Classical Music for Aficionados

Yes it was!

But I didn’t ge any because I left early!

kef lover
Pogorelich, YES!
I have his "complete recording on DG" 14 cds
He gives me faith that the tradition is going forward

Yes, Pogorelich is a great individualist.
I saw him in his debut Carnegie Hall recital over twenty years ago.
He showed utter disdain for the audience, never cracking a smile and barely acknowledging the presence of the audience.
But, what a pianist!
 I know he stopped playing after his piano teacher/wife died, I believe in ‘97.
I didn’t realize he resumed his career until I just read it.
 He’s in the cut of Glenn Gould (one of my two favorite pianists, the other being Horowitz) in that he re-interprets a piece without regard for conventional performance.  I much admire that.  An original thinker.

As far as favorite pianists, there’s also Rachmaninoff — but he’s a god!

FLAC:
- Stravinsky; Le Sacre du Printemps, Nezet-Seguin/Philadelpia/DGG 24/96 hi-res

Vinyl:
- Stravinsky; Le Sacre du Printemps, Stravinsky/Columbia Symphony/Columbia Grey two-eye (1967?) pressing
- Bartok; Music for Strings, Percussion & Celesta/Concerto for Two Pianos and Percussion, Bernstein/New York Philharmonic/Columbia
- Bartok; Concerto for Orchestra, Reiner/Chicago/RCA
- Bach; Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin, Szeryng/DGG
- Shostakovich; Symphony No. 8, Previn/London/Angel
- Stravinsky, L'Histoire du Soldat, Stravinsky/Columbia Ensemble/Columbia
Prokofiev; Lt. Kije, Szell/Cleveland/Columbia

Now watching/listening to
Grigory Sokolov plays Schubert, Beethoven, Rameau and Brahms – Recital at the Berliner Philharmonie, 2013
I am stunned at Sokolov's pure musicianship.  No show, all go.
His technique is so incredible, it seems to make room for more rhythmic nuance than I have ever heard.
I have been listening to him for some years, but never saw a video of his performance before this.
Remarkable how he mouths the music.
Description here:
http://facesofclassicalmusic.blogspot.com/2015/10/grigory-sokolov-plays-schubert.html

Sokolov story
He plays all over the world, except in UK.
When he tried to get a visa to play in London, they required eye scans.
He told them that reminded him too much of USSR, and refused.  He was born in Leningrad, USSR, which became St Petersburg, Russia (as it had been before USSR).  So he knows.

Wow!  Try McEwen's symphonic works on Chandos, including Solway symphony.  This remarkably recorded CD will really give your system a full work-out.

jcazador and rvpiano,

I saw Pogorelich twice. The first time he played the Prokofiev PC #3. He made the piece look ridiculously easy and looked bored as he walked onstage and as he left. He played the piece with consummate authority.

The second time was a recital that included the Don Juan Fantasy. It was stunning to say the least. He is a remarkable musician who definitely goes his own way. Among other recordings of his that I enjoy are his Beethoven Op. 111, Bach, Prokofiev and Chopin Etudes. All these recordings are on DG.

I also attended several sessions of the inaugural Ivo Pogorelich Piano Competition in Pasadena, California some 20 years or so ago. I actually got to meet him there, shook his hand and had him sign a commemorative poster of the event, which now sits framed on a wall where I live. He was quite pleasant. The competition attracted many outstanding pianists from all around the globe. I'm uncertain as to whether there was another competition subsequent to that one.

For Schumann lovers out there,  there’s a remarkable set of his symphonies on the Audite label, with the great oboist Heinz Holliger as conductor.
i have many versions of the symphonies but this is, by far, the best, musically and sonically.  Highly recommended!

Well, that's me all right. I'll be on that !
 Heinz Holliger was the greatest player , on any instrument , I have ever seen live .
The best Schumann symphony I ever heard live was the "Rhenish"
with Masur / Gewandhaus at home base .

I never thought the DG set with Gardiner/ORR  would ever be surpassed
but would be glad to  be wrong .


 

A couple of recording that I think worth mentioning in case someone is looking for something rarely heard but in both cases are very accessible neo-romantic music typically released by Chandos. I'm glad to have them in my collection.

Symphony #2 by Randall Thompson (and other works by George Chadwick) Neeme Jarvi and the Detroit SO. Beautiful American symphonic music all. Chandos 9439.

Kara Karayev - various symphonic works - highly influenced (I think) by the major Russian composers of the late 19th and early 20th century  very engaging and very Russian. Chandos 5203. 

schubert,

i don’t know if it’s sold in a set yet.  I bought the Schumann symphonies on three separate discs, with the cello concerto as filler.

