What are you listening to?

[Seán]

Igor Stravinsky
Pulcinella
Teresa Berganza (mezzo-soprano)
Ryland Davies (tenor)
John Shirley-Quirk (bass-baritone)
London Symphony Orchestra
Claudio Abbado - conducting.

These days it is difficult to avoid Maestro Abbado in my home, not that I want to mind, what with his Rossini recordings and now Stravinsky filling my room with sound. This is a gorgeous performance of Pulcinella and now for Petrushka.

[Jose Echenique]

Igor Stravinsky
Pulcinella
Teresa Berganza (mezzo-soprano)
Ryland Davies (tenor)
John Shirley-Quirk (bass-baritone)
London Symphony Orchestra
Claudio Abbado - conducting.

These days it is difficult to avoid Maestro Abbado in my home, not that I want to mind, what with his Rossini recordings and now Stravinsky filling my room with sound. This is a gorgeous performance of Pulcinella and now for Petrushka.

My favourite recordings of both works of course...Berganza & Abbado!!!!
Besides, I don´t think the LSO has sounded better EVER with anyone else.

[Seán]

I agree Pepe, the LSO sound is magnificent. Actually, Gergiev's Stravinsky with the LSO is fabulous too.

And after more Rossini, it's back to an old favourite of mine:



Nikolai Myaskovsky
Symphony no. 8
Russian State Symphony Orchestra
Evgeny Svetlanov - conducting.

[Jose Echenique]

I´m also listening to Abbado this morning. It´s a stunning live recording of Janacek´s From the House of the Dead, a live 1992 Salzburg Festival production that DG only made available in a large Grosses Festspielhaus box that is worth buying for this performance alone. It´s a marvelous opera too.

[fergus]

Earlier I listened to Richter playing Schubert's Wanderer Fantasie (vinyl)....





I recall reading somewhere recently that Schubert could not in fact play all of the passages that he wrote in the Wanderer Fantasie and got quite frustrated with that fact!

[fergus]

I listened to M4 from Reiner on CD....





....a strong, powerful performance.

[Seán]

I listened to M4 from Reiner on CD....





....a strong, powerful performance.

I love it.

[Seán]

Earlier I listened to Richter playing Schubert's Wanderer Fantasie (vinyl)....





I recall reading somewhere recently that Schubert could not in fact play all of the passages that he wrote in the Wanderer Fantasie and got quite frustrated with that fact!

I expect that Sviatoslav Richter played it with consummate ease.

[fergus]

I recall reading somewhere recently that Schubert could not in fact play all of the passages that he wrote in the Wanderer Fantasie and got quite frustrated with that fact!

I expect that Sviatoslav Richter played it with consummate ease.

Absolutely Seán....played with great passion and fluidity. It is a marvellous work and one can readily understand the composer's frustration of, having written such a wonderful piece, not being able to perform it adequately as he was such a genial character always entertaining his friends.

[fergus]

Finishing off with the Calrinet Concertino Op. 26 from Carl Maria Von Weber....





This may be a short work (at 9' 02") but it certainly packs it in as it has everything in miniature, so to speak! It is a very entertaining work.