What Classical Music Are You listening to Now? III

[Stanfordian]

‘War, Peace, Love and Sorrow’ - Dmitri Hvorostovsky
Opera scenes and arias
Prokofiev: War and Peace
Tchaikovsky: Mazeppa, Iolanta, Queen of Spades
Anton Rubinstein: The Demon
Dmitri Hvorostovsky (baritone)
Helikon Opera Chorus
State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia “Evgeny Svetlanov”/Constantine Orbelian
Recorded October 2015, Mosfilm Studios, Moscow
Delos

Richard Strauss
Ein Heldenleben, Op. 40
Tod und Verklärung, Op. 24
Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra/Kent Nagano
Recorded 2016, Gothenburg Concert Hall, Sweden
Farao Classics
New release – ‘Tod und Verklärung’ played in honour of Dmitri Hvorostovsky

[BBMmk2]

Hiya Stan, how's the Richard Strauss?

Yesterday:-
Handel
Ode on St Celia's Day
Felicity Lott, Anthony Rolfe |Johnson,
The English Concert & Choir,
Trevor Pinnock.

Today
Shostakovich
Symphony No.11 in G minor, Op.103, "The year 1905"
Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra,
Mark Wiggeslworth.

[Stanfordian]

Hiya Stan, how's the Richard Strauss?

Yesterday:-
Handel
Ode on St Celia's Day
Felicity Lott, Anthony Rolfe |Johnson,
The English Concert & Choir,
Trevor Pinnock.

Today
Shostakovich
Symphony No.11 in G minor, Op.103, "The year 1905"
Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra,
Mark Wiggeslworth.

Nagano's Strauss interpretations are stunning, as are several others in these works I admire namely Kempe, Böhm & Karajan. The Farao recording was a touch dry and over bright for my taste as these works, in my view, profit from a warmer sound.

[BBMmk2]

Nagano's Strauss interpretations are stunning, as are several others in these works I admire namely Kempe, Böhm & Karajan. The Farao recording was a touch dry and over bright for my taste as these works, in my view, profit from a warmer sound.

Tanks Stan. My favourite conductors in this repertoire, HvK and kempe. I have all the Kempe EMI discs. Fabulous they are.

Shostakovich
Symphony No.5 in d minor, Op.47.
BBC NOW mARK wIGGLESWORTH.

What a very good Shostakovich conductor MW is!

[pastoralguy]

Mozart. Piano Concerto no.20 in d minor. K.466

Howard Shelley, piano.

The London Mozart Players.

[Beef Oven!]

Béla Bartók String Quartet #2
Végh Quartet
Praga Digitals, GENUINE STEREO LAB


I can't quite smell the goulash dripping off the strings like some can, but it's quite good stuff all the same. At the moment, it's this set and the Heaths as joint go-tos in chez moi.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

This has received several plays over the past week:



A wonderful work in fifteen "movements" for solo violin and solo percussionist (playing Vibraphone, Bass drum, and - in two of the movements - gong). The movements are playable in any order - and each is like the parts of a life; connected to each other, full of subtle variety, interest, and then moving on to new areas of interest. They are connected by the limited timbral range of the two soloists, but even here - with the appearances of the gong - there are unexpected "interruptions"; like the discovery of unforeseen talents in a lifelong friend. And then it comes to a close, leaving a sense that it could continue further, and a wish that it would.

Like a good life, well lived.

Edit: I see that the cover photo isn't very clear - it's Linda Catlin Smith's Dirt Road, performed by Mira Benjamin (violin) & Simon Limbrick (percussion), on the Another Timbre label:

http://www.anothertimbre.com/linda_cs_dirtroad.html

[BBMmk2]

Beefy, thanks must play Bartok again. Much remiss. The trouble is, there's so much out there that I do rather like!

[Stanfordian]

Schumann
Symphonies No’s 1-4
San Francisco Symphony/Michael Tilson Thomas
Recorded live 2015/16 Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco
SFS Media - 2 SACDs – New release

[DoctorT]

Vaughan Williams
Serenade to Music
Partita for Double String Orchestra
Sinfonia Antarctica
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir and Orchestra
Alison Hargan, Ian Tracey
Vernon Handley

[Bryn]

With the chill in the air now getting more of a hold, Cage: Winter Music:

[Pulcinella]

Vaughan Williams
Serenade to Music
Partita for Double String Orchestra
Sinfonia Antarctica
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir and Orchestra
Alison Hargan, Ian Tracey
Vernon Handley

Not a fan of the choral version of the Serenade, but the Partita deserves to be better known (as does that of Walton) imo!

[Bryn]

Vaughan Williams
Serenade to Music
Partita for Double String Orchestra
Sinfonia Antarctica
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir and Orchestra
Alison Hargan, Ian Tracey
Vernon Handley

I think you may mean Sinfonia Antartica (only one c in RVW's spelling).

[Bryn]

To follow up the Cage: Winter Music, Linda Catlin Smith: Cantilena, and the rest of the Drifter double album:

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I returned home from Huddersfield last weekend with an armful of 15 Another Timbre releases, Bryn - the Cage and Smith issues included amongst them. All awaiting the end of the Festival to re-ignite the heady pleasures of this past week.