Christ, I think I like Classical!

Posted by: ErikL on 25 September 2003

After recently listening to all 5 of my classical CD's and actually enjoying every minute, I spent at least 5 hours last night sifting through dozens of posts here and Amazon's vaults. Now I have a large beginner's wish list:

Ravel- Bolero (Dutoit-Montreal)

Stravinsky- The Rite of Spring (Boulez-Cleveland)

Bartok- String Quartets 1-6 (Takacs), Concerto for Orchestra (Reiner-Chicago)

Mozart- Symphonies 35-41 (Bohm-Berlin), Violin Concertos 1-5 (London, Philharmonia)

Dvorak- String Quartets 12, 13 (Prague)

Schubert- Symphonies 1-9 (Bohm-Berlin), Piano Sonatas (Kempff)

Beethoven- Piano Concertos 2, 4 (Fleischer), String Quartets 59, 74, 95 (Budapest, Cleveland), Great Fugue, Symphony 9 (Furtwangler-Budapest), Piano Sonatas 2, 16, 24, 30 (A. Fischer)

Haydn- London Symphonies (Davis-Amsterdam), String Quartets 33, 76 (Kodaly)

Scarlatti- Keyboard Sonatas (Andjaparidze)

Handel- Messiah (Davis-London)

Schumann- Davidsbundlerstanze (Pollini)

Mahler- Symphony 9 (Zander-Philharmonia)

Ives- String Quartets (Emerson)

Scriabin- Poem of Ecstasy (Ashkenazy-Berlin)

Bach- Brandenburg Concertos (Pearlman-Boston), Goldberg Variations (Perahia)

I have Todd A and others to thanks for some general guidance given in past posts. I also know that I like to relax to string quartets, and that I was looking for somewhat broad coverage of the genre (but no opera).

I intend to scrub the list a bit more to make 5-10 recordings a priority. Input is welcome. Also, keep in mind many forum members and I know little to nothing about Classical, so be nice. Wink

[This message was edited by Ludwig on THURSDAY 25 September 2003 at 22:52.]
Posted on: 06 December 2003 by ErikL
Nick,

I've mostly played my classical CD's while reading or relaxing or slacking off weekend mornings. Given that, Schubert still remains my favorite composer and string quartets remain my favorite genre. The Bach: Goldberg Variations album with Perahia on the keys has also seen repeated listens. One surprise was the Beethoven string quartets I bought- they're a lot crazier than what I expected!.

I have a very hard time listening to several pieces in one sitting (the Schubert boxes take me a week to cycle through). I suppose I need to buy a book/guide to classical, so I understand more about the music to which I'm listening. I'm typically not one to read liner notes of an album, but that should help too. Wink Without any reading, I have no idea the mood of the composers when writing their music, the statements they were making, the significance of any particular piece, etc (I know, I know Roll Eyes).

But nothing has turned me off so far.
Posted on: 06 December 2003 by DJH
There are some good books out there. The Rough Guide to Classical Music is OK, for example, and for pre 20C repertoire, both Gramophone magazine and the Penguin Guide to CD's are OK. They all fall over badly in the twentieth century, however - some of the comments in the Penguin Guide on Messiaen and Ligeti are well wide of the mark. Paul Griffith's Modern Music and After, albeit a little difficult to find, is one of the best surveys around of post WW2 music, and quite a good read too.

Nick; what you need to do is get yourself a copy of Birtwistle's The Mask of Orpheus - without question, this is a masterpiece.
Posted on: 07 December 2003 by herm
collecting by association

When I started getting my own records (of course there were lots of 'em in my parents' place) all I needed to keep going were the liner notes, associating one piece or composer with another. So I'd say forget about the books, just enjoy the music. If you don't usually read liner notes, you surely won't read a bookie.

I still can't figure out what made me buy, a very young man, the complete Beethoven String Quartets (Juilliard) and the Mozart "Haydn" String Quartets (Amadeus) at one fell disount swoop, but that's pretty much the point from which I built the rest of my collection.

The only other comparable seminal purchase was the Previn LSO "Sleeping Beauty", which is the basis of all my non-Germanic music.

Herman
Posted on: 07 December 2003 by DJH
Unfortunately most liner notes are quite badly written, and this is where a good reference book can really make a difference, particularly if they point the way to other pieces that you may not have tried otherwise - I'm not ashamed to admit that! In addition to the books I have mentioned above, I have found Elliott Carter's collected essays to be well written and thought provoking.
Posted on: 07 December 2003 by Steve O
Ludwig,

I recently started listening to some classical stuff.
I find it's a nightmare when you see the same piece of work done by 10 different conductors/orchestras and you dont know which is best.
I borrowed a CD from a friend and liked it.
It was on the Decca label, so I did an internet search for Decca and found a comprehensive listing of classical recordings.
Decca do a series of "Essential" (composers name here).
I know nothing about which conductor/orchestra is best so I decided I'd trust that the Decca recordings would all be of a similar quality and choose my pieces from this range. I now have "Essentials" by Mozart, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Hayden, Bach etc and then when I find a piece I particularly like I buy the full version.
Don't know if that's a good road to go down but it worked for me and has opened a whole new avenue of music to me.

Steve.

PS
I have no affiliation to Decca whatsoever.
Posted on: 08 December 2003 by David Hobbs-Mallyon
An enjoyable read

Ludwig,

A recommendation for an enjoyable read is "The Lives of the Great Composers", by Harold Schonberg. My edition covers Bach to the Second Viennese School, although there's a later edition which I think goes back to Monteverdi and on to some later 20th century stuff. Well worht a read if you are looking for a brief introduction to all the greats.

