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| Messages 1 - 708 of total 708 in this topic |
JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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At this late hour all I can contribute is my thanks. My younger daughter is a violinist, and we were lucky enough to get front-row seats for a concert with Sarah Chang playing the Bruch violin concerto. Needless to say, it was a real treat.
I'm still holding out hope for my daughter and I playing either the Brahms Third Sonata or Beethovern's Kruetzer Sonata together, but she's concentrating on composition in grad school, so that hope is fading. I'm practicing the piano parts nonetheless.
Thanks again.
John
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Wayno
Big Wall climber
Seattle, WA
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Nice stuff. I appreciate Classical Music.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Brahms, Ein deutches Requiem Op. 45
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAnUk6MxXQ0
UC Davis Symphony Orchestra and University and Alumni Chorus.
My younger daughter is playing violin, but is right behind the conductor, so she's hard to see. My older daughter is in the front row of the alto section. Needless to say, we were there.
I'd sung this a few years earlier in Fresno. It's wonderful to sing, but according to my younger daughter, somewhat boring to play.
John
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Gary
climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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You're a lucky man, John. I hope you get to perform with your daughter, that would be too cool.
My gf and I saw Sarah Chang a couple of years ago perform the Mendelssohn concerto. Paramedics were called into the hall to work on some poor guy. We're not sure if it was the concerto or her gown that did him in. Could have been either. She is not popular with the classical music set. They don't seem to like success for some reason.
I've watched this video a few times lately of Yuja Wang playing Scarlatti. I wasn't a Yuja fan until I saw this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9tdcr0SbwA
Nice legs, too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHO4Ucw9zL4
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GnomicMaster
Mountain climber
Ventana Wilderness
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Rach's #3, finest piano composition ever put to paper. Separates the gifted from the average.
But Chopin, Brahms, Mozart, Scriabin, and even Satie are good piano stuff.
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GnomicMaster
Mountain climber
Ventana Wilderness
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Vladimir Horowitz, greatest ivory tickler to ever breathe air on Terra Firma.
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GnomicMaster
Mountain climber
Ventana Wilderness
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Got to meet Vladimir Ashkenazy and Andre Watts many years ago when they participated in a piano recital series in Carmel. Vlato is a diminutive man, shorter by inches than me and I'm 5'7", but his hands were bigger than mine, and as a pianist and piano music composer myself, I salivated in envy when I shook that little man's massive hands.
Andre Watts had long fingers and powerful hands, too, but his handshake was amazingly gentle.
Both pianists played Chopin-only programs, and their individual interpretive styles were quite distinct. Vlato came through in that typical Russian flavor, whereas Watts imbued his Chopin interpretation with a modern flavor, almost a Gershwinesque coloring.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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I shoulda brought my vinyl of Shostakovich playing some of his own preludes to the Josh get-down.
Pretty sure that woulda brought the house down.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Andre Watts had long fingers and powerful hands, too, but his handshake was amazingly gentle.
I, too, got to shake the hand of Andre Watts, and I agree -- although I think both of us were being restrained because he didn't want to hurt me, and I didn't want to be the guy who ruined the career of Andre Watts!
Because I'm a keyboardist and a vocalist, my recorded music tends to gravitate toward those media. I love baroque, but the real treasures in my collection (all vinyl) cover a broader period: the Schnabel recordings of the 32 Beethoven sonatas, Wanda Landowska and Albert Schweitzer playing Bach, and Rachmaninov playing his own preludes.
John
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Gary
climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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I've been lucky enough to see Yefim Bronfman perform Tchaichovsky and Bartok. He's the best I've ever heard live. His encores are even better. He's good with Rachmaninoff, too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bh_09qSKNBs
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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I shoulda brought my vinyl of Shostakovich playing some of his own preludes to the Josh get-down.
Pretty sure that woulda brought the house down.
That's one I need to hear.
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GnomicMaster
Mountain climber
Ventana Wilderness
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Yeah, Watts' hands were to be envied. I was allowed to attend the post-recital backstage gatherings because the couple who sponsored the series were friends of mine. When I walked up to Andre all I could say as I took his hands in mine -- we grabbed one another's left and right hands -- was "Thank you for keeping THE MUSIC alive."
That was quite a series. Besides Watts and Ashkenazy there was George Bolet (RIP), Nelson Friere, and John O'Conor. Doesn't get much better than that for a piano series.
It was O'Conor who informed me that it was his ancestral countryman John Field who invented the nocturne, not Chopin as a lot of people believe. Of course Chopin took that form to perfection with quantity, but it was an Irishman who invented it.
Ever have the pleasure to see/hear Rudolph Serkin (RIP) perform? I saw him mid-1980s at Davies in SF. My seats were up close so my new bride at the time and I were able to see him mouthing his fingering. His mouth moved in silence the whole time he played.
I've managed to see most of my musical icons perform live -- irrespective of genre -- but the one of all others I never got to see was Vlato Horowitz. He was generally regarded to have been the greatest pianist to have ever lived, and I don't doubt that. His infallible perfection and interpretive genius simply has no peer.
If you want to hear the finest performance of Rach's #3 try to find the recording of Horowitz with Eugene Ormandy conducting the NY Phil. You think the gods have come to earth! Genius stacked upon genius upon genius.
I own several different recordings of Rach #3 by various pianists and orchestras, and if you are in touch with the nuances of interpretation and the precision of rendering, the difference between all the other recordings and that by Vlato screams at you.
Yeah, I'm biased, just a bit.
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GnomicMaster
Mountain climber
Ventana Wilderness
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That's ironically hilarious given that Vlato was a Russian homosexual Jew!
There is a huge amount of deliberate humor in that statement you quoted. Vlato was a genius of immense magnitude so he would not have been oblivious to the implications of that statement. And in his youth he was known to be quite the flashy party animal. He was the toast of upper society and he played it well.
I believe it was Steinbeck who wrote that the more profound the intellect the more pronounced the paradoxes.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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I think of the many delightful evenings I've spent in a hall the single
greatest was a recital by Ashkenazy of a program wholly devoted to Scriabin.
It was like Brubeck arranged by Bach or vice versa. OK, maybe
a little over the top, but that's kinda my take on Scriabin and I'm
stickin' to it. :-)
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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The Irish master Barry Douglas did a recital of Scriabin Etudes in LA at Ambassador College backwhen their wonderful hall was open to such events. Those pieces are real "knuckle breakers" and he just hit one home run after another.
For Chopin I really like Ivo Pogorellich.
Bach on piano is of course wrong, but if it must be done then Glen Gould did it best.
On harpsichord? Gustav Leonhardt
On Organ? McNeil Robinson
I have really been enjoying Jeno Jando's Beethoven sonatas. New life into old chestnuts.
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Gary
climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Speaking of new life into old chestnuts, I'm really starting to like Paul Hindemith. Sort of a 20th Century Bach. Like this fugue (who writes fugues anymore?):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTpAIEp6DUo
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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Check out "Symphonic Metamorphosis on a theme by Carl Maria Von Weber" by Paul Hindemith.
True genius.
There is a great recording out there by Chicago Symphony with I think Reiner.
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Gary
climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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If Amazon has it, I'll get it. Recordings of his work aren't easy to come by, for sure.
BITD, when I was sick, I'd read books. Now I cruise ST. Yikes!
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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Wow. I just looked on Amazon and did not find the old Chicago recording. Bummer.
I'd be tempted to go with the Bernstein / Israel Phil recording. Their recording of Rite of Spring is insane!
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Gary
climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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can't say, did you see the LA Phil perform Yellow Shark last year?
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can't say
Social climber
Pasadena CA
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No I didn't and never knew it was happening, geez my loss. Now I'm totally bummed. If I woulda, coulda, shoulda known I woulda, coulda, shoulda gone.
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Gary
climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Same here, was not able to make it. :-(
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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Gunkie you are a trumpet player?
I played for a living in NYC until I moved to CA in the early 80's. Went to Manhattan School of Music 1972-76.
That Schilke picollo is the best. I still have a Schilke large bore C trumpet, tuning bell deal made of beryllium alloy. Unlike the beautiful picollo, that thing was designed to deafen everyone in front of you...
Funny, when I arrived in LA there was a big musicians strike on, the best players in town were doing weddings. Yamaha dx7 came out about then too. I saw the writing annd shifted into technical studio work which was a great decision for me.
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Gunkie
Trad climber
East Coast US
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Gunkie you are a trumpet player?
I played for a living in NYC until I moved to CA in the early 80's. Went to Manhattan School of Music 1972-76.
That Schilke picollo is the best. I still have a Schilke large bore C trumpet, tuning bell deal made of beryllium alloy. Unlike the beautiful picollo, that thing was designed to deafen everyone in front of you...
Funny, when I arrived in LA there was a big musicians strike on, the best players in town were doing weddings. Yamaha dx7 came out about then too. I saw the writing annd shifted into technical studio work which was a great decision for me.
A lot of good trumpet players in LA. It's a bastion for studio players.
I went to HS just outside of the city and played professionally with the local 806 (or was it the 608?). My teacher was a star student with Maruice Andre' at the Paris Conservatory and he was also a studio musician (William Teubner) in NYC. I actually got past my first round audition at Julliard, but started getting cold feet looking down the barrel of a professional music performance career. I saw dads having to do gigs on Friday and Saturday and Sundays. Was pure fun and good money for a 17 year-old, but seemed terrible for a 40-something year-old. And I heard all of the grumblings from these guys.
So I went to a large state school with lots of options with a music performance grant/scholie and matriculated into electrical engineering after the first semester. Sat 2nd chair in the school orchestra as a freshman to senior Jeff Curnow, who is currently 2nd chair in the Philly Orchestra. That pissed off a bunch of people, one of whom ended up playing my wedding :)
Sadly, I don't play as much as I'd like to these days. It is mandated that my three kids play trumpet or move into the playhouse out back. However, they don't appreciate my trumpet playing pedigree and rarely listen to any of my instruction.
I love tuning bell horns. Had a Bach (from when they were good horns) Eb/D with a tuning bell but sold it after finishing my undergrad. The funds helped augment the $55 I had in the bank. I've been toying with the idea of going Yamaha for my next Eb/D...
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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I have a Yamaha E flat/D. Love that horn and highly recommend it.
I used to serenade climbers at The Gunks, this pic is from about 1979...
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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Aug 27, 2011 - 07:51pm PT
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Bump.
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Gary
climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Aug 27, 2011 - 08:20pm PT
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Went to the Hollywood bowl a couple of times this summer. One was an all Mozart program. Gil Shaham is insane on the violin. It was an excellent evening. The wine was very good.
Oh, and my girlfriend made eye contact and got a wave from the Dude!
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JOEY.F
Gym climber
It's not rocket surgery
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Aug 27, 2011 - 09:46pm PT
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My favorite recording of my favorite symphony:
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Chaz
Trad climber
greater Boss Angeles area
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Aug 27, 2011 - 09:52pm PT
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Steve Morse doing J.S.Bach:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2flR-0QhkE
I've always loved this tune, and I try to whistle it when I fly kites ( of course, I always screw it up, I'm no Steve Morse ).
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Brokedownclimber
Trad climber
Douglas, WY
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Aug 27, 2011 - 11:23pm PT
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I happen to be somewhat eclectic in my musical tastes, and even though I play a bit of trumpet and euphonium I really love piano works. Some of my personal faves: J.S. Bach "Goldberg Variations" as performed by Glenn Gould, and almost all of Beethoven's piano sonatas. Another work I dearly love is ther Pachebel "canon" played on either flute or violin. James Galloway plays it beautifully on flute.
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Aug 28, 2011 - 01:47pm PT
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Selfish Man-- I guess it's personal, but I can't tell you how
many times I've played Gould's 1981 recording--I all but wore out
my vinyl copy, and my CD will probably need replacement one of these days--
I think it's incomparable.
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Brokedownclimber
Trad climber
Douglas, WY
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Aug 28, 2011 - 01:57pm PT
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My CD of Gould's "Goldberg Variations" is the 1981 performance!
Has anyone else seen the movie "Vitus?" Teo Ghiorghiu performs the variations (in part); not bad for a then-twelve year old prodigy!
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Aug 28, 2011 - 02:11pm PT
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SteveW,
Gould's 1955 vs. 1981 recording could easily create a controversy more powerful than Wings of Steel :)
Here's Maria Yudina's version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1hs2OLIzYE
I guess she's not very well known in the US as she had never traveled outside her country... Remarkable personality and an amazing artist. She was comrade Stalin's favorite musician, too, which is likely the reason someone with her views could survive at all
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apogee
climber
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Topic Author's Reply - Jan 10, 2012 - 07:59pm PT
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RIP: Alexis Weissenberg
Alexis Weissenberg, who has died aged 82, was a reclusive pianist who, more than almost any classical musician, was capable of polarising critical opinion.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/9005891/Alexis-Weissenberg.html
Just listened to a striking remembrance about this brilliant pianist- this was my first exposure to him...I'd be very interested in hearing other impressions of his works...
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jan 10, 2012 - 08:10pm PT
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Broke,
"Vitus" is a great movie! Plus it's got airplanes! That was some impressive
playing for a 12 year old!
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Brokedownclimber
Trad climber
Douglas, WY
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Jan 10, 2012 - 10:20pm PT
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Reilly-
Teo has lots of recordings on You Tube--too many to list here. Yep! I liked the Pilatus PC-6, too. Nothing quite like having 1100 horsepower in a light airplane
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mongrel
Trad climber
Truckee, CA
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Jan 11, 2012 - 12:11am PT
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Well, so many interesting posts I couldn't resist weighing in. But I would beg to differ about the recordings of some pieces that I personally prefer:
For Bach on the piano, Rosalyn Tureck is far superior to Glenn Gould, much better pacing, sense of the interior of the musical lines, and way better touch; on harpsichord, not so clear but I'm partial to the DGG Ralph Kirkpatrick recordings. On organ, there is no contest: Helmut Walcha; blind since birth or childhood but the definitive Bach organist of the modern era.
For Chopin, the incomparably superior recordings were made by Dinu Lipatti decades ago. He only made a few recordings then up and died on us. Unfortunately the fidelity is not great, but the piano comes through well anyway. Horowitz's former piano teacher said even he should hide his recordings in shame in comparison to Lipatti. That's saying something!
I wonder if the trumpeters who have posted here could express opinion about a remarkable player and recording I heard recently in transit somewhere: Michael Haydn trumpet concerto played by Hakan Hagegard. I was beyond stunned by the gorgeous tone he managed, at soft or at most mezza voce volume level, in incredibly high tessitura in a slow tempo movement. I totally could not believe it. And it did not seem to be some mini trumpet or clarino pitched at D or higher. Sounded like a standard Bb or C trumpet in tone. Beautiful.
JEleazarian, how wonderful to attend these great performances with your daughters performing! Wow. Cool posts. There was another fabulous Verdi Requiem at UC Davis this last fall, Sacramento Chorus (whatever their exact name is). I was hugely impressed. Soloists were excellent too especially the soprano who sang with total abandon and commitment all night, like a 5.12X lead, and pulled it off perfectly.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jan 11, 2012 - 01:03am PT
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Be sure you sit down while you read this from "The Economist":
Fiddling with the mind
Old, expensive violins are not always better than new, cheap ones
Jan 7th 2012 | from the print edition
THOUGH individual tastes do differ, the market for art suggests that those who have money generally agree on what is best. The recent authentication of a painting by Leonardo da Vinci, for example, magically added several zeroes to the value of a work that had not, physically, changed in any way. Nor is this mere affectation. In the world of wine (regarded as an art form by at least some connoisseurs), being told the price of a bottle affects a drinker’s appreciation of the liquid in the glass in ways that can be detected by a brain scanner.
It seems, now, that the same phenomenon applies to music. For serious players of stringed instruments the products of three great violin-makers of Cremona, Nicolo Amati, Giuseppe Guarneri and Antonio Stradivari, have ruled the roost since the 17th century. Their sound in the hands of a master is revered. They sell for millions. And no modern imitation, the story goes, comes close. Unfortunately, however, for those experts who think their judgment unclouded by the Cremonese instruments’ reputations, Claudia Fritz of the University of Paris VI and Joseph Curtin, an American violin-maker, have just applied the rigorous standards of science to the matter. Their conclusion, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, is that the creations of Cremona are no better than modern instruments, and are sometimes worse.
Unlike previous “blind” trials of violins, in which an instrument’s identity was concealed from the audience but not from the player himself (and which have indeed suggested that modern instruments are often as good as old ones), the one organised by Dr Fritz and Mr Curtin sought to discover the unbiased opinion of the men and women who actually wield the bow. They and their colleagues therefore attended the Eighth International Violin Competition of Indianapolis, held in September 2010, which gathering provided both a sample of testable instruments and a pool of suitable volunteers to play them.
Exactly which instruments were tested remains a secret. That was a condition of the loans, in order that an adverse opinion should not affect a fiddle’s market value. There were, however, six of them: two Stradivarii and a Guarnerius (all from the 18th century), and three modern violins made to Cremonese patterns.
A total of 21 volunteers—participants in the competition, judges and members of the local symphony orchestra—were asked to put the instruments through their paces. The catch was that they had to do so in a darkened room while wearing welders’ goggles, so that they could not see them clearly, and that the chin-rest of each violin had been dabbed with perfume, lest the smell of the wood or the varnish give the game away.
There were two tests: a series of pairwise comparisons between old and new instruments that allowed a player one minute to try out each instrument, and a comparison between all six, in which the player was allowed to play whatever he wanted for however long he wanted, subject to a total time-limit of 20 minutes.
In the pairwise test (in which players were not told that each pair contained both an old and a new instrument, and in which the order of presentation was randomised), five of the violins did more-or-less equally well, but the sixth was consistently rejected. That sixth, unfortunately for the reputation of Cremona, was a Strad.
In the freeplay test, a more subtle approach was possible. Players rated the six instruments using four subjective qualities that are common terms of the violinist’s art: playability, projection, tone colours and response. The best in each category scored one point, the worst minus one, and the rest zero. Players were also asked which violin they would like to take home, given the chance.
In this case, two of the new violins comprehensively beat the old ones, while the third more or less matched them (see chart). The most popular take-home instrument was also a new one: eight of the 21 volunteers chose it, and three others rated it a close second. Not surprisingly, the least popular instrument in the second test was the Stradivarius that did badly in the first.
The upshot was that, from the players’ point of view, the modern violins in the study were as good as, and often better than, their 18th-century forebears. Since Dr Fritz estimates the combined value of the three forebears in her experiment as $10m, and the combined value of the three modern instruments as around $100,000, that is quite a significant observation.
Human nature being what it is, this result will probably have little effect in the saleroom: the glamour of Cremona will take more than one such result to dispel it. But it does suggest that young players who cannot afford a Strad should not despair. If they end up with a cheaper, modern copy instead, they might actually be better off.
from the print edition | Science and technology
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Brokedownclimber
Trad climber
Douglas, WY
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Jan 11, 2012 - 11:12pm PT
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Bumpity bump!
