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increpatio
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« Reply #1170 on: 15:22:50, 05-09-2007 » |
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I spent much of yesterday evening, and a chunk of this morning listening to Martin Jones' recordings of Percy Grainger; I ended up really liking several works of his for two pianos (English Dance, and I think "The Warriors"). This is something of a breakthrough for me.
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autoharp
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« Reply #1171 on: 17:28:03, 05-09-2007 » |
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There's some wonderful playing as well ! A big favourite is the English waltz.
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increpatio
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« Reply #1172 on: 18:36:18, 05-09-2007 » |
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There's some wonderful playing as well ! A big favourite is the English waltz.
Doesn't *quite* get me as much as some others. But yes; delightful all the same! Would you recommend any of his non-piano works in particular? I remember hearing some of his more folksy choral stuff once and thinking it a bit blech  Oh, I was listening to this posthumous quintet by Medtner today; I had listened to it a bit before, and had been rather disappointed that it was based on the Dies Irae theme (if for nothing other than it's harmonicrhythmic monotony). But; I'm warming to it as time passes. |
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« Reply #1173 on: 18:56:05, 05-09-2007 » |
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Would you recommend any of his non-piano works in particular? I remember hearing some of his more folksy choral stuff once and thinking it a bit blech Oh, I was listening to this posthumous quintet by Medtner today; I had listened to it a bit before, and had been rather disappointed that it was based on the Dies Irae theme (if for nothing other than it's harmonic monotony). But; I'm warming to it as time passes. Where to start ? The wind band version of A Lincolnshire Posy (especially Rufford Park Poachers) The Medtner quintet - great stuff ! |
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time_is_now
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« Reply #1174 on: 19:01:46, 05-09-2007 » |
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posthumous quintet   |
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The city is a process which always veers away from the form envisaged and desired, ... whose revenge upon its architects and planners undoes every dream of mastery. It is [also] one of the sites where Dasein is assigned the impossible task of putting right what can never be put right. - Rob Lapsley
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Ron Dough
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« Reply #1175 on: 19:28:39, 05-09-2007 » |
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Definitely Lincolnshire Posy, and the full orchestral version of The Warriors. And please don't discard all the folksong settings just because some are a little syrupy: it took me ages to approach Grainger because of the chromatic arrangement of Danny Boy/Irish Tune from County Derry which used to introduce Your Hundred Best Tunes when I was a lad. Seventeen Come Sunday and The Lost Lady Found are real crackers (both on the Britten Grainger disc), and there are some really wonderful weirdos of arrangements such as Father and Daughter, Under a Bridge and The Lonely Desert Man Sees the Tents of the Happy Tribes; Grainger was a true original, and the joy of life erupts out of his music more forcefully than from any other composer's works I can think of. I've mentioned before that the version of the Scotch Strathspey and Reel found on the Britten disc never fails to make me grin and chuckle: it's out-flippin-rageous.
My real conversion to Grainger-mania apart from the Britten disc is thanks to Barry Humphries, to whom I was introduced by the staff of Direction Dean St. (including one Harold Moores) during the early eighties. They'd just imported some Australian EMI discs including the first recording of The Warriors; if I didn't leave with the full set that day I was certainly back for the rest soon after....
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Chafing Dish
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« Reply #1176 on: 20:49:05, 05-09-2007 » |
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I spent much of yesterday evening, and a chunk of this morning listening to Martin Jones' recordings of Percy Grainger
Is that on the same label where Jones plays the complete Mendelssohn? What do you think of the piano sound? They also have some interesting recordings of Vlado Perlemuter, a performer I only paid attention to because he actually worked with Ravel... but I like his Chopin Etudes too (same label again) Nimbus! That's it. Very bright and lucid piano sound, though some might say overly bright. Good for Mendelssohn, arguably not as good for Ravel... |
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Bryn
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« Reply #1177 on: 21:01:10, 05-09-2007 » |
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Yes, they like to capture a fair old bit of the venue's resonances, don't they. I used to rather like their approach, but find it a bit tiring to listen to these days. Perhaps it works better in surround? Most were made using a Soundfield configuration, after all, and issued in UHJ. I'm a bit surprised that the revamped Nimbus has not gone down the SACD or DVD (V or A) surround road.
