Classical Music for Aficionados

One of his symphonic poems is called "Sir William Wallace"!

My thought exactly ! 

William Wallace, Now there's a very patriotic name.

Listening to four of his symphonic poems right now.

Indeed , I have one on NAXOS .

My two Scottish grandmothers schooled me on being Scottish .

Here's another underrated Scottish composer, William Wallace.  Hyperion have a couple of very good CDs.

I sure like Perahia too , I saw him play the Goldberg Variations in the Glasgow Concert Hall some years ago and he was very very good. One of the best Goldbergs I have ever witnessed.

I sure like Perahia, I imagine I might like him  too .

If I can find him .

@jcazador   Thanks for the link, it's nice to put fingers to an interpretation. Isn't it amazing that he is not even 20 yet. I see he takes lessons from Murray Perahia.

Have any of you heard of the 18 year old sensation Yoav Levanon who hails from Israel. He has a technique that is absolutely astonishing and also produces a beautiful tone from the piano. There is a recording from Warner from him entitled A Monument for Beethoven where he plays music from the pianists who helped to raise the money for the monument to him in Bonn. The piano playing is stunning  and the  interpretations of the pieces are so accomplished.

Sorry Len you won't like it as he plays the Liszt Sonata in the best recording and interpretation I think I have ever heard..

I saw Nicola in Chicago a few years ago .  After she played the WarHorse Concerto she encored with a few Scottish ditties, and her personality really came out.  She is a tiny person, btw, barely 5 feet and probably a size 1.5….

Aye, and courage abounds when a top artist changes her normal style !

Here is a piece almost as beautiful as her in body and soul .

I remember once seeing a BBC television program about Nichola Benedetti and the Orkney fiddler Alli Bain playing music together and it was fascinating. The two of them were virtuosos of entirely different styles of music and yet they both adapted to each others sryles and created beautiful music together. Thats real musicians for you.!!

Aye Len, I used to like a wee bottle o ginger masel, Cream soda and Irn Bru.

Gaun yersel.!!

Yes, I forgot I do have that BIS . As you know If I see BIS I buy it without looking !

Alba?, even Glasgow will do !

I'm Braw for a wee bottle 'o ginger .

Hi Len , have you tried Kavakos in the Sibelius Violin Concerto in the two versions, the first version which most violinists of the time couldn’t get their fingers around so Sibelius revised it. In the revisions he simplified some of the dificulties without harming the thing as a whole and it shortened the concerto a little. With Kavakos playing the original version you can’t hear the imense difficulties of the piece because he is such a good player but when you listen to the revised version I think it just gels better. The concertos are on the BIS label so there is no worry about quality. If you haven’t got this release then I would say it would be well worth having even for the novelty of it because no other violinist will ever be able to release an alternative version as the Sibelius family only gave permission for Kavakos only to release it and then it was sealed back up again.

I hope you are keeping well my friend and getting your dailly dose of Bach.

From your friend in Alba, Kind regards Jim.

Thanks Jim, I have a bit with the later but I think not at all  from Vengerov .

Have to do some on both .

Hi Len , not at all they are Maxim Vengerov and Leonidas Kavakos and all three in no particular order.

204, do you mind naming the other two ?

If not , no bad feeling at all.

When the people live in a bubble there is nothing but trouble .

Why do anything when you are already perfect ?

I think Miss Fischer is so talented and yes is in my top 3. A superb musician.

This is the Grieg Piano Concerto, one of the "war-horses" often played .

The German Artist ,Julia Fisher. plays very well as you will hear.

Oh , by the way she is widely considered to be by many to be the worlds Greatest

Violinist .

She had just finished a Violin Concerto and has a fine voice as well .

The Orchestra is the Young German in Frankfurt

I LOVE Grieg ! So does she . I'm not much, she is FANTASTIC !!

You got to love It, a great French composer, a German Band and a Japanese violinist !

Merveilleusx album! Merci....

Compositeur intéressant au plus haut point....

oups! 

Thanks for this great post!

This simply beautiful and masterfully written and composed! I'm looking forward to more! 

If this is not a Great Orchestra there is no  such thing !

WOW !!!!

Listen to the first 1’ 30" and see if you don’t want to keep on listening.

Parry, Symphony no. 5

I am fond of all his choral works...So much i even did not listen to his others works i must confess...

Voices dont lie...

He is a genius for me, Scottish or not....

But for sure viva Scotland!

😁😊

This is a Scottish composer who composed about any type of serious music there is.

I find him interesting but having a Scottish bias ............. I must be right !

Gaun yersel big man !!!

I don’t like Tech of any form , wish i was like you Jim , but I’m just not .

I just finished with Presto for the Sibelius with a bit of Bach,Grieg and Holst  as well .

From "The Carls O’ Dysart "

We’ll live a’ our days

And them that comes behin"

Let them do the like.

And spend the gear they win .

 A week in Scotland is worth a year  anywhere else ,lucky you !

Cheers

Hi Len, If and when I get the odd CD it is usually from Presto but I understand it can take a bit of time to get them from the UK. Have you ever thought of downloading them from Presto as I often have as you can download flac or wav and put them on a hard drive and play them with something like J River which is rather affordable and not like Roon which is a rip off. Stay well my friend, Jim.

Sibelius:

Complete Symphonies and Tone Poems   ---   Boston / Colin Davis  - Decca 

Currently on Ebay and amazon.   I have ordered several items from Presto, and you will receive them eventually.  I received one order within 7 days from order, and two others 45+ days after order.  And that was with $11 shipping.  Of course, nothing is normal these days.

Ebay also has the same performances on Philips Classics  2fers.

Cheers