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Urizen
Ice climber
Berkeley, CA
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Jan 23, 2012 - 02:37pm PT
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Reilly,
Really interesting article, thanks. Unfortunately it's only suggestive, not conclusive. It doesn't mention, for instance, whether the test players used the same bow, their own bow, or what. And bows make a huge difference. Also, as with guitars, the choice of strings and the set-up of the instrument are extremely influential. Chances are that any of the older violins, such as the dud Strad, have had, during the last 300 years, new nuts, new bridges more or less competently cut, new soundposts more or less skillfully set, fingerboards shaved, etc. So the sound and playability of the instruments are just as likely to have been affected by their treatment by previous owners and their luthiers as by the skill of the original builder or the quality of the materials used. Too, all hollow-body stringed instruments seem to benefit from being played rather than stored, and this test, since it had to conceal the provenance, doesn't address the influence, if any, of this circumstance.
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Gary
climber
That Long Black Cloud Is Coming Down
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Jan 23, 2012 - 03:50pm PT
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My gf and I have a subscription to a Casual Fridays series with the LA Phil. We got the cheapest seats possible at Disney Hall, up in the balcony, but they're pretty good seats actually.
Last Friday was Symphony 1 by Gustav Mahler. I'm not much of a critic, but like Supreme Court justices, I know the goods when I hear them. It was captivating, the third movement especially.
The Friday Casual series is casual. The orchestra comes out in street clothes. The program is shortened, and after the concert, you can mingle and drink with the musicians and also there's a question and answer session with the conductor, featured soloist if there is one, and random members of the band.
Dudamel is the real thing. He's crazy about music.
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Urizen
Ice climber
Berkeley, CA
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Jan 23, 2012 - 04:07pm PT
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In spite of my distaste for the airport departure area architecture of the Disney Concert Hall lobbies, and the superfluous wedding cakery of its exterior, I will readily admit that the auditorium itself is a masterpiece--not just in terms of its use of materials and acoustics, but in its democratic design. There are no aristocratic private boxes, and there are no bad seats. I've been in the back row of the top balcony and wanted for nothing. This is a testament to some rare vision on the part of the directors of the organization, as are the crossover shows and the hiring of relatively young and untested conductors. Saw Gustavo D. and the SFO play the complete "Firebird" a few years ago. Sensational; one of the best concerts I've ever heard them give--and a free demonstration of incredibly nuanced but unmannered conducting at the same time.
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mongrel
Trad climber
Truckee, CA
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Jan 23, 2012 - 05:00pm PT
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Regarding the item in the Economist, I sent this to my brother who is a violinist and violist and he responded that "Word is that about 20% of Strads are practically playable. The others are compromised by age and modification. I have a 2007 violin that in most concert situations outplays my precious 1818 Thier. The Thier has a much deeper, intricate and more intimate sound, appropriate for smaller audiences. The fresh fiddle kicks butt in a bigger situation."
So, not only are there the issues raised by Urizen, but also the selection of the individual instruments that were used, and the setting - one wonders how the results would compare if they did exactly the same testing in various different rooms and halls? Anyway, unequivocally it would appear that, like even the great wines, a significant proportion of the product is not better after a long period of time, but instead deteriorates into poor playability or drinkability.
+1 on the comments on the Disney Center acoustics and approach.
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Gary
climber
That Long Black Cloud Is Coming Down
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Jan 23, 2012 - 05:40pm PT
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What's interesting about Disney is while the acoustics for music are great, speech is incredibly garbled in that hall. At the Q + A sessions, it's very difficult to understand what's being said, especially if a heavy accent is involved.
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Urizen
Ice climber
Berkeley, CA
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Jan 23, 2012 - 06:27pm PT
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Gary,
I was fortunate to hear a noted acoustical consultant address this issue in the context of some other performance and worship venues. Basically, as I recall, the ideal reverberation time for sustained sounds like musical instruments or operatic-style vocalizing is different from what is desirable for clearly comprehensible speech. DCH, as an orchestra hall and not a multi-media performance space, was likely optimized for the former.
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Gary
climber
That Long Black Cloud Is Coming Down
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Jan 23, 2012 - 08:52pm PT
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I hope opera will be OK there. We have tickets for Don Giovanni.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jan 23, 2012 - 08:55pm PT
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Gary, better check yer tickets as LA Opera still uses the Dorothy Chandler.
I gave up my season tickets though when opera became de rigueur with LA's
petit bourgeoisie. Apparently they didn't get the memo that talking during
the performance is not considered good manners. And don't get me started
on the velcro bino cases, the thumbing through the program, and the un-stifled coughing.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jul 16, 2012 - 07:43pm PT
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I heard Brahm's "Academic Festival Overture" for the umpteenth time squared
the other day and it continued to play in my head for days afterwards.
Do I need to seek help? I guess it isn't Brahm's fault though as now I
have Rameau looping. Oh well, at least it isn't Lady Gaga.
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Brokedownclimber
Trad climber
Douglas, WY
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Jul 16, 2012 - 11:25pm PT
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I happen to like the Academic Festival Overture, even though Brahms wrote it as something of a joke; it's primarily German University drinking songs nicely orchestrated!
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Jul 17, 2012 - 12:01am PT
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Ah, Rodger, methinks it's something about sharing a pint, eh?
hee hee hee. . .
I kind of like his Variations on a Theme by Hayden. . .
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
mammoth lakes ca
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Jul 17, 2012 - 12:13am PT
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Check out KQMC out of Hawthorne Nevada...Top 40 classical with this fruit cake DJ named the Captain...The music is very good and the Captain is a total crack up...I can only get reception from Navy Beach on Mono Lake...RJ
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jul 30, 2012 - 02:40pm PT
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So how shameless is John Williams?
He should be cut up and used as chum.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Jul 30, 2012 - 02:53pm PT
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Hehe... even ...om-pa-pa... has got it's place.
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Barbarian
Trad climber
New and Bionic too!
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Jul 30, 2012 - 05:07pm PT
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Classical music rocks!!! I absolutely love it!!!
Now a disclaimer: My dad loved classical. He listened to it every chance he got. He especially loved opera. I, on the other hand, was a child of the 60's and early 70's. Airplane, CSNY, the Dead, Hendrix, Byrds, Eagles, etc. - those were where my tastes settled. I turned off that classical every chsance I got. Dad died before I matured enough to understand classical music. I missed out on a chance to share something truly wonderful.
Fast forward 30 years: My children are musicians. They all play piano. One also plays guitar and a bit of sax; another plays viola, the last plays violin, bass violin, electric bass, guitar, and anything else he can get his hands on.
I've been fortunate enough to see one of my children play at Carnegie Hall. Last month I saw the youngest (14 year old) play at Disney Hall. I marvel at he sound in those great halls, perfect for music, but terrible for the spoken word.
I have to thank Patty Scialfa for my love and understanding of classical music. She covered a country song that opened my eyes and ears to understand classical. It was a roundabout trip, but worth it!!!
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ninjakait
Trad climber
a place where friction routes have velcro
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Jul 31, 2012 - 03:19am PT
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[Click to View YouTube Video]
The first time I beat my Dad in chess this was on the record player; yes a vinyl, I know, ancient. :)
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Gary
climber
"My god - it's full of stars!"
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Jul 31, 2012 - 08:38am PT
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Richter plays my favorite Haydn:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
This is great desert driving music. This and Blue Oyster Cult.
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HuecoRat
Trad climber
NJ
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You guys have to check out the Berlin Philharmonic's "Digital Concert Hall." Their website is truly amazing. For about $13 you get a 48 hour pass that allows you to watch anby concert from over 140 in the archive. You can search by composer, conductor, soloist, etc. The quality is outstanding and the video editing is terrific (not like PBS where you hear an oboe solo but watch the timpanist counting rests). Of special note are last year's performance of Mahler 3, and Radek Baborak playing the Gliere concerto. Check it out! www.digitalconcerthall.com
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Sierra Ledge Rat
Mountain climber
Old and Broken Down in Appalachia
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I am very lucky to have the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra nearby. They are truly world-class symphony musicians. It takes us only a two hours to drive to Heinz Symphony Hall. We have been getting season tickets for the past 5 years - 8th row, dead center, in the orchestra section.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Gary, I wish I had more to contribute (or better ways to contribute), but my analog to digital apparatus is malfunctioning. I especially appreciated that Richter/Haydn. I think the Haydn piano sonatas deserve much more attention. Horowitz was one of the few "big name" pianists who included a lot of Haydn's solo piano music in his concerts.
My personal favorite recording is of Horowitz playing the E major (Hob. XVI: 52) from a 1951 Carnegie Hall recital. I have it on a 1979 RCA Red Seal recording with his marvelous rendition of "Pictures at an Exhibition."
I have the Mussorgsky music for piano, but the Horowitz version is so much more pianistic and expressive. At least that's my story about why my playing of "Pictures" doesn't sound so hot, and I'm sticking to it.
As luck would have it, I was playing the piano as a substitute for our organist in church last Sunday, and played the first movement of Haydn's C Major Sonata (Hob. XVI: 50) as a prelude to the worship service. I was actually thinking of you because I played the Prelude & Fugue No. 6 from Book II of the Well-Tempered Clavier for an offeratory, and the Gigue from the English Suite No. 5 as a postlude. My wife and daughter didn't like the offeratory, though, because they thought an offeratory should be more sedate. Personally, I see no reason why offeratories should be soporific. What's wrong with lively praise to God?
Anyway, thanks to all of you for posting up.
John
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Gary
climber
"My god - it's full of stars!"
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John, I've got to get to your church! What can be wrong with Bach in church? My first piano teacher was a very religious girl, and she was Bach obsessed, mostly due to Bach's piety. I've started too late to ever be able to play anything from the WTC, except the Prelude in C Major. You are fortunate to have had the chance to learn, and wise to have taken that chance and go with it.
I'm just learning about Haydn, and I like him more and more. This sounds like a lot of fun to play:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
OK, back to my own piano work.
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Aug 24, 2012 - 04:12pm PT
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and more old school! I remember being in awe when those recordings were discovered 20 or so years ago
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Aug 24, 2012 - 04:22pm PT
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RIP Ruggiero Ricci
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
merced, california
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Aug 26, 2012 - 02:09am PT
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This is every bit as good as I say it is because I have been listening to this piece for years and never tire of it. Midori, violin;Nobuko Imai, viola; and Christopher Eschenbach conducting the NDR Sinfonieorchester.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
I will say the same for this old chestnut by Smetana: I never tire of listening to The Moldau. This recording was done in 1951. It uses a different approach than modern arrangements use, in that the initial bars, the soft flutes representing the springs, are more easily heard and you don't have to raise the volume to catch it, than lower it to listen to the rest. Weiner Philharmoniker, Wilhelm Furtwangler, conducting.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
This is the first piece of classical music I bothered to play for myself besides Peter and the Wolf. My Grandad had a 78 rpm recording, two sides. I was allowed to keep it.
Ed Itt: I fell asleep listening to Sinfonia last night.
gary: Old'uns like this Padiddly one have a deep mellow tone all their own.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
merced, california
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Aug 26, 2012 - 11:47pm PT
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Barcarolle/Offenbach
[Click to View YouTube Video]
This work reminds me that life is beautiful.
For instance:
In West Spitsbergen they had from July to September to enjoy the sun and have supplies delivered by boat, in an article in the NG, 8/28, 'A Woman's Winter on Spitsbergen.'
or
'By the end of 1874 Smetana had become completely deaf...'
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
merced, california
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Aug 29, 2012 - 06:10pm PT
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This is such a fine thread. I really appreciate the taste of my fellow Taconians!
My daily dose of Telemann. There's enough of it, Lord knows!
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Brokedownclimber
Trad climber
Douglas, WY
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Aug 29, 2012 - 06:34pm PT
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This is a positively GREAT thread!
Some of my all-time favorites:
Pachabel, Canon. Played on the flute by Sir James Galway
Mozart, Gran Partita; Neville Marriner and St Martin in the Fields.
Almost ALL the baroque trumpet concerti. Yes, Telemann included.
Bach: almost everything, but esp. the Cello suites.
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Kalimon
Trad climber
Ridgway, CO
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Aug 29, 2012 - 09:47pm PT
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Ana Vidovik, a true goddess . . . thanks Gary.
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Aug 29, 2012 - 11:01pm PT
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I just heard Berlioz' Symphonie Fantastique and it was wonderful!
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
merced, california
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Aug 30, 2012 - 02:14am PT
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This thread is giving me the deepest kind of pleasure.
I have listened almost exclusively to classical since 1998, the year Liz passed. We listened to PHC on Saturdays, if we were together, and I heard some classical and operatic works, but not nearly enough. Our TV got the work-out, not my ears. After she passed and the house was quiet, I turned to the Sacramento classical station, which broadcasts from Groveland on FM, so I had my fill of classical all night long, if I wanted. Fresno is blessed with a good FM station that plays lots of it, also.
What a pleasure it is, though, to share thoughts of this music, rather than having to remain silent. It is a refuge from the sturm und drang of some of these ST threads.
And it has a basis in climbing history. Chuck Pratt, I suppose, would be mildly supportive. One wonders, too, what Royal might think.
I wanted to find a video of Horowitz playing a particular Chopin polonaise, but no luck.
Instead, here is one of the best playing another polonaise. He is E. Kissin, and for what my two pennies are worth, I think his style is what one could describe as musical. I hope you turn up your volume control a little, because he plays very softly and you don't want to spoil the first listening by having to "fiddle." :)
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Brokedownclimber
Trad climber
Douglas, WY
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Aug 30, 2012 - 10:20am PT
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Any opinions here on violinists? I happen to favor Joshua Bell; his recording of the Brahms violin concerto is particularly outstanding, as is his Paganini First violin concerto. His tone quality is outstanding, and never wiry.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Aug 31, 2012 - 12:40am PT
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Selfish Man, I was wondering if GG would show up...thx.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Aug 31, 2012 - 03:26pm PT
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I got a call last night from my younger daughter, a violinist and grad student (in composition) in Illinois -- "Start practicing, Dad, because I'm learning the Brahms Second Violin Sonata." Now if I can scrape up enough money to get my piano tuned (and a couple of strings replaced), we may have something to post here around Christmas time.
John
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Die aria!!!
A-ha-ha-ha!!!
She's gonna die!!!
Oh, Jupiter!!!
It's too funny!!!
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Brubeck/Bach, eh?
Reilly's enthusiasm.
Good to the last frickin' drop.
I, too, like Ashkenazy and Scriabin needs more listening.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
climber
"My god - it's full of stars!"
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John, get that piano tuned!
selfish man, thanks for posting the Gould and Golschmann. Golschmann doesn't have much fame or reknown, but I like his style with baroque. He and Gould seem to be on the same wavelength when it comes to Bach. Golschmann's sound is very crisp. Bernstein, in comparison, seems muddy when he conducts these Bach keyboard concertos.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Somebody asked about violinists. After seeing him twice, Gil Shaham strikes me as one of the best. He plays with an evident joy. When he plays with Dudamel the enthusiasm level overwhelms the crowd.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Sep 11, 2012 - 11:16am PT
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Having indulged in my own Scottish Fantasies...
I find I myself partial to Bruch's. If the four minutes of the third movement
don't tug at yer heart strings then you don't have one.
(I've only included the third and fourth here)
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Holy jeebus, what a mensch that dood is, no?
But I do like my Itzakh Perlman version too.
The performance obviously was not in LA - nobody clapped between the movements.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Oct 11, 2012 - 07:14am PT
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It's Illya Kuryakin, aka Ducky Mallard, aka David McCallum.
His father was a first chair violinist, his mother a cellist. His interests musically, well, he's f___ing Ducky, after all! Read the review below for some nice, fluffy journalistic reviewing in the old school. Same with the music. It swings like 1966. The year I graduated h.s. and into the Bay Area music scene, and Illya with his Nehru jacket were being shut down by incoming flowers.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
The Edge is DMC's most well-known musical composition now intro and riff to Dr. Dre's The Next Episode, OK?
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Fine little fusion version.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Words and music by David McCallum on Insomnia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_McCallum
Oh, look at that. The same issue, April 29, 1966, (35 cents) as the review of McCallum (titled 'McCallum and the Woodwinds') and A Bit More of Me, his second LP, also containd an article on the last night of the Old Metropolitan Opera. Gee.
I think I'm passing on typing the article out. If you want to read it, it won't change your LIFE if you can't locate it. You can buy the mag from me, or look for your own. You'll never get Julie Christie away from me!
"What makes the album exciting are the classic overtones soaring above the driving beat in almost every number....an unusual combination of reed instruments...what we've come to know as the Big Beat..one of the freshest LPs to make the rounds in months." Fluffy, in a enthusiastic way. He likes.
And Life Magazine's normal Oh-So-Generic-Style prognostication, part of standard mainstream reviews half the time (fluff): "McCallum's climb from bit player to teen-age idol in less than a year stunned the TV trade. With his album aalready in the Top Forty ("kiss of death") and with musical capability to match his hefty Nielsen, he may repeat the feat in the pop field."
The last article in this vintage Life is the national break-out piece on Cesar Chavez. And Julie Christe, of course.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Oct 16, 2012 - 07:56pm PT
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The ominous "military" symphony of Haydn is only a paper tiger, the melody belies it's nickname.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Right outside of Delacroix
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Oct 19, 2012 - 10:00am PT
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I like Haydn's attitude. He was a plucky lad.
Wednesday, went and saw Andras Schiff play Book I of the Well Tempered Clavier. The acoustics at Disney Hall are superb. It was too expensive to sit where we sat, but I noticed he changed the fingering on the Prelude in C Major from what he'd indicated in the Henle Edition!
It's amazing work. The preludes are little jewels thrown out to clear the palate in between the massively engineered structures of the fugues.
Book II next Wednesday.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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steveA
Trad climber
bedford,massachusetts
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I have loved classical music since I was about 5 years old.
If I had it all over again: I think that a composers life would be great.
Notice how many musicians and composers live a long life.
Ludwig is still my favorite!
( Thanks Marlow: John Murphy is new to me--thanks for posting )
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Jan 30, 2013 - 12:50pm PT
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Jogill: Great acting, great voice - magnificent.
Something else: Bach - Wilhelm Kempff (1955) - Siciliano from Flute Sonata No 2 in E flat major, BWV1031
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Right outside of Delacroix
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Jan 30, 2013 - 11:43pm PT
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I like Guilini and Kempf was one of the best. At a meet and greet with the LA Phil a violinist still had awe in her voice when she talked about playing for Giulini.
Friday we will see the Joffrey Ballet's recreation of the original Rite of Sping. It's gonna be great.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Edit: I like the old school stuff. We were THAT close to having a recording by Liszt. Just missed it.
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Gary
Social climber
Right outside of Delacroix
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The Rite was awesome. For once being high in the balcony was a plus. Nobody was nodding off during this, it was really thrilling. I only regret we didn't get tickets for another night.
