Tír Na HiFi

Coincidental with the talk of Bach's keyboard music as I have just finished this 3 CD set this evening....

^^ a great set, Fergus...

I think that Haydn Mass set by Hickox might just be my 'Desert Island' box set... I love it so much.

Been an absolute age since I've listened to Mahler's 2nd Symphony.

DaveF wrote:

Another great set!

CD1 from this new (2CD) purchase....





Symphony No. 1 has an interesting sound world with its dissonances and rhythms. I really like the orchestral textures in the slow movement. The final movement finishes with an uncharacteristic pastoral like melody that somewhat jolts the listener due to its unexpected arrival.

In Symphony No. 2 one can immediately discern that this is a more mature and confident work than Symphony No. 1. It is however a dark work full of brooding and melancholy (particularly in the middle movement) almost descending into total despair. Self assurance and confidence return in the final movement and we culminate with something of a song of hope with a joyous chorale.

The opening movement of Symphony No. 3 is almost belligerent and aggressive and the slow movement is the complete antithesis being a beautiful, calming pastoral essay after the initial storm. This does descend to the dark side however in the middle of the movement but we eventually pull back from the brink. The final movement is essentially in two contrasting parts commencing with very severe language and culminating in an almost prayer like hymn.

Finishing off this evening with the short (11:32) but wonderful oboe concerto by Alessandro Marcello with its hauntingly beautiful slow movement....

arrived this morning, (most of it) played lunchtime.... lovely recording. I wonder why Buxtehude's Cantatas aren't better known or more frequently recorded actually... Fergus, do you have any thoughts on this?

Jared wrote:

arrived this morning, (most of it) played lunchtime.... lovely recording. I wonder why Buxtehude's Cantatas aren't better known or more frequently recorded actually... Fergus, do you have any thoughts on this?

Actually Buxtehude hasn´t fared too bad in the recording world. The first Buxtehude cantatas recordings go back to the late 50´s. None other than Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau made a lovely recording of cantatas for tenor and baritone with the wonderful tenor Georg Jelden for the Archiv label. In the 60´s little known groups made good recordings for the Kantate label. In the past years there have been plenty of wonderful recordings of the cantatas, including an especially beautiful one with Anima Eterna and Jos van Immerseel for Channel Classics, and of course, Ton Koopman is about to finish the first ever complete cycle of all the Buxtehude ouvre, including all the vocal works. I remember in the mid 80´s when Gardiner made his revelatory recording of Membra Jesu Nostri, the first ever recording of that cantata, now there are over 25 recordings!!!

Jose Echenique wrote:I remember in the mid 80´s when Gardiner made his revelatory recording of Membra Jesu Nostri, the first ever recording of that cantata, now there are over 25 recordings!!!

I remember coming across that in about 1995, having never heard of it. I bought it and adored it. I probably have ten recordings of Membra Jesu Nostri now, but I'm grateful to JEG for introducing me to it, though his recording would be unlikely to be the one I would choose to listen to now: I much prefer it OVPP.

Ciaran wrote:

Jose Echenique wrote:I remember in the mid 80´s when Gardiner made his revelatory recording of Membra Jesu Nostri, the first ever recording of that cantata, now there are over 25 recordings!!!

I remember coming across that in about 1995, having never heard of it. I bought it and adored it. I probably have ten recordings of Membra Jesu Nostri now, but I'm grateful to JEG for introducing me to it, though his recording would be unlikely to be the one I would choose to listen to now: I much prefer it OVPP.

There are so many -and fine- versions of this cantata that we all must have different favorites. My own personal is this with the Knabenchor Hannover. The children´s voices give a very special aura to the work, it is an almost mystical experience.