The Art-Music, Literature and Linguistics Forum
June 13, 2025, 11:29:34 pm
Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.
Did you miss your activation email?

Login with username, password and session length
News: Here you may discover hundreds of little-known composers, hear thousands of long-forgotten compositions, contribute your own rare recordings, and discuss the Arts, Literature and Linguistics in an erudite and decorous atmosphere full of freedom and delight.
 
  Home Help Search Gallery Staff List Login Register  

Your Discovery of the Year

Pages: 1 2 3 [4] 5 6 ... 15   Go Down
  Print  
Author Topic: Your Discovery of the Year  (Read 34888 times)
kyjo
Guest
« Reply #45 on: January 10, 2013, 07:58:18 pm »

Sem Dresden (1881-1957)

He has intrigued me as well. Not much of his has been recorded, but his two cello sonatas can be found on the recently-released Dutch Cello Sonatas Vol. 5:



and his Suite Dansflitsen (Dance Flashes) for orchestra can be found on this now-OOP disc (which contains Orthel's inaptly named Sinfonia Piccola):



There are two different versions of Dansflitsen on YouTube:

(cond. by Willem van Otterloo):
(cond. by Rafael Kubelik):

Here's his Wikipedia article, which contains a worklist: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sem_dresden

 :)
Report Spam   Logged
kyjo
Guest
« Reply #46 on: January 10, 2013, 07:59:42 pm »

By the way, I hate Nazis.

You're not alone, Jim ;D ;D
Report Spam   Logged
Caostotale
Level 2
**

Times thanked: 3
Offline Offline

Posts: 95


View Profile
« Reply #47 on: January 10, 2013, 09:21:30 pm »

I don't like Nazis either, but I like Badings' music and think his work deserves wider recognition. I similarly loathe pedophiles, but am not about to start second-guessing Szymanowski's great work as a composer. I'm also curious about the work of Lev Knipper, despite the idea that he may have murdered or tortured people during his time working as a Soviet secret police officer. The way I see it, people can quite often be total shit, but their musics are not inextricably married to the rest of their beings.
Report Spam   Logged
Dundonnell
Level 8
********

Times thanked: 137
Offline Offline

Posts: 4056


View Profile WWW
« Reply #48 on: January 10, 2013, 10:56:17 pm »

It is perfectly true that Badings took over as Director of the Conservatory in the Hague when Dresden was dismissed and that he was accused of collaboration with the German authorities during the War. Whether this is a significantly different "crime" than many Russian composers can be accused of during the Soviet era I would not wish to argue.

The fact is that many listeners can dissociate these Russian composers from the works written extolling Stalin's rule. It would appear that Badings has effectively been 'rehabilitated' within the Netherlands and I would have thought, therefore, we can concentrate on his music.
Report Spam   Logged
kyjo
Guest
« Reply #49 on: January 11, 2013, 08:02:54 pm »

I remember having a flick through 'Mein Kampf',years ago........out of mere curiosity,I should point out!!! My goodness it was boring!!

I commend you for putting yourself through such torture, cilgwyn ;D

I think we'd best be getting back on topic.....maybe we should carry on this conversation by starting a thread on politics and music-a subject I don't like very much but is interesting to hear people's views on. I know I'm not the moderator, but...

Did I mention that I hate Nazis? ;D
Report Spam   Logged
cilgwyn
Level 7
*******

Times thanked: 49
Offline Offline

Posts: 1912



View Profile
« Reply #50 on: January 11, 2013, 08:44:01 pm »

Agreed! I notice that while this thread is entitled 'Your Discovery of the Year' most of the discoveries appear to be of Dutch composers? Nothing wrong with that,of course!! Personally,my own 'discoveries' have been less adventurous in some ways. Revisiting aknowledged masterpieces (after years of Daniel Jones,Havergal Brian,etc!)  that I haven't listened to for a while....tut! tut! For example,the Zinman Beethoven cycle on the Arte Nova label. My parents (& grandparents) always seemed to stock those old Decca Ace of Clubs recordings & Karajan cycles! These were a bit of a revelation & nice and cheap too! Also,the Schumann symphonies,which I never seemed to have bothered with too much,for some reason,Szell conducting Brahms symphonies & Leppard's Brandenburg Concerto's seem like a discovery,albeit re-discovery,after some of the more recent recordings I have heard. Of course,they are outmoded these days,but this is the kind of Bach I was brought up on! Stately,serene,majestic,grand!
So maybe I'll pick the Zinman Beethoven cycle,minus the ninth. Whatever anyone may say about Karajan the soloists on the old 60s recording are superb & I need first class singing on a work like that. I notice the new Glossa cycle is praised up to the hilt in the new IRR Magazine,but it's only available as a box set & I'm not terribly keen,generally speaking,on live recordings!

