Classical Corner Classical Music Corner

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by George P, May 29, 2015.

  1. Jazzicalit

    Jazzicalit In the Tradition

    Location:
    Italy
    My favorite voices are basses, baritones and contraltos, and I have become a huge fan of the french singer Delphine Galou, who got married last summer with Ottavio Dantone (director of the Accademia Bizantina).

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    Last May 31 Naive Classics put out two new cds by Delphine singing Vivaldi's arias and sacred cantatas:

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    They surely will be among my next purchases :)
     
  2. Jazzicalit

    Jazzicalit In the Tradition

    Location:
    Italy
    I often come back to Vivaldi's music. This morning I chose two BIS cds from my collection:

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    BIS has always been one of my favorite labels, for the quality of artists and recordings in their catalogue. Both cds are excellent ;)
     
  3. harvard75

    harvard75 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Philadelphia, PA
    If you haven't done so already, you will want to seek out her previous CD, "Agitata" on the Alpha label, also recorded with her husband and his band. The second cut, from La Betulia Liberata, is breathtaking. It made me a big fan of hers, and like you I will be buying these two new Vivaldi recordings. Her range, and her command of expression across that range, is both impressive and beautiful.
     
  4. Jazzicalit

    Jazzicalit In the Tradition

    Location:
    Italy
    Agitata is a masterpiece! ;)
     
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  5. George P

    George P Notable Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    NYC
    [​IMG] [​IMG]

    Any fans of this cellist? Man, his playing is beautifully expressive. This box set is OOP and the sound isn't state of the art, but the playing is so good that people should grab this set if you see it for a decent price.
     
    royzak2000 and cdgenarian like this.
  6. Bubbamike

    Bubbamike Forum Resident

    Listening to The Seattle Symphony under Ludovic Morlot playing John Luther Adams' Becoming Ocean and Becoming Desert on Qobuz. Wonderful compositions, excellently recorded, beautifully done. Minimalism that is enjoyable
     
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  7. drh

    drh Talking Machine

    You can count me as one--ever since I was in college, when I bought a Columbia (ex-Melodyia) issue of Shafran and Anton Ginzburg in my first set of the Beethoven cello sonatas. (I was exceeding wet behind the ears--my reaction when I spotted it in the record store was, "Wow! Beethoven wrote music for cello?") It's remained near to my heart ever since. I've read elsewhere Shafran played a Cremonese instrument that he won in an all-Soviet-Union competition as a young artist and that remained his instrument for the rest of his days.

    That said, beyond that Beethoven set, all I have of Shafran is a single 78.
     
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  8. Daedalus

    Daedalus I haven't heard it all.....

    One of the all time best. I have this box set which has become hard to find and expensive. The box set, Legendary Soviet Recordings has several Shafran discs which were released by Yedang.
     
    George P likes this.
  9. J.A.W.

    J.A.W. Music Addict

    ClassicsToday review:

    https://www.classicstoday.com/review/review-13559/?search=1

    DANIEL SHAFRAN EDITION
    Review by: Dan Davis


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    Artistic Quality: 8
    Sound Quality: 5


    Cellist Daniil Shafran (Brilliant transliterates his first name to Daniel) has become something of a cult figure, but his Russian recordings have been available only sporadically. So Brilliant’s 7-disc set of concertos and shorter solo works (mostly transcriptions) made between 1946 and 1984 is especially welcome, particularly at a price comparable to a pair of midrange reissues. The set leads with Bach’s Solo Cello Suites 2 through 5, played with bracing incisiveness and elegance within slightly Romanticized fast-slow contrasts, but compromised somewhat by close miking that gives his otherwise beautiful timbre a hint of nasality. That’s especially unfortunate as this effect recurs in some other works. Such sonic failings, typical of Soviet engineering of the 1940s and ’50s, should not be exaggerated though, since much in this set is eminently listenable, and only in a few pieces does distortion interfere with enjoyment.

    For me, the highlight of the set is the last piece on Disc 7, Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme, specifically the penultimate Variation, a Mozartian Andante sung by Shafran’s cello as if by a great lyric soprano and embodying the strengths of his artistry: extraordinary legato playing, tenderly placed rubatos that make the melody breathe, an emotional directness that springs from the heart of the player to the heart of the listener, a free, open top register, brilliant technique, pianissimos to die for, and passionate involvement. Fortunately, this great example of his art is captured in good sound, so Brilliant has to be wrong when it dates this live performance with Kondrashin as from 1949.

