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The Classical Music Recommendation Thread


Muad'Dib

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I've really been enjoying American composer George Rochberg's works lately.  I listened to his Violin Concerto abridged version and the original and very much prefer the more expansive violin symphony original version lasting 52 minutes long making it what I think could be the longest violin concerto.  The work is dark and dramatic but also tonal.  Anyone who likes late Shostakovitch, Bernard Herrmann (especially later Herrmann), or Benjamin Britten should find much to admire with this composer. 

 

So the reason I am not linking the extremely fine violin concerto is I prefer the restored original violin concerto which has a grander, more symphonic scale but on youtube requires multiple individual links.  Additionally, the finer performance is of Isaac Stern's abridged version about 10 minutes shorter.  A wonderful performance but not as great a version of the work. Hence I'm in a conundrum and ask you seek it out yourself. 

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I've listened to George Rochberg's Octet (A Grand Fantasia), but nothing else! I'm interested and will check out these pieces you mention @karelm

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  • 3 weeks later...
6 hours ago, AC1 said:

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One of my favorite violin concertos. The Cello Concerto and the overall recording are very good as well. Lyrical and melodic, exactly how I want a violin concerto to be. 

 

A good reference to JW's own concert music, these are solid additions to concert repertoire by a major composer known primarily for his work in film but his concert music has little of the same characteristics found in his famous film scores however the "fingerprints" are all there.  Another similarity is Rozsa was considered very musically knowledgeable, practically a musicologist and I've heard the same reference made to JW.  Very good recommendation and oh I've performed with Lynn Harrell, too cool! 

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7 hours ago, AC1 said:

516+x6uchKL.jpg

 

One of my favorite violin concertos. The Cello Concerto and the overall recording are very good as well. Lyrical and melodic, exactly how I want a violin concerto to be. 

 

Roman Simovic will be performing Miklos Rozsa's violin concerto with the London Symphony Orchestra this December.

 

https://www.lso.co.uk/whats-on/icalrepeat.detail/2021/12/09/2122/-/rozsa-bartok.html

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Oh wow… just a few days ago I read an article about how Herbert von Karajan conducted Strauss' Alpensinfonie at the Salzburg festival in 1982 and apparently found it ideally suited for the Festspielhaus and also helped it gain a more regular spot in the general concert repertoire. I grew up with Karajan's 1980 recording, which still remains one of my favourites but was superseded by Kempe's 1974 Dresden version. I have a few others and heard it live twice. I've always regretted that Karajan never recorded it along with his other analogue 70s Strauss recordings, which I think are all a step above his 80s digital remakes, and sound much better; if I recall correctly, the Alpensinfonie was Deutsche Grammophon's very first digital recording. The digital versions all sound a bit flat and lack the punch, details, and atmosphere of the 70s recordings. On top of that, the Berliner Philharmoniker struggle a bit with the Alpensinfonie, and some parts are a bit off and a bit weak.

 

And now it turns out that the 1982 performance was broadcast on the Austrian radio (ORF) back in the day, and later once put on a CD that seems to be so rare you can hardly even find any information on it on the internet - and then someone presumably took that CD, added (for whatever reason) a photo of the first page of Mahler's 6th symphony, and uploaded it on YouTube:

 

 

And it's just stunning. Even with the 80s radio broadcast sound and YouTube compression, there's more detail in it than on the CD version; the tension never lets up for the whole 50 minutes, and that brass! Clearly a few more rehearsals were just what the orchestra needed, and I suppose the immediacy of a live performance did the rest.

 

Quite possibly the best Alpensinfonie I've ever heard, and except for that one rare CD, the recording must have been sitting in the ORF archives for almost 39 years. This needs a regular release!

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4 hours ago, Jurassic Shark said:

You should check out Previn's RCA recording.

 

Or Bryden Thomson's LPO recording, also an amazing performance (final movement especially).

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15 hours ago, Will said:

 

Glorious. 

 

Aah, Walton. I have Rattle's Birmingham recording of that on CD, coupled with the absolutely fantastic Belshazzar's Feast. Someday I'll have to go to London to hear that one live - you hardly every get any Walton at all in Austria.

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Sad report that national treasure Michael Tilson Thomas has had surgery to remove a brain tumor.  I'm praying he's able to beat the cancer.

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/06/arts/music/michael-tilson-thomas.html

 

He's had so many wonderful recordings over the decades, but I must always spotlight what are for me the definitive recordings of two of my favorite pieces of music: Copland's Symphonic Ode and Piston's 2nd symphony.

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Ooh. Didn't know about that last one. Sounds like another fun Adams "journey" piece, a la Fearful Symmetries and Guide to Strange Places. The latter is fantastic and underrated.

