I just realized that I have more Scarlatti than I originally thought. I have quite a few guitar transcriptions here and there and also some Horowitz on piano. I like the guitar transcriptions the best. Ross is my only set on harpsichord. I do not think that I will ever listen to all the sonatas, but it feels good to have it in case I ever decide to do it.
I'm not a piano man when it comes to pre-Classical Era music, but Clara Haskil's early 1950s Scarlatti recordings are excellent. She's one of the forgotten greats of the 1950s in my opinion. Her Scarlatti is included in this wonderful box (unfortunately, some of the accompanying conductors and orchestras were not exactly first-tier in those years, but her playing is great):
I have been collecting her CDs wherever and whenever I can find them at a decent price. I know we've had mixed Membran / Documents experiences but I really like this set:
Amazing playing and better than usual sonics from Hyperion (a bit closer perspective and less reverberant).
I have a couple LPs by Francescatti that I like, especially the Beethoven concerto with Ormandy. I wonder if he’ll get a box set from Sony.
There's no shortage of great recordings of the Ninth but this one is my personal fave. Mackerras and the Philharmonia on Signum, a live recording:
Apparently Hough recorded four (!) albums during lockdown. The first is Schumann's opp. 16, 17, & 18.
The Ristenpart / Saar Chamber Orchestra recording of the Bach Brandenburg Ctos was my first as well. After reading a glowing review of the reel-to-reel tape edition in Stereo Review magazine (in 1970), I had my local record shop order it for me. Playing Ristenpart's version repeatedly, it became my first "standard"... but that didn't last long as I acquired many other recorded versions. Still, it has it's charm. I think the Ristenpart/Saar C.O. performance of the 1st Concerto is one of the best out there. Their 2nd is pretty good, too. The rest are a mixed bag. Just my 2 cents, FWIW.
My photo doesn't do justice to this lovely cover & model. Recorded 12/23/53, Academy of Music, Philadelphia. Photo by Hal Reiff.
Recorded 1/2/56, Carnegie Hall, NYC. The recessed sound of some of the earlier Columbia LPs I've posted is gone here, with the sound full & a bit in-your-face.
Now sampling via dodgy uploads on YouTube: Brahms - Symphony #1 - Mackerras/SCO I wasn't actually aware these recordings existed until I spotted the above set for a very nice price on Oxfam Online, but by the time I'd done my research and concluded I wanted to buy it, it had sold. I've set my eBay searches up to find another set, so I'll just have to wait. This seems to be the usual combination of research and musicality from Mackerras - not HIP per-se, but an orchestra size on par with the original performances (interestingly, Brahms apparently refused the offer of a larger orchestra for Symphony #4), with some period brasses and liberal use of rubato. I've been a bit wary of Brahms for some reason, so good to have a familiar baton to start the familiarisation.
I've been trying to listen to some different Beethoven, not just my usual. After I got the Naxos Beethoven set I was listening to a lot of different stuff, but lately I have a bad habit of just listening to different renditions of the core symphonies and concertos. Going through the Brendel box and listening to the piano sonatas that I wouldn't normally reach for first. Nos. 20 and 26 were my favourites. Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 20 in G major, Op. 49, No. 2 Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 25 in G Major, Op. 79 Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 26 in E flat major, Op. 81a, "Les Adieux" Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 27 in E minor, Op. 90 Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 28 in A major, Op. 101 Alfred Brendel (piano)
I listened to Der gloreiche Augenblick for the first time the other day, quite interesting, and definitely not my usual Beethoven.
He recorded quite a bit-some of his collaborations are in the Casadesus box set. He is included in the Cluytens box set as well.
The Mackerras Brahms #1 was wonderful! Gutted that I missed that set. Really well recorded too, or at least in a way that suits my system very well. I could probably acquire the individual CDs easily enough, although I'm tempted to hold out for the fatboy set, both for shelf-space reasons, and to slow down my general CD acquisition! Following that with something smaller scale which, now I come to think of it, also came from Oxfam Online: Mozart - String Quartets dedicated to Haydn, K387 & 421/417b - Quatuor Mosaiques
I have that recording on this CD. It is coupled with the Cello Concerto referenced on the cover. Issued as part of the Masterworks Heritage series in 1998 by Sony. 20 bit remastering.