    There’s much else to savor here too: a lyric reading of Prokofiev’s Symphony-Concerto; Shostakovich’s Second Concerto and Second Sonata, the latter with the composer at the piano; a ripe Haydn Concerto anachronistically but beautifully played; a sweeping Rachmaninov Sonata. There’s a host of shorter transcriptions, including Falla’s Suite populare Espagnole with equisitely-graded vibrato and dynamics, paired with Shchedrin’s In the Style of Albeniz, a deconstruction of Spanish gestures. Notable also is Shafran’s own arrangement of Schnittke’s Suite in the Olden Style, played with rhythmic liveliness and a Menuet movement that nails its satiric elements while respecting the work’s nostalgia for a bygone age.

    Not everything in this set is perfect, but it’s all interesting–a feast of artistry by a great cellist. Super-budget though it is, this slim box in Brilliant’s admirable Historical Russian Archives series also includes a lengthy informative booklet. Strongly recommended.
     
    Daedalus likes this.
  10. Daedalus

    Daedalus I haven't heard it all.....

    Thanks for posting that review.
     
  11. mBen989

    mBen989 Senior Member

    Location:
    Scranton, PA
    Currently listening to this.

    STRAVINSKY: Le Sacre du Printemps - Czech Philharmonic conducted by Karel Ancerl

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    Something I found once in a thrift shop.
     
    royzak2000 and Wes H like this.
  12. Åke Bergvall

    Åke Bergvall Forum Resident

    Location:
    Mariestad, Sweden
    For those with the Legendary Soviet Recordings box (Yedang), about 2/3 of Shafran'a recordings from the Brilliant Edition can be found in it.
     
    George P likes this.
  13. George P

    George P Notable Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    NYC
    The tiny new archive-mining label Rhine Classics is based in Taiwan. Rhine Classics has unearthed and remastered previously unissued live tapes, often from artists who left virtually no recorded legacy. (To quote their site: " mostly never before released material | 24bit/96kHz | NO denoise | state of the art remastering ") International shipping is included in the price listed, but these sets are unavailable in conventional web stores and until this week didn't have any sound clips available online. Here's the covers of the two Fiorentino sets:

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    The sources used are Fiorentino's own master tapes. Here are clips for the Taiwan recital and for the Rach solo cycle, which was performed and recorded live as a cycle over a series of concerts in September 1987.
     
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  14. drh

    drh Talking Machine

    Hi, George, thanks for the heads up! Sounds like another label in the mold of Melo Classics, which alas hasn't issued anything new in a while now. I'll have to check these Rhine issues out.
     
    George P likes this.
  15. drh

    drh Talking Machine

    ...and speaking of Melo Classics, that admirable reissue outfit has a Daniel Shafran recital recording in its catalogue, from 1959:

    DANIIL SHAFRAN plays Brahms, Debussy, Schubert, Shostakovich and Granados
    Recital in Karlsruhe 1959

    1-3. Schubert: Arpeggione Sonata in A minor, D. 821 18:05
    I. Allegro moderato 07:19
    II. Adagio 04:06
    III. Allegretto 06:38
    4-7. Brahms: Cello Sonata No. 2 in F major, Op. 99 25:22
    I. Allegro vivace 08:22
    II. Adagio affettuoso 06:28
    III. Allegro passionato 06:22
    IV. Allegro molto 04:09
    8-10. Debussy: Cello Sonata in D minor, L. 135 09:43
    I. Prologue: Lent, sostenuto e molto risoluto 03:57
    II. Sérénade: Modérément animé 02:39
    III. Final: Animé, léger et nerveux 03:06
    11-14. Shostakovich: Cello Sonata in D minor, Op. 40 22:50
    I. Allegro non troppo – Largo 08:19
    II. Allegro 03:05
    III. Largo 07:41
    IV. Allegro 03:44
    15. Granados: Danza Española No.5 in E Minor, Op. 37 03:48
    Recorded · 06 November 1959 · Karlsruhe · Sendesaal · Süddeutscher Rundfunk · Live Recording
    Daniil Shafran · cello
    Walter Bohle · piano
     
  16. George P

    George P Notable Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    NYC
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    Was inspired to listen to the Appassionata sonata after it being featured in Fargo, Season three and decided to put this recording on. Not the most volatile of Appassionatas, but still quite enjoyable. Great sound, too.
     
