What are you currently listening to (Classical)?

[Addicted to hifi]

Those Quad recordings were not long lived in print.



Seiji and his wife must've been enjoying being fêted by Berlin society. Or could there be another message?

Very nice cover and music.

 

[Kal Rubinson]

One that didn't do much for me, either sonically or musically, is Pierre-Laurent Aimard's new release of Beethoven's "Hammerklavier" Sonata. If it were the only one I've heard and owned, then it would be OK, but it's not that competitive in the open market. Interestingly, it's an RBCD, not an SACD. I hope they haven't abandoned DSD altogether.

No DSD on this one but there is a very nice 24/96 5channel download. Also, while the Sonata is far from outstanding, the Eroica Variations are delightful.

 

[Bachtoven]

Spectacular playing and sound.

 

[Andrew S.]

Ahhh...Ravel & Chausson - the impressionists! I much prefer them to the Les Six - esp. Poulenc - who try as I might I struggle to like. Gave up on an album this morning of Poulenc.

Instead - this has been playing, which is just beautiful. Olafsson of my very favourite pianists - his touch is unbelievable. From Wiki, he is said to have both absolute pitch and synesthesia, whereby he associates keys with colors. He reportedly associates F minor with blue, A major with yellow, and B major with purple.[37]

Not sure what it is about Iceland, but they produce outstanding musicians.

The recording is, in my humble opinion, also superb. Shout out to Christopher Tarnow.



Released - 7 September 2018
Recorded - 4 April 2018
Recording location - Harpa Concert Hall, Reykjavik
Producer - Christopher Tarnow
Recording Engineer, Mastering Engineer - Christopher Tarnow

 

[Addicted to hifi]

Ahhh...Ravel & Chausson - the impressionists! I much prefer them to the Les Six - esp. Poulenc - who try as I might I struggle to like. Gave up on an album this morning of Poulenc.

Instead - this has been playing, which is just beautiful. Olafsson of my very favourite pianists - his touch is unbelievable. From Wiki, he is said to have both absolute pitch and synesthesia, whereby he associates keys with colors. He reportedly associates F minor with blue, A major with yellow, and B major with purple.[37]

Not sure what it is about Iceland, but they produce outstanding musicians.

The recording is, in my humble opinion, also superb. Shout out to Christopher Tarnow.

View attachment 80167

Released - 7 September 2018
Recorded - 4 April 2018
Recording location - Harpa Concert Hall, Reykjavik
Producer - Christopher Tarnow
Recording Engineer, Mastering Engineer - Christopher Tarnow

Got to get this one.

 

[Bachtoven]

Ahhh...Ravel & Chausson - the impressionists! I much prefer them to the Les Six - esp. Poulenc - who try as I might I struggle to like. Gave up on an album this morning of Poulenc.

Instead - this has been playing, which is just beautiful. Olafsson of my very favourite pianists - his touch is unbelievable. From Wiki, he is said to have both absolute pitch and synesthesia, whereby he associates keys with colors. He reportedly associates F minor with blue, A major with yellow, and B major with purple.[37]

Not sure what it is about Iceland, but they produce outstanding musicians.

The recording is, in my humble opinion, also superb. Shout out to Christopher Tarnow.

View attachment 80167

Released - 7 September 2018
Recorded - 4 April 2018
Recording location - Harpa Concert Hall, Reykjavik
Producer - Christopher Tarnow
Recording Engineer, Mastering Engineer - Christopher Tarnow

His Debussy/Rameau is equally good:



and he has a new one coming out in September:

 

[Addicted to hifi]

His Debussy/Rameau is equally good:

View attachment 80172

and he has a new one coming out in September:
View attachment 80170

Thanks gotta got these as well.

 

[Andrew S.]

Remembering von Karajan who passed away today in 1989.

DG have released his complete Sibelius recordings in tribute:

 

[rando]

and he has a new one coming out in September:

DG is in the business of promoting those who induce synthesia these days by all popular accounts.


Black for Mozart would certainly have raised eyebrows in years past.

"When the angels praise God in Heaven I am sure they play Bach. However, en famille they play Mozart, and then God the Lord is especially delighted to listen to them."

 

[Addicted to hifi]

Remembering von Karajan who passed away today in 1989.

DG have released his complete Sibelius recordings in tribute:

View attachment 80176

Good one. he was one of the finest.

 

[rando]

Third disc this morning.

Symphony No. 5 c-moll op. 67
Symphony No. 6 F-dur op.68 "Pastorale"

 

[Bachtoven]

Very life-like sound and great playing.

 

[astrotoy]

Third disc this morning.

