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eClassical Christmas Calendar 2015


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Well, they were recorded about the time that BIS was experimenting with DSD, and unlike the recordings from the periods immediately before and after, they are available on eClassical in 24/88.2. In several cases I can confirm the extended bandwidth of the files. Now, RvB has commented that they had a rather negative experience trying to record and edit in DSD. I can easily imagine that several albums were recorded in DSD and then edited, in 24/88.2, after they gave up on DSD. It's less plausible that they would have recorded the first three volumes of the Beethoven in 88.2 just when they were trying out DSD, and edited them in the native format, but then had technical reasons to switch the series to 24/44.1.

 

The only definitive evidence on the nature of the master would be a spectrogram of the SACD rip showing either musical content above 44 kHz or evidence of a 44-kHz brickwall. Unfortunately, I am not equipped to rip my SACDs, and the one BIS album I have in DSD-sourced 24/176 had enough quantization noise by 44 kHz that no musical features showed up on the spectrogram, so I don't suppose the evidence is forthcoming.

In any case, my recommendation is unchanged: for any album recorded in PCM at 24/44.1, there are compelling technical reasons to prefer the 24-bit download over the SACD, but for anything recorded in DSD or 24/88.2 and converted to the other, availability of MCH is a far more important consideration than format conversions.

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Shostakovich piano trio 2

 

This is one of the absolute greatest works by Shostakovich. I must confess I didn't buy this recording by Freddy Kempf Trio because I already have 5 others, but it is an inexpensive place to start if you don't already own the work.

 

I recommend buying only the four tracks (i.e., Trio 2), not the entire album. Trio 1 was written when he was only 16. The Schnittke is acerbic and not one of his best works, IMO.

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The Melnikov Schumann concerto today is worth having, see my review here: Captivating Period Schumann from Alexander Melnikov | musicophilesblog – From Keith Jarrett to Johannes Brahms

 

Does anybody have the Sudbin Rachmaninov? I'm very tempted.

i ended up buying the Sudbin. At $6 I just couldn't resist. It's very nice.

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I have the recording of Sudbin. When I listened for the first time Rach piano sonata n. 2 I bought some recommended recordings and this was one of them. Very nice.

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Mac mini 2.3 Ghz i7 16gb Ram with Mojo Audio Joule III PSU(2T SSD) -> Audioquest Diamond USB -> dCS Vivaldi DAC (Shunyata Alpha Digital) -> Transparent XL Gen5 XLR -> Classé CA-M600 -> Audioquest OAK single biwire -> B&W 802D3. Software: Mac OSX El Captain, Audirvana 2.2, Amarra Symphony IRC, Roon. Storage: Lacie 5big Network 2 5T. Power Conditioner: Shunyata Triton + Typhon.

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I listened to the Sudbin Rachmaninov, which I got a few days ago, and found it very good. In terms of interpretation, my preference remains to Horowitz in the big Carnegie Hall box for these pieces, but of course Sudbin benefits from much better sound quality.

Agree, it's a very nice recording. I'm very happy to have it, especially for $6.

 

The Bezuidenhout Mozart today was on my list of my Must-Have Mozart albums. Highly recommended:

 

My Must-have Mozart Albums | musicophilesblog – From Keith Jarrett to Johannes Brahms

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I ended up buying the Mozart (already had the Schumann), as I didn't yet have a nice contemporary version of the flute concertos. The snippets were interesting enough to justify spending $8. Downloading now.

 

Thanks for your daily commentaries/tips, they are helpful. I haven't actually jumped on any of these deals, I either already had the recordings or else just didn't feel compelled (all of these purchases begin to add up after a while). I am still hoping that we might see the Suzuki Bach organ disc that I failed to buy when it first came out, still kicking myself for that one.

 

I did purchase the Mackerras Mozart 38 - 41 (Linn, 24/88) based on your Blog despite already having his Telarc set. A good choice and not a bad deal at essentially $12 per disc.

Main System: [Synology DS216, Rpi-4b LMS (pCP)], Holo Audio Red, Ayre QX-5 Twenty, Ayre KX-5 Twenty, Ayre VX-5 Twenty, Revel Ultima Studio2, Iconoclast speaker cables & interconnects, RealTraps acoustic treatments

Living Room: Sonore ultraRendu, Ayre QB-9DSD, Simaudio MOON 340iX, B&W 802 Diamond

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I ended up buying the Mozart (already had the Schumann), as I didn't yet have a nice contemporary version of the flute concertos. The snippets were interesting enough to justify spending $8. Downloading now.

