What Classical Music Are You listening to Now? III

[Cockney Sparrow]

Joyce El-Khoury - Écho
Opera arias from Donizetti Lucia di Lammermoor, Meyerbeer Robert le Diable,
Weber/Berlioz Le Freyschütz, Rossini Guillaume Tell, Hérold Le pré aux clercs,
Halévy La Juive, Berlioz Benvenuto Cellini
Joyce El-Khoury (soprano)
Hallé/Carlo Rizzi
with Michael Spyres (tenor)
Recorded 2017 The Stoller Hall, Chetham’s School of Music, Manchester
Opera Rara

Must listen to that recording ! She seemed pretty wonderful as Violetta at the R Opera House - so much so that we went on to see her in the role at Glyndebourne. What do you think of that recording? (I see its not on Naxos Music Library, so I can't try before I buy).

And also to say, Stanfordian I do note your vocal recital choices in particular - for example I thought Beczala in, IIRC, Romeo and Juliet at ROH was definitely a cut above. I haven't seen him on the casting lists at Covent Garden - I do hope he appears again in London / the UK.

[Stanfordian]

Must listen to that recording ! She seemed pretty wonderful as Violetta at the R Opera House - so much so that we went on to see her in the role at Glyndebourne. What do you think of that recording? (I see its not on Naxos Music Library, so I can't try before I buy).

And also to say, Stanfordian I do note your vocal recital choices in particular - for example I thought Beczala in, IIRC, Romeo and Juliet at ROH was definitely a cut above. I haven't seen him on the casting lists at Covent Garden - I do hope he appears again in London / the UK.

Hiya Cockney Sparrow,

These two newly released Opera Rara connected albums Joyce El-Khoury 'Écho' and Michael Spyres 'Espoir' are both quite excellent performances of mainly French operas. Of the two releases if I had to have just one it would be Joyce El-Khoury with 'Écho'. With El-Khoury I am often reminded of the voice of Angela Gheorghiu.

I am a great admirer of Piotr Beczała who I believe to be one of the finest opera performers around today. His voice is in exceptional form and he acts so well. I highly recommend his performance on DVD/Blu-ray of Verdi’s 'Un Ballo in maschera' on C Major and his Wagner 'Lohengrin' on Deutsche Grammophon.

[EdgeleyRob]

Vaughan Williams

All the Symphonies in 1.5 days

1 Slatkin
2 Previn
3 Manze
4 Haitink
5 Handley
6 Stokowski
7 Bakels
8 Barbirolli
9 Boult

[vinteuil]

Vaughan Williams

All the Symphonies in 1.5 days

1 Slatkin
2 Previn
3 Manze
4 Haitink
5 Handley
6 Stokowski
7 Bakels
8 Barbirolli
9 Boult

... are you feeling all right? Need a lie-down? Shall we call Nurse???


.

[EdgeleyRob]

... are you feeling all right? Need a lie-down? Shall we call Nurse???


.

[pastoralguy]

Brahms. String Sextets. Op. 18 & 36


Renaud Capuçon, violin
Christoph Koncz, violin
Géraud Causse, Viola
Marie Chilemme, Viola
Gautier Capuçon, 'cello
Clemens Hagen, 'cello.

ERATO.

I'm sure that in the not to distant future, someone will start a thread asking for members favourite CDs of 2017. I honestly think this'll be my number 1 disc.

Absolutely superb music making with a very fine recording too.

[Lat-Literal]

Dedicated by a listener with a long impressionable memory if not wholly a memory for every detail:

Niels Wilhelm Gade - Symphony No 1 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AalOD4mB2mQ
Johann Vanhal - Symphony in G Minor - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBUiNOiYGhE
Ottorino Respighi - The Pines of Rome - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvgyfqzLC0A
Jan V Voříšek - Symphony in D Major - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGTema63PWg

[Petrushka]

Inspired by another thread...

Hindemith: Mathis der Maler

[interval]

Mahler: Symphony No 1

London Symphony Orchestra
Jascha Horenstein

[Stanfordian]

Duruflé
Requiem for soloists, choir, organ and orchestra, Op. 9
Respighi
Concerto Gregoriano for violin and orchestra
Okka von der Damerau, mezzo-soprano
Ljubomir Puškaric, baritone
Uladzimir Sinkevich, cello
Max Hanft, organ
Henry Raudales, violin (Respighi)
Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks/Michael Gläser (chorus master)
Münchner Rundfunkorchester/Ivan Repušic
Recorded Live 2017 Herz-Jesu-Kirche, Munich
BR Klassik

Music for Wind Quintet
CD 1
Les Vents Français (French Wind Quintets)
Ibert, Ravel, Jolivet, Milhaud, Taffanel
CD 2
20th Century Wind Quintets
Ligeti, Zemlinsky, Barber, Sandor Veress, Hindemith
Les Vents Français featuring Emmanuel Pahud (flute)
Recorded 2011 Bavaria Musikstudios, Munich
Warner Classics

[pastoralguy]

Brahms. 'Double' Concerto for violin, 'cello and Orchestra

Joshua Bell, violin.

