Record Review: non-BaL discs reviewed, etc.

[gradus]

Is that not a myth, perpetrated by marketing people (led by the composer himself) who wanted to sell his music as impossibly difficult, so that the "conquering" of it came across as an amazing, athletic feat?

Having heard the lax rhythmic phrasing and thin tone of O'Neill added to the ugly, pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey efforts of Rachel Nicholls to ping the high notes, we'd be forgiven for being taken in by such publicity puffs. But listen once to Alberto Remedios and Rita Hunter under Goodall, or Jess Thomas and Helga Dernesch under Karajan, to get a truer impression of the duet's lyrical beauty, and the superb technique with which Wagner's writing helps his singers 'place' their voices for the longer, higher phrases.

With Wagner almost anything that self-promotes is possible. I came across the Italianate thing in Cosima's diaries. I imagine that he thought that singers from a bel canto tradition of voice production would make a far more pleasing sound and maybe even cope with 100 orchestral musicians.

[Master Jacques]

With Wagner almost anything that self-promotes is possible. I came across the Italianate thing in Cosima's diaries. I imagine that he thought that singers from a bel canto tradition of voice production would make a far more pleasing sound and maybe even cope with 100 orchestral musicians.

Absolutely - he didn't just think it, he knew it: the more Italianate, the better (and I include Domingo as an honorary Italian here!)

[cloughie]

Is that not a myth, perpetrated by marketing people (led by the composer himself) who wanted to sell his music as impossibly difficult, so that the "conquering" of it came across as an amazing, athletic feat?

Having heard the lax rhythmic phrasing and thin tone of O'Neill added to the ugly, pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey efforts of Rachel Nicholls to ping the high notes, we'd be forgiven for being taken in by such publicity puffs. But listen once to Alberto Remedios and Rita Hunter under Goodall, or Jess Thomas and Helga Dernesch under Karajan, to get a truer impression of the duet's lyrical beauty, and the superb technique with which Wagner's writing helps his singers 'place' their voices for the longer, higher phrases.

Not heard their Siegfried but the CFP LP of Gotterdamerung highlights with Hunter Remedios LPO Mackerras was a superb bargain.

[Master Jacques]

Not heard their Siegfried but the CFP LP of Gotterdamerung highlights with Hunter Remedios LPO Mackerras was a superb bargain.

It was - as a bargain "taster", produced to raise the singers' profiles as the 'English Ring' cycle issues began to be released by EMI, it certainly did the trick. It's a pity that the (well-remastered and luxuriously packaged) Chandos CD set of the complete cycle is still so pricey, but it remains compelling listening.

[Pulcinella]

What did others make of the saxophone arrangement/improvisation travesty of Byrd's Ave verum corpus that we were subjected to this morning?
Given that the arranger was apparently brought up in the Anglian choral tradition, he must be either deaf or blind (or both) to Byrd's setting of the words. The 'phrasing' really jarred for anyone familiar with the piece.

[Barbirollians]

It was - as a bargain "taster", produced to raise the singers' profiles as the 'English Ring' cycle issues began to be released by EMI, it certainly did the trick. It's a pity that the (well-remastered and luxuriously packaged) Chandos CD set of the complete cycle is still so pricey, but it remains compelling listening.

Gosh ! Was Mackerras replaced with Goodall ?

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Interesting to hear Nigel Simeone's comments on the new Sibelius releases - like him, I don't think I'd heard the Spring Song before, coincidentally, this week when I got a copy of the Sinaisky/MoscowPO 3 disc set. A piece well worth hearing, and far too "overlooked" in concert programmes.

Kullervo remains a "sticky" work for me - one I'm getting closer to by not listening to it as a single "symphony", but as a collection of discrete works; I'm hoping that the connections between the works will eventually dawn on me, and I'll be able to hear it as a single symphony with the same "lineage" as Berlioz' Romeo et Juliette Symphony.

Some splendid-sounding excerpts played on the programme. More expense - hurrah!

[Master Jacques]

Gosh ! Was Mackerras replaced with Goodall ?

