Classical music discussion, what do you like?

[gerelmx1986]

Beethoven with headphones

 

[gerelmx1986]

New purchase

 

[CanadianMaestro]

Beethoven with headphones

You know He was deaf, don't you?

 

[CanadianMaestro]

Stumbled on this old feature about Mitsuko Uchida. One of my fav pianists for Mozart and also, more recently, Schubert.

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2002/dec/21/classicalmusicandopera.artsfeatures

 

[gerelmx1986]

You know He was deaf, don't you?

Yes I know that. Next time I get some etymothic in-ear and place on the Beethoven head , Beethoven on hearing aids . Just joking

 

[gerelmx1986]

 

[Light - Man]

Nice song and images. But I am used to hearing Enya singing this song on one of her CDs. And it sounded a bit laboured to hear an opera singer's voice and way of singing, while my "inner ear" heard Enya's version alongside.
I prefer Enya's version honestly.
I am sure Elina is a good Carmen. But for me this tune belongs to Enya.
Did this song feature in the film I suppose the images are from?
Cheers CC

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Christer]

Stumbled on this old feature about Mitsuko Uchida. One of my fav pianists for Mozart and also, more recently, Schubert.

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2002/dec/21/classicalmusicandopera.artsfeatures

Thanks,
interesting article.
My favourite recording of Mozart's D minor Concerto is the recording she made with Tate for Philips in the mid 80s.

Whenever I am in town I look for more of her recordings in the thrift shops.

After having read this article I think it is also worth reading the interview with Richardo Chailly a bit further down, and watch the short video where during a rehearsal with Maria Pirés, instead of the Concerto she is expecting, he starts the orchestra in the D minor instead, to her initial shock. But once they have argued a bit during that dark brooding introduction,Interesting to watch her gradually get into it and agree to play along from memory and it sounds very good indeed.


It reminds me a bit of the incident Arthur Rubenstein tells in his autobiography of a rehearsal he arrrives at only to find that there is no piano at all in the hall, only the orchestra and conductor, so Rubenstein decides to sing his part instead!
And a personal memory I have of real musical memory, is when a few years ago I was photographing the Swedish pianist Bengt Forsberg at rehearsals, and he was playing an instrument I could easily see, was a period instrument and when I asked him what instrument it was he said, a Hammerklavier.
I responded well then, can you play Beethoven's Hammerklavier Sonata on it?
And to my surprise he immediately began playing the first movement of the Hammerklavier Sonata.
He was actually rehearsing a recital of songs by the Swedish 19th century composer Adolf Fredrik Lindblad.
Bengt Forsberg is maybe not so well known internationally as a soloist. But his recordings for DGG with Ann Sofie von Otter are.

My favourite from those recordings, is the disc of Brahms' Zigeunerlieder DGG 429727-2.

Cheers CC

 

[Christer]

Here you go! IF you can't stomach the audio quality, you at least have the information needed to find it.

Yeah, I was thinking, why WOULDN'T Mozart's music sound closer to a baroque orchestra rather than a modern day orchestra? But Mozart was a revolutionary who had big ideas, so it's not surprising he would have loved a massive orchestra. He'd probably be thrilled to hear the Chicago Symphony playing with a full contingent of strings.

The recording I linked, it sounds like they are in fact using gut. It's a softer, warmer sound for sure. The only thing about these recordings I don't like is that the basses and cellos lack some of the power I would normally like to hear.

Interestingly enough, an orchestra I play in, the Paducah Symphony, does that set up with the violins. I love it because as a first violinist, I get to have the basses and cellos near me and it feels great. The second violins hate it haha. Oh well.

Thanks for the link. listening to the "little G minor symphony 25 while writing.
What a great really energetic theme that is!
And well played here.
This was actually the symphony the Orchestra of the Age of the Enlightment played live on gut strings and tuned to 432 in KL.

