December 2013 - Classical Music

Bach, J.S. - Wachet! Betet! Betet! Wachet! (Watch! Pray! Pray! Watch!)
Bach, J.S. - French Suites 3 and 5
Barber - Canzone for flute and piano
Barber - Despite and Still
Beethoven - Meeresstille und glueckliche Fahrt (Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage)
Beethoven - 11 Bagatelles, op.119
Chopin - Nocturnes, opuses 9, 15, 32 and 62
Faure - Le jardin clos (The walled garden)
Faure - Barcarolle No.11
Holmboe

• Violin Concerto No.2
• Flute Concerto No.2
• Recorder Concerto
• Concerto for Orchestra
• Preludes 5 to 10 for chamber orchestra
• Epitaph
• Epilog
• Tempo variabile
• Primavera
• Quartetto Medico
• Aspects
• Quartetto, op.90
• Sextet
• Music with Horn
• Gioco
• Ballata
• Eco
• Sonata for solo flute
• Sonata for solo cello

Mozart - Piano Sonatas 17 and 18
Poulenc

• 3 Pastorales
• Sonata for piano, 4 hands
• Trois Mouvements perpétuels
• Valse for Album des Six
• Suite pour piano
• 5 Impromptus
• Promenades
• Napoli
• Trio for oboe, bassoon and piano

Rachmaninov - Symphony No.2
Rachmaninov - The Isle of the Dead
Ravel - Daphnis and Chloe
Scarlatti, D. - Keyboard Sonatas - K.3, 9, 17, 24, 213, 214, 257, 380, 404 and 519
Schubert - Symphony No.5
Schubert - Piano Sonatas in C, D.279 and 840 (both unfinished)
Schumann - Piano Sonata No.2
Schumann - Humoreske in B flat
Simpson - Symphonies 7 and 11

I rounded off my listening to new Holmboe, and threw in a few chamber works I already had for good measure. Of the new works, the violin and flute concertos were both big hits, and I was also particularly satisfied with Epitaph and the Sextet (which is for 3 winds and 3 strings). Some of the others will require a little more attention. The orchestral preludes are very good but tend to blur into each other at this stage.

My long-delayed chronological exploration of the relatively small amount of Mozart I own was completed, with the last two piano sonatas. There's no denying the increased sophistication of his compositions with age, and it's certainly a great pity he didn't live longer. I definitely need to buy quite a few more works, most likely starting with piano concertos and the mature string quartets.

Having got to the end of my Poulenc box set of piano and chamber music, I very soon went back to listen to the works again, this time chronologically. The very earliest pieces are not especially great in my opinion, but it didn't take all that long to reach some charming music. The trio for oboe, bassoon and piano, which is as far as I've got in this new traversal, is a lovely thing to listen to.

And finally, it's worth saying what a fine work The Isle of the Dead is. Symphonic poems are all about painting a picture in the mind, and in this case the music is wonderfully vivid. It unfolds at a slow pace, but each time I listened I found myself being transported, as if I was slowing down to fit in with Rachmaninov's music.

-------------------------------------------

The 2013 census was made slightly more difficult by a change in the way I keep records, but the final count is 383 different recordings. That's up on last year despite a lengthy period where classical music listening was quite limited. Holmboe was the winner with 68 entries, concentrated in a couple of major binges!

Obviously, the length of these works varies far more than with pop albums, so Dvorak's 70-minute (and rather exhausting) third string quartet counts the same as a Scarlatti keyboard sonata lasting less than 2 minutes. I can only take the music as I find it!

December 2013 - Popular Music

Beyonce - Beyonce
Kate Bush - 50 Words for Snow
John Mayer - Paradise Valley
Katie Noonan & the Captains - Emperor's Box
Radiohead - Kid A
Radiohead - In Rainbows

A little flourish of new music at the very end of the year thanks to Christmas - either gifts, bought with gift money or spotted for myself while shopping!

Katie Noonan's album was a long-intended purchase. She was one member of george, a band responsible for just about my favourite album of the last decade.  Since then she has explored a variety of styles, but I knew this particular album was the most george-like work she had done. So far so good, although really after only a few listens I can't say whether this will match previous work in my affections.

John Mayer in Paradise Valley appears very much like John Mayer in Born and Raised, although it's perhaps a bit more straightforward and less adventurous than the previous album. Then again it might reveal a bit more with further listening. At this stage, one of the most impressive things on here is the duet with Katy Perry, mainly because of how different she sounds - as one review said, she has warmth here that is nothing like her usual highly-produced pop.

The big surprise purchase, with Christmas money, was Beyonce.  I won't lie, the concept and method of delivery drew me in to begin with. Here was a singer explicitly saying 'this is an album, I want it thought of as a complete unit'. That's always a positive for me.  But then, as I watched 30-second samples of the videos, I was impressed. Then I read reviews saying how this was some of her finest work. Then I listened to 90-second audio samples on iTunes and was still impressed.

I'm pretty sure this is the first time in my life that I bought an album, and the first thing I did was sit down to watch it.

