Recordings That You Are Considering

[haydnguy]

Taking a look at this one:

[Dancing Divertimentian]

Taking a look at this one:

Ashkenazy's Op.87 Preludes & Fugues are fantastic, with Nikolaeva (Regis) perhaps juuuust nudging him out of the top spot (but it's relative).

The Ashkenazy/Fitzwilliam performance of the piano quintet is quite simply one of the better performances of Shostakovich anywhere.

Unfortunately (to me) the Beaux Arts performance of the second Piano Trio is disastrous (it used to be on Philips). They completely miss the tension in the music. They either can't or won't just let 'er rip.

So this box is perhaps a bit of a mixed bag but is definitely worth it for what it gets right.

[flyingdutchman]

Anyone pick this one up?  What are your thoughts?

[haydnguy]

Ashkenazy's Op.87 Preludes & Fugues are fantastic, with Nikolaeva (Regis) perhaps juuuust nudging him out of the top spot (but it's relative).

The Ashkenazy/Fitzwilliam performance of the piano quintet is quite simply one of the better performances of Shostakovich anywhere.

Unfortunately (to me) the Beaux Arts performance of the second Piano Trio is disastrous (it used to be on Philips). They completely miss the tension in the music. They either can't or won't just let 'er rip.

So this box is perhaps a bit of a mixed bag but is definitely worth it for what it gets right.

Thanks for the info, donwyn.  Sounds good!

[Que]

Bruno Weil's was dissapointing, did not yet got to Jacobs' recording.
But now there is another option.

This is Harnoncourt's 2nd take BTW.



Though Harnoncourt is a typical hit-and-miss conductor (increasingly so with the passing of time IMO), he rarely misses in Haydn. Any thoughts?

Q

[Renfield]

Anyone pick this one up?  What are your thoughts?

I picked it up on my gut instinct, as I didn't have a Dudamel recording, and this felt like repertory he and the orchestra might do well in.

And in my view, they did do well in it. It's not "good" as in "good for a youth orchestra and/or upcoming firebrand young conductor", etc.: I'd say it stands on its own, even if I won't be throwing away my Mravinsky, my Stokowski, or my Karajan. It's a coherent disc worth hearing, if nothing else for the 'precise care' Dudamel lavishes over certain passages, particularly in the symphony, and especially some of the more lyrical ones. 

[Wanderer]

I think it would be more pertinent to program the symphony with an obscure work of Venezuelan or else South American origin of which there are a few; that would give people incentive to buy the disc if only for the curiosity value. As it is I wouldn't bother getting just another full-priced mediocre version of this most exhilarating symphony by Dudamel and the gang.

[Renfield]

I think it would be more pertinent to program the symphony with an obscure work of Venezuelan or else South American origin of which there are a few; that would give people incentive to buy the disc if only for the curiosity value. As it is I wouldn't bother getting just another full-priced mediocre version of this most exhilarating symphony by Dudamel and the gang.

Though I do agree that Francesca da Rimini, very capably (and to quite an extent inspiredly) performed as it is, might not be the ideal coupling, the symphony is a genuine A: an A-minus, but it's still not just "Gustavo and the Gang Meet Pyotr" by a long shot!

It's just something of a hardcore field to enter, where even a very good performance and interesting reading like this is not enough on its own. In that, they could indeed have been served better by a lesser-known piece; yet they do have the measure of the music they have chosen, this time.

[jlaurson]

Though Harnoncourt is a typical hit-and-miss conductor (increasingly so with the passing of time IMO), he rarely misses in Haydn. Any thoughts?

More hits, than misses, I should think. Jacobs is fantastic, but with Gerhaher and Guera, how could you go wrong? That's as good as it gets, these days, for a work like that. I know I will be _so_ getting that.

[jlaurson]

It's just something of a hardcore field to enter, where even a very good performance and interesting reading like this is not enough on its own. In that, they could indeed have been served better by a lesser-known piece; yet they do have the measure of the music they have chosen, this time.

1. You say that about someone whose first commercial recording was Beethoven 5th & 7th?

Who followed it up with Mahler's 5th? In light of that, Tchaikovsky 5th looks positively off the beaten path. 

I have found that recordings don't at all translate what the significant thrill of hearing him in concert does.

[Renfield]

1. You say that about someone whose first commercial recording was Beethoven 5th & 7th?

Who followed it up with Mahler's 5th? In light of that, Tchaikovsky 5th looks positively off the beaten path. 

I have found that recordings don't at all translate what the significant thrill of hearing him in concert does.

There's a reason why I waited until this release to get a Dudamel recording.

And yes, live, he must be something else. I remember listening to his 2007 Proms concert over the (e-)radio, and finding it decidedly impressive.

[nut-job]

Though Harnoncourt is a typical hit-and-miss conductor (increasingly so with the passing of time IMO), he rarely misses in Haydn. Any thoughts?

I find the comment about Harnoncourt puzzling, he always has an interesting view of music he conducts, and I have never failed to find it rewarding to listen.  But you'd have to pay me a lot of money to get me to listen to those Haydn oratorios.

[rubio]

Does this contain great Beethoven playing?

[George]

Does this contain great Beethoven playing?

Not IMO. The Waldstein is good, not great. The rest is OK. 

[Que]

More hits, than misses, I should think. Jacobs is fantastic, but with Gerhaher and Guera, how could you go wrong? That's as good as it gets, these days, for a work like that. I know I will be _so_ getting that.

Haynd is a major strength of Harnoncourt, and indeed the casting is mouthwathering.

Q

[Brian]

1. You say that about someone whose first commercial recording was Beethoven 5th & 7th?

Who followed it up with Mahler's 5th? In light of that, Tchaikovsky 5th looks positively off the beaten path. 

I have found that recordings don't at all translate what the significant thrill of hearing him in concert does.

1. I have Dudamel's "Fiesta" recording with works by obscure Latin American composers, and even some of those interpretations are hit-and-miss (Revueltas' Sensemaya lacks the intensity and orchestral fire of Batiz on Naxos, for instance). But this is not to discourage: it's a very good CD and there are some rarities you can't find anywhere else, including Marquez' extraordinary Danzon No. 2.

2. They really need to record Dudamel live. Please, start with the live Shostakovich 10 from the Proms.

3. I get to see him with his Bolivar band live in two weeks. Looking forward to it 

[The new erato]

2. They really need to record Dudamel live. Please, start with the live Shostakovich 10 from the Proms.

Isn't it too late to record it now?

[Renfield]

Isn't it too late to record it now?

There was a hidden "premise 0", of inventing time travel.

Besides the joke, the BBC does have the recording, and I agree they should issue it (or someone else eventually will, within the next half-century).

[prémont]

Does this contain great Beethoven playing?

Rather matter-of-fact playing without much individuality IMO.

[Coopmv]