Saturday, June 26, 2010

Gustav Mahler's 150th Birthday year!



This year we celebrate and commemorate Gustav Mahler's 150th Birthday! His actual birth date is July 7, 1860. It pains us that he did not live longer. Mahlerites the world over appreciate the legacy he did leave for us, in his glorious symphonies and songs! Thank-you Herr Mahler for everything you have given us and we will remember you with love in this celebratory birthday year! Happy Birthday, where ever you are!

Serenade to Music



One of the truly most beautiful pieces ever written. In the original version, it is sung by sixteen soloists with orchestra as opposed to just orchestra alone. Original versions are in this case much more prefered!

Bruckner's Symphony of Faith



Despite all the revisions that Bruckner did to some of his symphonies, this one was not touched up or altered in any way by the composer. It is a glorious work and one of his greatest!

Originals are better!.....and sometimes strange



This is a clip of Mussorgsky's "Night on Bald Mountain" in it's original version, not tampered by Rimsky-Korsakov! In the tampered version that is very well known, the piece ends quietly with church bells. In the Original vrsion, the piece is "demonic" all the way through and ends with a bang! Much more exciting! I do not like Rimsky-Korsakov's music very much.....no, wait....I despise his music...all of it!

Friday, June 18, 2010

Music by a twenty year old Mahler!



An amazing work for a twenty year old to compose in 1880. I fear twenty years old kids today can barely keep their pants up or tie their shoes! This incredible work has never failed to amaze me....Mahler was a genius! I am and always will remain a Mahlerite! Just bought a recording of this conducted by my new favourite Mahler conductor, Riccardo Chailly. The two disc album also contains the song cycles: "Kindertotenlieder", "Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen" and the sumptuous "Ruekert Lieder", wonderfully sung by Brigitte Fassbaender. Get the album(on the Decca label), it is astonishing!

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Arion Orchestra....one of North America's very best!



Although I adore Toronto's "Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra", I regard "Arion" as just one step better and they truly shine in their recordings on the "Atma" and "Early-music.com" labels. This is music making on the very highest level. They have recorded Vivaldi, Telemann, Rebel, Bach....etc. Recently at the "Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute's" third concert held at the University of Toronto, I had a chance to speak with the "First Lady" of the transverse flute: Claire Guimond. She was an instructor during the two week event, teaching the transverse to students who are graduates of their instrument(flute). What an amazing and elegant lady and performer. She could have charmed the pants off of me. I have heard her play live and in recording....I adore her! She is also a member of "Arion", a Montreal based period orchestra that personally I consider North America's finest period ensemble! In the beginning of the video clip, Claire is narrating and wearing headphones. She is a wonderful performer and human being, She has no greater fan that myself!

Please click on my site under Institutions I follow: "early-music.com" to find out about Arion and the recordings that I heartily recommend! Vive Arion! Bravo Claire Guimond!

Another Bach?.....Wilhelm Friedemann, naturally!



Shameful isn't that I don't know much about WF Bach, but his music is very intriguing and inviting! It is performed by the "Akademie fuer Alte Musik, Berlin" which is one of my favourite groups.

Discover and enjoy!

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Vaughan-William's "Riders to the Sea"



Vaughan-Williams most successful opera. I have always considered his earlier opera "Hugh the Drover" to be just as excellent! This is an excellent example of an opera that is successful and takes only 45 minutes to perform, much like Bartok's masterpiece!

ENJOY!

Bartok's glorious masterpiece "Duke Bluebeard's Castle"



One of the greatest of all 20th Century operas! This is a masterpiece depsite it's short duration time of just around one hour. Truly glorious music especially after Judith opens the fifth door!

ENJOY!

Stravinsky's The Rake's Progress



Another great 20th Century opera that I really should know! This is marvelous music and eventhough I first discovered it about 25 years ago, I didn't get to deep in to this work. It is a 20th Century "Mozartian" opera with totally accesible music and melodies. Take some time to discover it!

ENJOY!

Friday, June 11, 2010

To the Memory of an Angel



Berg's heart felt memorial to the death of Manon, daughter of Walter Gropius and Alma Maria Mahler(widow of Gustav Mahler). This work was the last composition by Berg and was not premiered until shortly after his death in 1935. This is one of the greatest Violin Concertos of the Twentieth Century.

Listen carefully and enjoy! It "won't hurt your ears"!

Lyrical music



Time to post music by Alban Berg. Even as he was a tall man, he was a giant in the early 20th Century. He worked with both Schoenberg and Webern to advance the cause of both atonality and serialism. This has always been one of the composer's most well known works.

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Kurt Weill's Symphony no. 2

Poor Jenny



Kurt Weill composed music at the same time Hindemith was making his mark in Germany. His orchestral works are somewhat known but it his stage works that most people will find familiar. This song has always been one of my favouries by Weill!

Angelic Concert



To put it mildly, I love the music of Paul Hindemith. Trust me, this won't "hurt your ears"!

Funeral music by Hindemith



Back in 1971, when I was seventeen years old, I happened to discover a recording of this glorious work by Paul Hindemith. The record on the Vanguard label also featured music by Anton Webern, Albert Roussel and Milko Kelemen. The pieces were performed by the excellent "I Solisti di Zagreb". It was an epiphany for me as all on one record I was introduced to neo-classicism and atonality at a time when I knew neither. In the case of the "Opus 5" pieces for string orchestra by Webern, these pieces have long been an eternal favourite 20th Century work which to most people, upon first hearing it, would say: "that hurts my ears"! If a young man can hear it and love it, so can you!