So there you are. My unadventurous (re!)'discovery' of the year! The aknowledged masters!

NB: Tend to agree with you about my last post kyjo so I've removed it! Self moderation? Why not!! ;D
Report Spam   Logged
Malito
Level 2
**

Times thanked: 8
Offline Offline

Posts: 56


View Profile
« Reply #51 on: January 13, 2013, 11:26:34 pm »

The opera from 1910 by Mexican composer Julian Carrillo entitled "Matilde: Mexico 1810" which I found in Mexico City in December.  Knowing of his later music and his microtonal works I was reluctant but figured if it was written in 1910 it would be a safe choice and I was right.  It is excellent.  Malito
Report Spam   Logged
kyjo
Guest
« Reply #52 on: January 14, 2013, 02:27:24 am »

Interesting! Carrillo has this fine website (in Spanish) dedicated to him, which includes some sound samples (click on "Obras Musicales" to find the sound samples): http://www.sonido13.com/index.html

Report Spam   Logged
kyjo
Guest
« Reply #53 on: January 14, 2013, 02:38:12 am »

So maybe I'll pick the Zinman Beethoven cycle,minus the ninth.

Yes, Zinman's fresh, energetic approach (which he achieves without using period instruments, thankfully ;D) works well in all of the symphonies but the ninth (perhaps besides the Scherzo). In this work, one often wishes for a more grandiose interpretation, such as Furtwangler's 1951 recording with the Bayreuth Festival Orchestra (one of my favorites).

On the topic of Beethoven symphonies, I heard the finale of Beethoven 1 on the radio played by the Bremen German Chamber Philharmonic under Paavo Jarvi. I was stunned! The playing was so very zesty, crisp and invigorating-I especially loved the tight timpani sound! Like Zinman, Jarvi achieves this effect without the use of period instruments. It was like hearing the piece anew! It's available on this RCA CD, coupled with Symphony no. 5:



Back to discoveries of the year!
Report Spam   Logged
guest54
Guest
« Reply #54 on: January 14, 2013, 04:14:47 am »

My discovery of last year was a video of Enescu's Oedipus on You-Tube - something I have been seeking for many years. Both the video and the sound are of very poor quality, having been recorded by some one in the - presumably Roumanian - audience. Nevertheless even that is far better than nothing. I already have a CD of the work - sound only, which comes with an English translation of the complete libretto, so - when the index of composers is finished - I am going to attempt to combine the poor video with the good sound from the CD, and attach some English sub-titles. The whole process will provide a welcome opportunity to become quite familiar with the whole work. I don't know why it is so seldom mounted.

Report Spam   Logged
Toby Esterhase
Level 7
*******

Times thanked: 117
Offline Offline

Posts: 1349



View Profile
« Reply #55 on: January 14, 2013, 11:05:13 pm »

First of all, I am not sure exactly what you mean by "post-1930". Do you mean born after 1930 or composed music after 1930? I am assuming you mean the latter, since you mention Jef Maes, who was born in 1905. If you do mean the latter, then there are many conservative Belgian composers who composed music after 1930. Allow me to list a few:

Jean Absil, Daniel Sternefeld, Arthur Meulemans, Jef van Hoof, Joseph Jongen, Flor Alpaerts, Joseph Ryelandt, Jean Rogister, Armand Marsick, Marcel Poot, Peter Cabus, Godfried and Frederic Devreese, Willem Kersters, Vic Legley, Frederik van Rossum, Peter Welffens, David van de Woestijne, Richard de Guide, Ludewijk de Vocht, Marinus de Jong, Frits Celis, Robert Herberigs, Prosper van Eechaute, Ernest van der Eyken etc.

