What Classical Music Are You Listening To?

[Larry Kart]

And now for something completely different -- Kenneth Gilbert's recording of the earlier, autograph copy of The Art of the Fugue (see explanation below), which is many respects different from the  commonly performed manuscript version we all know, which Bach added to and modified after he wrote the autograph copy and that probably was tweaked some after his death by his son C.P.E. Bach, who oversaw the publication of the manuscript version. In any case, there are some fugues here that are hair-raisingly far out, harmonically and otherwise. At times you want to say, "Herr Bach, this is getting too damn weird; you're never going to make  it back home from there," and sometimes he pretty much doesn't. But what a trip; in particualr,  Fugue 11 in the autograph version is almost psychedelic.

I have another recording of the autograph TAF by Robert Hill but haven't yet compared it with Gilbert's, which I picked up today. But I don't recall that when listening to Hill's recording that I felt that the music was being hung from sky hooks at times, as I did with Gilbert. I'll be curious to compare. Perhaps Hill's performance normalized some things, while Gilbert just let it all hang out.

The Art of Fugue has been the subject of controversy for years: Was it actually Bach's final composition? Was it intended for performance? In what order are the pieces to be played? For what instrument or instruments was the cycle composed? Fortunately, the lack of definitive answers to many of these questions, especially the one about instrumentation, has resulted in many diffeent wonderful versions being recorded over the years. As to the question of when it was written, Christoph Wolf argues persuasively in the notes to Gilbert's delightful album, that Bach began writing the Art of Fugue in the early 1740s (and perhaps even earlier) and edited and augmented it toward the end of his life. Wolf's conclusions are based on comparisons of the autograph and manuscript copies that survive. Kenneth Gilbert's recording is a special one because it is derived solely from the earlier autograph score. Gilbert's playing is, as always, full and rich, aided by a well-recorded harpsichord built in 1671 in Antwerp and enlarged in Paris in 1758 and 1759. 
 

Here it is. Fugue ll begins at the 36.25 mark.
 

 

[soulpope]

Mahler 6 Heinz Rögner RSOB (Eterna)      1983 ....

[soulpope]

[soulpope]

Nino Rota "Chamber Music" Kremerata Baltica (BIS)     1997 

[soulpope]

[Olie Brice]

On 15/08/2018 at 8:52 AM, soulpope said:

I love the Smetana, sometimes my favourite late Beethoven

[soulpope]

35 minutes ago, Olie Brice said:

I love the Smetana, sometimes my favourite late Beethoven

Agree, the Smetana Q was masterful .... beneath Beethoven (both "cycles") and Janacek also some excellent Dvorak, Martinu and Mozart .... we are lucky they recorded recurringly .... still wonder whether Czech Rado will open their archives as plenty of superb "live" Smetana Q recordings are said being in there ....

[Peter Friedman]

Brahms - Piano Quartet No.2 - Derek Han, Isabelle Faust, Bruno, Giuranna, Alain Meunier

[soulpope]

Dvorak Op 74/105 + Janacek 1 Smetana Quartet (BBC-Legends)       2006

[soulpope]

Dvorak Symphony 9 Kondrashin VPO (Decca)        1983

[mikeweil]

 

[Olie Brice]

Any fans of the Zehetmair Quarett here? Recent discovery for me, they're amazing,  Schuman isn't someone I listen to a lot but these performances are sublime...

Been listening to the first disc of their Beethoven / Bruckner / Hartmann / Holliger CD too.  Not completely sure what to make of their Beethoven but quite fascinated by it! Very intense and dramatic.  And the Bruckner is gorgeous.  Will get to the Hatmann and Holliger tomorrow.

[erwbol]

46 minutes ago, Olie Brice said:

Any fans of the Zehetmair Quarett here? Recent discovery for me, they're amazing,  Schuman isn't someone I listen to a lot but these performances are sublime...

Been listening to the first disc of their Beethoven / Bruckner / Hartmann / Holliger CD too.  Not completely sure what to make of their Beethoven but quite fascinated by it! Very intense and dramatic.  And the Bruckner is gorgeous.  Will get to the Hatmann and Holliger tomorrow.

I bought the Schumann disc when it won a Gramophone award, but it's very good. I have never bothered to try other Zehetmair recordings until now.

[Alexander Hawkins]

1 hour ago, Olie Brice said:

Any fans of the Zehetmair Quarett here? Recent discovery for me, they're amazing,  Schuman isn't someone I listen to a lot but these performances are sublime...

Been listening to the first disc of their Beethoven / Bruckner / Hartmann / Holliger CD too.  Not completely sure what to make of their Beethoven but quite fascinated by it! Very intense and dramatic.  And the Bruckner is gorgeous.  Will get to the Hatmann and Holliger tomorrow.

Caught them playing Schumann on Radio 3 a few months back...enjoyed it, although haven't checked out the CD!

[soulpope]

[Peter Friedman]

Brahms - Symphony No.2 - Leonard Bernstein - New York Philharmonic - Sony

[jeffcrom]

Beethoven Symphony #5 - David Zinman/Tonhalle Orchestra (Arte Nova)

[Peter Friedman]

Mendelssohn - String Quintet No.1 + Fine Arts Quartet plus Danili Rossi - Naxos

[jeffcrom]

Shostakovich - Cello Sonata, Op. 40 (Gregor Piatigorsky/ Valentin Pavlovsky), on convenient Columbia 78 RPM records from 1940.

[soulpope]

[soulpope]

[Peter Friedman]

Grieg - Piano Concert - Philippe Entremont - Philadelphia Orchestra - Eugene Ormandy - Sony

[Chuck Nessa]

 

A neglected gem.

[soulpope]

[soulpope]