2686
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Assorted items / Individual composers / Re: Elliott Carter (1908-2012)
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on: November 07, 2012, 03:22:58 pm
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This is not an appropriate time to introduce a sour note into discussion of Carter's music so I shall attempt to avoid doing so. It is a testimony to this forum that we can actually discuss him at all :)
I have huge respect for Carter's obvious musical ability and his absolute integrity. There are no "buts". I wish that the music meant something to me. It is communicating but I cannot appreciate it no matter how hard I try to concentrate. That is my loss :( :(
Carter was a giant of contemporary music. I absolutely respect the admiration his music has attracted from those more knowledgeable than myself. And, yes, I (obviously) have no problems with the Holiday Overture or the Symphony :) Carter's determination to compose the music he wanted to compose, regardless of fashion, is commendable in any composer.
With regard to "the trend of "easy listening" which seems to be so popular among US composers these days" I am not quite sure to which particular composers you are alluding. My own preferences among the giants of 20th century music are composers like Walter Piston, William Schuman, David Diamond and Peter Mennin. Now...I am not sure that one could or should (not that you are, of course :)) doubting the integrity of these composers. I don't regard their music as, in any way, "easy listening" either and the neglect-at least in the concert-hall-which has befallen their music suggests that concert-promoters do not regard their music as "box-office' either.
Nor do I think that any of these composers set out to "ingratiate". That may well be a valid comment on some other, contemporary composers one could instance-though I won't today ;D-but is it a valid criticism ??? ??? Is there, possibly, room in the musical firmament for both the Carters-who pose an intellectual challenge which some listeners can meet-and those who attempt to communicate in an easier language ??? If one expects a new generation to listen to so-called "classical music" at all can they enter that world through Carter or through composer X ???
I genuinely hope that there IS room for both and I happy to be aware and acknowledge Carter's great genius just as I acknowledge that of Schoenberg whilst remaining (sadly) doubtful if I now have the capacity or the time to successfully break through to its undoubted qualities :(
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2689
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Assorted items / Individual composers / Re: Elliott Carter (1908-2012)
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on: November 06, 2012, 05:22:00 pm
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I have to say not music I choose to listen to, though I have tried. But a true artist and someone who avoided the trend of "easy listening" which seems to be so popular among US composers these days. Still composing into his second century, amazing
Agreed.
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2690
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Assorted items / General musical discussion / Re: British Cello Concertos on CD
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on: November 06, 2012, 05:20:14 pm
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I am afraid that I did not set out to chronicle all music written for cello and orchestra-many composers wrote music for such a combination without giving the work the title of "concerto"-nor even to attempt to list all British cello concertos. My more modest aim was to list those cello concertos by composers of some recognised reputation which had made it to cd and those concertos which had not but which I felt deserved to. Had I attempted the more ambitious project I am afraid that it would have been a much, much lengthier list and might well have over-taxed the patience of other members ;D
The Dunhill therefore is missing in the same way as Ralph Vaughan Williams's Fantasia on Sussex Folk Tunes or York Bowen's Rhapsody or Alan Bush's Concert Suite or Edmund Rubbra's magnificent Soliloquy for cello and orchestra....to name a few examples.
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2691
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INDICES / Composer reference / Re: Composer Catalogues: an announcement
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on: November 06, 2012, 10:56:39 am
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I am always ready to add a new catalogue if a composer's name is drawn to my attention :)
Ridout and Patterson were unfortunate ommisions previously and that has now been rectified :) I should probably add Colin Matthews too ;D
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2694
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Assorted items / General musical discussion / Re: British Cello Concertos on CD
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on: November 05, 2012, 06:00:31 pm
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I'm assuming from this that you're not including Hans Gal's concerto, despite the fact that much of his career after 1938 was spent in England.
Scotland, actually ;D Gal is one of those difficult cases-Egon Wellesz is another-of an Austrian expatriate who settled abroad but, I think that is true to say, continued to regard himself as Austrian, showed no real signs of being in any significant way influenced by British music and continued to compose with in an aesthetic which was clearly Central European. (One could argue in the same way about Matyas Seiber.....but not, I think, for Franz Reizenstein ???). That is why I included Gal and Wellesz in my catalogues of Austrian composers...........(and Panufnik in the catalogues of Polish composers). One could argue about this ad infinitum ;D Stravinsky is still, apparently, a Russian composer :)
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2695
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Downloads by surname / Downloads: discussion without links / Re: German Music
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on: November 05, 2012, 05:12:52 pm
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From my side also thanks for these German works. The the first and the last names I heard before. In Germany I had the pleasure to find a work of Jenner in the program. The name Weweler is new to me. Listening to the music I find again (and again, and...) that so many composers are lost in oblivion. This may be right in some cases, but many times when a composer emerges, I'm surprised with the music. Why should we have to have 1200 or more series of Beethoven symphonies or those from let say Mahler -splendid works! of course-, but I don't buy many double or more complete cycles, unless I'm very confident they are worth it. I rather buy cd's from un unknown composer in stead. Well I guess that's one of the reasons I'm (and many more of us?) a member here.
