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Jose Echenique wrote:

bombasticDarren wrote:

Jared wrote:Unfortunately this undercurrent of anti-British bias has long been accepted on the other forum, which has always made me feel uncomfortable.. sure, PG, Gramophone and BBC have always had a slant in their preferences, but this is openly criticised and derided too often.

Fergus & Sean: I've been back over to have a look recently, and I have to say that in reading through a few threads, I find the atmosphere to be worse now than it has ever been... I don't think I'd get much out of returning, to be honest.

I haven't visited that forum in ages. No need. I liked a few of the contributors but some of the more vocal members were just too vocal for me. Trying to impress each other too much most likely. I don't mind other people having different opinions to mine, but I really don't need to feel silly for liking certain stuff. Anyway, if you want a real scrap try a Doctor Who forum!

I have to agree that the other Forum has some very opinionated people. What I felt was very weird (to put it mildly) is that someone had the NERVE to criticize something he has not even heard: "Another Beethoven period instruments fiasco" is the title of the thread, based on a POSITIVE Gramophone review.
It is (needless to say) ridiculous to imply that ALL English people favor period performance practice...maybe because they are passionless, boneless...or whatever?
Hell, traditionally the Dutch and the Germans are the most enthusiastic about period performance, and now the Italians are all over the place.

and lest we forget, Paddy loves them too.

The Americans still seem to relate vibrato with passion. No vibrato: cold and empty. Lots of vibrato: passionate and warm.
Sigh, too much Coca-Cola and Big Macs.

Still dear Darren and Jared, I urged you both to drop every now and then to CMG just to affirm your loyalty to the Queen and make those guys mad!!!!

and just to be awkward I changed the title of my post on the thread to: "Another interesting Beethoven Period Instrument cycle". ;)

Bartok - Concerto for Orchestra (Charles Dutoit, Orchestre symphonique de Montreal, Decca)

de Falla - El sombrero de tres picos (Raquel Lojendio/Juanjo Mena, BBC Philharmonic, Chandos)

^^^ read some very good reviews of that disk Darren, but I'm not at all familiar with Falla's music as yet... can you give me a quick description of his style and whether you also find the performance persuasive?

anyone who has been reading my facebook page this week (thanks Sean and Pepe for your continued encouragement here...) will know that I have really been enjoying this purchase, which has found it's way into my player, once more..

^^ you really would like that book on album covers, Fergus... ;-)

Jared wrote:^^ you really would like that book on album covers, Fergus... ;-)

I probably have a lot of the albums LOL!!!

Perhaps I should compile my own book LOL!!!

Jared wrote:^^^ read some very good reviews of that disk Darren, but I'm not at all familiar with Falla's music as yet... can you give me a quick description of his style and whether you also find the performance persuasive?

anyone who has been reading my facebook page this week (thanks Sean and Pepe for your continued encouragement here...) will know that I have really been enjoying this purchase, which has found it's way into my player, once more..

I wonder if Hyperion will record the rest of the Anthems. It would be a good idea since The Sixteen version is almost 30 years old.

The great Sir John Barbirolli only made 3 commercial opera recordings in his life: a Dido & Aeneas with Victoria de los Angeles, the incomparable M. Butterfly with Renata Scotto and Carlo Bergonzi, one of the greatest opera recordings of all time, and this 1969 Otello that has a story.
It was originally planned for Franco Corelli, who although never sang the role on stage, did learn the role for the recording. The Desdemona was going to be Montserrat Caballé, who in the late 60´s had an angelic voice.
As it turned out the great but unstable Corelli had cold feet at the last minute and quit. Caballé was singing Don Carlo at the Arena di Verona and broke a leg, so EMI in a panic hired American tenor James McCracken, who had a big voice but was a brute singing, and instead of the heavenñy pianissimos of la Caballé we got a Turandot for Desdemona. Only Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau survived from the intended cast.
The recording is obviously an historic document for Barbirolli´s conducting alone: a white hot, incandescent performance. It´s a pity that McCracken barks and Jones sounds as if she could have easily strangle Otello herself.
Years later Corelli admitted that it was a mistake to quit the recording. He sang the Otello duet next to Teresa Zylis-Gara under Karl Böhm at the 1972 Rudolf Bing Gala at the MET. And in the early 80´s sang "Niun mi tema" in a recital but with piano accompaniment.
What a tragedy it was for us and him to miss his Otello.

did Cabelle actually break a leg on stage, or elsewhere, during the time she was performing the role??