What Classical Music Are You Listening To?

[soulpope]

[A Lark Ascending]

Bought this along with the other two discs in the series as part of a recent repackaging (i.e. a cardboard sleeve put round the three!....cheaper though!). Absolutely spectacular recordings in terms of sound - in a previous age they'd be used to demonstrate hi-fi. Music I've heard before but listening over the last few days these pieces really grabbed me. Perfumed modernism - alongside the post-war music you'd expect to be reminded of, Ravel, Debussy, Stravinsky, Symanowski all come to mind. With a good push these could gain a foot in the concert hall (I'm sure they appear in London but I don't recall any regional appearances this way) - they might not have the big tunes of the warhorses that return again and again but the orchestral colours and timbres are really arresting.

Looking at Seattle Symphony's other discs they seem to be pretty adventurous with their releases. Hope they do more with the lesser known American repertoire of the last century - under Schwarz they were champions of some of those pieces. Their recent Mahler 10 (with a different conductor) has had some very good reviews in the British music press. If I needed another Mahler 10 I'd be tempted.

  

The first. 

[Balladeer]

Anna Lucia Richter (soprano) & Michael Gees (p) - Liederkreis: Schumann, Brahms, Britten (Challenge)

[soulpope]

Earlier today .... :

[A Lark Ascending]

No 6. One of the most peculiar symphonies by a 'mainstream' composer. Every movement seems in a state of disintegration with some very odd interjections. A bit like Shostakovich at his most sardonic though Shosty never sustained the instability throughout a whole symphony. One I've always struggled with but it's starting to intrigue me.

Disc 3 off first: Structures, Livre 1; Le Soleil des eaux; Le Marteau sans Maître

Disc 1 off second. 

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The following morning:

Edited September 26, 2016 by A Lark Ascending

[soulpope]

[soulpope]

[alankin]

Now playing:
Johannes Brahms
– Sonata for Violin and Piano No.2 in A major Op.100
– Sonata for Violin and Piano No.3 in D minor Op.108
Henryk Szeryng (violin), Arthur Rubinstein (piano) (RCA Victor Red Seal / Living Stereo – Sony Music)

 
 

Edited September 26, 2016 by alankin

[alankin]

Now playing CD 1 - The Early Recordings 1941:
Maurice Ravel – La Valse - poème chorégraphique pour orchestre
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov – Le Coq d'Or: Cortège de noces (The Golden Cockerel: Wedding Procession)
Vincent d'Indy – Symphonie pour orchestre at piano sur un chant montagnard Op.25 — Maxim Shapiro (piano)
Cesar Franck – Symphony in D minor
— San Francisco Symphony Orchestra – Pierre Monteux (RCA Victor Red Seal Records / Sony Classical)

 

Edited September 26, 2016 by alankin

[A Lark Ascending]

Re; Schuman - you can hear where Adams' 'A Short Ride in a Fast Machine' came from at the end of the 3rd. 

[soulpope]

[soulpope]

[A Lark Ascending]

Disc 2 of Rameau

[soulpope]

[alankin]

Now playing, CD 80 from:
Ludwig van Beethoven – Sonata for Violin and Piano No.8 in G major Op.30/3
Johannes Brahms – Sonata for Violin and Piano No.1 in G major Op.78
— Henryk Szeryng (violin), Arthur Rubinstein (piano) (RCA Victor Red Seal / Living Stereo – Sony Music)
   

[A Lark Ascending]

A wander in the woods today:

[alankin]

Now playing:
Robert Schumann – Sonata for Piano No.2 in G minor Op.22
Franz Schubert – Sonata for Piano in A major D.959
— Murray Perahia (CBS Records Masterworks – Sony Classics)

     

[soulpope]

5 hours ago, alankin said:

Now playing, CD 80 from:
Ludwig van Beethoven – Sonata for Violin and Piano No.8 in G major Op.30/3
Johannes Brahms – Sonata for Violin and Piano No.1 in G major Op.78
— Henryk Szeryng (violin), Arthur Rubinstein (piano) (RCA Victor Red Seal / Living Stereo – Sony Music)
   

Beautiful ....

[A Lark Ascending]

Violin concerto. And t'flute. 

Edited September 28, 2016 by A Lark Ascending

[soulpope]

Sublime ....

[soulpope]

The Hyperion Schubert Lied Project unearthed a couples of wonderous performances and this is for sure one of them .... :

 

[alankin]

Ludwig van Beethoven 
– Sonata for Piano No.17 in D minor Op.31/2 "Tempest"
– Sonata for Piano No.18 in E-flat major Op.31/3
– Sonata for Piano No.26 in E flat major Op.81a "Les Adieux"
Murray Perahia  (CBS Records Masterworks – Sony Classics)

 

[alankin]

Now playing - CD 33 from:
Ludwig van Beethoven – Concerto for Piano No.5 in E flat major Op.73 "Emperor"
— Murray Perahia (piano) – Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra – Bernard Haitink (CBS Records Masterworks – Sony Classics)

[A Lark Ascending]

Off Spotify. Only previously heard Sessions 4 and 5 (Berg came to mind there) and by reputation as an educator. Found this disc really engaging - the 1st is very much in thrall to neo-classical Stravinsky; 2 + 3 reminded me of those central European composers of the 20s/30s like Schulhoff. Recordings are old (sorry...'classic') - the first particularly ropy. Music deserving of modern recording. Come on Seattle - no-one needs 'your' Beethoven.

 

Such touch, such tone on the sirens on the latter. 

No 1. First time I've really got into this despite having listened a dozen or more times over the years. Used the first chapter of Robert Simpson's book on the composer as a guide. A lot there that was too technical for me - he's mainly interested in tracing the way the harmony progresses through the music. But there was just enough for me to hang on to - helped to indicate where sections were changing and I even followed some of the technicalities of how Nielsen manipulated the keys...could have done with a few more references to the instruments at the transitional key points. I can hear harmonic changes but only have a very woolly idea of how they relate (X being the subdominant of Y etc) and certainly can't label them or hear his labels. 

Disc 1: BB 5, 4 (piano version), 6 and 1

Edited September 28, 2016 by A Lark Ascending

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