Ernst von Dohnanyi's two Violin Concerti (Szabadi/Vasary)
....if you're looking for more Brahmsian romanticism that didn't come from the German master's own pen, DOHNANYI's your man. (Though he really does have a voice of his own.)
This disc (Hungaraton 31759) won a '99 Cannes Classical Award.
What are you listening to?
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Wallingford
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Wallingford
- Posts: 4687
- Joined: Tue Jul 22, 2003 3:31 pm
- Location: Brush, Colorado
Actually I didn't mean to imply I hadn't heard ANY Berglund; I was merely referring to his Grieg work. Berglund did tremendous work when he headed the Stockholm Philharmonic--he did a BMG CD of Strauss tone poems, and his Detroit Symphony guest appearances were really something to hear.Chalkperson wrote:I have a cd of him with Francois Frederic Guy in the Brahms Second Piano Concerto, on Naive...and a Shostakovich Eighth on Pentatone...both great CD'sWallingford wrote:Got a first sampling of a Grieg conductor whose work I haven't heard, outside of the Concerto): PAAVO BERGLUND, doing the Symphonic Dances (Op.64) and the Old Norwegian Romance with Variations (Op.51).
Good music is that which falls upon the ear with ease, and quits the memory with difficulty.
--Sir Thomas Beecham
--Sir Thomas Beecham
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RebLem
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In the week ending Saturday, 20 OCT 2007, I listened to the following:
1, 2. 10/10 Bach, J.S.: Goldberg Variations, S. 988 (1’24:52)—Evgeni Koroliov, piano—2 hanssler CDs, Vol. 112 of CBE, recorded 4/1999. If you like Bach on the piano (I generally do not) these are very fine performances..
3, 4. 10/10 Bach, J.S.: Clavier Buchlein for Anna Magdalena Bach (1725) (2’25:44)—Michael Behringer, harpsichord, organ, and, in some pieces, Sibylla Rubens, soprano, and Johannes-Christoph Happel, baritone—2 hanssler CDs. Vol. 136 of CBE, recorded 10/1999. Many of the recordings which feature solo harpsichord music in this series are recorded at an unusually high level, and require toning down the volume controls. This set, perhaps because it also includes organ in some pieces and solo voices and a duet in some others, is an exception. Wonderful performances.
5, 6, 7. 10/10 Beethoven: The Late String Quartets—the Smetana Quartet (Jiri Novak, Violin 1, Lubomir Kostecky, Violin 2, Milan Skampa, viola, Antonin Kohout, cello), 3 CD Supraphon SU 3870. CD 1—SQ 15 in A Minor, Op 132 (1825) (42:57), rec c. 1967, SQ 11 in F Minor, Op. 95 (1810) (20:27), rec. c. 1962. CD 2—SQ 12 in E Flat Major, Op. 127 (1804) (33:51), rec. c. 1961, SQ 14 in C# Minor, Op. 131 (1826) (36:57), rec. 1971. CD 3—SQ 13 in B Flat Major, Op. 130 (1826), Grosse Fuge in B Flat Major, Op. 133 (1826), rec. c. 1965, SQ 16 in F Major, Op. 135 (1826) (24:29), rec. c. 1972. The Smetana Quartet chose to record the SQ 13 in its original form, with the Grosse Fuge as the finale and the traditional last movement allegro as an addendum. The Grosse Fuge by itself has a 15:47 timing, while the quartet in its traditional form is 36:46, with the last movement coming in at 9:39. The first 5 movements before the finale come in at 27:07.
I was very pleased to see these performances re-released, along with the Early and Middle Quartet boxes, and in their original form, so that people like me who got part of the cycle years ago don’t have to duplicate to get the whole set. I bought the Early and Middle Quartets in this series in the 1980’s, but the whole series was withdrawn from the market before I got around to buying the late quartets. Now, the whole series is once again available. These Smetana performances are full out romantic Beethoven. Unabashedly sentimental, they eschew the classicism of, for example, the Alban Berg Quartet cycle, which I feel is at the opposite extreme. This is particularly true of the SQ 15, the longest quartet, which has the same sort of slow tempos and care for lovingly shaped phrases I remember from the Giulini Missa Solemnis I reported on last week.
In the middle someplace, but still more classical than romantic, is the Gewandhaus Quartet cycle I reported on recently. And, in the Late Quartets, my favorite is that of the Yale Quartet, a little more MOR than the other three, but perhaps leaning just a tad to the romantic side. I have other sets, but these four are my favorite cycles of the late quartets, and except for the Yale Quartet, which has recorded only the late quartets, of the whole cycle of all the quartets, too.
5,6,7,8, 9. 10/10 Shostakovich: CDs 1-5 of a 10 CD Supraphon set of all the Shostakovich symphonies—Maxim Shostakovich, cond. Prague Symphony Orch, specifically Symphonies 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 10, 12, & 14. CD 1—Sym 1 in F Minor, Op 10 (1925) (32:37) |Sym. 12 in D Minor, Op. 112 “The Year 1917” (1961) (41:05), CD 2—Symphony 2 in B Major for chorus and orch, Op. 14 “To October” (1927, words by A Bezymensky) (18:26), with Prague Phil Choir |Sym 10 in E Minor, Op. 93 (1953) (53:45). CD 3—Sym 3 in E Flat Major for chorus and orch, Op. 20, (1929 with S Kirsanov) “The First of May” (29:21), with Prague Phil Choir |Sym 14 for soprano, bass, strings, and percussion, Op. 135 (1969) (49:11), with Marina Shaguch, soprano, Mikhail Ryssov, bass. CD 4—Sym 4 in C Minor, Op. 43 (1936) (64:58 ). CD 5—Sym 5 in D minor, Op. 47 (1937) (51:20) |Sym 9 in E Flat Major, Op. 70 (1945) (25:27).
I have seen a fair amount of critical commentary about these performances which express disappointment, and attribute the allegedly inferior quality of these performances to a decidedly second rate orchestra, not to the conductor. IMO, nothing could be further from the truth. These are superb performances by an orchestra that can hold its own with any in the world, even if it is Prague’s second orchestra. The sound quality is up to modern standards, though it does lack just that last little oomph in the bass that distinguishes the Barshai Brilliant set.
Of particular note here, IMO, are the performances of Symphonies 1, 5, and 9. Maxim’s take on # 1 is a great deal quieter, more contemplative, and less bombastic than that of most other conductors, but in their stead, he finds an appealing pastoral lyricism. The 9th has the usually ebuillient first movement, but much of the rest of the work seems fraught with portents of grim things to come which are absent from the performances of many others. And his 5th is altogether magnificent.
Maxim started on a cycle of the symphonies with Channel Classics in the early 90’s, but it was never completed. I don’t know how many CDs they issued, but I have four, and that may be all there is. One of them was a 5th, coupled with the Festive Overture. I listened to some of that performance, too, just for comparison, and while it has its merits, the Supraphon performance is, in every sense, to be preferred. It is tighter, with an almost Szell-like (and, from me, there can be no higher compliment) emphasis on rhythm and pulse, and this despite the fact that the Channel Classics CD, from 1990, was recorded with the LSO, an allegedly much better ensemble than the Prague. I dispute the accuracy of that conclusion, but there is no doubt that the LSO’s reputation is better than that of the Prague Sym Orch. Timings are closely comparable, except in the Largo (3rd of 4 movements), which is 17:06 in the LSO recording, and a much faster 14:20 in the Prague performance.
10. 10/10 Tippett: Piano Sonata 1 (1937, rev. 1942) (19:18 ) |Piano Sonata 2 in one movement (1962) (11:46) |Piano Sonata 3 (1962) (22:30)—Peter Donohoe, piano—Naxos 8.557611. Let me quote the liner notes on the backside of the jewel box.
Tippett’s four piano sonatas span a period of nearly 50 years and crystallize important facets of his musical development. Indeed, listeners might be forgiven for thinking his first 3 sonatas were written by 3 different composers, so different are their styles and musical exploration. The neo-classical Sonata 1 is, in tippet;s own words, “a young man’s work, with all the exuberance of discovery and creation which that commonly implies.” Sonata 2 was written immediately after Tippett’s second opera King Priam and is similarly austere and angular. In contrast, Sonata 3 concentrates on the sonorous capabilities of the instrument opening up new vistas of harmony and color.
And that’s about it. On tap for next week—obviously, the rest of the Shostakovich symphony cycle, and at least a beginning on the Friedrich Gulda set of the Beethoven piano sonatas.
1, 2. 10/10 Bach, J.S.: Goldberg Variations, S. 988 (1’24:52)—Evgeni Koroliov, piano—2 hanssler CDs, Vol. 112 of CBE, recorded 4/1999. If you like Bach on the piano (I generally do not) these are very fine performances..
