performed by the Berlin Philharmonic under Seiji Ozawa, or below by the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra under Valery Gergiev Now we are rejoicing in our great victory, but each of us has wounds that cannot be healed. One has lost those … Continue reading Prokofiev Symphony no. 6 in E flat minor, op. 111
performed by the Berlin Philharmonic under Seiji Ozawa, or below by the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra under Valery Gergiev (cover image by Ian Baldwin) Next is the third symphonies of both composers, and again, Prokofiev comes out in a much better … Continue reading Prokofiev Symphony no. 3 in Cm, op. 44
performed by the Berlin Philharmonic under Seiji Ozawa, or below by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra under Neeme Järvi (cover image by Johannes Plenio) I have made the music so complex to such an extent that when I listen to … Continue reading Prokofiev Symphony no. 2 in Dm, op. 40
performed by the Berlin Philharmonic under the composer’s baton, or below by the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin under Marek Janowski …music for a winter’s day, utterly grey and gloomy. Henze, of his second symphony (cover image by Cesare Burei) What would your struggle … Continue reading Henze Symphony no. 2
performed by the Berlin Philharmonic under Sir Simon Rattle, or as below with the Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique under Sir John Eliot Gardiner (cover image by Terry Tan De Hao) Okay, all you lovers of a good subtitle, here we are … Continue reading Beethoven Symphony no. 6 in F, op. 68 ‘Pastoral’
performed by Gidon Kremer and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe under Nikolaus Harnoncourt, or below with Itzhak Perlman and the Berlin Philharmonic under Daniel Barenboim (cover image by Andrea Sonda) Well, I’ll try not to repeat myself too much, but … Continue reading Beethoven Romance for Violin and Orchestra no. 1 in G, op. 40
performed by Gidon Kremer and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe under Nikolaus Harnoncourt, or below by Itzhak Perlman and the Berlin Philharmonic under Daniel Barenboim (cover image by Steven Wang) As we saw and (I think) discussed at the beginning of … Continue reading Beethoven Romance for Violin and Orchestra no. 2 in F, op. 50
performed by the Berlin Philharmonic under the composer’s baton If music were a part of man’s everyday life, as it should be, there would certainly be less aggression and much more equality and love on Earth; for music is a … Continue reading Hans Werner Henze: Symphony no. 1
performed by Jessye Norman, László Polgár and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra under Pierre Boulez, or below by Anne Sofie von Otter, John Tomlinson and the Berlin Philharmonic under Bernard Haitink (There’s also an English version with Gwynne Howell, Sally Burgess and … Continue reading Bartók: Bluebeard’s Castle
performed by the Ensemble InterContemporain, or below by members of the Berlin Philharmonic under Sir Simon Rattle, from The Proms 2016 Boulez completed his Éclat for 15 instruments in 1965. Properly (I think?) called Éclat-Multiples, it is (or was to be) … Continue reading Boulez: Éclat
performed by Leif Ove Andsnes and the Berlin Philharmonic under Pierre Boulez, or below by the Géza Anda and the Concertgebouw Orchestra under Bernard Haitink Since we discussed the first piano concerto earlier this week, I’d like to suggest you … Continue reading Bartók Piano Concerto no. 2, Sz. 95, BB 101
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
performed by the Berlin Philharmonic under Rafael Kubelik Yeah, a symphony that isn’t his ninth. And it’s superb, Dvorak at his finest. Dvorak could be one of those composers who’s been cursed by his own success from a few very … Continue reading Dvorak Symphony no. 7 in D minor, Op. 70
performed by the Berlin Philharmonic under Friedrich Goldman (I) Claudio Abbado (II) Marcus Creed (III) “a landmark in 20th-century music . . . probably the first work of the post-war generation of composers in which technique and imagination combine on … Continue reading Stockhausen: Gruppen
performed by the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, with Susanne Otto, Marek Torzewski, Barbara Bonney, Dietrich Knothe & Rundfunkchor Berlin under Claudio Abbado If any evidence exists that Webern’s work does not mark the esoteric “expiry” of Western music in a pianissimo of … Continue reading Nono: Il Canto Sospeso
performed by members of the London Symphony Orchestra under Pierre Boulez, or the below with (members of) the Berlin Philharmonic also under Boulez Greater unity is impossible. Even the Netherlander didn’t manage it. In the fourth variation there are constant … Continue reading Webern: Symphony, op. 21
performed by the Berlin Philharmonic under Claudio Abbado (original two-piano version here) … except not, because it isn’t. The “Chorale St Antoni” was supposed or assumed at the time to have been composed by Haydn, but later found not to be so; … Continue reading Brahms’ Variations on a Theme by Joseph Haydn
There are no words. But I shall try. Maybe it’s just me, but for some of these really special concerts from visiting ensembles (and/or just amazing performances all around), there’s a strange sense of connection, of appreciation and gratitude, that … Continue reading Berlin Philharmonic in Taipei
Two things: Olesya Petrova is a phenomenal, breathtaking, delicate powerhouse. Simon Rattle sat (a few rows) behind me tonight (in the next section over). I’m not ashamed of the fact that I’m familiar with (very) little of Berlioz’s music aside … Continue reading NSO’s Berlioz Bash
performed by The Berlin Philharmonic under Herbert von Karajan (or below in another performance I actually do enjoy [most of] by Georg Solti and the Chicago Symphony. [I say actually because it seems this set doesn’t come up in as … Continue reading Bruckner Symphony no. 1 in Cm
performed by the Cleveland Symphony under George Szell It is strange that just before I really got around to listening to this piece, I was reading some articles about Schenkerian analysis and the idea of homotonality, which it seems is a … Continue reading Schumann Symphony No. 2 in C, op. 61
Fugue for Thought 