SPOTLIGHT The classical music general discussion thread

[bluelightning]

I'm listening to it just now and it's as you describe: rears are busier than standard, but not as busy as one would hope. And compared to the surround mix of the Shostakovich 5 by Ormandy, it comes up short by a considerable margin - another (sort of) close, but (definitely), no cigar mix!

If I'd heard the surround mix before pulling the trigger I wouldn't have bothered buying it, oh well. Still, if nothing else it's a reminder that the surround mix on the Ormandy Shostakovich 5 really is the gold standard of what can be achieved with classical surround mixing.

You should most definitely get the Nevsky with Ormandy on D-V. I think you will not be disappointed. Also look out for Chailly's SACD with Messiaen's Turangalila symphony. Both should be exactly what you are looking for.

 

[windhoek]

QUITE unfortunately for all, the Tomita Planets however 'hokey' but enjoyable in its own right, remains the only discrete surround version of the Planets, at present.

Perhaps one day some enterprising conductor and orchestra will dazzle us with a truly discrete definitive version. The new Reference Recording version is dazzling but ambient at best and I have SO many versions of Holst's Planets in my collection unless a new version comes along that is truly discrete, only then will I add it to my already burgeoning Planet's collection.

I feel the same Ralph. And I wouldn't surprised if 'the one' comes via Michael Dutton!

 

[windhoek]

I'm so impressed with Shostakovich 5, I've now ordered Shoenberg's Gurrelieder. It's been on my radar since it was announced but because so many multichannel mixes have disappointed over the years I kept on putting it off as I didn't want to end up with another expensive dud. But if it's as good as Shostakovich 5 I'm in for a treat. Fingers crossed!

I'm currently listening to Gurre-Lieder in 4.0 and although it's not as dynamic in terms of how much discrete information comes from the rear speakers compared to the aforementioned Shostakovich 5, the end result sounds really really good all the same; I think it offers a better multichannel listening experience than Steinberg's The Planets, although it remains more of a musical experience than a quadraphonic experience if you know what I mean. Regardless, it seems as if D-V has cracked it when it comes to multichannel classical music as this one works just as well as Shostakovich 5 except in its own less-dynamic way, and I think this will be my go-to Gurre-Lieder from now on

 

[humprof]

I feel like The Cleveland Orchestra has a long record of weird direct issues that they overcharge for and then go out of print - I spent years hunting for the 75th Anniversary and Szell Centennial box sets at a fair price. Like others, I'm only moderately interested in this one, although some of the contents are interesting. I feel like it's really aimed at Cleveland Orchestra donors.

Gramophone's Recording of the Month, FWIW:

https://www.prestomusic.com/classic...-choices-gramophone-editors-choices-july-2020

 

[windhoek]

I'm currently listening to The Four Season as performed by Rachel Podger/Brecon Baroque. While the surround mix is lite, as we've come to expect with most classical releases, the performance is vivid and most excellent all the same

 

[humprof]

This Saturday, May 2nd, Cappella Romana are livestreaming one of their "Lost Voices of Hagia Sophia" concerts (recorded at Stanford last year, I think). Details here:

https://mailchi.mp/cappellaromana.o...eam-saturdays-performance-328091?e=9cbd8e1256

Review at Audiophile Audition, for anyone who needs a nudge:
https://www.audaud.com/lost-voices-of-hagia-sophia-cappella-romana-alexander-lingas-cappella-romana/

 

[humprof]

Osmo Vänskä's new Mahler 7th--part of his ongoing cycle with the Minnesota Orchestra--is on sale at eClassical this week.

https://www.eclassical.com/orchestras/minnesota-orchestra/mahler-symphony-no7.html
The cycle has gotten mixed reviews (some entries more mixed than others), but this one gets a favorable notice at The Classic Review. I'm collecting them as they appear, partly for sentimental reasons (I spent a number of years in Minneapolis), but also to support the label. BIS's surround mixes usually feature just hall ambience in the rears, but they're otherwise solidly recorded--and reasonably priced.

 

[4-earredwonder]

Pierre Fournier, cello/Friedrich Gulda, piano: BEETHOVEN: Complete Works for Cello and Piano [DGG/2 RBCDs/1 BD~A STEREO 192/24/2'18"]

Definitive!

 

[humprof]

I know this thread has a small following to begin with, but I wonder if any of you are Krzysztof Penderecki fans--and/or fans of the Audite or Praga Digitals labels.

A few weeks ago I dropped Penderecki's name in another post (about Nine Inch Nails)--and then, just a couple of weeks after my complaint that so little of his orchestral work was available in surround, BIS released a new recording of Penderecki's St. Luke Passion conducted by Kent Nagano, from the 2018 Salzburg Festival.

In the meantime, I had also rediscovered a good quad version of his Symphony from 1973, and that sent me searching for other recordings I might have missed--a search that led me first of all to Supraphon, which apparently issued quite a lot of Penderecki in quad, back in the day. But it also led me to the German Audite label and the Czech Praga Digitals label, both of which specialize in chamber music. (Here's Praga's Penderecki issue. A string trio and a duet for violin and bass appear on two different Audite titles.)

Can anyone speak to the general quality of the recordings and performances on Praga? As for Audite: I'm familiar with them through the Cremona Quartet's complete Beethoven string quartets box set, which I think is quite good. (Not Tacet-style discrete, but very "active" chamber-surround.) But I was delighted to discover not only that you can order SACDs--and download multi-channel FLACs--directly from Audite's website, but also that there are several pages' worth of free, downloadable sample tracks, most of which are high-bitrate mp3, but some of which are hi-res FLAC (including a few multi-channel FLACs).

