Purchases Today

[Ken B]

I would avoid the Alsop orchestral disc on Naxos, though.

Good advice on Brahms too, that.

[Sergeant Rock]

Arrived today: Stravinsky Threni, Requiem Canticles and two short works, Anthem and Da pacem Domine, Herreweghe conducting




Sarge

[Brian]

My bottle of Nero d'Avola is alas empty now ...

Oh, what a nice wine that must have been! Love most Nero d'Avola that I have tried...

[The new erato]

Nerello Mascalese is an even more interesting Sicilian grape IMO.

[Karl Henning]

Arrived today: Stravinsky Threni, Requiem Canticles and two short works, Anthem and Da pacem Domine, Herreweghe conducting



Sarge

Sweet!

[Sergeant Rock]

Sweet!

I know! ....although it might not be the most apt way to describe the Requiem 

Sarge

[Brian]

Isn't her nickname Marin Alslob?

No. That turned up zero search results on either GMG or Google. Moreover, she's a reliably fine conductor who's recorded valuable Barber, Bernstein, Adams, and other American/contemporary works. I've also greatly enjoyed her performances on the occasions when I've seen her live (in Houston with Barber 1 + a great Mahler 1, and with the London Philharmonic in an inspired pairing of Adams' Doctor Atomic Symphony with a cheese-free reading of Holst's Planets).

[Karl Henning]

No. That turned up zero search results on either GMG or Google. Moreover, she's a reliably fine conductor who's recorded valuable Barber, Bernstein, Adams, and other American/contemporary works. I've also greatly enjoyed her performances on the occasions when I've seen her live (in Houston with Barber 1 + a great Mahler 1, and with the London Philharmonic in an inspired pairing of Adams' Doctor Atomic Symphony with a cheese-free reading of Holst's Planets).

And earned enduring respect with her account in Colorado of Steve Reich's Tehillim.

[aligreto]

I have already met Rautavaara [metaphorically speaking] but there seems to be some interesting works in this set.

[Ken B]

No. That turned up zero search results on either GMG or Google. Moreover, she's a reliably fine conductor who's recorded valuable Barber, Bernstein, Adams, and other American/contemporary works. I've also greatly enjoyed her performances on the occasions when I've seen her live (in Houston with Barber 1 + a great Mahler 1, and with the London Philharmonic in an inspired pairing of Adams' Doctor Atomic Symphony with a cheese-free reading of Holst's Planets).

Like most conductors she has hits and misses, strengths and weaknesses. Her Barber is very good, as is most of her American stuff just as Brian says. Her Brahms 2nd is the worst I've heard.

[Karl Henning]

Like most conductors she has hits and misses, strengths and weaknesses. Her Barber is very good, as is most of her American stuff just as Brian says. Her Brahms 2nd is the worst I've heard.

I've probably said this before, and at the risk of repeating it speculatively (because I have avoided those recordings) the last thing the musical world needs is a new-but-mediocre Brahms cycle.  If the recordings are really as bad as, well, so many sources suggest, it was one of Naxos's worst decisions.  (Although, given their business model, it probably did not cost them, particularly.)

It is as yet the only of her Prokofiev discs I have listened to, but her recording of L'enfant prodigue (apart from the obvious fact that we do not have anything like the redundancy of recordings which exists of the Brahms symphonies) is lovely.  At times more lyrical than the Jurowski, which on the one hand does not make me dis-prefer the Jurowski, but on the other, it is not only a good alternate, but manages to breathe some air of its own.

[Brian]

If the recordings are really as bad as, well, so many sources suggest, it was one of Naxos's worst decisions.

The Second is as bad as Ken says. But the First was pretty good, and I think the Fourth reading was three great movements followed by a letdown.

Since the Prok 5 CD, I've been hearing better and better reports about each succeeding volume.

[kishnevi]

Ordered tonight, with some help from the Considering thread

[Karl Henning]

The Second is as bad as Ken says. But the First was pretty good, and I think the Fourth reading was three great movements followed by a letdown.

I do appreciate that these are tactical improvements on "merely mediocre"; but there is so much good-to-great Brahms to enjoy, that unlike so much of the Naxos catalogue and mission, this sounds like not much value added.

[Wanderer]

Ordered last night, actually, the Busoni is in particular to be blamed on the WAYLT thread
[asin]B000038I6D[/asin]

Cool! I'd be interested in your impressions when you listen to it.

[arpeggio]

Morton Gould: The Complete Chicago Symphony Recordings





I have one complaint with the packaging.  These were originally LP's.  Sony restored the original notes from the LP jacket on to the CD sleeves.  The print is so small one needs a microscope to read them.

[Turner]

Morton Gould: The Complete Chicago Symphony Recordings

Interesting, will keep an eye on this. I know some of his recordings for being quite unique in their approach to the music, such as Nielsen´s 2nd Symphony.

[The new erato]

I ordered these:

[asin]B00HSW6R1Y[/asin]
[asin]B00GWS990Q[/asin]

[PerfectWagnerite]

I do appreciate that these are tactical improvements on "merely mediocre"; but there is so much good-to-great Brahms to enjoy, that unlike so much of the Naxos catalogue and mission, this sounds like not much value added.

What is truly amazing is that she is allowed to record such warhorses like the final 4 of Dvorak Symphonies, Tchaikovsky's 4th, Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra and Music for String Percussion and Celeste, BlueBeard's Castle, Carmina Burana, Mahler's 1st etc. ! Even in Naxos' own catalog there are some very good recordings of these works already. In today's economics this has to be a sort of quasi-miracle.

[SonicMan46]

Schobert, Johann (c. 1735-1767) - the 2 CDs below used - his name came up in Gurn's classical thread, and I had just 2 recordings of his music, just posted both in the listening thread - not much available on Amazon at reasonable cost - got both of these 'used' ones for about $15.  Dave