I talked to the leader of the MPO Peter Danis during the intervals and he explained to me that the reason they had to retune much more often than his orchestra had to, was because of the gut strings "sliding out of tune" very easily. And that they were also very sensitive to the high air humidity there in the tropics so although he too liked the way they sounded it would not be anything for them to do.
And the leader of the second violins also commented on divisi placing at another concert they played last season, Mendelsohn's 3rd symphony ,which has important dialogues between first and second violins ,and this time the conductor used the divided seating to my joy.
"But it is harder on us you know."Was his comment when I lauded the correct seating.

I'll see if I can download some of these performances from somewhere?

I am not sure if I need the Big G minor symphony without clarinets though?

I think that version is of "minor interest" to me than the later one with clarinets.

I suspect that the reason Mozart orginally composed it without clarinets was not because he did not initially want clarinets but possibly because few orchestras actually had clarinets?
The clarinet was still a quite recent addition to the orchestra and Mozart maybe had an orchestra without them in mind for first performances?

With these snippets from various symphonies still playing while writing they begin to sound a bit similar to the SCO/Mackerras on Linn to me.

Maybe a bit too lean for me?
But it sounds as if they are playing in a nice reverberant hall even directly via my mbp inbuilt speakers.

I will try to download some of the less well known ones that I don't already have in many versions ranging from Bruno Walter and Karl Böhm or Karajan and other more modern ones.
Talking non vibrato again, there was a BBC Proms performance of Haydn's Creation a couple of nights ago, non vibrato, on modern instruments and "Chaos" did not sound big and chaotic enough for me in that performance.
Last night's Sibelius 1st by the Bavarian Radio Symphony was great though.
Cheers CC

 

[Peter Hyatt]

With the Met On Demand app—we saw the broadcast of “Carmen” that I’d previously seen & my wife enjoyed it.

Then the rest of the week—-

Samson & Delilah

The Magic Flute.

Up next is wide open still...

We unplugged from TV 3 years ago —the Berliner Philharmonker (Digital Concert Hall) and the Met on Demand subscription services are quite enjoyable.

 

[Peter Hyatt]

Qobuz 80% sale for August.

I’m enjoying this performance

Tchaikovsky Casse-Noisette for $2.20

https://www.qobuz.com/us-en/album/t...olchoi-piotr-ilitch-tchaikovsky/3700403528305

 

[Peter Hyatt]

Nagging question w/o many to ask—please disregard if uncomfortable - controversial.

Re: pop music.

The deeper you’ve enjoyed orchestration, chamber, solo, etc, — has it impacted your listening habits/enjoyment of pop music?

The last pop album I listened to was November 2018 when the Dylan “Blood on the Tracks” outtakes was released.

It wasn’t intentional but something I realized from a discussion w a family member.

 

[Quinto]

Nagging question w/o many to ask—please disregard if uncomfortable - controversial.

Re: pop music.

The deeper you’ve enjoyed orchestration, chamber, solo, etc, — has it impacted your listening habits/enjoyment of pop music?

The last pop album I listened to was November 2018 when the Dylan “Blood on the Tracks” outtakes was released.

It wasn’t intentional but something I realized from a discussion w a family member.

Most pop, not all, is low information music..fine for what it is..the more I listened to classical (and Jazz) the less pop music did for me..
Is that controversial? Personally I think people have long toes

 

[gerelmx1986]

Nagging question w/o many to ask—please disregard if uncomfortable - controversial.

Re: pop music.

The deeper you’ve enjoyed orchestration, chamber, solo, etc, — has it impacted your listening habits/enjoyment of pop music?

The last pop album I listened to was November 2018 when the Dylan “Blood on the Tracks” outtakes was released.

It wasn’t intentional but something I realized from a discussion w a family member.

No problem , believe me, rap is even worse

My husband and I always fight on the car for the radio station and at home for ehose device gets connected into the stereo system: my walkman wm1A filled with classical or his ipod loaded with rap and low fi electronic drum beat music

 

[Peter Hyatt]

I had never heard Lady GaGa until recently.

I finally heard her music with the single note

“My my my my my my my...poker face”.