BaL 15.03.25 - Dvořák: Symphony 8

[richardfinegold]

Tully Potter, hmm, yes: a piece of his in the Gramophone recently, on Kyung-Wha Chung, spends too much time on her attractiveness (good looks I mean), and stoops as low as saying 'the VPO are wasted on Sir Simon Rattle', re their Beethoven disc. An unnecessary casual insult. Poorly edited on this occasion, as I mostly enjoy the magazine these days.

Apologies to James Galway. I remembered the name after I'd posted, and did start to worry I'd got his nationality wrong. Thanks to Pulcinella for the research.

I thought that you were being sarcastic when you alluded to Galway being English
. Didn’t Tully Potter and makropolous coexist at one time on the much lamented IRR? I much miss Makropolus columns from that magazine . TP has impressive knowledge of historic recordings but tends to spray a few stray bullets in his judgements. As he noted in his post he wasn’t being 100% attentive to the broadcast so yes he might have missed the discussion about portamento

[makropulos]

I have never got this Rowicki is better than Kertesz idea . Rob Cowan has peddled it in Gramophone for years . When The Rowicki set was released a few years ago quite cheaply I invested in it .

Kertesz for me in every symphony - better played and much more my kind of Dvorak - more affectionate and emotional.

I completely agree with you! I had the Rowicki set, but found nothing in it that Kertesz or Kubelík (or Otmar Suitner – a very good cycle) didn't do better in terms of playing and interpretative imagination. It seems to have acquired mythic status, but I honestly can't understand why.

[silvestrione]

I thought that you were being sarcastic when you alluded to Galway being English
.

Eh? Does sarcasm work differently in the USA?

[Ein Heldenleben]

... yes, a Belfast boy who sees his national identity as Irish - but who is happy to receive an Order of the British Empire and a knighthood from the United Kingdom



.

He’s an admirably non-sectarian figure who to quote him :

”I have to say I'm very proud to be Irish, I can't imagine being anything else - I've still got my lilt!"

His background is Ulster Protestant ( his grandfather ran an Apprentice Boys Flute Band ) but he’s happy to be called Irish . There are thankfully many people like him. He deserves praise not scorn.

[Alison]

Like Hurwitz, Tully Potter specialises in cheap and unpleasant put downs, self evidently great musicians most at risk. Makes him feel better about himself perhaps.

[HighlandDougie]

Interesting to compare the Lucerne Festival performances of the Czech PO with George Szell and with Vaclav Neumann, as enthused about by Tully Potter. I found the latter just a touch torpid in the third movement to the extent that I began to lose interest in the performance (as in, "just get on with it!"), which is not the case with Szell. I may be biased in that I've never really been excited by Neumann in anything much, including the Martinů symphony cycle. It's OK but, like his Mahler, will never set my heather on fire.

[Barbirollians]

Always thought Neumann was not a patch on his predecessors.

[richardfinegold]

Interesting to compare the Lucerne Festival performances of the Czech PO with George Szell and with Vaclav Neumann, as enthused about by Tully Potter. I found the latter just a touch torpid in the third movement to the extent that I began to lose interest in the performance (as in, "just get on with it!"), which is not the case with Szell. I may be biased in that I've never really been excited by Neumann in anything much, including the Martinů symphony cycle. It's OK but, like his Mahler, will never set my heather on fire.

I asked TP on his fb his opinion of Szell in Dvorak 8 and he replied “to business like”. I kind of understand that but he still remains my favorite