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  17. Tom H

    Tom H Forum Resident

    Location:
    Kapolei, Hawaii
    Anyone recognize this set? Sony/CBS Japan, 6-CDs, 00DC 273~8. I'd be interested to hear opinions.

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  18. J.A.W.

    J.A.W. Music Addict

    That CBS/Sony set is from the 1980s. I've never heard it, so I can't comment.

    Tracklisting: BEETHOVEN 5
     
  19. George P

    George P Notable Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    NYC
    Good to know!

    One day I will place an order with them.
     
  20. drh

    drh Talking Machine

    Forum member @Wes H is your man for this question. He knows more about Glenn Gould and his recordings than anyone I've ever met and always shares his knowledge generously. The only thing I can say personally is that I think Gould's Beethoven is somewhat controversial--not as controversial as his Mozart, perhaps, but at least unconventional.
     
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  21. Wes H

    Wes H Forum Resident

    Location:
    Virginia
    Since David put me on the spot, I suppose I’d better weigh in… ;)

    There are many Japanese-issued Gould discs and I’m not familiar with the specifics of them—including this one—so I can only give you general comments about Gould’s Beethoven recordings which you can apply to your set (or not) as you see fit.

    Performance-wise, Gould’s Beethoven is not for everybody, as David noted. I think they’re worthwhile as “alternate” interpretations, but certainly not recommended as a first, or only, recording of Beethoven sonatas. As Gould himself commented: "If you want Beethoven Sonatas as they should be played, buy Schnabel. I just like to experiment."

    Sound quality will depend on many factors such as when the original recording was made (Sonatas 30-32 date back to 1956 and are mono) and when they were (re)mastered for your CD. Is the mastering or release date given for the set? Hans has noted that the set is “from the 1980s.” If that is the release date, then such early digital audio mastering is not likely the best. The photo of Gould on the cover of your set was taken by Don Hunstein in June 1980 for a 2-LP album (CBS released October 1980) of Beethoven’s Sonatas Op.2 and Op.28, which Gould recorded in the mid-to-late ‘70s.

    Historically, CBS issued two notably improved remasterings of the entire Glenn Gould catalog. The first was in recognition of the 10th anniversary of Gould’s death in 1992, with their Super Bit Mastering series issued (in the US, at least) as the “Glenn Gould Edition,” identifiable with white cover CDs. The second—and best—remastering was completed in 2015, utilizing the original analogue tapes and converted to DSD.

    Hope this helps.
     
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  22. Tom H

    Tom H Forum Resident

    Location:
    Kapolei, Hawaii
    Thanks Wes! I am indeed a newbie to Beethoven's Sonatas, although I do have the 9-CD set of Kempff's recordings from the mid-60's issued on DG.

    I purchased the 6-CD Gould set at a sidewalk sale for $2.00 out of curiosity. It appears (from the copyright notice) that it was issued in 1980. According to the booklet, the recordings were made at various dates between 1964 and 1979.
     
  23. Wes H

    Wes H Forum Resident

    Location:
    Virginia
    That set may not be the last word for these works, but for $2 you did great! Enjoy the exploration.

    BTW, my quote (from Gould) about Schnabel is not meant to be my endorsement of Schnabel. Some like him, but with dozens of Beethoven sonata recordings out there, he's not near the top of my list. I like Kempff--I have his sets from the '50s and '60s. Other complete sets I like are by Friedrich Gulda and Claudio Arrau.

    As always, YMMV.
     
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  24. J.A.W.

    J.A.W. Music Addict

    Judging by the Japanese catalogue number, the set is probably from the mid-1980s, which could mean that it pre-emphasis was applied - as was the case with many CBS/Sony CDs at the time. I have and had a few of those discs (not the Gould, though) and the masterings are not bad, at least better (in my opinion, of course) than the Miles Davis CDs CBS/Sony put out in the 1980s that several people on this forum seem to like so much.
     
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  25. crispi

    crispi Vinyl Archaeologist

    Location:
    Berlin
    To weigh in and add more to what others have already said, yes, these do look like 80s CDs, indeed. However, in contrast with what Columbia was doing stateside, Sony Japan had pretty good mastering at that time. So these might not be half-bad, perhaps excellent. (Although the best mastering might indeed still be the 2015 one, as mentioned.)
     
    Last edited: Jun 30, 2019
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