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HuecoRat
Trad climber
NJ
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Just went to Carnegie Hall to hear my eldest son playing first horn on the Firebird with the Oberlin Conservatory Orchestra. Awesome!
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Very cool, Hueco!
John
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Fossil climber
Trad climber
Atlin, B. C.
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The original post - rehearsal of Brahms Second symphony - that was great. Had to go put the CD on the sound system. It was what we were rehearsing when I joined the U of Pacific Conservatory Orchestra and I’ve loved it ever since. Being a trombonist (then) it was especially rewarding to build toward that great, triumphal final chord, which was cut off here. It has been decades - hell, half a century plus - since I was part of such an ensemble, and I still miss it.
Another nice thing, brief as it was, was watching musicians which were all business and didn’t bob around like they were having seizures. Seems to have become the style these days that everybody who can afford to move their instruments much “interprets” their musicianship with so much body English that the whole orchestra appears to be squirming. Worst offenders - the violins and small woodwinds. Watched an oboist with the Berlin Phiharmonic lurching about with such ecstatic, egotistic abandon that if he’d hit his knee he’d have driven that double reed right through his palate. And I have to admit, I sort of wished he would. The music was good, though, with eyes closed.
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Gary
Social climber
Right outside of Delacroix
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Virgil Thomson had this idea of musical portraits. People would sit for their portraits as Thomson would compose them. Interesting stuff.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Apr 16, 2013 - 06:46pm PT
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My piano teacher had her senior recital last Sunday. She did very well, but she really nailed this:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
It was spectacular in every sense of the word. (you gotta love the look on Horowitz's face as he walks off stage)
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Apr 16, 2013 - 11:57pm PT
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The old school pianists really had something going on.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Apr 17, 2013 - 12:59am PT
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Yes, plus they didn't indulge in mini-skirts and over-the-top theatrics.
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Apr 17, 2013 - 08:47pm PT
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the fact that no new Richters, Horowitz's or Gould's seem to have appeared in the last few decades (at least to my knowledge) must be indicative of something, but I'm not sure what it is... The dominance of Lang Lang's, on the other hand, is not entirely surprising
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Apr 17, 2013 - 08:59pm PT
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I aver that Ashkenazy is the last truly great and he hasn't performed
for quite a while.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Apr 18, 2013 - 01:55am PT
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the fact that no new Richters, Horowitz's or Gould's seem to have appeared in the last few decades (at least to my knowledge) must be indicative of something, but I'm not sure what it is... The dominance of Lang Lang's, on the other hand, is not entirely surprising
I think it indicates a triumph of "contemporary" (in the musical criticism sense) taste over Romantic taste in the conservatories. Horowitz and, to a certain extent, Richter (and certianly Arthur Rubinstein) were throwbacks to Romanticism in an age of modernism.
I think someone like Maurizio Pollini has all the technical equipment of any of the great pianists of the past, including Horowitz, and pianists of my generation idolize him as a technical superman. I personally find his recordings quite good, particularly his late Beethoven. His recording of the fugue of the Hammerklavier is the best I've heard.
Overall, though, he doesn't dazzle the way the Romantic virtuousi did. As an example, his recordings of the Brahms piano concerti are technically fabulous, but they just don't deliver the emotional punch of a Rubinstein or Rudolph Serkin.
Ultimately, though, it simply demonstrates why we call the opposite of classical music popular music.
John
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Apr 18, 2013 - 09:49am PT
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the fact that no new Richters, Horowitz's or Gould's seem to have appeared in the last few decades (at least to my knowledge) must be indicative of something, but I'm not sure what it is...
Get thee to see Yefim Bronfman. And Yuja Wang is destined for greatness. It'll be interesting to see her mature as a musician.
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Apr 18, 2013 - 11:23am PT
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a typical "modern version":
[Click to View YouTube Video]
"old version" played by the author himself:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
which one is more "romantic"? I find it hard to believe that the change in the taste is all there is to it. In terms of "athletic performance" (i.e. notes per second) no one I know today comes even remotely close to Rachmaninov, Hoffman, Backhaus or Richter. And the reason why we hear fewer wrong notes today is mostly because fewer risks are taken. No one plays the Liszt sonata at this tempo anymore!
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Although Horowitz, Rachmaninov or Hoffman are viewed as romantics, to me their playing had the lucidity and the momentum that lack in today's overly sentimental way of playing romantic music (such as the above recording by Kissin)
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Apr 18, 2013 - 02:13pm PT
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And the reason why we hear fewer wrong notes today is mostly because fewer risks are taken. No one plays the Liszt sonata at this tempo anymore!
I agree with the thrust of what you say, particularly the lack of risk in modern recordings and concerts. The pursuit of "perfection," usually interpreted as no technical mistakes, has diminished the art of the piano. I don't think that's all, though.
Ironically, my best illustration isn't a romantic piece at all. If you compare the Schnabel recordings of the Hammerklavier with that of Pollini, for example, the two take exactly the same tempi for the fugue (as does Eschenbach in his sensational DGG recording of about 1970). Kempff, in contrast, is a bit slower (quarter = ca. 128 rather than the Beethoven-indicated 144 at which the others play). Kempff and Pollini play equally clearly, but the faster pace of Pollini doesn't seem that fast because it's so perfect.
As an unraveling of the fugue, I have never heard another recording that matches Pollini's. Nonetheless, the emotional effect of Schnabel's reading, particularly when the main subject returns in the chaos of the inverted subject, is overwhelmingly climactic, and the piece seems startling, even to 21st century ears. Rachmaninoff also aimed every piece for what he called "the point." Pollini's playing is so uniformly unerring that it's hard to feel a point.
My personal favorite piece for solo piano, the Beethoven Op. 111 Sonata, is another illustration of what Schnabel had that modern pianists don't. The crescendo and diminuendo in the double trill in the last movement is much greater in Schnabel than in the modern readings, and it creates an effect of such profound tranquility as to seem to suspend time itself. I try to emulate Schnabel when I play (I've played that Sonata for 42 years, and still don't tire of it), but seldom succeed. Schnabel seemed to be able to do that sort of thing naturally.
I think the training of modern pianists makes them lost in romantic, or really any greatly expressive, literature. It's rather like a leader who's only used bolt protection on sport climbs taking on his or her first difficult lead without bolt protection. Placing removable gear is a different skill from doing hard moves, and even though their technical ability to move upward may be superb, the comfort level of needing different protection hampers the fluidity of movement.
Of course, playing is art, not science (despite my collection of piano technique books that try to analyze the science of playing), so even if my analysis were close, I know it's not universally true. In the meantime, I'll continue to enjoy hearing others play, playing myself, and reading what my fellow ST posters think. Thanks.
John
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Apr 18, 2013 - 03:29pm PT
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now I need to find Pollini's recording of Hammerklavier and compare it with Schanel. I always felt that Pollini's versions of op. 109 and 110 are quite possibly the greatest I've heard..
in the meantime, another clip...
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Apr 19, 2013 - 12:14am PT
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ok, I've found Pollini's recording... It's absolutely superb.
On the topic of Hammerklavier, here's another clip :)
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Nice Bach
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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May 23, 2013 - 12:27am PT
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Since it's Wagner's birthday, give or take, here's one Nazi conducting another:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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May 23, 2013 - 12:30am PT
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Ron, I'll see your Steve Howe and raise you Ana Vidovic:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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May 23, 2013 - 04:14pm PT
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Thanks for the Richter clip, Selfish Man. The recapitulation had the same excitement that Schnabel's recording had, and the tempi Richter used in the introduction between the adagio and the fugue were just the way I like them (Pollini is neither mysterious enough in the largo sections nor excited enough in the other sections for my taste), although I still think no one plays the fugue itself better.
More importantly, it might finally eradicate "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" theme from my mind. Yesterday, I needed to rescue my 101-year-old mother from her automatic sprinkler system, which wouldn't turn off electronically, and I've had the "Sorcerer's Apprentice" theme on my mind since.
I even played my favorite Beethoven Sonata, the Op. 111, last night on the piano, in the hope that the Arietta would replace Sorcerer. No luck. Hopefully, my mind will be churning the Hammerklavier fugue theme for awhile now. If not, I may need to resort to the nuclear weapon of mind-numbing tunes -- "It's a Small World."
John
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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May 30, 2013 - 11:34pm PT
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If not, I may need to resort to the nuclear weapon of mind-numbing tunes -- "It's a Small World."
Don't do it, John! Try this:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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May 31, 2013 - 11:28am PT
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JE on Pollini: His recording of the fugue of the Hammerklavier is the best I've heard.
Have you heard Rudolf Serkin play this? I'll leave discussion of relative technical capabilities to others, but to me the way Serkin plays it is how I imagine Beethoven hearing it in his mind as he created it. Technique is fine, but without the fire and passion, without the willingness to take chances and be sometimes wrong, technique is all that's left. And technique, by itself, conveys little of what is in the music.
JE again: As an example, his recordings of the Brahms piano concerti are technically fabulous, but they just don't deliver the emotional punch of a Rubinstein or Rudolph Serkin.
Or Gilels. His recordings of both of the Brahms concerti were so burned into my brain that I could call them up any time. Just imagine what cruising through immaculate sparkling powder between monster granite walls on Baffin Island was like with that ringing in my head.
(I also once saved Gilels' bacon in an emergency, but that's a different story.)
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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May 31, 2013 - 01:54pm PT
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(I also once saved Gilel's bacon in an emergency, but that's a different story.)
I'd love to hear that story, Ghost! I bought the Gilels/Szell recording of Beethoven's Third Piano Concerto in 1971, and it remains my favorite. The sophistication and clarity of his playing -- particularly of the cadenza in the first movement, but really all the way through -- was just a delight. It certainly must have amazed people to hear him say "Wait till you hear Richter!"
I also have to confess that Rudolph Serkin is really the reason I have never been able to get Beethoven out of my daily playing. In 1970, I heard his recording of the Moonlight, Pathetique and Appassionata. I had never heard the Appassionata before, and it completely mesmerized me. I doubt that a day has gone by since when I haven't played at least some Beethoven when I have access to a piano (i.e., I'm not traveling or in the mountains).
Incidentally, a year or two after that, Peter Serkin made a recording of the Hammerklavier that was sensational. Teach your children well . . .
John
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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(I also once saved Gilels' bacon in an emergency, but that's a different story.)
I'd love to hear that story, Ghost!
It was sometime in the late 1970s I think. Emil Gilels was playing in Vancouver, where I lived, and I had tickets. This guy was, in my mind, the best piano player in the galaxy, so I was pretty stoked. But the recital kind of sucked.
Okay, so Gilels playing badly was still better than most of what passed for classical pianism, but still...
On the other hand, it was only because of me that he was playing at all that night.
I'd made an appointment to let my dentist torture me that morning, but not long after I sat down in the waiting room Jim (the dentist) came out and said "I've got a favor to ask."
Wtf? "What? You want me to be the guinea pig for some new procedure?"
"No, but I wonder if you'd mind waiting half an hour or so while I deal with an emergency."
Of course I said that was fine. Anyone who has had a dental emergency would willingly wait half a day if that would help someone in a similar situation. And a couple of minutes later two people walked in. One sort of in charge, the other obviously in serious hell and barely functioning as a human. And the sufferer looked vaguely familiar...
It took me a minute to correlate the red hair with the B&W photos I'd seen, but then light bulb switched on and I knew who I'd given up my half hour for.
No wonder he wasn't in top form that night.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Great story, Ghost!
John
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
mammoth lakes ca
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There is a fantastic classical station out of Hawthorne Nevada called KQMC....The DJ is a complete nut job , hilarious and goes by the name of the Captain...The music comes in loud and clear at Navy Beach and makes a great back drop for paddling on the goddess Mono....
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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rotten,
i had a college professor called captain.
he was a scottish sailor, a drunk sporting
a stolen soul.
he and i became good friends over the years of my studies.
he failed to pass me in my capstone class
soley on his intuition (no grades were issued in that class)
postponing my graduation and
earning potential for 365 days.
(classes were only offered every other semester)
i didn't hold it against him.
he told me, later,
that i was the best student he'd ever had the pleasure to teach.
he knew that i lived under the interstate among
transient friends.
he knew that his bottle of scotch landed me in jail
on the day of our last final exam...
he made us call him captain
because he had sailed around the world solo
with his cases of scotch and
then accidentally burned up and down his boat
in the final port....
i lost touch with professor steward.
i wouldn't be suprised if he
landed a gig spinning classical vinyl on air in rural nevada...
it's romantic to think so, anyway.
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
mammoth lakes ca
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Norwegian..This captain has no scottish accent but rumors of a mythical Walker Lake serpent , Cecil , are similar to a scottish sea monster named Lochness....The high school mascot is a Serpent and Hawthorne Nev. , like the Capt. , can be a real blast...
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Jun 12, 2013 - 12:20pm PT
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The Captain is a gas. I enjoy KQMC when I get a chance.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Jun 12, 2013 - 11:00pm PT
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There are more than a few discussions in this thread about which acclaimed performer gives the best account of which acclaimed piece by which acclaimed composer. But just as the best rock'n'roll or jazz you ever heard was in a bar somewhere, on a night when god touched the musicians in a band you'd never heard of, so it is with classical music.
Sure, Richter and Serkin were both stellar in this or that Beethoven sonata, and Milstein vs Vengerov, and the Emerson vs the Tokyo quartet, and this famous orchestra vs that one, etc etc etc, but some of the best performances of classical music I've heard are by people I'd never heard of.
Maybe they only reached that level once, or maybe they were always that good, but just never made it in the classical music business, or whatever. But like that jazz quintet in the southside dive you stumbled into one night, they had a transcendent hour when the tape was running.
So, I'd love to know what you can recommend in this vein. I'll start with a CD I picked up in a moment of silliness, but which is now my gold standard for violin-and-piano. Partly it's because the playing is superb, but also because, unlike most violin/piano performances, this isn't a hot-shot violinist in the foreground with some Fred on piano in the background, or even a "first among equals" thing. This is just two musicians. Rachel Barton playing the fiddle and Patrick Sinozich playing the piano. Who knew?
The picture below is the CD cover. Tacky to the Max. Ditto for the stupid "concept." I have no idea why I bought it. Perhaps there were drugs involved. I really don't remember. But the music...
If you can't find it on amazon.com, I can burn it for you.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Sep 18, 2013 - 05:33pm PT
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Mouse,
Thanks for the post up of Schnabel playing the first movement of Op. 111. I learned that sonata 42 years ago, and still love playing it. It remains my favorite piece in my repertoire.
I remember when I was working on the second movement, a grad student stopped by in the practice room I was using. I was struggling with a very wide double trill for the right hand, and questioned whether the movement was playable for me. His response has stuck with me, because he said, essentially, "Just remember. You're trying to learn the greatest piece ever written for solo piano. That alone is worth the effort." I treated it like a hard boulder problem, and eventually got it, but it is not a piece I could have gotten through sight reading.
I have a basic rule with that Sonata, though. I don't play or even practice the first movement unless I have enough time to play the second. The turmoil of the first movement needs its antidote in the profound tranquility of the second. For those unfamiliar with this sonata, it has only two real movements, following the one-page Maestoso introduction, and they contrast on every possible level. Anton Rubinstein opined that humanity wasn't worthy of the second movement. I wonder if Beethoven could have conceived of it if he could still hear.
There's a second reality for me with that Sonata. I do not start practicing or playing it until I'm done with everything else on the piano, because nothing can follow it. Once I finish playing it, I'm done playing the piano. Beethoven wrote no more piano sonatas after Op. 111, and I think he did so deliberately. It remained his last word on the subject.
Thanks again.
John
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Sep 18, 2013 - 05:37pm PT
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John,
Nice post.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Oct 28, 2013 - 01:22pm PT
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Ghost, too true. Many great musicians don't make it to the big stage for
any number of reasons, the ability to play being the least of them. My friend,
Almer Imamovic, is a case in point. While studying with Pepe Romero at the
USC Thornton School he was on the fast track to the big time - doing well
at comps, etc. Then he made a conscious decision to follow his passion which
was to make music, particularly with his wife Jessica, a flautist he met
while they were at L'Ecole Normale in Paris. Now they have a thriving duo
thang going playing adaptations of the classics mixed in with his treatments
of Balkan folk music. He still does his solo classical gigs, mainly in
Europe, but their duo, Almanova, is his main focus.
It is hard to get them over for dinner much any more but it is something
special to get him lubed up and turn him loose on my wife's guitar. He'll
sit here and seamlessly riff Bach, Jobim, Metallica, whatever you shout at him.
The dude's a monster and drop dead funny.
Concierto de Aranjuez:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Almanova:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Almanova website - buy 'em up! Click on the link just to hear Jessica knock it dead.
Almanova
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Oct 28, 2013 - 03:54pm PT
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Great find, Gary!
John
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RtM
climber
DHS
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Oct 28, 2013 - 04:27pm PT
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In my younger days I played classical piano for a good decade and a half before putting it on the back burner for 20 years or so. I have actually been playing again for about 3 weeks now!!
I kinda just skimmed over the thread, but I was surprised to not see anything on Chopin. I has always been my understanding that Chopin is considered the greatest piano composer. A common phrase I hear is that "Chopin is the soul of the piano", and I have always agreed with this. Of all the works from my old repertoire; Bach, Rachmaninov, Scriabin, Debussy, Liszt, Chopin, etc..; Chopin would always get me going the most, and usually would also be the most difficult to execute.
Anyhoo, just wanted to give a shout out to the man! Now, time to go bang on some keys.
BTW, I am neither gay, jewish or, well, I used to be pretty good!
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Oct 28, 2013 - 04:37pm PT
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RtM,
My wife got me several pads titled "Chopin Liszt," showing caricatures of Frederic and Franz carrying paper shopping bags filled with groceries. Sad to say, I don't know where I put the last of them.
While I play some of both -- what pianist can resist? -- I'm not sure whether it's a matter of Beethoven fitting my hands or my soul or both, but his Sonatas just seem to require less effort and give greater satisfaction. I have to play the Fantasy-Impromptu, though, because that is one of my wife's favorites. Well, I like it a lot too.
As far as the pre-twentieth century composer requiring the greatest effot, though, Brahms gives me the most trouble. I love (and love to play) his music, but it always requires a lot more effort than I would expect just looking at the music.
John
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Oct 28, 2013 - 04:37pm PT
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Ashkenazy plays Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5 2nd. mov Adagio. Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Sir Georg Solti.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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RtM
climber
DHS
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Oct 29, 2013 - 11:44am PT
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Fantasie Impromptu, nice! I haven't heard that one in a long time. That one was on the first Chopin cassette that I owned - Vladimir Ashkenazy(sp?), had the Impromptus, Fantasie, Barcarolle, Berceuse - that cassette changed my whole world.
My wife's fav is Clair De Lune, Debussy - of course. Trying to piece that one back together now.
I'll have to give Brahms a closer look, thanks!
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Oct 29, 2013 - 02:31pm PT
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My wife's fav is Clair De Lune, Debussy - of course.
