As I already have the analogue Complete Beethoven Piano Sonatas in another box, I will probably skip this set when I get started with the Arrau's box ...
I have quite a few Nashville Symphony albums on Naxos, all very enjoyable. I especially like the Michael Daugherty albums
Now listening to Henryk Szeryng and Ingrid Haebler on free Spotify, playing some of Beethoven's Sonatas for Piano and Violin, reissued on this 2CD-set:
Ingrid Haebler's piano is very forward in the mix, Henryk Szeryng's violin sounds a bit feeble behind her. OK, but not my favourite interpretations.
Personal non-musical notes: I had a root canal today, done in record time. Also, it hit 97 this afternoon. Now back to our regularly scheduled programming.
How about the following twofers? I have them ... At least these CD's are not available in that Menuhin Century box originally put out by EMI ...
So summer was back for you? BTW, IIRC I think Memphis is the transportation hub, not Nashville as someone claimed in an earlier post.
Issued 7/71. Recorded 3/16/70, Royce Hall, UCLA. Producer: Christopher Raeburn. Engineers: James Lock & Colin Moorfoot. Mastering: Tony Hawkins.
Because FedEx is headquartered in Memphis. Nashville is also a hub because of its central location & the three interstates (24, 40 & 65) that cross here. By the way, Fred Smith, founder of FedEx, was a boyhood friend of John Fry, who started Ardent Studios, where many rock recordings have been made.
Nashville, Knoxville, Chattanooga, Memphis, etc. I actually know the names of more cities in TN than I do many other states. Yet I have never visited TN ...
My first listen to this pianist, and I am impressed. Producer: Hans Richard Stracke. Issued 1972. Sold at Nichloson's, a long-time hi-fi shop in this city.
Speaking of the Nutcracker...I recently came across this: I like it. It reminds me of the series of piano transcriptions of Brahms pieces on Naxos. The piano transcriptions provide deeper insight into the respective pieces.
I'm not a Yehudi Menuhin fan, I don't like his tone. I first heard him in the 1950s; my parents had a few of his records, both on 78 and 10"/25cm LP. I prefer Wilhelm Kempff with Wolfgang Schneiderhan in these works, also on DG.
While I wouldn't dismiss any version of the Nutcracker, I usually don't get a lot of satisfaction from piano transcriptions of orchestral works. I usually prefer the opposite. YMMV.
I saw these Chesky CD's back in the day but did not bother to get them as I knew nothing about the conductor and ended up only buying the two I posted above ...
Transcriptions have gone out of control and they are usually no good IMHO. Over the years, I have heard a number of transcription of some popular Beatles songs to orchestra but they are all garbage IMO. I prefer the ORIGINAL ...
