The Classical Music Guide Forums

maestrob

This is a sad and perilous time for classical music everywhere, and I applaud the Board for continuing to pay the orchestra members. I grew up in Philadelphia's suburbs, and my first exposure to classical music was through free student tickets given to my school (Radnor HS) to concerts at the Academ...

maestrob

Very sad, but not unexpected.

maestrob

Don't know him, Lance, but thanks for the alert!

maestrob

Got to listen to this today. Excellent! I have put this CD on my want list. Many thanks!

maestrob

Very sobering. Wow! Thanks, Philip. I'm friends with a woman who runs a local opera company in New Rochelle, NY, which has been in the news recently as a cluster of COVID-19 outbreak. She had to cancel a fundraising concert for her Spring production of Tosca, due to state regulations. After reading ...

maestrob

Eldbjorg Hemsing and Simon Trpceski on BIS here for free listening. I have not heard as not a fan of these works, although I do have the Kreisler/Rachmaninoff recording of # 3: https://www.nporadio4.nl/cds/grieg-the-violin-sonatas Interesting. I'm a fan of Simon Trpceski, but am not familiar with t...

maestrob

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/812FhbX5P-L._SX522_.jpg Korngold's Symphony in F-sharp has finally taken its rightful place in the recorded repertoire, with more than 10 versions available on CD. Composed after WWII when Korngold was finally again writing for the concert hall and d...

maestrob

A rare (?) chance to hear live the Korngold, fantastic work. I did not hear the others. Enregistré le 22/10/2018 au Brahms Hall, Musikverein, Vienna Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Trio à clavier No. 6 en Sol Majeur, K. 564 Erich Wolfgang Korngold - Suite pour Piano à la main gauche, 2 violons et violonc...

maestrob

This is most welxcme, Rach3. I love all the Beethoven Quartets, and own multiple versions, although I do return often to the Quartetto Italiano set. Thanks for posting this.

maestrob

Interesting. Thanks, Len! I don't feel that online interactions will ever totally replace face-to-face meetings, but they have certainly gone up in value recently, haven't they? That said, I'm eagerly awaiting a return to "normal" in our society once this virus is conquered by a vaccine available to...

maestrob

It never ends, does it? In this case, I believe the victim. Again.

maestrob

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/611Utj0pTEL._SX522_.jpg The French Baroque is not visited as often by pianists as the German or Italian. Alexandre Tharaud here in this wonderful release, brings us Rameau, Couperin, Lully, and a host of lesser-known composers, who fill this disc wit...

maestrob

Clever idea for a column! Thanks, Len.

maestrob

Oh, my! Again, as expected. It's good that health benefits will be covered through September, and even better that salaries are being negotiated. I suspect, however, that concerts may not be happening in the Fall, so after that it's anybody's guess what happens. Hopefully, this will all be over by t...

maestrob

Sorry to say that I missed this. I'm just unable to be up at 8AM.

maestrob

jserraglio wrote: ↑
Tue Mar 24, 2020 10:01 am
In the interest of maintaining regular order during these irregular, chaotic times, may I suggest, respectfully, that Lance move the political stuff in this thread, from both the New Right and the Old Left, over to the Pub forum?

Agreed.

maestrob

jserraglio wrote: ↑
Tue Mar 24, 2020 10:01 am
In the interest of maintaining regular order during these irregular, chaotic times, may I suggest, respectfully, that Lance move the political stuff in this thread, from both the New Right and the Old Left, over to the Pub forum?

Agreed.

maestrob

Well! I thought you might have an Oppo! I've been running a Sony CD changer for about 6 years now and it works fine still. I made a serious investment in a pair of Bozak Century speakers back when I was at Villanova in 1969, and have been in love with them ever since. They were of course made for L...

maestrob

Well! I thought you might have an Oppo! I've been running a Sony CD changer for about 6 years now and it works fine still. I made a serious investment in a pair of Bozak Century speakers back when I was at Villanova in 1969, and have been in love with them ever since. They were of course made for LP...

maestrob

I don't think it's been a month since I used the voucher to hear the freebie Petrenko concerts posted earlier. Too bad: I thought everything was supposed to be free now for the duration of the pandemic. I understand your frustration with streaming. Frankly, I just find it simpler to load a CD into m...

maestrob

Just tried to access this, but the Hamelin concert has disappeared!

maestrob

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81-PgRO6YnL._SX522_.jpg This exquisite disc of Debussy's late sonatas features Isabelle Faust in the Violin Sonata w/Alexander Malnikov on piano, Jean-Guihen Queyras in the Cello Sonata w/Javier Perianes on piano, along with the winning combination o...

maestrob

Thanks, Henry!

Tried to access the concert, but the website said my voucher for free concerts has been used already! I guess they have to straighten themselves out. I'll try later.

Am a great fan of Kirill Petrenko. Hope he starts issuing commercial CDs soon.

maestrob

That's a rarely-performed piece, indeed. Tchaikovsky's operas are uniformly excellent IMHO, and this one is no exception. Glad you liked it, Len!

maestrob

Hello, Lance! Thanks for your concern. Teresa and I are currently spending our time listening to lots of great music, watching our DVD collection of both movies and operas, and shopping for groceries. I take a short walk every day (it's all I can manage now with my scoliosis). Amazon is my daily com...

maestrob

Hello, Lance! Thanks for your concern. Teresa and I are currently spending our time listening to lots of great music, watching our DVD collection of both movies and operas, and shopping for groceries. I take a short walk every day (it's all I can manage now with my scoliosis). Amazon is my daily com...

maestrob

Hello Chalkie! Hope you're well!

