Spinning Today (Classical version)

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Having a lovely time at my desk with the HD 700s and Tchaikovsky's fourth symphony - that magical pizzicato third movement sounds to me like it fell out of one of the ballets. Heard the Royal Northern Sinfonia play this live last week (along with the Violin Concerto and the Polonaise from Eugene Onegin) in Middlesbrough and they were amazing. My Tchaikovsky kick continues...

I've heard tales of rehearsals for that Tchaik pizzicato movement where the violinists ended the day with bloody fingers!

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This was an interesting find, from a Fanfare review.
http://cps-static.rovicorp.com/3/JPG...er=allrovi.com
https://open.spotify.com/album/13JoRbc4XYrpBG25PClFoG
A JS Bach precursor. An interesting mix of solo female vocal cantatas and violin 'sonatas'.
Great voice, beautiful recording. Yum. :)

Then Sibelius' Kullervo symphony.
There's quite a few on the market now. Tried my old favourite, Neeme Jarvi - gosh he scuttles along very fast! Vanska, Parvo Jarvi, Segerstam ... nah, didn't do much for me. Settled with Panula on Naxos - very good!

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...RL._SX355_.jpg
https://open.spotify.com/album/01Vs923XRoUZvPppB5Rijt

But Jorma Hynninen remains unsurpassed on the Neeme Jarvi recording for his astonishingly powerful rendition of the vocal at the end of the 3rd mvt where "our hero" discovers that he has just committed incest by seducing his long-lost and unrecognised sister. Spine tingling stuff! :eek:
http://cps-static.rovicorp.com/3/JPG...er=allrovi.com
https://open.spotify.com/album/2Y1CBxEzB17HcGy8DoBDFa

And then, inappropriately loud for around midnight, my favourite performance of Ravel's left hand concerto.
http://cps-static.rovicorp.com/3/JPG...er=allrovi.com
https://open.spotify.com/album/1kAMmLiQGn19olaacaG5Ea
A great recording, imo.

Piazzolla

2003

EWurtembergissche Philarmonie Reutilgen, Gabriel Castagna

Chandos CHSA 5006

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Quite a nice surprise how this recording (1953 I think) handles the large forces. The swift tempi make the Dies Irae seem particularly savage. Listening on Spotify.

http://img.2dehands.be/f/normal/2607...ony-no-7-8.jpg
Excellent performances by Neumann.
https://open.spotify.com/album/6fklA0VQpSIir9arXTGZcq

I fancied Schubert's 2nd piano trio, as one does.
Sampled quite a few before settling with this one.
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...LL._SY355_.jpg
https://open.spotify.com/album/5sbzSf03vGwunnnWFtXebQ

And to end the evening, some Bach WtC
Swapping happily from track to track between Feltsmann and Kuschnerova, and finally settling with the latter before heading bedwards.
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51QJSQM6EML.jpg
https://open.spotify.com/album/13r7b3rN66FZre0OR8kiHX

http://elenakuschnerova.com/cd-bach-wtc1.jpg
https://open.spotify.com/album/5lKrGUn2ONMiH5wD5fWZdk

http://i65.tinypic.com/2cwvs5k.jpg

This Requiem is really great, good recording.

Another Verdi Requiem - this time on blu-ray. Staggering recording - arguably with a dynamic range too wide for domestic playback (although I have a button to fix that) with either earth-shattering climaxes or vanishingly quiet pianissimos. Great performance though. Probably my favourite Verdi Requiem.
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...qL._SY445_.jpg

Thanks for the Verdi/Barenboim tip - I'll have a go with that.

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These are interesting, played the album twice on the trot yesterday. :^
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https://open.spotify.com/album/7f2TRTaStTF6Sbnoc6Avyn
Playing it again this morning as I type this.

And then piano trio #1 from this.
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61h678zG5wL.jpg
https://open.spotify.com/album/7k7JnroZBxc2bm87n1IDUH
Some of Mendelssohn's finest, imo.

I'd never heard of this composer.
http://images.discsale.ru/cdimg/00/71/70/14.jpg
https://open.spotify.com/album/0Az71KLuFA0b82BjHuPExO
A mixed selection of chamber music - it's very good, quite acerbic and dramatic and beautiful by turns.

Glorious performance of RVW's 6th symphony by Handley ... I'm trying to figure out why I didn't used to like Handley's RVW!
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...500_AA280_.jpg
https://open.spotify.com/album/1aZzxsAQHJUfB0GQE9Vb9h
--- well, glorious apart from the 'nuclear wasteland' finale. Most conductors seem to take this at 10 minutes something, which seems too fast to me.
Rozhdestvensky takes 14 minutes - and it pays rich rewards, imo. Shame it's a live recording with the usual Russian coughing. :(
https://open.spotify.com/album/4zSuEKSuqmzcm9wj4texqj

Followed by the 5th from that Rozhdestvensky set. The RVW 5th is one of my fave symphonies.
Wonderful stuff from the Russkies. :thumbsup:
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