Works that I do my best to write about (at least once a week, usually on Thursdays). For collections of pieces, check out the Series link above.
performed by the Austro-Hungarian Haydn Orchestra under Adam Fischer, or below by the Philharmonia Hungarica under Antal Dorati Haydn symphonies, man. There’s a ton of them. I feel bad-ish for burning through them in quick stretches like this, but if … Continue reading Haydn Symphony no. 20 in C (H. I/20)
performed by Steven Isserlis, or in a nice (if not slightly resonant) performance below by Jean-Guihen Queyras (cover image from here, photographed by Alex Markovich) Back to Bach. Also, it’s May now, so hop down below to see what that means for … Continue reading Bach Cello Suite No. 3 in C major, BWV 1009
performed by the Buchberger Quartet, or per the below links We’re just burning through the early Haydn quartets! (Maybe he should have, too! I kid, really.) The opus 17 quartets are as follows: Quartet No. 17 in F major, Op. … Continue reading SQS: Haydn String quartets 17-22, op. 17
performed by Mitsuko Uchida and the Cleveland orchestra under Pierre Boulez Finally! It’s here. I’ve been eager to write this article now for years. It was a strange experience I had with this work, as I was describing to someone the … Continue reading Schoenberg Piano Concerto, op. 42
performed by Maurizio Pollini (live performance below) I said to Webern: for my music you must have time. It does not suit people who have other things to do. But it is in any case a great pleasure to hear … Continue reading Schoenberg: Sechs Kleine Klavierstücke, Op. 19
featuring pianist Clipper Erickson Listen here or search for us in iTunes In my previous conversation with Mr. Erickson, we focused almost exclusively on the music of R. Nathaniel Dett, whose music Erickson recorded and released last year to great … Continue reading Podcast: His Cup Runneth Over, Pt. 2
performed by the New Vienna String Quartet (above is the first ‘movement’; the entire work is available from this playlist) I have conducted the most difficult scores of Wagner; I have written complicated music myself in scores of up to … Continue reading Schoenberg String Quartet no. 1, op. 7
performed by Maurizio Pollini and the Vienna Philharmonic under Claudio Abbado I find Brahms so intimidating to talk about (if you haven’t already noticed). Like I mentioned in Tuesday’s post about the piano sonata, there’s always so much going on, … Continue reading Brahms Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat, Op. 83
performed by Krystian Zimerman movement 1 below; the rest of the piece in the playlist here Zimerman is back because he’s amazing. Ditto for Brahms. Last time we saw Brahms (well, before his sextet on Sunday) was last summer. How … Continue reading Brahms Piano Sonata No. 2 in F#m, Op. 2
performed by the Amadeus Quartet, Cecil Aronowitz & William Pleeth, or a stunning performance below from the Israeli Chamber Project Brahms’ chamber music is something special. I say that not being very familiar with it, really, but being far more eager … Continue reading SQS: Brahms String Sextet no. 1 in B flat, op 18
performed by the Kubín Quartet This work, unlike many of the quartets from Beethoven, Mozart and Schubert (and Haydn) that we’ve discussed so far, while still bearing a ‘no. 1’ moniker, is not a first attempt, nor is it a youthful work. … Continue reading Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf String Quartet no. 1 in D
(also) performed by Krystian Zimerman Tuesday we talked about the second ballade, and as discussed, various people associate the same poem as the inspiration for either one of these works. No. 3 was completed a few years later, in 1841, … Continue reading Chopin: Ballade no. 3 in A flat, op. 47
performed by Krystian Zimerman (the above video is an excellent performance, but from at least a few decades ago, as the pianist’s coiffure will attest, but the specific performance by Zimerman is from the Chopin Complete Edition, where it is taken at a … Continue reading Chopin: Ballade no. 2 in F, op. 38
performed by the Melos Quartet, or below (which I believe is the exact same recording, though uncredited and un-movement-ed) I’m not sure what to make of this work. I’ve found very little about it online, often referred to as a … Continue reading Schubert String Quartet no. 2 in C, D. 32
performed by the Melos Quartet This quartet is listed in some places as being in “various” or mixed keys. The Kalmus Study Score that I rented from the library (volume one of three) lists it as C minor. In any … Continue reading Schubert String Quartet no. 1, D. 18
performed by Mitsuko Uchida We’ll get around to the other incomplete sonatas and stuff later, but for now, we feature the first piano work of his that really blew me away, and the earliest completed sonata. I was fascinated with his Wanderer … Continue reading Schubert Piano Sonata no. 4 in C, D. 537
performed by Wilhelm Kempff If, as Messiaen stated and many others might agree, Mozart is ‘an extraordinary rhythmician,’ one of the most talented and gifted rhythmic composers, then Schubert must be one of the most lyrical. With Mozart’s first string quartet from a … Continue reading Schubert Piano Sonata in E, D. 157
performed by the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields under Sir Neville Marriner, or below by The Academy of Ancient Music under Christopher Hogwood (what’s with the academies?) So it’s been some time since we got around to a Mozart … Continue reading Mozart Symphony no. 13 in F, K. 112
performed by the Amadeus Quartet This first string quartet effort, when the composer was only fourteen years old, has charm and interest in spades compared to the first efforts of Papa Haydn. While I’m sure his divertimenti served their intended … Continue reading W. A. Mozart String Quartet no. 1 in G, K. 80
performed by the Artemis quartet, or below by in a fantastic performance by the Ariel Quartet And here we are at Beethoven’s first quartets. Like Haydn’s op. 1 and others after, Beethoven’s no. 18 is a collection of six quartets, published … Continue reading Beethoven String Quartet no. 1 in F, op. 18, no. 1
performed by Maurizio Pollini and the Berlin Philharmonic under Claudio Abbado, or the same pianist with the Vienna Philharmonic under Karl Böhm I saw almost nothing but empty pages; at the most, on one page or another a few Egyptian … Continue reading Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 3 in Cm, Op. 37
Fugue for Thought 