American Classics

[teamsaint]

Walter Piston.

Symphonies 5/7/8.

Louisville Orchestra.

Composers who smoke/smoked pipes get added points on my wall chart !

I wonder if any of the board composers indulge?

[Suffolkcoastal]

These are along with the 1st, Piston's toughest symphonies ts. The 8th is a particularly severe work but one which displays fine craftsmanship. The 5th is IMO the weakest of Piston's symphonies, as it tends to be rather dry and doesn't hang together as successfully as his other symphonies. The 7th is the best of the three and a Pulitzer Prize winning work the fluidity of the writing is superb and he also manages to balance the tonal and atonal elements exceptionally well.

[Beef Oven!]

Walter Piston.

Symphonies 5/7/8.

Louisville Orchestra.

Composers who smoke/smoked pipes get added points on my wall chart !

HeHe!

I wonder if any of the board composers indulge?

Of course they do, wall charts help keep them to deadlines.

[teamsaint]

These are along with the 1st, Piston's toughest symphonies ts. The 8th is a particularly severe work but one which displays fine craftsmanship. The 5th is IMO the weakest of Piston's symphonies, as it tends to be rather dry and doesn't hang together as successfully as his other symphonies. The 7th is the best of the three and a Pulitzer Prize winning work the fluidity of the writing is superb and he also manages to balance the tonal and atonal elements exceptionally well.

thanks for the comments SC.

I have downloaded (uploaded?!) these works to my MP3 player, for serious attention !

incidentally, do you know anything by Cindy Mctee?

I rather liked one of her first symphony on naxos, on first listen but haven't got round to hearing it again, and nobody else seemed to have heard it.

[teamsaint]

HeHe!



Of course they do, wall charts help keep them to deadlines.

Lol.

Composers keeping to deadlines..... as if....

[richardfinegold]

Walter Piston.

Symphonies 5/7/8.

Louisville Orchestra.

Composers who smoke/smoked pipes get added points on my wall chart !

I wonder if any of the board composers indulge?

I have that disc. It is very good but I wish Piston's music was more widely recorded.

[Roehre]

I have that disc. It is very good but I wish Piston's music was more widely recorded.

Me too. A complete Piston symphonies cycle would be more than welcome

[salymap]

Me too. A complete Piston symphonies cycle would be more than welcome

Is music by Robert Ward ever played much ?

[Barbirollians]

Not sure about that salymap . I see there is a recording of his Fourth Symphony available on Albany Records .

There is an extract here for anyone unfamiliar with his music like me https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Y9bCv-qV80

[Roehre]

Not sure about that salymap . I see there is a recording of his Fourth Symphony available on Albany Records .

There is an extract here for anyone unfamiliar with his music like me https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Y9bCv-qV80

symphonies 2,3 and 6 are on Bay cities

[Ferretfancy]

What do boarders think of the music of George Crumb ? There is a very complete edition of his works on CD on the Bridge label. Probably his best known work is Ancient Voices of Children, which I heard at a late night Prom a couple of years ago. All his pieces, vocal or otherwise, make imaginative use of unusual timbres and percussive effects. Some of his music for two pianos borders on noise in my view, but is aways interesting. I would specially recommend the orchestral work A haunted Landscape, and the chamber work Dream Sequence is very haunting with its strange effects like insect wings.

Crumb is a figure unlike any other American Composer that I know, perhaps he is not for every day, but important.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

... perhaps he is not for every day, but important.

And those days that I do listen to him are always rewarding. Black Angels - wow!

Perhaps a bit "samey"? I don't think I'd get much out of hearing Echoes of Time & the River and Star Child played in the same concert; but a week apart ...

[teamsaint]

And those days that I do listen to him are always rewarding. Black Angels - wow!

Perhaps a bit "samey"? I don't think I'd get much out of hearing Echoes of Time & the River and Star Child played in the same concert; but a week apart ...

Black Angels.........the 110th greatest chamber work of all time.....OFFICIAL !!

http://digitaldreamdoor.com/pages/best-classic-chamber.html

Have to confess, I haven't heard any of his other work. I think I was working up courage !!

[Dave2002]

What do boarders think of the music of George Crumb ? There is a very complete edition of his works on CD on the Bridge label. Probably his best known work is Ancient Voices of Children, which I heard at a late night Prom a couple of years ago. All his pieces, vocal or otherwise, make imaginative use of unusual timbres and percussive effects. Some of his music for two pianos borders on noise in my view, but is aways interesting. I would specially recommend the orchestral work A haunted Landscape, and the chamber work Dream Sequence is very haunting with its strange effects like insect wings.

Crumb is a figure unlike any other American Composer that I know, perhaps he is not for every day, but important.

I have liked Ancient Voices for ages - since the 1970s. In 2009 there as a Total Immersion day at the Barbican - http://www.barbican.org.uk/music/eve...il.asp?ID=9256

http://www.theartsdesk.com/classical-music/total-immersion-george-crumb-barbican

which was interesting, some of it enjoyable. I'm afraid I gave up for the big piece "Star Child" - wasn't sure if I could take it, though perhaps it'll not be performed again in the UK - not soon, anyway.

[Beef Oven!]