Reissue of recordings made 1/8/52, Columbia 30th Street Studio. The Weber Overtures were issued on a 10-inch LP in 1952, but I haven't been able to find the original issue of the Tchaikovsky or the date of this reissue. Although this is a U.S. LP, the label looks more like Canadian Columbia LPs I have seen.
On the turntable: In glorious imitation stereo. Zino Francescatti Violin - Eugene Ormandy Conducts The Philadelphia Orchestra / Dimitri Mitropoulos Conducts The New York Philharmonic / Paganini, Saint-Saëns – Paganini Concerto No. 1 In D Major For Violin And Orchestra, Op.6 Columbia Masterworks – MS 6268
Spinning in the CD player. Very interesting to hear two of the Brahms symphonies in arrangements for piano four hands (arrangements by Brahms). The things one stumbles upon in thrift stores. I didn't even know these existed, but apparently did this with all four of his symphonies. Brahms - Christian Köhn, Silke-Thora Matthies – Four Hand Piano Music Vol. 7 - Symphony No. 2 & 3 Naxos – 8.554822
I love this Naxos series of Brahm's transcriptions of his Orchestral and Chamber music for piano! I find that hearing these transcriptions has greatly aided my insight into Brahm's musical logic. I find this series indispensable.
An excellent recording. I think this LP might be the first Schnittke I heard. It was love at first...sound!
First listen to new arrival "Vox Clara" performed by Schola Cantorum Riga directed by Guntars Pranis featuring Ieva Nimane (recorders, bagpipes, kokle) on Skani. Late Medieval Chant from Riga, Hamburg, Lund, Limoges
Reissue of Columbia Masterworks ML-4731, from 1953. Recorded 4/20/53, 30th Street Studio, NYC. This edition uses the same cover as the original, a painting by Gray Foy, who did a number of other covers for Columbia. The fake stereo is unobtrusive. This music should be heard more often.
Harmony was a Columbia budget label. This seems to date to 1955 and was issued by Musical Masterpiece Society, Concert Hall & Guilde International du Disque. Not sure when the Harmony LP was issued.
Spinning in the CD player: More from Naxos and the thrift store. Mendelssohn - Aurora String Quartet – String Quartets Vol. 1 Naxos – 8.550861
Listening to "The Garden of Zephirus" performed by Gothic Voices directed by Christopher Page on Helios. Courtly Songs Of The Early Fifteenth Century
I wanted to let people know of a few more titles that are on the horizon. -Patricia Kopatchinskaja revealed on her Facebook page that she is about to record an album of Bartok, Brahms & Janacek and that it will be due for release at some point in December. -Johann Sebastian Bach-6 Suites a Violoncello Solo senza Basso-Guiliano Carmignola-2-CDs-Arcana-September 2nd. In reading the description for this title over at Presto, the notes say that this is the start of a new series from Carmignola for Arcana. -Schubert-Symphony Nos. 8 & 9-Jordi Savall/Le Concert Des Nations-2-SACD hybrids-AliaVox-September 30th.
Listening to "Ravel - Piano Trio in A minor & Sonata for Violin & Cello / Martinu - Piano Trio No. 1 & Duo for Violin & Cello" performed by The Bekova Sisters on Chandos.