+1 for the Randall Thompson # 2 , a lovely piece that used to get some play back in the 50's-60's .  I'll look for the Chandos 9439 newbee,
thanks .

I see Audite has Jacquline Du Pre playing the Cello Concerto.
Geza Anda, too. 
I never heard of this label before.
B

Jacqueline Du Pré - Complete Emi Recordings  17 cds
http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/album.jsp?album_id=177845

Ranking of 1 or 2 - best-recorded violin masterworks in my humble opinion, the first part (TMI) - I was told to move this post here

Folks-

I come from a different era, so this list is biased, and I have to correct what I may have posted earlier because I finally have a system that is amazing and can render PCM Redbook as DSD or DXD (dcs SACD/CD player ---> Audio Research GSPre ---> Audio Research GS150 ---> Wilson Audio WattPuppy 7). What is odd is that it corresponds what I loved most when I was a violin student at New England Conservatory / Berklee.

1. Brahms Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 77:
1.1. David Oistrakh, Cleveland Orchestra, George Szell;
1.2 Hilary Hahn, Academy of St. Martins in the Filed, Sir Neville Mariner (SCAD or High Resolution) tied with Itzhak Perlman, Chicago Symphony Orchestra & Carlo Maria Giulini;

2. Brahms Double Concerto for Violin & Cello in A Minor:
2.1 Cleveland Orchestra, David Oistrakh, Mstislav Rostropovich & George Szell;
2.2 Mstislav Rostropovich, Itzhak Perlman, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra & Bernard Haitink;

3. Beethoven Violin Concerto in D, Op. 61:
3.1 Itzhak Perlman, Maria Giulini, & Philharmonia Orchestra;
3.2 Heifetz & Charles Münch;

4. Bach Violin Concerto in D Minor (after Harpsichord Concerto, BWV 1052):
4.1 Itzhak Perlman & Israel Philharmonic Orchestra - III. Allegro is one of the most amazing I have ever heard if you like baroque. Just astonishing, it sounds like he is breathing the music.

5. Bach Concerto for 2 Violins, Strings, and Continuo in D minor:
5.1 Akiko Suwanai, Chamber Orchestra of Europe & Volkhard Steude;

6.Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto in D Major;
6.1 Leonid Kogan, Philharmonia Orchestra & Kirill Kondrashin (if you can find the recording with the Orchestre de Paris it is incredible - best rendition in my opinion, I bet he is playing one of his Guarneri Gesù violins - just incredible sound;
6.2 Michael Tilson Thomas, Joshua Bell & Berlin Philharmonic - Phenomenal recording!;

7. Mozart Violin Concerto No. 2 in D Major, K. 211; Violin Concerto No. 1 in B-Flat Major, K. 207; Violin Concerto No. 5 in A Major, K. 219;
7.1 Anne-Sophie Mutter & London Philharmonic Orchestra;
7.2 Arthur Grumiaux, Sir Colin Davis & London Symphony Orchestra;

8. Niccolò Paganini: 24 Caprices for Solo Violin, Opus1;
8.1 Michael Rabin;
8.2 Ruggiero Ricci;

9. Bach: Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin
9.1 Nathan Milstein (1975);
9.2 Henryk Szeryng.

Thank-you - Gerry

Great list Gerry !

If i had only one violin concerto to keep on the proverbial desert island , It would be the Elgar  with Menuhin/Boult  in mono or the later stereo .

Another very fine recording of the Elgar is Kang/Polish National Orch. on Naxos .

Ranking of 1 or 2 - best-recorded violin masterworks in my humble opinion, the second part (TMI) - I was told to move this post here

10. Mendelssohn Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64
10.1 Viktoria Mullova, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields & Sir Neville Marriner
10.2 Anne-Sophie Mutter, Kurt Masur & Gewandhausorchester Leipzig

11. Aram Khachaturian, Concerto in D Minor
11.1 Itzhak Perlman, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra & Zubin Mehta
11.2 David Oistrakh, Philharmonia Orchestra

12. Mozart Sinfonia Concertante in E-Flat Major for Violin, Viola and Orchestra, K. 364
12.1 David Oistrakh and Igor Oistrakh, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, Kirill Kondrashin
12.2 Itzhak Perlman, Zubin Mehta & Pinchas Zukerman, Philharmonic Orchestra