Not in any bad sense. Mackerras was the musical director of ENO at the time, and conducted alternate Ring Cycles at the Coliseum with Goodall (and some performances of the individual operas on tour also), but the production was always conceived and mounted as "Goodall's". Mackerras conducted that taster CfP disc (which is in German) to showcase the singers who were becoming "names" thanks to the Goodall ENO cycle.

[Master Jacques]

Interesting to hear Nigel Simeone's comments on the new Sibelius releases - like him, I don't think I'd heard the Spring Song before, coincidentally, this week when I got a copy of the Sinaisky/MoscowPO 3 disc set. A piece well worth hearing, and far too "overlooked" in concert programmes.

Kullervo remains a "sticky" work for me - one I'm getting closer to by not listening to it as a single "symphony", but as a collection of discrete works; I'm hoping that the connections between the works will eventually dawn on me, and I'll be able to hear it as a single symphony with the same "lineage" as Berlioz' Romeo et Juliette Symphony.

Interesting way of looking at the work. I've always loved it, and listen to it - not as a symphony at all, really, but as an epic cantata. "Discrete works" is really what it is, and I suspect it's best listened to as dramatic epic (moment by moment) rather than looking for connections. We don't get all of the Kullervo story: I suppose Sibelius relied on his listeners' knowledge of the Kalavala to provide narrative sense, rather as Tchaikovsky did with Eugene Onegin.

[makropulos]

Not in any bad sense. Mackerras was the musical director of ENO at the time, and conducted alternate Ring Cycles at the Coliseum with Goodall (and some performances of the individual operas on tour also), but the production was always conceived and mounted as "Goodall's". Mackerras conducted that taster CfP disc (which is in German) to showcase the singers who were becoming "names" thanks to the Goodall ENO cycle.

Meanwhile, there was also the Goodall recording of music from Act III of The Twilight of the Gods which originally came out on Unicorn (later on a Chandos CD).

As an aside, I remember going to the first nights of Rhinegold (which was conducted by Mackerras –I think Goodall was unwell) and then Siegfried (which was done by Goodall), then seeing the whole cycle on tour in Manchester (conducted by Mackerras). Marvellous memories, and lasting ones as they were my first encounters with the Ring operas in the theatre.

[Master Jacques]

Marvellous memories, and lasting ones as they were my first encounters with the Ring operas in the theatre.

Likewise for my schoolboy days, in Manchester with Mackerras at the helm. One good story as well, as to getting in free to see The Valkyrie ... which I won't bore everyone with now!

[LHC]

Meanwhile, there was also the Goodall recording of music from Act III of The Twilight of the Gods which originally came out on Unicorn (later on a Chandos CD).

As an aside, I remember going to the first nights of Rhinegold (which was conducted by Mackerras –I think Goodall was unwell) and then Siegfried (which was done by Goodall), then seeing the whole cycle on tour in Manchester (conducted by Mackerras). Marvellous memories, and lasting ones as they were my first encounters with the Ring operas in the theatre.

My very first opera was Siegfried at ENO, with Hunter, Remedios and Bailey, conducted by Mackerras, having never heard a note of it before. It was quite an introduction, and I’ve been hooked ever since.

[Alison]

Did anyone explore further the Naxos Adam Fischer Beethoven symphonies?

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

William Mival's selection of 5 Strauss recordings was quite interesting:
Elektra (Solti)
Till Eulenspiegel (Kempe)
Eine Alpensinfonie (Karajan)
Metamorphosen (Furtwangler)
Der Rosenkavelier (Philharmonia/Karajan)

Somehow, I knew before he even began that he'd choose the Karajan Alpine Symphony, as it was his BaL recommendation some years ago. To be fair, he did choose the best bit from HvK's version (The Summit) to back his choice - the post-thunderstorm bits show up DG's opaque recorded sound. But I did agree with his Der Rosenkavaler choice, which, despite being much older than his much later DG Vienna remake, is better in nearly every way.

[DracoM]

And did you also count the number of 'y'knows'?
He was incoherent and adolescently gushing and repetitive. And this is so NOT the Mival on paper - balanced, thoughtful, incisive, or so we've heard on BAL before.

These largely unscripted twofers..............

Blimey.