Handel Italian Cantatas La Risonanza Fabio Bonizzoni Glossa box, 7 CDs, 2019 recorded between 2005 and 2009 Produced by Carlos Cester in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Spain. This has some wonderful acoustics such as in vol. 7 Apollo e Dafne with Roberta Invernizzi and Thomas Bauer. If it was recorded in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, then I would love to hear many more recordings from there.
I really didn't care for this version of the Tchaikovsky Piano Concertos with Stephen Hough and Osmo Vanska. Really, as in I don't want to hear them ever again. I think Hough's interpretative choices in the First are beyond my understanding. I tamped down that last sentence from what I really think. Tchaikovsky Piano Concertos; Concert Fantasia Hyperion, 2010 Stephen Hough Minnesota Orchestra Osmo Vanska
I am not surprised to read this, Dale. I have heard a number of Hough's recordings and have concluded that I am definitely not a fan.
Oh, well, at least in this literature you may have one or two other choices if you look hard enough. I think a lot of what he records has not been otherwise readily available on records, if at all. Can't say that what I've heard of him has ever really caught fire with me in a big way, but, then, also can't say that I've paid much attention to him beyond the occasional blunder into one of his recordings on the radio. I was going to say that's how I feel about Another Highly popular pianist (i.e., the acclaim for that pianist's interpretations is beyond my understanding), but I thought the better of it--no need to start a mud-slinging fest. Instead, I'll just say that the currently/recently active pianists who have caught my fancy tend to be not quite as squarely in the mainstream: people like the fabulous presto-digitator David Stanhope; the lithe, athletic Stuart Goodyear; and the quirky Fazil Say. In fact, I just played Say's account of the Mozart 21st concerto a couple of days ago to mark the composer's birthday, and it's a delight, with one of Say's own ever-enjoyable cadenzas in the first movement that had me laughing out loud. Come to think of it, all three of the pianists I just named are also composers. Schnabel insisted a pianist who wanted to master his craft should also compose. Maybe he was on to something? Speaking of cadenzas, I recently latched onto a recording of Guiomar Novaes in the Beethoven 4th Cto. in a concert performance with the NYPO under George Szell from 1952. She does not play the cadenzas we usually hear, and the one in the first mvt., in particular, is quite the wild ride. Admitting it has not been easily available (my copy came to me from a friend, and his source had little if any commercial circulation), has anybody here heard it, and if so, do you have a clue who wrote the cadenzas?
Sounds interestting, David. I did find it on youtube (posted below.) I recently heard the work or I would check it out now.
OK, music lovers, time for a quiz to test your classical music savvy. In what instrumental category did Haydn write the most works, in excess of 100? Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick.... Time's up. Did you say "symphonies"? WRONG! The answer is... baryton trios. Yes, he wrote some 126 trios for Baryton, viola, and cello, as against 104 canonical symphonies. His celebrated employer, Prince Esterhazy, bestowed on the world a great benefit by hiring and supporting Haydn through years and years of writing fabulous music, developing the classical symphony and the string quartet to the forms in which we know them today and bequeathing us a wealth of fine classical piano sonatas, some good concerti including the first ever for the valved trumpet, two important (and delightful) oratorios, and on and on. BUT there was a price: the Prince Esterhazy played this odd, now long-defunct instrument called the baryton, and he liked new music for it, meaning Haydn's time was not entirely free for the aforementioned pursuits; he also spent a lot of time writing music for the prince to play. I just finished copying a complete run of the trios from a big Haydn megabox on Brilliant, and while I haven't actually played more than a few odd movements yet, I can draw a tentative conclusion or two. The main one is that although the prince liked to play the thing, he must have been a modestly gifted amateur at best. Mind you, he never pretended to be anything else, as far as I know. Nearly all the trios follow the same pattern: two moderate to slow movements (lots of allegro moderato, moderato, menuetto allegretto, tempo di menuetto, and adagio) ganged together with one that is faster (I think one trio has 4 movements and one something like 7 or 8; otherwise, all 3), sometimes presto but very often some variant of allegro. Early on, the fast movements were quite short; they grew a bit as the series progressed. I played one of the faster