Haydn Seasons

[Dave2002]

What do board members think of recordings of Haydn's Seasons?
I've been sampling a few:

Davis - Philips (Harper, Shirley-Quirk)
Harnoncourt
and the Naxos set with forces from Leipzig conducted by Martin Shuldt-Jensen.

I suspect the LSO Live version may be very good - though it depends what one wants to hear.
The soloists in the Davis/Philps set sound superb.

I thought I'd prefer a more "authentic" performance, but when it comes to it Davis may be one conductor who really brings out the best in this work. I may take a punt on the LSO Live CD.

I think I've got one or two versions already on my shelves, but I don't recall them as being too special.

Long works such as these seem very old fashioned now - even though they contain some really pleasant music, the overall concept is odd. Perhaps in those times people really did have some sort of interest in words and concepts set to music, or maybe they just didn't have any other form of entertainment to watch, listen to, or participate in.

[Tony Halstead]

What do board members think of recordings of Haydn's Seasons?
I've been sampling a few:

Davis - Philips (Harper, Shirley-Quirk)
Harnoncourt
and the Naxos set with forces from Leipzig conducted by Martin Shuldt-Jensen.

I suspect the LSO Live version may be very good - though it depends what one wants to hear.
The soloists in the Davis/Philps set sound superb.

I thought I'd prefer a more "authentic" performance, but when it comes to it Davis may be one conductor who really brings out the best in this work. I may take a punt on the LSO Live CD.

I think I've got one or two versions already on my shelves, but I don't recall them as being too special.

Long works such as these seem very old fashioned now - even though they contain some really pleasant music, the overall concept is odd. Perhaps in those times people really did have some sort of interest in words and concepts set to music, or maybe they just didn't have any other form of entertainment to watch, listen to, or participate in.

if you think you might prefer an 'authentic' performance try the J E Gardiner/ English Baroque Soloists/ DG Archiv recording . There are some quite startling 'authentic' changes to the horn parts in the hunting chorus, making them sound louder and brassier. Although it's a long time ago when that recording was made, I seem to remember the singing being wonderful.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

It's not my favourite work of Haydn's, but the recordings that I've found most convincing (of the ones I've heard) are

Big Band: Karajan on EMI

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Haydn-Jahreszeiten-Seasons-Gundula-Janowitz/dp/B000HWZAQU/ref=sr_1_sc_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1401264090&sr=1-1-spell&keywords=karajan%2C+haydn%2C+seasoons

HIPP: Rene Jacobs on Harmonia Mundi

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Haydn-Seasons-Freiburger-Barockorchester-Jacobs/dp/B00GDJ9KAI/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1401263926&sr=1-1&keywords=rene+jacobs%2C+haydn%2C+seasons

[Beef Oven!]

I don't think it's as good a work as The Creation, but I enjoy listening to my 'old-style' Bohm on DG.

Thought about Jacobs (I've liked everything that I've ward of his), but since it's hardly a 'go-to' work for me, I'll leave it at the Bohm.

[richardfinegold]

This piece doesn't keep me interested as The Creation does. I have Bohm but never listen to it.

[Beef Oven!]

This piece doesn't keep me interested as The Creation does. I have Bohm but never listen to it.

Reflecting on your words, perhaps I should have said that I enjoy my Bohm recording when I play it, which is almost never!

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Reflecting on your words, perhaps I should have said that I enjoy my Bohm recording when I play it, which is almost never!

- it is a work that, in good performances, is better than I "remember" it. And the Jacobs Freiburger recording is very, very good. One that I'd recommend to anyone coming new to the "Early Music" repertoire, for example ...

[Beef Oven!]

- it is a work that, in good performances, is better than I "remember" it. And the Jacobs Freiburger recording is very, very good. One that I'd recommend to anyone coming new to the "Early Music" repertoire, for example ...

I'm coming mostly second-hand to 'early music', so I'll keep an eye out for it in the Amazonian marketeer place

[MickyD]

The Jacobs is definitely the one to go for, Beef...some wonderful rustic, bucolic sounds from his band and at one point a gunshot that makes you jump out of your skin!

[Beef Oven!]

The Jacobs is definitely the one to go for, Beef...some wonderful rustic, bucolic sounds from his band and at one point a gunshot that makes you jump out of your skin!

Seems this Jacobs chap has delivered the bee's knees on this one!

I like the Creation, so I recently bought Christopher Hogwood's AAM recording, as an alternative to my heavily upholstered (but gorgeous) DG Karajan set. But I'm not mad about The Seasons. So if it comes along cheap, otherwise my money goes elsewhere.

[Dave2002]

if you think you might prefer an 'authentic' performance try the J E Gardiner/ English Baroque Soloists/ DG Archiv recording . There are some quite startling 'authentic' changes to the horn parts in the hunting chorus, making them sound louder and brassier. Although it's a long time ago when that recording was made, I seem to remember the singing being wonderful.

Apart from the singing on the Davis Philips version being very good, it is also in English, which in this work is arguably allowable. Beecham also recorded a version in English. I don't know about others - is the LSO/Davis in English?

Most of the others are sung in German, and perhaps at this stage I'd prefer an English version.

PS: The Davis LSO version is indeed in German, as verified by sampling the MP3 tracks.

[Flosshilde]

HIPP: Rene Jacobs on Harmonia Mundi
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Haydn-Season...ydn%2C+seasons

I have that recording and it's an absolute joy.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I have that recording and it's an absolute joy.

[BBMmk2]

I have the Colin Davis LSO Live recording Dave. Well worth acquiring I enjoy it a lot. Also JEGGERs recording is well worth getting too!!

[Dave2002]

I have the Colin Davis LSO Live recording Dave. Well worth acquiring I enjoy it a lot. Also JEGGERs recording is well worth getting too!!

I have listened to samples of the LSO Live recording and agree with you, but have you heard the Philips recording or the Beecham version? Hearing the words sung in English is a big bonus (probably) for those of us who understand the language. I recommend both of these - though unless you want to hear them on iTunes or Spotify you might have to wait a while, due to delays in actually getting the CDs - or go to a CD store if you can find one!

The Seasons is perhaps not so well favoured as the Creation, and regarding the text, the original long poem on which the libretto is based is "The Seasons", by James Thomson. This was translated into German by Baron van Swieten. At the time Haydn was well known and popular also in London, so he wished the work to be accessible to both German and English audiences, so van Swieten then translated the text back into English - not very well it seems. Nevertheless, it does seem to me to be more approachable in this form, as otherwise the text may have very little significance to most Engish speakers. I believe that Haydn approved both versions.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Seasons_(Haydn)

In German the singers could be singing about axe murderers, the price of fish, or bus and train timetables for all I know.