I've been doing some long-postponed housecleaning in the past couple of days, and this morning a mystery cropped up: helping my daughter clear a drawer in her bedroom, I found a CD of Chopin's 1st pno. cto. and four ballades played by Seong-Jin Cho: I have no idea how this disc came to be in my house. It's not something I would have bought, but I don't remember anyone giving it to me as a gift, either. Leaving aside that she seldom listens to classical except when I am around and doing so myself, my daughter does not buy or play physical media--streaming only. So why do I have it? No earthly idea. I see from a quick search that the pianist has not received much discussion in this corner of the world. I found only two mentions, both dating back to around the time he won the Int'l Chopin Competition in 1915, one from a member who has been silent for a couple of years now: Regular CMC contributor @Daedalus quoted the latter message, but only to mention the ability to hear the competition through an app. So: anybody know anything about this guy and how he's fared since 2015? Dale 88, have you kept up with him since expressing a favorable early impression? I will play the recording in due course, I guess--but only when I'm free of housework!
Sorry, I haven't kept up with his career. I falsely assumed that his early talents would lead to more recordings.
The Bach Family before Johann Sebastian The Cantatas Musica Antiqua Koln Reinhard Goebel Archiv, 1986 1 Ach, Bleib Bei Uns, Herr Jesu Christ 0:05:38 Johann Michael Bach (1648-1694) 2 Liebster Jesu, Hoer Mein Flehen 0:07:02 -"- 3 Ach, Wie Sehnlich Wart' Ich Der Zeit 0:07:28 -"- 4 Siehe, Wie Fein Und Lieblich 0:06:33 Georg Christoph Bach (1642-1697) 5 Herr, Wende Dich, Und Sei Mir Gnaedig 0:11:43 -"- 6 Meine Fruendin, Du Bist Schoen 0:21:55 Johann Christoph Bach (1642-1703
Lp. Magnificent! Issued on Melodiya/Angel in 1975. Krainev also did two wonderful cycles of Prokofiev’s piano concertos. One released by Melodiya-the other by Teldec.
OK, thanks for the update. I guess he's another of those players who make a splash by winning a competition and then more or less fade from view.
WAGNER: Orchestral Music - Berlin Philharmonic conducted by Klaus Tennstedt (EMI Classics "Gemini" CD for Europe)
Sanderling conducting the Leningrad Philharmonic ( early 50s). Forget the sound-listen to the performances.
Now enjoying more Rachmaninov. This time, by Richter. This material, first issued on Olympia, were later reissued at least two other times, on two different labels, Regis and Alto. I am listening to the Olympia CD.
Lots of great stuff being listened to today from others. I will add another one.... Berlioz-Harold In Italy-Dutoit
Heads up for all our fans of Georgs Pelecis: a new recording of his music, a set of pieces called "Seasons," is due out in November, and Amazon is taking pre-orders. I've enjoyed his "Nevertheless..." and "Concertino Bianco," so I'm looking forward to this one. https://smile.amazon.com/Georgs-Pel...14&s=music&sprefix=pelecis,popular,161&sr=1-3
All the recent mentions of Soviet recordings inspired me to dig out (and copy) something I hadn't played in a long time: the 1951 first piano concerto of (Soviet) Georgian composer Otar Taktakishvili. As far as I know, it's had two recordings, a fairly recent effort that I haven't heard and my earlier recording dating to the 1950s and issued, from Melodyia masters, on LP as Bruno BR 50190. The soloist is one Alexander Iokheles, about whom I know nothing, with Abram Stasevitch, about whom I know about as little, and something billed as the "National Philharmonic Orchestra." Overside is a bunch of (again, Soviet) Georgian folk music performed by an ensemble from Tbilisi. Bruno was one of those little US labels that tried to carve out a niche in the classical market on the cheap by issuing Soviet Russian recordings under license. The pressing is of good quality, and the recording quality is "serviceable," not bad, not the best that was being done at the time. As to the performance, however, I can't imagine anyone seriously bettering what these artists accomplish. Anybody here know anything more about Iokheles? On the strength of this record, I'd say he was quite an accomplished player. The concerto is in four mvts. bound together by a recurring theme, or riffs on it. I'd say the strongest mvt. is the second, a skittish, playful scherzo, and the weakest the last, a theme and variations set. It's not a score for those who seek anything thorny; I was tempted to compare the music to the Rachmaninoff 2d pno. cto., but it lacks that composer's distinctive harmonic language. I think maybe a better analogue would be the Ipolitov-Ivanov Caucasian Sketches. I suppose that sounds like faint praise, but I happen to like the piece (for that matter, I like the Caucasian Sketches), although it's not the sort of thing that could stand up to "heavy rotation" in a playlist. In all events, something I enjoyed revisiting after probably a decade's quiescence.
Tchaikovsky Overture 1812 Rimsky-Korsakov Russian Easter Festival Borodin Polovtsian Dances Concertgebouw Orchestra Igor Markevitch As usual, Markevitch finds something in the composition to make me listen again.
After just knowing a handful of classical pieces here and there, I've started listening to full works and collecting them! I'm currently listening to Mozart's Symphony 40. The first movement is one of my favorites by him.
Congrats! Welcome to the slippery slope--er, the wonderful world of listening to the classics. That's a great choice as an early/starting point. If you like minor key Mozart, be sure to lend an ear to his 20th piano concerto. Considered among the composer's most important works, it's received a world of fine recordings. This one should be good, it offers several other Mozart piano concerti (including my favorite, no. 23), and it's an economical choice: https://smile.amazon.com/Mozart-Gre...prefix=mozart+piano+concerto+20,aps,98&sr=1-3
Now listening to this 1991 recording. This 5th performance starts at a slow tempo which gradually builds in intensity. You have to be patient with this one. The “Francesca Da Rimini” has intensity from the get-go.
I have a Philips CD by Muti conducting the Profofiev 1 and 3rd symphonies that is incredible, esp for the 3rd symphony!
