Henze has turned out to be an intriguing composer for me. As a result, I ended up buying 11 more recordings of his tonight --- 10 of the them are on the Wergo label and then one on Brilliant Classics which is all of his solo guitar music. I already own the DG set, but I also have some other recordings scattered throughout my collection of his music, but I definitely will be spending more time with his music. There are so many stylistic strands in his music that you really don’t know what you’re going to get from one work to another, but there is a unique voice behind the music. A lot of it stems from the way he simply writes for voices and instruments. His approach to harmony is also pretty singular I think as it’s always evolving and changing depending on the music. Along with Stravinsky and a few others, he’s one of the great chameleons of the 20th Century.
The more I listen to this, the more I like it from a performance and sonic point of view. The unusual editions to my understanding are the Hynais Nos. 1 and 2, and the Schalk 3 and 5. That edition of the fifth is a travesty, no two ways about it, as it shortens the piece by fifteen minutes or so. Whether the use of unusual editions is a plus or a minus, is up to the listener... The collector might find these the very best recordings of said editions. I have a backlog of records I have picked up on my travels. I did go to Korea but I think I may have got this from the Shibuya Tower Records in Tokyo, always an eye out for anything a bit unusual. I am very glad to have put in the time to finally properly listen to it.
Listening to "Le Champion des Dames" performed by Continens Paradisi on Ricercar. Music of Binchois and Dufay. Spoken Poetry of Martin Le Franc.
Vaughan Williams: Sinfonia Antartica & Symphony No.8 L.P.O cond Sir Adrian Boult From CD5 of the box set issued 2011 . Original Recorded 1970/1969 re-mastered 1986/7
Currently listening to this set in the order of composition, which involves dotting around between the discs a bit. Joseph Haydn - String Quartets Opus 64 - Quatuor Festetics Still trying to decide if I should be holding out for bargains on these, or just hoovering the discs up before they disappear completely. Still narked the box set is out of print!
Please Mrs. Postwoman! Beethoven: String Trios Op. 9 Nos. 1-3 Frank Peter Zimmermann, Antoine Tamestit and Christian Poltéra 2011 BIS 1857 sacd stereo/multichannel (How I'd love to say Pentaphonic!) The one before to their Beethoven String Trios Op.3, this is a great account that just arrived in todays mail.
Listening to "Paris, mon amour" performed by Sonya Yoncheva with Orquestre de la Communitat Valencia led by Frederic Chaslin on Sony.
Listened to a nice selection of Sony's Bernstein Remastered box tonight. Tchaikovsky: Romeo and Juliet, TH 42, ČW 39 Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake Ballet Suite, Op. 20 Dukas: The Sorcerer's Apprentice Saint-Saëns: Danse macabre, Op. 40 Leonard Bernstein New York Philharmonic - Berlioz: Harold in Italy, Op. 16 Leonard Bernstein New York Philharmonic William Lincer (violin)
Now playing the following CD, which just arrived yesterday for a first listen. This recording has been my favorite among the non-HIP performance I have owned the LP version since the mid 70's and it is still in excellent condition ...
Mopping up the last bits of this set: JS Bach - Clavier-Ubung 2: French Overture BWV831 & Italian Concerto BWV971 - Trevor Pinnock, Harpsichord The Italian Concerto is a wonderful little piece!
String Quartet number two, A Paganini and the Hymns for Chamber Ensembles. The Beethoven Quartet with Oleg Kagan, and a load of Russian musicians from various orchestras who come together to play contemporary music.
Listening now Dvorak - Symphony No. 9 Fritz Reiner - Chicago Symphony Orchestra One of the LP I mentioned some days ago, newly bought. I waited to have my mono switch completed before listening to this one. Works like a charm and was funny to build. Again, it doesn't need presentation.
On the turntable: Hans Werner Henze - Berliner Philharmoniker – 5 Symphonies Deutsche Grammophon – 410 937-1
NP: Strauss Der Rosenkavalier, Op. 59 Christa Ludwig, Lucia Popp, et. al. Wiener Philharmoniker, Chor der Wiener Staatsoper Bernstein
On the turntable: Harris, Ives, The Pacific Symphony Orchestra, Keith Clark – Symphony No.6 Gettysburg / Overture From The Third Orchestral Set Andante – AD 72402