It turns out I heard my wife-to-be play Clair de Lune 48 years ago in a piano recital. My sister and I were there because we both had good friends playing in that recital. After I married my wife (30 years less 23 days ago, but who's counting?), I saw her program from that recital and realized I was there. Once I saw the program, I remembered her playing as well, although I didn't see her again for almost 20 years.
Sad to say, she quit her lessons shortly after that recital. We used to play some duets when we were first married, but she hasn't really played in at least a couple of decades now. Since 1990 we've owned two pianos, with me holding out hope that either my wife or one of my daughters would like to play two-piano duets with me. No dice. At least my older daughter plays for enjoyment, and even attempted Clair de Lune. Unfortunately, the key signature daunted her.
My younger daughter is getting her master's degree in composition, so she uses a piano to sound out what she's written on occasion, but doesn't play except if absolutely necessary. My bottom line: when my older daughter gets married this April, my vertical piano will go with her, at least for now.
Oh well, at least my wife enjoys it when I play Clair de Lune.
John
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Oct 29, 2013 - 02:44pm PT
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Oh well, at least my wife enjoys it when I play Clair de Lune.
It looks like I'll have to wait until retirement to tackle that one and the Girl with the Flaxen Hair. I have the same key signature issue! It'll take lots of time on the bench.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Nov 12, 2013 - 12:33pm PT
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Leinsdorf breaks the news of the Kennedy Assassination
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Nice stuff, mighty Mouse. Saturday I'll be at the Colburn School and hear Ray Ushikubo play the Heroic Polonaise. The kid will be something someday.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Ray had a growth spurt over the summer and can reach the pedals without standing up now.
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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I've been a fan of Irish pianist Barry Douglas ever since I saw him play a brilliant and daring program here in L.A. in 1991. He was at the time, the only non-Russian to win the Tchaikovsky competition other than Van Cliburn. Here's an excerpt from the 1st movt. of Tchaikovsky's 1st Piano Concerto with the Taiwan Symphony recorded last year...
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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that Arrau recording is incredible
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Dec 11, 2013 - 01:29pm PT
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I always felt the last movement of the Bartok Fourth Quartet should be subtitled "Congregational Meeting," because that was usually one's impression in my church. Times have changed, and the congregation mellowed, so now I think I can subtitle it "Partners' Meeting" from my days as a law firm partner.
John
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Dec 11, 2013 - 03:32pm PT
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Ha! It doesn't strike me as congregational! I do like working my way through Mikrokosmos
I'm in a Russian mood today.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Heard Charles Dutoit conduct this with the LA Phil last year. It was maybe the best musical performance I've heard. It was enthralling.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Dec 11, 2013 - 11:03pm PT
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My head is spinning after following that score. Truly, voicing is what separates the men from the boys in the piano world.
More Russians?
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Eclipze
Trad climber
Morris Plains / Givat Haim Ichud Israel
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Dec 30, 2013 - 12:10pm PT
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I love the emotion able to be garnered from the music especially with today's garbage pop music where everyone is electronically pitch perfect to listen and experience to music in its purest form is a real treat. For people my age most are into modern music but I was raised on blues jazz and classical music along with the Stones and Chili Peppers. It just stuck. Haven't had the chance to see an Orchestra besides the one that toured with Peter Gabriel which was the best concert I've ever been to, but I mean to once I finish this rotation overseas
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Dec 30, 2013 - 12:30pm PT
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Thanks for adding the deBussy. The rest really shone!
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Dec 30, 2013 - 02:04pm PT
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That Carter recording was a hoot.
One of the greatest American composers. His works are rarely performed. He's American and 20th century, so his music doesn't stand a chance.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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anita514
Gym climber
Great White North
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saw Mahler's 7th Symphony last night
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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awesome, anita.
i love seeing symphonies live.
i'm not often brought to tears,
but i admit that the live presentation
often invites me moist eyes.
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anita514
Gym climber
Great White North
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Feb 12, 2014 - 07:23am PT
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nice stuff
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Feb 12, 2014 - 12:16pm PT
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Any other opera queens here? I miss Luciano. Technically Placido is great
but Luciano just worked my heart more.
And will we ever see the likes of Maria again? Yes, a lot of great singers
since her but, again, nobody could emote like her. I suppose it helped that
she lived her life like a tragic heroine. The modern greats like Fleming
are just too mentally healthy.
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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Mar 12, 2014 - 08:02am PT
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this morning the wind, outside is howling
through the sugarpines.
so i donned an el cap knitted by mrs. crawford (paul's mom)
and an old puffy jacket that i scored at the thrift store,
and took a walk thru the forest.
the damn moon, pretty as she ever was, totalled my vision,
though it impeded my sight,
thus i had to navigate the cluttered forest
via memory, and i cheated a little
by following the dog.
it was cool and when i got back to the yard
i began yarding up my 1" line, just to see
where my muscle mass added up and
i made it about 2/3 height, the rope is
a wee bit damp from the recent precip,
and for some reason it was spinning me
madly so i down-yarded and then summed up
the experience with a bach piece,
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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Apr 22, 2014 - 11:02am PT
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classical music is a vibrating mirror
just shy of shattering
as it welcomes the inquisitive
glance of those befuddled scuttlers
whimming about.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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John M
climber
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Apr 26, 2014 - 11:24pm PT
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very nice Rob. You must be a proud father.
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steveA
Trad climber
Wolfeboro, NH
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Rich,
That was wonderful!!! Bravo.
You must be so proud of her. She is just a chip off the old block. When you climbed, you looked always in such control--your daughter didn't even looked stressed, and played in such control.
I have loved classical music since the age of five.
Check out this piece, which has become my favorite piece of music:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZX5wXVY-Ks
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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rgold, she did that just terrifically. She's very good. Nice recording as well.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Thanks for the post, Richie! I think the Haydn Sonatas don't get nearly the attention they deserve. Although Horowitz included them in his repertoire, there weren't too many "name" pianists playing them for way too many years.
That Sonata was my introduction as a pianist to Haydn's music, though I don't think I played it with the verve Sarah showed.
Well done, Daddy and daughter!
John
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rgold
Trad climber
Poughkeepsie, NY
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Classical music is food for the soul, but there is the issue of food for the stomach as well. What's a girl gonna do? With apologies for thread impurity, here is one answer.
http://stevefuller.tv/video/verizon/verizon_popup.html
Ok, sorry about that...back to your regularly-scheduled Rachmaninoff...
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Rgold
Wow... how your daughter can play... great musicality and authority... back to Haydn...
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Karen
Trad climber
So Cal urban sprawl Hell
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Ah....Rachmaninoff, wonderful!!!!
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Sitting here in cube land indexing and uploading old fieldbooks allows me time to listen to youtube music videos while working. Today I ran across this guy, and he's becoming a real favorite.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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anita514
Gym climber
Great White North
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Nice
I was listening to the Nocturnes played by Ashkenazy this past weekend.
Really sublime.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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They are nice, and Ashkenazy has it happening. I wish I could play one.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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May 14, 2014 - 11:49am PT
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Very nice clip, SM. Stalin must have hated that one.
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anita514
Gym climber
Great White North
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Jun 11, 2014 - 06:53am PT
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very nice
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Jun 11, 2014 - 07:46am PT
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Conductor Rafael Fruehbeck de Burgos has died in Pamplona. He's made many visits to Los Angeles over the years. He was a terrific musician, his concerts were most enjoyable. My g/f and I would try to make his shows whenever possible. He always produced a terrific sound.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Jun 18, 2014 - 11:56am PT
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^^ Terrific
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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I guess this should go on the Bird thread but the other night my #1 and I were having din-din in the mezquita and I had Bruch's Violin Concerto on. I swear to Allah that Mr and Mrs Black
Phoebe were sitting on the roof rapt. When it finished they went about their business of ridding
our yard of flying pests.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Jul 17, 2014 - 08:46am PT
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I first heard this live, performed by a conservatory student. He did a great job, and it's become a favorite. And this is a cool video, to boot.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jul 17, 2014 - 08:48am PT
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BTW, Lorin Maazel passed the other day.
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Jul 17, 2014 - 08:51am PT
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Lorin Maazel in Memoriam (06.03.1930-13.07.2014)
[Click to View YouTube Video]
"Adagietto" from Symphony No 5 by Gustav Mahler
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Jul 31, 2014 - 02:33pm PT
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Thanks for the Ives post, Gary. I've never sung any of his solos, but I've sung a couple of his songs for chorus, and I found them surprisingly accessible, in contrast to, say, his solo piano works. "The Circus Band" I particularly enjoyed. The last time through has a fraternity drinking song as a descant. I wish we had recorded it. Here's a You Tube link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGHi4WWreOw
I know you tube has a version of "the Circus Band" for baritone solo as well, so there's hope for me, but I like the chorus version so much better.
John
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Jul 31, 2014 - 05:49pm PT
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Hey, John, that's good. I like 20th century American music. It's so...America! I wish folks would program William Grant Still more often. I like his music and his story.
I just finished up a huge mind-f*#k of a listening session: Leonard Bernstein's Charles Eliot Norton lectures from Harvard. He used Ive's The Unanswered Question to bring together his thoughts on universal music and linguistics and how it all relates to what he termed a "crisis" in modern music. Fascinating, but very heavy.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Jul 31, 2014 - 07:58pm PT
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Speaking of Leonard Bernstein, grab your DVD of "West Side Story" and throw it on the system with the sound coming through your #1 amp and speakers.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Jul 31, 2014 - 11:44pm PT
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Cool, Gary! Back in the early-mid 1960's, when we had one (black and white) TV, my whole family used to gather in the living room and listen to Bernstein's children's concerts with the NY Phil.
John
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Ghost, my DVD of "West Side Story"? HaHaHaHa!
Mine is on a wax cylinder, don't ya know?
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Aug 18, 2014 - 07:46pm PT
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Ah, Mahler, the end of the beginning.
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anita514
Gym climber
Great White North
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Aug 19, 2014 - 06:45pm PT
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are you hating on Mahler, Gary?
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Aug 19, 2014 - 07:00pm PT
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are you hating on Mahler, Gary?
Not at all. He was the end of the beginning. The line that started with Bach and went through Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Berlioz, Chopin, and Wagner culminated with Mahler.
He took all that tonality could offer to the limit. Just look at the size of the orchestras needed to play his symphonies. There was no place to go but to Schoenberg.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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anita514
Gym climber
Great White North
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Aug 19, 2014 - 07:14pm PT
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you lost me, Gary.
I just heard that sh#t on a TV commercial.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Aug 19, 2014 - 07:41pm PT
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You just heard Schoenberg on a TV commercial?
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Aug 26, 2014 - 05:49am PT
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^^ Just heard that on the radio yesterday. It's some great stuff.
More of the end of the beginning:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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Sep 12, 2014 - 04:50am PT
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my neighbors are having
steamy cups on their porch
and something belligerent
caught the corner of their
gaze and turning my way
they spied me through the
cabin glass warping inward
to this piece.
awe shucks, how do i ever explain myself.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Sep 12, 2014 - 05:27am PT
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pretty well, actually, amigo.
u must undersand that i don't dig copland cuz he don't swing that well like a bag of sand will when ur on stage tappin' out a rhythym to some really cool old modernist like moncada
[Click to View YouTube Video]
and u look up and here it comes
dang
sandbagged again...
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Oct 14, 2014 - 07:06am PT
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Marlow, you're posting some great stuff.
Norge, old Bach, for all of his Germanic Baroque mathematical precision, also wrote some wonderful melodies, like the Air you posted, the Aria from the Goldberg's and such.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Oct 17, 2014 - 03:03pm PT
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Я люблю хорошую мазурку
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Sb7gp98wAc
for neebee
The mazurka (in Polish, mazurek) is a Polish folk dance in triple meter, usually at a lively tempo, and with accent on the second or third beat.
ok, for MoosieToo, too. :0)
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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Oct 17, 2014 - 04:56pm PT
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hey there say, mouse... oh, i love mazurka... i had some piano music, for some... did not get to try them, yet...
thank you so much!!
say, DID anyone EVER yet, find that neat waltz, from the marx brothers movie... could be, it was just a 'stock' thing, but i sure wish we could find it... just love it!
the 'out there on the patio' one... got to find that thread now...
hoped that john E, might help seek it out, as, he knows music...
say, john, would you know how to do this?
will have to find the thread... :)
the waltz HAD a regiment HORN in it... too...
HERE IS THE LINK FOR THE MUSIC:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0014HNUBY/ref=dm_ws_sp_tlw_trk1
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Oct 23, 2014 - 09:22pm PT
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Moriz Rosenthal was a pupil of Liszt. His Chopin is something else.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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Oct 30, 2014 - 08:06am PT
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my theme noise while shuffling around
kicking small rocks, muttering 'ah shucks'
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Oct 30, 2014 - 11:37am PT
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Erlösung - Ludwig van Beethoven - Opus 132 and Opus 135 - Alban Berg Quartett
[Click to View YouTube Video]
To my taste the pictures following the music are a little over the top. The music is marvellous... listen....
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Oct 30, 2014 - 12:03pm PT
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Marlow, in 1972, i couldn't get the last movement of the Op. 135 out of my head the entire way up and down a NW Face of Half Dome approach and, sad to say, walk of shame, so beware!
John
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Oct 30, 2014 - 12:10pm PT
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John.
Haha... if that happend to me, I'd just sit down at the base of Half Dome and listen to the music in my head for hours on end and let Half Dome be Half Dome...
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Last night on Apple TV I watched Glenn Gould: On the Record, which documents the recording of the Italian Concerto.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Dal Maxvill
Social climber
Granite City, Illinois
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A while back selfish man posted Maria Yudina's version of the Goldberg Variations, and I just now listened to it. I like what she did, very articulated. Always nice to hear all the different takes on that work.
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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the Rosenthal recording is very fascinating...
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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Nov 19, 2014 - 03:06am PT
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i'm thinking fondly of a lady in her towel,
[Click to View YouTube Video]
me and her and dancing to chords of the harp.
slowly and without grace or sensual grammar.
she doesn't know her knots too well
and i know this so a slight
tug on the damp fabric
and we're off to eden.
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Nov 29, 2014 - 07:21am PT
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Uuno Klami - Symphony No. 2
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Uuno (Kalervo) Klami (20 September 1900 -- 29 May 1961) was a Finnish composer. He was born in Virolahti. Many of his works are related to the Kalevala. He was influenced by French and Spanish music, and especially by Maurice Ravel, for whom he had a particular esteem. He participated in five armed conflicts, including two wars in Karelia, the Finnish Civil War, the Winter War of 1939-40 and the Continuation War of 1941-44.
Klami studied music in Helsinki with Erkki Melartin and later in Paris and Vienna. His main works include the Kalevala Suite and the unfinished ballet Whirls. The oratorio Psalmus (1936) has a unique place in Finnish sacred music and is one of the most highly regarded works by a Finn other than Sibelius. Klami also experimented with the symphonic form in his two Symphonies (1938 and 1945) and Symphonie enfantine (1927), and the concerto form in his two Piano Concertos (No. 1 Une nuit à Montmartre and No. 2 for Piano and Strings) and the Violin Concerto (1943). Being a master of miniature orchestral works, the orchestral suite Sea Pictures is also regarded as one of his major achievements. On the recommendation of Sibelius he was granted a small lifetime income from the government. In 1959 he was made a member of the Finnish Academy (one of Finland's highest honors).
The energetic Karelian Rhapsody was the first Finnish orchestral work to be published in Finland, and a long-time favourite in radio concert programs. Klami died of a heart attack in Virolahti at age 60 while sailing his favorite boat "Miina".
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Gnome Ofthe Diabase
climber
Out Of Bed
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Nov 29, 2014 - 07:56am PT
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Thank you for this thread it is, as it is with so many others, amazing to me,it touches so deep ,!!
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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^^ Very nice.
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anita514
Gym climber
Great White North
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Dec 15, 2014 - 02:34pm PT
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I love the last 6 minutes of that organ piece
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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Dec 16, 2014 - 12:39am PT
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a poet went on a search for the ideal;
where he sought emotional mecca,
he found dancing faires.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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Anita - Doesn't get much better than Widor on a Cavialle Col instrument.
Edit: Everyone should hear that last 6 minutes. It's exciting, and it is a lesson in music theory. Set an expectation and reward it either with the expected or a beautiful surprise.
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Lorenzo
Trad climber
Oregon
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Jan 11, 2015 - 06:58pm PT
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The meditation is so great because every great artist takes a shot at it and Each one puts such an individual stamp on it.
I've heard Janine Jansen a couple times. Hers is as delightful as any.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
She's easier on the eyes than Itzak, also.
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Jan 11, 2015 - 08:34pm PT
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Here's a video link to a local Denver group that's very, very good!
The Baroque Chamber Orchestra of Colorado. . .
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Jan 12, 2015 - 10:09am PT
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Right you are, Steve. They are very good.
This fellow is of the modern "got to make funny faces while playing to show you have feeling" school. But he does this pretty well.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Jan 18, 2015 - 04:38pm PT
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been through this with both the 1955 and 1981 version...
Been listening to this all night. Can't get enough.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Jan 26, 2015 - 08:58am PT
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Nice, Jim. Baroque rocks!
Saturday afternoon we went to the Colburn School free recitals given by the high and middle school students enrolled in their Music Academy.
This tiny Asian-American girl, 12 or 13 at the most, came out and introduced her piece in a tiny, quiet, and shy voice. She sat down at the Steinway and transformed into a pianistic dynamo. She should have been playing across the street at Disney Hall. Her phrasing, voicing and general dynamic control was exceptional. We're looking forward to hear her perform again. If she doesn't get distracted by adolescence, she's going to be a big deal.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Thanks for the posts. I particularly appreciated those on this page, because I've played them in public for my church. My daughter and I (she's the violinist) played "Meditation" for an offeratory a couple of years ago, and I played the first movement of the Haydn Sonata Hob. XVI 50 (the same movement Brendel plays in the You Tube clip) as a prelude a year or two before that.
We normally have our organist doing all of the incidental music, but when she is absent, she sometimes condescends to let me take her place on the piano.
I think the Haydn piano sonatas are underappreciated in the modern repertoire. They may require less virtuosity than those of Mozart, but they have such musical richness that they deserve to be played more.
"Meditation" has a particularly special place in my heart, because it my father-in-law's favorite piece. He was an excellent violinist before WWII, but stopped playing after the War because of work commitment. He eventually gave his violin (made in 1824 in England) to my daughter, and we've played "Meditation" for him many, many times.
Hearing it on the post on this thread was particularly poignant for me because we had to place my father-in-law in a memory-care facility a couple of weeks ago. He'd been living with us since June of 2012 because of age-related dementia, that finally has progressed to the point where he doesn't remember any of us (including my mother-in-law, who also lives with us), and has trouble keeping his balance. If he fell, I was often the only one who could lift him -- and I work outside the home.
Thanks again for giving me such sweet memories.