French Baroque fireworks



Rameau's music never fails to excite me as he was an orchestrator who was ahead of his time. There are things he wrote in his operas that we would not see again until the emergence of the Romantic Period especially in the person of Hector Berlioz!

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

The other Figaro?



Like, um....which came first? Did Wolfi plagiarize again? After all PDQ was the most original composer of no time!

Figaro....the greatest opera of all time



I love this opera.....Mozart is divine!

Srauss' Ariadne auf Naxos



Another immortal favourite Opera!

Janacek's Kata



Janacek's opera "Kata Kabanova" is a dark story of love and the glorious music conveys this. As much as I love this opera it is Janacek's opera "Vec Makropulos" that remains one of my favourite opera by any composer.

I love Martinu's music



Felt the need for more Martinu on my blog! One of my very favourite 20th Century composers as his music always conveys peace and joy!

Arnold Bax's Symphony no. 1



Although Bax wrote seven Symphonies, critics and historians alike consider his first two Symphonies to be his greatest in this genre. I must agree with them. The other five Symphonies are magnificent with the Fourth probably being one of my very favourite works by the composer!


This piece and "Tintagel" have always been amongst my favourite tone poems not only by Arnold Bax but by any other English composer! Aren't these children amazing, playing a piece of this size and complexity! WOW!

Arnold Bax's Tintagel......an evocation of the force of nature

Frank Bridge's Piano Chamber Concerto....a favourite!

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Tafelmusik performs Israel in Egypt to start the Summer Festival



This video clip shows the Toronto based baroque orchestra "The Aradia Ensemble" recording this glorious masterpiece for the Naxos label. Some of Tafelmusik's musicians also perform in this orchestra. To begin the Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Festival, as it is now named, the Orchestra and Choir performed three concertos by Vivaldi, two songs by Purcell, a selection from Bach's Mass in b(which will be performed next February in it's entirety) and selections from Handel's "Israel in Egypt". Glorious.....absolutely Glorious!

Monday, June 7, 2010

Grand Finale of the TBSI at Grace Church on the Hill



These are the performers of the largest Baroque Orchestra on Earth. They are the combined staff and students of the TBSI and what a show it is....practically blows the lid of the church! The students are both singers and instrumentalists and boy, do they strut their stuff!!

(The picture is a rehearsal leading to the big event)

Second concert of the TBSI at the U of T



This is the second concert of the Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute that is performed at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Music. The Institute brings graduate musicians from all over the world to learn how to play "period performance practice". The staff are the musicians of Tafelmusik and they are amongst the best in their field. Students go home and spread the importance of period performing. many come back year after year and some even join the Orchestra full time as in the red headed violinist(Aisslinn Nosky) and the blond haired violinist in the centre(Julia Wedman). Both are my personal favourites as they also make up two of the members of "I Furiosi Baroque Ensemble" which has just recently put out an album on the Dorian Label. Amazing people!

Toronto's Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra



With over 70 recordings, these musicians are world famous and one of the very best period orchestras on the planet! I'm proud that they call Toronto home! Toronto is the Centre of the Universe as all Canadians already know!

Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute's first concert is tonight!



The first concert of the Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute opens tonight with a FREE concert at the Trinity-St Paul Centre located on Bloor Street West, just west of the Spadina Subway station. The Orchestra and Choir will perform Bach, Vivaldi, Handel and Purcell to their usual high level of excellence. This will be the fourth year that I have been going to see them and the first concert has always been the best and the greatest concert offered by this orchestra throughout the whole year. They really pull out the stops!

Come one....come all for the experience of a lifetime!

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Boulez's Repons......music for a Wednesday evening



Listen carefully and enjoy!

Bruckner as you have NOT heard



For those who know this Symphony and don't know the Urfassung, this recording will come as a shock! It barely resembles the standard version that is played in all the concert halls. There is a splendid version on the Teldec Label with Eliahu Inbal conducting. I don't believe it is in print anymore, so try purchasing it on line. It has to be heard to be believed!

Bruckner's No. Double Zero

Bruckner's First.......not quite



Today I bought a used copy of Bruckner's Symphony no.1 conducted by Riccardo Chailly. What surprised me without hearing it, is the incredible length of the work. It is the "Vienna Version" of 1891. The work was composed in 1866 but the composer often listened to who he thought were well wishing critics. Many friends and followers would recommend "changes" to make his works sound "better". There are so many versions of half his symphonies it's a wonder we don't get lost trying to buy the CD recording that we are used to! There is the "original" version of his Fourth Symphony and almost none of the material is even slightly similar to what we usually hear in the concert halls! Then there is the Third....I won't even try to guess how many versions and editions there are for that work! The "Urfassung"(original) is quite magnificent and there is a splendid recording of it on the Naxos label conducted by Georg Tintner. It should be noted that Bruckner wrote two earlier un-numbered "student" symphonies(#0 and #00) so this is really his Third work in this genre.

The revised version of 1891 of the First is so different to what I am used to hearing. It's orchestration is heavier and new material makes it much longer. What I think is amazing is that in this version the writing and orchestration are both more akin to Mahler than anything I have ever heard before from this composer! Quite outstanding!!