ones, a presto from somewhere after the halfway point, and I had the impression the baryton didn't have all that challenging a part--it seemed the cello and viola were busy bustling around all over the place while the nominal star of the show spent a lot of time sawing away on quick repeated notes. Then there's the matter of keys, which suggest the prince knew how to play in only a handful (assuming the baryton wasn't limited to a few itself): of the first 20 trios, 16 are in A, 4 in D; all are in A or D until no. 26, in G. From there, everything is in A, G, or D until no. 76 in C, which key doesn't put in another appearance until no. 82. F shows up as no. 83, and that's it--the works are overwhelmingly in A, G, or D, with only 3 in F and 11 C, those all being late in the string. Only two outliers are in minor keys, no. 87 in a and no. 96 in b. No flat keys, no sharp keys. I wonder if a study of these things might show the prince's gradual progress in his baryton lessons. Oh, as to the sound: the baryton, from what I've heard, is a wiry sounding thing, easily distinguished from the cello but not, I'd guess, offering that instrument's flexibility or range of expression. Supposedly the baryton does offer a "special effect" in the form of unbowed, sympathetically vibrating strings that the performer can pluck with his thumb. The few movements I've sampled did not call for it, so I'll reserve judgment there. Oh, by the way, the trios are not Haydn's only output for this instrument: he also wrote 8 or 10 "divertimenti" for it, and I gather a bunch of other works have been lost. Understand, I have no program notes for guidance, but I'm going by what's on one CD, which has some 40-odd tracks, mostly lasting about a minute or less. I've played most of those in an attempt to figure out their personnel (the disc sleeve just gives a general player list, not info about who plays what), and they all take the form of melodic fragments, trailing off mid-phrase, played solo by the baryton. I'm guessing they're incipits from a catalogue that lists works now gone in the mists of history. Complete-ism run amok!
The only Moeran I had til now was an LP picked up from the seventies. It is a copy of a Lyrita LP that includes: Moeran Overture for a Masque Rhapsody No.2 Cello Concerto London Philharmonic Adrian Boult I now have a CD that includes: Moeran Sinfonietta Symphony in G minor Overture to a Masque London Philharmonic except for the symphony which is the New Philharmonia Adrian Boult Lyrita, 2007 Adrian Boult presents this music splendidly.
Excellent essay, David, as usual! It just so happens, though, that I correctly guessed the answer to your question... thanks to this Nonesuch record that I bought way back in 1974: Licensed to Nonesuch, it was originally recorded in Europe by Club Français Du Disque, Paris, in 1965. Performances are by the Salzburger Baryton Trio (!) of these five Trios: Nos. 45, 49, 60, 64, and 113. (They refer to them all as Divertimenti, but I understand the term here is interchangeable.) I love to read liner notes, then as now, and thus I absorbed some musical trivia about stuff such as this at an early age. James Lyons (Editor, The American Record Guide) wrote the notes for Nonesuch and provides a lengthy history of Haydn, the Prince, and the "sweet-voiced" Baryton. You certainly covered the meat of story, but I thought I might add a couple of interesting tidbits here. Haydn wrote that massive quantity of Baryton repertoire for Prince Nicolaus between 1762 and 1775. Finally in the latter year, the Prince took a keen interest in opera and his appetite for the Baryton waned, giving Haydn a welcome break. Haydn sometimes (and not surprisingly) would borrow themes and ideas from his other compositions for re-use in these Trios. One example is on this record: The Allegro movement of Trio No. 64 was lifted directly from the first movement of Haydn's Symphony No. 30, which was written three years earlier. (And who can blame Haydn for recycling his own material? ...especially if the Prince can't recognize it!) Anyway, I've really enjoyed listening to the five that are on this record over the many years I've owned it. In fact, I'm grateful that the Salzburger Baryton Trio made this album, cherry-picking five Trios they considered the best out of the mind-numbing pile of one hundred and twenty-six, so I don't have to! Cheers.
You Learn Something New Every Day Dept.: I was browsing another thread over in Hardware, and somebody mentioned listening to "Grieg symphonies." My first reaction was, "Grieg didn't write symphonies," but I went and looked it up, and, by gum, he did write one. According to what I read, it's a student work that he suppressed during his lifetime (evidently wrote "never to be played" on the score), but in more recent years it has been not only played but recorded. Anybody here heard it? What did you think of it?
