Early Celibidache on Spotify

Thanks to a post about Busoni’s Bereceuse élégiaque on a Dutch Facebook group, I could find this amazing collection of early Celibidache recordings. From 1945 till 1952 Celibidache was „principal conductor ad interim” of the Berlin Philharmonic orchestra, and shared the helm with Wilhem Fürtwangler till 1954. Then he was kicked out in favor of Herbert von Karajan…
I already heard some of these recordings on the shady, over filtered Quadraphone label, but through the post on the Facebook group I found first rate transfers on the Audite label. As metadata on Spotify lacks, I was very glad an extensive playlist (with date of recording!) could be found here on Musicweb international. Many unknown compositions, soloists, a killer Brahms 4 and a fascinating insight in the early career of Sergiu. Hope you will enjoy it as well!




http://open.spotify.com/user/otterhouse/playlist/0YvrRGC9rJF9gwcEMdOVqJ (HTTP link)

Quirine Viersen on Spotify - Hummel Beethoven Haydn Martinu

Confession. Last year I only bought two CD's. I know, support the artists, make sure CD's can still be made, but fact of the matter is, the last 20 years I bought more silver discs than I can listen to and services like YouTube, the MP3 based free Concerthuis concert archive, Concertzender and Spotify all have made it quite hard to buy new CD's... What I bought was at a concert of Dutch cellist Quirine Viersen, her Globe recording of all Bach's cello suites. In a masterclass she once had with Yo-Yo Ma, she played him one of the parts and after hearing it he prompted "can I marry you"? Well, She refused (how could she?? :-) and went on with her career.

Guess what? Not -everything- in on Spotify, the Bach Suite still have to be uploaded (but other Globe CD's are already there...)
 
For what ìs available on Spotify from Quirine I picked out a favorite work of mine, the cello sonata in A-major op 104 by Mozart/Haydn/Salieri pupil (talk about an education...!) Johann Nepomuk Hummel. It is said that this was one of the models for Brahms first sonata op 38. Pianist here is Silke Avenhaus. Then, the Haydn Cello concert in C- major and (because I love this weird work by the same composer) the 60'th symphony in C- major nicknamed "il distratto” or, "the confusion". I'm not a big fan of conductor Jan Willem de Vriend, but this is one of his better recordings. 
Finally, from an other CD with Silke Avenhaus, Beethoven’s 5th cello sonata in D-Major, op 102 and the „Slovaque variations” by Bohuslav Martinu.

Johann Nepomuk Hummel - Cello Sonata A-Major op 104
Quirine Viersen, Cello - Silke Avenhaus, Piano

Joseph Haydn - Cello concerto in C-Major
Symphony no 60 in C-Major "il distratto”
Quirine Viersen, Cello - Combattimento Concerto, Jan-Willem de Vriend

Ludwig van Beethoven - Cello sonata no 5 in D-Major op 102
Bohuslav Martinu - „Slovaque variations” for Cello and Piano
Quirine Viersen, Cello - Silke Avenhaus, Piano

Hope you will enjoy the recordings!

http://open.spotify.com/user/otterhouse/playlist/0EZZtt1FuExDZ62oj9VnKk

(HTTP link)

Concert Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra february 6 2014

From 6 till 8 February, the Rotterdam Philharmonic will be playing an ear-candy-like program, conducted by Stéphane Denève. Dukas L’apprenti sorcier is followed by Sjostakovitsj second piano concerto ( Lars Vogt as soloist ) and after the break selections from Prokofjev’s ballet Romeo en Julia.
I’ve put the program on Spotify:

-Track 01 Dukas L’apprenti sorcier
Rotterdam Philharmonic orchestra, Jean Fournet.

-Tracks 02-04 Sjostakovitsj Second piano concerto in F op 102
Dimitri Alexeev, Piano
English Chamber Orchestra, Jerzy Maksymiuk

-Tracks 05-13 Prokofiev selections from Romeo and Julia suites 2 and 3
London Symphony Orchestra, Claudio Abbado.

Enjoy!




https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0SKHfhkoUzSTWjNqLV6SBf?si=eb318900cce14337
(HTTP link)

 

Max Bruch and Karl Goldmark violin concertos on Spotify

Poor Max Bruch. He never got it. „Why do people love my 1st violin concerto while my 2nd concerto is just as good or even better” he once remarked. Maybe it’s the somewhat weird structure, the concerto opens with a slow movement; the second movement is a short fast piece and the last movement pulls hence and forward, that made it less accessible. After hearing this concerto Johannes Brahms remarked that „there should be a ban on concerto’s that open with a slow movement. Or maybe it’s because the concerto might be original, but just lacks the tunes…

That feeling becomes audible when you hear the opening of Karl Goldmark’s 1877 a minor violin concerto, till the 1950’s belonging to the standard violin repertoire. What it lacks in balance it compensates with memorable tunes…. Both concerto’s, Bruch 2nd and Goldmark’s 1st, are performed here by Nai-Yuan Hu and the Seattle symphony with Gerard Schwarz as conductor.
One of the true gem’s of the Delos back catalogue.

Ok, and rub it in, the two real masterpieces for violin and orchestra that Bruch wrote; the 1st violin concerto in g minor and the Scottish Fantasy op. 50. Here in a spirited and firm (orchestra ritornello’s!) performance by Yuzuko Horigome and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Yuri Simonov. A recording that appeared on the RPO’s own label in the 1990’s and received very positive reviews at that time.

Enjoy and discover!

Max Bruch: Violin concerto no 2 in d minor op 44
Karl Goldmark: Violin concerto no 1 in a minor op 28
Nai-Yuan Hu, violin
Seattle symphony 
Gerard Schwarz, conductor.

