Listenin' to Classical Music and Conversation

A heads-up for UK punters, the Barbican has released its new classical season details - Classical music | Barbican

Here are a few mouth-watering highlights for me, that I hope to book for -

Sun 21 Oct 7pm - Scenes and Dances from The Three-Cornered Hat Part I, Three Dances from The Three-Cornered Hat, Part II, Lalo Symphonie espagnole, Stravinsky The Firebird Suite
London Symphony Orchestra - Jaime Martín conductor, Christian Tetzlaff violin

Tue 4 Dec 7.30pm (Milton Court) Boccherini Cello Sonata No 6 in A major, Poulenc Cello Sonata, Debussy Cello Sonata, Brahms Cello Sonata No 2 in F major
Sheku Kanneh-Mason cello, Isata Kanneh-Mason piano

Fri 14 Dec 7.30pm - JS Bach Orchestral Suite No 2 in B minor BWV 1067, Violin Concerto No 2 E major BWV 1042, Violin Partita No 1 B minor BWV 1002, Concerto for two violins in D minor BWV 1043 Academy of Ancient Music - Richard Egarr director & harpsichord, Nigel Kennedy violin, Thomas Gould violin

Sun 24 Feb 2019 7.30pm (Milton Court) Vivaldi Flautino Concerto in C major, RV443 (arr in G major for Recorder) , Bach Harpsichord Concerto No 3 in D major BWV1054, Sammartini Recorder Concerto in F major, Bach ‘Erbame Dich’ from St Matthew Passion Bach, Oboe Concerto in D minor BWV1059r (arr for Recorder,) Bach Concerto for Harpsichord No 7 in G minor BWV1058, Vivaldi Flute Concerto in G minor ‘La Notte’, Op 10 No 2 RV439 - Academy of Ancient Music Richard Egarr director & harpsichord, Lucie Horsch recorder

Thu 14 & 21 Mar 2019 7.30pm - Haitink at 90 - Dvorák Violin Concerto, Mahler Symphony No 4
London Symphony Orchestra Bernard Haitink conductor, Isabelle Faust violin, Anna Lucia Richter soprano

 

First listen to CD 1 from the "Kyung Wha Chung - Complete Decca Recordings" box on Decca.

"Tchaikovsky/Sibelius - Violin Concertos" with the London Symphony Orchestra led by Andre Previn.

Released 48 years ago.

 

One track per pianist?

 

A "like" for the Sibelius, not for the Tchaikovsky - I'm not a fan.

 

Do let us know how you get on with these and the others in the set ...

 

William Lawes was a loyalist to King Charles I for sure and I have read about his death in battle. I actually have over a dozen of recordings by him and as such I am maxed out ...

Here are some of my other recordings of Lawes works ...

 

Superb. I'm going to hunt down the Lawes vinyl on L'Oiseau-Lyre, all of which look rather lovely ...

 

Will do. Still listening to the Tchaikovsky - sounds great.

 

I am not sure what kind of Lawes recordings are available on L'Oiseau-Lyre but they probably were not recorded by Hogwood and the AAM ...

But here is the last Lawes' recording I bought

 

Her performance or the Tchaikovsky violin concerto in general?

 

Now on the turntable: Poulenc: Concerto for Organ, Strings & Timpani.
All of the Angel 45-rpm series was not particularly noteworthy, but this one sounds exceptional. Mastered in SQ/Quadraphonic and released in 1979 (re-release of 1978 EMI 33-rpm edition).

 

From the Martha Argerich Warner Recordings box set:

I had a handful of DG recordings of her before getting this box set last week and so far have enjoyed everything in it. Passionate playing in good sound

 

Of the performance or the piece?

 

Mozart "Haffner Serenade" and "Serenata Notturna"
Sir Charles Mackerras always strikes me as a very reliable Mozart interpreter and doesn't disappoint here. Performances are spirited and dynamic, and Telarc's recording is excellent.
Recorded in The Hall of Artists, Prague on July 1-7, 1984. CD released in 1988.



Of technical interest: Three Sennheiser MKH-20 microphones were employed, feeding a Sony PCM 1630 digital recording processor. Console was a custom-built Neotek. Monitor speakers were B&W 801F.
Telarc proudly states: "During the recording of the digital masters and the subsequent transfer to disc, the entire audio chain was transformerless. The signal was not passed through any processing device (i.e., compression, limiting, or equalization) at any step during production."

 

Now Playing...
Sir Georg Solti conducting the Chicago Symphony Orchestra playing Wagner overtures and preludes. Disc #28 from the Solti CSO box.

 

While I do not have this specific Telarc recording, I would have bought it because of Mackerras and the Prague Chamber Orchestra. I do have the following Mackerras Mozart box ...

 

(CD Hyperion CDA-66951/3) 1995 .... recorded February/March/June 1994 .... rewarding Liszt Schubert transcriptions meticulously performed by Leslie Howard .... worth the ticked of entry alone for "Mélodies Hongroises D'après Franz Schubert S.425" ....

 

I have that as well. A very fine set.

 

Bach Brandenburg Concerto No.2 performed by The Academy for Old Music, Berlin (if I translated that right) from this set:



Actually, I'm hearing this for the first time as it is being played on FM radio (Washington station). Impressive! I may have to buy the CD... (though I hardly need yet another set of the Brandenburgs).

 

I have Mackerras' more recent Mozart Symphonies and the sound is much better since the twofers are SACD's. I am done with collecting Mozart Symphonies since I also have the Complete Mozart Symphonies by Trevor Pinnock and Christopher Hogwood ...

 

Notes for reference

 

The Tchaikovsky. The only Tchaikovsky compositions I more or less like are Symphonies 4-6.

 

Symphonies 29 thru 36 bought. Yoo owes me @coopmv

 

Spotify Premium. Listening to 20, 26 and 27.

Britten/English Chamber Orchestra-20 and 27
Kertesz/LSO- 26

 

I am with you there. I do not need another version of the Brandenburg Concertos. The next to the last version I bought by the Freiburger Baroque was not all that good in my book as the tempos were too fast, though it is a DVD and the visual effects are actually quite nice ...