What are YOU listening to today?

Jared · Post by **Jared** » Tue Oct 26, 2010 7:50 am

Seán wrote:Interesting coment Fergus, I don't have any recordings of orchestras conducted by Hickox and I have often wondered about the man.

he's wonderful... especially in British repertoire. I just wouldn't know where to begin with recommendations, but his choral works are often sublime, like this:

josé echenique · Post by **josé echenique** » Tue Oct 26, 2010 8:23 am

Rare but very enjoyable Franck. I´ve always wondered why the Chausseur Maudit is so little played in concert. I my life I have heard it live only once.

premont · Post by **premont** » Tue Oct 26, 2010 9:06 am

Chalkperson wrote: I always figured it was his playing they went to hear, his Organ Music is nowhere close in quality to that of Bach, some great stuff of course, but, quite a lot of average music too...his Cantatas are a different story...

premont wrote:
How would you separate his playing from his music?

Chalkperson wrote:
He's the originator of the works,given how average most of them are I always figured that he must have played them differently to the modern day organists..

IMO one´s appreciation of quality depends first and foremost upon what one expects from the music than it depends upon the music itself. On the one hand I am attuned to appreciate expressive counterpoint and subtle expressive affects (yes affects) - which baroque music offers in abundance. On the other hand I find much romantic (especially late romantic) music to be "boring" and fruitless listening. So my expectations seem to be different from yours.

johnQpublic · Post by **johnQpublic** » Tue Oct 26, 2010 10:27 am

Verhulst - Overture in C minor (van Steen/NM)
Chausson - Piano Trio (Beaux Arts/Philips)
Ravel - Valses nobles et sentimentales (Dutoit/London)

bombasticDarren · Post by **bombasticDarren** » Tue Oct 26, 2010 12:18 pm

Seán wrote:
bombasticDarren wrote:Stravinsky - 'The Firebird - Suite' (Claudio Abbado, London Symphony Orchestra, DG)

That is a splendid 2 CD set.

You're right Sean - one of the jewels of my collection

bombasticDarren · Post by **bombasticDarren** » Tue Oct 26, 2010 12:37 pm

Bartok - 'Concerto for Orchestra' (Pierre Boulez, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, DG)

Brahms - Symphony No.4 (Carlos Kleiber, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, DG) below

Mendelssohn - Symphony No.3 'Scottish' (Peter Maag, London Symphony Orchestra, Decca)

maestrob · Post by **maestrob** » Tue Oct 26, 2010 12:46 pm

Strauss: Don Juan, Dance of the Seven Veils from Salome, Till Eulenspiegel, Rosenkavalier Waltzes/Schippers/Cincinnati

Fergus · Post by **Fergus** » Tue Oct 26, 2010 1:17 pm

Seán wrote:
Fergus wrote:Beethoven – Pastoral Symphony performed by the Northern Sinfonia of England/Hickox....
....a very fine performance.
Interesting coment Fergus, I don't have any recordings of orchestras conducted by Hickox and I have often wondered about the man.

Broader speeds in this work Seán but, as I said earlier, a very fine performance. Anything that I have of him I find also to be very good....I would second Jared's comments above.

bombasticDarren · Post by **bombasticDarren** » Tue Oct 26, 2010 2:01 pm

ContrapunctusIX wrote:Ravel: Piano Concertos; Debussy: Fantaisie for Piano & Orchestra
Budapest Festival Orchestra & Ivan Fischer
Zoltan Kocsis, piano
Philips

What can you tell me about this disc Contrapunctus?

ContrapunctusIX · Post by **ContrapunctusIX** » Tue Oct 26, 2010 3:01 pm

bombasticDarren wrote:
ContrapunctusIX wrote:Ravel: Piano Concertos; Debussy: Fantaisie for Piano & Orchestra
Budapest Festival Orchestra & Ivan Fischer
Zoltan Kocsis, piano
Philips

What can you tell me about this disc Contrapunctus?

very good Darren. I don't have a too many recordings of these pieces, but Kocsis' playing is (to my ears) the most idiomatic and Fischer's accompaniment is highly characterized, very fine and in tune with his soloist. But then, I am a fan of Kocsis in general, so I may be somewhat biased. For the sake of comparison, I find the Zimerman/Boulez disc of the Ravel concertos somewhat overly smooth and little dull when put up against this disc.

bombasticDarren · Post by **bombasticDarren** » Tue Oct 26, 2010 3:19 pm

ContrapunctusIX wrote:very good Darren. I don't have a too many recordings of these pieces, but Kocsis' playing is (to my ears) the most idiomatic and Fischer's accompaniment is highly characterized, very fine and in tune with his soloist. But then, I am a fan of Kocsis in general, so I may be somewhat biased. For the sake of comparison, I find the Zimerman/Boulez disc of the Ravel concertos somewhat overly smooth and little dull when put up against this disc.