I have it on a box set: Edvard Grieg: the Complete Orchestral Music with Ole Kristian Ruud conducting the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, 8 CDs, Bis record label. Everything is beautifully played on this set. All I remember about the symphony is that I thought it was pleasant and OK. But my recollection is from 9 or 10 years ago. It is on CD 1. Here are the contents of this set: CD 1: 1. I høst (In Autumn), concert overture for orchestra, Op.11 13'00 Piano Concerto in A minor, Op.16 2. I. Allegro molto moderato 13'20 3. II. Adagio 6'45 4. III. Allegro moderato molto e marcato 10'49 Symphony in C minor 5. I. Allegro molto 12'20 6. II. Adagio espressivo 7'33 7. III. Intermezzo. Allegro energico 5'15 8. IV. Finale. Allegro molto vivace 8'34 CD 2: Sigurd Jorsalfar, incidental music, Op.22 1. I. Innledning til Akt I / Introduction to Act I 2'10 2. II. Borghilds drøm / Borghild's Dream 3'42 3. III. Ved mannjevningen / At the Matching Game 3'38 4. IV. Norrønafolket / The Northland Folk 5'58 5. V. Hyldningsmarsj / Homage March 9'17 6. VI. Mellomspill I / Interlude I 1'45 7. VII. Mellomspill II / Interlude II 3'34 8. VIII. Kongekvadet / The King's Song 4'07 9. Landkjenning (Land Sighting), Op.31 6'30 10. Bergliot, Op.42 18'37 11. Sørgemarsj over Rikard Nordraak (Funeral March in Memory of Rikard Nordraak), EG117 7'49 12. Den Bergtekne (The Mountain Thrall), Op.32 5'37 CD 3: Olav Trygvason, opera fragment, Op.50 1. Scene 1 7'46 2. Scene 2 14'59 3. Scene 3 11'22 4. Foran Sydens Kloster (At the Cloister Gate), Op.20 10'15 Six Songs with Orchestra 5. I. Solveigs Sang (Solveig's Song), Op.23 No.19 5'27 6. II. Solveigs Vuggevise (Solveig's Cradle Song), Op.23 No.26 4'00 7. III. Fra Monte Pincio (From Monte Pincio), Op.39 No.1 4'58 8. IV. En Svane (A Swan), Op.25 No.2 2'21 9. V. Våren (Last Spring), Op.33 No.2 8'17 10. VI. Henrik Wergeland, Op.58 No.3 3'30 11. Ved Rondane (At Rondane), Op.33 No.9 3'03 CD 4: Peer Gynt, Op.23. Act I: 1. Prelude - I Bryllupsgården (At the Wedding) 4'57 2. Bukkerittet (The Buckride) 2'10 3. Bryllupsmarsj (Wedding March) 3'18 4. På vei til Hegstad (On the way to Hegstad) 0'52 5. Halling 0'47 6. Springar: Bryllupet på Hegstad (Springar: The Wedding at Hegstad) 2'31 Peer Gynt, Op.23. Act II: 7. Prelude - Bruderovet. Ingrids klage (The Abduction of the Bride. Ingrid's Lament) 4'01 8. Peer Gynt og Ingrid (Peer Gynt and Ingrid) 0'56 9. Peer Gynt på flukt (Peer Gynt on the run) 0'24 10. Peer Gynt og Sæterjentene (Peer Gynt and the Herd-Girls) 3'34 11. Peer Gynt og Den Grønnkledde (Peer Gynt and the Woman in Green) 2'23 12. Peer Gynt og Den Grønnkledde, forts. (Peer Gynt and the Woman in Green, cont.) 1'34 13. På ridestellet skal storfolk kjennes (Great folk may be known by the mounts...) 0'18 14. I Dovregubbens hall (In the Hall of the Mountain King) 2'43 15. Peer Gynts møte med Dovregubben (Peer Gynt meets the Mountain King) 1'24 16. Dans av Dovregubbens datter (Dance of the Mountain King's Daughter) 1'40 17. Ut av Dovregubbens hall (Out of the Mountain King's Hall) 0'55 18. Peer Gynt jages av troll (Peer Gynt hunted by the trolls) 3'18 19. Peer Gynt og Bøygen (Peer Gynt and the Boyg) 4'17 Peer Gynt, Op.23. Act III: 20. Peer Gynt og Solveig (Peer Gynt and Solveig) 0'36 21. Prelude - Forspill til Åses død (Prelude to The Death