13. Vivaldi Violin Concerto 1 in E Major, Four Seasons
13.1 Itzhak Perlman, Philharmonic Orchestra
13.2 Sarah Chang & Orpheus Chamber Orchestra

14. Sibelius: Violin Concerto in D Minor, Op. 47
14.1 Jascha Heifetz, Walter Hendl & Chicago Symphony Orchestra
14.2 Midori, Zubin Mehta, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra

15. Camille Saint-Saëns, Concerto No. 3 in B Minor, Op. 61
15.1 Itzhak Perlman, Daniel Barenboim & Orchestre de Paris
15.2 Gil Shaham, Giuseppe Sinopoli & New York Philharmonic

16. Max Bruch Violin Concerto No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 26
16.1 Sarah Chang, Philharmonie, Kurt Masur  
16.2 Rachel Barton Pine, BBC Symphony Orchestra & Andrew Litton
16.3 Joshua Bell, Sir Neville Marriner & Academy of St. Martin in the Fields;

17. Samuel Barber: Violin Concerto, op. 14
17.1 Hilary Hahn, Hugh Wolff, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra
17.2 Gil Shaham, André Previn & London Symphony Orchestra

18. Dvorak Violin Concerto A Minor, Op. 53
18.1 Julia Fischer,  Zinman, Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich  
18.2 Anne-Sophie Mutter, Manfred Honeck & Berlin Philharmonic

More to follow, unless no one cares. Kind regards - Gerry

I remember the David Oistrakh recording. It was on a small label classical company that I can't remember. They rereleased a number of Melodia (sp?) recordings.
In any case, it gave me goosebumps.
B

Great violin/violin and violin/cello duet recordings:

19. Duets for Two Violins, Itzhak Perlman and Pinchas Zuckerman
This is just a wonderful album. Highly recommended for those who love the violin.

20. Duets for violin/cello, Mozart, and Beethoven, Boris Abramov & Carmine Miranda, a bit too compressed but still nice

20. Viola - I used to be the first viola in an orchestra - everyone's least favorite instrument, but Harold in Italy by Berlioz is great (supposedly commisioned by Paganini):
20.1 Nobuko Imai, Sir Colin Davis & London Symphony Orchestra - my favorite
20.2 Gérard Caussé, John Eliot Gardiner & Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique - an odd version
20.3  Donald McInnes, Leonard Bernstein & Orchestre national de France, flamboyant 

Yup, the Davis, Imai version was the first one I ever listened to. I really loved it.
B

One of the most neglected modern pieces for viola.
Kammermusik for Viola and Orchestra Op.48/ Paul Hindemith
Werner Albert/ Queensland SO/CPO 999 492-2

Also has 3 more viola pieces including the "Schwanedreher" Viola Cnt .

Another seldom heard in US is Walton's Viola Concerto . Outstanding CD  on ASV by Helen Callus /New Zealand SO/ Taddei

Piotr Anderszewski
I just found him through Spotify.
Wow.
Has anyone else listened to him?
B

Yes I like Anderszewski, a lot

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart 1756-1791
1] Fantasia in c minor K475 .
Fantaisie en ut mineur . Fantasie in C-Dur 13:18
Piano Sonata No. 14 in c minor K457
Sonate pour piano en ut mineur . Klaviersonate in C-Dur
2] I. Allegro 8:08
3] II. Adagio 8:44
4] III. Molto allegro 5:49
Robert Schumann 1810-1856
Fantasie C-dur, Op. 17
Fantasia in C major . Fantaisie en ut majeur
5] I. Durchaus phantastisch und leidenschaftlich vorzutragen 12:09
6] II. Mäßig, durchaus energisch 8:17
7] III. Langsam getragen. Durchweg leise zu halten 11:30
Thema mit Variationen in Es-Dur WoO 24 . Geistervariationen
Theme and Variations in E-flat major . Ghost Variations
Thème et Variations en mi bémol majeur . Variations “fantômes”
8] Thema - Leise, innig 2:02
9] Variation I 1:30
10] Variation II - Canonisch 1:38
11] Variation III - Etwas belebter 1:39
12] Variation IV 2:06
13] Variation V 2:13
TT: 79:14
Parlophone 2017

Bach English Suites 1, 3, & 5
Warner Classics

Chopin
3 Mazurkas Op 59
3 Mazurkas Op.63
Ballade No. 3, No 4,
Polonaise No 5, No 6
Mazurka Op 68 No 4
Virgin Classics