I'm sure there are many more! All of the above composers are well worth exploring. I'm not sure I agree with your statement that Dutch music, in general, is more conservative than Belgian music. Truth be told, neither country could be counted among the more musically "advanced" countries. But I don't can't think of any Belgian composers who were as innovative and original as Pijper and Badings that lived in the same approximate time period of those two composers. Many of the Belgian composers were strongly influenced by French music and wrote music in the late-romantic, impressionistic and neo-classical styles, rather than the bold, harder-edged, more modern style Pijper and Badings developed. In other words, Dutch music has a stronger identity than Belgian music; not as strong as, say Nordic or Russian music, but stronger than Belgian music, which could easily be mistaken for French music in many cases. Just my two cents worth.

 :)

Could i add them Jacques Leduc?
Report Spam   Logged
kyjo
Guest
« Reply #56 on: January 15, 2013, 12:29:23 am »

Thanks for reminding me about Leduc, Toby. He is a composer I have not yet investigated. There is this Cyprès disc of his orchestral works:



includes Ouverture d'été, Symphony, Esquisse Symphonique Le Printemps

and a 2-CD set (also Cyprès) of his works for solo piano, two pianos, and harp:



Here's an article on him from the Cyprès website: http://www.cypres-records.com/index.php?lang=en&option=com_phpshop&page=shop.artists_details&artist_id=31&Itemid=26

 :)
Report Spam   Logged
nigelkeay
Level 2
**

Times thanked: 9
Offline Offline

Posts: 71


View Profile WWW
« Reply #57 on: January 22, 2013, 10:03:04 pm »

Jean Absil
Just thought I'd mention that I heard "Echecs, suite for piano op.96 (1957) in a concert on Saturday. Performed by Quentin Meurisse this was the French premiere and was in a Cantus Formus concert organized by Nicolas Bacri. It was an interesting concert, a diverse range of works for piano including; Trois Allégories by Chrystel Marchand, and Patrice Sciortino's "Catatoc".
Report Spam   Logged
Caostotale
Level 2
**

Times thanked: 3
Offline Offline

Posts: 95


View Profile
« Reply #58 on: January 24, 2013, 04:22:22 am »

Jean Absil
Just thought I'd mention that I heard "Echecs, suite for piano op.96 (1957) in a concert on Saturday. Performed by Quentin Meurisse this was the French premiere and was in a Cantus Formus concert organized by Nicolas Bacri. It was an interesting concert, a diverse range of works for piano including; Trois Allégories by Chrystel Marchand, and Patrice Sciortino's "Catatoc".

I discovered Absil a few years back and was delighted when Daniel Blumenthal released his two-disc set of piano works (which includes the 'Echecs' suite). Some group needs to record his four string quartets now.
Report Spam   Logged
guest145
Guest
« Reply #59 on: January 24, 2013, 01:26:12 pm »

Quote
Quote from: nigelkeay on January 22, 2013, 10:03:04 pm
Quote from: kyjo on January 10, 2013, 12:43:27 am
Jean Absil
Just thought I'd mention that I heard "Echecs, suite for piano op.96 (1957) in a concert on Saturday. Performed by Quentin Meurisse this was the French premiere and was in a Cantus Formus concert organized by Nicolas Bacri. It was an interesting concert, a diverse range of works for piano including; Trois Allégories by Chrystel Marchand, and Patrice Sciortino's "Catatoc".

I discovered Absil a few years back and was delighted when Daniel Blumenthal released his two-disc set of piano works (which includes the 'Echecs' suite). Some group needs to record his four string quartets now.

I'll put in a strong recommendation for Absil as well. His "Les chants du mort" came to my attention a long time ago on a Romanian Electrocord LP. The work is scored for three solo voices and orchestra and the texts are taken from Romanian folk poetry, sung in French. Absil spent time in Romania doing ethnomusicological research, hence the connection. Anyway, the music is glorious -- very lyrical, mildly exotic, vividly expressive.

A number of works are available on YT -- do investigate!
Report Spam   Logged

Pages: 1 2 3 [4] 5 6 ... 15   Go Up
  Print  
 
Jump to:  

Powered by EzPortal
Bookmark this site! | Upgrade This Forum
SMF For Free - Create your own Forum


Powered by SMF | SMF © 2016, Simple Machines
Privacy Policy