Symphony No. 5 c-moll op. 67
Symphony No. 6 F-dur op.68 "Pastorale"

From the cover, this is the 1962 Karajan Beethoven set on DGG. It was the first box of classical records I ever bought. I was a freshman in college in the Fall of 1963, and our campus store called the "Coop" had a very large record section. There was a big display of the grey boxes with HvK's picture on the front cover, and the price for the 8 record set was $18.95 as I remember. Wiki says the retail was $47.95, but I bought it for less than $20. After I bought it, I had to figure out how to play the records, since I didn't have a turntable or any equipment! I even ended getting a job on campus to feed my incipient hifi and record habit. I ended up with an AR turntable with a Shure cartridge (ordered from Rabson's in NYC) matched with a cheap integrated amp with a headphone jack and a pair of headphones. I would play the symphonies in order as I typed up my papers in English composition, usually finishing a paper before getting to the last symphonies. When the AR TT had a problem, I called AR up and then took the MTA (before it was called the T) across town in Cambridge to the AR factory and they fixed it on the spot, adding some new upgrades at no charge. It is a very fine set - I like it better than the other HvK sets on EMI and DGG issued before and after this set. The great Gundula Janowitz was the soprano in the 9th, one of her earlier recordings.

Larry

 

[Andrew S.]

From the cover, this is the 1962 Karajan Beethoven set on DGG. It was the first box of classical records I ever bought. I was a freshman in college in the Fall of 1963, and our campus store called the "Coop" had a very large record section. There was a big display of the grey boxes with HvK's picture on the front cover, and the price for the 8 record set was $18.95 as I remember. Wiki says the retail was $47.95, but I bought it for less than $20. After I bought it, I had to figure out how to play the records, since I didn't have a turntable or any equipment! I even ended getting a job on campus to feed my incipient hifi and record habit. I ended up with an AR turntable with a Shure cartridge (ordered from Rabson's in NYC) matched with a cheap integrated amp with a headphone jack and a pair of headphones. I would play the symphonies in order as I typed up my papers in English composition, usually finishing a paper before getting to the last symphonies. When the AR TT had a problem, I called AR up and then took the MTA (before it was called the T) across town in Cambridge to the AR factory and they fixed it on the spot, adding some new upgrades at no charge. It is a very fine set - I like it better than the other HvK sets on EMI and DGG issued before and after this set. The great Gundula Janowitz was the soprano in the 9th, one of her earlier recordings.

Larry

Hi Larry, I'm having a tough day today, and your post ^ brightened it up no end. I enjoyed reading something of your life very much. By your college dates, you are about 20 years ahead of me in age, but from this thread it is clear to me I so have much to learn, and benefit greatly from your music knowledge and experience. I always look forward to your posts.

 

[Andrew S.]

This is a beautiful recording from 2008/9 release (Berlin Classic label - 8 disk set).

Label: Berlin Classics
Catalog No: BER 184512
Format: CD
Release Date: 2008-09-19

Something on this for everyone, with 6 different conductors.

Conductors

• 
  Bongartz, Heinz
• 
  Konwitschny, Franz
• 
  Markevitch, Igor
• 
  Masur, Kurt
• 
  Neumann, Vaclav
• 
  Sanderling, Kurt

This is one album I enjoying very much. Each soloist is superb, and the orchestra is nuanced and powerful. Tone is gorgeous. Well recorded and mastered, IMHO.

I enjoy the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra very much. It is one of my favorites, and flys under the radar a little.




Here is a brief history cut and paste from PrimePhonic (without permission so apologies)

One of the world's oldest permanent orchestras, the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra can trace its roots back to the 15th century. The orchestra has been led by some of history's most significant composers and conductors, including Mozart and Mendelssohn. It has premiered works by such composers as Brahms, Schumann, and Wagner that are now very much part of the standard repertoire, highlighting the quality of the orchestra throughout its storied history. Along with a substantial symphony concert schedule, the Gewandhaus Orchestra also serves as the orchestra of the Leipzig Opera as well as Leipzig's St. Thomas Church.

The Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra's origins date back to the hiring of a small group of municipal musicians in 1479. The orchestra was established in 1743 as the Großes Concert and comprised musicians from the public and the nobility and was without a stable performing venue. Originally made up of 16 musicians, its performances were held in private residences until its reputation grew to the point of necessitating a permanent home. For more than 30 years, it performed in the hall at Zu Den Drei Schwanen. During this time, it also began performing as a theatrical orchestra, with the Komödienhaus opening in 1766 (the space didn't have its own ensemble). A new performance space was converted and made available for the growing orchestra at the Gewandhaus in 1780, and the first concert took place in November of 1781. The orchestra was renamed the Gewandhaus und Theatre Orchestra or Gewandhaus Orchestra. Its duties grew into services for two of Leipzig's major churches, expanding its repertoire to include sacred music and a partnership with the Thomanerchor.

Significant advances in popularity and prestige came over the next era of the orchestra: Mozart conducted a concert with the orchestra in 1789, it became the first orchestra to perform a complete cycle of Beethoven's symphonies, and in 1835, welcomed Mendelssohn as its Gewandhauskapellmeister (music director). During Mendelssohn's reign, the orchestra premiered several very important works, including his Scottish Symphony and Schubert's Great Symphony. Mendelssohn held this position, in conjunction with several others, until his death in 1847. Carl Reinecke later served as the music director from 1860-1895, overseeing the opening of a new opera house in 1868, and the Neues Gewandhaus, in 1888. The Gewandhaus Orchestra welcomed several major composers to conduct their works during this time, including Brahms, Tchaikovsky, and Richard Strauss.

