What Classical Music Are You listening to Now? III

[DoctorT]

Mendelssohn
Symphony no. 3 ‘Scottish’
Swedish CO/Thomas Dausgaard
Thanks to Andrew McGregor for highlighting this one this morning

[RichardB]

James Dillon - East 11th St NY 10003, Window and Canopy and La Femme Invisible - Music Projects/London under Richard Bernas

Although the works on this disk are in varying degrees fairly elusive, overall I enjoyed listening to them. While Dillon eschews things like themes and it wouldn't be wrong to describe his music as atonal, nevertheless generally his music here as elsewhere (some tendencies towards flux and chaos notwithstanding) is quite soft-edged which I think is owing towards his penchant for spectral harmonies or similar.

Elusive is a very good word for James's music! I've always liked Windows and Canopies but on the other hand I often struggle with works for percussion ensemble (apart from the one by Jo Kondo I mentioned in my previous post), especially when the music isn't rhythmically motivated, it often becomes just a changing mix of more or less familiar sonorities. Actually everything on that CD (one of the first releases on NMC) would count as "early works" now. The recent ones are no less elusive though.

[Bryn]

Which includes Debussy's 'other' Chansons de Bilitis with Delphine Seyrig.

[Mandryka]

via Qobuz: orchestral works by Jo Kondo, with the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra conducted by Paul Zukofsky.

Very nice to see these rare LPs on the CP2 (that's "squared" rather than "two") label turning up on Qobuz. I've admired Jo Kondo's music for many years but I hadn't heard any of his music for orchestra before. If I say it's texturally a bit like Feldman and harmonically a bit like Messiaen that doesn't really cover what's special about these pieces. They have the timbral sensitivity of Takemitsu but in the form of blocks and washeds of sound rather than interweaving melodies. The last piece on the disc, Under the Umbrella, sounds like it's for prepared piano but it's actually for a percussion ensemble all playing cowbells. Highly recommended... and Kondo's chamber and piano music is very much worth investigating as well.

One recording I really like is by Bozzini Quartet - two pieces by Kondo and two by Skempton.

[Mandryka]

James Dillon - East 11th St NY 10003, Window and Canopy and La Femme Invisible - Music Projects/London under Richard Bernas

Although the works on this disk are in varying degrees fairly elusive, overall I enjoyed listening to them. While Dillon eschews things like themes and it wouldn't be wrong to describe his music as atonal, nevertheless generally his music here as elsewhere (some tendencies towards flux and chaos notwithstanding) is quite soft-edged which I think is owing towards his penchant for spectral harmonies or similar. To this listener the features that stand out the most are generally textural such as the string writing in Window and Canopy, in which each player has an independent part which often calls for some unusual technique, or glissandi reminiscent of Xenakis. And, as the booklet notes state, the influence of Varese is there. Generally I find the sound of his music attractive ... it's quite elusive though, more listening required - certainly for the latter two pieces, both for chamber ensembles (the first piece is for six percussionists).

I think the late quartets are very fine, 8 is a particular favourite if mine, 9 also exceptional IMO, they’re on YouTube. He said in an interview that he uses string quartets to experiment with ideas for large scale pieces, but I think the quartets are some of his best work. He gets lots of support from Arditti in this, hopefully one day they’ll release them all like they did for Ferneyhough.

[Mandryka]

Listening to L’Archubudelli play the Brahms op 36 sextet. I like this music and would appreciate recommendations for other interesting ones to hear.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fd3Cu6m6srs

[Joseph K]

I think the late quartets are very fine, 8 is a particular favourite if mine, 9 also exceptional IMO, they’re on YouTube. He said in an interview that he uses string quartets to experiment with ideas for large scale pieces, but I think the quartets are some of his best work. He gets lots of support from Arditti in this, hopefully one day they’ll release them all like they did for Ferneyhough.