Thanks for that

I have found a copy online for £1.99 - needless to say, after that feedback I have ordered a copy

Seán · Post by **Seán** » Tue Oct 26, 2010 4:16 pm

Fergus wrote:
Seán wrote:
Fergus wrote:Beethoven – Pastoral Symphony performed by the Northern Sinfonia of England/Hickox....
....a very fine performance.
Interesting coment Fergus, I don't have any recordings of orchestras conducted by Hickox and I have often wondered about the man.
Broader speeds in this work Seán but, as I said earlier, a very fine performance. Anything that I have of him I find also to be very good....I would second Jared's comments above.

Good, I'll take that as a recommendation for his other works so, thanks.

josé echenique · Post by **josé echenique** » Tue Oct 26, 2010 8:16 pm

This is a very un-Harnoncourt performance: not much period performance practice on evidence. The timing, at 72 minutes, tell us that the speeds are moderate, much slower than Gardiner´s or Norrington´s.
It is a very beautiful performance, meditative but not gloomy, the VPO play like gods for him, I don´t know how many players are there, but the orchestra doesn´t sound too large, and the wealth of orchestral detail is unbelievable. The Arnold Schoenberg Chor also sounds smallish, and that helps for crystal clear words. The soprano Genia Kühmeier, you may remember her from William Christie´s Creation, is pure and ethereal, and Hampson is reliable and professional as ever. This performance was recorded 3 years ago, in December 7th 2007, I can´t understand why it took 3 years for it to see the light of day. It is a very lovely recording.

bombasticDarren · Post by **bombasticDarren** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 5:45 am

josé echenique wrote: It is a very lovely recording.

And a very tempting one too...now on my wish list

bricon · Post by **bricon** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 8:04 am

Early Verdi and a little rum-tum-tum but rousing and exciting nonetheless.

bombasticDarren · Post by **bombasticDarren** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 8:18 am

J.S. Bach - Cantata BWV 96 'Herr Christ, der ein'ge Gottesohn' (Katharine Fuge/Nathalie Stutzmann/Christoph Genz/Gotthold Schwarz/John Eliot Gardiner, The Monteverdi Choir/The English Baroque Soloists, Soli Deo Gloria)

Beethoven - Cello Sonata No.3 (Pablo Casals/Rudolf Serkin, Sony Classical)

Chabrier - 'Suite Pastorale' (John Eliot Gardiner, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, DG) below

josé echenique · Post by **josé echenique** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 8:26 am

bricon wrote:Early Verdi and a little rum-tum-tum but rousing and exciting nonetheless.

I like this recording a lot. It was made a time when a Verdi opera could still be cast with the right kind of voices. The treat is Franco Bonisolli, a tenor who could switch from vulgarity to nobility with alarming ease, but here, at his best behavior, he´s quite simply spectacular, with the right squillo for the role. What a pity that he recorded so little.

maestrob · Post by **maestrob** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 11:09 am

What an exquisite Aida Caballe makes! Her phrasings on both big arias make your heart stop, just as Verdi wrote them, and her pianissimo high notes are to die for, especially in O patria mia. Not a perfect Aida (her middle is sometimes a bit careful), nonetheless she stands out in a crowded field. The young Domingo is an ardent Radames, and Cossotto a passionate Amneris, with Cappuccilli a credible Amonasro, all energetically led by the youthful Muti.