I'm very happy with the Mozart, Bezaly is playing beautifully, and the recording quality is, as usual with BIS, very nice (DR12-16). A nice alternative to my go to version so far, Emmanuel Pahud with Abbado and the BPO.

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Good, i was thinking in getting this recording...

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Mac mini 2.3 Ghz i7 16gb Ram with Mojo Audio Joule III PSU(2T SSD) -> Audioquest Diamond USB -> dCS Vivaldi DAC (Shunyata Alpha Digital) -> Transparent XL Gen5 XLR -> Classé CA-M600 -> Audioquest OAK single biwire -> B&W 802D3. Software: Mac OSX El Captain, Audirvana 2.2, Amarra Symphony IRC, Roon. Storage: Lacie 5big Network 2 5T. Power Conditioner: Shunyata Triton + Typhon.

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[...]

I am still hoping that we might see the Suzuki Bach organ disc that I failed to buy when it first came out, still kicking myself for that one.[...]

 

You're thinking of the Masaaki Suzuki plays Buxtehude? It's a gem, but I fear you may have missed it when it popped up as a Daily Deal a few days ago. On the other hand, certainly worth buying at regular $14 price

2013 MacBook Pro Retina -> {Pure Music | Audirvana} -> {Dragonfly Red v.1} -> AKG K-702 or Sennheiser HD650 headphones.

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You're thinking of the Masaaki Suzuki plays Buxtehude? It's a gem, but I fear you may have missed it when it popped up as a Daily Deal a few days ago. On the other hand, certainly worth buying at regular $14 price

 

Yes, that one does look interesting, however I was referring to the one below. I have so many Bach organ discs that I originally passed on this. After I read the reviews I regretted not grabbing it up.

 

4955442-origpic-2f8068.jpg

eClassical - Bach ? Organ Works

Main System: [Synology DS216, Rpi-4b LMS (pCP)], Holo Audio Red, Ayre QX-5 Twenty, Ayre KX-5 Twenty, Ayre VX-5 Twenty, Revel Ultima Studio2, Iconoclast speaker cables & interconnects, RealTraps acoustic treatments

Living Room: Sonore ultraRendu, Ayre QB-9DSD, Simaudio MOON 340iX, B&W 802 Diamond

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@Axiom05: The Pastorale from the Bach/Suzuki album is beautiful. You might want to spring for that at full price. In the famous D-minor Toccata & Fugue, the Toccata is an interesting, slightly unconventional, non-grandiose interpretation.

HQPlayer (on 3.8 GHz 8-core i7 iMac 2020) > NAA (on 2012 Mac Mini i7) > RME ADI-2 v2 > Benchmark AHB-2 > Thiel 3.7

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Yes, that one does look interesting, however I was referring to the one below. I have so many Bach organ discs that I originally passed on this. After I read the reviews I regretted not grabbing it up.

 

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eClassical - Bach ? Organ Works

I did know about this one. But having played the Buxtehude everyday since I purchased it, this is now on my radar.

2013 MacBook Pro Retina -> {Pure Music | Audirvana} -> {Dragonfly Red v.1} -> AKG K-702 or Sennheiser HD650 headphones.

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"Islamey" by Balikirev is famous for being exceptionally difficult to play. Freddy Kempf's is the only performance I know that makes the piece coherent rather than a flurry of notes. The best part of the piece is the middle, which is pretty. The beginning and end are flashy and repetitious.

 

Kempf's "Pictures" is average, neither great nor poor. I find his "Gaspard" lacking in atmosphere.

 

My favorite "Pictures at and Exhibition" is the exceptionally nuanced performance by Georgy Tchaidze, recorded at the Banff (Canada) Center for the Performing Arts, on the Honens label:

 

Medtner, Prokofiev, Mussorgsky - Georgy Tchaidze Plays Medtner & Mussorgsky - Amazon.com Music

HQPlayer (on 3.8 GHz 8-core i7 iMac 2020) > NAA (on 2012 Mac Mini i7) > RME ADI-2 v2 > Benchmark AHB-2 > Thiel 3.7

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You're thinking of the Masaaki Suzuki plays Buxtehude? It's a gem, but I fear you may have missed it when it popped up as a Daily Deal a few days ago. On the other hand, certainly worth buying at regular $14 price

 

+1 on the Suzuki Buxtehude! Striking performance.

 

I've been waiting to see if the new Stile Antico Christmas album would come up, and it's here today: eClassical - A Wondrous Mystery: Renaissance Choral Music for Christmas

 

4961095-origpic-5c757b.jpg

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