John
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Feb 10, 2015 - 09:26am PT
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LA Chamber Orchestra lead by Jeffrey Kahane will do Mozart's Requiem with the LA Master
Chorale 19 Feb. It won't get any better than that! Be there or be square and feel yer finiteness!
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Feb 11, 2015 - 09:48pm PT
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...and I played the first movement of the Haydn Sonata Hob. XVI 50 (the same movement Brendel plays in the You Tube clip) as a prelude a year or two before that.
I think the Haydn piano sonatas are underappreciated in the modern repertoire. They may require less virtuosity than those of Mozart, but they have such musical richness that they deserve to be played more.
John, I piked up a copy of the Haydn sonatas the other day. I can't play them, and probably never will, but I can follow the score, which I did with the Brendel recoding of number 50. What a hoot! Reading along with it really was revealing. It must be incredibly fun to play.
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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Feb 15, 2015 - 05:37am PT
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the anchor on the local classical station
indicated that this piece originated
when a gal asked maurice to compose
a piece to which she could dance
on top of a table at the tavern.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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anita514
Gym climber
Great White North
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Feb 15, 2015 - 05:45am PT
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I HATE the Bolero.
Thanks for ruining my Sunday.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Feb 15, 2015 - 09:09am PT
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Anita, you're posting on Supertopo, your Sunday is already ruined.
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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Feb 15, 2015 - 09:20am PT
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sunday is saturday's
unborn fetus dripping
out of the midnight seam;
innocoent as f*#k.
i aborted your dream.
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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Feb 18, 2015 - 05:04am PT
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hey there say, mouse... wow, this is GOING to be neat... will come back adn see it this afternoon... got to shovel drive and go back to sleep, :))
if not, the "ye ol' snowplow" will really mess up:
"ye ol' WAY to get the ye ol' CAR out of drive" type deal...
got to get the mail out to the box, too...
but i will check this out... parts of up, by fast scan, look
"really funny" but all in all, really a neat jaunt, to powerful music...
got to run, shovel, mail and sleep...
got a deep into paint, day, to enjoy, well, after some coffee!!!
think i WILL put the "ye ol' computer into classical music" stage,
while i do it... :)
happy good morning... i am type-out for now... :)
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Feb 24, 2015 - 01:07pm PT
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Here in the centennial of WWI, it is worth noting that Enrique Granados died after the ship he was aboard was torpedoed by a German submarine. It is a pity.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Feb 24, 2015 - 01:22pm PT
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So I think I've calmed down enough to type after last Wednesday's LACO
performance of Mozart's Requiem. In a word: heavy duty! So, the players
and the choir come out, then the soloists and Jeffrey Kahane. The lights
go down, as in out completely. Then a spotlight illuminates one corner
of the stage where two guys are sitting at a table. They start talking.
WTF? I paid hundreds to hear two guys talk? We wondered what was up with
the program as it said:
Introduction
Intermission
The Requiem
Long story short the two guys did a couple of scenes from Pushkin's "Mozart
and Salieri". Then Jeffrey Kahane took almost an hour deconstructing The
Requiem in its usual incarnation a la Süssmayr and juxtaposing the Robert
Levin version which we would hear after the intermission. If an hour of
this sounds dry then you would be verrry wrong. It was absolutely spellbinding.
Kahane is a great speaker and educator besides being a good friend of Levin.
And when the orchestra and choir did the various side-by-side comparisons
Süssmayr's efforts were plodding and pedantic as Kahane noted, "Süssmayr's
problem was that he couldn't write a fugue." LOL!
The trouble is there is only one recording of the Levin version by a not so
great orchestra. The LACO recorded Wednesday's performance so I hope it gets
released. It was stupendous.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Feb 24, 2015 - 02:10pm PT
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Thanks, Gary. I've always enjoyed Granados's piano music. One of these days when I'm particularly ambitious (which will probably coincide with airborne pigs), I'll have to move beyond the dances to the "Goyescas."
Incidentally, I just learned how Granados died last Sunday on our local National Leftist Radio affiliate. Granados was on a concert tour in America with his wife during World War I. They missed their boat heading back to Europe. The boat they eventually boarded was torpedoed, and Mrs. Granados, who couldn't swim, ended up in the water. The composer drowned trying to rescue his wife.
John
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Feb 24, 2015 - 02:26pm PT
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Reilly, thanks for the report. I always enjoy good pre-concert talks. Unfortunately,for me, it's almost always Alan Chapman. Once got to hear Jean-Yves Thibaudet before Gershwin's concerto. Glad the requiem came off so well.
John, bet you don't regret, now, one bit of all the work to obtain your level of play. It must be very satisfying, I won't say consoling, to be able to play works like the dances.
The Spanish, and Latin, composers are quite enjoyable. I was lucky enough to hear Charles Dutoit rehearse the LA Phil in Ginastera's Variations for Orchestra.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Mozart, Réquiem in D minor K626.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
• Wiener Symphoniker, Wiener Staatsopernchor, Karl Böhm (conductor)
• Soloists: Gundula Janowitz (soprano), Christa Ludwig (alto), Peter Schreier (tenor) ,Walter Berry (bass)
• Recorded in 1971 in Vienna
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Mar 10, 2015 - 09:42am PT
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Brandon
I got the inspiration from Reilly's post above. Some years ago I listened through many versions of Mozart's Requiem one or more times and ended up buying a 1971 Karl Bohm version on Deutsche Grammophon and a 1984 Christopher Hogwood version on Decca.
Here's the Bohm:
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Mar 10, 2015 - 09:48am PT
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Marlow, du maa listen to the Levin version, if you can find one.
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Mar 10, 2015 - 09:50am PT
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Reilly.
I promise, I will...
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Mar 10, 2015 - 10:10am PT
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Reilly
Is this the one?
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Mar 10, 2015 - 10:15am PT
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I haven't heard any other than the live one recently but I think this one
would be my first choice:
Robert Levin preserves all that is reliably Mozart's music, substantially recomposes the inept Osanna fugue, and here and there touches up faulty harmonies and clumsy orchestration. Levin also replaces the cadential close of the Lacrimosa with a completion of Mozart's sketches for an Amen fugue, a feature of this completion that some listeners may find startling, but sufficiently Mozartian and ultimately satisfying as a solution. Martin Pearlman and the Boston Baroque enhance Levin's efforts with a sterling rendition on period instruments that is marvelously resonant, especially with Telarc's vibrant reproduction;
http://www.allmusic.com/album/mozart-requiem-completion-by-robert-levin-mw0001399942
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Mar 10, 2015 - 10:22am PT
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Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Requiem K626, Robert Levin completion [Boston Baroque, Martin Pearlman]
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Did I get it?
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Mar 10, 2015 - 10:50am PT
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It appears you have although I am of two minds concerning posting free music.
Did you know that the Requiem was played at Chopin's funeral?
My best friend in Seattle, whom I shared a house with, was second trombone
in the Seattle Symphony. For reasons known only to Mozart the great Tuba
Mirum opening solo was written for the second trombone. Living with him
in the weeks leading up to those performances was like belaying somebody
on a massive runout. Talk about 'wound up'!
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Mar 10, 2015 - 11:08am PT
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Great story, horrible runout, beautiful music ...
and I hope my one mind is not causing me or anyone else trouble...
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Mar 10, 2015 - 11:26am PT
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Great horns. Just to follow up on your Finlandia, Mouse. Here's Jean Sibelius - Skogsrået (The Wood Nymph) - Osmo Vänskä, Lahti Symphony Orchestra
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Mar 21, 2015 - 08:16pm PT
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And today is Johann Sebastian Bach's birthday. . .the music he
graced us with. . .
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Mar 22, 2015 - 01:34pm PT
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Kempff plays Beethoven Sonata No 23 Op.57 Appassionata (1960)
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Wilhelm Kempff:
"In my artistic existence, I have experienced many crises. That was necessary. Crisis leads to growth, and growth is the best thing we can wish for ourselves. Everyone enters life with his own potential for artistic expression, and each of us must strive to realize that potential."
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Paul Martzen
Trad climber
Fresno
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Mar 24, 2015 - 05:28pm PT
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On Sunday, I had the privilege of attending a choral concert of the works of a modern composer, Robert S. Cohen. The main work was called Alzheimer's Stories. I found it incredibly moving and his shorter works affected me equally strongly. The works were performed by the Fresno State Chamber Singers, the Fresno State Concert Choir and the Fresno Master Chorale. They were all absolutely beautiful.
The versions on his website barely give a sense of what the live performance was like.
http://robertscohen.com/listen.htm
I had never heard of this composer, but I am a fan now.
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apogee
climber
Technically expert, safe belayer, can lead if easy
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Topic Author's Reply - Mar 25, 2015 - 11:10am PT
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My pleasure, Mouse...though I'm primarily a lurker on it. I learn TONS from everybody here.
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anita514
Gym climber
Great White North
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Mar 29, 2015 - 07:06am PT
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A re-post, but really nice to start a Sunday morning.
Sun's shining, snow is melting, got my espresso, trying to figure out breakfast (oatmeal w/ginger & maple syrup or avocado/emmental/egg/tomato sandwich)... blah blah blah
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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apogee
climber
Technically expert, safe belayer, can lead if easy
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Topic Author's Reply - Mar 29, 2015 - 07:37pm PT
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I musta missed that one the first time around, Anita...it was a really great way to start my day. Really put my mind in a good place.
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anita514
Gym climber
Great White North
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Mar 30, 2015 - 04:49am PT
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Really put my mind in a good place.
Then you posted on Super Topo... ;)
That's cool, glad you enjoyed. Love the scenery in that video.
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anita514
Gym climber
Great White North
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Apr 13, 2015 - 12:11pm PT
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Hi Gary
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Apr 13, 2015 - 12:35pm PT
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I love it, Gary! I should add that whenever I see anything by P.D.Q. Bach, I think of one concert we (Fresno Choral Artists) did in about 2002. We performed "My Bonnie Lass She Smileth," followed by P.D.Q. Bach's "My Bonnie Lass She Smelleth." The end of the latter piece has the direction "Bass soloist improvise interminably." For reasons I still don't know, the director assigned that improvisation to me. 13 years later, my daughters still tease me about it, but at least I ended on the correct note.
John
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Apr 13, 2015 - 02:27pm PT
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So, I'm curious whether anybody actually clicks on these vids given the wretchedness of the
system they are probably hearing them on. I strongly suspect the system in my pimp truck
on which I heard the inimitable Alfred Brendel do Mozart's 15th as I drove through Las Vegas
the other day far surpasses most computer speakers, and the irony was rich, also.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Apr 13, 2015 - 03:07pm PT
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Hi, Anita. Hope you're fully recovered from that surgery.
...but at least I ended on the correct note.
John, the tonic, it's all that really matters, no? We all like to go home. I saw sheet music for the Notebook for Betty Sue Bach, might be worth the purchase.
Reilly,
I click. This is the only ST thread I can really stand nowadays. It used to be fun to good-naturedly stir the pot, but alas...
Been listening to these quartets lately.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Apr 13, 2015 - 07:37pm PT
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I still remember hearing these recordings, in awe, on my grandmother's ancient (even then) turntable sometime in the early 80's. And now that I've discovered my ears can't pick up anything above 12kHz the fancy speakers I own are kinda useless
[Click to View YouTube Video]
[Click to View YouTube Video]
So, I'm curious whether anybody actually clicks on these vids given the wretchedness of the
system they are probably hearing them on. I strongly suspect the system in my pimp truck
on which I heard the inimitable Alfred Brendel do Mozart's 15th as I drove through Las Vegas
the other day far surpasses most computer speakers, and the irony was rich, also.
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Apr 14, 2015 - 07:22am PT
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I think this discussion of sound quality calls for posting the world's worst sound quality recording (and very old school). Can you even recognize the piece?
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Apr 14, 2015 - 06:34pm PT
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Brahms' use of rubato is just horrible. Don't get me started on his phrasing, why the melody is just buried!
At least it will sound good in Reilly's truck.
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Apr 14, 2015 - 07:20pm PT
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No wonder Brahms couldn't climb 5.12c
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Gary
Social climber
From A Buick 6
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John, very nice. The Lutoslawski especially. Piano seems to be in your family genes.
Me, I'm studying Diabelli. These sonatinas are fun to play. A real hoot.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Thanks, Gary. I'd like to claim more genetic commonality with Nairi, but her grandmother (who is not related to me) was a piano teacher. We do have a lot of classical musicians in the family, though, mostly proving through their earnings why we call the opposite of classical music popular music.
John
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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May 24, 2015 - 05:11am PT
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hey there, say, jim... wow, you are most welcome... will go hear the music, :) then, have to go sleep, :))
thank you!
happy good day, to you :)
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Gary
Social climber
From A Buick 6
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May 28, 2015 - 09:20am PT
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Well, Reilly has gotten me going on a Mass kick. Been listening to quite a few lately. This one's not bad at all.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Jun 12, 2015 - 01:35pm PT
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Well, Reilly has gotten me going on a Mass kick. Been listening to quite a few lately. This one's not bad at all.
Agreed, Gary. The Kyrie from the Nelson Mass, in particular, has always resonated with me. I first heard it on an Easter Sunday sometime before my tenth birthday. It is one of the two choral pieces where I still vividly remember the first time i heard it (the other was the Hallelujan Chorus, which I also heard for the first time in church).
The trend of modern Protestant churches toward musical illiteracy deeply saddens me. As moving as spontaneity can be, I just don't think it can reach the depth of expression that comes from disciplined formalism.
John
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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Jun 26, 2015 - 10:30am PT
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Here ya go. Two of the most magnificent female voices of our time, at their prime...
Joan Sutherland and Marilyn Horne, conducted by Sutherland's husband Richard Bonynge. Imagine riding downhill on a bicycle going faster and faster without speeding up.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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Thanks Gary. Beautiful. Rossini doesn't get enough attention.
Speaking of Sir Georg Solti, I used to make a point of attending when Chicago Symphony visited New York at Carnegie Hall (this was through the 1970's.) The New York Phil had already moved up to that barn at Lincoln Center. At Carnegie the best seats were center, front row balcony. The concert which I'll never forget was the Mozart Jupiter and Mahler's 5th. The Mozart was sublime, Then came the Mahler, and they just plain blew the roof of the place. That was the best brass section I've ever heard.
An interesting bit of trivia, the tuba layer in that section was Arnold Jacobs. He had lost a lung in a car crash years before. It didn't handicap him at all, in fact you'd think he had an extra lung by the sound of it. If Ed Viesturs had played tuba...
I took some master classes with Hurseth, the principal trumpet. OMG I've never been so intimidated in my life. Nothing in climbing even compares. It was like being called up before God for judgement.
Check out the Mahler 5 embedded in this page. Brings tears to my eyes.
https://mahlerfest.wordpress.com/2013/04/16/remembering-adolph-bud-herseth/
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Gary
Social climber
From A Buick 6
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^^ Nice.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Excellent music, Kris. And thanks for the anecdote about the master class.
Master classes have a way of instilling humility. The closest climbing analogy I can draw was when Robbins would visit Indian Rock while I was an undergrad at Berkeley. Bouldering with that audience was intimidating, indeed.
John
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Okay, I hope this hasn't been added to the thread--but I'm not going through
470 posts to find out. . .
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Sorry Marlow, wrong vid the first time. It's the
correct one now. . . my bad!
(the entire recording is great, has 2 concerti and
English Suite #3).
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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SteveW
The first Dinnerstein vid you posted worked on this side of the pond. The new one doesn't, but now I can find my way...
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Gary
Social climber
From A Buick 6
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That Aria is haunting. It was this thread that turned me onto Maria Yudina, she's now a favorite.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
She was a bit of nut, but an uncompromising nut.
One of the people of modern times whose heart was radiantly pure was the Russian pianist Maria Yudina. I have come to know her indirectly through the memoirs of her friend and one-time classmate, composer Dimitri Shostakovich, and also through Tatiana Voogd, a member of our parish who knew Yudina personally and has slept under her piano -- "the most sheltered place in her apartment," she tells me.
It was Maria Yudina's fate to live through the Russian revolution and its aftermath, seeing many of her dearest friends and colleagues disappear into the Gulag. A fearless Christian, she wore a cross visibly even while teaching or performing in public -- an affirmation of belief at a time when the price of a display of religious faith could be one's work, one's freedom, even one's life. She lived an ascetic life, wearing no cosmetics, spending little on herself, and dressing simply. "I had the impression that Yudina wore the same black dress during her entire long life, it was so worn and soiled," said Shostakovich.
For Maria Yudina, music was a way of proclaiming her faith in a period when presses were more carefully policed than pianos. "Yudina saw music in a mystical light. For instance, she saw Bach's Goldberg Variations as a series of illustrations to the Holy Bible," said Shostakovich. "She always played as though she were giving a sermon."
She not only performed piano works but paused during concerts to read the poetry of such writers as Boris Pasternak, who were unable to publish at the time.
She was notorious among friends for her inability to keep anything of value for herself. "She came to see me once," Shostakovich recalled, "and said that she was living in a miserable little room where she could neither work nor rest. So I signed a petition, I went to see various bureaucrats, I asked a lot of people to help, I took up a lot of people's time. With great difficulty we got an apartment for Yudina. You would think that everything was fine and that life could go on. A short time later she came to me again and asked for help in obtaining an apartment for herself. 'What? But we got an apartment for you. What do you need another one for?' 'I gave the apartment away to a poor old woman.'"
Shostakovich heard that friends had made a loan to Yudina of five rubles. "I broke a window in my room, it's drafty and so cold, I can't live like that," she had told them. "Naturally, they gave her the money -- it was winter. A while later they visited her, and it was as cold in her room as it was outside and the broken window was stuffed with a rag. 'How can this be, Maria Veniaminovna? We gave you money to fix the window.' And she replied, 'I gave it for the needs of the church.'"
Shostakovich, who regarded religion as superstition, didn't approve. "The church may have various needs," he protested, "but the clergy doesn't sit around in the cold, after all, with broken windows. Self-denial should have a rational limit." He accused her of behaving like a yurodivye, the Russian word for a holy fool, a form of sanctity in the eyes of the church.
Her public profession of faith was not without cost. Despite her genius as a musician, from time to time she was banned from concert halls and not once in her life was she allowed to travel outside Russia. Shostakovich remembered:
Her religious position was under constant artillery and even cavalry attack [at the music school in Leningrad]. Serebriakov, the director then, had a habit of making so-called "raids of the light brigade." . . . He realized that Yudina was a first-class pianist, but he wasn't willing to risk his own position. One of the charges of the light brigade was made specifically against her. The cavalry rushed into Yudina's class and demanded of Yudina: "Do you believe in God?" She replied in the affirmative. "Was she promoting religious propaganda among her students?" She replied that the Constitution didn't forbid it. A few days later a transcript of the conversation made by "an unknown person" appeared in a Leningrad paper, which also printed a caricature -- Yudina in nun's robes surrounded by kneeling students. And the caption was something about preachers appearing at the Conservatoire. The cavalry trod heavily, even though it was the light brigade. Naturally, Yudina was dismissed after that.
