[CanadianMaestro]

Now playing #4 from this cheap, cheap set:



Not the definitive Beethoven set by a long shot, but if you collect Ludwig van's symphonies as much as I do, this is a must-have.  The main criticism, from all sides, is that this is how Beethoven was played a few generations ago - big and slow.  But darn it, it's done well.  Yes, it's perhaps the slowest cycle *** out there (Eroica = almost an hour!!!), but it never drags.  Carlo keeps the pace - slow as it is - moving without letting up, giving the whole set a kind of unrelenting drive which suits this music very well.

This is a great box for the analytical listener: woodwinds and violas are a little forward, and the leisurely pace allows my old ears to decipher what's being played (8th Symphony Finale sextuplets?  Yes, you can count them!) and gives the players time to put some love into the fast passages (Eroica horn trio, so clear for a change).

*** I should say it's an almost-cycle: there is no Ninth!  I don't mind much.  To me, Beethoven wrote 8 symphonies and a "something else", a monster that defies any one-word description...

TL/DR: Sometimes I feel like these symphonies are just too short - so why not make them last a little longer?  :wink_face:  

If you want long symphs......do Mahler. Lots of excell sets for Him.

 

[icebear]

  Had a break from head-fi for a while and so I've been catching up on my favorite threads. This being one. Nice to see the regulars still here  
 
Has anyone checked these out yet? Have to say they deserve the awards and praise they are getting in the music press. I've owned Vanska's early set with the Lahti SO for many years and thought it was one of the best. But this new set with the Minnesota orchestra is more refined and better paced imo. His Sibelius is now luxurious! Good balanced recording (the older BIS recording had the brass a bit too emphasised ) 
 
The new benchmark imo
....

I'll wait until the prices for the above come down a bit

I went for this one instead as alternative for my N. Järvi/BIS discs from the mid 80's :
$8 for the 4CD box

 

 

[Buho]

My most favorite composer in classical music is Antonio Vivaldi and the ones i like most are the four seasons and la stravaganza, i found these versions very good:
 
Vivaldi The Four Seasons Anne Akiko Meyers and Janine Jansen and stravaganza by Podger Rachel
 

 

 

[Quinto]

 

[CanadianMaestro]

  I'll wait until the prices for the above come down a bit

I went for this one instead as alternative for my N. Järvi/BIS discs from the mid 80's :
$8 for the 4CD box

 

 
Great set and cheap. Try also Berglund/Helsinki.

 

[CanadianMaestro]

 

 
Simply put:
 

• "Pan Awakes, Summer Marches In"
• "What the Flowers in the Meadow Tell Me"
• "What the Animals in the Forest Tell Me"
• "What Man Tells Me"
• "What the Angels Tell Me"
• "What Love Tells Me"

 
Probably my fav Mahler symph along with #1, 5 and 6-- best rec of 3 may be Bychkov/Koln and Bernstein/NYP '87.  Rattle/CBSO is also v. fine.

 

[SunTanScanMan]

Gotta say that I've had some profound moments during the third movement of the Ninth - Sadness, and the defiance of optimism.
For me it's the key that unlocks the rest of the symphony.
 
-----------------------------------------
 
 
 
Enjoyed this last night:

I enjoyed the interpretation, but her instrument sounds distinctly more metallic than the Grumiaux set I have. Is that the result of the difference in string material or recording/mastering? To my ears, I do prefer Grumiaux's instrument.
 
Another difference is that recording seems to have Faust's violin right up against my ears. That can be a bit too intense and up close for me with headphones. Doesn't help with some sections sounding almost too bright. Grumiaux seems to be standing a bit away from me, and I find it easier to appreciate the music as a whole.
 
I appreciate that the experience may be different on a floor system, which I find creates a more realistic scale of instrument sounds.
 
------------
 
Also good to see thread members back

 

[Quinto]

   
Simply put:
 

• "Pan Awakes, Summer Marches In"
• "What the Flowers in the Meadow Tell Me"
• "What the Animals in the Forest Tell Me"
• "What Man Tells Me"
• "What the Angels Tell Me"
• "What Love Tells Me"

 
Probably my fav Mahler symph along with #1, 5 and 6-- best rec of 3 may be Bychkov/Koln and Bernstein/NYP '87.  Rattle/CBSO is also v. fine.

I also like Levine and Chailly's third..my favorite symphony together with 2nd, 4th, second half of 8th and 9th

 

[Quinto]

  Gotta say that I've had some profound moments during the third movement of the Ninth - Sadness, and the defiance of optimism.
For me it's the key that unlocks the rest of the symphony.
 
-----------------------------------------
 
 
 
Enjoyed this last night:

I enjoyed the interpretation, but her instrument sounds distinctly more metallic than the Grumiaux set I have. Is that the result of the difference in string material or recording/mastering? To my ears, I do prefer Grumiaux's instrument.
 