And you know what? I'm still quite impressed. After that first 'viewing' I've tended to focus more on the CD version. There are some differences, and it's actually nice to see that occasionally it's the audio version that is longer, not the visual version, but on the whole it plays/feels like the same work. That in itself is to be applauded.  But really the main point is there's some pretty good music here. It's not remotely what I could my 'normal' listening genre, and I wouldn't say I love all of it, but I do like all of it and it's constantly interesting and engaging. I find myself wanting to return to it to have another listen and explore further. I'd say that's a big win on Beyonce's part, in my little corner of the world.

---------------------------------------------

The tally for 2013 is in and it says I only listened in full to 73 pop recordings. Take away a few bits and pieces and it's just 65 albums. That's way lower than previous years. The reasons why include being away for a lengthy period, and probably a bigger focus on classical music. Still, I'm surprised and not pleased. There's plenty of other good music to be listening to.

November 2013 - Classical Music

Bach, J.S.

• Darzu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes (For this purpose the Son of God was manifested)
• Ich elender Mensch, wer wird mich erlösen (O wretched man that I am, who will deliver me)
• O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort (O Eternity, you thunderous word)
• Was soll ich aus dir machen, Ephraim (How can I give you up, Ephraim)
• Ich glaube, lieber Herr, hilf meinem Unglauben (Lord I believe, help my unbelief)

Barber

• Adagio for Strings
• Summer Music
• Nocturne (Homage to John Field)

Beethoven - Piano Sonatas 31 and 32
Bernstein - Overture to 'Candide'
Bridge - Dance Poem
Bridge - Allegro moderato for string orchestra
Chopin

• Two Nocturnes, op.27
• Waltz in A flat, op.42
• Three Mazurkas, op.63 

Dukas - The Sorcerer's Apprentice
Dvorak - Slavonic Dance No.9 (orchestral version)
Enescu -Romanian Rhapsody No.1
Faure

• Nine Preludes
• Nocturnes 9 and 10
• Barcarolle No.9
• Impromptu No.5
• Serenade for cello and piano

Giazotto - Adagio in G minor
Hindemith - Kammermusik Nos. 4 and 5
Holmboe

• Symphonies 2 to 5, 13
• Chamber Symphonies 1 and 2
• Sinfonia 3
• Viola Concerto
• Flute Concerto No.1
• Preludes 1 to 4 for chamber orchestra 
• String Quartets 2, 4, 10, 11, 15, 17, 19 and 20
• Violin Sonatas 1 to 3
• Trombone Sonata
• Sonata for solo flute
• Quartetto, op.90
• Aspects
• Monolith
• Tempo variabile
•  Haiduc (Marauders)
• Bagatelle No.1 'Arabesque'

Honegger - Cello Concerto
Humperdinck - Overture to 'Hansel and Gretel'
Janacek - Sinfonietta
Thomas Linley the Younger - Overture to 'The Duenna' 
Mahler - Songs of a Wayfarer
Mozart - Symphonies 40 and 41
Poulenc - Trio for oboe, bassoon and piano
Poulenc - Clarinet Sonata 
Rachmaninov - Cello Sontat
Rachmaninov - 10 Preludes, op.23 
Ravel - Gaspard de la Nuit
Schubert - Piano Sonatas in A flat, F sharp minor and A, D.557, 571 and 664
Schumann - Fantasy in C
Schumann - Arabeske in C
Simpson - Symphony No.2 
Strauss, R. - Oboe Concerto
Vivaldi

• Laudate Dominum, RV 606
• Laetatus sum, RV 607
• Nisi Dominus in G minor, RV 608

Walton - Cello Concerto
Walton - Orb and Sceptre

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It happened again. I went completely Holmboe-mad.

I think it was stress-related, but whatever the precise cause,  I just had this moment where I knew specifically that I wanted to listen to Holmboe. Over the course of the next few days, not only did I listen to a sizable slice of the recordings I already had, I also ordered 6 new CDs. Which arrived in time for me to listen to about a third during the month.

Of the new pieces, the pick thus far would probably be the Viola Concerto. Fascinating music from late in Holmboe's life, but also a thrillingly good recording. It positively jumps out of the speakers.

There was another new purchase for the month, only it was really an old one... one of my early classical cassettes was an Andre Previn recording simply called 'Classical Favourites'. I believe it's culled from a couple of albums released when he had a television show (a fairly remarkable thing for a conductor when you think about it).  I haven't listened to the cassette for years, but I did love it and had long had a vague idea I should try getting it on CD. I finally acted, after some random thought about Dukas' The Sorcerer's Apprentice reminded me just how long it was since I had heard that marvelous work. Other highlights of the disc include Barber's Adagio and Enescu's Rhapsody, but really the whole thing is a great listen.

I listened to more of the Bach cantatas, and BWV 60, O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort was a highlight.  It's full of dialogue between different voices, rather than solos, and I found that helped it tell a dramatic 'story'.

I finally reached the end of my set of Bridge's orchestral works, having proceeded chronologically, and immediately thought about going back to listen to the works in the order they're actually presented in the set. So many silly completist plans, so little time...

This is all rather bits-and-pieces and not my finest writing, but the last thing I want to mention is the relatively late Faure piano music I've now reached. On one wonderful evening, I played the nocturnes, barcarolle and impromptu listed above, written in 1908 and 1909, and arranged them almost as a kind of romantic sonata. Except it wasn't that 'romantic' - Faure by this time was writing music that is more austere and often more knotty than his earlier work. And it's glorious stuff.