of Aase) 4'28 22. Åses død (The Death of Aase) 5'50 CD 5: Peer Gynt, Op.23. Act IV: 1. Prelude - Morgenstemning (Morning Mood) 3'50 2. I Marokko (In Morocco) 1'23 3. Tyven og heleren (The Thief and the Receiver) 1'26 4. Peer Gynt blir profet (Peer Gynt becomes a Prophet) 0'34 5. Arabisk dans (Arabian Dance) 4'47 6. Profet og hersker (Prophet and Ruler) 0'14 7. Anitras dans (Anitra's Dance) 3'29 8. Profetens juvel (The Prophet's Jewel) 0'51 9. Peer Gynts Serenade (Peer Gynt's Serenade) 2'44 10. Peer Gynt og Anitra (Peer Gynt and Anitra) 0'14 11. Peer Gynt og Anitra, forts. (Peer Gynt and Anitra, cont.) 2'00 12. Forlatt i ørkenen (Alone in the Desert) 0'42 13. Solveigs sang (Solveig's Song) 5'28 14. Peer Gynt i Egypt (Peer Gynt in Egypt) 0'17 15. Peer Gynt ved Memnonstøtten (Peer Gynt at the Statue of Memnon) 2'10 16. Peer Gynt og Begriffenfeldt (Peer Gynt and Begriffenfeldt) 1'30 Peer Gynt, Op.23. Act V: 17. Prelude - Peer Gynts hjemfart. Stormfull aften på havet (Peer Gynts Homecoming. Stormy Evening on the Sea) 2'23 18. Utenfor den norske kyst (Off the Norwegian Coast) 1'27 19. Skipsforliset (Shipwreck) 1'15 20. På båthvelvet (On the Boat Hull) 0'35 21. Solveig synger i hytten (Solveig sings in the Hut) 1'42 22. Peer Gynt ved hytten (Peer Gynt by the Hut) 0'19 23. Nattscene (Night Scene) 7'04 24. Peer Gynt og Knappestøperen (Peer Gynt and the Button Moulder) 2'08 25. Deilige sol og deilige jord (Lovely Sun and Lovely Earth) 1'33 26. Pinsesalme: Velsignede morgen (Whitsun Hymn: Oh Blessed Morning) 1'14 28. Peer Gynt og Solveig (Peer Gynt and Solveig) 1'09 29. Solveigs vuggevise (Solveig's Cradle Song) 5'57 CD 6: Peer Gynt Suite No.1, Op.46 1. I. Morgenstemning (Morning Mood) 4'11 2. II. Åses død (The Death of Aase) 4'40 3. III. Anitras dans (Anitra's Dance) 3'38 4. IV. I Dovregubbens hall (In the Hall of the Mountain King) 2'42 Peer Gynt Suite No.2, Op.55 5. I. Bruderovet. Ingrids Klage (The Abduction of the Bride. Ingrid's Lament) 3'58 6. II. Arabisk dans (Arabian Dance) 4'48 7. III. Peer Gynts hjemfart (Stormfull aften på havet) (Peer Gynts Homecoming [Stormy Evening on the Sea]) 2'42 8. IV. Solveigs Sang (Solveig's Song) 5'21 9. Sørgemarsj over Rikard Nordraak (Funeral March in Memory of Rikard Nordraak), version for wind band, EG117 7'52 10. Gammelnorsk romanse med variasjoner (Old Norwegian Melody with Variations), Op.51 24'29 11. Klokkeklang (Bell Ringing), Op.54 No.6 3'59 CD 7: Fra Holbergs tid (Holberg Suite), Op.40 1. I. Prelude 2'43 2. II. Sarabande 4'00 3. III. Gavotte 3'48 4. IV. Air 5'35 5. V. Rigaudon 3'52 To elegiske melodier (Two Elegiac Melodies), Op.34 6. I. Hjertesår (The Wounded Heart) 3'14 7. II. Våren (Last Spring) 5'36 To melodier (Two Melodies), Op.53 8. I. Norsk (Norwegian) 4'26 9. II. Det første Møte (The First Meeting) 4'37 To nordiske melodier (Two Nordic Melodies), Op.63 10. I. I folketonestil (In Folk Style) 7'24 11. II. Kulokk & Stabbelåten (Cow Call and Peasant Dance) 4'28 To lyriske stykker (Two Lyric Pieces), Op.68 12. I. Aften på Høyfjellet (Evening in the Mountains) 3'55 13. II. Bådnlåt (At the Cradle) 3'47 CD 8: Norwegian Dances, Op.35 1. I. Allegro marcato 5'35 2. II. Allegretto tranquillo e grazioso 2'37 3. III. Allegro moderato alla Marcia 3'43 4. IV. Allegro molto 6'07 Symphonic Dances, Op.64 5. I. Allegro moderato e marcato 8'17 6. II. Allegretto grazioso 6'47 7. III. Allegro giocoso 6'28 8. IV. Andante - Allegro molto e risoluto 12'13 Lyric Suite, Op.54 9. I. Gjetergutt (Shepherd Boy). Andante espressivo 5'31 10. II. Gangar (Norwegian Dance). Allegretto marciale 4'01 11. III. Notturno (Nocturne). Andante 4'33 12. IV. Trolltog (March of the Dwarfs). Allegretto moderato 3'26
