What Classical Music Are You listening to Now? III

[smittims]

Mozart piano concertos : in E flat, K449. C K 503 and D K537 ('Coronation').
Friedrich Gulda, with Anthony Collins conducting . Decca recordings from the 1950s which for some reason I've never heard before. I thought they were excellent.

[Master Jacques]

David Del Tredici
In Memory of a Summer Day
Phillis Bryn-Julson
Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, Leonard Slatkin
Nonesuch CD 9 79043-2

Gracious! First time I'd played this compelling nightmare vision of Lewis Carroll for about 30 years, and I soon remembered just how maddeningly over the top and utterly beautiful the piece is. A big rosette to Phillis Bryn-Julson, for her stamina, gorgeous operatic singing and compelling charisma. Think of this piece as fractured Mahler glued back together by a compulsively sequential psychopath and you won't be far wrong. Loving it dearly.... RIP David Del Tredici, its remarkable composer who died last November, and thank you.

[frankbridge]

Bernard Rands: Concerto for Piano and Orchestra

Jonathan Biss/BBC Scottish SO/Stenz

Lyrita SRCD 379

[frankbridge]

Welsh Dances

Hoddinott/Mathias/Jones

RPO and Philharmonia/Groves
NYO/Davison
BBC Welsh/Jack Thomson

Lyrita SRCD 334

I'm sorry, but I'm having an Itter morning at the moment, I'm sure you won't mind

[Roger Webb]

Welsh Dances

Hoddinott/Mathias/Jones

RPO and Philharmonia/Groves
NYO/Davison
BBC Welsh/Jack Thomson

Lyrita SRCD 334

I'm sorry, but I'm having an Itter morning at the moment, I'm sure you won't mind

Not at all! You must, therefore be familiar with SRCS 73, 91, 104 and 114.......most of my Lyritas (98 LPs) are vinyl.

[smittims]

Don't let anyone stop you, frankbridge! Music lovers have much to thank that man for. I've been a dyed-in-the-wool Lyrita fan since 1966, when I saw listed 'Bax: Sixth Symphony. New Philharmonia Orchestra, Norman del Mar' and I thought , 'what is Lie-Rita, I wonder?' I had a miniature score of the sixth, but Bax' symphonies were so rarely played in those days that I never expected to hear it. When the disc arrived with its rich emerald-green sleeve it was one of the first two stereo records I bought and the beginning of a lifetime of enjoyment and satisfaction.

My choice today was Honegger's Le Roi David, in the classic recording by Ernest Ansermet. For some reason I think I enjoyed it more today than previously. When it was new to me I found it strange, but it is really a very straightforward work with its vivid 'poster-colour' story-telling.

.

[edashtav]

To quote smittims:

"I've been a dyed-in-the-wool Lyrita fan since 1966, when I saw listed 'Bax: Sixth Symphony. New Philharmonia Orchestra, Norman del Mar' and I thought , 'what is Lie-Rita, I wonder?'"
'Twas its Bax 1st Symphony issue that gripped me and opened my virgin m.s.

I've been listening to the 'new' R.3. Afternoon concert. On Monday, I heard an enjoyable, if brassy, performance of Lutoslawski's Little (Mala) Suite and earlier in April, I heard a recording of Richard Rodney Bennett's Suite ' Murder on the Orient Express'.

Suddenly a question popped into my head:

"What physical features link Lutoslawski's Suite with one of Richard Rodney's operas?"

I'll leave it to Borders to supply responses.

[richardfinegold]

David Del Tredici
In Memory of a Summer Day
Phillis Bryn-Julson
Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, Leonard Slatkin
Nonesuch CD 9 79043-2

Gracious! First time I'd played this compelling nightmare vision of Lewis Carroll for about 30 years, and I soon remembered just how maddeningly over the top and utterly beautiful the piece is. A big rosette to Phillis Bryn-Julson, for her stamina, gorgeous operatic singing and compelling charisma. Think of this piece as fractured Mahler glued back together by a compulsively sequential psychopath and you won't be far wrong. Loving it dearly.... RIP David Del Tredici, its remarkable composer who died last November, and thank you.