3, 4. 10/10 Bach, J.S.: Clavier Buchlein for Anna Magdalena Bach (1725) (2’25:44)—Michael Behringer, harpsichord, organ, and, in some pieces, Sibylla Rubens, soprano, and Johannes-Christoph Happel, baritone—2 hanssler CDs. Vol. 136 of CBE, recorded 10/1999. Many of the recordings which feature solo harpsichord music in this series are recorded at an unusually high level, and require toning down the volume controls. This set, perhaps because it also includes organ in some pieces and solo voices and a duet in some others, is an exception. Wonderful performances.
5, 6, 7. 10/10 Beethoven: The Late String Quartets—the Smetana Quartet (Jiri Novak, Violin 1, Lubomir Kostecky, Violin 2, Milan Skampa, viola, Antonin Kohout, cello), 3 CD Supraphon SU 3870. CD 1—SQ 15 in A Minor, Op 132 (1825) (42:57), rec c. 1967, SQ 11 in F Minor, Op. 95 (1810) (20:27), rec. c. 1962. CD 2—SQ 12 in E Flat Major, Op. 127 (1804) (33:51), rec. c. 1961, SQ 14 in C# Minor, Op. 131 (1826) (36:57), rec. 1971. CD 3—SQ 13 in B Flat Major, Op. 130 (1826), Grosse Fuge in B Flat Major, Op. 133 (1826), rec. c. 1965, SQ 16 in F Major, Op. 135 (1826) (24:29), rec. c. 1972. The Smetana Quartet chose to record the SQ 13 in its original form, with the Grosse Fuge as the finale and the traditional last movement allegro as an addendum. The Grosse Fuge by itself has a 15:47 timing, while the quartet in its traditional form is 36:46, with the last movement coming in at 9:39. The first 5 movements before the finale come in at 27:07.
I was very pleased to see these performances re-released, along with the Early and Middle Quartet boxes, and in their original form, so that people like me who got part of the cycle years ago don’t have to duplicate to get the whole set. I bought the Early and Middle Quartets in this series in the 1980’s, but the whole series was withdrawn from the market before I got around to buying the late quartets. Now, the whole series is once again available. These Smetana performances are full out romantic Beethoven. Unabashedly sentimental, they eschew the classicism of, for example, the Alban Berg Quartet cycle, which I feel is at the opposite extreme. This is particularly true of the SQ 15, the longest quartet, which has the same sort of slow tempos and care for lovingly shaped phrases I remember from the Giulini Missa Solemnis I reported on last week.
In the middle someplace, but still more classical than romantic, is the Gewandhaus Quartet cycle I reported on recently. And, in the Late Quartets, my favorite is that of the Yale Quartet, a little more MOR than the other three, but perhaps leaning just a tad to the romantic side. I have other sets, but these four are my favorite cycles of the late quartets, and except for the Yale Quartet, which has recorded only the late quartets, of the whole cycle of all the quartets, too.
5,6,7,8, 9. 10/10 Shostakovich: CDs 1-5 of a 10 CD Supraphon set of all the Shostakovich symphonies—Maxim Shostakovich, cond. Prague Symphony Orch, specifically Symphonies 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 10, 12, & 14. CD 1—Sym 1 in F Minor, Op 10 (1925) (32:37) |Sym. 12 in D Minor, Op. 112 “The Year 1917” (1961) (41:05), CD 2—Symphony 2 in B Major for chorus and orch, Op. 14 “To October” (1927, words by A Bezymensky) (18:26), with Prague Phil Choir |Sym 10 in E Minor, Op. 93 (1953) (53:45). CD 3—Sym 3 in E Flat Major for chorus and orch, Op. 20, (1929 with S Kirsanov) “The First of May” (29:21), with Prague Phil Choir |Sym 14 for soprano, bass, strings, and percussion, Op. 135 (1969) (49:11), with Marina Shaguch, soprano, Mikhail Ryssov, bass. CD 4—Sym 4 in C Minor, Op. 43 (1936) (64:58 ). CD 5—Sym 5 in D minor, Op. 47 (1937) (51:20) |Sym 9 in E Flat Major, Op. 70 (1945) (25:27).
I have seen a fair amount of critical commentary about these performances which express disappointment, and attribute the allegedly inferior quality of these performances to a decidedly second rate orchestra, not to the conductor. IMO, nothing could be further from the truth. These are superb performances by an orchestra that can hold its own with any in the world, even if it is Prague’s second orchestra. The sound quality is up to modern standards, though it does lack just that last little oomph in the bass that distinguishes the Barshai Brilliant set.
Of particular note here, IMO, are the performances of Symphonies 1, 5, and 9. Maxim’s take on # 1 is a great deal quieter, more contemplative, and less bombastic than that of most other conductors, but in their stead, he finds an appealing pastoral lyricism. The 9th has the usually ebuillient first movement, but much of the rest of the work seems fraught with portents of grim things to come which are absent from the performances of many others. And his 5th is altogether magnificent.
Maxim started on a cycle of the symphonies with Channel Classics in the early 90’s, but it was never completed. I don’t know how many CDs they issued, but I have four, and that may be all there is. One of them was a 5th, coupled with the Festive Overture. I listened to some of that performance, too, just for comparison, and while it has its merits, the Supraphon performance is, in every sense, to be preferred. It is tighter, with an almost Szell-like (and, from me, there can be no higher compliment) emphasis on rhythm and pulse, and this despite the fact that the Channel Classics CD, from 1990, was recorded with the LSO, an allegedly much better ensemble than the Prague. I dispute the accuracy of that conclusion, but there is no doubt that the LSO’s reputation is better than that of the Prague Sym Orch. Timings are closely comparable, except in the Largo (3rd of 4 movements), which is 17:06 in the LSO recording, and a much faster 14:20 in the Prague performance.
10. 10/10 Tippett: Piano Sonata 1 (1937, rev. 1942) (19:18 ) |Piano Sonata 2 in one movement (1962) (11:46) |Piano Sonata 3 (1962) (22:30)—Peter Donohoe, piano—Naxos 8.557611. Let me quote the liner notes on the backside of the jewel box.
Tippett’s four piano sonatas span a period of nearly 50 years and crystallize important facets of his musical development. Indeed, listeners might be forgiven for thinking his first 3 sonatas were written by 3 different composers, so different are their styles and musical exploration. The neo-classical Sonata 1 is, in tippet;s own words, “a young man’s work, with all the exuberance of discovery and creation which that commonly implies.” Sonata 2 was written immediately after Tippett’s second opera King Priam and is similarly austere and angular. In contrast, Sonata 3 concentrates on the sonorous capabilities of the instrument opening up new vistas of harmony and color.
And that’s about it. On tap for next week—obviously, the rest of the Shostakovich symphony cycle, and at least a beginning on the Friedrich Gulda set of the Beethoven piano sonatas.
Don't drink and drive. You might spill it.--J. Eugene Baker, aka my late father
"We're not generating enough angry white guys to stay in business for the long term."--Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S. Carolina.
"Racism is America's Original Sin."--Francis Cardinal George, former Roman Catholic Archbishop of Chicago.
"We're not generating enough angry white guys to stay in business for the long term."--Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S. Carolina.
"Racism is America's Original Sin."--Francis Cardinal George, former Roman Catholic Archbishop of Chicago.
Telemann.
Cantatas from the Harmonischen Gottesdienst.
Ingrid Schmithusen, Soprano.
Il Concertino Koln.
Almost needless to say that Schmithusen belongs to one of my favourite singers in the HIP world.
Combined with my favourite composer in the baroque era, this for me is a glimpse of heaven.
Almost complete vibratoless these wonderful compositions reach a level of excellence for me, hard to resist, which is soothing to my nerves after a bombardment of Mozart operas.
The B.C is a fine group of musicians that are very apt in embedding with this lovely and pure voice.
The recording is most excellent to from 1990, licensed from Bayer Records.
Cantatas from the Harmonischen Gottesdienst.
Ingrid Schmithusen, Soprano.
Il Concertino Koln.
Almost needless to say that Schmithusen belongs to one of my favourite singers in the HIP world.
Combined with my favourite composer in the baroque era, this for me is a glimpse of heaven.
Almost complete vibratoless these wonderful compositions reach a level of excellence for me, hard to resist, which is soothing to my nerves after a bombardment of Mozart operas.
The B.C is a fine group of musicians that are very apt in embedding with this lovely and pure voice.
The recording is most excellent to from 1990, licensed from Bayer Records.
Georg Gerson. (1790-1825)
Overture in D major.
Symphony in E flat major.
Fr. L. Ae. Kunzen. (1761-1817)
Symphony in G minor.
Concerto Copenhagen/Lars Ulrik Mortensen.
