 3.
No. 16 in A major, opus 37 No. 4.

Neues Berliner Kammerorchester, <Michael Erxleben>

Recorded in 1992, these performances sound good, well articulated, a touch to heavy in all the accents, and at times to deliberate, but nice enough renderings. It needed a bit more flexibility in the strings, and a more adventurous approach.
I've heard them better, but these will do.

[Harry]

Beethoven.
Symphony No. 8 in F major.
Corolian opus 62.
Egmont opus 84.
The London Classical Players, <Roger Norrington>
Recorded in 1986-1988.

The eight is a difficult symphony to bring off. Many a conductor loses his grip on the proceedings right at the start. So with <Norrington>!
First of all this introduction is laborious, and square in expression. Just pounding out the notes, and little vision into the details. A pity.
Cannot say that it gets better in the second and third movement, more of the same really. The lights brighten in the last movement, where there is drive, articulation and well punctuated details, couched in excellent dynamic markings. That's the <Norrington> I know from previous symphonies.
The Corolian overture is awesome and breathtakingly done. Good dynamics, and again well articulated. There is a inner drive to it that <Norrington> captures right from the start. It has me on the edge on my chair. The same with the Egmont.
Recording is excellent.

[Harry]

Beethoven.

Symphony no. 9 in D minor.

Yvonne Kenny, Sarah Walker, Patrick Power, Petteri Salomaa, The Schutz Choir of London,
The London Classical players, < Roger Norrington>

This performance belongs for me to the very best I have.

[Harry]

Beethoven
Symphony No. 9, in D minor, opus 125.
Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, < David Zinman>
Schweizer Kammerchor.
Ruth Ziesak, Birgit Remmert, Steve Davislim, Detlef Roth.
ArteNova recording 1999.[/b

This for me is a first, the best 9th I have. Considering tempi, recording, performance.
Zinman just gets everything right!

[Bogey]

Earlier:

LvB
Symphony No. 4
HvK/BPO
DG ('62*)

Now:

Bach
Matthäus-Passion
Herreweghe
Harmonia Mundi ('85)

Good morning.

[karlhenning]

Debussy
Préludes, Livre I
Michel Béroff

Love these!

[Kullervo]

That's a great disc, James. I think I will listen to that today!

[Keemun]

Bruckner: Symphony No. 6 (Klemperer/New Philharmonia Orchestra)

Changed my mind, I'm listening to this instead:

Bach: Cello Suites (Fournier)

[Florestan]

Bruckner: Symphony No. 6 (Klemperer/New Philharmonia Orchestra)

Changed my mind, I'm listening to this instead:

Bach: Cello Suites (Fournier)

That's funny! What made you change your mind?

[bhodges]

Gondwana (1980) for orchestra (16'36)
Murail's interest in harmony, sonority and musical colour places him firmly in the line of great French composers stretching back through Boulez to Messiaen, Ravel and Debussy. This disc contains 3 major compositions in fine performance.

Another one added to the "to hear" list.  I enjoy Murail a great deal, although this disc below of his complete piano music has been my main exposure to his work. 

--Bruce

[karlhenning]

Debussy
Préludes, Livre II
Michel Béroff

These strike me as better than many give them credit for.

[karlhenning]

Dutilleux's Cello Concerto "A whole distant world..." (1970), total time: 39'01

A piece I need to revisit before long!

[Catison]

Stravinsky - Symphony of Psalms (Craft)
Feldman - For Samuel Beckett
Bartok - Cantata Profana  (Boulez)

[bhodges]

Debussy
Préludes, Livre II
Michel Béroff

These strike me as better than many give them credit for.

Having heard Pollini and Aimard do these in the last few years, I can't imagine why anyone wouldn't think they are among Debussy's best works.  

--Bruce

[karlhenning]

Stravinsky - Symphony of Psalms (Craft)
Feldman - For Samuel Beckett
Bartok - Cantata Profana  (Boulez)

Very nice program, Brett!

[Dundonnell]

I wasn't entirely sure whether to buy this cd although I love the rich and colourful concertos Rozsa wrote for piano, violin, viola and cello.

Very glad that I did though because the music does demonstrate that Rozsa was not only a masterful orchestrator but a composer of genuine substance(quite apart from his film scores). The Three Hungarian Sketches were Hungary's official entry to the 1938 International Music Festival in Baden-Baden and comprise a more meaty work than the title might suggest while the late(1971) Tripartita is a splendidly grand and imposing piece which shows considerable development in Rozsa's idiom. It is perhaps unfortunate that he did not have time to write more in this vein!