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CAJames

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Re: Classical Music Thread
Reply #950 - 05/29/25 at 22:57:58

I make no secret of my preference for Leonard Bernstein as a Haydn conductor, but that doesn't mean there aren't other worthwhile performances. At or near the top of that list is Colin Davis.

On CD.

He leans more to the lush and lovely rather than the dramatic and is ably abetted by the Concertgebouw Orchestra and fine analog sound from the Philips engineers.

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CAJames

Seasoned Member

"I've run every
red light on memory
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Posts: 2519

Re: Classical Music Thread
Reply #951 - 05/30/25 at 21:37:05

Schoenberg's opera (technically a monodrama because there is only a single actress onstage) is pretty much the outer edge of my comfort zone with atonal/expressionistic music. It is a weird story (it would have to be) about a woman looking for her lover (spoiler alert) and then finding she killed him. For me, the music requires not just active listening but concentration for about half an hour because it is very atmospheric but really only makes sense on a moment by moment basis.

16/44 FLAC download

The Sinopoli/Staatskapelle box of Second Viennese School "classics" is pretty excellent, for what it is.

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CAJames Seasoned Member "I've run every red light on memory lane." Posts: 2519	Re: Classical Music Thread Reply #952 - 05/31/25 at 15:02:59 Next page, next Beethoven symphony, No. 8. 16/44 FLAC download I don't know why the Dohnányi/Cleveland/Telarc Beethoven symphonies aren't considered a classic. They are a great combination of old school profundity and new school danceability in demonstration quality sound. And the 8th is one of the best.
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CAJames

Seasoned Member

"I've run every
red light on memory
lane."

Posts: 2519

Re: Classical Music Thread
Reply #953 - Yesterday at 02:52:53

My other favorite expressionistic opera: Bartok's Bluebeard's Castle. This is a little less weird, and more tonal than Schoenberg, but it is still out there.

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I'm surprised by how many recordings there are of this piece, but two of the first are still the best. YMMV. This one by Kertez on London and Dorati on Mercury. Both have great playing, great singing and great sound.

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