The recording from 2004, sounds full and very alert. Detail abound, reasonable front to back, could have been better.
The music is a nice mix of a lot of influences, and some very original ideas. Not world shocking at all, but good entertainment, and professionally written. Fine, but it did not do much for me.
Performance is good, as is the pace of the music.
Overture in D major.
Symphony in E flat major.
Fr. L. Ae. Kunzen. (1761-1817)
Symphony in G minor.
Concerto Copenhagen/Lars Ulrik Mortensen.
The recording from 2004, sounds full and very alert. Detail abound, reasonable front to back, could have been better.
The music is a nice mix of a lot of influences, and some very original ideas. Not world shocking at all, but good entertainment, and professionally written. Fine, but it did not do much for me.
Performance is good, as is the pace of the music.
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karlhenning
- Composer-in-Residence
- Posts: 9812
- Joined: Wed Apr 20, 2005 11:12 am
- Location: Boston, MA
- Contact:
Hindemith
Symphonic Dances
Berliner Philharmoniker
the composer conducting
recorded in the Jesus-Christ-Kirche, 23 & 24 March 1954
Cheers,
~Karl
Symphonic Dances
Berliner Philharmoniker
the composer conducting
recorded in the Jesus-Christ-Kirche, 23 & 24 March 1954
Cheers,
~Karl
Karl Henning, PhD
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston, Massachusetts
http://members.tripod.com/~Karl_P_Henning/
http://henningmusick.blogspot.com/
Published by Lux Nova Press
http://www.luxnova.com/
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston, Massachusetts
http://members.tripod.com/~Karl_P_Henning/
http://henningmusick.blogspot.com/
Published by Lux Nova Press
http://www.luxnova.com/
Giovanni Battista Bononcini. (1670-1747)
Amore Doppio. Serenata a tre.
Suzie Le Blanc,-Filli.
Ursula Fiedler,-Dori.
Axel Kohler, Aminta.
Lautten Compagney/Wolfgang Katschner.
Another wonderful recording from the German label NCA made in 1996, and a image of perfect detail, and a stage reality that is truly amazing.
To begin the day with Suzie is a perfect breakfast for me, the jam would be Ursula then, and Axel the butler.
But kidding aside this is a winner on all counts, that is if you like the music from Bononcini, and Suzie.
Not to long ago I had a three fer box from Brilliant with licensed Tactus recordings. Bononcini too, in great form which I enjoyed immensely. This one is much better. Breathtaking writing for soprano, and a good story about love.................
Ursula Fiedler has a fine natural vibrato, and I like it very much.
Axel Kohler was a surprise, he is a good alto, with a very refined voice. This threesome works together well. and the Lautten Compagney is a top ensemble More please.
Amore Doppio. Serenata a tre.
Suzie Le Blanc,-Filli.
Ursula Fiedler,-Dori.
Axel Kohler, Aminta.
Lautten Compagney/Wolfgang Katschner.
Another wonderful recording from the German label NCA made in 1996, and a image of perfect detail, and a stage reality that is truly amazing.
To begin the day with Suzie is a perfect breakfast for me, the jam would be Ursula then, and Axel the butler.
But kidding aside this is a winner on all counts, that is if you like the music from Bononcini, and Suzie.
Not to long ago I had a three fer box from Brilliant with licensed Tactus recordings. Bononcini too, in great form which I enjoyed immensely. This one is much better. Breathtaking writing for soprano, and a good story about love.................
Ursula Fiedler has a fine natural vibrato, and I like it very much.
Axel Kohler was a surprise, he is a good alto, with a very refined voice. This threesome works together well. and the Lautten Compagney is a top ensemble More please.
Marc Antoine Charpentier.
Divertissement, Airs et Concerts.
Les Arts Florrisants/William Christie.
This fine recording from 1998 is a joy from beginning to end. Charpentier wrote very high parts for Soprano, and Sophie Daneman & Patricia Petibon, the stars of this cd cope very well with them, with only here and there some instability in Daneman's voice, but to little to get mad about.
As a whole the synergy between singers and orchestra is amazing and project very clearly what you get if the chemistry works well. I did not expect otherwise, for I bought cd's from this ensemble, allthough with different singers, as long as I can remember, and never did one disappoint me. Charpentiers music is fine throughout, and I admire the craftmanship, and the unbridled creativity the man has in store for us every time.
Divertissement, Airs et Concerts.
Les Arts Florrisants/William Christie.
This fine recording from 1998 is a joy from beginning to end. Charpentier wrote very high parts for Soprano, and Sophie Daneman & Patricia Petibon, the stars of this cd cope very well with them, with only here and there some instability in Daneman's voice, but to little to get mad about.
As a whole the synergy between singers and orchestra is amazing and project very clearly what you get if the chemistry works well. I did not expect otherwise, for I bought cd's from this ensemble, allthough with different singers, as long as I can remember, and never did one disappoint me. Charpentiers music is fine throughout, and I admire the craftmanship, and the unbridled creativity the man has in store for us every time.
From the big Mozart box I sampled four big boxes, Volume 8/15/24/25, in total 29 cd's.
Sacred Works 7 cd's.
Masses 8 cd's.
Concert Arias, 8 cd's.
Oratorios 6 cd's.
Brilliant assembled a mix of reasonably good to very bad performers and recordings here.
Mozart works need to be performed on a high level, and these recordings are fine for most, but for me they are almost worthless, not worth my precious time, 29 cd's of them.
There are moments of genius, but more problematic moments are abound.
My refuse bin is full today.
Sacred Works 7 cd's.
Masses 8 cd's.
Concert Arias, 8 cd's.
Oratorios 6 cd's.
Brilliant assembled a mix of reasonably good to very bad performers and recordings here.
Mozart works need to be performed on a high level, and these recordings are fine for most, but for me they are almost worthless, not worth my precious time, 29 cd's of them.
There are moments of genius, but more problematic moments are abound.
My refuse bin is full today.
Beethoven.
Symphony No. 3, "Eroica".
The Creatures of Prometheus opus 43.
The London Classical Players/Roger Norrington.
Norrington is fast, very fast, the second movement, clocks at 12:31, and that's about right for this movement, allthough there are parts were he slows down the tempi, which he should not, IMO.
Gardiner and Zinman are just a few seconds slower but not much, and Gardiner wins thumbs up for applying the right amount of urgency in the right places. Zinman sheds much more light on the details, like strings and brass, and he is fast too, but in the wrong places he slows down to much like Norrington. But anyway three marvelous sets to have and treasure. For instance Karajan in his sixties recordings clocks over 17:00 minutes, but than again, Karajan can....
This need for urgency comes out best in the first movement and the last of this symphony. That this orchestra applies wooden sticks for the timpani, is a huge plus I think.
The Scherzo, allegro vivace, third movement, has a jolting quality, with very fine playing. Norrington is a committed conductor, granted with some odd quirky tempi modulations, but as a whole this is bloody marvelous. The sound is good and forward.
The opus 43 is a fine piece, and for the first time played with the right tempi, boy is that fast, clocks in at 4:52, and that's as fast as it can be played, without the brass losing coherence. Beethoven would have loved this pushing to the utmost. I do..................
Symphony No. 3, "Eroica".
The Creatures of Prometheus opus 43.
The London Classical Players/Roger Norrington.
Norrington is fast, very fast, the second movement, clocks at 12:31, and that's about right for this movement, allthough there are parts were he slows down the tempi, which he should not, IMO.
Gardiner and Zinman are just a few seconds slower but not much, and Gardiner wins thumbs up for applying the right amount of urgency in the right places. Zinman sheds much more light on the details, like strings and brass, and he is fast too, but in the wrong places he slows down to much like Norrington. But anyway three marvelous sets to have and treasure. For instance Karajan in his sixties recordings clocks over 17:00 minutes, but than again, Karajan can....
This need for urgency comes out best in the first movement and the last of this symphony. That this orchestra applies wooden sticks for the timpani, is a huge plus I think.
The Scherzo, allegro vivace, third movement, has a jolting quality, with very fine playing. Norrington is a committed conductor, granted with some odd quirky tempi modulations, but as a whole this is bloody marvelous. The sound is good and forward.
The opus 43 is a fine piece, and for the first time played with the right tempi, boy is that fast, clocks in at 4:52, and that's as fast as it can be played, without the brass losing coherence. Beethoven would have loved this pushing to the utmost. I do..................
Borodin.
Symphony No. 1 in E flat major.
Royal Stockholm PO/Gennady Rozhdestvensky.
Brilliant licensed these recordings from Chandos, and it was recorded in Stockholm 1993-4.
A golden decision, for they are truly excellent. A fine Chandos sound, and a performance that has all the urgency and power it needs, to bring this finely detailed composition off. The Orchestra responds well to the Russian giant, and play as a bunch of hard headed angels, straight out of the clouds, aimed at your sense for grandiose music making.
