This afternoon on the turntable, Brahms 10 Intermezzi for Piano. Glenn Gould. Recorded in the fall of 1960 at Columbia's 30th Street Studio, NYC. Released April 17, 1961. Some of my favorite Brahms... I never tire of hearing these Intermezzi or Gould's impassioned performance.
Enjoying piano works by Gabriel Fauré on the turntable this afternoon. Jean-Philippe Collard performing: -Four Valses-Caprices -Ballade (in five movements), Op. 19 -Three Romances, Op.17 -Mazurka, Op.32 A wonderfully varied recital and beautifully played on this handsome recording by EMI/Pathé Marconi, 1985, in la Salle Wagram, Paris.
Anyone have any thoughts on AMSI (ambient sound imaging) on those Eloquence budget CD boxes? I've avoided them up to now, but there is a damn cheap Eloquence box of the Schiff Bach at a local record store. I also grabbed Kempff's Solo Repertoire box for quite a bargain even if it isn't truly complete
Sunday listening: Bartok: Piano concertos.Peter Donohoe and Simon Rattle / CBSO. Rattle and Donohoe do a great job keeping the melodic line of these pieces, making sure they are not simply technically daunting exercises in rhythm. Haydn: String Quartets op. 76 nos. 3, 4, and 5. Kodaly Quartet. I liked these performances, but I will probably still stick with the Quatuor Mosaiques as my go-to. Beethoven: the Symphonies. Charles Mackerras / Scottish CO. Mackerras' conducting is warm and does not push the expressive drama to its limits. But what he achieves is even better, with the personality of these symphonies shining through in a rare and brilliant way. Shostakovich: String quartets. Borodin Quartet. I already had the Shostakovich quartets by the Pacifica Quartet but I could not pass these up when I found them for cheap in a used shop. I am glad I did! Franz Schubert played by Andras Schiff. Just lovely in every way.
As I continue my journey through Mahler's Symphonies, I am now enjoying this CD. The other day I listened to this great recording:
I have heard the "Art" series of EMI Great Recordings of the Century often suffers from too much compression and NR. Is this particular Mahler recording free from such problems?
No compression or NR. It may have been equalized a bit to reduce the hiss on top, but it did not interfere with my enjoyment. As I am sure you know, EMI classical is certainly not known for its sound. But it has some great performances (Barbirolli, Richter, Gilels, Arrau, Cortot, etc.), so I put up with the less than stellar sound.
Not at all. First of all, the use of compression on this series is a myth. Secondly, NR is only used on “historical”, mono material from the 78-rpm era and some of the early tape recordings. In general, stereo recordings in this series sound excellent.
Hi guys, is there any George Szell box that contains a more recently remastered version of his Mahler 4 recording? I have two versions, one from the 80s and the 90s one mentioned by @George P , but I find them both a bit too dull-sounding, unlike the original vinyl.
They play this music with comfort and familiarity, which is not how a lot of ensembles approach it. Do you have any favorites for Bartok's quartets? I have and enjoy the Vegh and Keller Quartets. The Hagen Quartet got a lot of great reviews but I started listening to it recently and it wasn't to my taste.
My favorite for the Bartok Quartets is the Hungarian quartet on DG. I also have Vegh, Julliard (on Pearl) and Takacs.
Mine, too. There is a grittiness to the performances that I missed in newer interpretations, including the lauded Takács and Emerson quartets.
I had the first five of the quartets from this box on vinyl back in the day (middle seventies), and have appreciated them ever since. Even more special to me, however, is Borodin SQ's first take on quartets 4 and 8 recorded during Mercury Record's fabled 1962 visit to Moscow, using 35 MM Magnetic Film instead of a tape machine and thus ensuring the best possible sound. It was in preparation for this recording that the Borodins played quartet no. 8 for Shostakovich at his home, after which they left in silence when the composer responded by weeping. I have not seen this as a stand-alone CD, but it is included in the third Mercury Living Presence box.
Hi: You might want to give the HDTT (high definition tape transfer) version(s) a try -- transferred from reel to reel tapes. Mahler: Symphony No. 4 - George Szell Conducts the Cleveland Orchestra | High Definition Tape Transfers Michael
On the turntable: J.S. Bach played by Wilhelm Backhaus (piano). English Suite No.6 in D minor French Suite No.5 in G major Prelude & Fugue No.15 from the WTC, book I Prelude & Fugue No.39 from the WTC, book II Very familiar Bach (to me), played in a less-familiar, somewhat Romanticized fashion--which I enjoy on occasion because it can sound fresh, especially when played with such conviction as Herr Backhaus achieves in this 1956 performance. Beautifully recorded by Decca, with a very full-sounding piano which I presume to be a grand Bösendorfer (the preferred instrument of Backhaus). My LP is labeled as manufactured in England by Decca and issued in the US under the London STS (budget) label in 1969.
Interesting that his Bach is romanicized, as he was one of the earliest proponents for the new, modern (meaning non-romantic) of piano playing. His solo Brahms is very unromantic. Have you heard it? Me, I am still working through the Mahler symphonies. Tonight and old favorite: Edit: Woops, I mistakenly started the first disc at the beginning, forgetting that the Strauss work was programmed first. Will have to listen to this M6 another night.
I have not heard Backhaus play any solo Brahms -- at least, none that I can recall. In what ways would you characterize it as "very unromantic"? I can only think of three other Backhaus records that I have (besides the Bach). One is the Brahms Concerto No.2 with Karl Böhm on a 1967 London release. It is probably my least favorite version of the many recordings I have of this Brahms Concerto, mainly because his tempos are constantly shifting, his phrasing sometimes accents odd notes, and the last movement is often crawling instead of soaring. But then, Backhaus was 83 when this recording was made (according to the liner notes) and, unlike many other pianists, he actually heard Brahms conduct this concerto... though he modestly makes no claims to remembering any musical details. So who am I to say he's doing anything wrong?... or that it's "unromantic"? The Bach recording I played earlier is somewhat like this Brahms. His pacing is uneven--slowing at the darndest places to add personal emphasis, where I prefer drive--and he'll loudly underline some passages in ways that bury the melodic line or some inner voice that I'm trying to hear. He also leans on the sustain pedal more than most. I added up such liberties as "romantic," but perhaps that's the wrong term. Maybe "highly personal" would be a better description -- and I would apply that to the Brahms Concerto as well. I also have his recording of the Beethoven Piano Concerto No.2 with Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt and a LP of Haydn piano music. The Beethoven is similar to his Brahms; the recital of Haydn is engaging, but often heavy-handed (IMO) compared to McCabe, Kalish, Brendel, or Gould. YMMV.
I really like Backhaus’ 78-rpm era Brahms recordings. I have them in digital form, ripped from Pearl and Naxos CDs. Like you, I had only heard the Brahms Concerto on Decca, and wasn’t impressed. At all. His older recordings changed all that. Lively and crisp playing, lots of fun.
His solo Brahms comes across to me as being driven by intellect rather than emotion. There is no lingering, no focus on or attention to beauty. Very little rubato, if any. The overall effect is cold rather than warm. All of these things being characteristics of romantic style.