Recent Purchases

[Seán]

That's a very good set, it is consistently good througout.

[DaveF]

That's a very good set, it is consistently good througout.

I hope so Seán! It will have to be extremely good to beat some of the Goodman and Hogwood versions that I have. I realise that the orchestra here will be very different sounding to the two I just mentioned so I'm curious as to how I'll find it.

[Seán]

That's a very good set, it is consistently good througout.

I hope so Seán! It will have to be extremely good to beat some of the Goodman and Hogwood versions that I have. I realise that the orchestra here will be very different sounding to the two I just mentioned so I'm curious as to how I'll find it.

I'm not sure if it will actually beat the period instrument ensembles into second place but what it will do is enable you to familiarise yourself with any and all of Haydn's symphonies performed by a very good orchestra at an affordable price.

[fergus]

That's a very good set, it is consistently good througout.

I hope so Seán! It will have to be extremely good to beat some of the Goodman and Hogwood versions that I have. I realise that the orchestra here will be very different sounding to the two I just mentioned so I'm curious as to how I'll find it.

I agree with Seán that they are consistently good performances throughout and are all played to a high standard. The sound is very different as you said Dave and I have a problem with the tempo of the slow movements throughout. I must confess that if I want to listen to a Haydn symphony I will reach for Goodman first so it will be interesting to see how you get on.

[fergus]

Jared tempted....



....and I finally bought!!

[Seán]

From the inimitable Michael Dervan in today's Irish Times:

London Symphony Orchestra/ István Kertész, Philharmonia Hungarica/Antal Doráti Decca Collectors Edition 476 2303 (4 CDs) ****


Decca served Hungarian composer Zoltán Kodály well over the years. This new collection brings together Decca’s recordings (from the 1960s and 1970s) of his mostly folksy, colourful and tuneful orchestral works under Antal Doráti, with István Kertész’s versions of the oratorio Psalmus Hungaricus and the musical numbers of Háry János , a Singspiel with a dependency on spoken text that has limited its appeal in the opera house. Decca solved the dialogue problem by hiring Peter Ustinov as a multi-voiced, summarising narrator with sound effects.
And the music is as instantly appealing as the selection in the popular Háry János Suite (also included) would lead you to expect. It’s a pity that this attractively-priced set has no libretto. See url.ie/4w4k

[fergus]

I finally managed to get around to buying this one....

[fergus]

[Seán]

I was in Tower today and bought these Savall Bach CDs:



and

[DaveF]

hmm I wonder if that is the same recording that Simon posted up 2 weeks ago. (The one that's due for release at the end of this month)