 

[windhoek]

I know nothing about this chap, I'm afraid.

 

[jefe1]

I have some Penderecki on vinyl. Like you I think all are on the Supraphon label. I found a gorgeous record cover on deutche grammophon in a thrift store that was sadly missing the vinyl.
On a trip to Prague I went to a used record store that had tons of quad supraphon vinyl. My suitcase was very heavy coming home.
sadly I couldn't take back any box opera sets just too much weight.....
Some of the Supraphon recordings were reissued on CD. Maybe they retain the SQ encoding.

 

[ubertrout]

I know this thread has a small following to begin with, but I wonder if any of you are Krzysztof Penderecki fans--and/or fans of the Audite or Praga Digitals labels.

A few weeks ago I dropped Penderecki's name in another post (about Nine Inch Nails)--and then, just a couple of weeks after my complaint that so little of his orchestral work was available in surround, BIS released a new recording of Penderecki's St. Luke Passion conducted by Kent Nagano, from the 2018 Salzburg Festival.

In the meantime, I had also rediscovered a good quad version of his Symphony from 1973, and that sent me searching for other recordings I might have missed--a search that led me first of all to Supraphon, which apparently issued quite a lot of Penderecki in quad, back in the day. But it also led me to the German Audite label and the Czech Praga Digitals label, both of which specialize in chamber music. (Here's Praga's Penderecki issue. A string trio and a duet for violin and bass appear on two different Audite titles.)

Can anyone speak to the general quality of the recordings and performances on Praga? As for Audite: I'm familiar with them through the Cremona Quartet's complete Beethoven string quartets box set, which I think is quite good. (Not Tacet-style discrete, but very "active" chamber-surround.) But I was delighted to discover not only that you can order SACDs--and download multi-channel FLACs--directly from Audite's website, but also that there are several pages' worth of free, downloadable sample tracks, most of which are high-bitrate mp3, but some of which are hi-res FLAC (including a few multi-channel FLACs).

There's some interesting options, but I haven't really listened to Penderecki much: HRAudio.net - Search

 

[humprof]

I have some Penderecki on vinyl. Like you I think all are on the Supraphon label. I found a gorgeous record cover on deutche grammophon in a thrift store that was sadly missing the vinyl.
On a trip to Prague I went to a used record store that had tons of quad supraphon vinyl. My suitcase was very heavy coming home.
sadly I couldn't take back any box opera sets just too much weight.....
Some of the Supraphon recordings were reissued on CD. Maybe they retain the SQ encoding.

I'm envious of the trip to Prague. I'd love to hear some of the Supraphon stuff; as you say, maybe some of it survived the transfer to CD.

@ubertrout: according to his obit, there seems to be an "early" and "late(r)" Penderecki, and it's the early, dissonant works (like the "Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima") that have influenced people like Jonny Greenwood. I like that stuff, too...

 

[ubertrout]

I'm envious of the trip to Prague. I'd love to hear some of the Supraphon stuff; as you say, maybe some of it survived the transfer to CD.

@ubertrout: according to his obit, there seems to be an "early" and "late(r)" Penderecki, and it's the early, dissonant works (like the "Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima") that have influenced people like Jonny Greenwood. I like that stuff, too...

It doesn't get a lot of attention, but seven Supraphon quads made it to SACD: HRAudio.net - Music

 

[humprof]

Ivan Fischer's Das Lied von der Erde (presumably the last entry in his Mahler cycle, since he's not doing the 8th) is now up for pre-order:

https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/8791811--mahler-das-lied-von-der-erde

 

[4-earredwonder]

There's some interesting options, but I haven't really listened to Penderecki much: HRAudio.net - Search

Humprof, I probably have about 2 dozen+ multi~ch/stereo SACDs from both the Praga Digital and Audite labels and IMO, they are about on par with the other classical labels in terms of performance/sonics.

I'd probably peruse HRAudio.net for critiques of the individual performances, etc. and off the cuff, cannot particularly recommend any individual SACDs as I've a backlog of 'current' hi res music and videos that haven't yet been addressed.

edit: this is in response to humprof's post #769

 

[humprof]

Humprof, I probably have about 2 dozen+ multi~ch/stereo SACDs from both the Praga Digital and Audite labels and IMO, they are about on par with the other classical labels in terms of performance/sonics.

I'd probably peruse HRAudio.net for critiques of the individual performances, etc. and off the cuff, cannot particularly recommend any individual SACDs as I've a backlog of 'current' hi res music and videos that haven't yet been addressed.

edit: this is in response to humprof's post #769

Appreciate the report, 4EW!

 

[windhoek]

It's probably been posted before, but this impromptu guide to Das Lied by Bernstein is excellent as it turns out, Bernstein is an amazing storyteller on top of everything else. The one-way conversation (his piece to camera is far too informal and intimate to be called a monologue) begins at the five-minute mark; rehearsal footage takes up the first five minutes.

 

[ubertrout]

Looks like Channel is going to be releasing Ivan Fischer's recording of Das Lied von Der Erde on September 4th on stero/mch SACD, and presumably also as a download. As far as I know that's the last Mahler he has planned, with the 8th not being of interest: » Future Releases

As an aside, a mention of Das Lied has to remind people of this classic from Tom Lehrer.

 

[hirez]

Is there a new website for HRA? I just tried going to it but got nowhere.