From time to time she all but signed her own death warrant. Perhaps the most remarkable story in Shostakovich's memoir concerns one such incident:
In his final years, Stalin seemed more and more like a madman, and I think his superstition grew. The "Leader and Teacher" sat locked up in one of his many dachas, amusing himself in bizarre ways. They say he cut out pictures and photos from old magazines and newspapers, glued them onto paper, and hung them on the walls. . . . [He] didn't let anyone in to see him for days at a time. He listened to the radio a lot. Once Stalin called the Radio Committee, where the administration was, and asked if they had a record of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 23, which had been heard on the radio the day before. "Played by Yudina," he added. They told Stalin that of course they had it. Actually, there was no record, the concert had been live. But they were afraid to say no to Stalin, no one ever knew what the consequences might be. A human life meant nothing to him. All you could do was agree, submit, be a yes-man, a yes-man to a madman.
Stalin demanded that they send the record with Yudina's performance of the Mozart to his dacha. The committee panicked, but they had to do something. They called in Yudina and an orchestra and recorded that night. Everyone was shaking with fright, except for Yudina, naturally. But she was a special case, that one, the ocean was only knee-deep for her.
Yudina later told me that they had to send the conductor home, he was so scared he couldn't think. They called another conductor, who trembled and got everything mixed up, confusing the orchestra. Only a third conductor was in any shape to finish the recording.
I think this is a unique event in the history of recording -- I mean, changing conductors three times in one night. Anyway, the record was ready by morning. They made one single copy in record time and sent it to Stalin. Now that was a record. A record in yes-ing.
Soon after, Yudina received an envelope with twenty thousand rubles. She was told it came on the express orders of Stalin. Then she wrote him a letter. I know about this letter from her, and I know that the story seems improbable. Yudina had many quirks, but I can say this -- she never lied. I'm certain that her story is true. Yudina wrote something like this in her letter: "I thank you, Joseph Vissarionovich, for your aid. I will pray for you day and night and ask the Lord to forgive your great sins before the people and the country. The Lord is merciful and He'll forgive you. I gave the money to the church that I attend."
And Yudina sent this suicidal letter to Stalin. He read it and didn't say a word, they expected at least a twitch of the eyebrow. Naturally, the order to arrest Yudina was prepared and the slightest grimace would have been enough to wipe away the last traces of her. But Stalin was silent and set the letter aside in silence. The anticipated movement of the eyebrows didn't come.
Nothing happened to Yudina. They say that her recording of the Mozart was on the record player when the "Leader and Teacher" was found dead in his dacha. It was the last thing he had listened to.
Shostakovich found Yudina's open display of belief foolish, yet one senses within his complaints both envy and awe. In a time of heart-stopping fear, here was someone as fearless as Saint George before the dragon, someone who preferred giving away her few rubles to repairing her own broken window, who "published" with her own voice the poems of banned writers, who dared to tell Stalin that he was not beyond God's mercy and forgiveness. She had a large and pure heart. No wonder her grave in Moscow has been a place of pilgrimage ever since her death.
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Gary
Social climber
From A Buick 6
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eKat, TFPU! I'll spend the rest of the morning listening to this. Got to be more than one guitar...
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Gnome Ofthe Diabase
climber
Out Of Bed
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The educational value here is astounding, thank you all for
Sharing your knowledge.
And filling my home with the sounds that fill the soul.
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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That Aria is haunting. It was this thread that turned me onto Maria Yudina, she's now a favorite.
Hi Gary,
Glad that this thread helped you discover Maria Yudina. If you haven't found it yet, here is the recording that made her Stalin's favorite musician and likely saved her life
[Click to View YouTube Video]
and here is another of her playing Mozart...
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
From A Buick 6
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^^ Like that Scriabin a lot. Yuja Wang played that as her encore last night at the Hollywood Bowl.
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Gary
Social climber
From A Buick 6
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Jul 15, 2015 - 07:40pm PT
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selfish, you like those Russkies! Tatiana is a favorite of mine, too. Her Bach is very good, interesting, even if she can get a little heavy on the pedal. This partita is nice, but a bit on the romantic side. Variety is the spice of life, eh?
[Click to View YouTube Video]
I bet John E has played the Diabelli Variations?
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Jul 15, 2015 - 11:31pm PT
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I bet John E has played the Diabelli Variations?
I have, Gary, but it's been about 40 years since I had them reasonably in hand. I started trying to get them out of my mental deep freeze about a year ago, but sloth took over, so instead I learned a much shorter (and much easier) set of Beethoven variations on "Rule Britannia."
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Jul 16, 2015 - 09:52am PT
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selfish, you like those Russkies!
Yes, I'm somewhat partial to them, thanks to all the trips to the Moscow Conservatory Grand Hall and spending all of my college stipend money at the Melodiya recording store...
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Jul 30, 2015 - 12:51pm PT
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Diabelli variations.... always felt far more mysterious to me than op. 111..
For some reason, I'm unable to edit my earlier post. I've been listening to a recording of Richter playing the Diabelli Variations while commuting the last few days. I need to figure out a way to post that up given my primitive computer equipment. It's pure Richter, and wonderful. That said, I can only concur with Anton Rubinstein's comment that humanity didn't deserve the Arietto of Op. 111.
john
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Jul 30, 2015 - 02:51pm PT
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John,
which of Richter's recording were you listening to? I own a CD with a late 1980's version, which I Iove, but I've just discovered a much earlier recording from 1951. For some reason those old 1950-1960s tapes were not readily available in Russia and I'm just discovering the amazing concerts he gave long before he was allowed to travel outside the Soviet Union ...
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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the first showing of this piece
occurred in berlin in 1824.
by then beethoven was deaf,
though he insisted that he conduct
the opening performance.
the hall manager agreed,
but assigned a phantom composer
to stand beside the master.
the symphony delivered astoundded the audience,
and throughout, beethoven
wildly waved his conducting hands to the music
in his head, which was not quite consistently
timed with the music performed.
so much so that when the show ended
and the audience rocketed from their
seats to standing ovation,
beethoven, eyes closed and hands still
wildly flailing, continued to conduct.
the lead contralto, she
approached ludwig and respectfully
tapped his shoulder, then
turned beethoven to face
his audience.
he then knew of his gift to the world,
-paraphrased from
john suchet's "beethoven, the man revealed"
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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Aug 12, 2015 - 05:40am PT
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legend has it that beethoven
courted one Therese,
about who he was madly passionate.
he took her on as his student
of piano, which was odd,
because he detested teaching.
but when you're trying to
earn a piece, i guess the
situation warrants unconventional means.
so he begins lessons with therese
and realizes that's she shite at
the piano.
so he does what he did so many times
before and later,
he composes a lick of notes
honoring therese,
and dedicates it to her.
but he has to "dumb it down"
so that she can actually play it.
and that is how we get
"fur elise"
(it is uncertain to biographers
just exactly why therese was changed to elise)
oh and by the way
the bitch rejected him!
-paraphrased from
john suchet's "beethoven, the man revealed"
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Karen
Trad climber
Casper, Wyoming
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Aug 12, 2015 - 05:42am PT
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Anyone see Joshua Bell last night at the Hollywood Bowl?
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Aug 12, 2015 - 06:08am PT
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Back in the day there were "Oistrakhians" and there were "Polyakians". Unfortunately, for some reason the only way Myron Polyakin is remembered now is as a Heifetz's classmate... Neuhaus, who is playing with Polyakin in the audio below once wrote that you couldn't stop listening to Polyakin even if he was practicing scales and arpeggios
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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Aug 25, 2015 - 06:00am PT
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a romance without words[Click to View YouTube Video]
words only complicate
the intrinsic communication of lust.
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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Aug 26, 2015 - 02:28am PT
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"i am dead to all pleasure.
my true love is gone." - michael bannett
i'm lovin' me.
a good melancholy
diddy.
good morning, suitors of the unlikely.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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hooblie
climber
from out where the anecdotes roam
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Oct 10, 2015 - 04:32pm PT
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i make a humble approach, as an emissary from a far away place with this offering:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
please, a few minutes of kind forbearance if you would,
for the smitten left hand ... it will accede in due course
a few nice figures here #2 http://youtu.be/Sb3cQZHGPPk
go ketil go
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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Oct 19, 2015 - 07:01pm PT
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the pursuit of love
is ever enticing,
though the journey
does nothing to
prepare one for
their arrival[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Hell is empty and all the devils are here
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Oct 26, 2015 - 07:07am PT
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Heard this, with piano accompaniment, played by a high school girl at the Colburn School Saturday. She did a wonderful job with this work.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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I wish I had easy access to something I could contribute. I greatly appreciate what everyone has posted thus far. Thanks much.
John
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Clara Haskil plays Mozart Piano Sonata in C major K 330
[Click to View YouTube Video]
This video was blocked in Germany because "they think" it's Maria João Pires playing...
Clara Haskil never taught and often insisted that she would not know how. In the few times she heard me, I learned more from her than from any other teacher before or since. On one occasion I had difficulty starting the Mozart G Major Concerto K. 453 and was never satisfied with the Eingang. She impatiently pushed me from the chair, and said, “But it doesn’t start ... .” As she sat down the music materialized as if from nowhere. Her arm seemed to glide over the keyboard without any preparation, just as a flat stone skims across the water. This was so typical of her playing; nothing seemed to start or end, and everything became timeless.
On another occasion I played the first movement of the Schubert B flat major Sonata, D. 960 for her. Throughout the movement the chord above the bass trill ends in an eighth note, the same value as in the bass. However, five bars from the end Schubert writes a quarter note in the right hand while retaining the eighth in the left. Almost every pianist ignores this subtle change an releases the right hand with the left, but not Clara Haskil. “You played the chord an eighth too short,” she exclaimed. “So” I replied. “After all, it’s only an eighth.” “Ja, aber ein Achtel Ewigkeit ...” (“Yes, but an eighth of eternity ...”).
Peter Feuchtwanger
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Gary
Social climber
Hell is empty and all the devils are here
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Marlow, thanks for posting Clara Haskil. I spent some time last night nursing a gin and tonic and listening to her Mozart. Maybe JohnE can chime in here, but I thought her articulation was the perfect classical period sound. Need to catch up on selfish man's Bach next.
But since we are on the subject of Mozart:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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skcreidc
Social climber
SD, CA
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Marlow, your house must be filled with music. Our house has been so quiet lately. And we have the instruments
This, Clara Haskil plays Mozart Piano Sonata in C major K 330 brought tear to my eyes. What playing!
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Nov 16, 2015 - 01:39pm PT
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I loved this film, full of fiddling around.
It provides some real laughs, too.
"Can you Handel the truth, embellished a bit, perhaps?"
Starring Trevor Howard as the Old Buck. [Click to View YouTube Video]
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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following the development of a fugue in 3D space is a brilliant idea. I wonder if Gould's Bach could be explained by him thinking this way
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Gary
Social climber
Hell is empty and all the devils are here
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Gould probably did "see" Bach in 3D. Some USC professor claims Gould was autistic, but I don't buy that. He was very articulate, maybe a little dry.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Dec 16, 2015 - 12:25pm PT
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Happy Beethoven's Birthday!
I had just enough time to play the last half of the Sonata Op. 110 before I left for work, in partial celebration. I hope to play a couple more Sonatas (probably the Appassionata and Op. 111) before I head to the gym this evening.
I'm sure you're all disappointed (not) that I can't post my versions of these works, since I need to get my recording equipment to join the century. Here's a link to Schnabel playing Op. 110 instead:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVPFIVLOguw
John
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Gary
Social climber
Hell is empty and all the devils are here
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Dec 16, 2015 - 07:36pm PT
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selfish man, those old recordings are fascinating. Hoffman, Lhevinne, Godowsky, Pachmann and on. We just missed getting Liszt on cylinder by a couple of years.
Now we only need to get JohnE on record. ;-)
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Gary
Social climber
Hell is empty and all the devils are here
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Dec 17, 2015 - 01:02pm PT
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^^ TFPU. You like the baroque, eh, eKat?
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Dec 17, 2015 - 05:36pm PT
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Gary, I'm discovering many old recordings through YouTube... some are simply fascinating, some just blew me away (such as a few of Hofmann's concert recordings). Yes, it's unfortunate Liszt didn't quite live long enough to be recorded. But I've just found a few recordings made by his pupil Eugen d'Albert...
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Toker Villain
Big Wall climber
Toquerville, Utah
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Dec 18, 2015 - 12:29pm PT
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As soon as my mom told my dad that I did not HAVE to learn the violin I became a lost cause to him.
Too bad both ways. Had he lived to see me win shooting competitions or praise as a climber he might have thought different.
Since I had classical music shoved down my throat early I developed more modern preferences. Again, too bad, I could have learned a lot.
But my dad made over 40 records and most of them are now on CD.
At the Latok reunion in '10 attendees arrived in a green 5 acre meadow at 8300' with stunning mountain vistas and my dad's Mozart playing on the speakers.
Nice touch.
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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Dec 18, 2015 - 02:03pm PT
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Indeed.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Dec 22, 2015 - 08:36pm PT
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Parental expectations are a tough gig. Sat night we had dinner with someone
just like you, Toker. Our friend left home at 15. Did I mention this was
a home that saw Rachmaninoff, Stravinsky, Schoenberg, and the like as regular
guests? Our friend's dad died a couple years ago and he got his records.
Our friend, now a music prof at Caltech*, played an early 50's Artur Schnabel
recording of Mozart's 20th with the craziest cadenzas I've ever heard, especially
for the 50's. In the first cadenza he worked in a lengthy riff on Gershwin.
The second featured a variation on Beethoven's Appassionata. ARE YOU FREAKING
KIDDING ME? BTW, our friend's early mentor was a close friend of Alfred
Brendel who was close to Schnabel and said he was pretty bonkers. ;-)
BTW, I got my new Yamaha today. Fuggetabout that Gould dood. Jess sayin... :-)))
*Yes, they believe in a well-rounded education there. About 15 years ago
we saw some Chinese chem grad do more than an acceptable presentation of
Mozart's 21st! Technically he was all there and musically also! Disgusting...;-)
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Dec 23, 2015 - 09:10am PT
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Gary:
the Rosenthal version is so aristocratic. And the pianissimos are unreal.
Reilly: I'm seriously jealous. How come most houses I go to they make me watch football.
Before heading off for JTree, here's some appropriate music for this time.
If you're there in the next week or so and run into a guy with a funny russian accent (likely going up the Eye or the Bong or some such thing around the sunset time) - say hello
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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Dec 23, 2015 - 10:17am PT
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Selfish man, I'll be out there late next week and will keep my ears open fo the Russian accent.
BTW, I got my new Yamaha today.
Really? What did you get?
Last Friday at Kim's in Garden Grove I played in my music school's recital. Me and a bunch of 8 year olds. The piano was a 9' Kawai EX concert grand. What a piano. Great touch, easy to control, bass like there's no tomorrow.
If I knock out the kitchen sink I could fit it in my condo. After hitting the lottery that is.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Dec 23, 2015 - 10:48am PT
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Gary, don't be too jealous. I'd have to knock some walls out too to get
anything serious into my little house. Also, since we plan to move in a few
years I decided to mark time [get it? :-)] with a DGX650B. The action is
far superior to my music professor friend's POS 5' grand and the sound is
freaking amazing. You can adjust the action if you want although the default
is just fine. Since the wife used to play the organ we've got that, the
harpsichord, the clavichord, and everything else covered.
BTW, hats off, y'all, and a moment of silence for Kurt Masur's passing Saturday.
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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Dec 23, 2015 - 11:36am PT
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Oh man, I hadn't heard about Masur. Among other things he was the best thing that happened to the New York Philharmonic in decades. I got his recording of Shostakovitch Leningrad Symphony a couple years ago. My mind is still blown.
It's interesting how that all worked out. After Boulez's disastrous tenure the orchestra needed to be fixed. Zubin Mehta was the perfect choice for the job, so Masur got to take the helm of an amazing orchestra, and he made the most of it.
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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Dec 28, 2015 - 01:23pm PT
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Thanks for all the posts, lots of great listening material.
Kris, driving back from Rubidoux a couple of years ago MJ and I listened to Mahler's 1st on KUSC. Have no idea of orchestra or conductor but we were transfixed the entire time.
"There are three kinds of pianists: Jewish pianists, homosexual pianists, and bad pianists." - Vladimir_Horowitz
Here's one for eKat:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Dec 28, 2015 - 02:33pm PT
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Paul Martzen and I sing in an auditioned chamber chorale, Fresno Choral Artists, so ST contributors form 40% of its bass section. FCA performed several of Lauridsen's works. I think my favorite that I've actually sung are the "Chansons des Roses." Whenever I get stuck with a thorn, I find myself singing "contre qui, rose, avez-vous employer les epines?" (Tr. "Against whom, rose, have you used your thorns?")
John
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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Jan 10, 2016 - 11:46am PT
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John, I was looking through a scanned copy of the Starr King register that's posted online somewhere, and some guy from Fresno had signed it.
Yesterday at Canterbury Records in Pasadena I ran across a CD of Maria Yudina playing the work of some of her contemporaries. Really good CD.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Franz Schubert - Gesang der Geister über den Wassern
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Song of the Spirits over the Waters
The soul of man
Is like the water:
It comes from heaven,
It returns to heaven,
And down again
To earth must go,
Ever changing.
When from the high,
Sheer wall of rock
The pure stream gushes,
It sprays its lovely vapor
In billowing clouds
Towards the smooth rock,
And lightly received,
It goes enshrouded,
Softly hissing
Down to the deep.
Cliffs tower,
Opposing its fall.
Annoyed, it foams
Step by step
Into the abyss.
In a flat bed
It slinks down the grassy vale,
And in the waveless lake
All the stars
Feast on their likeness.
Wind is the wave's
Handsome suitor;
Wind stirs up from the depths
Foaming billows.
Soul of man,
How like to the water!
Fate of man,
How like to the wind!
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Feb 15, 2016 - 01:19pm PT
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Kathleen Battle and Lawrence Skrobacs - Nacht und Träume - Schubert
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Holy night, you sink down;
Dreams, too, drift down
Like your moonlight through space,
Through the quiet hearts of men;
They listen with delight
Calling out when day awakens:
Return, holy night!
Fair dreams, return!
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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Stalin's favorite pianist plays a composer loathed by Hitler:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Really like the way she plays the fugue here.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Embracing my Bohemian roots I've worked up a passable Marche Slav. I'd post it up on
YouTube if:
A. I knew how, and
B. I had no pride. ;-)
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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Send me the file and I'll put it up. We'd all love to hear it!
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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We'd all love to hear it!
Ho, man, I bet you would! I did say passable, but that's relative. ;-)
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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We are our own worst critics. I recently played at my teacher's recital. Me and a bunch of 8 year olds! I really butchered my piece, I thought. Afterwards, people were coming up to tell me how terrific it was.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Mar 11, 2016 - 10:18am PT
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That's a great find, Gary. When Rachmaninoff was asked who were the greatest pianists of his day, he is said to have replied, "There is Hofmann. And there is me. . . ."
