What Classical Music Are You listening to Now? III

[Bryn]

On a whim, Charles Ives: Piano Sonata No. 2 'Concord, Mass.' (John Kirkpatrick, the 1968 stereo recording). I normally choose a recording with the optional flute and viola but this is very much to my liking. Really poetic touch and voicing. Looking forward to the related Ives improvisations, etc. which follow on this Sony CD.

[Stanfordian]

‘Si j'ai aimé…’ – Sandrine Piau
14 Orchestral Mélodies by Berlioz, Saint-Saëns, Bordes, Dubois, Vierne, Martini & Guilmant
4 Orchestral Pieces by Pierné, Duparc, Godard & Massenet
Sandrine Piau (soprano)
Le Concert de la Loge / Julien Chauvin (violin)
Recorded 2018, Arsenal-Cité Musicale de Metz
Alpha Classics, CD

[smittims]

Keeping up my love of variety (thats not 'Variety') in my listening I heard this morning

Messiaen: Eclairs sur Au-dela : Bastille opera orch/ Chung

Schumann: Piano concerto. Hans Richter-Haaser ( pianist I think underrated), Vienna S.O. Moralt.

[BBMmk2]

Carrying on with my theme, celebrating the BBC orchestras.

First up, the BBC Symphony Orchestra.

Dora Pejačević
Piano Concerto, Op.33
Symphony in F# minor, Op.41
Peter Donohoe (piano)
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Sakari Oramo.

British Piano Concertos
John Addison
Wellington Suite
Arthur Benjamin
Concertino for Piano & Orchestra
Elizabeth Maconchy
Concertino No.2 for Piano & String Orchestra
Humphrey Searle
Concertante for Piano, Strings & Percussion
Geoffrey Bush
A Little Concerto on Themes by Thomas Arne
Simon Callaghan (piano)
BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Martyn Brabbins

[smittims]

The Benjamin Concertino is a lovely work which deserves to be more played. I think it's a sign of the backwardness of musical taste in England when it was first played that it was described as 'Jazz-influenced'. Anyone who knows what Jazz is wouldn't think so. The long melody which comes gradiually to dominate the work is almost pure Vaughan Williams.

[Pulcinella]

RVW
Symphony 3 (Pastoral)
Symphony 4
LSO/Previn

I'd forgotten how good these versions were.
Listening on headphones to iPod; the old CD single that I copied must have had odd tracking, as S4 seems only to have three tracks rather than the four now used for the version in the box set I now have.

[Mandryka]

17 minutes worth of Kagel's Acustica performed by Apartment House -- this is a fun recording to explore.

https://musicwedliketohear.bandcamp.com/album/music-wed-like-to-hear-podcast-1-apartment-house-another-timbre

[smittims]

Hi, Pulcinella, you may know that those Previn recordings (and others including his Walton first) were made by Decca for RCA, at Kingsway Hall by, anong others , Veteran Decca engineer Kenneth Wilkinson. No wonder they're so good.

Apropos the fourth in three tracks, I recall a TV documentrary where Previn made it clear he considered what he called the 'scherzo, finale and fugue' to be one movement . I was interested to see that he asked for all the instrumental soloists in the 'Pastoral' to be named on the sleeve; rare at that time.

[Pulcinella]

Hi, Pulcinella, you may know that those Previn recordings (and others including his Walton first) were made by Decca for RCA, at Kingsway Hall by, anong others , Veteran Decca engineer Kenneth Wilkinson. No wonder they're so good.

Apropos the fourth in three tracks, I recall a TV documentrary where Previn made it clear he considered what he called the 'scherzo, finale and fugue' to be one movement . I was interested to see that he asked for all the instrumental soloists in the 'Pastoral' to be named on the sleeve; rare at that time.

New information on both fronts there: thanks!

[BBMmk2]

RVW
Symphony 3 (Pastoral)
Symphony 4
LSO/Previn

I'd forgotten how good these versions were.
Listening on headphones to iPod; the old CD single that I copied must have had odd tracking, as S4 seems only to have three tracks rather than the four now used for the version in the box set I now have.

This whole set is very good. Strongly recommend, if you haven’t the others!

A friend of mine layer ties fascinating recording, yesterday.

Theme & Variations
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Jap van Steen

[Pulcinella]

This whole set is very good. Strongly recommend, if you haven’t the others!

A friend of mine layer ties fascinating recording, yesterday.

Theme & Variations
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Jap van Steen

The clue was in the 'the box set I now have'.


That NMC CD is indeed fascinating:
Variations on an Elizabethan theme (Sellinger's Round)
Severn Bridge Variations
Variations on Sumer is icumen in.

According to the liner notes, none of the audience at the Aldeburgh premiere of the Elizabethan piece, given the names of the composers, got the attributions right!

[BBMmk2]

The clue was in the 'the box set I now have'.


That NMC CD is indeed fascinating:
Variations on an Elizabethan theme (Sellinger's Round)
Severn Bridge Variations
Variations on Sumer is icumen in.

According to the liner notes, none of the audience at the Aldeburgh premiere of the Elizabethan piece, given the names of the composers, got the attributions right!

Oh dear!


With yesterday’s date, being the first anniversary of the passing of Bernard Haitink, the rest of the weekend I’ll be taken up with this fabulous set, that I have.

Bernard Haitink- Portrait
CD 1
Beethoven
Missa Solemnis, Op.123
Genia Kühmeier (soprano)
Elisabeth Kulman (mezzo-soprano)
Mark Padmore (tenor)
Hanno Müller-Brachman (bass)
Chor und Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Bernard Haitink

Bruckner
CD 2
Symphony No.5 in Bb major (1875-1878 Nowak Edition)
Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Bernard Haitink

CD 3
Symphony No.6 in A major
Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Bernard Haitink

[smittims]

There was an amusing sequel to the 1953 'Sellinger's Round' variations.

Some time later Tippett, perhaps feeling it would otherwise be forgotten, re-used his movement as part of his Divertimento , as he was perfectly entitled to do. He then received a very hurt letter from Britten implying that he should have asked permission. Needless to say, Tipett thought this a ridiculous stance to take.

[Pulcinella]

There was an amusing sequel to the 1953 'Sellinger's Round' variations.

Some time later Tippett, perhaps feeling it would otherwise be forgotten, re-used his movement as part of his Divertimento , as he was perfectly entitled to do. He then received a very hurt letter from Britten implying that he should have asked permission. Needless to say, Tipett thought this a ridiculous stance to take.

Britten could be extraordinarily 'precious' at times, it would appear!
Great piece, the Tippett, and certainly worthy of reuse of the material.
I wonder why there aren't more recordings of it.

[smittims]

Yes, I think his 'variation' is easily the best of the original set. It was an inspiration to work Dido's 'Ah Belinda' into it, though it's often confused radio announcers into calling it 'Dido's Lament' ( 'When I am laid in earth' , which of course comes later in Purcell's opera)