The Classical Music Recommendation Thread

[Disco Stu 15,495]

Just now, Bespin said:

 

Then, realize you have 3 kids... 😀

 

 

[Bespin 8,480]

1 minute ago, Disco Stu said:

 

 

 

Hey, you've decided (a little by accident) to repopulate the planet, you're a hero!

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

The world is already vastly overpopulated!

[Jurassic Shark 12,051]

Especially in the Netherlands!

[Loert 2,511]

 

THE MOST bizarre piece of classical music on the planet.

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

Leifs is an interesting composer.  Much of his music is very similarly idiosyncratic.  

[Disco Stu 15,495]

This afternoon I'm enjoying the 1952 premiere recording of Copland's Piano Concerto, probably my single favorite Copland composition.  Right now, at least.

 

Copland conducts, Leo Smit on piano

 

 

If you're tired of me posting Copland videos, just be thankful I'm not actually posting everything of his I've been listening to lately.

[Disco Stu 15,495]

OK sorry to carpet bomb the thread with Copland, but I just noticed this and feeling proud of myself/would like some validation that I'm not crazy.

 

Listen to his (wonderful) Piano Sonata (completed 1941) here at 4:06-4:30:

 

That has GOTTA be the inspiration for the fanfare countermelody that gets extended development in his third symphony (completed 1946), right?!

 

[SteveMc 2,674]

The similarity is there.

[Disco Stu 15,495]

5 minutes ago, Steve McQueen said:

The similarity is there.

 

I really prefer the Bernstein recording of the Sonata, but the only version I could find on Youtube is one of those "Provided to Youtube" videos that always seem to get "Cannot Play in Your Country" errors for non-Americans.

 

Of course it's quite common for symphony composers to plunder their chamber pieces for ideas to expand upon in an orchestral setting.

[SteveMc 2,674]

I heard Copland's Symphony 3 for the first time back in high school. (not so long ago!)

Was a powerful experience.  Back when I was a little less jaded as a listener.

Brought the memories back, Stu, thanks.  

[karelm 2,911]

Go Danny!

 

[Disco Stu 15,495]

Peter Boyer, he of "Ellis Island" fame, has composed a piece for the US Marine Band's 220th anniversary (you may recall Williams wrote his “For the President’s Own” for their 215th 5 years ago).

 

It's a rousing, fun piece of music!  Definitely presents some challenges for the wind players too, especially in the opening fanfare section.

 

 

And here is an interview with Boyer

 

[The Illustrious Jerry 3,356]

On 8/26/2018 at 4:52 PM, Jurassic Shark said:

I'm not saying it's the best, but definitely worth checking out:

Lacrimosa dies ilae and Hostias 

[karelm 2,911]

You like the music of Biblical epics you say?  Finally, the complete performance of Respighi's giant ballet, "Belkis, Queen of Sheba", can be heard in its entirety.  This work is generally heard in an opulent 20 minute suite but here is the work in its two hour complete version from a 2012 performance.

 

The work is scored for narrator, vocalist, five part chorus, and large orchestra:

• WOODWINDS: flutes (3 flutes, 3rd doubling on piccolo, piccolo), 2 oboes and an English horn, sopranino clarinet in D/E-flat, bass clarinet in A/E-flat, 2 clarinets in A/E-flat, 2 bassoons, double bassoon
• BRASS: 4 horns in E/F, 4 trumpets in A/B-flat, 3 trombones, bass tuba
• PERCUSSION: timpani, bass drum, cymbals, military drum, tambourine, small snare drum, tamburo grande, Arabic drum, triangle, tam-tam, wind machine, xylophone, glockenspiel
• celesta, piano, organ
• 2 harps
• alto saxophone in E-flat
• ON STAGE: 3 trumpets in B-flat, 2 tubas in C, 2 bells, tam-tam

[The Illustrious Jerry 3,356]

Alexander Borodin

Symphony No. 1 in E-Flat Major- II: Scherzo: Prestissimo - Trio: Allegro

Alexander Borodin, famed Russian composer, delivers in the second movement of his first symphony with a light hearted and airy scherzo that ties in joyousness (namely in the strings and woodwinds-an infectious melody) and some more solemn but not completely morose string vibrancies. Borodin, who I discovered when I heard In the Steppes of Central Asia on the local classical station, is now one of my favourite composers. This is one of my favourite of his works.

 

[SteveMc 2,674]

@Jerry, have you seen the Disney Little Match Girl short film set to Borodin's Nocturne from his 2nd String Quartet?  Perfect match of visuals and music.

 

[The Illustrious Jerry 3,356]

I have now.

[Miz 139]

Cheesy request, but...