Always had a penchant for Borodin, but never found a decent recording, until now.
Symphony No. 1 in E flat major.
Royal Stockholm PO/Gennady Rozhdestvensky.
Brilliant licensed these recordings from Chandos, and it was recorded in Stockholm 1993-4.
A golden decision, for they are truly excellent. A fine Chandos sound, and a performance that has all the urgency and power it needs, to bring this finely detailed composition off. The Orchestra responds well to the Russian giant, and play as a bunch of hard headed angels, straight out of the clouds, aimed at your sense for grandiose music making.
Always had a penchant for Borodin, but never found a decent recording, until now.
-
karlhenning
- Composer-in-Residence
- Posts: 9812
- Joined: Wed Apr 20, 2005 11:12 am
- Location: Boston, MA
- Contact:
Mozart
Piano Concertos Nos 26 in D, K.537, & 27 in B-flat, K.595
Uchida / English Chamber Orchestra / Tate
Piano Concertos Nos 26 in D, K.537, & 27 in B-flat, K.595
Uchida / English Chamber Orchestra / Tate
Karl Henning, PhD
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston, Massachusetts
http://members.tripod.com/~Karl_P_Henning/
http://henningmusick.blogspot.com/
Published by Lux Nova Press
http://www.luxnova.com/
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston, Massachusetts
http://members.tripod.com/~Karl_P_Henning/
http://henningmusick.blogspot.com/
Published by Lux Nova Press
http://www.luxnova.com/
Hyacinthe Jadin. (1776-1800)
String Trios opus 2, 1-3.
Ensemble Les Adieux.
And yet another winner on the label NCA, from all the recordings I bought, just one dud, that's all.
Wonderful contemplative music well executed, and marvelously recorded.
There are many influences, but luckily he can stand on his own feet. Fine music that flows like a little bach, unobtrusive, but cooling nevertheless.
String Trios opus 2, 1-3.
Ensemble Les Adieux.
And yet another winner on the label NCA, from all the recordings I bought, just one dud, that's all.
Wonderful contemplative music well executed, and marvelously recorded.
There are many influences, but luckily he can stand on his own feet. Fine music that flows like a little bach, unobtrusive, but cooling nevertheless.
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karlhenning
- Composer-in-Residence
- Posts: 9812
- Joined: Wed Apr 20, 2005 11:12 am
- Location: Boston, MA
- Contact:
This one's for you, Harry:
Allann Pettersson
Symphony № 6
German Symphony
Manfred Trojahn
A little moody, but well written.
Allann Pettersson
Symphony № 6
German Symphony
Manfred Trojahn
A little moody, but well written.
Karl Henning, PhD
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston, Massachusetts
http://members.tripod.com/~Karl_P_Henning/
http://henningmusick.blogspot.com/
Published by Lux Nova Press
http://www.luxnova.com/
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston, Massachusetts
http://members.tripod.com/~Karl_P_Henning/
http://henningmusick.blogspot.com/
Published by Lux Nova Press
http://www.luxnova.com/
Hyacinthe Jadin. (1776-1800.
String Trios, opus 2, 1-3.
Ensemble Les Adieux.
This is the third time I played this fabulous disc. The writing by Jadin is fascinating, and the moulding of the melodies is superb. The string sing joyous, and warm intimacy is embracing you. Such a fine voice, and so unknown. Well this NCA disc puts that omission right, they perform these works with insight and feeling. Every nuance is picked up with eagerness. I really love this......
The sound is up to scratch, a good stage image, the best in fact...
String Trios, opus 2, 1-3.
Ensemble Les Adieux.
This is the third time I played this fabulous disc. The writing by Jadin is fascinating, and the moulding of the melodies is superb. The string sing joyous, and warm intimacy is embracing you. Such a fine voice, and so unknown. Well this NCA disc puts that omission right, they perform these works with insight and feeling. Every nuance is picked up with eagerness. I really love this......
The sound is up to scratch, a good stage image, the best in fact...
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James
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karlhenning
- Composer-in-Residence
- Posts: 9812
- Joined: Wed Apr 20, 2005 11:12 am
- Location: Boston, MA
- Contact:
Are these fresh performances/recordings, James?James wrote:
Quadrivium for 4 percussionists & 4 orchestral grps. (36'30)
Aura for orchestra (16'17) & Biogramma for large orchestra (13'59)
Epic late Maderna works...
Cheers,
~Karl
Karl Henning, PhD
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston, Massachusetts
http://members.tripod.com/~Karl_P_Henning/
http://henningmusick.blogspot.com/
Published by Lux Nova Press
http://www.luxnova.com/
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston, Massachusetts
http://members.tripod.com/~Karl_P_Henning/
http://henningmusick.blogspot.com/
Published by Lux Nova Press
http://www.luxnova.com/
Mili Balakirev
Complete Symphonies and Poems.
Symphony No. 1 in C major.
Symphonic Poem "Russia".
The Philharmonia/Yevgeny Svetlanov.
Again tonight a Hyperion recording made in 1991 by Anthony Howell.
And that is very special, for this recording belongs to the best ever made for this label.
There is such a stage dept, simply amazing, you can hear from the first strings to the timpani, and still have air around. Its a demonstration disc, whenever someone walks in my hall and wants a hearing.
Their mouth can stand open for the full 60 minutes, not seldom that happens. Have to remind them of it. They leave with glassed eyes. Honestly!
Apart from that, you must look very hard to find better performances of these works. Svetlanov knows what he is doing, to get all the magical and fairytale like images from this fantastic orchestra, and off they come with total command and detail. Nothing is lost from this score, all you can hear. The tempi are moderate, and that is the only quibble I have, for the rest, if in need of these works, buy this. Budgetprice too. Back then when it was released the critics were in absolute praise, and they were right.
Complete Symphonies and Poems.
Symphony No. 1 in C major.
Symphonic Poem "Russia".
The Philharmonia/Yevgeny Svetlanov.
Again tonight a Hyperion recording made in 1991 by Anthony Howell.
And that is very special, for this recording belongs to the best ever made for this label.
There is such a stage dept, simply amazing, you can hear from the first strings to the timpani, and still have air around. Its a demonstration disc, whenever someone walks in my hall and wants a hearing.
Their mouth can stand open for the full 60 minutes, not seldom that happens. Have to remind them of it. They leave with glassed eyes. Honestly!
Apart from that, you must look very hard to find better performances of these works. Svetlanov knows what he is doing, to get all the magical and fairytale like images from this fantastic orchestra, and off they come with total command and detail. Nothing is lost from this score, all you can hear. The tempi are moderate, and that is the only quibble I have, for the rest, if in need of these works, buy this. Budgetprice too. Back then when it was released the critics were in absolute praise, and they were right.
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James
-
James
-
RebLem
- Posts: 9114
- Joined: Tue May 17, 2005 1:06 pm
- Location: Albuquerque, NM, USA 87112, 2 blocks west of the Breaking Bad carwash.
- Contact:
In the week ending Saturday, 27 OCT 2007, I listened to the following:
1. 10/10 Bach, J.S.: Cantatas 152 (18:45), 153 (15:01), 154 (15:49), & 155 (13:03)---Helmuth Rilling, cond. usual suspects—hanssler CD, Vol. 47 of CBE.
2. 10/10 Bach, J.S.: Ein Choralbuch, a book of Choral Settings for Easter, Ascension, Pentecost, & Trinity—Helmuth Rilling, cond. usual suspects—hanssler CD, Vol. 80 of CBE.
4. 10/10 Boccherini: Concerto for harpsichord or pianoforte in E Flat Major (15:52) |Field: Rondo for pianoforte and strings in A Flat Major (7:49) |Schobert: Concerto for harpsichord or pianoforte in G Major (23:17)—Collegium Aureum, Eckart Sellheim, playing a 5 ½ octave 1804 Broadwood pianoforte (Boccherini & Field) and a 5 octave 1796 South German pianoforte (Schobert)—Deutsche Harmonia Mundi CD.