John
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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Mar 11, 2016 - 10:34am PT
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John,
I'm fascinated by the way Moiseiwitsch uses his hands here.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Mar 11, 2016 - 11:32am PT
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couldn't help reading some of the youtube comments on Hofmann. So much reminded me of Supertopo
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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100 years and a few days ago, Enrique Granados died after being torpedoed.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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May 17, 2016 - 01:13pm PT
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Wikipedia says, " At the piano, Moiseiwitsch was noted for his elegance, poetry, lyrical phrasing, brilliance, rhythmic freedom, and relaxed virtuosity." Would you agree?
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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May 17, 2016 - 03:14pm PT
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Beautiful playing.
And this is what I am listening to right now:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Tatiana Nikolayeva plays Bach Goldberg Variations, BWV 988
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skcreidc
Social climber
SD, CA
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May 18, 2016 - 06:10am PT
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Marlow. Unfortunately, we in the US cannot play that video for some reason.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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May 18, 2016 - 07:49am PT
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The 'show side' of a Fazioli F308. That spruce is from the same forest that supplied
Stradivarius, but at 10'-2" I'm gonna need a bigger boat, not to mention a bigger bank account.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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May 18, 2016 - 11:31am PT
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Thanks for that post and picture. Fazioli pianos have piqued my interest for years, in part because I have never seen, much less played one. Your post is the first picture I've seen of one up close, although I saw one advertised on Ebay before.
The description of Mr. Fazioli in Fine's The Piano Book - viz. that he aspired to be a concert pianist, but gave up and decided to build the best piano instead - should intrigue those of us interested in piano technology and progress. For decades, most of us considered the Steinway the best piano precisely because it was the most technologically advanced. Now, I'm not so sure.
My budget forced me to go in the opposite direction for a grand: I have a 1926 Steinway Model M. While many consider the 1920's Steinway's "golden age," it was prior to the introduction of the "accelerated action" and, I believe, prior even to the "diaphragmatic soundboard." Mine certainly has a heavier touch than any modern Steinway I've played, but I think that harder touch helps keep my forearms stronger for climbing. Anyway, that's my story and I'm sticking to it. . . .
Also, I wonder how the Fazioli's scale differs from the Steinway's. My vertical piano is a Knight, which is an English piano, and has a more typically "European" scale. The treble tends to concentrate more on the primary tone, with fewer overtones. For that reason, I noticed the most obvious tonal difference between the two pianos in the treble when I got my grand. While the Knight still has a "singing" tone, the treble sounds more reverberant and rich on the grand. Somewhat to my surprise, there isn't much difference in the tenor and bass.
Some time before I die, I'll need to dress up so I look the way I did when I was more prosperous, and walk into a Fazioli dealer in the hope of trying one out.
John
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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May 18, 2016 - 12:06pm PT
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From what I've read Faziolis are described as 'bright' and much easier to play than Steinways,
not that it would matter to me, aka, The Noob.
I could have scored an 'M' in immaculate condition recently for a pittance. It was my bro's
wife's mum's. Trouble is it was in Chicago. :-/
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skcreidc
Social climber
SD, CA
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May 18, 2016 - 12:06pm PT
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John. I bought my wife a 1929 Steinway Model M some time ago. The soundboard looks like it was signed to me. Is your soundboard signed? I had to go underneath and look up to find it. Just curious.
Gary. Thanks. That one worked for me.
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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May 18, 2016 - 01:05pm PT
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John, just go to the dealer and try one out. They won't mind.
Recently I went up to Larchmont to see the Bluthners at Kassimoffs. They couldn't have been friendlier. Mrs. Kassimoff reminded me of my grandmother, even had the same low German accent and wore the same kind of loose flower print dress.
Mrs. Kassimoff has been importing Bluthners since the Cold War. She gave me a little sales talk, and then turned me loose, saying play anything. She had one Bluthner upright which I wanted to try. About that time a a black gal walked in. If she wasn't homeless she had been at sometime in the recent pass, that's the way she was dressed.
Instead of rushing her out the door, Mrs. Kassimoff welcomed her in. She said she had sang gospel as a young girl and was hoping to do some recording. Mrs/ Kassimoff told us how the Bluthner was a singer's piano and pointed at a midsize grand for her to try. She played quite well, we all enjoyed it.
After she left I tried out my Satie on the Bluthner. What a terrific piano it is, the control of the dynamics is effortless, almost telepathy. It played ppp with no problem. A beautiful clear tone and even action. For a short upright it had a nice bass, too.
All I have to do is convince the little woman that's it's OK to spend a small fortune on a piano.
Reilly, that Fazioli is only $234,000, shouldn't be a problem for you.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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May 18, 2016 - 01:46pm PT
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Now you're bringing back memories, Gary. I remember Kammisoff's from my days in law school. I never played a Bluthner until I moved to Fresno. I see why East Germany declared them and the company a "national treasure." They are outstanding pianos.
I got my Knight new 42 years ago at Bernard Comsky Artist Pianos on Pico Blvd. (somewhere in the 5000's blocks), but I don't know if the firm still exists. They sold Knights, Grotrians, Rippens, Schimmels and, I think, at least one other European piano, plus lots of used Steinways. Here in Friendly Fresno, we've gone from about ten piano dealers to two. Piano manufacturing does not appear to be a growth industry.
John
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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Amazing. She just turned 75 a day or so ago.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Watched "The Devil's Violinist" last night. It effectively portrays Paganini. The lead, David
Garrett, is something of a modern Paganini himself in both virtuosity and lifestyle. I highly
recommend it. The sound tract alone is worth the price of admission. The romantic lead,
Andrea Deck, has quite the voice to complement her looks and acting.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jun 13, 2016 - 09:33pm PT
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Well, Gary, I would hazard a guess that while there might be some truth in the hooker's story
it is highly likely it is suitably embellished and unless he was stupid enough to video their
sessions it will come down to she said/he said and she'll walk away with a nice pay day.
Whatevah, I enjoyed the movie and he has some chops, on the violin at least.
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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Jun 14, 2016 - 08:38pm PT
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We did a bit of the PCT, starting at Kennedy Meadows then exiting out Olancha Pass. It was a great couple of days. driving back to KM to pick up the van the iPod was on shuffle and up came Glenn Gould playing the Prelude in C Major. The wife hears it and asks, "Is that you?"
My hats still don't fit.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
JB, TFPU, that was a nice piece.
Whatevah, I enjoyed the movie and he has some chops, on the violin at least.
I'll have to try to catch that one.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jul 16, 2016 - 04:33pm PT
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Just made my TGV resers to get to Sunday messe which will feature this
on le grand orgue du Cathédrale Notre Dame de Strasbourg!
OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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Jul 27, 2016 - 07:30pm PT
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Reilly, have you heard the organ at St James in the City on Wilshire?
BTW, Happy Birthday to Ricardo Muti. I will listen to this tonight gin and tonic in hand.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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Jul 28, 2016 - 08:59am PT
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Olivier Latry, posted by Reilly above, played a concert on the organ at the Disney Concert Hall here in L.A. which I was fortunate enough to attend. He is among the very best concert organists I have heard (I am an aficionado).
One thing about Reilly's post worth noting. Pipe organs built back then had no electronics. So the mechanism connecting the keyboards and pedals, as well as the stops, swell etc., are all mechanical. This is called tracker action, and on a great instrument which can have as many as 10,000 individual pipes, such mechanisms are among the most complex and beautiful designs of their time. Air is supplied to the pipes by wind chests, reservoirs of air with floating weighted lids, so that as the chest empties and is filled (by choir boys working pumps bitd) the pressure remains constant. Today of course the pumps are electric, but in their original state the chests were kept full by manual work. And only on the big holidays did they have a full crew pumping, so only then could an organist use the full instrument without running out of air.
Latry's recital at Disney was brilliant. Here he is on home turf - his local crag as it would be for a climber - Notre Dame in Paris. Poser.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Where in the hell is Major Kong?
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Jul 28, 2016 - 09:36am PT
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TFPU!
We went to see Also Sprach Zarathustra at Disney Hall a while back. When it starts with that low C we felt it more than we heard it.
Here's something else.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Sep 11, 2016 - 08:47pm PT
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Our Europe trip was a total bust organ wise anyway. We were always a day or two early or late! :-(
Got to look at the Notre Dame de Strasbourg organ and she's a looker for sure!
I have heard the Notre Dame de Paris organ and it ain't bad! Not to mention sitting a few
feet away from where Napoleon was crowned emperor puts it in perspective.
Heard a very nice recital last year in San Giorgio di Maggiore in Venice. It has great acoustics.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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RIP Neville Marriner 1924-2016
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/la-et-cm-neville-marriner-obit-20161002-snap-story.html
I have a load of his Academy of St Martins Mozart CD's. The 'academy' started as a rehearsal
with friends in his living room. Didn't know that he also founded the LA Chamber Orchestra in
1969.
"Marriner credited his time in Los Angeles with helping to build his reputation in Europe by
putting him in contact with the pupils of distinguished music teachers such as violinist Jascha
Heifetz and cellist Gregor Piatigorsky."
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Nov 10, 2016 - 07:36am PT
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From a just discovered transcription of Haydn's symphony 44.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Nov 10, 2016 - 07:42am PT
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My life is complete. I've been working on Mozart's piano sonata #11. Last night the wife was
in the office and I put on Ivo Pogorelich's version and she yells out
"Wow! That sounds REALLY GOOD!"
We have a new corollary to 'Love is blind.' BwaHaHaHaHa!
I'm still pissed that my sister-in-law didn't give me her mom's immaculate Steinway Model M.
I DON'T CARE THAT IT WAS IN CHICAGO!
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Dec 28, 2016 - 02:36pm PT
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Reilly, we were in the car listening to the iPod on shuffle. Some stuff that I've recorded for my mom is on it. Glenn Gould's recording of Bach's prelude in C major came on and the wife turned and said, "Is that you?" My head almost exploded out the roof.
And that's criminal about the M.
I think Kris will like this:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Last night Jim Svejda, who has one of the more interesting programs on radio, played this.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jan 14, 2017 - 07:45pm PT
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So, not paying attention, but then this piece sort of asserted itself so I started paying attention.
I told la femme "It sounds like Jacques Offenbach's bâtard trying to outdo Tchaikovsky."
Ha! It was Berlioz' 'Hector In Italy'! HaHaHa!
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Peater
Trad climber
Salt Lake City Ut.
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Jan 14, 2017 - 08:58pm PT
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When I was maybe 12 I asked my dad to buy me Beethoven's violin concerto. He does and it doesn't sound right. I didn't know about different conductors or orchestras or violinists. I did my research a little better and asked him to exchange it for Heifetz and the Boston Symphony with Charles Munch.
I think he was surprised that I could tell the difference.
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NutAgain!
Trad climber
South Pasadena, CA
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Feb 10, 2017 - 05:55pm PT
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I shared Mahler's 5th Symphony with my kids last weekend and my son really liked it. There's a spark.
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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Apr 16, 2017 - 03:02pm PT
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I just stumbled into a treasure trove of the reclusive Russian Pianist Mikhail Pletnev on youtube. Here's a tidbit...
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jun 15, 2017 - 02:45pm PT
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Just saw the Feinstein Ensemble at St Martin In The Fields. Such great acoustics there for a flute quintet! They are the best band I'd not heard of previously, but I figured it wasn't much of a risk if they were playing there. Boy, howdy, can they bring it! Their eponymous leader plays a period wooden flute and might be the best flautist I've heard not named Jean-Pierre or James. The first violin is also fantastic and is also first of the London Hayden Quartet AND the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra! The cellist is no slouch either. Anyway, they did the Mozart Flute Quartet in D K285, the Mozart Salzburg Divertimento #1 in D K136, and Hayden's Symph #94 and 104 a la the 1795 arrangements for flute and strings by Hayden's friend JP Salomon. These are incredible arrangements which I've never heard. An incredible evening.
Saturday night: the Mozart Requiem with Peter G Dyson conducting the English Chamber Choir and Belmont Ensemble of London!
MARLOW ALERT!
You can just nip down and join us!
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Jun 15, 2017 - 02:51pm PT
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Reilly,
That's sort of awesome. Enjoy!
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Jun 27, 2017 - 01:19pm PT
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Sitting in my cube, this has been a nice discovery. Don't know who this woman is, but she knows Chopin.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jun 27, 2017 - 02:11pm PT
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I've never heard of her, either. Apparently others have:
"In 1980, her career took a decisive turn when Herbert von Karajan invited her to play with the Berlin Philharmonic. She subsequently received engagements with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic and the Orchestre de Paris under Daniel Barenboim."
^^^ Tough crowd that!
That was a life moment. It would be gauche to say that it was flawless because it was transcendant, especially in such an historic and intimate venue.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Jun 27, 2017 - 03:26pm PT
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^ You devil, you.
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Jun 28, 2017 - 10:26am PT
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Reilly
You know, Marlow, as a wayfaring stranger is a modern man in a postmodern time.
From the interweb:
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Requiem
Sylvia McNair, Carolyn Watkinson, Francisco Araiza, Robert Lloyd
Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields
Sir Neville Marriner
Philips, 05 April 1991
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Jul 27, 2017 - 08:48am PT
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Nice find, Marlow.
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Jul 27, 2017 - 10:27am PT
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Gary.
Cool posting of "Vesti la giubba" and interesting to study the interpretations. The voice and the actor. In Caruso they both fell together...
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jul 27, 2017 - 11:50am PT
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Marlow, some day I'll do my 'Vesti den gammelgubbe' for you.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Aug 25, 2017 - 06:38am PT
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Last night at the Hollywood Bowl: John Adams' Harmonium and Mozart's Requiem. Fantastic.
Because I could not stop for Death –
He kindly stopped for me –
The Carriage held but just Ourselves –
And Immortality.
We slowly drove – He knew no haste
And I had put away
My labor and my leisure too,
For His Civility –
We passed the School, where Children strove
At Recess – in the Ring –
We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain –
We passed the Setting Sun –
Or rather – He passed us –
The Dews drew quivering and chill –
For only Gossamer, my Gown –
My Tippet – only Tulle –
We paused before a House that seemed
A Swelling of the Ground –
The Roof was scarcely visible –
The Cornice – in the Ground –
Since then – ‘tis Centuries – and yet
Feels shorter than the Day
I first surmised the Horses’ Heads
Were toward Eternity –
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Sep 26, 2017 - 08:21am PT
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Glenn "The Hummer" Gould, certainly marched to a different drummer, dh?
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Sep 26, 2017 - 10:47am PT
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^^ And thankfully so.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Sep 28, 2017 - 06:52am PT
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Marlow, I had a chance to listen to that. Thanks for posting, Part is an interesting character.
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Sep 28, 2017 - 08:49am PT
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Gary.
I'm glad to hear.
The reason why I return to Pärt time and time again, is that Pärt's soundscape resonates with the calm part of my inner mindscape...
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Sep 28, 2017 - 09:19am PT
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Maybe that's why Pope Francis is honoring him with the Ratzinger Prize for outstanding achievement in theology.
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Sep 28, 2017 - 09:24am PT
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Hehe... I'm afraid that's of a more political nature. ^^^^
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Sep 28, 2017 - 09:57am PT
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No, Reilly. I saw him a few years ago when he did both books of the Well Tempered Clavier. He's amazing. I was thinking of trading in one of my Friday Casual 1 tickets for Schiff, but don't know which show to trade. Give up Hillary Hahn? Yefim Bronfman? No way. Beethoven 9th with the Dude? And the other is a world premiere organ concerto.
And what about Yuja Wang? Gil Shaham? Perlman and Argerich? I'm going to go broke!
edit: Wow, $20 tickets for Schiff.
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Very jealous of your concert schedule. If I lived in the area, I'd also be sure to make the drive to hear this guy in Irvine:
http://igor-levit.de/category/schedule/page/2/?lang=en
Heard him play the complete Shostakovich preludes & fugues in the Zurich Tonhalle. He kept the audience completely gripped for the duration of the 4-hour concert
No, Reilly. I saw him a few years ago when he did both books of the Well Tempered Clavier. He's amazing. I was thinking of trading in one of my Friday Casual 1 tickets for Schiff, but don't know which show to trade. Give up Hillary Hahn? Yefim Bronfman? No way. Beethoven 9th with the Dude? And the other is a world premiere organ concerto.
And what about Yuja Wang? Gil Shaham? Perlman and Argerich? I'm going to go broke!
edit: Wow, $20 tickets for Schiff.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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selfish man, I'm very jealous of you. That sounds like a great show. The LA Phil is, or used to be under Salonen, very adventurous, but not enough for Shostakovich.
This, BTW, is quite wondrous:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Nov 17, 2017 - 08:16am PT
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Went to an impressive exhibition of Marc Chagall at the LA County Museum of Art yesterday.
It focused on his involvement with music and ballet. It also had a number of his paintings that
featured music which was a large part of his upbringing as a Ukrainian Jew, you know, fiddlers
on roofs and such. Anyway, fascinating stuff especially as described by a lovely Czech docent.
The show featured his gouaches/studies/sketches for the costumes and sets of Aleko,
Massine's treatment of the Pushkin poem set to Tchaikovsky's Trio in A Minor, along with
the original hand painted costumes. Interestingly the 1942 production was moved from New York
to Mexico City because the stage union in New York refused to allow Chagall to paint the
backdrops! Maybe the bolshie buggers didn't think him qualified, or were they punishing him
for fleeing the Soviet Union (which he initially embraced) in 1922?
Anyway, they also had reproductions of backdrops and costumes, along with the original
studies for same, for his 1945 Firebird, 1958 Daphnis and Chloé, and 1967 The Magic Flute
productions. Apparently Mozart was his favorite composer and he most enjoyed working on
on The Magic Flute, also my favorite, being a bit of a Papageno, if you will.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Nov 26, 2017 - 06:56pm PT
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Can’t believe I’m the one to announce Dima Hvorostovsky’s passing at 55 from brain cancer. There was a nice obit in the LA Times. Gotta say he was the greatest bass/baritone of the last 25 years, at least. With all due respect to Terfel Dima did beat him in a prestigious competition in their youth. While Terfel is technically great Dima brought fire and passion. At 7 his piano teacher declared him devoid of talent. He attended an arty high school where he ‘majored’ in music, boxing, and football, not necessarily in that order. My kind of man.
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G_Gnome
Trad climber
Cali
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Dec 21, 2017 - 09:09am PT
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So my old copy of Mahler's 5th died and I need a new copy. CD, not vinyl. Any recommendations? Or do I just buy a new copy of Solti and the Chicago?
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Dec 21, 2017 - 10:28am PT
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Or do I just buy a new copy of Solti and the Chicago?
Can't imagine you'd be far off the mark with that decision.
I'm sure Kris has a well founded opinion. ;-)
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G_Gnome
Trad climber
Cali
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Dec 21, 2017 - 10:52am PT
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The first time I ever met Kris we were parked at the Boyscout trailhead in JT and were sleeping in the back of the truck. A little after we went to bed this 914 rolls in and parks next to us. Kris falls asleep with Mahler's 5th blaring on his stereo so we got to listen to it over and over all night. Needless to say I complained in the morning. But then we became climbing partners for many years so I must not have complained much.
