Originally posted by Bryn
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110kbs/second, just gone past 1 GB........I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered. My life is my own.
I am not a number, I am a free man. -
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Someone mention Nielsen? How long have you got?Originally posted by mathias broucek View Post
One of the Nielsen sets to appear across the 150th anniversary which often gets overlooked...
Much better sound than the dull-Barbican-bound Davis, P-Järvi is not the always the last word in thrill-rides, but never dull and very consistently rewarding to live with and revisit. Seems better every time I go back (and for me, largely surpasses his Dad's uneven, somewhat generalised attempts).
But the whole landscape changed with the appearance of those cycles from Oramo (almost unsurpassable 1 & 3, 2 & 6), Storgards/BBCPO, and Gilbert - whose NYPO (Da Capo 24/96//192, marvellously sweet & spacious) series came in for some carping, but again, always surprises me with its enduring quality - a large-scale, often richly Romantic-Heroic view. The climaxes in No.2 really sweep you away! Outstanding Concerto album too.
Most of these cycles have their ups and downs (Oramo's 4th and 5th are less inspired, for example) but the best of them are essential listening for the devotee - they all move on the state of the Nielsen art. If I had to recommend just one? Surprisingly perhaps - the Frankfurt RSO/Järvi, not as individually intense as some, but very consistent, in good modern sound (24/44.1).
(Of the older classics I love Blomstedt's earlier Danish one, but its idiomatic beauties are offset by a certain orchestral looseness - provincial-sounding in both a good and a bad sense!)
OK! Mulled wine + Valerian + back to bed.... (Vienna can wait...)Last edited by jayne lee wilson; 01-01-19, 08:47.Comment
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Interesting thoughts, Jayne.
I'm not looking for any more Nielsen cycles, I thin I've more than enough! But I'm tempted by the idea of a Bernstein recording. But not sure which the Danish/NYPO recordings are best.Comment
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AFAIK, the only Danish/Bernstein recording is of the Third Symphony (which he didn't record with the NYPO) - 2, 4 & 5 were with the NYPO. I'm not aware of - and it would start my New Year off very nicely if I'm wrong - an NYPO/Lennie Nielsen #3, or of a Lennie/RDNO recording of anything else.Originally posted by Beef Oven! View Post[FONT=Comic Sans MS][I][B]Numquam Satis![/B][/I][/FONT]Comment
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You forgot to bring up the track details, e.g.Originally posted by Beef Oven! View Post
5 Symphony No. 5, Op. 50 (Remastered): I. Tempo giusto - Adagio non troppo* 00:18:39
Leonard Bernstein, Conductor, MainArtist - New York Philharmonic Orchestra, AssociatedPerformer - JOHN MCCLURE, Producer - Carl Nielsen, Composer Copyright : (P) 1963 Sony Music EntertainmentComment
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Like Bryn says - if you click on "Display Track Details" it shows that the Fifth is the NYPO recording.Originally posted by Beef Oven! View Post[FONT=Comic Sans MS][I][B]Numquam Satis![/B][/I][/FONT]Comment
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The Bernstein Nielsen 5th was something of a classic in its day (for sheer overwhelming intensity), but it is at least as much Bernstein as Nielsen....back in the day, I already preferred Bournemouth/Berglund (still very powerful, far more idiomatic).... if you love Lennie, well, OK - but I find him overblown in this rep - rep which is very close to my heart....
Experienced listeners could try steering clear of the not-so-golden oldies and try those I offered above.... the NYPO/Gilbert 5th, for example, may not be so all-conquering as some at the 1st movement climax but - the Part 2/ finale shows the longer-term pacing paying off beautifully (wonderfully responsive NYPO!)...
AS another random example, the Storgårds 6th is extraordinary - remarkably fresh and fantastical, in wonderful sound too.
And some here may recall the the Royal Stockholm/Oramo c/w of 2 & 6 as simply one of the great Nielsen albums of all time, on another level for 24/96 sound and above all - musical vision...
I compared it too the much-hallowed SFSO/Blomstedt 6th, and was surprised at how obviously superior the BIS was...Last edited by jayne lee wilson; 01-01-19, 16:05.Comment
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I'm Lennie-tolerant these days. Years ago I could not abide anything conducted by him. Slowly over the years I've come to love him. I but I do get where you're coming from.Originally posted by jayne lee wilson View Post
I guess I'm an inexperienced listener, so I'll be ok with the not-so-golden oldies.Experienced listeners could try steering clear of the not-so-golden oldies and try those I offered above.... the NYPO/Gilbert 5th, for example, may not be so all-conquering as some at the 1st movement climax but - the Part 2/ finale shows the longer-term pacing paying off beautifully (wonderfully responsive NYPO!)...
I do like great sound quality, and I'm prepared to pay for it. But it really is only a secondary consideration.AS another random example, the Storgårds 6th is extraordinary - remarkably fresh and fantastical, in wonderful sound too.
And some here may recall the the Royal Stockholm/Oramo c/w of 2 & 6 as simply one of the great Nielsen albums of all time, on another level for 24/96 sound and above all - musical vision...
I compared it too the much-hallowed SFSO/Blomstedt 6th, and was surprised at how obviously superior the BIS was...
The Storgårds sounds interesting.Comment
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Just bought this - thanks for the heads-up cloughie
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Just bought this - thanks for the heads-up cloughie
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Originally posted by Beef Oven! View PostJust bought this - thanks for the heads-up cloughie
....but with LB, you're just getting what you expect really.... (I'd avoid reading the Gramophone Archive Reviews of the Bernstein 2nd if I were you... Not that it stopped me enjoying it...!
(I knew no better then...)
So it goes...Nielsen's music includes a very energetic, dynamic, headstrong element that can easily become wearing, especially in earlier stereo recordings. I feel that the conductors I've highlighted have far more subtlety to offer - they build for the longer term view, understanding that if you make too much of those huge climaxes and the great driving rush of the allegros too soon, perhaps at the expense of Nielsen's very innovative symphonic architecture, the voix de la nature and the range of mood, the music can end up undersold - I think this does put some listeners off it (as we see on here sometimes).
Remember you could pick and choose from the Oramo Cycle on eclassical.... go for 2 & 6 first, it's in a class of its own...I'd be curious to know how the Bernstein Espansiva sounded after prolonged exposure to the Oramo, or even the Gilbert with the very same NYPO....the 1st movement of No.3 is a true test case for a conductor - dense with variety and incident, far harder to do well than it first seems, exploding from the blocks as it does....
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Gramophone 3/2015 has good, if slightly overwritten survey of No.3 from DPS, where the Gilbert is his top choice. His other three seemed too predictable (N-Jarvi, LB) or wilfully different (Serov) to me, and included the Bernstein as "The Extreme Choice"....well, yes, exactly.... (not always in a good way, to some ears..).
Shame he said so little about the Oramo though, which was relatively new at the time... perhaps he didn't know it well.Last edited by jayne lee wilson; 01-01-19, 20:04.Comment
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Thanks Jayne. You're gonna have to bear with me on this - I'm old guard
I'm excited by the prospect of Lennie in this rep, I'm never looking for the singular or perfect rendition of any work - always happy hear the cat skinned in different ways (sorry about that, I know you're quite fond of cats!).
It's going to be a long Nielsen night. I have his opera Saul Og David somewhere (for another night).Comment
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