The classical music thread

Did you listen to Naxos edition of this recording? If yes, what do you think?

No, I haven’t. They wouldn’t have had access to the master tapes, would they?

Have no idea. However, I listened to some Naxos restorations of archive recordings, quite convincing to my ears.

I have recently discovered the music of Krzysztof Penderecki who wrote music for the films Exorcist and The Shining. What a talented underated composer…! For modern dark, religous and romantic music he was so masterful; genius. So now I will be investing in new Cd’s, don’t know where to start, maybe his Symphonies than all his other music. His 7th Symphony is quite a work to perform, I would imagine a lot of work from acoustics to all the technical work for audio reproduction and recording. Into his world I enter… :violin:

1 Like

Try Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima and St Luke Passion.

Roger

3 Likes

Thank you, looks like straight onto the heavy stuff!

Cheers,
EJ

2 Likes

Jussi Bjoerling and Robert Merrill, that is such a famous recording. I think that it was made around 1955, the year I was born.

Bjoerling had a tragic life, and early death (he vas an alcoholic). But what a voice!

The most tragic for us being a missed opportunity to record Ballo around 1960, with Solti and Culshaw. Allegedly, not these gentlemen’s finest hour, they clearly didn’t realise it was not about them. The Jussi Bjoerling Society has the story of the event.

If you want associations with Tchaikovsky, Bruckner, Brahms and Wagner listen to this small (!) piece

1 Like

For a long time I’ve had all the London/Decca record sets of the Dorati/Philharmonia Hungarica cycle of complete Haydn Symphonies (104). I was missing just two sets (Nos. 20-35 + Nos. 36-48), both 6-LP box sets. Now I have the Decca versions on the way. The only one I’ll be missing now is a 2-LP set of “Appendices” and I know where to get a copy.

2 Likes

These new transfers of the Solti Ring are just jaw-droppingly amazing! Gerhard Stolze and Wolfgang Windgassen, both described as either the best on record or among the reasons to avoid this recording, I feel are one of the best matched son / (foster) father pairs on record. Stolze’s Mime is an evil, calculating character, with the genes but a bit too much intelligence to be a cackling maniac. Windgassen’s Siegfried likewise sounds precise, lyric and heroic enough to avoid sounding across as just an irritated brat. Their voices blend well. Plus, we get Hotter in grand form, his best recording, and for once in Nilsson a soprano with the voice and stamina to succeed both in the love duet here as well as in the opening duet of Götterdämmerung. Solti’s conducting, as throughout the Ring, is colourful and tends to be episodic rather than long-lined, which has both benefits and downsides. The best Siegfried on disc, now in spectacular sound.

5 Likes

Do you remember the Heineken advert that it reaches the parts that other beers can’t reach. Well in listening to Vaughan Williams’ 6th symphony I felt the same in a musical way. In the second movement my mind conjured up the Martian fleet travelling through the vastness of space in H G Wells’ War of the Worlds! VW did write this movement and the eerie fourth for a film but they were never used in his music for the film. Lucky us.

I haven’t received a copy of the new ;Siegfried’ yet, I thought that I had all four opras, but made not. I shall have to check.

Arrived today. Thank you @anon70766008 for the recommendation.

5 Likes

Where did you order that, please?

I found it on eBay for £22 but you can get it on Amazon for £40.

1 Like

Truly wonderful stuff. You’re in for a treat.

1 Like

The sun is out in South London — time for the cello and Sol Gabetta. :grinning:

image

2 Likes

The Sun is out here too NTD.
Enjoying the garden and Carl Nielsen😊