My Essential Classical Albums.

[Kal Rubinson]

Classic Mravinsky/Leningrad 4,5,6 set!!!

Many others but these are essential.

For a modern mch, try #6 with Honeck/Pittsburgh.

[Kal Rubinson]

6 hours ago, Musicophile said:

Personally I was intrigued by this review: 

 

https://www.gramophone.co.uk/review/tchaikovsky-symphony-no-6-currentzis

 

Currentzis is one of those musicians who never leave you cold. There are a lot of his recordings I really don’t like, but maybe this will be the record that finally could be my entry point for no. 6. 

I think it is an awfully insensitive and manipulative performance and a terrible-sounding recording.  Others differ.  There was a whole thread on this at:  https://www.stereophile.com/content/devastating-tchaikovsky-sixth

[Kal Rubinson]

28 minutes ago, Musicophile said:

Currentzis seems to be able to do only love it or hate it recordings. I was typically more in the hate it camp. But recently started liking his Mahler 6 somewhat. 

I have not yet found an exception to ABC (Anybody But Currentzis).  

[Kal Rubinson]

35 minutes ago, sphinxsix said:

Are they so good? What about SQ?

Excellent but stereo only.

[Kal Rubinson]

6 hours ago, AnotherSpin said:

I was thinking about Holloway, whom I was listening quite a long time ago. Something was not quite right to me with his version or Rosenkranz, maybe it was not performance, but something else, sound maybe.

Yup.  I am also a Biber fan.  I have several mch recordings but the stereo-only recordings of these sonatas that I have are the Manze and the Holloway (one of John Atkinson's school-chums, btw).  This from a recent loudspeakerspeaker review:  

I have two recordings of Biber's Mystery Sonatas for Violin by Andrew Manze (2 CDs, Harmonia Mundi 907321/22), and by John Holloway (2 CDs, Virgin Veritas 7 59551 2, footnote 1). The small, accompanying basso-continuo ensembles on these recordings are similar, but their sounds are entirely different. I always hear Manze's violin right between the speakers; Holloway is farther back and less distinct, tempting me to turn up the volume. Through the Revels, it was clear that Manze was, in fact, much closer to the recording microphones than was Holloway, thus making it possible for me to easily distinguish between ensemble and ambience. Because Holloway and his ensemble were farther from the mikes, it was impossible for me dissociate their sounds from the ambiance, regardless of how loudly I played this recording.
Read more at https://www.stereophile.com/content/revel-performa-f228be-loudspeaker-page-2#QZ8vWJG7o7pqT4xO.99

[Kal Rubinson]

Here you go.

[Kal Rubinson]

Does anyone know this one?

[Kal Rubinson]

3 minutes ago, sphinxsix said:

A digression - during one of the concerts I was sitting 3m from a lead sopranist of a (very good) choir. I had a simple reflection while listening to the music in these circumstances - no stereo system is able to reproduce the nuance of a soprano being that close to the listener and the acoustics of a big gothic church at the same time in a fully convincing way. I couldn't help thinking that with some music the multi channel reproduction might be the only way to go. I think @Kal Rubinson could comment on it.

I think you have already done so.  OTOH, one of the most elusive elements, even for multichannel, is real proximity.  

[Kal Rubinson]

8 minutes ago, sphinxsix said:

.........but IMO back then in case of rock or jazz mch reproduction tended to destroy quite lots of nuance in comparison to stereo) that with other genres (not classical music) the multichannel reproduction might create more problems than advantages. What's your opinion on that?

Prior to SACD (and DVD-A), all multichannel was in lossy, compressed formats so your observation is probably accurate.  However, the shoe is now on the other foot.  Modern multichannel is as high in resolution/detail/dynamics as any stereo media and has the additional benefit of expanded spatial definition.

[Kal Rubinson]

2 hours ago, sphinxsix said:

How about rock and jazz mch recordings - what kind of venue acoustics do they render (small/medium size clubs, stadiums.?).

I am guessing that live recordings can do that.   As ever, it will depend on the particular recording team.  Most of my experience is with classical recordings.  

 

2 hours ago, sphinxsix said:

And what about realism of mch productions in general (concerning venue acoustics)?

General is too general.  Again, I can only say that the majority of classical do it pretty well.

[Kal Rubinson]

1 hour ago, Bob Stern said:

An entire scene of the Ernie Kovacs Show was devoted to the eerie 2nd movement:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjXHgqkc5uY

He also did a brilliant animated play set to Jancek's Sinfonietta.

[Kal Rubinson]

49 minutes ago, Bob Stern said:

 

Can’t seem to find an archive of that online.

Can't help you with that.  I can still picture it.

[Kal Rubinson]

23 minutes ago, Bob Stern said:

Can we do a Vulcan mind meld?

Unfortunately, there is too much else in there that I would not want others to see.