5, 6, 7, 8. 10/10 Beethoven: Piano Sonatas 1-14, Friedrich Gulda, piano—CDs 1-4 of a 10 CD Brilliant set, recorded 1967, lic from Universal Music Operations, orig appeared on Amadeo, and reissued on LP in the US by MHS. CD 1—# 1 in F Minor, Op. 2/1 (1795) (15:14), # 2 in A Major, Op. 2.2 (1795) (21:23), # 3 in C Major, Op. 2/3 (1795) (23:05) |CD 2---# 4 in E Flat Major, Op. 7 (1797) (25:09), # 5 in C Minor, Op. 10/1 (1798 ) (16:03), # 6 in F Major, Op. 10/2 (1798 ) (11:55) |CD 3---# 7in D Major, Op. 10/3 (1798 ) (20:49), # 8 in C Minor, Op. 13 “Pathetique,” (1799) (17:49), # 9 in E Major, Op. 14/2 (1799) (12:26), # 10 in G Major, Op. 14/2 (1799) (14:42) |CD 4---# 11 in B Flat Major, Op. 22 (1800) (20:33), # 12 in A Flat Major, Op. 26 (1801) (18:48 ), # 13 in E Flat Major, Op. 27/1 “Quasi una Fantasia” (1801) (14:19), # 14 in C # Minor, Op. 27/2 “Moonlight,” (1801) (15:54). These are fine performances, but, in my opinion, do not approach Annie Fischer’s set in sheer virtuosity and mastery of every phrase.
9, 10, 11, 12, 13. 10/10 Shostakovich: CDs 6-10 of a 10 CD Supraphon set of all the Shostakovich symphonies—Maxim Shostakovich, cond. Prague Symphony Orch, specifically Symphonies 6, 7, 8, 11, 13, & 15---CD 6—Sym 6 in B Minor, Op. 54 (1939) (32:16), Sym 15 in A Major, Op. 141 (1971) (43:16). CD 7---Sym 7 in C Major, Op. 60 “Leningrad” (1941) (77:59). CD 8---Sym 8 in C Minor, Op. 65 (1943) (66:05). CD 9—Sym 11 in G Minor, Op. 103 “The Year 1905” (1957) (60:12). CD 10---Sym 13 in B Flat Minor for bass, chorus, and orch., Op. 113 “Babiy Yar” (1962, words by Y Yevtushenko) (65:18 )---Peter Mikulas, bass, Male Choruses of the Prague Phil Choir & of the Kuhn Mixed Chorus.
A few comments. First is that this is, to the best of my knowledge, Maxim’s 3rd recording of the Sym 15. His original on LP was one of the first, available about a year after the work’s premiere, and his second was on Channel Classics in the early 1990’s. Those two earlier recordings were quite similar to one another, and, in my opinion, are to be preferred to this new version. This one does not convey the sense of the slow fading and ebbing of life one gets in the last movement from the earlier versions.
This new “Leningrad” stands apart interpretively from other versions in the first movement. You still have the idyllic, pastoral theme with which the symphony begins, and then the jaunty, initially hopeful march as the invasion begins. In other versions, there comes a point where discord enters, in catalclysms of dissonance, depicting the realization that this invasion is not the liberation the people may have initially hoped it would be, but the act of a madman bent on destroying the Russian people. In this new version, one senses no sudden realization of the tragic reality of the Nazi menace, but a gradual development which achieves its full effect only after some while.
And finally, this Babiy Yar may well be the best I have ever heard, especially in the second movement, “Humor.” In other versions, the humor is subdued by the tragedy of the other movements. But Maxim does a very effective job of gear shifting here, making his interpretation of this movement very funny and clownish without trivializing the tragedy of the other 4 movements.
As I said in last week’s report on the first 5 CDs in this set, I have seen a fair amount of critical commentary about these performances which express disappointment, and attribute the allegedly inferior quality of these performances to a decidedly second rate orchestra, not to the conductor. IMO, nothing could be further from the truth. These are superb performances (except, perhaps, for # 15, which is not quite interpretively up to the standard of the others) by an orchestra that can hold its own with any in the world, even if it is Prague’s second orchestra. The sound quality is up to modern standards, though it does lack just that last little oomph in the bass that distinguishes the Barshai Brilliant set.
And that’s about it. On tap for next week—obviously, the rest of the Friedrich Gulda set of the Beethoven piano sonatas, and a 5 CD Decca set of Shostakovich music—orchestral songs on the first two with Jarvi and the Gothenburg Sym., a CD of songs accompanied by pianist Vladimir Ashkenazy, and the final two CDs of Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District with Myung-Whun Chung and the Bastille Opera.
1. 10/10 Bach, J.S.: Cantatas 152 (18:45), 153 (15:01), 154 (15:49), & 155 (13:03)---Helmuth Rilling, cond. usual suspects—hanssler CD, Vol. 47 of CBE.
2. 10/10 Bach, J.S.: Ein Choralbuch, a book of Choral Settings for Easter, Ascension, Pentecost, & Trinity—Helmuth Rilling, cond. usual suspects—hanssler CD, Vol. 80 of CBE.
4. 10/10 Boccherini: Concerto for harpsichord or pianoforte in E Flat Major (15:52) |Field: Rondo for pianoforte and strings in A Flat Major (7:49) |Schobert: Concerto for harpsichord or pianoforte in G Major (23:17)—Collegium Aureum, Eckart Sellheim, playing a 5 ½ octave 1804 Broadwood pianoforte (Boccherini & Field) and a 5 octave 1796 South German pianoforte (Schobert)—Deutsche Harmonia Mundi CD.
5, 6, 7, 8. 10/10 Beethoven: Piano Sonatas 1-14, Friedrich Gulda, piano—CDs 1-4 of a 10 CD Brilliant set, recorded 1967, lic from Universal Music Operations, orig appeared on Amadeo, and reissued on LP in the US by MHS. CD 1—# 1 in F Minor, Op. 2/1 (1795) (15:14), # 2 in A Major, Op. 2.2 (1795) (21:23), # 3 in C Major, Op. 2/3 (1795) (23:05) |CD 2---# 4 in E Flat Major, Op. 7 (1797) (25:09), # 5 in C Minor, Op. 10/1 (1798 ) (16:03), # 6 in F Major, Op. 10/2 (1798 ) (11:55) |CD 3---# 7in D Major, Op. 10/3 (1798 ) (20:49), # 8 in C Minor, Op. 13 “Pathetique,” (1799) (17:49), # 9 in E Major, Op. 14/2 (1799) (12:26), # 10 in G Major, Op. 14/2 (1799) (14:42) |CD 4---# 11 in B Flat Major, Op. 22 (1800) (20:33), # 12 in A Flat Major, Op. 26 (1801) (18:48 ), # 13 in E Flat Major, Op. 27/1 “Quasi una Fantasia” (1801) (14:19), # 14 in C # Minor, Op. 27/2 “Moonlight,” (1801) (15:54). These are fine performances, but, in my opinion, do not approach Annie Fischer’s set in sheer virtuosity and mastery of every phrase.
9, 10, 11, 12, 13. 10/10 Shostakovich: CDs 6-10 of a 10 CD Supraphon set of all the Shostakovich symphonies—Maxim Shostakovich, cond. Prague Symphony Orch, specifically Symphonies 6, 7, 8, 11, 13, & 15---CD 6—Sym 6 in B Minor, Op. 54 (1939) (32:16), Sym 15 in A Major, Op. 141 (1971) (43:16). CD 7---Sym 7 in C Major, Op. 60 “Leningrad” (1941) (77:59). CD 8---Sym 8 in C Minor, Op. 65 (1943) (66:05). CD 9—Sym 11 in G Minor, Op. 103 “The Year 1905” (1957) (60:12). CD 10---Sym 13 in B Flat Minor for bass, chorus, and orch., Op. 113 “Babiy Yar” (1962, words by Y Yevtushenko) (65:18 )---Peter Mikulas, bass, Male Choruses of the Prague Phil Choir & of the Kuhn Mixed Chorus.
A few comments. First is that this is, to the best of my knowledge, Maxim’s 3rd recording of the Sym 15. His original on LP was one of the first, available about a year after the work’s premiere, and his second was on Channel Classics in the early 1990’s. Those two earlier recordings were quite similar to one another, and, in my opinion, are to be preferred to this new version. This one does not convey the sense of the slow fading and ebbing of life one gets in the last movement from the earlier versions.
This new “Leningrad” stands apart interpretively from other versions in the first movement. You still have the idyllic, pastoral theme with which the symphony begins, and then the jaunty, initially hopeful march as the invasion begins. In other versions, there comes a point where discord enters, in catalclysms of dissonance, depicting the realization that this invasion is not the liberation the people may have initially hoped it would be, but the act of a madman bent on destroying the Russian people. In this new version, one senses no sudden realization of the tragic reality of the Nazi menace, but a gradual development which achieves its full effect only after some while.
And finally, this Babiy Yar may well be the best I have ever heard, especially in the second movement, “Humor.” In other versions, the humor is subdued by the tragedy of the other movements. But Maxim does a very effective job of gear shifting here, making his interpretation of this movement very funny and clownish without trivializing the tragedy of the other 4 movements.
