BaL 12.02.11 Brahms's Four Serious Songs

[Barbirollians]

Ferrier in the Sargent orchestration. Otherwise I tend to agree with E.M .Forster's description of them in " Howard's End"

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

E.A., Do you think an advance listing of only the works to be heard and discussed on the programme would cause problems? I would think listeners understand that time limitations allow the host to select those performances which s/he considers worthy of consideration. Listeners are given complete playlists for all other R 3 programmes; why is this one hour exempt?

That would indeed be helpful for listeners. Perhaps the least controversial way would be for the reviewer to "come clean" at the beginning of the programme, stating which versions were being considered - better than keeping listeners on tenderhooks, wondering whether or not a particular version would be mentioned. As for listeners being given complete playlists for all other Radio 3 programmes, only a genuinely psychic fortune teller can know what's going to be played on weekday mornings and throughout most of Sunday.

[salymap]

Ferrier in the Sargent orchestration. Otherwise I tend to agree with E.M .Forster's description of them in " Howard's End"

Please Barbirollians,put me out of my misery. What was the description in 'Howards End'?

[JimD]

Please Barbirollians,put me out of my misery. What was the description in 'Howards End'?

Then the Four Serious Songs rang shallow in Margaret's ears. Brahms, for all his grumbling and grizzling, had never guessed what it felt like to be suspected of stealing an umbrella. Chapter 5.

http://www.online-literature.com/forster/howards_end/5/

But I must question whether it is fair to attribute the views of an author's character to that author.

[DracoM]

So at 9.37, a handful of minutes in from the start do we get a sighting of the eventual winner, or close ot it?

[verismissimo]

It's Hotter and Gerhaher for me. And so different from each other.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Thomas Quasthoff -recommended. Does anyone know this version?

[DracoM]

Convince me: I listened so as to learn why a complete BAL had been given over to these four songs, and to be honest, remained unmoved.

For me, they came over as a real gloomfest. Are they really worth lauding / collecting?

Are the on a par with the Strauss, or am I listening with thew wrong ears?

[Roehre]

Convince me: I listened so as to learn why a complete BAL had been given over to these four songs, and to be honest, remained unmoved.

For me, they came over as a real gloomfest. Are they really worth lauding / collecting?

Are the on a par with the Strauss, or am I listening with thew wrong ears?

They are on par with the Strauss, but of course there is one difference: the Serious songs are piano accompanied songs (though orchestrations do exist: Sargent 1948, Leinsdorf 1952, Glanert 2005) on liturgical texts, the Last Songs are orchestral songs on reflective poetry.
The Serious songs developed and culminated from Brahms' slightly earlier works for clarinet, especially the trio opus 114, thereby stressing the intimate character of these songs once again.

[ostuni]

I suppose they're on a par inasmuch as apples and oranges are on a par... Actually, given the richness of Strauss's orchestration, maybe apples and Apfelstrudel is a better analogy?

Seriously (pun intended), I'm looking forward to getting to know these better; I've just listened properly to Wigmore's review (as ever with him, excellent), downloaded the dots from imslp, and got out the Quasthoff cd, which I already owned. I'd bought it for the Schwanengesang (a Gramophone covermount of ?der Atlas when it first appeared made it a must-buy for me), and hadn't yet got around to the Brahms.

[Urlicht]

I have Gerhaher and Ferrier (piano accompaniment) and am not convinced of the need to rush out and buy others.

[rank_and_file]

I've just listened properly to Wigmore's review (as ever with him, excellent).

Agree entirely.

[Karafan]

Richard Wigmore (splendid reviewer that he is) mentioned that the Fischer-Dieskau recording with Barenboim was DF-D's only currently available recording. But is he in error, here? It was once available in that chocolate brown Brahms DG box but that is nla and I don't think there is a recording of him with Barenboim now in the catalogue...unless of course any of my learned friends out there can put me right?

Bws
Karafan

[Karafan]

Bump! No-one know about the DF-D/Barenboim recording, then?

Bws
K.