Tír Na HiFi

Bizet – Symphony in C performed by Les Siecles/Roth....

I've been listening today to some of my favourite Monteverdi, Gluck and Schutz. First up was Rene Jacobs' wonderful recording of Monteverdi's 8th book of madrigals on Harmonia Mundi (which is unequalled in my view). Beautiful contributions from Maria Cristina Kiehr and Bernard Fink in particular and searingly passionate performances of Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda, Il ballo delle Ingrate, and Lamento della Ninfa. Following that was the great man's L'Orfeo as conducted by John Eliot Gardiner on DG Archiv. I don't believe I've ever heard a better Orfeo than Anthony Rolfe Johnson - it really is a fantastic performance. And then on to Gluck's masterpiece, Orfeo ed Eurydice, in Rene Jacobs' definitive version (Harmonia Mundi) with the ever-reliable Bernarda Fink and Maria Cristina Kiehr in performances of great passionate intensity. Finally, I've been listening to Paul Hillier's recent recording of Schutz's extraordinary Lukas-Passion on Da Capo. This really is a staggeringly intense performance that has continued to linger in my mind since I first heard it. It really does sound timeless and quite unlike anything else from the 17th century.

JSB – Cantatas BWV24 & BWV185 both for the Fourth Sunday after Trinity....

Some Organ blaster works this morning just to p*ss the neighbours off who came thundering in at 6am. Sweet.

^^ wait for their 'England V Germany' Barbie this afternoon, when they'll be inviting the neighbourhood round to quaff a few gallons of the black stuff, and wave their German flags around, enthusiastically... a great opportunity for you to join in with a rousing rendition of Beethoven's 9th, through your speakers ;-))

anyhow... Brahms Violin Concerto/ Double Concerto Mutter/ Karajan/ Meneses/ Berliner (DG) and all that...

Jared wrote:^^ wait for their 'England V Germany' Barbie this afternoon, when they'll be inviting the neighbourhood round to quaff a few gallons of the black stuff, and wave their German flags around, enthusiastically... a great opportunity for you to join in with a rousing rendition of Beethoven's 9th, through your speakers ;-))

LOL !!! Bad Boys !!!

Jared wrote:... Brahms ....Double Concerto ...

I have not listened to that work in quite a while so I must give it a listen soon....how do you like your version Jared?

Vivaldi – Gloria RV588....




I actually prefer the Gloria RV588 to the more popular Gloria RV589....it is more gentle and it contains some hauntingly beautiful music.

fergus wrote:Vivaldi – Gloria RV588....




I actually prefer the Gloria RV588 to the more popular Gloria RV589....it is more gentle and it contains some hauntingly beautiful music.

I really do think that Vivaldi's greatest achievement was in his sacred music. I haven't heard this version, Fergus, but I've always loved Robert King's recordings on Hyperion.

I started the day listening to some of my favourite Xenakis CDs.

First up was Aki Takahashi's stupendous performances of the complete solo piano works (available on Mode). And then I followed this up with an excellent 2-CD set on Naive (which I believe is a reissue of an earlier release on Montaigne) of the great man's chamber music as played by the ever-reliable Arditti Quartet who excel in this reportoire.

To my mind, Xenakis is one of the greats of the 20th century, a genuinely forward-thinking man who was never interested in working within any recognisable "tradition" (be it conservative or avant-garde) but who continued to follow his own personal muse which was grounded in his background in engineering and architecture. In his application of mathematics theory to music, he paved the way for the similarly free-thinking Anthony Braxton whose music is comparatively rewarding. Like much great music, Xenakis' work takes time to fully absorb and assimilate but the effort is amply rewarded.

I then followed this up with another 20th century master, Olivier Messiaen (who, incidentally, was the first to recognise the genius of Xenakis), and his masterpiece for piano, Vingt Regards sur L'Enfant-Jesus, as played by his wife, Yvonne Loriod, in a wonderful recording for Erato. Deeply spiritual music which, in an ideal recording like this, transcends any notions of mere pianistic virtuousity and simply transports the listener.