All excellent, would download more if I could find

Anyone into Komitas?
He was an Armenian priest, composer, and pianist, nearly killed by the Turks.   Much of his music is based on Armenian folk tunes.   Some people today associate his music with Gurdjieff.  His background included classical training in Germany.
Recordings I have are

Komitas Piano Works (Armen Babakhanian) 2006 (2 cds)

Komitas - Piano and Chamber Music 2017
KOMITAS (KOMITAS VARDAPET) (1869-1935)
PIANO AND CHAMBER MUSIC
SEVEN FOLK DANCES • SEVEN SONGS
TWELVE CHILDREN’S PIECES BASED ON FOLK-THEMES
MSHO-SHOROR • SEVEN PIECES FOR VIOLIN AND PIANO
MIKAEL AYRAPETYAN, piano
VLADIMIR SERGEEV, violin
Catalogue No.: GP720
Recording date: 15 December 2013
Recording Venue: Great Hall, Moscow State University of Culture and Arts, Russia

Komitas - Levon Eskenian, The Gurdjieff Ensemble
2015 ECM Records GmbH, Munchen
on original Armenian instruments


Zemphira Barseghian, recorded at Harvard, 1993, MEG Recordings
(piano, also other composers)

Komitas, many compositions of all sorts
Diocesan Records, NY 1970, DR-631, Distributed by Garni

For those of us that sometimes have a problem with the sound of our systems (I know I do) I wrote this on another thread.

“When I listen just for the “sound” of my system I hear all kinds of abnormalities, but when I’m listening to the MUSIC instead of my SYSTEM everything seems to sound natural. It’s like the “suspension of disbelief” you adapt when reading a book or seeing a movie. I don’t think we can ever really match the sound of real instruments on our sets, so if we listen just for that we’re going to be very disappointed. However when we listen for the music itself, we’re not so much concentrating on the physical sound, but the musical message being expressed. So if we “suspend” the belief we’re listening to live instruments we can get into the music much more easily and the instruments sound just fine.”

One of the downsides of elevating the performance level of an audio system is that one spends more time evaluating the system than actually listening to (and hearing) the music. Witness all of the devotion in this forum to components that are 'revealing' (uber revealing in fact) which are really doing nothing much more than presenting a sound which one would never hear in a live performance. I think (and have found) that a certain dumbing down of a system can often result in a sound that is reasonably listenable with most recorded music, not just the best recordings  over very high end systems. Since the system can no longer be expected to put a Bosendorfer in your room you stop trying to hear it and relax so you can (again) hear the music. IMHO/FWIW.

If your System has no weak links you can come very close to live music .
Heard one of the greatest Brit pianists 2 weeks ago live , came home and played same music , only real difference was in volume and slight dynamic compression .
Ditto for a Brahms 1st a few weeks before that .
Synergy is everything .


I have maybe 20K in my entire system but it took a lot more than that and many years to get everything just right ,also, like anything , some luck . IMO much of it is impedence matching which is a cut and paste deal .

And yes it really doesn’t matter .

Totally agree, newbee.  I’ve often wondered why I sometimes can get into the music better with my car radio than with my system, which is twenty times more expensive (at least.)
The reason is, I don’t care how it sounds.  I’m just listening to the music.
 I admit I have to make a conscious effort to NOT pick CDs and records for their sound quality, but for the music that’s on them.
  As you say, that is the downside of this hobby.  Ironically, if you’re not wary, it can be, and is, counter productive to the love and appreciation of the music.

That is not to say that a high end system cannot enhance the musical experience.
 Indeed, when you’re listening for the MUSIC, it can multiply your enjoyment to ecstatic levels.

Schubert:

I agree, a high end system can come close to reality with small forces such as a piano, string quartet or a solo human voice.
The problem in reproduction arises with the addition of multiple instruments or voices.  The myriad of overtones projected by a full orchestra or chorus, for example, makes it impossible, at this point, to come close to reality in your listening room.
  I believe you have to resort to that “suspension of disbelief” and let your imagination fill in the missing partials.

It's not impossible if every item in your system does not get in the way of any other item . Just takes a thousand changes .

The sheer physical size of an orchestra would seem to preclude  an achievable scale in your listening room.

schubert,  'just takes a thousand changes'

At least! :-) But you still need the 'perfect room', properly set up, and a perfectly recorded  piece of music. If that doesn't drill down the possibilities for obtaining the sound of real live music I must have missed something.

FWIW much as I love solo piano music I've yet to hear an accurate reproduction over an audio system. I'll defer on this to rvpiano  as he is, as I understand, a professional pianist.