As I said in last week’s report on the first 5 CDs in this set, I have seen a fair amount of critical commentary about these performances which express disappointment, and attribute the allegedly inferior quality of these performances to a decidedly second rate orchestra, not to the conductor. IMO, nothing could be further from the truth. These are superb performances (except, perhaps, for # 15, which is not quite interpretively up to the standard of the others) by an orchestra that can hold its own with any in the world, even if it is Prague’s second orchestra. The sound quality is up to modern standards, though it does lack just that last little oomph in the bass that distinguishes the Barshai Brilliant set.
And that’s about it. On tap for next week—obviously, the rest of the Friedrich Gulda set of the Beethoven piano sonatas, and a 5 CD Decca set of Shostakovich music—orchestral songs on the first two with Jarvi and the Gothenburg Sym., a CD of songs accompanied by pianist Vladimir Ashkenazy, and the final two CDs of Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District with Myung-Whun Chung and the Bastille Opera.
Don't drink and drive. You might spill it.--J. Eugene Baker, aka my late father
"We're not generating enough angry white guys to stay in business for the long term."--Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S. Carolina.
"Racism is America's Original Sin."--Francis Cardinal George, former Roman Catholic Archbishop of Chicago.
"We're not generating enough angry white guys to stay in business for the long term."--Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S. Carolina.
"Racism is America's Original Sin."--Francis Cardinal George, former Roman Catholic Archbishop of Chicago.
Anton Bruckner - Symphony #7, Eugen Jochum/Berlin Philharmonic-
James
Francesco Maria Veracini. (1690-1768)
Overtures & Concerti.
Neue dusseldorfer Hofmusik/Mary Utiger.
A beautiful NCA rcording made in 1999, with a very good stage perspective.
The performance is good, and very telling on all the details from this fine composer.
A perfect beginning after 5 days of forced abstinence.
Goodmorning to all.
Overtures & Concerti.
Neue dusseldorfer Hofmusik/Mary Utiger.
A beautiful NCA rcording made in 1999, with a very good stage perspective.
The performance is good, and very telling on all the details from this fine composer.
A perfect beginning after 5 days of forced abstinence.
Goodmorning to all.
Anton Stepanovich Arensky.
Piano Trios No. 1 & 2.
Borodin Trio.
Totally surprised by the quality of this performance, I sit in awe. Never heard the Elegia from the first trio so beautifully. And the gorgeous recording deserves all praise, as the cellist Yuli Turovsky. What a fine tone he produces. As a ensemble they play together immaculate.
The fire in the finale of the first trio, is awesome, after the elegy comes as a liberation.
Piano Trios No. 1 & 2.
Borodin Trio.
Totally surprised by the quality of this performance, I sit in awe. Never heard the Elegia from the first trio so beautifully. And the gorgeous recording deserves all praise, as the cellist Yuli Turovsky. What a fine tone he produces. As a ensemble they play together immaculate.
The fire in the finale of the first trio, is awesome, after the elegy comes as a liberation.
Ernest John Moeran.
SQ No. 1 in A minor.
Fantasy Quartet for Oboe and Strings in one movement.
Sonata for Violin and Piano in E minor.
Sarah Francis, Oboe.
Members of the English String Quartet.
Melbourne String Quartet.
These recordings from 1982-85 are completely remastered, and the difference you can hear to avantage. The performance are lively and fiery at times, but always in the service of this beautiful music.
Me, being a great admirer of his Orchestral works, fell victim to these fine chamberworks today. I realized how important a composer he is in the array of British composers, after hearing his Violin concerto again. It is time Moeran gets the praise he is earning by right, and on the basis of his oeuvre.
And this disc will do, as any other, for denying his due after sampling his SQ would be ridiculous, the man is a genius amongst others.
The SQ is a small wonder to me, with its first movement showing you all the gorgeous colors Moeran has to give, and tops that with the Andante con moto, second movement. I had acquired all his Orchestral works long ago, and its about time I listen to them again.
SQ No. 1 in A minor.
Fantasy Quartet for Oboe and Strings in one movement.
Sonata for Violin and Piano in E minor.
Sarah Francis, Oboe.
Members of the English String Quartet.
Melbourne String Quartet.
These recordings from 1982-85 are completely remastered, and the difference you can hear to avantage. The performance are lively and fiery at times, but always in the service of this beautiful music.
Me, being a great admirer of his Orchestral works, fell victim to these fine chamberworks today. I realized how important a composer he is in the array of British composers, after hearing his Violin concerto again. It is time Moeran gets the praise he is earning by right, and on the basis of his oeuvre.
And this disc will do, as any other, for denying his due after sampling his SQ would be ridiculous, the man is a genius amongst others.
The SQ is a small wonder to me, with its first movement showing you all the gorgeous colors Moeran has to give, and tops that with the Andante con moto, second movement. I had acquired all his Orchestral works long ago, and its about time I listen to them again.
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Festival Overture on the Danish National Hymn, opus 15.
Hamlet opus 67bis. Overture and Incidental Music.
Janis Kelly, Soprano.
Derek Hammond-Stroud, Baritone.
LSO/Geoffrey Simon.
This recording from 1981, was since long on my list, and finally I bought it for a good price, and listening to it, I would have paid full price for it, had I only known how good it is. Now I know!
The recording is state of the art, with a immense dept in the Orchestra, in fact the best I heard, amongst all I have. The detail is amazing, and the performance is not to be beaten. Geoffrey Simon is a conductor I admired, and almost all he recorded is treasured by me.
The Festival overture is derivative of many other pieces Tchaikovsky wrote, so not that remarkable, but Hamlet is a different palette of color alltogether. I simply adore this music, with many fine melodies, and the spirit, all I expect from him. Easily my disc of the month
Festival Overture on the Danish National Hymn, opus 15.
Hamlet opus 67bis. Overture and Incidental Music.
Janis Kelly, Soprano.
Derek Hammond-Stroud, Baritone.
LSO/Geoffrey Simon.
This recording from 1981, was since long on my list, and finally I bought it for a good price, and listening to it, I would have paid full price for it, had I only known how good it is. Now I know!
The recording is state of the art, with a immense dept in the Orchestra, in fact the best I heard, amongst all I have. The detail is amazing, and the performance is not to be beaten. Geoffrey Simon is a conductor I admired, and almost all he recorded is treasured by me.
The Festival overture is derivative of many other pieces Tchaikovsky wrote, so not that remarkable, but Hamlet is a different palette of color alltogether. I simply adore this music, with many fine melodies, and the spirit, all I expect from him. Easily my disc of the month
Ernest Bloch.
Complete Works for Violin and Piano.
Sonate No. 1 & 2.
Latica Honda-Rosenberg, Violin.
Avner Arad, Piano.
This two fer from Oehms is a fine recording made in 1999, and gives a good impression of this difficult composer. These are by no means easy pieces, and must be taken in small quantities. To grasp his intense writing, one must be very concentrated. Fiery, passionate, and dense writing makes it a rough path to thread, but will soften after being for a while in this idiom.
I found the Andante moderato from the second sonata ravishing.
Complete Works for Violin and Piano.
Sonate No. 1 & 2.
Latica Honda-Rosenberg, Violin.
Avner Arad, Piano.
This two fer from Oehms is a fine recording made in 1999, and gives a good impression of this difficult composer. These are by no means easy pieces, and must be taken in small quantities. To grasp his intense writing, one must be very concentrated. Fiery, passionate, and dense writing makes it a rough path to thread, but will soften after being for a while in this idiom.
I found the Andante moderato from the second sonata ravishing.
Georg Philipp Telemann.
Matthauspassion 1754.
Martin Klietman, Tenor.
Klaus Mertens, Bass.
Kammerchor Cantamus Halle.
Capella Savaria/Pal Nemeth.
Mannerchor bouquet Vocalis Halle.
This NCA recording is yet a fine one. Apart from a unidentified Judas sung by a counter tenor of doubtfull quality. Made in 1993 the sound is clear and has a good perspective. The choirs used on this recording are not that exceptional, average I would say, but the rest of the soloists are very good. A strange assembly of artists , but it works in a very primitive way. For me this has something that draws me quite near this piece
Matthauspassion 1754.
Martin Klietman, Tenor.
Klaus Mertens, Bass.
Kammerchor Cantamus Halle.
Capella Savaria/Pal Nemeth.
Mannerchor bouquet Vocalis Halle.
This NCA recording is yet a fine one. Apart from a unidentified Judas sung by a counter tenor of doubtfull quality. Made in 1993 the sound is clear and has a good perspective. The choirs used on this recording are not that exceptional, average I would say, but the rest of the soloists are very good. A strange assembly of artists , but it works in a very primitive way. For me this has something that draws me quite near this piece
Sigismund Neukomm. (1778-1858)
String Quintets.
"Une fete de Village en Suise".
"L' Amante abandonnee"
Ensemble Les Adieux.
This is a most excellent disc from NCA made in 2002.
