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#11

Composers & Music / Re: Ferdinand Thieriot

Last post by Alan Howe - Yesterday at 10:03

cpo would be my first choice: they mostly release German radio recordings and there are conductors who would do a good job - such as Golo Berg, who tells us that his performance of Grimm's magnificent Symphony was recorded for release sometime soon. Toccata Classics have put out two superb CDs of Thieriot's chamber music, so they too might be interested.

#12

Recordings & Broadcasts / Re: Henselt/Bronsart Piano Con...

Last post by Mark Thomas - Yesterday at 08:28

I do agree that the SCO sounds underpowered, particularly so in the Henselt excerpts. I may buy the Bronsart download for Paul Wee's pianism but it'll be a whim if I do and Wee seems to have full albums on his YouTube channel, so there'll probably be the opportunity to hear the whole recording before deciding.

#13

Composers & Music / Re: Ferdinand Thieriot

Last post by Maury - Yesterday at 02:49

Believe me I share your wish for Theriot and some others too  but I don't know what an enterprising label is in 2024, particularly for orchestral music. I am more familiar with the US but the pandemic was rather devastating for the classical music field here. Yes the few classical music organizations that are in the largest cities like New York, Chicago and LA are perhaps about back where they were in 2019 but even those have had losses in season subscriptions which is worrisome. The second-line cities like Detroit or Cleveland are starting to sink. The breakup of the Soviet Union created some openings in the 90s and 00s for cheaper orchestral recordings in Russia and Eastern Europe but those are pretty much gone for different reasons.

I would think some crowdsourcing vehicle is more likely than relying on labels which are facing a rapidly shrinking CD and download market. In the US, CDs are actually well below vinyl now in both revenue and units sold. Even more feasible IMO would be the transcription of these symphonies for well done computer playback. Given that many people now listen to MP3s on their computer or mobile device one need not worry overly much about audiophile considerations. Just my thoughts but I do share your concern.

#14

Recordings & Broadcasts / Re: Henselt/Bronsart Piano Con...

Last post by Alan Howe - Friday 10 May 2024, 22:26

Well, I've been doing some comparisons (using headphones at Presto) between this new release and the two Hyperion CDs which feature the piano concertos involved - and I have to say that I really don't think the Swedish Chamber Orchestra are up to the job, especially in the slow movements where the strings in particular sound (to me) undernourished by comparison to the BBCSSO. Mind you, Paul Wee is an astonishing pianist and I can certainly see what Revilod means by his treatment of the finale of the Bronsart.

Anyway, for me this would be a pointless repeat purchase. But maybe piano-fanciers will feel differently. And to be honest, I don't think this was ever going to be a release for me as I tend to avoid HIP-influenced recordings if alternatives are available. A sign of my age and prejudices, no doubt...

#15

Recordings & Broadcasts / Re: Henselt/Bronsart Piano Con...

Last post by Revilod - Friday 10 May 2024, 21:22

Excerpts available here. The finale oF Bronsart's concerto is taken at quite a lick. The orchestra sounds lean but perhaps more on its toes than a full symphony orchestra might be.

https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/9615307--henselt-bronsart-piano-concerto

#16

Composers & Music / Re: Ferdinand Thieriot

Last post by Alan Howe - Friday 10 May 2024, 20:20

To return to Thieriot: as far as I can tell no-one of his generation was writing symphonies (nine of them) over a comparable 46-year period (1872-1918). They're crying out for an enterprising label to take them up.

#17

Composers & Music / Re: Ferdinand Thieriot

Last post by Maury - Friday 10 May 2024, 16:12

I saw the old thread but missed the bio reference. So he was another Brahms! It's interesting how intimidated Austro Germanic composers were by past symphonies. I am trying to think of a similar example elsewhere in music history but can't off the top of my head. And yet composers outside of Austria and Germany were writing all kinds of symphonies without any cares. 

#18

Composers & Music / Re: Ferdinand Thieriot

Last post by Alan Howe - Friday 10 May 2024, 12:17

Becker was primarily a composer of songs and choral music. Please see this thread:
https://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php/topic,3817.0.html

As a symphonist he was a very late starter; his biography suggests that he carried the music for his 1st Symphony around in his head for a long time before considering himself ready to begin the composition process.

#19

Recordings & Broadcasts / Re: Meyerbeer's L'Africaine

Last post by Alan Howe - Friday 10 May 2024, 11:48

Spyres has been taking on a lot of heavy repertoire in recent times - I believe he's about to sing Lohengrin, for example. I'd be prepared to give the new set a try if I thought the rest of the cast was up to the considerable demands of L'Africaine, but the excerpts at Presto sound very 'average' to me - in an opera in which world-class vocalism is required.

I won't be abandoning my Blu-ray with Domingo and Verrett (two of the greatest singers of their era) anytime soon, but I appreciate that I'm very picky- and always have been: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCFw51kdApg

#20

Recordings & Broadcasts / Re: Recording of Raff's Samson

Last post by Alan Howe - Friday 10 May 2024, 11:24

Great. It's a date!

The sight of that consignment of CDs is almost too much to bear...