Hellendaal: Six Grand Concertos opus 3.
La Sfera Armoniosa, conducted by Mike Fentross. On Challenge Classics.
Hellendaal was a contemporary of C.P.E. Bach. His concertos are in the style of Corelli and Handel, written around 1758 (which is after Handel's death).
The music is very nice but not very distinctive, the performances are nice but not superb, the recording is really good.
All in all: quite fine, but C.P.E. Bach this is not.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiHTVlTuvYA

The Crossing - Carols after a Plague (New Focus)
the choir are clear-voiced and well recorded
Consonant, accessible works are by various composers, including Vanessa Lann, who posts here now and then
The three-part title work by Shara Nova bookends the CD at tracks 1, 9 and 14.

Delibes: Sylvia, New Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Richard Bonynge (Decca).
Nicely done, nice music, etc. But I don't see why Tchaikovsky thought that this music was superior to his Swan Lake ("poor stuff in comparison" - "I was ashamed. If I had known this music early then, of course, I would not have written Swan Lake").

On Thursday, March 2, 2023 at 10:00:06 PM UTC+1, Gerard wrote:
> Delibes: Sylvia, New Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Richard Bonynge (Decca).
> Nicely done, nice music, etc. But I don't see why Tchaikovsky thought that this music was superior to his Swan Lake ("poor stuff in comparison" - "I was ashamed. If I had known this music early then, of course, I would not have written Swan Lake").

Delibes' ballet music is really the best.

The Mikado, English National Opera, directed by Jonathon Miller, with Eric Idle as the Lord High Executioner. I don't normally like G & S, but this is is great stuff. It's set in an hotel in the 1920s, complete with chorus of black-stockinged maids in white caps, and white-suited stewards in white suites and pillbox hats. The reference to "Australians of all kinds" in "I've Got a little Liszt" and the roar of appreciation it got from the audience were duly noted. Sir Robert Helpmann and Barry Humphries have a lot to answer for. Also of interest is that the TV production came not from the ever-so-arty BBC but from Thames Television, a commercial TV company, who also gave us Danger Mouse and Count Duckula.
The DVD came from Amazon America, but if you rip a DVD it conveniently removes the area coding.

Andrew Clarke
Canberra

I wish I could say I've been listening to classical music, but I haven't for a while.

I need to start playing the piano again.

On Friday, March 3, 2023 at 8:25:50 AM UTC-8, Andy Evans wrote:
>
> I wish I could say I've been listening to
> classical music, but I haven't for a while.
>
> I need to start playing the piano again.

Please don't try to intimidate us! ;-)

dk

Appissionata and other LvB sournotes.

dk

Sorabji. Lots to listen to.

On Friday, March 3, 2023 at 5:38:19 PM UTC-8, Dan Koren wrote:
> Appissionata and other LvB sournotes.
>

Google/YouTube auto-translate from Korean:

00:00 Very happy
09:30 Going by motorbike
15:05 Cheerful but not too much - Presto

from:

00:00 Allegro assai
09:30 Andante con moto
15:05 Allegro ma non troppo - Presto

dk

Simeon ten Holt

On Friday, March 3, 2023 at 8:01:50 PM UTC-8, Owen Hartnett wrote:
>
> This is the ending to one of his operas, with
> nuns facing the guillotine. Amazing ending
>
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cd9EFJaURmI

Are the nuns suppose to lose their heads on
stage or off stage? Is the audience allowed
to intervene?

dk

On Friday, March 3, 2023 at 7:00:08 PM UTC-8, Dan Koren wrote:
> Simeon ten Holt

A shorter, more modest work: only 2 pianos
and lasting barely one hour and four minutes.
It leaves Glass in the dust!

dk

On Saturday, March 4, 2023 at 4:46:28 AM UTC-8, Dan Koren wrote:
> On Friday, March 3, 2023 at 7:00:08 PM UTC-8, Dan Koren wrote:
> > Simeon ten Holt
>
> A shorter, more modest work: only 2 pianos
> and lasting barely one hour and four minutes.
> It leaves Glass in the dust!
>
> dk

My top recommendations would be Lemniscaat and Canto Ostinato.

But given your opinions on rhythm and repetition, I am somewhat surprised you're giving ten Holt a try.