From 1974

Five enthusiastic stars!

bombasticDarren · Post by **bombasticDarren** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 12:12 pm

Beethoven - Symphony No.9 'Choral' (Gre Brouwenstijn/Kerstin Meyer/Nicolai Gedda/Frederick Guthrie/Andre Cluytens, Choeur de la Cathedrale Saint-Hedwige de Berlin/Orchestre Philharmonique de Berlin, EMI)

Haydn - Piano Trio No.32 & No.33 (Beaux Arts Trio, Philips)

Saint-Saens - Piano Concerto No.5 (Stephen Hough/Sakari Oramo, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Hyperion) below

johnQpublic · Post by **johnQpublic** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 12:24 pm

Mendelssohn - Overture to "Paulus" (Marriner/Capriccio)
Bruckner - Symphony #3 (Wand/RCA)

Fergus · Post by **Fergus** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 3:27 pm

josé echenique wrote:

I am very tempted to investigate this on the basis of your report José.

Fergus · Post by **Fergus** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 3:28 pm

Prompted by the recent discusssions on this work....

Fergus · Post by **Fergus** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 4:19 pm

Chalkperson wrote:
Fergus wrote:
josé echenique wrote: Remember that both, Bach and Handel made the pilgrimage to Lübeck to hear Buxtehude and for a very good reason, he was a very great composer.
I wonder to what extent the two boys made the pilgrimage to hear Buxtehude's prowess and virtuosity on the keyboard....
I always figured it was his playing they went to hear, his Organ Music is nowhere close in quality to that of Bach, some great stuff of course, but, quite a lot of average music too...his Cantatas are a different story...

Do you have any recommendations for Buxtehude's cantatas Chalkie (or anyone else) please.

Jared · Post by **Jared** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 5:10 pm

Fergus wrote:Prompted by the recent discusssions on this work....

it's residing in my Amazon basket as I type; the only reason why it hasn't been purchased yet is the fact that complete sets of Mahler/ Schubert & Brahms symphonies all still sit on my 'to be listened to' shelf..

Jared · Post by **Jared** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 5:13 pm

Fergus wrote: Do you have any recommendations for Buxtehude's cantatas Chalkie (or anyone else) please.

an inexpensive and yet surprisingly good (Penguin Guide 3 star) set, which should give you a great initial introduction:

Donaldopato · Post by **Donaldopato** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 6:10 pm

Vaughan Williams Symphony # 4 and 6
Boult New Philharmonia Orchestra EMI

josé echenique · Post by **josé echenique** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 7:04 pm

Fergus wrote:
josé echenique wrote:

I am very tempted to investigate this on the basis of your report José.

It is a very good recording. There are so many outstanding recordings of this masterpiece that it´s difficult to say that it will be everybody´s new favorite, but I think it deserves a try, it´s a serious, dedicated and very well executed performance.

josé echenique · Post by **josé echenique** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 7:07 pm

Fergus wrote:
Chalkperson wrote:
Fergus wrote:
josé echenique wrote: Remember that both, Bach and Handel made the pilgrimage to Lübeck to hear Buxtehude and for a very good reason, he was a very great composer.
I wonder to what extent the two boys made the pilgrimage to hear Buxtehude's prowess and virtuosity on the keyboard....
I always figured it was his playing they went to hear, his Organ Music is nowhere close in quality to that of Bach, some great stuff of course, but, quite a lot of average music too...his Cantatas are a different story...
Do you have any recommendations for Buxtehude's cantatas Chalkie (or anyone else) please.

Ton Koopman is doing an excellent job in Challenge Classics while recording Buxtehude´s complete ouvre. The cantatas have been outstanding so far. But if you want to try a single disc look for a selection by Jos van Immerseel/Anima Eterna in Channel Classics, it´s a gorgeous disc.

josé echenique · Post by **josé echenique** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 7:18 pm

maestrob wrote:

What an exquisite Aida Caballe makes! Her phrasings on both big arias make your heart stop, just as Verdi wrote them, and her pianissimo high notes are to die for, especially in O patria mia. Not a perfect Aida (her middle is sometimes a bit careful), nonetheless she stands out in a crowded field. The young Domingo is an ardent Radames, and Cossotto a passionate Amneris, with Cappuccilli a credible Amonasro, all energetically led by the youthful Muti.

From 1974

Five enthusiastic stars!