Steven Isserlis, 'cello.

The Academy of St. Martins in the Fields.

This performance of the concerto got a rather Luke-warm review in Gramophone, ('soggy' orchestral playing), but I'm rather enjoying it. Very fine playing from both soloists and the orchestra sounds pretty good to me. Not so happy with the recorded sound in the first movement which is, imho, a little shrill.

[Stanfordian]

Mendelssohn
Psalmen (Psalms)
Psalm 115, Non nobis Domine (Not unto us, O Lord) for soloists, choir and orchestra, Op. 31
Psalm 42, Wie der Hirsch schreit (As pants the hart) for soprano, choir and orchestra, Op. 42
Psalm 98, Singet dem Herren ein neues Lied (Sing to the Lord a new-made song) for soloists, choir and orchestra, Op. 91
Psalm 55, Hear my Prayer, hymn for soprano, choir and orchestra
Verleih uns Frieden gnädiglich (Give us Thy blessed peace) hymn for choir and orchestra (words by Martin Luther)
Johanna Winkel (soprano), Hanne Weber (alto), Julian Prégardien (tenor), Krešimir Stražanac (bass-baritone)
Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Münchner Rundfunkorchester/Howard Arman
Recorded live December 2016 Prinzregentheater, Munich
BR Klassik
Excellent new release!

Brahms
String Quartets No’s 1-3
Piano Quintet in F minor,
Emerson String Quartet with Leon Fleisher (piano)
Recorded 2005/07 American Academy of Arts & Letters, New York
Deutsche Grammophon

[BBMmk2]

ER, RVW Symphonies:
Looks rather a good cycle choice there! I will have tom think one up now!!

Gustav Mahler
Symphony No.8
Heather Harper, Lucia Popp, Arleen Auger,
Yvonne Minto, Helen Watts, Rene Kollo,
John Shirley-Quirk, Martti Talvela,
Wienna Staatsopenchor, Weiner Singerverein,
Wiener Sangerknaben, Chicago Symphony Orchestra,
Sir Georg Solti

Nigel Hess
The winds of Power.
London Symphonic Wind Orchestra, Nigel Hess.

[kea]

Some writers and musicologists maintain that Beethoven's late style was essentially conservative and highlight the importance of the amiable, the ordinary and the decorative within it, arguing that the sublimity of the late works comes not from their disruptive moments but from the everyday ones elevated to a higher plane by plenitude and juxtaposition. Op. 127 is interpreted in such a way as to give support to those writers.

In light of these interpretive ideas it is particularly disappointing that the Mosaïques did not record Op. 130 with the replacement finale, though they may simply not like it as music; it would fit their conception of Op. 130 better than the Grosse Fuge. Maybe the unresolved juxtaposition is the point for them, though.

edit: On reflection, I think they're making the point that the most disruptive elements even in the Grosse Fuge are built from ordinary things—the chromatic fugue subject just a decoration of a II-V-I cadence, the relentlessly dissonant fugal sections built on regular sequences, the episode just an ornamented descending scale, the enormous climax on Ab which is made to sound so discordant is simply a 6/4 chord and cadential trill. Also an important but small point is the lack of even the slightest ritardando before the final Bb major chord, something Mosaïques have in common with all the best versions.

I will also add that the Op. 132 and 135 are top-notch interpretations, though perhaps less dramatically contrasted than many people will be used to from e.g. the Busch Quartet.

Reserving judgment on Op. 131 so far.

The ensemble sounds great; this is real quartet playing, not four soloists, comparable in quality of ensemble work to the Hungarian I & II, Végh stereo & Talich cycles.

[Stanfordian]

Mozart - Opera Arias - Peter Schreier
Arias from Don Giovanni, La Clemenza di Tito, Die Entführung aus dem Serail
Cosi fan tutte, Idomemeo, Die Zauberflote
Staatskapelle Dresden/Peter Schreier (tenor soloist & direction)
Recorded 1989 Lukaskirche, Dresden
Philips

Mozart
Piano Concertos No’s 20, K466 & 24, K491
Clara Haskil (piano)
Orchestre des Concerts Lamoureux/Igor Markevitch
Recorded 1960 Salle de la Chimie, Paris
Philips

[pastoralguy]

Serge Rachmaninov

Three Russian Songs. Op. 41 for Symphony Orchestra and Chorus.

Chorus of the Mariinsky Theatre, the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Gianandrea Noseda.

Chandos label. Recorded live at the BBC Proms on 31st July 2011.

This isn't music I know so I'm just listening over and over until, hopefully, it sinks in!

Quite a distant recording but only £1 from Ca Research.