On Sunday, 5 March 2023 at 09:03:34 UTC+11, number_six wrote:
> On Saturday, March 4, 2023 at 4:46:28 AM UTC-8, Dan Koren wrote:
> > On Friday, March 3, 2023 at 7:00:08 PM UTC-8, Dan Koren wrote:
> > > Simeon ten Holt
> >
> > A shorter, more modest work: only 2 pianos
> > and lasting barely one hour and four minutes.
> > It leaves Glass in the dust!
> >
> > dk
> My top recommendations would be Lemniscaat and Canto Ostinato.
>
> But given your opinions on rhythm and repetition, I am somewhat surprised you're giving ten Holt a try.

I am more surprised that ten Holt has not garnered the attention Glass, Reich and others have received. Not that this is saying anything detrimental about them. I rather enjoy good minimalism.

Ray Hall, Taree

On Saturday, March 4, 2023 at 10:31:39 PM UTC-8, raymond....@gmail.com wrote:
> On Sunday, 5 March 2023 at 09:03:34 UTC+11, number_six wrote:
> > On Saturday, March 4, 2023 at 4:46:28 AM UTC-8, Dan Koren wrote:
> > > On Friday, March 3, 2023 at 7:00:08 PM UTC-8, Dan Koren wrote:
> > > > Simeon ten Holt
> > >
> > > A shorter, more modest work: only 2 pianos
> > > and lasting barely one hour and four minutes.
> > > It leaves Glass in the dust!
> >
> > My top recommendations would be Lemniscaat
> > and Canto Ostinato.
> >
> > But given your opinions on rhythm and repetition, I

Not all repetition is created equal.

> > am somewhat surprised you're giving ten Holt a try.

No "tries". Hearings.

> I am more surprised that ten Holt has not garnered
> the attention Glass, Reich and others have received.

American marketing vs. Dutch cluelessness.

dk

On Saturday, March 4, 2023 at 10:31:39 PM UTC-8, raymond....@gmail.com wrote:
> On Sunday, 5 March 2023 at 09:03:34 UTC+11, number_six wrote:
> > On Saturday, March 4, 2023 at 4:46:28 AM UTC-8, Dan Koren wrote:
> > > On Friday, March 3, 2023 at 7:00:08 PM UTC-8, Dan Koren wrote:
> > > > Simeon ten Holt
> > >
> > > A shorter, more modest work: only 2 pianos
> > > and lasting barely one hour and four minutes.
> > > It leaves Glass in the dust!
> >
> > My top recommendations would be Lemniscaat
> > and Canto Ostinato.
> >
> > But given your opinions on rhythm and repetition, I

Not all repetition is created equal.

> > am somewhat surprised you're giving ten Holt a try.

No "tries". Hearings.

> I am more surprised that ten Holt has not garnered
> the attention Glass, Reich and others have received.

American marketing vs. Dutch earnestness.

dk

On Sunday, 5 March 2023 at 06:31:39 UTC, raymond....@gmail.com wrote:

> I rather enjoy good minimalism.
>
> Ray Hall, Taree

The closest I come to minimalism is Garage music, which I greatly enjoy. Nobody believes I prefer this to Mahler....

Turn it up loud and enjoy......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6JCmRh2gCQ

Working through Szell complete Columbia Album collection.

Maybe I'll comment on individual discs some day. But overall it seems that Szell sounds like he takes on the music at the phrase level, that is individual phrases constitute a self-contained unit of music. The result makes the large-scale structure of the work very clear, at the expense of losing the dramatic sweep - contrast that with Ormandy, Karajan, and Furtwangler. So much so I would guess that there are splices where phrases end, as it sounds like there are small gaps in the performances.

_Sand_ by Scott Fields (originally from Chicago, passing through
the AACM jazz tradition there), performed by his Ensemble in Koeln:

https://relativepitchrecords.bandcamp.com/album/sand

Per _Seven Deserts_, an album by Fields on New World Records that I'd
mentioned earlier on this group (& that did seem to receive at least
some positive response here at the time...), I believe the recording
is actually of 9 versions of the same composition _Sand_.

