What are you listening two?

[Seán]

Macbook on my lap and Herreweghe on the Primare, lovely.



Johann Sebastian Bach
Easter Oratorio BWV 249
Collegium Vocale Gent
Barbara Schlick, Kai Wessel, James Taylor, Peter Kooy
Peter Herreweghe - conducting.

This is gorgeous music, beautifully played.

[Jose Echenique]

It´s been a while since I heard this recording, it´s only one of 2 with period instruments, the other is with Christoph Spering in OPUS111. Marcus Creed has an excellent chamber chorus and the admirable Akademie für Alte Musik in their still only XIX Century music recording. It´s wonderful, Creed doesn´t shy away from the operatic overtones of the work, and he has a mostly excellent vocal quartet, with the marvelous Krassimira Stoyanova in one of her first recordings (now she is one of the most important sopranos around). The Myung Whun-Chung recording in DG still gets my vote as the finest around, but this could easily take second place, it ´s very good.

The Rossini Stabat Mater is not a work that I have ever warmed to for some reason Pepe. Bephaps it is because of those very "operatic overtones" that you mention. And yes, before you ask, I have had the Myung Whun-Chung recording for many years but it obviously gets little play time. Perhaps I should give it another listen soon.

Give it more time dear Fergus, because operatic overtones or not, it´s a mighty masterpiece. When you come to think of it, there are operatic overtones even in Pergolesi´s and Alessandro Scarlatti´s versions, operatic according to the conventions of their time of course, but operatic none the less. Rossini said: The good Lord will forgive me if I compose in the operatic manner, he made me for opera buffa!!!!

Happy Easter to you and all the Forum members!!!!

[Seán]

Happy Easter to you and all the Forum members!!!!

and a very happy Easter to you to Pepe, enjoy the birthday celebrations.

[Jose Echenique]

Happy Easter to you and all the Forum members!!!!

and a very happy Easter to you to Pepe, enjoy the birthday celebrations.

I am Seán, ha, ha, have you seen how many new recordings I posted this week?, LOL.

[Jose Echenique]

And they are not over yet. Zelenka´s Missa Paschalis gets it´s first recording, and what a masterpiece it is!!! The accompanying Litaniae Omnium Sanctorum is also a marvel.
Excellent recording from the Prague Baroque Soloists. The Czech get better and better in HIP.

[Jose Echenique]

Juan Diego Flórez´last recital appeared in 2011, and his last complete opera recording on audio dates from even further back, though some operas on video have appeared in the last couple of years. I´ve wondered if he parted company with DECCA, who knows.
This French opera arias recital was recorded last year, and it´s immediately obvious that the voice has changed. Now the high C´s, so easy in his prime are now more effortful and strained, they are still there, but not as easy as they once were. The recital is well planned, with 2 big arias from Boieldieu´s La Dame Blanche, and a repast of Adam, Berlioz, Donizetti, Bizet, Delibes, Offenbach and Massenet.

[Seán]

Johann Sebastian Bach
Easter Oratorio
Bach Collegium Japan
Masaaki Suziki - conducting.
Beautifully recorded as always by BIS, it is an interesting performance butt I prefer Herreweghe's.

[fergus]

This is wonderful, charming, flamboyant, exciting and melodious music. Vieuxtemps wrote seven Violin Concertos which are not only technically excellent but which make for really good, accessible and exciting listening. It really is wonderful music!

[Seán]

This is wonderful, charming, flamboyant, exciting and melodious music. Vieuxtemps wrote seven Violin Concertos which are not only technically excellent but which make for really good, accessible and exciting listening. It really is wonderful music!

Hi Fergus, this is another new one on me. I have listened to excerpts on Amazon and Vieuxtemps music and these performances are very appealing indeed.

[fergus]

Hi Fergus, this is another new one on me. I have listened to excerpts on Amazon and Vieuxtemps music and these performances are very appealing indeed.

I am pleased that you liked the samples that you listened to Seán. I "discovered" Vieuxtemps a number of years back and I went out and bought three CDs of his Violin Concertos on the Naxos label shortly afterwards. They are well played and recorded and were a great introduction to these works. The set above came much later as I wanted a second complete cycle in my collection. He is definitely a composer worth exploring particularly if one is interested in violin music.