I do hope you found somewhere to do a cut-and-paste of all that; otherwise, your fingers must be exhausted. Thanks! Student work symphonies can be hit or, more often, miss; the best I've heard is Bizet's, a real charmer. That one has definitely earned its place as one of the sunniest, freshest pieces in the repertory--freshest, that is, until the radio guys "discovered" it and started playing it to death . Recently, they seem to have done the same with Tchaikowsky's ballets, but that's a different matter. But back to Grieg, I remember a telling quotation from the program notes of that Murray Hill LP set of his piano music I copied a while back. Supposedly he said (as I remember it, probably not 100% correctly but this is the gist), "Men like Bach and Beethoven built shining cathedrals and palaces on the mountaintops. I aim to build little houses where people can live comfortably." Looking at the contents of your orchestral set, for the most evocative title in the lot I would nominate Klokkeklang (Bell Ringing), Op.54 No.6. As to the symphony, I'll need to take a listen to it when I get a chance. I suspect in this instance YouTube may be my friend.
Yevgeny Sudbin Sao Paulo Symphony Orchestra John Neschling BIS, 2007 SACD/CD I liked his Medtner Piano Concerto No. 1, and the Tchaikovsky is very good, but it isn't going to be my number 1 [get it] choice.
Spinning this on vinyl. I don’t have enough accolades for the performance and quality of this pressing. I’m surprised there are still copies remaining. Good price at the moment at Amazon USA.
Thanks, I have accumulated 4 versions of Prokofiev's Symphony No. 6, including Neeme Jarvi. They are: Neeme Jarvi, Scottish National Orchestra, recorded in 1986 Andrew Litton, Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, recorded in 2012 Eugene Ormandy, Philadelphia Orchestra, recorded in 1950 Ernest Ansermet, L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, recorded in 1951 I prefer the more recent recordings of Neeme Jarvi and Andrew Litton. Especially with the second movement which is hard enough to like or enjoy, even with modern sound. I am almost entertained with the CD layer of the second movement with Andrew Litton and the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, for what it is worth.
Knock knock? Who's there? Knock knock? Who's there? Knock knock? Who's there? Knock knock? Who's there? Knock knock? Who's there? Knock knock? Who's there? Phillip Glass.
My Praga 30 Years Limited Edition BOX was delivered this afternoon. "Recordings have been carefully remastered in 24-bit/96kHz by Little Tribeca, Paris." If the first disc (Janacek chamber music) is any guide, I will be spending some enjoyable hours on this set. Janacek String Quartet No.1 Sonata for violin and piano String Quartet No. 2 Prazak Quartet for the sonata: Vaclav Remes, violin and Sachiko Kayahara, piano Recorded 1997 This may be the first violinist Vaclav Remes.