 

I'm looking for really Russian-sounding music. I like Dario Marianelli's score for Anna Karenina because it channels so many Russian folk idioms (cliches?). I'm looking for something similar, like Russian folk/chamber/orchestral music than exudes that feel, rather than (from my ignorant point of view), just being written by a Russian.

[Jurassic Shark 12,051]

Try the main title track of The Hunt for the Red October!

[Omen II 1,235]

I missed the Last Night of the Proms yesterday but have been catching up with it online.  I am pleased to see that the BBC finally broadcast the whole of Hubert Parry's wonderful Jerusalem without feeling the need to cut to some windswept park in Glasgow or Belfast or wherever to 'link up' with some poor sods shivering under blankets while they watch it on a big screen.  It is so much better in my opinion to show just the orchestra, choir and audience inside the Royal Albert Hall.

 

By the way, anyone with gallery standing tickets for the John Williams concert will get a good idea of what to expect from about 1:15 onwards.

 

 

[Romão 2,274]

11 hours ago, Miz said:

Cheesy request, but...

 

I'm looking for really Russian-sounding music. I like Dario Marianelli's score for Anna Karenina because it channels so many Russian folk idioms (cliches?). I'm looking for something similar, like Russian folk/chamber/orchestral music than exudes that feel, rather than (from my ignorant point of view), just being written by a Russian.

 

Ivan the Terrible, by Prokofiev. of the Execution of Stepan Razin by Shostakovich

 

 

 

[Loert 2,511]

On 9/9/2018 at 11:16 AM, Miz said:

Cheesy request, but...

 

I'm looking for really Russian-sounding music. I like Dario Marianelli's score for Anna Karenina because it channels so many Russian folk idioms (cliches?). I'm looking for something similar, like Russian folk/chamber/orchestral music than exudes that feel, rather than (from my ignorant point of view), just being written by a Russian.

 

I guess this would be a start...

 

Though for me personally, these sound very Russian to my ears:

 

 

(beginning)

 

 

 

There's something "ancient sounding" about this kind of music which moves me on a deep level.

 

Bonus: A short piano piece which I simply adore:

 

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

Well this may be of interest too.

 

 

[publicist 4,643]

[The Illustrious Jerry 3,356]

On 9/9/2018 at 6:16 AM, Miz said:

I'm looking for really Russian-sounding music. 

In other things I don't have any specifics off the top of my head, but Alexander Borodin and Modest Mussorgsky are great sources for that.

[Jurassic Shark 12,051]

Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov is mandatory.

[The Illustrious Jerry 3,356]

Pictures at an Exhibition and Night on Bald Mountain are his magnum opuses. 

For more works by Russian composers, check out this thread and be sure to add any suggestions:

 

[Loert 2,511]

A guilty pleasure of mine:
 

 

[karelm 2,911]

The William Walton scores for Sir Lawrence Olivier's Shakespeare films are suburb as are the films.

Plus there is more than a little bit of Elgar in Walton's Shakespeare scores such as Elgar's elegantly beautiful funeral from Grania and Diarmid.   Damn you Brits, you're so good at this sort of stuff.  It's quasi Wagner, Sibelius, and Ravel but uniquely Brit.

 

[SteveMc 2,674]

Wow, never heard that Elgar piece before.

Very impressed.

[Marian Schedenig 8,191]

10 hours ago, karelm said:

The William Walton scores for Sir Lawrence Olivier's Shakespeare films are suburb as are the films.

 

I'm a particularly big fan of the opening of this Henry V suite:

 

[Jurassic Shark 12,051]

1 minute ago, Marian Schedenig said:

 

I'm a particularly big fan of the opening of this Henry V suite:

 

 

The Carl Davis recording is indeed good - I've actually got a duplicate of it in my CD collection if anyone's interested.

[Marian Schedenig 8,191]

1 minute ago, Jurassic Shark said:

The Carl Davis recording is indeed good - I've actually got a duplicate of it in my CD collection if anyone's interested.

 

It's a great recording and a great suite (there are other arrangements on YouTube, usually missing the choir). And the album has a wealth of other excellent stuff.

[Jurassic Shark 12,051]

6 minutes ago, Marian Schedenig said:

 

It's a great recording and a great suite (there are other arrangements on YouTube, usually missing the choir). And the album has a wealth of other excellent stuff.

 

Agreed, and I'm quite picky about the various recordings of the different suites of Henry V and Battle of Britain out there. I also love the Marriner recordings!

[Marian Schedenig 8,191]

20 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said:

I also love the Marriner recordings!

 

Those are with narration, I believe? I think that's why I've always hesitated to pick them up.

[karelm 2,911]

18 minutes ago, Marian Schedenig said:

 

Those are with narration, I believe? I think that's why I've always hesitated to pick them up.

The narration is quite separate.  I don't think the music and narration ever overlap and it is very rare - like 5% has narration so don't let that be the reason you avoid these.

