Listening to a new release of Reich's Music for 18 Musicians by Ensemble Signal on Harmonia Mundi. Great stuff
Been going through my Deutsch Grammophon Complete Brahms'Boxed set of 46 CDs this weekend . A bargain off amazon. Medical issues keeping me quiet and in full music mode all weekend, not a bad thing. Will be fine on Monday AM when tests are over. The price of being old. A lot of music to keep me in fine company.
Since I wasn't too familiar with the music, I played this one twice. I like the Martin better than the Bloch; the combination of harp, harpsichord & piano is refreshing. Producer: Christopher Bishop. Engineer: Christopher Parker. Issued 1979.
Brendel's playing could use a bit more sparkle. Recorded 9/26/70, Wembley Town Hall, London. Issued 1972. Got this for 25 cents.
Another 25-cent purchase. This record is in better shape than the Mozart LP & the playing is more to my liking. Recorded 12/3/73 & issued 1974.
Just got Tidal working on my Squeezeboxes. Purportedly, most of Tidal streams lossless. I'm not sure how to confirm this independently. I did a cursory examination of their classical library, and it looks to be on a par with Spotify. As usual, finding specific classical recordings is a PITA, but having a near infinite library of CD quality is mighty appealing.
Now playing LP1 from the following twofer from my Bach collection. Speaking of a person who does not know his vinyl collection, I did not even know this Swiss label twofer has been part of my classical music collection for some thirty years ...
Now playing CD59 - Works of Brahms and Schumann by Anner Bylsma and Lambert Orkis for a first listen ... which is essentially the following single
Trying out Tidal. Played some of Gardiner's cycle of Bach Cantatas this morning. This afternoon, Uchida performing Schubert D. 845 and 575. Sound seemed fine through my Sennheiser 650s. But I think I prefer Kempff's interpretations.
Now playing the most stylistically incorrect Vivaldi 4 Seasons, i.e. the most non-HIP performance from my LP collection. The recording is on an EMI Italian label but unfortunately I cannot locate the exact jacket image on the internet. The solo violinist was Georges Armand ...
I've been wallowing in an orgy of piano virtuosity this afternoon! Whew--Berman was on fire in those days (early 60s). Those of you who know his playing only through his DG releases need this LP set (the CD, which only contains the 12 Etudes, is unbearably glassy sounding) to hear some daringly demonic playing.
Now playing CD60, the last CD - Handel Water Music by Tafelmusik/Jeanne Lamon for a first listen ... which is essentially the following single
In another five years, streaming on demand will be mainstream, though people will continue to go for CD and download as well as LP. Classical FM stations as we know them may not survive ...
Spotify has 60,000,000 users; Pandora has 75,000,000. I don't know what iTunes Radio has. I would say streaming is already mainstream.
iTunes Radio is likely behind, which is something Apple is not used to over the past few years. There is no doubt it is being watched closely by the regulators ... So where does Sirius fit in, dying from a slow death?
I'm pretty certain the free (commercial-sponsored) version of iTunes radio is on every iPhone and iPad. Probably on the watch too. So, in theory, there are a lot more people who have the software. The number using that feature is another question. But before George chastises us, back to music. I may comment on availability of titles, sound quality and ease of use for classical recordings, as those strike me as relevant to this thread.