Tír Na HiFi

Respighi - Pini di Roma (Constantin Silvestri, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, BBC Legends)

first listen to this,





it seems to a touch more lyrical than this version



still.... two of my favourite interpreters and labels....

just have twait until Noel gets me a new tweeter before I can report properly on sq....

stuck with the zeppelin for the moment.... besides, the man cave is like a sub-zero fridge at the moment!!!

If we could bring back a music lover from the mid 18 Century, the first thing that would surprise him (besides TV and Ferraris) is the total neglect of 2 of the most popular and admired composers of his time: Johann Adolf Hasse and Niccoló Jommelli. Both were master composers, at least in the Gluck level, and though both are making a slow comeback, we are still a long way from having enough recordings of either.

Armida Abbandonata was one of Jommelli´s greatest operas, and we are fortunate to have a truly great recording of it, even if it was one of the reasons that the FNAC label went out of business shortly after they recorded it (it was a very expensive recording).
In the title role there is the excellent Polish soprano Ewa Malas-Godlewska, who I presume had a short career. Besides this you can also hear her in the Farinelli film soundtrack where her voice was mixed with countertenor Derek Lee Ragin´s.
Jommelli composed in the late baroque style that was soon to be reformed by Gluck in the 1760´s, the arias are long, demanding and elaborate, but the music is divine, this is obviously a major composer.
Christophe Rousset, a fervent admirer of Jommelli, conducts lovingly. This is a most important and valuable recording.
NAXOS is issuing soon Hasse´s version of the same story with the same libretto. I can´t wait to hear HIS Armida Abbandonata and compare it to Jommelli´s.

Britten - Piano Concerto & Johnson Over Jordan Suite (Joanna MacGregor/Steuart Bedford, English Chamber Orchestra, Naxos)

R Strauss - Ein Heldenleben (Wolfgang Sawallisch, Philadelphia Orchestra, EMI)

Haydn - Symphony No.17 (Roy Goodman, The Hanover Band, Hyperion)

Good to get the vinyl spinning again! I like this even with a bit of fizz and pop....

I love Bernarda Fink's voice...