I heard most of the same cast Caballé/Domingo/Cossotto/Muti at Covent Garden shortly after the recording was made, it was 1975 if I´m not mistaken. Though I was very young, I already new Aida quite well, so I can report on the performance. In general all the singers sounded better on the recording, Caballé specially, because maybe in the flesh her voice was one size too small for the role, specially in the big concertante, where she couldn´t be heard. Domingo was a manly and dedicated Radames, but he went on to give more opulent and commanding performances. The one who really was beyond compare was Fiorenza Cossotto, wow, all I can say is WOW!!! What a Verdi mezzo, enormous voice, perfect diction and a tigress on stage. Muti drew great sounds from the orchestra. In general it was a great Aida, though not one as good as the EMI recording.

ContrapunctusIX · Post by **ContrapunctusIX** » Wed Oct 27, 2010 8:32 pm

Hindemith: Symphony in E-Flat; Nobilissima Visione; Neues Vom Tage Overture
BBC Philharmonic & Yan Pascal Tortelier
Chandos

Hindemith: Symphonia Serena; Symphonie "Harmonie Der Welt"
San Francisco Symphony Orchestra & Herbert Blomstedt
Decca

johnQpublic · Post by **johnQpublic** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 8:37 am

LPs

Chapi - Overture to "La Revoltosa" (Sorozabal/Columbia)
Hindemith - Sonata for Solo Cello, Op. 25, No. 3 (Sylvester/Desto)
Panufnik - Sinfonia Votiva (Ozawa/Hyperion)
Arutyunian - Trumpet Concerto (Dokschitser/Melodiya Angel)

Jared · Post by **Jared** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 9:05 am

it has to be said, the tempos are generally rather leisurely, measured and statesmanlike in this set...

ContrapunctusIX · Post by **ContrapunctusIX** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 12:12 pm

Jared wrote:it has to be said, the tempos are generally rather leisurely, measured and statesmanlike in this set...

Jared,

I think you will find that Sawalisch's earlier cycle (1959) on Philips is more lively and interesting than the EMI set.

Now, the Vienna Symphony is no elite ensemble, but Sawallisch's musicmaking is more direct and tempi are more propulsive. The sound is also quite good, considering its age.

bombasticDarren · Post by **bombasticDarren** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 12:52 pm

J.S. Bach - Cantata BWV 169 'Gott soll allein meain Herze haben' (Nathalie Stutzmann/John Eliot Gardiner, The Monteverdi Choir/The English Baroque Soloists, Soli Deo Gloria)

Beethoven - Symphony No.7 (Arturo Toscanini, NBC Symphony Orchestra, RCA)

Stravinsky - Violin Concerto (Itzhak Perlman/Seiji Ozawa, Boston Symphony Orchestra, DG) below

bombasticDarren · Post by **bombasticDarren** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 1:13 pm

Jared wrote:it has to be said, the tempos are generally rather leisurely, measured and statesmanlike in this set...

I remember feeling the same way when I heard this set

aurora · Post by **aurora** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 1:25 pm

In link I posted in the 'power of music thread' (go watch it!) the music plying in the background of the interview with the cellist is the Fuga from the 2nd Bach solo violin sonata... but played on cello. I loved it so I made a few inquiries:

http://magnatune.com/artists/albums/pat ... -sonatas1/
http://magnatune.com/artists/albums/pat ... -sonatas2/

bombasticDarren · Post by **bombasticDarren** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 2:32 pm

Berlioz - 'Requiem - Grande Messe des Morts' (Ronald Dowd/Colin Davis, London Symphony Chorus/Wandsworth School Boys' Choir/London Symphony Orchestra, Philips)

Jared · Post by **Jared** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 3:39 pm

thank you Contra & Darren for your comments on the Brahms set... I actually find it to be of a generally very reasonable standard, although the tempos in Symphs 1 & 4 in particular are a little slow. I'm also very pleased with the inclusion of Schicksalslied, a thoroughly interesting piece of choral lieder I've never heard before...

Jared · Post by **Jared** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 5:28 pm

this excellent recording has received quite a bit of exposure this week, and I can honestly say that I have enjoyed it more than I initially thought I would... very engaging early pieces from a Benjamin Britten in his mid 20's, composed in 1938 & 39 respectively..