And he is probably why I owned the Solti in the first place, even after listening to it all night.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Saw the LA Chamber Orchestra do Mozart’s Piano Concerto #23 with Menahem Pressler.
Did I mention he is 94? He has to be helped onto the stage and to get seated, then 80
years of muscle memory and technique take over. Unbelievable! His touch and phrasing
were incomparable. And after the tougher cadenzas he gave a fist pump! Are you kidding me? 😝
Then he worked the crowd for some love, and it was delivered! What a ham! 😂
He also did TWO FABULOUS ENCORES!
He did use music and his page turner might have been Miss Israel! 🤪
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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A night to remember, Reilly, for sure.
Friday we will see Salonen conduct his piano concerto with Bronfman at the piano.
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there say, Gary... that 'piece he does not like much'
well-- is sounds like a music box, :)
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there say, Malow... wow, neat share...
i love seeing the youth, really loving what they do!!!
and not letting these lovely musics, die away...
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there say, all...
here is something, i had found... when looking for something else...
these are always fun:
hope you like it...
[Click to View YouTube Video]
on another note:
i have never been able to find what 'waltz' was in a clip in one
of the marx brothers movie...
now, after another 'accidental find' ...
well-- i have DISCOVERED (i know, i am sure lagging behind the times)
well-- i have discovered the POST HORN...
thus, i know suspect it was something, using a post-horn, :)
here is an example of the ol' post horn, that i just learned about:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
say, unlockedgate... AS that certain franz von suppe:
i had not heard that one...
(my fault, though, i always just listen to beethoven) :))
(this guy really NEW HIS STUFF, with overture) :)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franz_von_Supp%C3%A9
[Click to View YouTube Video]
[Click to View YouTube Video]
[Click to View YouTube Video]
[Click to View YouTube Video]
[Click to View YouTube Video]
there is the more famous one-- i best add THAT: :)
[Click to View YouTube Video]
neat find, here... slovenian youth... my mom's dad, was slovenian, :)
this is offenbach...
[Click to View YouTube Video]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEnW5_GTooI
here is a favorite of mine (as to overtures):
beethoven...
[Click to View YouTube Video]
and, this one... (well, actually everything he did, is a favorite) :))
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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neebee
The post horn galop was cool... a lot of fun...
Here's some classical music in it's own tradition: さくら(Sakura) 25絃箏 (25 strings koto)
[Click to View YouTube Video]
You can play bumblebees and you can play cherry blossoms...
Yes, and post horns... ^^^^
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there say, Marlow ... wow very nice! i have heard these, but--
never seen one... or, even, seen a person playing it...
:)
very nice set-up they used, there, too...
thanks so much for sharing, :)
oh-- back to the post horn:
it was interesting too, WATCHING his face...
and, his neat bit smile, afterwards, :))
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there say, have been working my way through these, all day:
am at number seven and eight now... :)
[Click to View YouTube Video]
(the first group, i had thought was a variety-- but they are all
of the symphanies INCLUDED and in order, in this series... )
now-- i been busy and just lisening, but, wow, i had to come
see a few of these and WONDERED-- who IS this guy... :)
yep, again, 'the ol' dinosaur here' -- no tv, so out of touch, and
only use the net for self study, or, DISCOVERING things like THIS,
when i am not busy with projects:
so most of you may KNOW this guy...
if now, like me-- here you go:
http://www.gustavodudamel.com/us-en/biography
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustavo_Dudamel
QUOTE FROM ONE FO THE ABOVE ARTICLES...
THE LAST ARTICLE:
Early life
Dudamel was born in Barquisimeto, Venezuela, the son of a trombonist and a voice teacher.[1] He studied music from an early age, becoming involved with El Sistema, the famous Venezuelan musical education program, and took up the violin at age ten. He soon began to study composition. He attended the Jacinto Lara Conservatory, where José Luis Jiménez was among his violin teachers. He then went on to work with José Francisco del Castillo at the Latin-American Violin Academy. Barrett Baker of Pace Academy coined his nickname, "Duda".
Dudamel began to study conducting in 1995, first with Rodolfo Saglimbeni, then later with José Antonio Abreu. In 1999, he was appointed music director of the Orquesta Sinfónica Simón Bolívar, the national youth orchestra of Venezuela, and toured several countries. He attended Charles Dutoit's master class in Buenos Aires in 2002, and worked as assistant for Simon Rattle in Berlin and Salzburg in 2003.
Conducting career
Dudamel has won a number of conducting competitions, including the Gustav Mahler Conducting Prize in Germany in 2004.[2] His reputation began to spread, attracting the attention of conductors such as Simon Rattle and Claudio Abbado, who accepted invitations to conduct the Simón Bolívar Orchestra in Veneite.[3] In April 2006 Dudamel was appointed as principal conductor of the Gothenburg Symphony for season 2007-2008.[4]
Dudamel made his debut at La Scala, Milan, with Don Giovanni in November 2006. On September 10, 2007, he conducted the Vienna Philharmonic for the first time at the Lucerne Festival. On April 16, 2007 he conducted the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra at the Vatican's Paul VI Audience Hall in a concert in commemoration of the 80th birthday of Pope Benedict XVI, with Hilary Hahn as solo violinist, with the Pope and many other church dignitaries among the audience.[5]
In 2011 he starred in the documentary “Dudamel, El Sonido de los Niños ” directed by the Venezuelan filmmaker Alberto Arvelo.
In 2013 Dudamel conducted the Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra during the funeral of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez. Dudamel continues to retain his position with the Simón Bolívar National Youth Orchestra.[6] In April 2014 Dudamel returned to conduct with Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, as its Honorary Conductor, for concerts in the orchestra’s home city and on tour in France, Switzerland, and Italy.[7]
In 2015 Dudamel conducted both the opening and end titles, at the behest of famed movie composer John Williams, for the official motion picture soundtrack and film of Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens.
In the 2016 Super Bowl, Dudamel and Youth Orchestra Los Angeles (YOLA) accompanied Coldplay and sang along with Chris Martin, Beyoncé and Bruno Mars.
On 1 January 2017, Dudamel conducted the Vienna Philharmonic in their traditional New Year's Day Concert. At the age of 35, he was the youngest guest conductor for this event.
Awards and media
Dudamel is featured in the documentary film Tocar y Luchar, which covers El Sistema. Dudamel and the Orquesta Sinfónica Simón Bolívar received the WQXR Gramophone Special Recognition Award in New York City in November 2007. Another US television news feature on Dudamel was on 60 Minutes in February 2008, entitled "Gustavo the Great".
On July 23, 2009, Dudamel was selected by the Eighth Glenn Gould Prize laureate José Antonio Abreu as winner of the prestigious The City of Toronto Glenn Gould Protégé Prize.
Dudamel is featured in the 2011 documentary "Let The Children Play," a film which focuses on his work advocating for music as a way to enrich children's lives.[14]
Gramophone, the British classical music magazine, named Dudamel its 2011 Gramophone Artist of the Year. Also in 2011, he was inducted into the Royal Swedish Academy of Music. In February 2012, Dudamel won a Grammy Award for Best Orchestral Performance, for his recording of Brahms Symphony No. 4 for the label Deutsche Grammophon.[15][16] In 2013, Dudamel was named Musical America’s Musician of the Year and was inducted into the Gramophone Hall of Fame.[17] The LAP's continued commitment to innovation and new music under the direction of Dudamel and Borda prompted New Yorker critic Alex Ross to name LAP “the most creative, and, therefore, the best orchestra in America.”[18] Dudamel received the Leonard Bernstein Lifetime Achievement Award for the Elevation of Music in Society from the Longy School in 2014 and the Americas Society Cultural Achievement Award in 2016.
The character of Rodrigo in Amazon's Mozart in the Jungle was based, in part, on Dudamel. Rodrigo is also curly-haired, Latin American, very young, and usually referred to only by his first name.[19] In the first episode of the show's second season, in which Rodrigo appears as a guest conductor for the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Dudamel appears as a guest actor, playing the part of a stage manager.
OH MY... i wish and pray him well... :)
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Don Lauria
Trad climber
Bishop, CA
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Here's Menahem hamming it up.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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neebee, Beethoven's #8 is a favorite of mine. People don't seem to like the even numbered ones for some reason.
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there say, Gary... that is 'odd' (sounds odd, saying it that way, but you know what i mean) ...
say, i been hearing them all afternoon... i will actually
really go back, later and try them this way:
the odds, and the evens, and see 'what on earth' could possibly
be the 'maybe reason' as to that...
say, how about this:
unless, the folks so-loved, the first one-- first jewel...
well, then, the second, well, they judged it by the first-love...
however, THEN the third shows up, and they were so hungry for more,
well, they 'forgot their over-judging-character' and
love THE THIRD, and then, so much so that:
well, here comes ol' number-four...
and thus, on and on, they go... oh myyyy...
(do you think so?) ;)
it is hard for me to pic a favorite...
i wonder what mine would as to the symphonies...
it will 'dawn on me' though, i know...
i will go through all of them again, tomorrow
(good thing they are not chocolate) ;)
it's like being in a treasure box-- ooooo, i love this jewel--
the colors, the splashes of light, and then-- and then--
oooo, look at this one, :))
NOW--as with PIANO, well, of course, i love the 5th, there...
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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That guy back upthread playing the posthorn is phenomenal. I'm very impressed, and this is coming from someone who made a decent living playing that sort of thing back in the day in NYC.
Phenomenal. It's a fancy trick to pull off that virtuoso style on a simple straight horn with no valves. You've got one overtone series and that's it.
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there, ksolem... i was really amazed, :)
i really liked his attitude, after, too... :)
he knew-- one little wrong tute, there, and
the whole thing 'was done for' ... oh my...
say-- do you have some more notes, to add-to the
post horn, share, as to what you know?
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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The posthorn today is usually played by a trumpet player. It's like a bugle, a tube with a mouthpiece at one end into wbich the player buzzes his lips, and a bell at the other which releases the tone. But the bugle is bent around into an oval, and the tube has a conical bore, getting slightly larger in diameter over it's length. This gives the bugle it's classic melancholy tone.
The posthorn is a straight tube with a cylindrical bore giving it the bright tone you hear on the music.
Mozart wrote a fine Posthorn Serenade...
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there, say, kesolem... say, thanks... YES, i did see the serenade!
i will post it later, ... i just got home... got to 'run off now' ...
thanks!
yeah-- i never EVEN knew that taps was played with such
limitations, either, until just recently (meaning the bugle of which you speak)...
amazing, stuff, :)
thanks! nice to see you hear!
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Feb 14, 2018 - 07:37am PT
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Last Friday saw Yefim Bronfman at Disney Hall. Salonen conducted his piano concerto, which he wrote for Bronfman. I liked the first movement, then it seemed to bog down and just shimmered.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
But Bronfman is a favorite. I particularly enjoy his encores. After some massive, percussive Russian piece, his encore will be some little gem.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Feb 14, 2018 - 10:00am PT
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My friend, a double bass playa, had about the same take on it as you. Basically - meh.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Feb 14, 2018 - 11:08am PT
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Yeah, but Salonen sure knows Beethoven. The 7th symphony that night was terrific. He came out for it, sprang onto the podium and launched into it in midair.
We ran into four friends in the post-concert line for free beer. Four very accomplished Sierra mountaineers, actually, and they all agreed with your double bass player. But, hey, it was new music! That's good.
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Urizen
Ice climber
Berkeley, CA
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Feb 14, 2018 - 11:36am PT
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For sure, I never expected a Beethoven symphony to be the highlight of the evening--but that's only due to the fact that I didn't know about free beer!
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Feb 14, 2018 - 12:50pm PT
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Free wine, too, before the concert. Part of the LA Phil Casual Friday Series. After the concert was a Q&A session in the hall with Salonen and Bronfman, THEN the free beer.
Free booze! Try getting that at The Doll Hut.
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Urizen
Ice climber
Berkeley, CA
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Feb 14, 2018 - 01:49pm PT
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That explains it; I was there on Saturday. Guess I'll miss out when Andras Schiff is on, too.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Sold for $516,000!
Marlow, that Tarrega was very nice. Thanks for posting.
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there, say, marlow... yes, thank you for this:
Francisco Tárrega - Capricho árabe
am marking it... really love it... :)
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Mar 10, 2018 - 10:21am PT
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Mozart / Clara Haskil / Geza Anda, 1956: Concerto in E Flat Major for Two Pianos K 365
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Mar 11, 2018 - 12:08pm PT
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Weronika Dziadek (Poland) - International H. Wieniawski Violin Competition
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Programme:
L. van Beethoven: Sonata No. 5 for violin and piano in F major, Op. 24
H. Wieniawski: Capriccio no. 5 Alla Saltarella, Op. 10
H. Wieniawski: Polonaise in D major, Op. 4
E. Ysaÿe: Sonata no. 3 in D minor, Op. 27 Ballade
K. Szymanowski: Myths Op. 30 – The Fountain of Arethusa
How the girl can play....
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EricLobster
Gym climber
Vancouver, BC
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Mar 11, 2018 - 07:04pm PT
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Great musical posts here :)
I can't remember (It's been in so many movies) but it's like this sad opera music kind of biblical feel to it. It's one of the most used opera music used in movies. Usually in a traffic scene.
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selfish man
Gym climber
Austin, TX
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Mar 19, 2018 - 06:55pm PT
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The Haskil/Anda's Mozart double concerto is predictably wonderful....
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feralfae
Boulder climber
Almost solving the metaphysical mystery
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Mar 19, 2018 - 07:05pm PT
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I'm listening to Marlow's Pachelbel, feeling all the tension leaving my body. Thank you for that one, Marlow.
F*F
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Katica Illényi on Theremin - Once Upon a Time in the West
[Click to View YouTube Video]
The theremin (/ˈθɛrəmɪn/; originally known as the ætherphone/etherphone, thereminophone or termenvox/thereminvox) is an electronic musical instrument controlled without physical contact by the thereminist (performer). It is named after the Westernized name of its Soviet inventor, Léon Theremin (Термéн), who patented the device in 1928.
The instrument's controlling section usually consists of two metal antennas that sense the relative position of the thereminist's hands and control oscillators for frequency with one hand, and amplitude (volume) with the other. The electric signals from the theremin are amplified and sent to a loudspeaker.
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apogee
climber
Technically expert, safe belayer, can lead if easy
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 9, 2018 - 11:09am PT
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(speechless)
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Great playing. I am confronted with the boundaries of my existence. Maybe I have a multitasking problem. I am not able to watch and listen simultaneously. I have to close my eyes to listen.
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Oct 10, 2018 - 09:57am PT
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The music police: I think it has been a little too much pump and glitter lately for Gary...
Still: Let the music shine...
Clara Haskil plays Mozart Piano Sonata in C major K 330
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Oct 10, 2018 - 10:13am PT
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^^ No pump and glitter there, just fine musicianship.
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Larry Nelson
Social climber
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I love classical music, but this made me laugh.
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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Improvisation is not limited to jazz.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Here's a picture of the organ, built in 1862, by Cavaille-Col. Of course everything about it other than a modern air supply is mechanical. The console is therefore in the organ, behind the clock.
St. Sulpice, Paris.
Did I tell you that I love friggin' pipe organs?
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Dec 11, 2018 - 10:52am PT
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Not much improvisation involved here, but you find the Alps...
Richard Strauss: Alpensinfonie (Mariss Jansons)
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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SilverSnurfer
Mountain climber
SLC, UT.
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Dec 11, 2018 - 11:21am PT
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I've never had the opportunity to play a pipe organ like the one above, but I imagine that the delay between input and output must take some getting used to. I could probably simulate it, but bet that it still wouldn't feel the same as moving all that air around. Really interesting and beautiful sound.
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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Dec 11, 2018 - 01:32pm PT
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I'm curious as to what the pianists here think of her appropriation of such a stalwart of their repertoire as this Rachmaninoff Prelude, but I like it. Sophie-V Cauchefer-Choplin is one of the premier organists of our time, and being able to pull this kind of emotion out of a grand organ is rare.
For some reason ST won't recognize the U-Tube number, so here's a link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zv-2hITMlzM
PS, unless your French is honed, jump in at 0:55
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Dec 26, 2018 - 02:22pm PT
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L'Arpeggiata - Athanasius Kircher (1602-1680) - Tarantella Napoletana, Tono Hypodorico
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Dec 28, 2018 - 12:16pm PT
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Antonio Vivaldi: «Filiae maestae Jerusalem» RV 638 [II. Sileant Zephyri], Ph.Jaroussky/Ensemble Artaserse
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Dec 29, 2018 - 10:51am PT
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Sarah Chang plays Sibelius Violin Concerto in D minor
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Jaap van Zweden conducting the Radio Filharmonisch Orkest (RFO)
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Jan 17, 2019 - 06:04am PT
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Scored tickets for this in May at Disney Hall. LA Master Chorale, can't wait!
Mass in Time of War:
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Kris, that Rach sounds great on the organ. She doesn't seem to be the diva Cameron Carpenter is!
Marlow, when I saw Chang play the Mendelssohn they carried a guy out on a stretcher, not sure if it was her magnificent performance or the gown that did him in.
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Jan 20, 2019 - 12:42pm PT
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Gary.
There's so many brilliant musicians today and the dressing code has changed. Focused listening is much needed...
Khatia Buniatishvili with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (conducted by Zubin Mehta) - Beethoven Piano Concerto No 1 in C major Op 15
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jan 22, 2019 - 11:04pm PT
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Hard by the South Kensington tube station. Yer welcome!
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Jan 23, 2019 - 06:56am PT
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^^ Nice! Even the easiest of the Mikrokosmos sound beautiful when played with skill and artistry.
Not that I can do that. They are still fun to plink around.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Cdoy
Trad climber
Colorado
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Jan 23, 2019 - 09:12am PT
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[Click to View YouTube Video]
My friend and I have been playing classical music on cliffs recently. You get some pretty amazing acoustics and some pretty funny looks
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jan 23, 2019 - 09:23am PT
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Cdoy, were you guys crying cause you couldn’t get on the route you wanted? 😝
Seriously, that made La Femme’s and my day! One of my fave arias and operas,
but if I sang it you’d really be crying! Thanks!
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Cdoy
Trad climber
Colorado
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Jan 23, 2019 - 12:05pm PT
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Yes exactly! We wanted to film on High E, but it was getting gang banged. Glad you enjoyed it!!!
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Nice!
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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That's amazing! I'll even listen to Glass if she's playing it!
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Glass isn't for everybody... someone have to stay sober... Lavinia's playing is hypnotic...
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Ax and Salonen last night at Disney Hall. Dudamel is good, but wish we could get Esa-Pekka back.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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| Messages 1 - 708 of total 708 in this topic |
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SuperTopo on the Web
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Intermezzo I
Let us know!