I get so tired of the war horses and the mutable times they end up getting rereleased. When I go to the record stores and I see the classical bins flooded with Bernstein on Columbia, I think, do people really believe Bernstein to be better than the hundreds of other conductors during his generation or do they just not know any different? I will go out of my way to find music that is anomalous.
Lieder anyone?
This niche within classical music, largely leaves my cold a defect in my character I'm sure. I suppose it reached a sort of peak in 19th century Germany, becoming an important part of Schubert's output for example.
But and it's a big but, there is Mahler and Richard Straus, two of my favourite 20th century composers anyway. They both produced achingly beautiful, melancholic song cycles and I never tire of listening to them. If you want to explore them, then anything by Janet Baker or Elizabeth Scwarzkopf are just perfect for Mahler and Leontine Price's 4 Last Songs for Strauss. You can't go wrong with them.
David
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- 28 posts total
- 28 posts total