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My Essential Classical Albums.


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Just now, EuroChamp said:

 

I am sure, they are great. But I do not even know all three of them ... (

 

For the Mozart VC3, I would select the Isabelle Faust, Il Giardino Armonico (Giovanni Antonini) from 2016.

All in all I have 11 versions in my database.

 

:)

 

Eleven, wow.

"Science draws the wave, poetry fills it with water" Teixeira de Pascoaes

 

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2 hours ago, semente said:

What are your performance suggestions for some of these great violin concertos?

 

For Bruch, Mendelssohn, Sibelius and Tchaikovsky I am happy with the following:

 

51LDHAGcQXL._SX355_.jpg

 

618BLxA-8GL._SY300_.jpg

 

41MREMQYKGL.jpg

 

R-4690962-1445793390-8738.jpeg.jpg

 

 

But about Bartok, Beethoven, Brahms & Mozart?

 

 

I couldn't tell you definitively, but I do love the Chung recordings. I have this one:

 

R-8473162-1462297739-7195.jpeg.jpg

 

Regarding the Sibelius, I don't have the Kavakos, but your mention of it will make me seek it out. I've seen Leonidas Kavakos perform it with the Berlin Philharmonic on the Digital concert hall, and he was amazing.

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4 hours ago, EuroChamp said:

Brahms: Violin Concerto in D Major, Op.77:

Arthur Grumiaux, New Philharmonia Orchestra (Colin Davis)

 

That's my favorite, too!  It isn’t mentioned that often in "best of" lists.

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Bartok #2 — Gil Shaham w Boulez & Chicago Sym on DG is fantastic.  Surprisingly good SQ too.

 

Even though you're happy with your Sibelius recording, you must get Heifetz' unique combination of fire and ice.  I have the stereo recording with Hendl conducting.  Even if you normally consider Heifetz too fast or glib, this one is exceptional.

 

Heifetz also did a fascinating, idiosyncratic Brahms with Reiner.  Very interesting ideas.  Definitely not glib.

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3 hours ago, austinpop said:

I do have the Hendl, and other Heifetz recordings.

 

But I have to admit, I tend to favor recording fidelity over "musicality," as I am no expert. Therefore I find the Heifetz recordings hard to listen to due to their poor SQ.

 

SQ is also very important for me. Nevertheless, the mentioned Heifetz SACD is my favorite. But I'm definitely not very familiar with Sibelius.

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8 hours ago, austinpop said:

 

I couldn't tell you definitively, but I do love the Chung recordings. I have this one:

 

R-8473162-1462297739-7195.jpeg.jpg

 

Regarding the Sibelius, I don't have the Kavakos, but your mention of it will make me seek it out. I've seen Leonidas Kavakos perform it with the Berlin Philharmonic on the Digital concert hall, and he was amazing.

 

I listened to him live playing Sibelius with Philadelphia some years ago. Wonderful!

"Science draws the wave, poetry fills it with water" Teixeira de Pascoaes

 

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6 hours ago, austinpop said:

I do have the Hendl, and other Heifetz recordings.

 

But I have to admit, I tend to favor recording fidelity over "musicality," as I am no expert. Therefore I find the Heifetz recordings hard to listen to due to their poor SQ.

 

Yes, Heifetz's violin sound harsh and toppy due to mic closeness and frequency response, which is a pity.

Apparently he used to call it "High-Phoey" 

"Science draws the wave, poetry fills it with water" Teixeira de Pascoaes

 

HQPlayer Desktop / Mac mini → Intona 7054 → RME ADI-2 DAC FS (DSD256)

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17 hours ago, semente said:

What are your performance suggestions for some of these great violin concertos?

 

For Bruch, Mendelssohn, Sibelius and Tchaikovsky I am happy with the following:

 

51LDHAGcQXL._SX355_.jpg

 

618BLxA-8GL._SY300_.jpg

 

41MREMQYKGL.jpg

 

R-4690962-1445793390-8738.jpeg.jpg

 

 

But about Bartok, Beethoven, Brahms & Mozart?

 

 

I love Isaac Stern with Ormandy/Philadelphia in Tchaikovsky and Mendelssohn concertos. He is able to hit just right spot between being too sentimental and too detached. His Tchaikovsky is "russian" in very correct proportion, imho.

 

Bartok - Stern again, Menuhin is very good. 

 

Sibelius - Kavakos, Zimmermann.  

 

Beethoven - Menuhin, Heifetz, Oistrakh/Cluytens.