Jared · Post by **Jared** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 5:30 pm

bombasticDarren wrote:Berlioz - 'Requiem - Grande Messe des Morts' (Ronald Dowd/Colin Davis, London Symphony Chorus/Wandsworth School Boys' Choir/London Symphony Orchestra, Philips)

Darren, this is a piece which has been sat on my listening calendar now for more months than I care to mention... I really am intrigued by what I have read about the style of this work.... well, one day soon...

bricon · Post by **bricon** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 6:37 pm

Donaldopato · Post by **Donaldopato** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 9:11 pm

Beethoven Symphony # 4, Symphony # 8 Overture to Ruins of Athens
Bach Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor orchestrated Respighi

Pierre Monteux San Francisco SO

Pierre Monteux Edition RCA disc 1

bombasticDarren · Post by **bombasticDarren** » Fri Oct 29, 2010 3:49 am

J.S. Bach - Cantata BWV 116 'Du Friedefurst, Herr Jesu Christ' & BWV 668 'Vor deinen Thron tret ich hiermit' (Katharine Fuge/Nathalie Stutzmann/Christoph Genz/Gotthold Schwarz/John Eliot Gardiner, The Monteverdi Choir/The English Baroque Soloists, Soli Deo Gloria)

Beethoven - Piano Trio No.7 'Archduke' (Isaac Stern/Leonard Rose/Eugene Istomin, Sony Classical)

Debussy - 'Prelude a l'apres-midi d'un faune' (Pierre Boulez, The Cleveland Orchestra, DG) below

josé echenique · Post by **josé echenique** » Fri Oct 29, 2010 8:53 am

This is the third Handel opera recording by the Early Opera Company. The first Partenope, was a success, the second, Semele was a serious disappointment, so I´m happy to report that they are back on track with Flavio. Rosemary Joshua, common to all 3 recordings is exquisite, but the star of the show is countertenor Tim Mead, one of the sweetest sounding altos around. This is only the second recording Flavio has had, the first was an early René Jacobs effort, but this new recording is better sung. And tell me about covers, who would buy the recording with this gorgeous cover?

maestrob · Post by **maestrob** » Fri Oct 29, 2010 8:57 am

This has been receiving a lot of play recently: exquisite singing and playing, a true five-star effort: if you love Strauss and/or Kaufmann, get this posthaste!

Jared · Post by **Jared** » Fri Oct 29, 2010 9:44 am

^^ received a glowing review in the Beeb Mag if I remember correctly, mb...

meanwhile, it arrived this morning, and I'm on my 2nd listen... it has really great textures...

johnQpublic · Post by **johnQpublic** » Fri Oct 29, 2010 9:56 am

Gassmann - Overture to "Gli uccellatori" (Alimena/Naxos)
M. Haydn - 6 Menuetti (Goritzki/cpo)
Beethoven - Variations on Mozart's "Bei Mannern, welche Liebe fuhlen" (Fournier/DG)
Brull - Piano Concerto #2 (Roscoe/Hyperion)

josé echenique · Post by **josé echenique** » Fri Oct 29, 2010 10:48 am

maestrob wrote:

This has been receiving a lot of play recently: exquisite singing and playing, a true five-star effort: if you love Strauss and/or Kaufmann, get this posthaste!

I love that disc, and I´m still marveling at his Verismo Arias cd, an impressive display of vocal prowess. What a smart tenor: he took his time, he let his voice mature naturally and now, at 41, he can sing comfortably Pagliacci and Andrea Chenier. Tenors used to be like that, Corelli, Vickers were well over 30 before they became stars. Now look at poor Rolando Villazón, he´s a few years younger than Kaufmann, became famous much earlier and now there´s nothing left.

bombasticDarren · Post by **bombasticDarren** » Fri Oct 29, 2010 11:33 am

J.S. Bach - Cantata BWV 205 'Der zufriedengestelle Aeolus' (Yvonne Kenny/Marjana Lipovsek/Kurt Equiluz/Robert Holl/Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Arnold-Schoenberg-Chor/Concentus musicus Wien, Teldec) below

Brahms - Cello Sonata No.1 (Steven Isserlis/Stephen Hough, Hyperion)

R. Strauss - Horn Concerto No.2 (David Pyatt/Nicholas Cleobury, Britten Sinfonia, CfP)

bombasticDarren · Post by **bombasticDarren** » Fri Oct 29, 2010 3:03 pm

Brahms - Cello Sonata No.2 (Steven Isserlis/Stephen Hough, Hyperion)

Dvorak - String Quartet No.12 'American' (Lindsay String Quartet, ASV)

Schubert - String Quartet No.14 'Death and the Maiden' (Quartetto Italiano, Philips) below

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