What are you listening two?

[Jose Echenique]

Just received this today. Every new recording with Les Muffatti is an event, and it´s hardly a surprise that this is exquisite. Keiser is of course a well known composer by now, with his opera Croesus magnificently recorded by René Jacobs, but I honestly think this is the finest music I have heard yet by him, or at least the performance is so good that it seems so. There was a Markus Passion by him recorded in the Christophorus label a long time ago, but I always thought it rather uninteresting. Maybe the provincial recording didn´t do it justice, but this is quite simply something else, magnificent.

[Jose Echenique]

This is the second recording in the Les Arts Florissants label. Like the Belshazzar, it´s beautifully presented, in a gorgeous box and with 2 booklets.
Les Arts Florissants has a program to train talented young singers in the very difficult to teach French Baroque style, and after 3 or 4 years of working with them, William Christie tours with them and makes a cd. The program includes composers like obviously Rameau, Dauvergne and Montéclair and extends to Glück. A treat!

[markof]

[Jose Echenique]

I loved everything about that recording, except...Cecilia Bartoli. Often she tries too hard, and at worst she tries to impose, and she is not even the greatest voice in the recording, that´s countertenor Franco Fagioli.

[Jose Echenique]

Emma Matthews is Australia´s best kept secret. She is easily one of the greatest sopranos around, but sings almost only in Australia and New Zealand. She has sung at Covent Garden and some other important opera houses, but because of her family she stays mostly at home. Our loss, because she is far better than many famous names I can think of...and she is rather pretty, isn´t she?

[Jose Echenique]

Reynaldo Hahn is better remembered as Marcel Proust´s lover, but he was also a most able and notable composer. He wrote many songs and mélodies, and a few operettas, but I am very fond of his piano and violin concertos.

[Jose Echenique]

A true rarity. Grétry belonged like Gossec to the generation of composers that suffered the French Revolution. His Guillaume Tell couldn´t of course compete with Rossini´s, a much, much greater masterwork. But it´s interesting and nice. The live recording from the RoyalOpera of Wallonie is acceptable, but at this point a Minkowski rather than a Scimone was needed to do it justice.

[Seán]

For the past month or so I have listened to the 29th on a daily basis and have, on occasion, included the 25th & 30th as well. This is gorgeous music.

Interesting Seán; Mozart's 29th has been a particular favourite of mine for a long time. You are correct; it is gorgeous music and that particular Symphony has something special to it.

It is an every day event Fergus, I love Mozart's 29th and this performance in particular. I have listened to most of the symphonies in this set and stopped on the 29th and haven't moved on beyond this cd in the set, with 25, 29 & 30 for almost two months now.

[Seán]

I have several recordings of the lovely Octet in my collection but none are on period instruments.

If you love the Octet dear Seán, (and obviously you do), you should add a period version to your collection. There are several, as far back as the 70´s members of the Collegium Aureum recorded it for DHM, and then came versions with members of the Academy of Ancient Music and others, but L´ Archibudelli is the one I like best. Viktoria Mullova and friends also made a very curious recording for ONYX, some use period instruments and others don´t, but the feel is still very HIP.

Thanks Pepe, to my shame I am unfamiliar with L´ Archibudelli you may have solved my problem on what to do with my amazon vouchers:


http://www.amazon.fr/gp/product/B009EJS ... F763HEH5O2

and this:


http://www.amazon.fr/gp/product/B0065HD ... F763HEH5O2

[Jose Echenique]

L´ Archibudelli was founded by master cellist Anner Bylsma and his violinist wife Vera Beths. These are extraordinary musicians and all their recordings are superb, so both boxes are self recommending. I promise you won´t be disappointed.