Performance is without a fault, and the recording leaves nothing to be desired.
Neukomm is a composer totally unknown to me, so this was kind of a risk buy.
Happily to report though, that it made me smile consistently throughout the playing.
The man has a lot of humor, and a absolute talent for gorgeous string writing, for the weaving of his patterns are so intricate and creative, that my admiration grew with every note played. I am certainly open for more works he has written, t'will cheer you up no end.
String Quintets.
"Une fete de Village en Suise".
"L' Amante abandonnee"
Ensemble Les Adieux.
This is a most excellent disc from NCA made in 2002.
Performance is without a fault, and the recording leaves nothing to be desired.
Neukomm is a composer totally unknown to me, so this was kind of a risk buy.
Happily to report though, that it made me smile consistently throughout the playing.
The man has a lot of humor, and a absolute talent for gorgeous string writing, for the weaving of his patterns are so intricate and creative, that my admiration grew with every note played. I am certainly open for more works he has written, t'will cheer you up no end.
Joseph Martin Kraus.
Ballet Music.
Swedish Chamber Orchestra/Petter Sundkvist.
This fine Naxos recording made in 2005, by Michael Ponder does great credit to this label. Forward and detailed, with a stage image that allows enough dept and brilliance.
The SCO are a bunch of well drilled musicians that gives due to Kraus. Excellent strings I must say, they play the complicated score well, near perfect, as the wind instruments, again fine writing and playing.
The ballet music is gorgeous, and for a addict as I am, it makes my day. I think the music is on a high level, but I very much doubt if many people have the stomach for it, to stand at attention for 70 minutes.
A small criticism must be made however. sometimes there is a little squareness in the playing, effectively the tempi are too slow, to much stacatto, while it should be legato. Mind, it is not always that way, so Sundkvist must have chosen for this approach. Nevertheless I love it.
Ballet Music.
Swedish Chamber Orchestra/Petter Sundkvist.
This fine Naxos recording made in 2005, by Michael Ponder does great credit to this label. Forward and detailed, with a stage image that allows enough dept and brilliance.
The SCO are a bunch of well drilled musicians that gives due to Kraus. Excellent strings I must say, they play the complicated score well, near perfect, as the wind instruments, again fine writing and playing.
The ballet music is gorgeous, and for a addict as I am, it makes my day. I think the music is on a high level, but I very much doubt if many people have the stomach for it, to stand at attention for 70 minutes.
A small criticism must be made however. sometimes there is a little squareness in the playing, effectively the tempi are too slow, to much stacatto, while it should be legato. Mind, it is not always that way, so Sundkvist must have chosen for this approach. Nevertheless I love it.
Bernhard Molique. (1801-1869)
SQ opus 18, No 1 & 2.
Mannheimer Streichquartett.
The cd was made in 2004, and is very well recorded, giving the musicians plenty of air.
As for the composer, well this is a first one, never heard of the fellow before. It is by no means a unhappy encounter, for there is quality in abundance in the F major & A minor SQ.
Spohr took him for a while under his wings, when he was a boy with much talent, capable of playing many instruments, but the Violin playing impressed Spohr most. He knew Beethoven and Schubert personally, but nothing really came of that. He complained when visiting Beethoven, that B played on a out of tune piano, that made M flee without greeting
As a teacher on the Violin he was famous throughout Europe, and Berlioz praised him for that many times.
He was considered one of the greatest violinists of his time.
The SQ are based on the classical model of Beethoven, and very worthwhile to listen to.
He has quite a original voice, and writes in a very solid way, a bit sober at times, but always intimate.
SQ opus 18, No 1 & 2.
Mannheimer Streichquartett.
The cd was made in 2004, and is very well recorded, giving the musicians plenty of air.
As for the composer, well this is a first one, never heard of the fellow before. It is by no means a unhappy encounter, for there is quality in abundance in the F major & A minor SQ.
Spohr took him for a while under his wings, when he was a boy with much talent, capable of playing many instruments, but the Violin playing impressed Spohr most. He knew Beethoven and Schubert personally, but nothing really came of that. He complained when visiting Beethoven, that B played on a out of tune piano, that made M flee without greeting
As a teacher on the Violin he was famous throughout Europe, and Berlioz praised him for that many times.
He was considered one of the greatest violinists of his time.
The SQ are based on the classical model of Beethoven, and very worthwhile to listen to.
He has quite a original voice, and writes in a very solid way, a bit sober at times, but always intimate.
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James
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karlhenning
- Composer-in-Residence
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Hindemith
Der Schwanendreher
& the Kammermusiken, Opus 46
Der Schwanendreher
& the Kammermusiken, Opus 46
Karl Henning, PhD
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston, Massachusetts
http://members.tripod.com/~Karl_P_Henning/
http://henningmusick.blogspot.com/
Published by Lux Nova Press
http://www.luxnova.com/
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston, Massachusetts
http://members.tripod.com/~Karl_P_Henning/
http://henningmusick.blogspot.com/
Published by Lux Nova Press
http://www.luxnova.com/
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arglebargle
- Posts: 228
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- Location: Vancouver, Canada
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James
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Wallingford
- Posts: 4687
- Joined: Tue Jul 22, 2003 3:31 pm
- Location: Brush, Colorado
....been spinning some obscure Saint-Saens these days:
His two unpublished symphonies, the first in A, a delicious confection written when he was but 15 (1850), and the one which, numerically, is his real third symphony, the "Urbs Roma" Symphony in F from 1856 (his NUMBERED #1, Op.2, falls INBETWEEN these two)........this is part of Jean Martinon's pioneering complete traversal of the St-Saens symphonies, reissued on EMI CD's (58518).
AND, this French import, also from EMI (54913):
La muse et le poet (Op.132) for violin, cello & orch.
Odelette in D (Op.162) for flute & orch.
Tarantelle in A Minor (Op.6) for flute, clarinet & orch.
Suite in D For Orchestra (Op.49)
Morceau de concert (Op.20) for violin & orch.
Romance in D-flat (Op.37) for flute & orch.
Une nuit a Lisbonne (Op.63)
......played by clarinetist Richard Veille, flutist Clara Novakova, violinist Patrice Fontanarosa, cellist Gary Hoffman, with Jean-Jacques Kantorow leading the Ensemble Orchestral de Paris.
His two unpublished symphonies, the first in A, a delicious confection written when he was but 15 (1850), and the one which, numerically, is his real third symphony, the "Urbs Roma" Symphony in F from 1856 (his NUMBERED #1, Op.2, falls INBETWEEN these two)........this is part of Jean Martinon's pioneering complete traversal of the St-Saens symphonies, reissued on EMI CD's (58518).
AND, this French import, also from EMI (54913):
La muse et le poet (Op.132) for violin, cello & orch.
Odelette in D (Op.162) for flute & orch.
Tarantelle in A Minor (Op.6) for flute, clarinet & orch.
Suite in D For Orchestra (Op.49)
Morceau de concert (Op.20) for violin & orch.
Romance in D-flat (Op.37) for flute & orch.
Une nuit a Lisbonne (Op.63)
......played by clarinetist Richard Veille, flutist Clara Novakova, violinist Patrice Fontanarosa, cellist Gary Hoffman, with Jean-Jacques Kantorow leading the Ensemble Orchestral de Paris.
Good music is that which falls upon the ear with ease, and quits the memory with difficulty.
--Sir Thomas Beecham
--Sir Thomas Beecham
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arglebargle
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RebLem
- Posts: 9114
- Joined: Tue May 17, 2005 1:06 pm
- Location: Albuquerque, NM, USA 87112, 2 blocks west of the Breaking Bad carwash.
- Contact:
In the week ending Saturday, 03 NOV 2007, I listened to the following:
1. 10/10 Bach, J.S.: Cantatas 156 (17:10), 157 (19:00), 158 (10:10), 159 (16:22)—Helmuth Rilling, cond. usual suspects—hanssler CD, Vol. 48 of CBE.
