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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
twoleftears's avatar
twoleftears
5,315 posts
 
On to Rach #2, Previn. The Telarc soundstage took a little getting used to: very wide, quite distant, but not very deep. Have to admit I’m enjoying #2 more than #1--the highlight there was actually Litton’s Isle of the Dead.
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ei001h
275 posts
 
twoleftears:

I’ve been listening to Currentzis Tchaikovsky 6th and while I find some aspects of it enjoyable (spotlight miking of instruments) while other aspects such as overuse of EQ and heavy compression ruin the whole piece. Close miking of strings make them sound very sharp and aggressive for the lack of a better word.  Zero dynamics in all 4 movements. The intensity of playing has no correlation to the volume. I think the mixing engineers overshadowed currentzis here.  It was probably made to sound great in AirPods. This guy definitely polarizes opinions. I'm thinking about attending his debut in NYC in November.

Daniil Trifanov just came out with a CD destination
Rachmaniov featuring Rach 3 and Rach 1. It’s available on Tidal. His 2nd and 4th concertos released earlier this year were quite good. Not sure what to make of his interpretation of the 3rd. I expected more from Trifanov. Has anyone heard it? Thoughts?

Khatia Buniatishvili’s Rach 3 blew me away. I believe the Russians are unmatched when it comes to Rachmaninov. Matsuev, Volods, Gavrilov, Gilels. All superb in my opinion. Not a fan of Rachmaninov’s own recording of his concertos. I don’t think he was pleased with them either.

I’ve been enjoying Volodos and Schubert. Also like Sofronitsky’s Schubert (the art of Sofronitsky). Are there any other sonically good recordings  of Sofronitsky? Any other masters of Schubert ?
rvpiano's avatar
rvpiano OP
2,653 posts
 
I find Trifanov’s performance of the 1st and 4th Concertos effective but the 2nd and 3rd not so much.  Its as though he’s sleepwalking through the 3rd, perhaps trying to be original.  Volodos’ rendering is wonderful. Katia is quite an imaginative pianist with a dazzling technique. 
jcazador
417 posts
 
Very nice review of Angela Hewitt recital "Bach Odyssey"
in NYT, behind paywall here:

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/03/arts/music/angela-hewitt-bach-review.html?action=click&module...
quote:

As a young woman she studied classical ballet and still remembers dancing in her bedroom to recordings of Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos.

“I responded to the rhythm in the music,” she said in a 2017 interview with The Guardian. She has always made of point of bringing out the dance rhythms in Bach’s music, she explained. “I don’t have to think about it; it’s just part of me,” she said.

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