They can sound quite different though, and it's the sort of textural
negotiation, in the case of _Sand_ involving three voices as well
(with English lyrics that can nonetheless come off as nonsense...),
that I find appealing. One could parse Fields' compositional
modularity e.g. through Cecil Taylor....

I'll probably write a longer review on my site in the next week or
two....

On Tuesday, March 7, 2023 at 1:28:22 PM UTC-8, James Goodzeit wrote:
>
> Working through Szell complete Columbia Album collection.
>

What a szellish job! I do not envy you.

dk

On 2023-03-07 21:28:19 +0000, James Goodzeit said:

> Working through Szell complete Columbia Album collection.
>
> Maybe I'll comment on individual discs some day. But overall it seems
> that Szell sounds like he takes on the music at the phrase level, that
> is individual phrases constitute a self-contained unit of music. The
> result makes the large-scale structure of the work very clear, at the
> expense of losing the dramatic sweep - contrast that with Ormandy,
> Karajan, and Furtwangler. So much so I would guess that there are
> splices where phrases end, as it sounds like there are small gaps in
> the performances.

I heard someone on the radio years ago talking about the Szell/Serkin
Brahms 2nd, describing that they worked in "blocks of sound" building
and taking down phrasing. Your "music at the phrase level" sounds like
a analogous response.

-Owen

Andy Evans schrieb am Montag, 6. März 2023 um 22:11:09 UTC+1:
> On Sunday, 5 March 2023 at 06:31:39 UTC, raymond....@gmail.com wrote:
>
> > I rather enjoy good minimalism.
> >
> > Ray Hall, Taree
> The closest I come to minimalism is Garage music, which I greatly enjoy. Nobody believes I prefer this to Mahler....
>
> Turn it up loud and enjoy......
>
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6JCmRh2gCQ

Man... this explains everything that is wrong with you haha; you really have no taste - not even when I listened to this kind of music I would've liked this... This "music" is utter garbage, for some proper "garage" sounds:

Burial & Four Tet - Moth:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJ_7-n02nEg

On Wednesday, March 8, 2023 at 10:07:26 AM UTC-5, Owen Hartnett wrote:
> On 2023-03-07 21:28:19 +0000, James Goodzeit said:
>
> > Working through Szell complete Columbia Album collection.
> >
> > Maybe I'll comment on individual discs some day. But overall it seems
> > that Szell sounds like he takes on the music at the phrase level, that
> > is individual phrases constitute a self-contained unit of music. The
> > result makes the large-scale structure of the work very clear, at the
> > expense of losing the dramatic sweep - contrast that with Ormandy,
> > Karajan, and Furtwangler. So much so I would guess that there are
> > splices where phrases end, as it sounds like there are small gaps in
> > the performances.
> I heard someone on the radio years ago talking about the Szell/Serkin
> Brahms 2nd, describing that they worked in "blocks of sound" building
> and taking down phrasing. Your "music at the phrase level" sounds like
> a analogous response.
>
> -Owen

Interesting. I wonder if that refers to the way Szell rehearsed his orchestra, or is it the mixing/editing phase.

On Tue, 7 Mar 2023, Todd M. McComb wrote:

> _Sand_ by Scott Fields (originally from Chicago, passing through
> the AACM jazz tradition there), performed by his Ensemble in Koeln:
>
> https://relativepitchrecords.bandcamp.com/album/sand
>
> Per _Seven Deserts_, an album by Fields on New World Records that I'd
> mentioned earlier on this group (& that did seem to receive at least
> some positive response here at the time...), I believe the recording
> is actually of 9 versions of the same composition _Sand_.
>
> They can sound quite different though, and it's the sort of textural
> negotiation, in the case of _Sand_ involving three voices as well
> (with English lyrics that can nonetheless come off as nonsense...),
> that I find appealing. One could parse Fields' compositional
> modularity e.g. through Cecil Taylor....
>
> I'll probably write a longer review on my site in the next week or
> two....

So (excuse my ignorance), I see there is a conductor. Does the conductor
choose the ingredients and then rehearse tthe selection? It seems
that with 20 performers it would be hard to make decisions in real
time. Could anyone other than the composer perform this?

(Listened to three sections - the sounds are actually rather attractive,
and the whole rather complex.)
--
Al Eisner