New releases

[pastoralguy]

Her Wigmore Hall concert of the 'Goldberg's' got a poor review in The Times so it must have been been outstanding...

My copy arrived yesterday but, alas, I've not had the time to listen to it yet.

[pastoralguy]

My copy arrived yesterday but, alas, I've not had the time to listen to it yet.

Listening to this now. A very intimate and thoughtful recording imho. Well worth hearing.

[PJPJ]

Listening to this now. A very intimate and thoughtful recording imho. Well worth hearing.

I acquired an off-air recording from a festival in Montpellier and loved Rana's playing. The studio recording is on my to-get list.

[Stanfordian]

Listening to this now. A very intimate and thoughtful recording imho. Well worth hearing.

Hiya pastoralguy,

I am enjoying the album greatly.

[pastoralguy]

Hiya pastoralguy,

I am enjoying the album greatly.

[cloughie]

Whilst browsing forthcoming releases I was checking on the progress of Slatkin's Ravel on Naxos and an April release is Antar incidental music based on orchetral music by Rimsky Korsakov. Has anyone on these boards come across this music before? I see there is a narrator and a mezzo on the recording but the latter may just be on the Scheherazade coupling. I shall certainly look to buy out of curiousity. Budget label Naxos once the under a fiver bargain now over the years have increased by 50%, or even more by the looks, but I guess still good value but £20 now buys less than 3 instead of 4!

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zo7q0Ig25VM

[Jonathan]

Really looking forward to the next volume of the ongoing Liszt Naxos piano music, the Douze Grandes etudes...it's out on the 15Mar.

[pastoralguy]

Two CDs for me. Schubert. 'Death and the Maiden'

Patricia Kopatchinskaja and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. An unusual disc where Schubert's masterpiece is interjected by works by Nörmiger, Dowland, Gesualdo, Kurtag and anonymous. I'm not sure how I'll listen to it but I'm prepared to follow PatKop's programme at least once. Although I don't always agree with PatKop's concepts I have such respect for her as an artist that I'm prepared to try her recipe.

The other cd are the Brahms' String Sextets . The Cypress String Quartet with Barry Shiffman, viola and Zuill Bailey, 'cello. This was the Quartet's last recording and has disbanded. Alas, I've read two reviews in Gramophone and BBC MM which are hardly glowing. Still, I'll listen myself and make up my own mind.

[AmpH]

VPO 175th Anniversary Edition

http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/DG/4797090

Slated for release 17 March 2017

[silvestrione]

Stravinsky The Soldiers Tale Manson Ensemble Oliver Knussen Linn
STRAVINSKY The Soldier’s Tale. Dame Harriet Walter, Harrison Birtwistle, George Benjamin, Royal Academy of Music Manson Ensemble / Oliver Knussen. Linn

Anyone understand this? Are Birtwistle and Benjamin playing on this disc (or speaking?)?

It includes some small pieces by Birtwistle, but nothing by Benjamin is listed.

It's from the MDT pre-release list.

[vinteuil]

.

from the prestoclassical site :


Stravinsky:
L'Histoire du Soldat
Harrison Birtwistle (The Soldier), George Benjamin (The Devil), Dame Harriet Walter (narrator)
Fanfare for a New Theatre

Royal Academy of Music, Oliver Knussen
For his debut recording with Linn, conductor Oliver Knussen has assembled an impressive cast of contemporary composers for The Soldier's Tale: Harrison Birtwistle as the soldier and George Benjamin as the Devil, with actress Dame Harriet Walter as the narrator. The longest work on this disc, The Soldier's Tale mixes fiendishly difficult changes of time signature with Stravinsky's newly discovered love of jazz with melodies which echo his larger pre-war scores. It is also a work that demonstrates immense clarity and moving simplicity at times, and a sardonic wit at others.

With such a starry cast this recording will be of particular interest to those with an interest in contemporary music, especially considering the addition of two new Birtwistle world premiere versions of Chorale from a Toy Shop written specially for the recording.

The rest of the programme includes an exquisite Knussen arrangement of Maxwell Davies' Canon ad honorem Igor Stravinsky, intermixed with Stravinsky's own late commemorative miniatures.

And on amazon, details on back of disc :

http://amzn.eu/5cVLHbT

[Bryn]

Stravinsky The Soldiers Tale Manson Ensemble Oliver Knussen Linn
STRAVINSKY The Soldier’s Tale. Dame Harriet Walter, Harrison Birtwistle, George Benjamin, Royal Academy of Music Manson Ensemble / Oliver Knussen. Linn

Anyone understand this? Are Birtwistle and Benjamin playing on this disc (or speaking?)?

It includes some small pieces by Birtwistle, but nothing by Benjamin is listed.

It's from the MDT pre-release list.

More info here.

Booklet here.

[While it looks like a 'must get' I am torn between waiting for a lower priced CD option in a few months via Amazon/Ebay or stumping up for a high definition download from the Linn site.]

[Pulcinella]

Apologies if this duplicates information already given in the links, which I've not checked out, but the Gramophone (March 2017) review says that the original plan had been to have PMD involved, but he was too ill to take part, and George Benjamin stepped in.

Also mentions different text than we may be used to (sadly missing in the booklet), but gives a general thumbs up.

[ostuni]

Thanks for posting links to the booklet, Bryn. I see that the original casting was going to feature Max's Devil opposite Harry's Soldier: such a shame that Max's final illness ruled this out - it would have been perfect!