[Jurassic Shark 12,051]

4 minutes ago, karelm said:

The narration is quite separate.  I don't think the music and narration ever overlap and it is very rare - like 5% has narration so don't let that be the reason you avoid these.

 

Besides, the narration is great!

[The Illustrious Jerry 3,356]

I heard this on the radio and last night and immediately knew it was Mozart. It's the same structure, sound, and style of most of his work.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Symphony No.2 in D major- IV: Allegretto capriccio

 

 

[SteveMc 2,674]

Can anyone recommend a good recording of Mozart's Requiem on YouTube or Spotify?

[Dixon Hill 4,234]

Good afternoon Steve - if that is your real name.  I am partial to this performance.

 

 

[The Illustrious Jerry 3,356]

On ‎9‎/‎9‎/‎2018 at 6:16 AM, Miz said:

I'm looking for really Russian-sounding music.

Alexander Borodin- Symphony No. 2 in B minor: I: Allegro

This excellent piece by Russian composer and personal favourite Alexander Borodin is one of many memorable melodies he conjured during his classical career. It always had a Russian vibe to it in my opinion because of the tonal structure and the more bass like strings that dance around menacingly until rising into an allegro, allowing the brass to take the reigns. That climax has a lot to say about Russian history- the darker and deeper string that fore-echo Jaws (you might suggest) give a sense of power and bestow fear on all who hear it. Yet that power shifts into a triumphant and brisk brass fanfare, symbolizing the nation's lighter side. Just a thought.

 

[Will 2,215]

This piece took a really long time for me to get into. It's not an easy listen at first, particularly with the haunting human vocal samples:

 

 

But now I'm finally starting to "get" it. Beautiful. I love how the strings introduce fun little melodies and then Reich brings in the voices in counterpoint. 

[Marian Schedenig 8,191]

52 minutes ago, Steve McQueen said:

Can anyone recommend a good recording of Mozart's Requiem on YouTube or Spotify?

 

 

[Jurassic Shark 12,051]

12 hours ago, Steve McQueen said:

Can anyone recommend a good recording of Mozart's Requiem on YouTube or Spotify?

 

Marriner's Philips recording is one of my favorites, with a leaner ensamble and less self-aware than Karajan's recordings:

 

 

[Bespin 8,480]

Because sometimes... we need Chopin.

 

Just made this compilation inspired by BBC's "Composer of the week" series.

 

Great playlist focusing on Mazurkas, the 2nd piano sonata and some late works of genius.
 

[Disco Stu 15,495]

William Alwyn's third symphony is the real deal you guys.

 

It was suggested to me that Alwyn's own recording is the best.  This is my first listen so I can't compare, but I can tell you that the performance is glorious.

 

 

[karelm 2,911]

2 hours ago, Disco Stu said:

William Alwyn's third symphony is the real deal you guys.

 

It was suggested to me that Alwyn's own recording is the best.  This is my first listen so I can't compare, but I can tell you that the performance is glorious.

 

 

The neglected British composers who are considered second rate are extremely fine (think Malcolm Arnold who composed wonderful symphonies and many film scores including his Oscar winning score to "The Bridge Over the River Kwai" with a "stellar" performance by our hero, Obi Wan Kenobi.  Oh my gosh this film is so wonderful.  Obi Wan is an extremely traditional British soldier now prisoner in Burma.  These soldiers must build a railway over the river kwai but the most senior officer, Obi Wan Nicholson, is by the book and recites the Geneva Convention excepting officers form manual labor resulting in extreme punishment.  He treats the British code as the bible while the Japanese live by a different code.  What follows is a fantastic character study exceptionally performed by Sir. Alec Guinness in this masterpiece of film making.  This is a fantastic film with a wonderful score as all David Lean films have.  I freaking love this film and director and recommend all see it.  His other films include Lawrence of Arabia (one of the greatest films and scores of all time), Doctor Zhivago (one of the greatest films and scores of all time), Passage to India (one of the greatest films and scores of all time), etc.

 

[Disco Stu 15,495]

On 9/14/2018 at 6:10 PM, Will said:

This piece took a really long time for me to get into. It's not an easy listen at first, particularly with the haunting human vocal samples:

 

 

But now I'm finally starting to "get" it. Beautiful. I love how the strings introduce fun little melodies and then Reich brings in the voices in counterpoint. 

 

This was actually the first Reich piece that I got really into, even before 18 Musicians.  Weird, I always found it one of his most accessible works.  Probably just indicative of the type of minimalist sounds that my ear is drawn to.

[The Illustrious Jerry 3,356]

On 9/15/2018 at 6:51 AM, Bespin said:

Great playlist focusing on Mazurkas, the 2nd piano sonata and some late works of genius.

Chopin's mazurkas, nocturnes and etudes are brilliant! Some of my favourite of his.