Like Spiritofradio I've had a classical weekend with Schubert's Unfinished Symphony. I'm always struck with the quick change of moods in this piece from quiet comforting to menacing and back.
Spiritofradio you mention that maybe your stereo has spoiled you for the concert hall. I think it was way back in the 1950s pianist Glen Gould commented that recorded music was better than live performances. I suspect he meant the performance was better as he spliced sections together of performances he really liked before many studios did, but I often think of the sound stage. I always sit exactly in the same spot, 12 feet from my speakers, when listening, often in a darkened, quiet room. How can my seat at the concert hall compete with that. It is actually pop music I like live the most. It is more playful, with bands doing the unexpected, deciding to change the key on an old favorite or doing some improvising on the spot that makes live shows a treat too.
Wayne