I also heard it for the first time in decades, played on our local station as a tribute to the recently deceased composer. I like your description

[smittims]

I'm afraid your quiz question is too recherche for me, edashtav. I didn't even know Bennett had written any operas!

I've been digging out and cleaning some early '50s HMV LPs with much pleasure: Walton's 'Symphony in B flat minor ', at that time his only one , played by the Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by the composer, and the first six Chopin Polonaises played by Artur Rubinstein. This was a Victor recording issued in Britain by HMV as they did some Horowitz and Toscanini's at that time. .

[Stanfordian]

Anja Harteros – Wagner, Berg, Mahler – Orchesterlieder
Wagner
'Wesendonck-Lieder'
Berg
'Sieben Frühe Lieder'
Mahler,
'Rückert-Lieder'
Anja Harteros (soprano),
Münchner Philharmoniker / Valery Gergiev
Recorded 2018 (Wagner), 2019 (Mahler), 2020 (Berg), Philharmonie, Munich
MPhil, CD

J.S. Bach
'Musikalisches Opfer' ('Musical Offering'), BWV 1079
Aria from the Goldberg Variations, BWV 988
XIV Canons on the Goldberg Ground, BWV 1087
Sonata in G major, BWV 1038
Masaaki Suzuki (harpsichord),
Members of Bach Collegium Japan:
Kiyomi Suga (flute), Ryo Terakado (violin I),
Yukie Yamaguchi (violin II & viola), Emmanuel Balssa (cello)
Recorded 2016 Old Catholic Church, The Hague, Netherlands
BIS, SACD

[Master Jacques]

"What physical features link Lutoslawski's Suite with one of Richard Rodney's operas?"
I'll leave it to Borders to supply responses.

I can make no sense of your clue, and so doubtless this isn't the right answer.

However ... like Lutoslawski's Little Suite, Bennett's The Mines of Sulphur was originally written for chamber orchestra, and both were later expanded to full orchestra. I'm not sure the chamber version of The Mines of Sulphur has ever been done: it was commissioned by Aldeburgh, who "let it go" to Sadler's Wells in 1965. The BBC TV studio production in November the following year (those were the days) may have used the chamber version, but I've never heard or seen anything of that broadcast, sadly.

[smittims]

Ah yes, The MInes of Sulphur. Thanks, Master Jaques, I had forgotten that.

Some Stokowski today: The Planets, which I've always thought better than the critics said (I'm referring to S's interpretation, not the work itself). Transfigured Night, amd Gliere's Ilya Mourometz. Oh dear, even Stokowski's cut version, half the length of the original, cannot disguise the 'finale problem ' we have here.

[smittims]

George Weldon and the Philharmonia orchestra : 'Popular Concert no.1' Columbia 33SX 1032,

and Willy Boskovsky and the Vienna Philharmonic, 'Johann Strauss Concert' Decca LXT 5432. Lovely photo of the inside of the Sofiesaal, where, presumably, it was recorded.

Both Charity shop bargains bought this morning, cleaned ,and sounding almost like new.

[edashtav]

I can make no sense of your clue, and so doubtless this isn't the right answer.

However ... like Lutoslawski's Little Suite, Bennett's The Mines of Sulphur was originally written for chamber orchestra, and both were later expanded to full orchestra. I'm not sure the chamber version of The Mines of Sulphur has ever been done: it was commissioned by Aldeburgh, who "let it go" to Sadler's Wells in 1965. The BBC TV studio production in November the following year (those were the days) may have used the chamber version, but I've never heard or seen anything of that broadcast, sadly.

Curiously, you have alighted on the correct Richard Rodney Bennett Opera, Master Jacques, but my physical feature was not as recherché a link as your well researched from chamber to full orchestra conflation.

My physical link was geographical in nature, a clue which I'm sure you will find helpful..

[Roger Webb]

Curiously, you have alighted on the correct Richard Rodney Bennett Opera, Master Jacques, but my physical feature was not as recherché a link as your well researched from chamber to full orchestra conflation.

My physical link was geographical in nature, a clue which I'm sure you will find helpful..

I suppose it's the sulphur mines at Machowa - the Lutoslawski Little Suite was written for the village