Agree 100% :) :)
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2696
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Assorted items / General musical discussion / British Cello Concertos on CD
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on: November 05, 2012, 04:05:00 pm
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BRITISH CELLO CONCERTOS
THE RECORDED:
Sir Arthur Sullivan(1841-1900): EMI
Sir Charles Villiers Stanford(1852-1924): Lyrita and Hyperion
Sir Edward Elgar(1857-1934): many recordings
Frederick Delius(1862-1934): many recordings
Sir Donald Tovey(1875-1940): Toccata
Havergal Brian(1876-1972): Dutton
Joseph Holbrooke(1878-1958): Dutton
John Foulds(1880-1939): Dutton
Frank Bridge(1879-1941): Oration(Concerto Elegiaco): Pearl, EMI, Chandos, Lyrita and Nimbus Cyril Scott(1879-1971): Chandos
Sir Arnold Bax(1883-1953): Chandos
Sir Arthur Bliss(1891-1975): Decca, EMI, Chandos, Naxos and CBC
Ernest J. Moeran(1894-1950): Lyrita and Chandos
William Busch(1901-45): Lyrita
Gerald Finzi(1901-56): Lyrita, Chandos and Naxos
Sir William Walton(1902-83): many recordings
Alan Rawsthorne(1905-71): Naxos
Herbert Murrill(1909-52): Cello Concerto No.2 "The Song of the Birds": Whiteline
George Lloyd(1913-90): Albany
Benjamin Britten(1913-76): Cello Symphony: many recordings
Bernard Stevens(1916-83): Meridian
Sir Malcolm Arnold(1921-2006): Naxos
Graham Whettam(1927-2007): Concerto Drammatico: Redcliffe cd
Kenneth Leighton(1929-88): Chandos
Hugh Wood(1932-): NMC
Sir Peter Maxwell Davies(1934-): Strathclyde Concerto No.2: Unicorn
Alan Ridout(1934-96): Cello Concerto No.1: Black Box (coupled with Cello Concerto No.2 for cello and voices and Cello Concerto No.3 for solo cello and eight cellos)
Gordon Crosse(1937-): NMC
Patric Standford(1939-): British Music Society cd
David Matthews(1943-): Concerto in Azurro: Chandos
Edward Gregson(1945-): Concerto for Cello and Chamber Orchestra "A Song for Chris": Chandos
Colin Matthews(1946-): Cello Concerto No.1: NMC
Paul Patterson(1947-):Nimbus and Dutton.
Michael Berkeley(1948-): Chandos
James MacMillan(1959-): BIS
(30)
UNRECORDED:
Group 1:
Gordon Jacob(1895-1984): Cello Concerto(1955)
Sir Lennox Berkeley(1903-89): Cello Concerto(1939)
Arnold Cooke(1906-2005): Cello Concerto(1972-73)
William Wordsworth(1908-88): Cello Concerto(1963)
Franz Reizenstein(1911-68): Cello Concerto(1936)
Stanley Bate(1911-59): Cello Concerto(1953)
Daniel Jones(1912-93): Cello Concerto(1986)
Robert Simpson(1921-97): Cello Concerto(1991)
Arthur Butterworth(1923-): Cello Concerto(1997)
Wilfred Josephs(1927-97): Cello Concerto “Cantus Natalis”(1961-62)
Graham Whettam(1927-2007): Cello Concerto(1962)
Ronald Stevenson(1928-): Cello Concerto “The Solitary Singer”(1968-94)
Alun Hoddinott(1929-2008): Cello Concerto(1948)
John McCabe(1939-): Cello Concerto "Songline"(2007)
Colin Matthews(1946-): Cello Concerto No.2(1996)
(14)
Group 2:
Richard Hall(1903-82): Cello Concerto(1943-44)
Herbert Murrill(1909-52): Cello Concerto No.1(1935)
Ian Parrott(1916-2012): Concerto breve(1961)
Denis ApIvor(1916-2004): Cello Concerto(1976-77)
David Ellis(1933-); Cello Concerto “February Music”(1977/2004)
David Blake(1936-): Cello Concerto(1992)
Christopher Steel(1938-91): Cello Concerto(1988)
(6)
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2697
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Assorted items / General musical discussion / Re: British Violin Concertos on CD (or not!)
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on: November 05, 2012, 12:00:45 am
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A wonderful list and at least a number of the unrecorded are planned. Could I ask the significance of the two groups of unrecorded? And could we add Frederic Cliffe's glorious concerto to the recorded (and perhaps, from the same disc, D'Erlanger's, though he was only sort-of British)?
I have added the Cliffe and also Robin Milford's 1937 Violin Concerto. The second group of unrecorded concertos are those by rather less well-known composers. Whilst I would like to see them all recorded that would not be in preference to those in the first group which all, definitely in my opinion, should be given a chance :)
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2699
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Assorted items / Commercial recordings (vintage, new and forthcoming) / Re: New CPO Releases (nothing to get that excited about!)
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on: November 04, 2012, 07:32:25 pm
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From Willem Pijper exist already quite a few works on CD. (a.o. the Donemus and NM labels). It seems though that the first symphony is not available on cd. I have it on lp and will digitize and post this one.
Elroel
I agree that most of Pijper's fairly small orchestral output can be obtained on disc (although I don't have a copy of the Cello Concerto......you don't happen to have an uploadable version do you ??? ;D) but it is scattered about on difficult to obtain labels. But I do think that he was a composer who definitely merits an integrated set....and his purely orchestral compositions are almost all quite short so they would fit onto a couple of discs :)
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