Sigismond Thalberg: Piano Concerto in Fm, op. 5
performed by Francesco Nicolosi and the Razumovsky Symphony Orchestra under Andrew Mogrelia Sigismond Thalberg was born 8 January, 1812 in Pâquis, near Geneva, in Switzerland. His Wikipedia page states that “according to legend,” he was the illegitimate son of a … Continue reading Sigismond Thalberg: Piano Concerto in Fm, op. 5
Beethoven Piano Concerto no. 4 in G, op. 58
Performed by Maurizio Pollini and the Berlin Philharmonic under Claudio Abbado, or below by Mitsuko Uchida and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra under Mariss Jansons Beethoven’s fourth piano concerto, with an opus number of 58, dates from the time of … Continue reading Beethoven Piano Concerto no. 4 in G, op. 58
Beethoven String Trio no. 4 in D, op. 9 no. 2
performed by the Zurich String Trio, or below by Perlman, Zukerman, and Harrell This trio is the second in a series of three works that make up the opus no. 9, the first of which we discussed yesterday. This set … Continue reading Beethoven String Trio no. 4 in D, op. 9 no. 2
Beethoven String Trio no. 3 in G, op. 9 no. 1
performed by the Zurich String Trio or below by the Grumiaux Trio Here we have from Beethoven another set of early works published under the same opus number, the three op. 9 string trios. We’ll be discussing one per article, … Continue reading Beethoven String Trio no. 3 in G, op. 9 no. 1
Beethoven Piano Sonata no. 7 in D, op. 10 no. 3
performed by Jean Efflam-Bavouzet, or below by Annie Fischer In the two posts from earlier this week, we discussed the other two sonatas from Beethoven’s op. 10, the fifth sonata, in Cm, as well as the sixth, in F. These … Continue reading Beethoven Piano Sonata no. 7 in D, op. 10 no. 3
Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 6 in F, Op. 10, No. 2
performed by Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, or below by Annie Fischer In today’s work, as with all previous Beethoven sonatas, and likely with all future ones as well, we turn to the wealth of knowledge to be found in the lecture series … Continue reading Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 6 in F, Op. 10, No. 2
Beethoven Piano Sonata no. 5 in Cm, op. 10 no. 1
performed by Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, or below by Annie Fischer I cannot overstate the wonderfulness of Sir András Schiff’s series of lectures about the Beethoven sonatas. They make me feel like I know these works so well, and even after having listened … Continue reading Beethoven Piano Sonata no. 5 in Cm, op. 10 no. 1
Beethoven String Quintet in E flat, op. 4
performed by the Endellion String Quartet and David Adams, viola, or below by the Zurich String Quintet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=md5qlgDHADU Composed in 1795, Beethoven’s op. 4 was originally an octet written for pairs of oboes, clarinets, bassoons and horns. That work was … Continue reading Beethoven String Quintet in E flat, op. 4
TSO’s Don Quixote
featuring cellist Pablo Ferrández and conductor Robert Trevino It’s been quite some time since I’ve paid the Taipei Symphony a visit, in fact more than four months. They spent a little time traveling down south for some concerts, and had one or two … Continue reading TSO’s Don Quixote
Mozart Piano Concerto No. 8 in C, K. 246
performed by Mitsuko Uchida and the English Chamber Orchestra under Jeffrey Tate, or below by the English Chamber Orchestra with Murray Perahia The eighth concerto is the last of three from Mozart written in 1776, April of that year, and … Continue reading Mozart Piano Concerto No. 8 in C, K. 246
Mozart Piano Concerto No. 7 in F for three pianos and orchestra, K. 242
performed by Andras Schiff, Daniel Barenboim, and Georg Solti with the English Chamber Orchestra (I think) Talk about extravagant. Why three pianos? I thought the same thing, and I’ll tell you why, or rather Wikipedia will: The concerto is often … Continue reading Mozart Piano Concerto No. 7 in F for three pianos and orchestra, K. 242
Mozart Piano Concerto no. 6 in B-flat, K. 238
performed by Mitsuko Uchida and the English Chamber Orchestra under Jeffrey Tate, or below from Murray Perahia and the English Chamber Orchestra Well, we did some sonatas, and now, as you should have expected, some concertos. (A quick note on the … Continue reading Mozart Piano Concerto no. 6 in B-flat, K. 238
Mozart Piano Sonata No. 6 in D, K. 284 / 205b
performed by Christoph Eschenbach, or below by Sir András Schiff second and third movements We have now reached somewhat of a (very insignificant) milestone in our coverage of Mozart’s piano sonatas. For one, this puts us a third of the … Continue reading Mozart Piano Sonata No. 6 in D, K. 284 / 205b
Mozart Piano Sonata No. 5 in G, K. 283 / 189h
performed by Christoph Eschenbach, or below by the also spectacular Mitsuko Uchida https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnAqcUFVorw Here we are with Mozart’s fifth piano sonata, and per yesterday’s article, the two Köchel numbers reflect its original and incorrect ordering, later being given the lower number to … Continue reading Mozart Piano Sonata No. 5 in G, K. 283 / 189h
Mozart Piano Sonata No. 4 in E-flat, K. 282 /189g
performed by Christoph Eschenbach, or below by the also outstanding Mitsuko Uchida We haven’t seen Mozart in a while. Actually it hasn’t been that long. We featured him more than once or twice during the horn series and a few … Continue reading Mozart Piano Sonata No. 4 in E-flat, K. 282 /189g
The English Symphony in Review
Phew. The series can be reviewed here. That was a ton of music. And really it’s a testament to how much excellent music there is from that small little corner of the world up there off the coast of mainland … Continue reading The English Symphony in Review
Sir Peter Maxwell Davies: Naxos Quartet no. 1, op. 229
performed by the Maggini Quartet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNB-orXRl2o Sir Peter Maxwell Davies was born September 8, 1934 in Salford, Lancashire. He told his parents at the ripe young age of four that he wanted to be a composer, after having seen Gilbert … Continue reading Sir Peter Maxwell Davies: Naxos Quartet no. 1, op. 229
Brian Ferneyhough: String Quartet no. 2
performed by the Arditti Quartet Brian Ferneyhough may well be one of the most important composers to emerge from the latter half of this century. Simultaneously famous and infamous, he is a controversial figure of world renown, bent on making … Continue reading Brian Ferneyhough: String Quartet no. 2
Simpson Symphony no. 3
performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra under Vernon Handley, or below by the London Symphony Orchestra under Jascha Horenstein (this piece is featured on a list of pieces I heartily recommend to music directors for inclusion on their season programs. … Continue reading Simpson Symphony no. 3
Arnold Symphony No. 1, Op 22
performed by the London Symphony Orchestra under Richard Hickox, or below by the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland under Andrew Penny https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdElsJMZ4NI We had a chance to hear Arnold’s second horn concerto a few months ago, but he was yet … Continue reading Arnold Symphony No. 1, Op 22
Simpson String Quartet no. 1
performed by the Delmé Quartet (Sorry, no YouTube this week, but I’m going to be linking below to program notes from Hyperion, who sells physical and digital copies of this music here. It’s also available on iTunes.) I’m very glad … Continue reading Simpson String Quartet no. 1
Fugue for Thought 