Another similar observation - I really enjoy Sharon Isbin, one of our premier classical guitarists. I've heard her live in a specially designed recital hall where her unamplified instrument fills the hall (about 250 capacity) with crystal clear music.  I bought many of her recordings - too many actually. Not one of them came close to this live experience. 

I respectfully submit that perhaps you are really just suspending disbelief. :-)

Recorded music will never be equal to 'live' performance. Unless they can make a microphone that duplicates our individual ears, it seem we will have to accept that it comes pretty darn close.
'Suspending disbelief' is an interesting premise and one that I think has merit.
B

I agree with rvpiano. Recorded music can be represented quite realistically at home if the music is small scale and the room pretty large. Reproducing the full dynamics of a symphony orchestra is just not on, and will never be, I fear. The best to hope for is a postage stamp version. In the meantime it helps to use a very powerful amplifier that can cope with the dynamic peaks and not compress them.

gdnrbob
Recorded music will never be equal to 'live' performance. Unless they can make a microphone that duplicates our individual ears, it seem we will have to accept that it comes pretty darn close.
'Suspending disbelief' is an interesting premise and one that I think has merit.

Apparently you’re not familiar with the monaural binaural recordings of yore that employed a dummy head microphone arrangement that simulated a human head and ears.  

Upon reflection this what I think . All the physics are irrelevant, the psyche rules .
A 90 year Maestro who , given a hearing test, is doing good to hear
5000Hz . Yet he ,while conducting, hears the symphony as well as he did
at forty . The brain has a vast store of memory that can, and does, make
him hear that symphony as real as he ever did . The brain is always
looking to maintain a stasis as job # 1, and for that particular brain not to do so brain knows would be a major upset to its apple-cart .

Not speculation but research done at Cambridge, the worlds leading University on all things neurological .

Now I’m not Herbert Blomsted, who at 92 is still in demand ,
but I’ve heard him conduct many times and all told have heard well over a thousand live symphonic events .
I am certain the Brahms 1 I played a few weeks ago sounded very close
to the one I heard live a few hours before . And often does .
I do speculate my brain has  enough memory and knows where my passions lie to make sure that happens because at nearly 84 its not looking to upset its apple-cart .

YBMV (Your Brain Might Vary )

agree with these comments
now listening to casals/serkin beethoven sonatas
if i listen for them, i can hear imperfections
but then that casals tone takes over, and i am gone
I have a picture of casals thibaud and cortot in their young prime
they are so certain of themselves, and they have so much reason to be
it has not gotten any better
technically perhaps yes maybe it has
but the musical essence is total
and that is what i hear

It’s really amazing how that works.
 The imperfections melt away as you get into the music.

Yup, brain is on the job .
I believe I ,as a historian, have the good fortune of being able to put myself in the time and place of almost any  European composer from
1200 on . To me that helps a lot in understanding .

 

A trite expression comes to mind regarding the music/sound discussion.
“putting the cart before the horse” sums it up well.

@geoffkait , 
Yes, I do recall those efforts, but I was trying to imply that there is no microphone that will reproduce what each set of ears will. My hearing and your hearing may be completely different, just as our eyes will respectively see an image differently colored(colorblindness notwithstanding). That being said, there is no way a recording will fulfill each individuals expectations of a live performance.
@schubert ,
Yes, I agree with your post. And, I often find myself thinking how composers lived and how the times they lived in influenced their work.

One of my favorites is the 2nd movement of the Beethoven Ninth symphony.
It still seem so avant garde, but to think it was written in the 19th century...
I would have loved to be in the audience when it premiered.
And, Beethoven was completely deaf at that point...
(But, I bet he could still 'hear' it)!
B

I don’t think there’s anything you can do about differences in hearing. Not only is frequency response different among everyone but that frequency response keeps changing with age for all of us. So it does not matter how slightly different our heads might be physically. And we all have different listening skills. And the sound changes with the weather and time of day and many other reasons, anyway. All anyone can do is improve his playback system and try to get the best sound he can.

I believe the best thing you can do is go to as many LIVE classical concerts as humanly and financially possible .
$ 1000 dollars worth of symphony tickets will give you better sound at home than a new $ 1000 whatever will .
Train 'da brain .

"It’s only right, then, that we mark Johann Sebastian’s 333rd birthday not with the usual seriousness and solemnity, but with the exuberance of the season: this composer and his musical wife knew not just how to make babies, but also how to sing about sex."
 https://www.counterpunch.org/2018/03/23/bach-and-the-erotics-of-spring/

Mahler 4th Bluray Fritz Reiner