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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
2,688 posts
 
I also like Barbirolli in 5, Leinsdorf as well. It’s hard to find a bad performance of 5.
The 7th is a tough nut to crack.  I hated it for years, but now love it.
Abbado recording finally did the trick.  Maazel also has a delicious 4th with Kathleen Battle ideal in the final movement.  Besides Kondrashin, there are almost too many good 9ths to name, but Rattle does a good job. In the 6th, von Karajan is my favorite. Solti in the 1st, 3rd and 8th. Mehta is a surprising choice in the 2nd with the Vienna Phil., NOT the Israel Phil.
These are favorites at the moment. Like most Mahler lovers, I have to go through myriad performances of the others I own to come up with more.

rvpiano's avatar
rvpiano OP
2,688 posts
 
Let’s get this forum rolling again!

Who are some of your favorite pianists, violinists, cellists?
What about your favorite composers, concertos, sonatas, symphonies, tone poems, etc.?

Horowitz, Rachmaninoff, Pletnev and Glenn Gould top my list of pianists.
Violinists include Milstein, Bell, and, of course, Heifetz.
As for cellists, there’s Maurice Gendron, Janos Starker and Wallerstein.
Composers are a hard one.  I love so many. But aside from the obvious Beethoven, Mozart, Bach and Brahms, there’s Rachmaninoff, Prokofiev and Stravinsky, et al.
Favorite symphonies are Beethoven “Eroica”, Rachmaninoff 2nd, Mahler 9th, Mozart “Prague”, Prokofiev and Shostakovich 5ths, Stravinsky “Symphony of Psalms” and many more.
Favorite Concertos: Any Mozart Piano Concerto, Glazunov Violin Concerto, Beethoven’s 4th Piano Concerto, Prokofiev’s 2nd Piano Concerto, Rachmaninoff’s 4th Piano Concerto.
Any Strauss Tone Poem.
Beethoven’s 2nd and 3rd Cello Sonatas, and just about any of his piano sonatas.

This is just a partial list.
As you can see, my taste is quite conventional.
tostadosunidos's avatar
tostadosunidos
1,197 posts
 
Alfred Brendel, Glenn Gould, Artur Rubinstein.
Aaron Rosand, Milstein, Heifetz, Itzhaak Perlman.
Guitarists Segovia, Bream, Williams, Oscar Ghiglia, Eliot FIsk, Manuel Barrueco, Jorge Caballero, Ana Vidovic, Adam Holzman, Eduardo Fernandez
all the obvious composers, plus:  D. Scarlatti, Ravel, Debussy, St. Saens, Prokofiev, Bartok--too many to list but those are favorites
Beethoven symphony #5, 9, 7, Mahler 1st
Beethoven violin concerto, Ponce guitar concerto
Prokofiev violin sonata #2, St. Saens #2, Bach unaccompanied violin partitas 1 and 3, sonatas 2 and 3, cello suites 1, 3 and 5
too many Beethoven piano sonatas to list  but Waldstein probably the favorite

schubert
7,386 posts
 
I'd be lying if I said Mahler's Symphonies were down my alley but his vocal
works are .
The greatest recording  I know of is his "Ruckert-Lieder " with the incomparable Janet Baker and the New Philharmonia Orchestra/ Barbirolli .
Warner Classics 566 9812.

To list everyone I like would go into the hundreds/thousands .
 To make it easy for an old man I'll just list my favorite 3 composers of the last century in no particular order .
Ralph Vaughan Williams
Leos Janacek
Bela Bartok
schubert
7,386 posts
 
Oh, on a closing note, my candidate for most unappreciated and underplayed Master of the last century is Paul Hindemith .
More to discover