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Classical Music for Aficionados

I would like to start a thread, similar to Orpheus’ jazz site, for lovers of classical music.
I will list some of my favorite recordings, CDs as well as LP’s. While good sound is not a prime requisite, it will be a consideration.
  Classical music lovers please feel free to add to my lists.
Discussion of musical and recording issues will be welcome.

I’ll start with a list of CDs.  Records to follow in a later post.

Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique.  Chesky  — Royal Phil. Orch.  Freccia, conductor.
Mahler:  Des Knaben Wunderhorn.  Vanguard Classics — Vienna Festival Orch. Prohaska, conductor.
Prokofiev:  Scythian Suite et. al.  DG  — Chicago Symphony  Abbado, conductor.
Brahms: Symphony #1.  Chesky — London Symph. Orch.  Horenstein, conductor.
Stravinsky: L’Histoire du Soldat. HDTT — Ars Nova.  Mandell, conductor.
Rachmaninoff: Symphonic Dances. Analogue Productions. — Dallas Symph Orch. Johanos, cond.
Respighi: Roman Festivals et. al. Chesky — Royal Phil. Orch. Freccia, conductor.

All of the above happen to be great sounding recordings, but, as I said, sonics is not a prerequisite.


128x128rvpiano
rvpiano's avatar
rvpiano OP
2,654 posts
 
Lang Lang has just released a new recording of Bach’s Goldberg Variations, available on Idagio.  Unexpectedly, it’s not bad. Each variation is repeated imaginatively different the second time around.  The ornamentation is original  and well integrated into the melodic line.  The tone is lovely and the performance does “swing.”  Of course, there is stiff competition in this work, but Lang Lang very well holds his own.
twoleftears's avatar
twoleftears
5,318 posts
 
That takes me back to a concert I heard in Brasenose College chapel, when Emma and Hoggers were still an item and relatively known.
jim204
881 posts
 
RV   I'm very sorry and I am upset that I have to disagree with you but I did not like Lang Lang's Goldbergs at all. I found that the opening aria was so slow it was like a dirge. That said though I have to agree that some of the variations were very good on the ear but I'm afraid the aria is the acid test for me and if too fast or too slow the rest of the piece suffers to me. The Goldbergs to me are so great that it takes a very brave musician to tackle them and it doesn't matter to me as you go further in that if you blow it at the start the piece remains lost. I do very much like Lang Lang in some pieces by Schumann and his favourite Liszt but I don't think you would like to hear them. He certainly has the fingers for Liszt.
jcazador
417 posts
 
Jim, et al
There are so many recordings of the Goldbergs, I cannot get my head around a comparison of them.
Here are some of them:

Hewitt

Tureck

Watcha

Gavrilov

Gould

Jarrett

Feltsman

Perahia

Rana

Sokolov

Nikolayeva

Angelich

Leonhardt

I know there are more somewhere in my hard drives, but that is all that shows up in my search.

So Jim, tell us please, which is your favorite?



rvpiano's avatar
rvpiano OP
2,654 posts
 
Jim,
No reason to be sorry.  i haven’t listened to the Goldberg for a while.  Maybe the beauty of the music influenced my positive reaction
More to discover