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1 hour ago, May the Force be with You said:

I was looking for a CD of Mozart's Requiem and I was hoping that some of you here might suggest me which version is the best. Thanks in advance

 

I haven't listened to it in years (having sung it a couple of times with our choir, I think I still can't play it without singing along), but back when I was comparing recordings, this Gardiner recording was my favourite:

 

 

Among other things, I love this brisk tempo in the Offertorium. Most other versions are slower to begin and lose much energy after the fugato (when the solo parts come in). Gardiner keeps pace & energy up throughout, and I find the result breathtaking (and the text still comes through much clearer than in most slower versions).

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8 hours ago, Marian Schedenig said:

 

I haven't listened to it in years (having sung it a couple of times with our choir, I think I still can't play it without singing along), but back when I was comparing recordings, this Gardiner recording was my favourite:

 

 

Among other things, I love this brisk tempo in the Offertorium. Most other versions are slower to begin and lose much energy after the fugato (when the solo parts come in). Gardiner keeps pace & energy up throughout, and I find the result breathtaking (and the text still comes through much clearer than in most slower versions).

 

Gardiner and Mozart's Requiem, what an Odd choice.

 

9 hours ago, May the Force be with You said:

I was looking for a CD of Mozart's Requiem and I was hoping that some of you here might suggest me which version is the best. Thanks in advance

 

This recording using mainly male voices (boys and men) add some tragedy to this pathetic work relating our vanishing existence.

 

Different matury of male voices are very effective to me for this particular work. And it's the short version of the Requiem, removing all the parts that are not from Mozart himself...

 

https://www.discogs.com/Mozart-Kirkby-Watkinson-Rolfe-Johnson-Thomas-The-Academy-Of-Ancient-Music-Christopher-Hogwood-Requie/release/7130771

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On 8/25/2021 at 2:37 AM, AC1 said:

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1) Violin concerto: Meh

2) Shaker Loops: Yeah

 

Oh come on! The violin concerto is fantastic. The Toccare is so badass!

 

Looks those bow hairs go!

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Schnittke's Requiem is great.

 

 

On 8/25/2021 at 8:37 AM, AC1 said:

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1) Violin concerto: Meh

 

Philip Glass' first violin concerto is much better.

 

On 8/27/2021 at 5:52 PM, May the Force be with You said:

I'm going to listen to both to see which one suits me the best. Thanks for the advices!

 

Peter Schreiber's Philips recording is often used as a reference. Bernstein's recording on DG is epically slow.

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1 hour ago, May the Force be with You said:

I went on Marriner's Philips recording which was really great after a first listening but thanks for the other suggestion I'll try it too

 

Make sure to try Hogwood's recording, which is of a super conservative edition that excludes as much as possible of Süssmayr's material. It's an essential recording for one reason: Emma Kirkby.

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It's deadly good!

 

On 10/09/2021 at 5:06 PM, AC1 said:

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We've heard 'the felt piano' become popular in film music and all kinds of other media but now it has found its way into classical music as well.

 

Have you heard his Bach album? Way too much rubato!

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On 16/08/2021 at 5:18 PM, Loert said:

Discovered this piece yesterday. I like it!

 

 

The whole opera is outstanding, but someone may have mentioned it already. I've listened to the version he conducted with the BBC orchestra more times than I can count now.

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6 hours ago, Schilkeman said:

The whole opera is outstanding, but someone may have mentioned it already. I've listened to the version he conducted with the BBC orchestra more times than I can count now.

 

I was at the world premiere in San Francisco.  At the time, I think it was only his third opera, the others being historical as well, and each of the other ones were landmarks in their way so their was much anticipation plus being an amateur physics and history buff, I LOVED the powerful story.  It isn't a historical opera per se but a literary one taking Robert Oppenheimer as a Faustian character who loses his soul in the quest for knowledge and understanding of the secrets of the atom.  He's given infinite budget and resources, but not time to unravel the secrets of the atom but it is for a military objective of crafting a super weapon.  You get a real sense that they are playing with the genie in the bottle and once unleashed, can never again be put back in to its bottle - hence the nuclear arms race.  The build up to the ending was absolutely terrifying in theater and there was maybe a 15 minute ovation for Adams and Sellers afterwards plus a nice preconcert talk and reception.  It was a very moving experience.  Sadly, I don't feel the BBC Symphony recording lives up to the experience of seeing it live on stage or some of the better performances.  I actually preferred the MET's performance that was broadcast live to theaters but I don't remember if Adams was the conductor.  Anyway, long way of saying I agree with you.

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