Your favorite composer born in 1685

[Karl Henning]

Didn't Scarlatti write a bunch of vocal/choral works?  Anyways, his Stabat Mater has around 20 recordings on ArkivMusic.

Thank you for getting this 10-vv. Stabat Mater on my radar: it looks wonderful . . . wish-listed.

[bwv 1080]

Elliott Carter

oh wait he's not that old

[chasmaniac]

Whilst voting for Bach, I cried bitter tears for Handel. Alas!

[Todd]

Scarlatti's keyboard sonatas[...]does one need ALL of them[...]wondering?

Yes.

To the point of the thread, of course Bach is the man.

[Karl Henning]

I could see listening to all of them.

I don't need to just yet, though, myself.

[SonicMan46]

Yes.  RE: need to listen to all of DS's keyboard sonatas?

Well, Scott Ross's box of 34 CDs is $100 on the Amazon MP - hmmm a day & a half of continuous harpsichord? 

[Karl Henning]

Well, Scott Ross's box of 34 CDs is $100 on the Amazon MP - hmmm a day & a half of continuous harpsichord? 

Some days, I feel I really could. (Especially mixing it up Scarlatti / Couperin / Frescobaldi.)

[mc ukrneal]

It can be hard to compare Bach (and a few others) to other composers, because he just wrote so much! In this sense, Haydn and Mozart are better comparisons, since they both wrote so much more than Handel, for example.

[jlaurson]

It can be hard to compare Bach (and a few others) to other composers, because he just wrote so much! In this sense, Haydn and Mozart are better comparisons, since they both wrote so much more than Handel, for example.

a.) Bach was not a particularly productive baroque composer... and that's even considering that not everything of Bach survived.
b.) Are you sure that Handel wrote less? There's ___-loads of Handel out there... but unlike with Bach, not every fart* has been recorded in 174 different versions.


(I wouldn't mind smelling Bachian 'farts' every day, for the rest of my days, I should point out.)

[bhodges]

Elliott Carter

oh wait he's not that old

(I voted Bach.)

--Bruce

[mc ukrneal]

a.) Bach was not a particularly productive baroque composer... and that's even considering that not everything of Bach survived.
b.) Are you sure that Handel wrote less? There's ___-loads of Handel out there... but unlike with Bach, not every fart* has been recorded in 174 different versions.


(I wouldn't mind smelling Bachian 'farts' every day, for the rest of my days, I should point out.)

I Was comparing the Brilliant editions that have come out: 160 discs for Bach. 40 for Handel. I have no idea if it is everything, but it seemed unlikely. How to count operas is always something of an issue too. Perhaps you are right and it is in part due to the massive number of recordings for some Bach.

[Todd]

Well, Scott Ross's box of 34 CDs is $100 on the Amazon MP - hmmm a day & a half of continuous harpsichord?

I've listened to that set three times all the way through.  There are some gems in there beyond the few that do get regular recordings.  More than a few gems, actually. 

[jlaurson]

I Was comparing the Brilliant editions that have come out: 160 discs for Bach. 40 for Handel. I have no idea if it is everything, but it seemed unlikely. How to count operas is always something of an issue too. Perhaps you are right and it is in part due to the massive number of recordings for some Bach.

The 40-disc Handel Edition (is it one of those colorful 40-CD cubes they did for a lot of composers?) can't possibly have all his works on it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_compositions_by_George_Frideric_Handel

40+ operas, 25+ oratorios, 100 cantatas...

[Karl Henning]

I've listened to that set [Scott Ross's Scarlatti box] three times all the way through.

Molto bene!

[Gurn Blanston]

Do you most enjoy Scarlatti's keyboard sonatas?  What do you think of his vocal works?

I like 'em about as much as Bach's and Handel's...

[Karl Henning]

Blasphemy!

[Karl Henning]

; )

[TheGSMoeller]

If this thread was narrowed down to only choral, I would say say D. Scarlatti for his Stabat Mater and Salve Regina...but as a whole I would say Bach.

[Conor71]

I have'nt heard any Scarlatti and only a little of Handel  so my vote goes to Bach - love his Instrumental and orchestral work with a passion and my favourite Composer too! 

[jlaurson]

I have'nt heard any Scarlatti and only a little of Handel  so my vote goes to Bach - love his Instrumental and orchestral work with a passion and my favourite Composer too! 

Whaaaaaa??? Quick, nurse! Get me a two parts Kirkpatrick and one part Longo. It's an emergency.

Essential Domenico

There are so many Stabat Maters (Arkiv only shows 18 because many have been deleted)... and I haven't heard them all,

but my favorites are by some margin Alessandrini (naive/op111) and Van Nevel (accent)

Does one need all the keyboard sonatas? No, surely not. Not anyone who asks the question, at any rate. 
But there are a couple essentials:

Pletnev / Virgin pf

Hantai 0 / naive harpsichord

Horowitz / Sony pf

Hantai 1 / Mirare harpsichord

Sudbin / BIS pf

Hantai 2 / Mirare harpsichord

Tharaud / Virgin pf

Hantai 3 / Mirare harpsichord

Pogorelich / DG pf

Ross / Erato harpsichord

Zhu Xiao-Mei / Mirare pf