Record Review: non-BaL discs reviewed, etc.

[Beef Oven!]

I have just checked the 1st movement of the Concerto from the single disc version on QOBUZ. No fault apparent there, so either the amazon.co.uk customer reviewer was basing the review on the Presto download (it is referred to as track 11, with no mention of which disc), or the fault lies only in the Edition version of the disc and its related FLAC. I intend to email Presto re. the problem, pointing out that it does not occur in the single disc version, so they could replace the faulty file with that one.

Good.

I'll also email Presto along the same lines.

[BBMmk2]

I've recently learned his his Allegro Barbaro, a very difficult piece and it requires stamina - it currently takes me 46 minutes to get through and I'm hoping to speed up.

OMG Beefy!

[EdgeleyRob]

I've recently learned his his Allegro Barbaro, a very difficult piece and it requires stamina - it currently takes me 46 minutes to get through and I'm hoping to speed up.

[Nick Armstrong]

Nice one, Rob!!

[Beef Oven!]

[BBMmk2]

Love this! I am in Advent/Yuletide mode now!

[Richard Tarleton]

Some interesting discsa reviewed yesterday - I enjoyed this end of year review more than usual. I liked Elin Manahan Thomas's advicacy for the Music from the Hundred Years War and Percy Grainger folk songs. I was briefly tempted by the Danish String Quartet's Last Leaf, until Andrew dropped that it was an ECM CD - this rang alarm bells and I checked online, sure enough total playing time 48 minutes . How do ECM continue to get away with this? Why do Andrew & co. not use the platform of Record Review to call them out for this ridiculous short-changing of the customer, as if some moody black and white photography and cryptic sleeve notes in some way make up for it . I've been caught out before, and no more ECM CDs. Typical playing time of an early music plucker on ECM (Rolf Lisveland, Pablo Marquez) 48 minutes, Paul O'Dette on Harmonia Mundi never less than 70. It's only a bloke (or in this case 4 blokes) sitting on stools or chairs with a microphone.

[ChrisBennell]

Some interesting discsa reviewed yesterday - I enjoyed this end of year review more than usual. I liked Elin Manahan Thomas's advicacy for the Music from the Hundred Years War and Percy Grainger folk songs. I was briefly tempted by the Danish String Quartet's Last Leaf, until Andrew dropped that it was an ECM CD - this rang alarm bells and I checked online, sure enough total playing time 48 minutes . How do ECM continue to get away with this? Why do Andrew & co. not use the platform of Record Review to call them out for this ridiculous short-changing of the customer, as if some moody black and white photography and cryptic sleeve notes in some way make up for it . I've been caught out before, and no more ECM CDs. Typical playing time of an early music plucker on ECM (Rolf Lisveland, Pablo Marquez) 48 minutes, Paul O'Dette on Harmonia Mundi never less than 70. It's only a bloke (or in this case 4 blokes) sitting on stools or chairs with a microphone.

Agreed there was some interesting stuff on yesterday. I was also looking at the Danish String Quartet CD. and I noted it is available for download from Presto Classical. You don't save much though (14p I think!) - but you can select which tracks most interested in!

[Sir Velo]

Some interesting discsa reviewed yesterday - I enjoyed this end of year review more than usual. I liked Elin Manahan Thomas's advicacy for the Music from the Hundred Years War and Percy Grainger folk songs. I was briefly tempted by the Danish String Quartet's Last Leaf, until Andrew dropped that it was an ECM CD - this rang alarm bells and I checked online, sure enough total playing time 48 minutes . How do ECM continue to get away with this? Why do Andrew & co. not use the platform of Record Review to call them out for this ridiculous short-changing of the customer, as if some moody black and white photography and cryptic sleeve notes in some way make up for it . I've been caught out before, and no more ECM CDs. Typical playing time of an early music plucker on ECM (Rolf Lisveland, Pablo Marquez) 48 minutes, Paul O'Dette on Harmonia Mundi never less than 70. It's only a bloke (or in this case 4 blokes) sitting on stools or chairs with a microphone.

You might want to reconsider a total ban on ECM, RT; pulled at random from my shelves:

Ysaye Solo sonatas; Zehetmair (65:56)
Schumann Vn Sons: Widmann, Varjon (72:02)
Officium: Hilliard Ensemble, Garbarek (77:41)

[Cockney Sparrow]

The ECM label isn't carried by the eClassical download site - where recordings are priced by the time length of the tracks .......
A previous recording of the Quartet's (Wood Works - which I have) is on the Da Capo Label and can be had there for $8.93

http://www.eclassical.com/wood-works.html

(Last Leaf - the album is on Google Play Music (so quite probably Spotify too....)

[Richard Tarleton]

You might want to reconsider a total ban on ECM, RT; pulled at random from my shelves:

Well I'll certainly check, Sir V - not something I'd normally do, but twice or thrice bitten, for the simplest instrumental CD - why do they do it? My Hilliard Gesualdo Tenebrae is 76 and 46, I suppose you wouldn't want a filler after that...

[Thropplenoggin]

Nice to hear Stephen Johnson on RR this Saturday, especially with a clutch of Mahler discs. He was especially impressed by François-Xavier Roth's Mahler 5 on Harmonia Mundi, and Adam Fischer's new recording of Mahler 1. I find Roth to be a fascinating conductor - his Strauss recordings reveal a very thoughtful musical intelligence at work. SJ is due to look at Mahler 7 in a BaL in March, which should make for interesting listening. I like how he talks about music (as opposed to the babbling-with-excessive-hyperbole of Tom Service). I wonder if we could petition to replace The Listening Service with SJ's Discovering Music. Just a thought.

[pastoralguy]

I've always thought of Stephen Johnson to be a very fine broadcaster. It's a pity he's so under-used by the BBC although he seems to have his finger in a few pies so perhaps he's not always available.

Yes, I'm really looking forward to his Mahler 7 BaL - always my favourite Mahler Symphony!

[Nick Armstrong]

Nice to hear Stephen Johnson on RR this Saturday, especially with a clutch of Mahler discs. He was especially impressed by François-Xavier Roth's Mahler 5 on Harmonia Mundi, and Adam Fischer's new recording of Mahler 1. I find Roth to be a fascinating conductor - his Strauss recordings reveal a very thoughtful musical intelligence at work. SJ is due to look at Mahler 7 in a BaL in March, which should make for interesting listening. I like how he talks about music (as opposed to the babbling-with-excessive-hyperbole of Tom Service). I wonder if we could petition to replace The Listening Service with SJ's Discovering Music. Just a thought.

Agreed on all points!

I also like the way SJ cut through the AMcG mannerism of asking a question then linking with the word 'because' to a long explanation of his own views, which often seriously erodes the time available to the contributor to speak. A couple of times SJ responded immediately to the question, quite rightly speaking over AMcG's 'because....' - which led to a much more dynamic and interesting discussion.

[Thropplenoggin]

Agreed on all points!

I also like the way SJ cut through the AMcG mannerism of asking a question then linking with the word 'because' to a long explanation of his own views, which often seriously erodes the time available to the contributor to speak. A couple of times SJ responded immediately to the question, quite rightly speaking over AMcG's 'because....' - which led to a much more dynamic and interesting discussion.

The 'cross-talk' in AMcG's two-fer sections always makes me cringe. If you invite a guest on, surely it's to hear them speak. It's not as if AMcG doesn't have ample time to air his own views in the show.