Great Elgar recordings

[Keraulophone]

I know it's a minority opinion, but I enjoy Bernstein's Enigma when I'm in the right mood.

I taped the live broadcast but hardly ever played it, recalling the pained look on the face of that put-upon principal viola in the TV doc. Years later I recklessly spent a couple of quid of hard-earned cash on the DG issue, but I'm still waiting to be in the 'right' mood to play it.

[Cheapskater]

[QUOTE=salymap;303919] The Violin Sonata and String Quartet with Hugh Bean,David Parkhouse and the Music Group of London Quartet.
[QUOTE]

(also the Violin Concerto with Hugh Bean)
Cheaps.

[Barbirollians]

The Sinopoli recordings are cheap on the tax dodgers site . I might give them a punt .

[BBMmk2]

I rather like Richard Hickox's Dream of Gerontius, I also Have Marki Elder's The Apostle's and Barbirolli's doG,a s well, ah let alone those reocrdings on the EMI Elgar's Collection!

[pastoralguy]

I rather like Richard Hickox's Dream of Gerontius, I also Have Marki Elder's The Apostle's and Barbirolli's doG,a s well, ah let alone those reocrdings on the EMI Elgar's Collection!

Gerontius was a work that remained a closed book for me for many years until I heard (then bought) the Hickox recording. It was, for me, as if a light had been shone on a dark corner.

[amateur51]

I rather like Richard Hickox's Dream of Gerontius, I also Have Marki Elder's The Apostle's

Marki Elder?!? - - who knew?

[Lordgeous]

Does no-one else rate the Briitten Gerontious???

[pastoralguy]

Does no-one else rate the Briitten Gerontious???

Frankly, I was put off it after the Prelude where Britten re- writes the timpani part to spill over the bar lines. And, in my opinion, Peter Pears sounds more constipated than usual.

So, no, I don't rate it at all.

[amateur51]

Does no-one else rate the Briitten Gerontious???

My favourite in the recorded performance by Sir Malcolm Sargent with Heddle Nash, closely followed by the Britten and the two recordings by Barbirolli (with Richard Lewis and Jon Vickers), Lordgeous

[BBMmk2]

Marki Elder?!? - - who knew?

Or Sir Mark Elder!! :)

[salymap]

My favourite in the recorded performance by Sir Malcolm Sargent with Heddle Nash, closely followed by the Britten and the two recordings by Barbirolli (with Richard Lewis and Jon Vickers), Lordgeous

yes ams.heads up for Heddle. Hearing him first and LIVE, he will always be Gerontius to me. Richard Lewis with Sargent [1954] my second choice.

[amateur51]

Or Sir Mark Elder!! :)

Marki Elder made me laugh, BBM

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Does no-one else rate the Briitten Gerontious???

It's there as my number 1 version in the opening post.
It's only drawback is some nasty overloading in the Demons' Chorus by the normally excellent Decca engineers. The interpretation is magnificent and all three soloists are excellent. Barbirolli's is a close runner-up though.

[Pabmusic]

It's there as my number 1 version in the opening post.
It's only drawback is some nasty overloading in the Demons' Chorus by the normally excellent Decca engineers. The interpretation is magnificent and all three soloists are excellent. Barbirolli's is a close runner-up though.

It is good. If only Britten hadn't chosen to rescore the Prelude. It was all based on a faulty understanding of Elgar's squiggles for bass drum rolls. Britten had seen the autograph score and believed that Elgar's rolls actually crossed the barline. Well, the trill sign does, barely. But you only have to listen to Elgar's live recording from the RAH to know what was intended.

[Lordgeous]

Interesting. Also interesting that he chose to record it at all, or was Pears influential in that respect? I was brought up on the Sargent but thrilled by the Britten on first hearing. Re the Prelude, did I read somewhere that there were many, many takes of it before Britten was satisfied??? Sorry I didnt notice the first recommendation E A.