Some very notable names followed Reinecke's tenure as music director: Arthur Nikisch (1895-1922), who took the orchestra on its first international tour, Wilhelm Furtwängler (1922-1928), and Bruno Walter (1929-1933). The Nazi Party removed Walter in 1933 because he was Jewish and replaced him with Hermann Abendroth (1933-1945). The opera and concert houses were both destroyed by bombings during World War II, so the orchestra and opera company were without a permanent home until a new opera house was completed in 1960 and the second Neues Gewandhaus opened in 1981. Music directors after the war were Herbert Albert (1946-1948), Franz Konwitschny (1949-1962), Václav Neumann (1962-1968), Kurt Masur (1970-1996), Herbert Blomstedt (1998-2005), and Riccardo Chailly (2005-2016). Following guest conductor appearances beginning in 2011, Andris Nelsons became the music director in 2018.

The Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra made its first recording in 1929 with Weber's Der Freischütz Overture, but began in earnest in the 1940s. It has recorded for many labels, including Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, Berlin Classics, Querstand, and many others. Recording accelerated for the orchestra in the 1960s and has continued on a serious clip since, with credits for the orchestra numbering in the hundreds. Among these are several albums released in 2019, including Nelsons leading a Deutsche Grammophon recording of music by Bruckner and Wagner, and an Accentus recording of Bach's Christmas Oratorio, with the Thomanerchor, conducted by Gotthold Schwarz.

 

[astrotoy]

Hi Larry, I'm having a tough day today, and your post ^ brightened it up no end. I enjoyed reading something of your life very much. By your college dates, you are about 20 years ahead of me in age, but from this thread it is clear to me I so have much to learn, and benefit greatly from your music knowledge and experience. I always look forward to your posts.

Thanks, Andrew. Glad to brighten your day. Larry

 

[rando]

From the cover, this is the 1962 Karajan Beethoven set on DGG. It was the first box of classical records I ever bought. I was a freshman in college in the Fall of 1963, and our campus store called the "Coop" had a very large record section.

You are correct these are digitization's of the '61/'62 recordings preferred by many to his other cycles. This '90 remaster of the first digital release was an improvement over it and the SACD mastering that followed. Chances are good the high res version currently available is the product of yet another go at them. Vinyl represses, as you are aware, portend forewords and revisions just the same.

"Coop" sounds like the type of place that received a steady influx of shipments destined to feed young minds without being overly taxing to their means. Can only wonder what tendrils might've withered if you'd passed by these Beethoven recordings?

Suffice to say I'm pleased to have struck upon music inspiring you to share with us with your original recollections. Always enjoyable and appreciated. Does this same set of recordings still reside in your collection?

 

[astrotoy]

You are correct these are digitization's of the '61/'62 recordings preferred by many to his other cycles. This '90 remaster of the first digital release was an improvement over it and the SACD mastering that followed. Chances are good the high res version currently available is the product of yet another go at them. Vinyl represses, as you are aware, portend forewords and revisions just the same.

"Coop" sounds like the type of place that received a steady influx of shipments destined to feed young minds without being overly taxing to their means. Can only wonder what tendrils might've withered if you'd passed by these Beethoven recordings?

Suffice to say I'm pleased to have struck upon music inspiring you to share with us with your original recollections. Always enjoyable and appreciated. Does this same set of recordings still reside in your collection?

I still have a set of those 61-62 recordings, but I had to rebuy them - actually paying more for the used vinyl than my original purchase (of course not if adjusted for inflation). I think I wore out the first set. Yes, back in the mid '60's the "Coop" (short for Cooperative) was mostly full of textbooks for classes, but also had a large, then huge record section. Only new records. I bought many classical records there - $2 Mercury Vendor pressings (didn't buy enough of those retrospectively) and $2 Vox recordings, including early Alfred Brendel and regular RCA, London (Decca), and DGG. Columbia had a mail order record club where you got a bunch of records for a teaser price and then a subscription which sent you a record every month unless you declined the purchase. I still have one of the original Mercuries - a Janos Starker album. I also bought Joan Baez, Judy Collins, Ian and Sylvia, Phil Ochs (an early protest singer who died early), and others. Unfortunately, my TT and stylus resulted in pretty worn records over the college years. So I ended up rebuying many of these. Recently I bought from Qobuz a really nice collection of the recordings of Judy Collins from the 1960's redone digitally at 192/24, replacing my not great condition vinyl from those days.

Larry

 

[rando]

One of the very few digital recordings Mieczyslaw Horszowski made occurring 12-15 May 1986 in Curtis Hall, Philadelphia (Curtis Institute of Music). That places him in his 90's back where he taught and if there was an audience they daren't breathe until a full minute after he finished.

 

[Bachtoven]