Spinning Today (Classical version)

[jandl100]

Last night ...

I fancied some pyrotechnic frivolities, so ...
Paganini - violin concertos 3 & 4. DG CD with Accardo/Dutoit.
Ha Ha - amazing!

Then some samples from a Harmonia Mundi sampler CD I picked up somewhere.
Barbara Strozzi - baroque aria for soprano and orchestra. Interesting as there are very few Barqoue female composers.
OH - MY - GOSH . I was dumbstruck with how amazing this music sounds.
Had to go online and order a full CD of the lady's work from Amazon. I can hardly wait to get it!
Also a solo violin piece by Pisendel (no jokes, chaps, this is amazing, too!).

Bach - organ works; Concerto BWV592, Trio Sonata BWV525, Pastorella BWV590. Kevin Bowyer on a Nimbus CD. Awesome, the bass just rolled out of the speakers and across the living room floor and lapped in waves around my feet!

And over an extended period ...
William Bolcom - violin concerto & 5th symphony on an Argo CD.
Hmmm .. I hated this music to start with, but something kept me coming back to it. I'm now really beginning to enjoy it a lot! Strange how that happens sometimes.

[morris_minor]

No, I've got the Naxos set with David Lloyd-Jones. I've had it ages, and I investigate it now and then, and I am gradually finding my way into Bax's sound world. I can't say it's an easy journey, though!

Maybe I should sample Handley?

I have the Naxos set as well, plus the odd earlier Chandos disc of no.4 with Bryden Thompson (another sadly underrated conductor), and a Lyrita disc of no.5 with Raymond Leppard (definitely not an expected combination, but pretty successful). Plus Handley's very early recording of no.4 with the Guildford Phil. on Barrington-Coupe's Revolution/Concert Artist label; a sign of things to come . . .. Talking of Barrington-Coupe - the Joyce Hatto fiasco comes to mind. Hatto and Handley recorded Bax's Symphonic Variations; this really was her, as I saw her perform this two days before the recording. I think this was her last real recording . . . . It has been available on a Concert Artist CD and is well worth a listen.

Comparisons between Handley and Lloyd-Jones to my mind come out pretty even. I play the Handley discs (actually files) much more as I prefer the Chandos recordings, and these would be my desert island choice. The set makes a nice memorial to the guy. It includes a CD of Handley talking about the symphonies, too, and some excellent notes.

[jandl100]

Ah, yes, "Joyce Hatto".

Oh dear - a lot of egg on a lot of faces!

[Gromit]

Hi Jerry - sorry only just saw your posting ref DSCH 10, mine's the later HvonK one (the digital recording). I think as much as anything this recording was one of the first Shost symphonies I ever heard and it's remained in my mind as a personal definitive of it - I just love it.

I've often accused the BPO brass of being a bit gutless - certainly when compared to the finest brass section in the world (the LSO) but in this recording the BPO do their upmost to prove me wrong. Sure Karajan does milk the proceedings a little in places but the sheer momentum he creates, especially the terrifying machine-like tour de force which is the 2nd movement...wow.

Strangely I too have been working hard, trying to get into RVW9 (great minds think alike!! ) but I'm not quite there yet. Only recording I've got is the older Previn one, part of the boxed set on vinyl, and I'm not sure it's the right one for me just yet. As for the whole set, it's something of the curate's egg for me.

Oh...listening at the moment:

Chopin - Preludes (Perlemuter/Nimbus 45rpm vinyl)

Bob - glad you like the Shost 11, if ever there was a symphony written by a composer who'd been recently let off the political leash it's this. The 10th was a 'celebration' of Stalin's death - the 11th was certainly a confirmation of it.

[morris_minor]

After a few weeks in the dark world of Shostakovich I entered the sunlit uplands of roasting swans and naughty monks with Previn's Carmina Burana tonight, on a half-speed mastered Mofi disc that hasn't seen the light of day for years. I thought it'd be a good test for a new cartridge (a Technics P540) - which passed quite happily.

[jandl100]

Hi Jerry - sorry only just saw your posting ref DSCH 10, mine's the later HvonK one (the digital recording) ...... I just love it.

......but the sheer momentum he creates, especially the terrifying machine-like tour de force which is the 2nd movement...wow.

Having been VERY underwhelmed by HvK's 1967 recording, the 1982 digital remake arrived at Jerry Towers yesterday.

... I can only confirm your "wow" comment.
My Gawd - I can't believe what 15 years has done to deepen his interpretation.
Sure, it's still a mid-European take on the music, rather than a Russian one, imo. But it works, and the the 1967 recording did not, in my (ever so) humble opinion.
And yes, that "Stalin Allegro" is a genuine tour-de-force - it leaves shockwaves in its wake and the wind playing can only be described as totally demented! The brass don't really keep up with that, sounding a bit tame and cautious, but it's still stunning stuff.
It's interesting, also, the different sonic focus of the respective recording teams at DG and Chandos. A very different take on the percussion in the Chandos recording (Jarvi) . The tympani thwacks at about 3 minutes in to the 2nd mvt are stunning in their impact on Chandos but they barely register on the DG, whilst there are very ominous deep bass rolls elsewhere in the symphony that come across on the DG disc but not the Chandos. Hmm.

The Chandos Jarvi recording remains my fave for its Russian flavour, but the HvK 1982 recording comes a close 2nd and is a a truly excellent performance of the whole work, very well recorded. Many thanks for tempting me to get hold of it, Richard.

... the Chandos recording also has the considerable benefit of a 'filler' The Ballet Suite No. 4. Every Shosty fan should hear this totally awesome piece of music - the first mvt contains one of the most powerful and moving orchestral crescendos DSCH ever wrote!

[Gromit]

Thanks Jerry - I'll check out the Jarvi 10.

The later BPO recording was done in the Philharmonie in Berlin which does have a particular 'sound'. It's fairly dry, up-front and as the orchestra sits in what is basically the centre of a 'round' it creates a very intimate acoustic which I really like.

[MartinT]

Has anyone tried the Haitink Shostakovich 12th? It's great fun and a much better symphony than it's given credit for.

[jandl100]

Re: RVW 2nd symphony - original score, Hickox, Chandos CD

It's an interesting listen Jerry. .... I think it's one for the RVW collector, rather than a general listener, but I'm sure you'd find it good, Jerry.

Oh, OK, you've convinced me.
(The rave reviews on Amazon had nothing at all to do with it, of course!)
I've just ordered it on Amazon.
.... I'll send you the bill if I don't like it, Bob.

Rest assured, Bob, the bill is not in the post!!

It's wonderful.

Tbh, it's kind of difficult to tell if it works better or worse than the revised/cut version as Hickox and the LSO and the Chandos recording team pull out all the stops and give a simply superb recorded performance.
The 1st mvt is the same in both versions, and I was blown away by this recording.
The extra 50% on the Lento slow mvt was just mind-bogglingly wonderful.

Thanks for a top reccie, Bob!

[morris_minor]

Thanks for a top reccie, Bob!

You're welcome, Jerry!

This has made me want to play it again now ....