Tír Na HiFi

bombasticDarren wrote: I have only played the Schumann; and it was magnificent. No need to worry about the 1938 sound; the sound quality was very good and the playing was delicate and full of detail. I remember reading in Barbirolli's biography what a supportive conductor he was for soloists, and here is some good evidence of that quality.....

Thanks for that Darren....that one has caught my eye all right.

Jared wrote:

oh, someone throw me a lifeline here.... :-(

I really hope that no-one on this site thinks that occasionally, I put some French music on, just so that I can give it another bashing... I REALLY try to like it, and to understand its soundworld.... but frankly, I just don't. I really don't. Renee Fleming's voice is simply beyond criticism; her tone and expression are superb... but absolutely none of the material on this disk speaks to me on any level whatsoever... the Ravel is bad enough, but the Messiaen and Dutilleeux are absolutely unbearable.. about as pleasurable as someone scraping long finger nails down a chalk board. I really don't think I can put myself through another listen.

This makes me really quite sad, because I know I'm the only one who feels this, and therefore I must be missing something... but in all sincereity I can derive absolutely no pleasure from this disk, whatsoever...

Dear Jared,

Fleming obviously has a gorgeous voice, but she is not the ideal interpreter for these songs, they need a very peculiar and hard to describe French style, that either you have or not. Some American singers have had it, like Jenny Tourel, Frederica von Stade and Jessye Norman, but unfortunately Fleming is not one of them.
I have to say that the Ravel songs are marvelous, and I urge you not to give up on them. This EMI collection with wonderfully chosen singers is an absolutely MUST for everyone. You get Teresa Berganza singing a most erotic Sheherazade, and a spectacular Vocalise en forme d´Havanera that has to be heard to be believed. The great bass-baritone Jose van Dam is utterly extraordinary in the Don Quijote songs, and big, fat, wonderful Jessye Norman is the same in the daunting Madecasse songs. Sometimes one can get the wrong idea from a poor performance, that´s why it´s so important to get the very best versions available, but cross my heart, it would be a very sad thing to give up on Ravel´s marvelous songs:

^^ thanks for your thoughts Pepe.

The problem is that the gentleman who bought me this CD as a present two weeks ago, is firstly a reader in French & 20th Century classical music at the Birmingham Conservatoire. Secondly, he is one of the world's leading authorities on the life and music of Messiaen (click on the link to see a couple of his books)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_nos ... ngle&ajr=0

and thirdly, he is a reviewer for BBC Music Magazine, for which he has just writtena 5 star review of this disk, and believes it to be one of the finest recordings of Messiaen's Poemes ever made....

when he was here 2 weeks ago, he was as fascinating to listen to on the structure of Haydn's Piano Sonatas (which I was traversing through at the time) as he was on Stravinsky's Rite, which James will be introducing to us, this summer.

I think all of this adds to my complete sense of frustration, that I not only don't understand or appreciate any modern French music, but that it is one of the few things which I find utterly painful to my ears, makes me nauseous and I simply have to turn it off... I know all of these guys are fed up of hearing it, but all of this makes me very sad....

After the conversation yesterday I had another listen to the Scriabin Piano Concerto:



At the risk of sounding like I'm harping on (!) it seemed even better than I remembered it. So beautiful.

Beethoven - Overture and Incidental Music to Goethe's 'Egmont' (Sylvia McNair/Will Quadflieg/Kurt Masur, New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Warner Apex)

Jared wrote:^^ thanks for your thoughts Pepe.

The problem is that the gentleman who bought me this CD as a present two weeks ago, is firstly a reader in French & 20th Century classical music at the Birmingham Conservatoire. Secondly, he is one of the world's leading authorities on the life and music of Messiaen (click on the link to see a couple of his books)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_nos ... ngle&ajr=0

and thirdly, he is a reviewer for BBC Music Magazine, for which he has just writtena 5 star review of this disk, and believes it to be one of the finest recordings of Messiaen's Poemes ever made....

when he was here 2 weeks ago, he was as fascinating to listen to on the structure of Haydn's Piano Sonatas (which I was traversing through at the time) as he was on Stravinsky's Rite, which James will be introducing to us, this summer.

He's quite an interesting gentleman.

I think all of this adds to my complete sense of frustration, that I not only don't understand or appreciate any modern French music, but that it is one of the few things which I find utterly painful to my ears, makes me nauseous and I simply have to turn it off... I know all of these guys are fed up of hearing it, but all of this makes me very sad....

Francophobia perhaps? Just kidding!

Seán wrote:Francophobia perhaps? Just kidding!

something like that Sean... I think I'll give up on French music post-Berlioz altogether... maybe come back to it in a decade's time; you lot will at least be spared all my moaning in the mean time!

Holst did indeed some other wonderful music besides the Planets

Mozart - Serenata notturna & March in D (Neville Marriner, Academy of St Martin in the Fields, Philips)

Telemann - Suite in A minor for recorder, strings and basso continuo (Frans Bruggen/Friedrich Tilegant, Sudwestdeutsches Kammerorchester, Warner Apex)