2, 3, 4, 5, 6. 10/10 Beethoven: Piano Sonatas 15-32, Friedrich Gulda, piano—CDs 5-9 of a 9 CD Brilliant set, recorded 1967, lic from Universal Music Operations, orig appeared on Amadeo, and reissued on LP in the US by MHS. CD 5---# 15 in D Major, Op. 28 “Pastoral” (1801) (22:01), # 16 in G Major, Op 31/1 (1802) (18:44), # 17 in D Minor, Op. 31/2 “Sturm” (1802) (20:58 ). CD 6---# 18 in E Flat Major, Op. 31/3 (1802) (20:14), # 19 in G Minor, Op. 49/1 (1798 ) (7:59), # 20 in G Major, Op. 49/2 (1796) (7:31), # 21 in C Major, Op. 53 “Waldstein” (1804) (20:29), # 22 in F Major, Op. 54 (1804) (10:38 ). CD 7--- # 23 in F Minor, Op. 57 “Appassionata” (1805) (20:23), # 24 in F Sharp Major, Op. 78 (1809) (9:07), # 25 in G Major, Op. 79 (1809) (8:49), # 26 in E Flat Major, Op. 81a “Les Adieux” (1810) (14:22), # 27 in E Minor, Op. 90 (1814) (10:35). CD 8--- # 28 in A Major, Op. 101 (1816) (19:56), # 29 in B Flat Major, Op. 106 “Hammerklavier” (1818 ) (36:55). CD 9---# 30 in E Major, Op. 109 (1820) (16:47), # 31 in A Flat Major, Op. 110 (1824) (17:00), # 32 in C Minor, Op. 111 (1822) (24:07). These are fine performances, but, in my opinion, do not approach Annie Fischer’s set in sheer virtuosity and mastery of every phrase. The Hammerklavier is, in my opinion, one of the better performances in the set. Gulda eschews both the fantasia-like smoothing out of contrasts that is Richard Goode’s approach to this and other Beethoven sonatas, but, at the same time, he avoids the sudden, almost spastic, certainly jarring, shifts in tempo one finds in R Serkin’s performance. Tempos are steady—the rock here, around which other changes in dynamics and volume levels revolve.
7, 8, 9. 10/10 Shostakovich: Songs cycles and vocal music, CDs 1,2, & 3 of a 5 CD set. CDs 1 & 2—Neeme Jarvi, cond. Gothenburg SO. CD 1—Two Fables of Krylov, Op. 4 (8:43)—Larissa Diadkova, mezzo-soprano, Women’s voices of Gothenburg Opera | Three Romances on Poems by Pushkin, Op. 46a (7:45)—Sergei Leiferkus, bass-baritone | Six Romances, Op. 62/140 (15:00)—Sergei Leiferkus, bass-baritone, [11 Songs] From Jewish Folk Poetry, Op. 79a (25:43)—Luba Orgonasova, soprano, Nathalie Stutzmann, contraldo, Philip Langridge, tenor. CD 2---Six Romances on texts by Japanese poets, Op. 21 (13:55)—Ilya Levinsky, tenor |Six poems of Marina Tsvetayeva, Op. 143a—Elena Zaremba, contralto |Suite on verses of Michelangelo Buonarroti, Op. 145a (13:14)—Sergei, Leiferkus, bass-baritone. CD 3---3 song cycles accompanied by Vladimir Ashkenazy, piano---Four Verses of Captain Lebyadkin, Op. 146 (11:00), Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, baritone |7 Romances on Poems of Alexander Blok, Op. 127 (23:43), Elisabeth Soederstrom, soprano, Christopher Rowland, violin, Ioan Davies, cello |Suite on Verses of Michelangelo Buonarroti, Op. 145a (41:38 ), John Shirley-Quirk, baritone.
Up for next week---the final two CDs of the above Shostakovich set: Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District with Myung-Whun Chung and the Bastille Opera, the Zinman set of the Beethoven symphonies, and some Schumann CDs, mostly solo piano records, but also including the Cello Concerto with Isserlis, which I bought a while back because Corlyss D recommended it.
1. 10/10 Bach, J.S.: Cantatas 156 (17:10), 157 (19:00), 158 (10:10), 159 (16:22)—Helmuth Rilling, cond. usual suspects—hanssler CD, Vol. 48 of CBE.
2, 3, 4, 5, 6. 10/10 Beethoven: Piano Sonatas 15-32, Friedrich Gulda, piano—CDs 5-9 of a 9 CD Brilliant set, recorded 1967, lic from Universal Music Operations, orig appeared on Amadeo, and reissued on LP in the US by MHS. CD 5---# 15 in D Major, Op. 28 “Pastoral” (1801) (22:01), # 16 in G Major, Op 31/1 (1802) (18:44), # 17 in D Minor, Op. 31/2 “Sturm” (1802) (20:58 ). CD 6---# 18 in E Flat Major, Op. 31/3 (1802) (20:14), # 19 in G Minor, Op. 49/1 (1798 ) (7:59), # 20 in G Major, Op. 49/2 (1796) (7:31), # 21 in C Major, Op. 53 “Waldstein” (1804) (20:29), # 22 in F Major, Op. 54 (1804) (10:38 ). CD 7--- # 23 in F Minor, Op. 57 “Appassionata” (1805) (20:23), # 24 in F Sharp Major, Op. 78 (1809) (9:07), # 25 in G Major, Op. 79 (1809) (8:49), # 26 in E Flat Major, Op. 81a “Les Adieux” (1810) (14:22), # 27 in E Minor, Op. 90 (1814) (10:35). CD 8--- # 28 in A Major, Op. 101 (1816) (19:56), # 29 in B Flat Major, Op. 106 “Hammerklavier” (1818 ) (36:55). CD 9---# 30 in E Major, Op. 109 (1820) (16:47), # 31 in A Flat Major, Op. 110 (1824) (17:00), # 32 in C Minor, Op. 111 (1822) (24:07). These are fine performances, but, in my opinion, do not approach Annie Fischer’s set in sheer virtuosity and mastery of every phrase. The Hammerklavier is, in my opinion, one of the better performances in the set. Gulda eschews both the fantasia-like smoothing out of contrasts that is Richard Goode’s approach to this and other Beethoven sonatas, but, at the same time, he avoids the sudden, almost spastic, certainly jarring, shifts in tempo one finds in R Serkin’s performance. Tempos are steady—the rock here, around which other changes in dynamics and volume levels revolve.
7, 8, 9. 10/10 Shostakovich: Songs cycles and vocal music, CDs 1,2, & 3 of a 5 CD set. CDs 1 & 2—Neeme Jarvi, cond. Gothenburg SO. CD 1—Two Fables of Krylov, Op. 4 (8:43)—Larissa Diadkova, mezzo-soprano, Women’s voices of Gothenburg Opera | Three Romances on Poems by Pushkin, Op. 46a (7:45)—Sergei Leiferkus, bass-baritone | Six Romances, Op. 62/140 (15:00)—Sergei Leiferkus, bass-baritone, [11 Songs] From Jewish Folk Poetry, Op. 79a (25:43)—Luba Orgonasova, soprano, Nathalie Stutzmann, contraldo, Philip Langridge, tenor. CD 2---Six Romances on texts by Japanese poets, Op. 21 (13:55)—Ilya Levinsky, tenor |Six poems of Marina Tsvetayeva, Op. 143a—Elena Zaremba, contralto |Suite on verses of Michelangelo Buonarroti, Op. 145a (13:14)—Sergei, Leiferkus, bass-baritone. CD 3---3 song cycles accompanied by Vladimir Ashkenazy, piano---Four Verses of Captain Lebyadkin, Op. 146 (11:00), Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, baritone |7 Romances on Poems of Alexander Blok, Op. 127 (23:43), Elisabeth Soederstrom, soprano, Christopher Rowland, violin, Ioan Davies, cello |Suite on Verses of Michelangelo Buonarroti, Op. 145a (41:38 ), John Shirley-Quirk, baritone.
Up for next week---the final two CDs of the above Shostakovich set: Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District with Myung-Whun Chung and the Bastille Opera, the Zinman set of the Beethoven symphonies, and some Schumann CDs, mostly solo piano records, but also including the Cello Concerto with Isserlis, which I bought a while back because Corlyss D recommended it.
Don't drink and drive. You might spill it.--J. Eugene Baker, aka my late father
"We're not generating enough angry white guys to stay in business for the long term."--Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S. Carolina.
"Racism is America's Original Sin."--Francis Cardinal George, former Roman Catholic Archbishop of Chicago.
"We're not generating enough angry white guys to stay in business for the long term."--Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S. Carolina.
"Racism is America's Original Sin."--Francis Cardinal George, former Roman Catholic Archbishop of Chicago.
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James
Boulez's Eclat for 15 instruments, a sort of "concerto for conductor", where the musicians play semi-improvisational material prescribed within boxes in the score, and the conductor composes and controls the work via an elaborate and complex series of cues, directing the content of the music and deciding which musicians play when, as well as what they play....
anyway despite knowing that, overall it results in one of his most concise and best works IMO. A jewel.
I agree with arglebargle on Mozart's K563. It must be one of the most underrated masterpieces of all time. This is probably due to the unusual combination of instruments. How many performances would it get? I have just listened to Brahms' opus 111 string quintet. His depiction of girls promenading in the Prater reflects the congeniality of Vienna. I am quite haunted by the second theme of the first movement. It is so ingratiating and gemutlich that it shows the side of Brahms more akin to Mozart and Schubert than Beethoven.
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