Another difference is that recording seems to have Faust's violin right up against my ears. That can be a bit too intense and up close for me with headphones. Doesn't help with some sections sounding almost too bright. Grumiaux seems to be standing a bit away from me, and I find it easier to appreciate the music as a whole.
 
I appreciate that the experience may be different on a floor system, which I find creates a more realistic scale of instrument sounds.
 
------------
 
Also good to see thread members back

I do have a soft spot for Grumiaux's sound in general, Faust's Bach is still on my (way to long) wish list..
 
http://www.thestrad.com/cpt-latests/violinist-isabelle-faust-finding-a-balance-in-bach/

 

[icebear]

   
Great set and cheap. Try also Berglund/Helsinki.

I listened to the Berglund/Helsinki version in tiny snippets on A'zon and somehow the Bournemouth sounded more appealing with a sound stage similar to the area of "Living Stereo" style recordings ...which I love.

 

[icebear]

I last night enjoyed this one :

 
For the first time ever

listened to a recording of Elisabeth Schwarzkopf and I am pretty sure I'm hooked

.
What often turns me off from vocal works is that you can't understand the lyrics without following by reading the text.
She is brilliant in her pronunciation, love the performance of the orchestra as well.

 

[CanadianMaestro]

  Gotta say that I've had some profound moments during the third movement of the Ninth - Sadness, and the defiance of optimism.
For me it's the key that unlocks the rest of the symphony.
 
-----------------------------------------
 
 
 
Enjoyed this last night:

I enjoyed the interpretation, but her instrument sounds distinctly more metallic than the Grumiaux set I have. Is that the result of the difference in string material or recording/mastering? To my ears, I do prefer Grumiaux's instrument.
 
Another difference is that recording seems to have Faust's violin right up against my ears. That can be a bit too intense and up close for me with headphones. Doesn't help with some sections sounding almost too bright. Grumiaux seems to be standing a bit away from me, and I find it easier to appreciate the music as a whole.
 
I appreciate that the experience may be different on a floor system, which I find creates a more realistic scale of instrument sounds.
 

I like to think it's a combo of miking (rec engineering) and violin make. Grumiaux's recs (Phillips?) have always sounded pleasant, not bright, on my system. His Mozart Violin Ctos (Davis conducting) are among my favs for those pieces -- lush strings. Another rec I really like is Bach's Cello Suites, by Pierre Fournier. Absolute Desert Island.
 

 
I listened to the Berglund/Helsinki version in tiny snippets on A'zon and somehow the Bournemouth sounded more appealing with a sound stage similar to the area of "Living Stereo" style recordings ...which I love.

Bit of a tossup in terms of interpretation by Berglund. But yes, the Bournemouth is a dark horse gem, very under-rated.
 

  I last night enjoyed this one :

 
For the first time every

listened to a recording of Elisabeth Schwarzkopf and I am pretty sure I'm hooked

.
What often turns me off from vocal works is that you can't understand the lyrics without following by reading the text.
She is brilliant in her pronunciation, love the performance of the orchestra as well.

This is a gem, I agree. ES also did some very nice Schubert Lieder (Moore, piano) and of course, her Mozart arias. Ach du Lieber.....
 
Off for some errands this Labor Day weekend!

 

[kostaszag]

 

 Another rec I really like is Bach's Cello Suites, by Pierre Fournier. Absolute Desert Island.
 
 

 

Which one? he recorded them 4 times! For the small french label Accord, for Archiv/Deutsche Grammophon, for Philips and for Denon. Take your pick.

 

[kostaszag]

  Gotta say that I've had some profound moments during the third movement of the Ninth - Sadness, and the defiance of optimism.
For me it's the key that unlocks the rest of the symphony.
 
-----------------------------------------
 
 
 
Enjoyed this last night:

I enjoyed the interpretation, but her instrument sounds distinctly more metallic than the Grumiaux set I have. Is that the result of the difference in string material or recording/mastering? To my ears, I do prefer Grumiaux's instrument.
 
Another difference is that recording seems to have Faust's violin right up against my ears. That can be a bit too intense and up close for me with headphones. Doesn't help with some sections sounding almost too bright. Grumiaux seems to be standing a bit away from me, and I find it easier to appreciate the music as a whole.
 
I appreciate that the experience may be different on a floor system, which I find creates a more realistic scale of instrument sounds.
 
------------
 
Also good to see thread members back

What an irony, HIP-Musicians use gut-strings and non-HIP musicians like Grumiaux use metal strings !  BTW, when it comes to the Bach solo Sonatas and Partitas the recordings bu Nathan Milstein are essential listening. 

 

[RRod]

  What an irony, HIP-Musicians use gut-strings and non-HIP musicians like Grumiaux use metal strings ! 

 
They're also less likely to have a constant goat-vibrato going.