Max Bruch: Violin concerto no 1 in g minor op 26
Max Bruch: Scottish Fantasy op 50
Yuzuko Horigome, violin
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Yuri Simonov, conductor



http://open.spotify.com/user/otterhouse/playlist/25DI8u13iUQZ6y8tvZZvN7 (HTTP link)

Jill Crossland on Spotify

Happy 2014…!

Starting this year with an artist I discovered last year… pianist Jill Crossland.
On page 78 of the awards 2013 issue of the Gramophone I spotted an advert for the "devine art" label. Never bought a CD from them, but, was always curious about their artists. The new record by pianist Jill Crossland is not on Spotify yet, but her earlier CD's are.

First a selection from Jean Philippe Rameau’s Premier livre de pièces de clavecin, played on a modern piano. Played with a jazzy feel and fine characterization of the Rameau miniatures.
Then, a live concert given at Restoration House, Rochester, on the 1824 Jirikowsky fortepiano by Jill Crossland. On the Gramophone forum someone was very enthusiastic about the Scarlatti sonata on that CD and, yes, it’s a fine, crisp performance, just as the other items on that CD, by the way…!
Hope you will enjoy this fresh start of 2014 as well :-)

Jean Philippe Rameau - Premier livre de pièces de clavecin (modern piano)
Domenico Scarlatti - Sonata in E major Kk 380 (1824 fortepiano)
Johann Sebastian Bach - English suite No. 3 in g minor BWV 808 (1824 fortepiano)
Johann Sebastian Bach - Fantasia in C BWV 906 (1824 fortepiano)
Johann Sebastian Bach - Preludes and fugues of WTC I and II (sel.) (1824 fortepiano)

Jill Crosland Piano & Fortepiano






http://open.spotify.com/user/otterhouse/playlist/0wdR3HD4GD6r7t1v2iiG9A (HTTP link)  

Very authentic Beethoven on Spotify

Beethoven was a revolutionary composer. He composed music that searched the outer limits of instruments and musicians. In the 21st century, Ludwig van’s music is less of a challenge for professional symphony orchestra’s or Bechstein, Bösendorfer, Steinway and Fazoli players…

Luckily, there are a couple of recordings that give you a glimpse of the new and revolutionary in Beethoven’s works, where you hear that the instruments *had* to evolve, because the composers wanted more of them than they could give.

That feeling is what Alexander Lubimov gives on his recording of Beethoven’s „Waldstein” and „Moonlight” sonata. He uses a copy of an 1802 Erard pianoforte for this purpose and as Allmusic writes about this performance:

„Where one might expect power, smoothness, and a rich, rounded tone from a modern concert grand, the sound of this pianoforte is slightly muted in soft passages, clangorous at its loudest, and even a little buzzing in its overtones. Nowhere are these qualities more shocking than in the first movement of "Moonlight," where the music takes on a remote and antique quality, reminiscent perhaps of a cimbalom or harpsichord in certain notes”.

Finally, I picked the (in)famous recording of Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony by Jordi Savall and Le Concert des Nations. Be prepared for a shock. Clanking drums and sharp attacks make this performance an auditive experience that makes this music sound fresh and exciting again…

Ludwig van Beethoven: 

-Piano sonata no 21 in C-major „Waldstein” op. 53

-Piano sonata no 14 in c sharp minor „quasi una fantasia” Moonlight sonata op. 27 no. 2

Alexander Lubimov, 1802 Erard (copy)

-Symphony no 3 in E-flat major „Eroica” op. 55

Le Concert des Nations, Jordi Savall, conductor.

(HTTP link) http://open.spotify.com/user/otterhouse/playlist/2YD6eS8naYNrB7rKgp5mZw

Bach advent cantata and baroque Christmas with Emma Kirkby on Spotify

We are not quite blessed with the survival of Advent cantata’s by Johann Sebastian Bach.

The music of BWV 71a, 186a are lost, 147a we only know because some of the music was re-used in the famous BWV 147 cantata (for a completely different feast in July!) and BWV 141 was actually written by Georg Philip Telemann… Fortunately, the cantata that was written for the 4th Sunday in Advent and had it’s world premiere on December 22 1715, exactly 298 years ago…!

Combined it with a very fine Chrismas CD from Emma Kirkby. Besides two Chrstmas cantatas form Alessandro Scarlatti (yes, daddy of…) she sings a reconstructed aria from BWV 147a.

Hope you enjoy the music!

Johann Sebastian Bach, Cantata „Bereitet die Wege bereitet die 

Bahn” BWV 132 (1st performance: December 22, 1715 - Weimar)

Ingrid Schmithüsen, soprano 

Yoshikazu Mera, Counter-tenor:

Makoto Sakurada, tenor

Peter Kooy, bass

Bach Collegium Japan,

Masaaki Suzuki, conductor

(recorded 1997)

Philipp Friedrich Böddecker - Natus est Jesus (1651)

Alessandro Scarlatti - Non Sò Qual Più M'ingombra (1716)

Johann Pachelbel - Cannon & Gigue

Johann Sebastian Bach - Offne Dich Mein Ganzes Herze from BWV 61

Air from 3nd suite

Bereite Dir, Jesu noch ist so die Bahn from BWV 147a

Alessandro Scarlatti - O Di Betlemme, Altera Poverta Venturosa

Arcangelo Corelli - Concerto Grosso In G Minor, Op. 6 No. 8 ('Fatto Per La Notte Natale’, published 1714, one year after Corelli’s death)

Emma Kirkby, soprano

London Baroque

Charles Medlam, conductor

(recorded 2000)

http://open.spotify.com/user/otterhouse/playlist/1tBFJ23dCv9wf9dOgWC1jj (HTTP link)