Explore Ensemble has just released videos of their performance of Systema naturæ:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUWITEG1WlSUYsnYE9V6FuwBQLLzu48hZ

[Mario]

VAUGHAN WILLIAMS R

Fantasia on a theme by Thomas Tallis

Comparing

Sinfonia of London – Barbirolli Sir J
LPO – Handley V
NBC S O – Toscanini A (1938)
New Queen’s Hall O – Wordsworth B

Mario

[BBMmk2]

Carrying on with my theme today celebrating the 150 Anniversary of RVW’s birth. Or as I’m calling it RVW 150.

Ralph Vaughan Williams
The Symphonies
CD 1
A Sea Symphony
(Yvonne Kenney, soprano,
Brian Rayner Cook, baritone,
London Symphony Orchestra & Chorus
Bryden Thomson
CD 2
A London Symphony (Symphony No.2)
CD 3
Symphony No.3 (A Pastoral Symphony)*
Symphony No.4 in F minor
CD 4
Symphony No.5 in D major
Symphony No.6 in E minor
CD 5
Symphony No.7 (Sinfonia Antarctica) *
Symphony No.9 in E minor
*Catherine Bott (soprano)
London Symphony Orchestra & Chorus (women’s voices)
Bryden Thomson.

[Mandryka]

There are three Jo Kondo pieces. Two of them use the sort of Feldman harmonies which I really don’t like - so I’ll pass. The third is astonishingly original - it’s called Mr Bloomfield, his spacing. It is music from Mars. Feldman said “ There's a young man by the name of Jo Kondo. And he's Japanese and I would say that he's going to be the Webern of the nineties. Very strange stuff.” - well Mr Bloomfield shows he was no fool, Feldman.

[RichardB]

Listening to L’Archubudelli play the Brahms op 36 sextet. I like this music and would appreciate recommendations for other interesting ones to hear.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fd3Cu6m6srs

Well, obviously there's the op.18 sextet, which I prefer, but most of Brahms is a closed book to me.

[Bryn]

Explore Ensemble has just released videos of their performance of Systema naturæ:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...6FuwBQLLzu48hZ

Thanks. A pity the audio is restricted to 96kbps AAC-LC though. Still, better than nothing.

[jayne lee wilson]

Listening to L’Archubudelli play the Brahms op 36 sextet. I like this music and would appreciate recommendations for other interesting ones to hear.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fd3Cu6m6srs

One of my 2021 Records of the Year, a young group, unwound gut strings and classical bows played with great freedom (portamento-rubato), outstanding in every way.....

https://www.qobuz.com/gb-en/album/brahms-the-string-quartets-string-quintet-no-2-dudok-quartet-amsterdam-lilli-maijala/nulqmglde5p7b

The Op.51 Quartets are lifelong icons for me. Rarely heard them better done; the C Minor is simply one of the greatest of all string quartets (as vital to Brahms, re. Beethoven's Shadow, as the Symphony NO.1), an amazing piece.

[cloughie]

Carrying on with my theme today celebrating the 150 Anniversary of RVW’s birth. Or as I’m calling it RVW 150.

Ralph Vaughan Williams
The Symphonies
CD 1
A Sea Symphony
(Yvonne Kenney, soprano,
Brian Rayner Cook, baritone,
London Symphony Orchestra & Chorus
Bryden Thomson
CD 2
A London Symphony (Symphony No.2)
CD 3
Symphony No.3 (A Pastoral Symphony)*
Symphony No.4 in F minor
CD 4
Symphony No.5 in D major
Symphony No.6 in E minor
CD 5
Symphony No.7 (Sinfonia Antarctica) *
Symphony No.9 in E minor
*Catherine Bott (soprano)
London Symphony Orchestra & Chorus (women’s voices)
Bryden Thomson.

Great cycle - BT was a very good conductor!

[RichardB]

One of my 2021 Records of the Year, a young group, unwound gut strings and classical bows played with great freedom (portamento-rubato), outstanding in every way.....

This recording is even as I write unlocking the op.51 quartets for me, just like Leila Schayegh's recording of the violin sonatas did. I think my problem is that I don't hear "more vibrato" as more expressive but just as something that gets in the way, as opposed to the way the Dudok Quartet approach the expressivity of Brahms which makes so much more sense to me. This one went under the radar until today, thanks Jayne.