You've been missed here.

maestrob

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/8171L366%2BRL._SX522_.jpg The Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra has been led by illustrious maestros in the past, most notably Paul Kletzki, who recorded extensively with them in a previous generation. Kirill Karabits joins their ranks, with a particula...

maestrob

Schutz is one composer I have always meant to get to one day. The few pieces I have heard are magnificent, if you like early church music. I have no experience of his madrigals. Here's a set I plan to acquire in the near future of his complete works, Volume I: https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com...

maestrob

Wonderful! Thanks, Rach3.

maestrob

Danny wrote: ↑
Sat Mar 21, 2020 6:56 am
https://gothamist.com/arts-entertainmen ... rus-crisis

Thanks for that, Danny. All is as expected. Very sad, indeed.

maestrob

This article is fascinating to me, and not unexpected. The vocal mechanism can be trained either way, as a belter voice or as a legit instrument. Belter voices (for want of a better term) can be male or female (think Ethel Merman), while legit voices can also be male (think counter-tenors) or female...

maestrob

Very sad, Len. We will miss your presence in the Big Apple. I do hope that the MET survives the current calamity. China and Japan seem to be recovering nicely. Let's hope we do the same, and that Lincoln Center can re-open in the Fall.

maestrob

Yes, indeed! Now you know, by reading this, how I've felt about this since 2002 when I had to give up concertizing. There is nothing like the feeling of connectedness with a full house of enthusiastic supporters standing at the end of a well-rehearsed event! I do miss that tremendously, in spite of ...

maestrob

As for András Schiff in Bach's solo keyboard works, I have not been greatly enamoured, but in Bach's concerted works such as in the 1,2,3,4 piano concertos on the Hungaroton label and the Decca label, I thought to be outstanding. Certainly the solo works, such as the WTC, etc., are rendered very we...

maestrob

Thanks for this, Henry! The MET's offer is particularly generous, but so is Berlin's. I've also become a member of the Berlin service, and their new conductor, Kirill Petrenko, is a surefire winner.

maestrob

Listening to recordings on CD through headphones is something I do every day, and Tommasini mentions two of my favorites: Serkins Brahms I with Shaw/Atlanta, and Van Cliburn's live Rachmaninoff III with Kondrashin, both great recordings in my view also. Serkin's Brahms is very fine (he also recorded...

maestrob

Thanks for posting this. We find Rossini delightful, especially when done in period costume. I just bought the DVD for $7.01 used, and look forward to watching it!

maestrob

Yesterday's two-piano concert was a real winner, many thanks! The Janacek was a very effective piece, and new to me. The Brahms was well-known and loved: I have this Martha Argerich disc pictured below, also available in her boxed set of Warner recordings. The Rachmaninoff was strangely incomplete: ...

maestrob

Yes, Barney, thanks. Schiff makes some good points, but he misses the overwhelming fact that audiences in the USA are diminishing due to a lack of education and interest in the younger generation. The same could happen in England soon. My guess is that Schiff is thinking about European and British a...

maestrob

Too bad this was canceled, after so much deep preparation. A huge financial blow for the performers and those who financed the production with such care and attention. Brian this coronavirus is causing a lot of trouble-it sure isn't a hoax-wonder how it will all become mid and late April? Regards, ...

maestrob

Too bad this was canceled, after so much deep preparation. A huge financial blow for the performers and those who financed the production with such care and attention.

maestrob

Good move. It's about time. Thanks, Len, for posting this.

maestrob

Yes, well, I agree with this. For now. I have had several social events canceled this month in response to the emergency out of an abundance of caution. As of today, there are 62 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in NYC, out of a population of 9 million or so, which makes the virus pretty rare. Let's keep...

maestrob

And so the other shoe drops.........

maestrob

Although the article doesn't mention it, Coppola was a regular conductor with DiCapo Opera as well. As an example, he led La Traviata when it starred a winner in my competition, Olexandra Hrabova, when she received rave reviews in Opera News. Coppola was a fine maestro and he will be missed.

maestrob

Louis Langree is a conductor I follow, and I've been pleased with his recordings of French music, his forte. Was initially impressed with him when he took over Mostly Mozart from Gerard Schwarz. Langree has a fine ear for detail and balance, and his use of tempo is tasteful. I'm not sure how he woul...

maestrob

Thanks for the alert! This is interesting to me, as I don't have, well, anything by Welser-Most in my library, except for a Carnegie Hall telecast on DVD. Please keep us updated.

maestrob

Fascinating article, Len, thanks! I see that the hall has similar acoustic problems to Avery Fisher (now David Geffen) Hall in NY, in that it's hard to hear yourself and other musicians on stage. One thing that did intrigue me though, is the cost of renovation. Here in NY updating David Geffen Hall ...

maestrob

Did listen today. What a fine performance! Not note-perfect (there were the expected occasional clams from the brass and winds), but overall an exciting and deeply fulfilling concert. Beethoven would have been overjoyed! The conducting was superb, just how I like it. The finale of VIII managed the a...

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