 

Brahms - Heifetz, Oistrakh

 

 

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59 minutes ago, sphinxsix said:

I've just heard fragments of Bruckner 8 and 9th symphonies. Think I'm hooked.

Some Bruckner symphonies recommendations, guys.?

 

4th - Wand/Kolner

7th - Blomstedt/Dresden

8th - Wand/Kolner

9th - Giulini/Wiener

 

I really like the seldom mentioned Tintner's recordings for Naxos (4th, 5th, 7th, 9th).

"Science draws the wave, poetry fills it with water" Teixeira de Pascoaes

 

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27 minutes ago, Musicophile said:

 

First of all Wand: https://musicophilesblog.com/2015/09/11/my-favorite-bruckner-gunter-wands-late-recordings-with-the-berlin-philharmonic/

 

0886443300057_600.jpg

 

Other ones to note:

 

Abbado's last recording with the Lucerne Festival

 

Jochum with Staatskapelle Dresden

 

 

 

I must give those Berliner recordings a listen but I already have so many recordings of my favourite Bruckner symphonies that I always wonder if I need more.

The 7th is my preferred work, maybe I'll try that one... 

"Science draws the wave, poetry fills it with water" Teixeira de Pascoaes

 

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37 minutes ago, AnotherSpin said:

 

This is a huge topic, we could go number by number (symphonies). You may want to check the extremities - this may be Jochum (Dresden) and Chelibidache (Munich), from classic to zen, from articulated to eternal, and then explore more safe middle field. Wand is very safe. Barenboim is surprisingly good. Tintner, painful. Furtwangler, if you want to dive deep. Cabasta if you want to go really bizarre - Seventh's Adagio with him was played by German radio on Hitler's death announcement. Do not try Venzago right now, it may kill your interest. Forget Soviet versions for ever. Karajan is not so bad in 7th and 8th. If you want box, Skrowaczewski is all round good. 8th with Boulez and Haitink are very good. I prefer last three symphonies immensely, plus 3rd. But, really and happily, all Bruckner symphonies form an area nobody would cover or claim more or less finally. Happy discoveries!

Agree with most of your statements with the exception of calling Wand safe. I understand you are using this term to compare to the extremes like Celi, but Wand is so much more than safe.

 

This guy spent most of his life on Brückner, recording nearly three complete cycles. There is so much nuance and insight there. 

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I have several recordings of the 7th.

My favorites, in alphabetical order, are:

 

Blomstedt/Dresden

Giulini/Wiener

Matačić/Česká

Tintner/Scottish

"Science draws the wave, poetry fills it with water" Teixeira de Pascoaes

 

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When I started getting back into back classical a few years back.  I set out one defining purpose to cut through wherever it lead me.  Disregard all of the modern distractions and seek out new high quality recordings.  Let the artist(s) manage the expectations and encyclopedic knowledge.  Listen what they have to say.  

 

Among the first choices informed by this intrepid lack of second guessing was listening to the entire Simone Young Bruckner cycle on Oehms.  They are not fantastic, in the expressive sense of the word, but I find coming back to them without the inbuilt expectations or legacy informing long voiced opinions refreshing.  As of my visiting the page to link it here, the video had 58 plays in nearly 3 years.  I hope at least a few in constant attendance here will give it a chance and add a few more.

 

 

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15 hours ago, Musicophile said:

Wand is so much more than safe.

This guy spent most of his life on Brückner, recording nearly three complete cycles. There is so much nuance and insight there.

 

Some critics admire Wand and others consider him overrated.

 

I love Wand's 7th with Berlin Phil, but I find him dull in the 8th with both the Berlin Phil and Munich Phil (2000 on Profil).

 

In the 8th, Barenboim/Berlin Phil is more nuanced in the soft parts and much more ecstatic and grand in the loud parts than Wand.

 

Haitink's 9th with LSO is very good.

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1 hour ago, Bob Stern said:

 

Some critics admire Wand and others consider him overrated.

 

I love Wand's 7th with Berlin Phil, but I find him dull in the 8th with both the Berlin Phil and Munich Phil (2000 on Profil).

 

The 8th coincidentally  is my least favorite Bruckner symphony, I don't listen to it very often. 

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9 minutes ago, Musicophile said:

The 8th coincidentally  is my least favorite Bruckner symphony, I don't listen to it very often. 

+1

"Science draws the wave, poetry fills it with water" Teixeira de Pascoaes

 

HQPlayer Desktop / Mac mini → Intona 7054 → RME ADI-2 DAC FS (DSD256)

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