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time_is_now
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« Reply #1178 on: 21:25:46, 05-09-2007 » |
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Yes, just in case CD and our other cross-Atlantic friends don't know the story, Nimbus discs are recorded in the stunning countryside setting of Wyastone Estate, where the company was founded by a decidedly eccentric Russian count, lover of Mars Bars and hater of Wagner ( http://www.wyastone.co.uk/nrl/main/5643a.html). Gosh! |
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The city is a process which always veers away from the form envisaged and desired, ... whose revenge upon its architects and planners undoes every dream of mastery. It is [also] one of the sites where Dasein is assigned the impossible task of putting right what can never be put right. - Rob Lapsley
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Chafing Dish
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« Reply #1179 on: 21:27:29, 05-09-2007 » |
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Yes, they like to capture a fair old bit of the venue's resonances, don't they. Bryn, what other firms does this describe? You make it sound like a not so uncommon practice.. Thanks for the background, tin! |
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Ron Dough
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« Reply #1180 on: 21:41:02, 05-09-2007 » |
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Even when Nimbus were away from home, they recorded in very resonant acoustics. Their series of English String Orchestra recordings were nearly all made in the Great Hall of Birmingham University: the combination of the location and the Soundfield mic makes for unsettling listening, particularly if you have very phase-sensitive hearing: on headphones the sensation is akin to the soundfield being like a mobius strip rather than a ring, and in a very narrow long tunnel at at that. Yes, Bryn, I'd have thought they'd have gone for SACD 5.1 to exploit their catalogue, too.
Anyone ever hear any of Count Labinsky/a.k.a. Shura Gehrmann's recordings? Let's just say that they're something of an aquired taste....
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Bryn
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« Reply #1181 on: 21:51:59, 05-09-2007 » |
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CD, I think Meridian used to be a bit that way inclined, but less extreme. Then there's MDG, but I really do like their approach. I can't, offhand, think of any other recording company which so consitently tries to capture the venue's acoustic to the same extent Nimbus does. I do certainly still prefer it to multiple close miking.
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richard barrett
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« Reply #1182 on: 22:07:30, 05-09-2007 » |
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If one were to be uncharitable, one might opine that one reason for Nimbus making such reverby recordings is that a lot of details get smudged over so it doesn't matter so much that they record in long takes with the inevitable fluffs here and there.
I wouldn't wish to be so uncharitable, though, because their many recordings of Indian classical music are absolutely superb.
I've worked with MDG once and I found their engineer frighteningly good (at reading scores as well as recording!).
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Ron Dough
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« Reply #1183 on: 22:31:50, 05-09-2007 » |
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CD, I think Meridian used to be a bit that way inclined, but less extreme. Then there's MDG, but I really do like their approach. I can't, offhand, think of any other recording company which so consitently tries to capture the venue's acoustic to the same extent Nimbus does. I do certainly still prefer it to multiple close miking.
Chandos tend to pick up more hall ambience than most - a very 'live' sound. And while I'm with you all the way about multi-miking, there is one obvious and honourable exception: the American Delos label, whose engineer, John Eargle, has always multi-miked with stereo pairs, so successfully that I can't understand why nobody else has followed suit; some of his recordings are just stunning, regular fodder when Ron's called upon to do hi-fi exhibitions. |
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ahinton
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« Reply #1184 on: 22:43:22, 05-09-2007 » |
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Yes, just in case CD and our other cross-Atlantic friends don't know the story, Nimbus discs are recorded in the stunning countryside setting of Wyastone Estate, where the company was founded by a decidedly eccentric Russian count, lover of Mars Bars and hater of Wagner ( http://www.wyastone.co.uk/nrl/main/5643a.html). Gosh!Oi! Who do you (not oliver) suddenly think you are - Sir Richard Barrett? This Gosh! is a Sir Richard Barrett word, copyrighted by him some time ago; I thought that we all understood that around here... Best, Alistair |
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