What Classical Music Are You listening to Now? III

[MickyD]

That would indeed be great. Sadly Rondeau has already said in the past that he is not really interested in doing intégrales - having seen his brilliant version of the Fandango on YouTube, he would be perfect for the Soler sonatas.
His latest disc, Gradus ad Parnassum is terrific.

[RichardB]

His latest disc, Gradus ad Parnassum is terrific.

I found it interesting but too “curated” for my liking. But I found that actually I do have the van Asperen set of Soler in my archives, albeit in 320kbps mp3 form but I can’t complain, the playing and recording and instruments are all excellent.

[Pulcinella]

Strauss
Ariadne auf Naxos

Deborah Cook (soprano), Walter Berry (bass), Gerhard Unger (tenor), Alfred Sramek (bass), Manfred Jungwirth (bass), Georg Tichy (bass), Heinz Zednik (tenor), Norma Burrowes (soprano), Erich Kunz (baritone), Tatiana Troyanos (mezzo-soprano), Peter Weber (tenor), René Kollo (tenor), Enid Hartle (mezzo-soprano), Leontyne Price (soprano), Kurt Equiluz (tenor), Edita Gruberova (soprano), Barry McDaniel (baritone)
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Sir Georg Solti
Recorded: 1977-11-27
Recording Venue: Kingsway Hall, London

Despite an attractive looking cast, not one of Solti's (or Decca's) finest.

[Sir Velo]

His latest disc, Gradus ad Parnassum is terrific.

I have to agree; and how good to hear a Haydn sonata played on the type of instrument for which it was written! Listening blind, my initial thoughts were "Scarlatti?" No, clearly not, but turning to the liner notes, all was revealed. Undoubtedly a highlight of the whole release, and for me the best Haydn keyboard recording since Francesco Corti.

I rather think Rondeau is going to go on giving us these themed discs. I, for one, find it stimulating.

[smittims]

I suppose 'Ariadne' is a cult opera. Some people love it to bits, adore it. I used to be a big fan of Strauss' operas but this is the one I could never enjoy, despite having heard some wonderful interpretations, such as the pioneer Karajan/Schwarzkopf recording and a fine Vienna Philharmonic with Leinsdorf. I always feel there's something unsatisfactory, unfinished, about it which I can't quite put my finger on.

[silvestrione]

Latest Gramophone has a 'Collection' piece, very full and thorough (on the selected discography) on Sibelius Sym 4. So I listened to the overall recommeneded one, Karajan/BPO DG.

I hadn't listened to this work at all for some years. What a piece it is! Dark and mysterious, almost wandering, with terrifying outbursts, Tapiola-like...

He specifically says, get the 2003 remastering, but my CD is the 'Originals' issue, and I thought the recording and sound stunning.

[Pulcinella]

Latest Gramophone has a 'Collection' piece, very full and thorough (on the selected discography) on Sibelius Sym 4. So I listened to the overall recommeneded one, Karajan/BPO DG.

I hadn't listened to this work at all for some years. What a piece it is! Dark and mysterious, almost wandering, with terrifying outbursts, Tapiola-like...

He specifically says, get the 2003 remastering, but my CD is the 'Originals' issue, and I thought the recording and sound stunning.

Intrigued enough to try to find and stream this; how does HvK treat the 'Glocken' dilemma: bells or glockenspiel?
Maybe the article tells us: my copy hasn't arrived yet.

[smittims]

I'm afraid it just sounds like a glockenspiel; rather disappointing, given that on his 1952 Columbia recording he seemed to use the 'little bells' Walter Legge allegedly got from the composer for Beecham's 78s. In his 1976 recording Herbert again seems content with a glockenspiel.

One thing that's always struck me about the DG recording (which i have in the DG Originals 2-disc set) is the very full volume of sound the orchestra produces, a contrast to the undeniably 'thinner' sound of the Philharmonia. I wonder if this is why Herbert recorded no Bruckner and only one short piece by Wagner during his Philharmonia years.

[Petrushka]

Intrigued enough to try to find and stream this; how does HvK treat the 'Glocken' dilemma: bells or glockenspiel.

Sibelius lived until 1957. You'd think that someone would have asked him for a definitive answer to this question wouldn't you?

[Jonathan]

Yesterday evening, Litolff's Piano Trios on Hyperion. Really splendid works all round.

[silvestrione]

Intrigued enough to try to find and stream this; how does HvK treat the 'Glocken' dilemma: bells or glockenspiel?
Maybe the article tells us: my copy hasn't arrived yet.

Yes the article goes into this issue, saying that Sibelius eventually definitively said he wanted glockenspiel, and so the reviewer dismisses all the recordings that use tubular, bells, Bernstein amongst them.

[smittims]

Well, Petrushka, Walter Legge maintained that when he produced the 1937 recording with Beecham he did ask Sibelius what sort of bells he wanted and Sib described, or even sent, the three small bells one can hear on the Beecham 78s. If this isn't quite true (and some of Legge's anecdotes have that flavour about them) then the question remains where those bells came from.

One can hardly blame conductors who used standard orchestral tubular bells; they could blame Sib. for not being more explicit in the score! I've heard some (Colin Davis?) who have both bells and glockenspiel playing in octaves, which I think sounds rather nice.

[pastoralguy]

Bartok. Violin Concerto No.2

Igor Oistrakh, violin. The Moscow Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Gennady Rozdestvensky.

Vinyl Lp.

[Bryn]

On a whim, Beethoven's Op. 37 piano concerto in its earlier 5-octave version (Arthur Schoonderwoerd & Cristofori). Very different from the classic Annie Fischer/Ferenc Fricsay. The booklet notes are excellent.

[smittims]

I've been re-exploring an 'Intensemedia' box of Lorin Maazel's early recordings, today Schubert's unfinished and sixth and fifth symphonies.
Are there any Maazel fans here? I've never thought him more than competent, but it's interesting that DG thought enough of him to let him make so many recordings with the Berlin Philharmonic when he was not quite 30. At any rate, these 1960-ish recordings of symphonies from Mozart to Tchaikovsky are fresh and enjoyable.