David
Posted on: 10 December 2003 by Wolf
Ah the second Viennese school and Mahler in particular. just read a book on Alma Mahler, what a strnage and exciting woman. He goals in life seemd to be to only have affairs with highly artistic individuals

Life is analogue
Posted on: 16 December 2003 by Basil
quote:
Originally posted by Wolf:
Ah the second Viennese school and Mahler in particular. just read a book on Alma Mahler, what a strnage and exciting woman. He goals in life seemd to be to only have affairs with highly artistic individuals

Life is analogue


Sounds like fun to me!

Ludwig, you've got to hear the Bach Cello suites, also the Sonatas and Partitas for solo Violin.

Do try and hear Klaus Tennstedt's Mahler.
Posted on: 29 December 2003 by herm
That link is to one of the most cringeing condescending "tours of the classics" I have ever seen - recommending Tchaikovsky's 1812 overture, and saying Tch. as a homosexual hated most everybody etc etc.

I believe later on that Groovehandle thread someone got booed out for suggesting Rachmaninov wrote more piano concertos than just the Second? But my memory may be wrong.

I know you didn't write that list, RdS, but sending someone a list with the 1812 overture while he's busy with Bartok Quartets and Stravinsky's Rite is a little incongruous in my mind.

Two uniquely nice things of the Naim Music Room are: we treat each other as grownups, and we only talk about things we're listening to ourselves.

Herman

[This message was edited by herm on TUESDAY 30 December 2003 at 10:46.]
Posted on: 30 December 2003 by Basil
quote:
"Trust your ears" is even more important than it is with the equipment. You know what you like, so buy that, not what any reviewer likes.



The most important lesson of them all.
Posted on: 30 December 2003 by herm
1 Of course I'm being a little harsh, RdS, but that's the holiday spirit. I just love the way everybody seems to be in an intensily foul mood these days. What would the holidays be like without the internet?

2 If people who rock their pops (or pop their rocks) have to be introduced to les classiques my idea would be to tell 'em first classical music is different. So indeed the Bartok String Quartets (which Ludwig naturally found all by himself) would be a much better start than Tchaikovsky's 1812.

3 RdS, I'm sorry to say that I have to at various occasions seen ZeroGain people referring to the Penguin Gramophone Guide (or whatever) when talking about recordings (as in "PGG gives the Solti Bruckner three rosettes so it's gotta be great"). Of course I'm not talking about you and your carefully considered Bach posts.

4 I don't think at all the Naim Music Room is more formal than ZeroGain. I think the word here is we level.

Herman
Posted on: 31 December 2003 by ErikL
I'm doing pretty well with all of this Classical stuff. In fact I'd like to see a performance in the next few months (locally), but I have no idea where to find schedules and the like.

I will try Vaughan Williams next year (Wink).
Posted on: 31 December 2003 by ErikL
Okay, so I obviously missed the blatantly obvious. Thanks Tom.

Is it acceptable to wave a lighter in the air and smoke a bowl at these concerts?
Posted on: 31 December 2003 by herm
And don't forget to bring a couple of your wife's panties to throw at the piano virtuoso (after he's done).

Vladimir Horowitz used to wipe his brow with them.

Herman
Posted on: 31 December 2003 by ErikL
Stage diving too, then? No wife here, Herman, but I can borrow thongs from the scads of groupies likely to attend such a show (I read the violinists get all the chicks).

Apparently I have 2 venue choices- Benaroya Hall and Marion Oliver McCaw Hall. Both are very new so unless the engineers screwed the pooch the sound's probably pretty good, huh?
Posted on: 31 December 2003 by ErikL
I'll need to score a "Metallica- Metal Up Your Ass" t-shirt from one of those seedy metalhead gear/ sex toys/ smoking accessories shops before I attend.
Posted on: 31 December 2003 by Phil Barry
But if you like chamber music, teh Seattle Symphony may not satisfy.

I bet UW has a music school, with lots of performances, from student-level to faculty recitals, to big name artists.

Happy hunting.

Phil
Posted on: 31 December 2003 by connon price
That is correct Phil,

Ludwig, look at the Meany Hall at UW. I have only seen the St. Olaf choir there (my wife's an alum) but I picked up a shedule and saw many a yummy performer coming down the pike. I think Murray Perahia played there last season. It is a boringly modern facility but sounds lovely and is very intimate.

The Northwest Chamber Orchestra looks interesting too. www.nwco.org

nice headbang graemlin. where do you find one of those? Sorry we missed you at Chris Bell's the other night. Perhaps we will have another gathering.

connon
Posted on: 31 December 2003 by Todd A
Chamber Music Northwest down in Stumptown offers some potentially outstanding performances, and they get some fine chamber musicians, if you are interested in that sort of thing. I've heard the Brentano Quartet do an astounding Beethoven Op 131 and the Emerson regularly appear, so keep it in mind. (Check out www.cmnw.org for the schedule when it appears.) Happy New Year, and back to that bottle of Highland Park!


"The universe is change, life is opinion." Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
Posted on: 01 January 2004 by herm
quote:
(Check out http://www.cmnw.org for the schedule when it appears.)


Ludwig,

it turns out you have been wasting your time. It looks like those educational events in your area are just the thing you need.

Herman