What are you listening to now?

[Decrepit Poster]

Whilst adding the addendum to my previous entry, I thought to mention my current favorite Moonlight sonata interpretation. It then dawned on me that I don't have one. I've never had one. I never fully came to grips with the work, chiefly the first movement from which its pseudonym derives. It's not that I dislike it in any way. I just never regarded as highly as most music lovers seem to.

Thinking on this, I decided to visit Andras Schiff's lecture-recital on the Moonlight. Like all his Beethoven sonata discussions it's well worth hearing. Of special interest to me, he champions an interpretation of movement one rather different from what is normally heard. He justifies himself well, both orally and by example. Listening to his extended excerpts I quickly realized that Schiff's concept of the movement appeals to me more than the traditional slow(er) approach. (For what it's worth, Brautigam's is far from the slowest first movement I've heard, but it's slow compared to Schiff.)

I also had time to finish out the lecture on Op.2 No.1, and went on to hear the other opus two lectures.

[Enrique]

[YOUTUBE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyaE64LYf_s[/YOUTUBE]

If you watch the double basses (first minute) you'll notice not everyone uses the German bow in present day orchestras.

[Harvey]

Jeptha as I listen to a digital download of 276 tracks from Amazon that I got for a whole 99 cents. It includes 6 Handel oratorios:

Jephtha: English Chamber Orchestra, Johannes Somary, Maureen Forrester, Reri Grist, Helen Watts & Alexander Young;

Saul: Vienna Sym Orch, Copenhagen Boys Choir, Mogens Wöldike, Laurence Dutoit, Herbert Handt, Thomas Hemsley, Erling Thorborg, Jennifer Vyvyan & Helen Watts;

Judas Maccabaeus: English Chamber Orchestra, Wandsworth School Boys' Choir, Johannes Somary, Heather Harper & John Shirley-Quirk;

Semele: English Chamb Orch, J Somary, S Armstrong, J Diaz, E Fleet, J McCarthy, K Miller, F Palmer, N Taylor, R Tear & H Watts;

Theodora: English Chamb Orch, Johannes Somary, Amor Artis Chamber Choir, Maureen Forrester, Heather Harper, John Lawrenson & Maureen Lehane* <tenorAlexander Young;

Messiah: English Chamb Orch, Amor Artis Chamb Choir, J Somary, Justino Diaz, Yvonne Minton, Margaret Price & Alexander Young;

Total size is 1.7 GB for 276 tracks, all for 99 cents!

There are tons of these digital box sets on Amazon, some good, many not so good. I also recently got the entire Leibowitz Beethoven symphony cycle in a 100 track download that included concertos and other Beethoven music.

[AeolianHarp]

Just finished the Hanover Band Beethoven Symphony cycle ...

How did you like those Harvey? I find their interpretation of the 5th astounding!

[AeolianHarp]

ADDENDUM: I noticed Brautigam's Moonlight posted at YouTube. Decided to listen to it there rather than via my disk. Hearing it through my computer audio system tames much of the resonant acoustic and allows me to hear and appreciate more of the interpretation. I should have suspected my living room audio system, which I've complained of before, was making the recording sound worse than it is. Even as heard at YouTube I prefer a drier acoustic, or rather my ears do.

Glad it sounded better for you DP. Ronald's recording of Hammerklavier is also on you tube- I have never heard better than his.

[hal9000]

Brautigam really brings out the agitation in presto agitato. One of the best renditions of that movement that I have heard.

Edit - Just listen to the left hand flutter at 2:50; it sounds like some annoying fly buzzing by your ear.

[Sorrano]

This morning:
Prokofiev: Violin Concerto #2 in g, Op 63

[Decrepit Poster]

Recent listening is almost exclusively confined to the Brautigam Beethoven piano sonata set on SACD or various Beethoven piano sonatas heard at YouTube. One of those, Mikhail Pletnev playing the Waldstein, impressed me quite favorably, especially its second and third movements.

[dahc]

ernst toch string quartet no 6 fine string writing

[Harvey]

How did you like those Harvey? I find their interpretation of the 5th astounding!

I like it very much. It is different from most any other conductor's 5th, and the same can be said for the whole set. A unique recording process was used as I understand it. I find it to be a wonderful set, though probably not my top choice, one that I would not want to be without. I am listening to Hanover right now--the 6th.

I gave away the NAXOs symphony cycle to our hairdresser. She was very happy to receive it. So now I have the cycles that are in my Poll in another thread. Well, except that Immerseel is still in the mail. I can hardly wait.

[Harvey]

Am on my second trip through the Hanover Beethoven cycle. It is very good. Turkish march in the Ninth rather slow, but nice.

Am taking a break to listen to Fricsay's Beethoven 3rd, 5th, and 8th.

[hal9000]

The fugue proceeding it, too.

[Decrepit Poster]

The fugue proceeding it, too.

Eeep, talk about extremes! The first interpretation started off with me thinking "NO WAY!", but it grew on me and created its own sort of tension and excitement. Don't know that I've heard a fugue as fast as the second interpretation. Having it follow immediately after the ultra slow reading might make it seem faster than if it were heard as part of a complete performance??? All else being equal I suspect my allegiance lies with interpretations that don't dawdle overmuch.

As for myself, I again devoted my time to the Brautigam Beethoven sonata set, today rehearing disks five and six (sonatas 16-25 minus the two opus 49 sonatas, which appear on disk 1).

[hal9000]

Yeah, in the context of the juxtaposition, I definitely think there's some mind trick going on. It is congruous in the context of the entire performance - which is one of the quicker intepretations of the 9th that I have heard.

[Decrepit Poster]

Some might recall my linking a performance of Liszt's piano adaptation of Schubert's "Erlkonig" by young Marina Yakhlakova, avowing it my favorite interpretation of that work. I revisited it this morning. No change in opinion, but I noticed a link to ms Yakhlakova performing the Saint-Saens second piano concerto. It too blew me away:
[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLTdiFabYRs[/YOUTUBE]


Otherwise, I returned to the WQXR Beethoven quartet marathon (YouTube) and listened to / watched the first three Opus 18s.