What are you listening to?

[Seán]

On the TT tonight....





I have long advocated the Shostakovich String Quartets as magnificent works well worth investigating for those who are not all that familiar with them. The above compilation is very well played indeed. I find these works fascinating as they are very private and personal to the composer. All of his innermost thoughts are there and they can be so very expressive.

I have the Borodin SQ set, I must blow the dust off them and listen to them again.

[Seán]

Well, I am very familiar with the Christmas Oratorio, I listened to the first three parts this afternoon and this version really does have the WOW factor, it is hugely enjoyable. Thanks again to Jared for the recommendation and to Fergus for his continuing endorsement of JEG, Fergus, I am convinced, he is the man!

[mcq]

hmm... I must be the only one listening to some great music this afternoon...

That's a great disc, Jared.  Gastinel is one of the great modern cellists, in my opinion.  Her recordings of the Beethoven cello sonatas (with Francois-Frederic Guy) are exceptional, as are any of her recital discs with pianist Claire Desert.  I'm particularly fond of her Schubert - one of the great Arpeggiones and some intoxicatingly beautiful transcriptions of the lieder. Her most recent disc of cello sonatas by Franck, Debussy and Poulenc is also highly recommended.  But most of all, do try and listen to her version of the Bach cello suites.  Very, very special.  In a decade that's seen standout performances of these masterpieces from her French contemporaries Queyras and Gaillard, I keep returning to Gastinel's traversal of these suites. There's a sense of studied contemplation to her playing which - somehow - never impedes the dancelike flow of this timeless music. I'm hoping she'll record the Britten cello suites for the great man's anniversary year.  There's an understated lightness of touch to her playing married with a sense of contemplative grace that I find particularly affecting.  Her version of the Elgar concerto is the polar opposite of Du Pre's - more introspective, not so outwardly expressive but just as powerful in conveying the emotional weight of the piece.

[Diapason]

Well, I am very familiar with the Christmas Oratorio, I listened to the first three parts this afternoon and this version really does have the WOW factor, it is hugely enjoyable. Thanks again to Jared for the recommendation and to Fergus for his continuing endorsement of JEG, Fergus, I am convinced, he is the man!

And I, on the other hand, would be most familiar with the B minor mass. Having bought the Parrott when I was in my teens I've always wondered if the Gardiner could possibly better. As it turns out, I think it is. They're both cut from the same cloth, you couldn't go wrong with either, but I'll listen to Gardiner more I suspect. Such GORGEOUS music.

[fergus]

Well, I am very familiar with the Christmas Oratorio, I listened to the first three parts this afternoon and this version really does have the WOW factor, it is hugely enjoyable. Thanks again to Jared for the recommendation and to Fergus for his continuing endorsement of JEG, Fergus, I am convinced, he is the man!

It took me how many years of being like the broken record Seán but I eventually got you there in the end LOL!!!

I know that you have just bought a 9 CD set but one other CD that YOU need is the Gardiner version of Bach's Magnificat just to add to those "big" works.

Anyway enjoy the box set!

[fergus]

Tonight on CD....

[Diapason]

I don't remember the last time I listened to the entire B minor mass in one sitting, but I've just done exactly that. For many of you this probably wouldn't be a big deal, but I'm actually proud of myself!

[fergus]

Well done Simon; an achievement in itself!

You mentioned the Parrott version earlier....I must dig that one out soon and give it a listen. Perhaps I could challenge myself to go one better than you by listening to the Garginer and Parrott successively!!! Probably not when I think of it LOL!!

[Diapason]

That might be a step too far!

I preferred Gardiner in the Kyrie and Gloria, but I'd probably prefer Parrot's Credo, Sanctus, etc. Anyway, a most enjoyable listen.

[mcq]

But aren't we blessed to have so many great interpretations to enjoy at will.  To my mind, there is no "best" version - there only ever exists the version that you listen to in the here and now and which sustains you in the present moment and from which you derive spiritual nourishment.  And each successive listening of favoured interpretations feeds into our subjective and ever-incremental understanding of the work.  And yet, I personally find it astonishing that the sum of knowledge that we learn from a lifetime of listening to a great artistic work - however life-enhancing and rewarding this experience may be - pales in comparison to the instant comprehension of the musical and emotional architecture of the work  in the composer's mind over a relatively short space of time.