More fantastic CPE Bach sonatas from the Hänssler Edition, discs 18 and 19. The preceding lot of Wq 62 sonatas on discs 16 and 17 were some of my favourites from the set, and the remaining ones on disc 18 did not disappoint. C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonata in E major, Wq 62:17 C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonata in G minor Wq, 62:18 C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonata in G major, Wq 62:19 C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonata in C major, Wq 62:20 C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonata in A minor, Wq 62:21 C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonata in B minor, Wq 62:22 C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonata in G minor, Wq 62:23 C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonata in F major, Wq 62:24 C.P.E. Bach: Allegro in F major, H 256 C.P.E. Bach: Menuett in F major, H 258 C.P.E. Bach: L'Ernestine, Wq 199:16 C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonata in C major, Wq 63:1 C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonata in D minor, Wq 63:2 C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonata in A major, Wq 63:3 C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonata in B minor, Wq 63:4 C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonata in E flat major, Wq 63:5 C.P.E. Bach: Keyboard Sonata in D minor, Wq 63:6 C.P.E. Bach: Sonatine G major, Wq 63:7 - Allegro C.P.E. Bach: Sonatine II in E major, Wq 63:8 - Largo C.P.E. Bach: Sonatine III in D major, Wq 63:9 - Allegretto C.P.E. Bach: Sonatine IV in B flat major, Wq 63:10 - Allegretto C.P.E. Bach: Sonatine V in F major, Wq 63:11 - Andante C.P.E. Bach: Sonatine VI in D minor, Wq 63:12 - Prestissimo C.P.E. Bach: Symphonie in F major, Wq 122:5 Ana-Marija Markovina (piano)
Back on the Bach Cantata Crusade. I was curious about the exclusion of BWV 15, but it seems to have been misattributed to Johann Sebastian, really being the work of his cousin Johann Ludwig. Bach: Cantata, BWV 13, "Meine Seufzer, Meine Tränen" Bach: Cantata, BWV 14, "Wär Gott Nicht Mit Uns Diese Zeit" Bach: Cantata, BWV 16, "Herr Gott, Dich Loben Wir" Paul Esswood (alto) Max van Egmond (bass) Walter Gampert (boy soprano) Peter Hinterreiter (boy soprano) Marius van Altena (tenor) Kurt Equiluz (tenor) Gustav Leonhardt Leonhardt Consort King's College Choir Cambridge Tölzer Knabenchor
Now listening: according to a certain critic whose name has graced these pages many times in a divisive way I should not be enjoying any performances which feature this pianist. But I am enjoying this very much. Recorded live in Leipzig 1994.
CD Liszt: 12 Etudes D'Exécution Transcendante Verdi: Aida: Danza Sacra E Duetto Finale - Concert Paraphrase, S436 Claudio Arrau, Piano
A wonderful CD of a recording issued originally in 1958. Part of Entremont box set of Piano Concertos on Sony. It is an Ormandy stereo recording with the Philadelphia Orchestra.
I am now listening to this CD of a 1955 recording of Stravinsky’s Persephone. This is my one of my favorite works by Stravinsky. There are very little recordings of this work extent. Of the recorded versions available I like this one as well as the 2 versions conducted by Stravinsky. I was disappointed by Kent Nagano’s version( contained in the Warner Stravinsky box). But, that being said the best version I have heard was a live performance a few years back in which Rozhdestvensky conducted the Boston Symphony Orchestra. I wish BSO would issue it from their archives.
I like this recording i have with violist Victor Pikaizen and Gennady Rozhdestvenky with USSR RSO. (probably not the best sound, recording is from 1969 on Melodia). Victor Pikaizen is not well known in the West but he was a (favourite) student of David Oistrach. The LP also has Henryk Wieniawsky - First Violin Concerto. This a Dutch release.
A charity shop find in the downstairs stereo for a first listen. Tchaikovsky - Serenade for Strings - Karajan/BPO - 1981 DDD Herbie is, generally speaking, not my thing. I find his focus on the string section somewhat to the detriment of the overall orchestral balance. These recordings, however, turn the problem into its own solution, to borrow a phrase from Douglas Adams. I sampled the Tchaikovsky a while back after really not enjoying the almost synth-like string sound on the Muti recording - I was pleased to hear that, as expected, Karajan got a more distinction and separation between the parts. There seem to have been some well reviewed chamber orchestra versions of this lately, but as Tchaikovsky apparently wrote "The larger number of players in the string orchestra, the more this shall be in accordance with the author's wishes" on the score, it seems like a good match for the BPO.
