I am glad it is of help. that was one of my intentions. To help people starting. I looked for a similar piece on ifno at the time when I got engaged, but was not easy. Hopefully more people will post so there can be a diverse set of opinions. Mozart piano concertos are great. The disk I propose is an excellent performance and great value. Start with number 21. You have probably the most popular 5 there.
If you like a parrticular composer, chances are you will like more of him, and his era. Enjoy! |
I know saying the top 5 of all time is almost an impossible. That is not the point. It is to help people who wants to start, with 5 of the top masterpieces that you really like, or that made you engage or whatever. A place from which safely start. Brademburg concerto or Messiah could very well also be in my list. And others.
The second part of the question is intended to help expand collections. If I see someone posting 3 composers I like, chances are I will like the other 2 if I dont know them that well and may want to explore.
Keep them coming. Thanks |
Will try to find the Chopin piano sonata recording. Looks good!
Thanks |
Yes Rich that's right. That is why I was asking for 5 on each. I know a higher number would probably make more sense for some with more experience, but 5 is a short enough number, so it can easily be worked to look for the names that has the biggest coincidences. Also it forces people posting to be more selective. A combination of both can give a very nice list by name and frequency.
Donjr you are going to love it, i am sure. Watch out though. The live of many of these genius is quite impressive and lots of fun to dig into. Chances are the piece of Rachmaninov is among the 5 I named. Probably piano concerto 2 or 3 or symphony 2... |
Everyone can makentheir recomendations in their format of choice. Mine are actually all CDs, or hybrid SACDs that will play in both regulat CD players and SACD players.
The idea of recomending a recording along with the particular piece, and not only the piece is to help also with a good quality performance and recording, which is also critical. Formats aside, which everyone will have their own preference. |
Thanks guys. I am not too familiar with Bruckner or Mahler. I will follow your recomendations and put it in my list of next listenings in order to expand. However, unless more people recommend them seems they would not make the cut for the short list of choices for starters, for what all of you say.
Newbee will take a look at your postings. Thanks.
Seems Sibelius is getting a lot of recomendations too. Can you give a list of 3 or 4 from him?
Shostakovitch I do like it but it is a bit hard at times. I very much like his piano trio. The live recording from DG with Argerich, Kremer and Maisky doing Tchaikovsky piano trio as well is just fantastic. |
Hi Jult,
That acording to your opinion or taste which is diferent than mine. And that is not only fine but also normal. Which ones you like? Why dont you recommend your list? Hopefully I and others can take advantadge of it.
Regarding death and the maiden, I would need to check but probably I have something like 7 diferent performances/recordings. The ones that I also like include Alban Berg quartet, and specially Amadeus string quartet. This last is coupled with my favorite trout quintet performance that I recommended. A great disk but the sound quality is not great, still I enjoy it very much. Others I dont like that much, but being such a wonderfull masterpiece, I do find joy on all of them one way or another.
Regarding the recording of the Emerson string quartet doing death and the maiden, I very much disagree, and if you check critics and other aficionados opinions I am not the only one that would disagree. Not only the performance I find it second to none, with lots of energy and feeling, and the sound quality more than fine, but also the trio series in which it comes: It includes all Schubert late string quartets and the string quintet. All of them masterpieces and great performances that could perfectly be in my list of top 5s. that set of 3 CDs at 20 usd is one of the best value I have seen around.
However that is also the pourpose of this thread. if you agree with a particular piece being a top master one, but have a strong opinion on a different performance share and let us know. I am really interested in hearing.
But just saying one of my picks out of a list that it took me quite a long time to put together to help others is absurd, not sharing yours, does not add too much value, no? |
Thanks Jult. Did not know that one. May check it out. is that you on Amazon doing the review? Both reviews give 5 starts and are good and interesting ones.
Yes the string quintet in the Emerson's box set is superb isn't it? it would by itself only justify the 20 usd...one of the best I know if not the best,
and the 15th quartet there also is a masterpiece and greately performed in my opinion. Even the 13th which I think is somewhat the worst performance and sound of all thenset I like it very much. That is why I find that box set of 3 discs a great value and highly recommended. |
I just bought this weekend an EMI SACD of beethoven triple concerto I am looking forward to listen to as soon as I can. It is a very nice edition with another disc of Brahms double concerto and violin concerto. Aparently is a very good production or so I was told.
It is an older recording though than your recomendation, with rostropovich, richter and oistrakh. Not familiar with this one. hope is good.
Like your favorites. Not too familiar with Tokio String quartet. |
Thanks. The pics are quite oudated. Those were taken when we just moved in. The system has changed completely since then. And the room layout now is in diagonal. It is a dedicated room so I can play around placement within it.
Not a specific room treatment per se. I've tried some minor things myself and also some "esoteric" treatments of those you would not dare to tell anyone... Not surprisingly, that did nothing, for good or for bad. I placed a carpet between speakers and some stuff on the walls that did help. Overall sounds fine. Could sound better probably with specific treatment. May do it in the future, but do not want a dead silent room neither. I also have a plan to expand the room making it bigger. We will see. |
I mostly agree that picking 5 best compositions of all time is impossible. This is not intended to decide the best five. Again, It is intended to give a starting point to people who want to begin exploring but feel intimidated or do not know where to start. You will agree with me that not all the pieces of a master composer are equaly good or easy, if you want. Same with recordings or performances.
So by providing 5 of 5 diferent compositors people can listen to that, see what they like better and start exploring more pieces of that particular, or other compositors of same era and so on. i think is a good way to start from zero.
Also, it will be interesting to see what people's most voted absolute top 5 picks are on average, if only for the fun of it.
Lastly I hope I can also learn something myself and hopefully get good suggestions I am not familiar with. Some have already arised in recording/performance suggestions I was not aware of that I plan to explore myself. Also hope this helps others willing to expand as well.
So why dont you go ahead and give 5 recomendations of your list of 5? I would like to know and be interested in your picks on Stravinsky |
No problem. You are probably right. As you said I think is clear what I'm trying to do, and I repeated a few times already to those saying it does not make sense.
Is clear that people with more experience, knowledge.. however you call it, although will find it more difficult to answer the question, specially first one, they are also the ones that can be of most help as well, precisely for that.
I tried to make the questions in a way that would provide specific answers. And would like to see those people with more experience answering just like you did. Say it is impossible, or hard, or not the top 5 of all time but excellent masterpieces... but give a list, to help others, with all the disclaimers you want to put on it.
Having said that, yes I also think I already repeated myself on that point too many times, so I will not do it anymore, I hope. |
Yes, it sounds fantastic. I am not too familiar with Brahms symphonies. Mostly concertos and chamber music. i am going to get his recomendation on CD.
Also Schubert symphony 1. Is it good? I very much like his latest ones but never listened much to the earlier ones. i do have a box set with all his symphonies I may revisit. Any recomendation besides 1. |
Some interpretations are questionable from a technical perspective, experts say. You read all the time this or that conductor departed from the original, took too much liberty, did their own interpretation of certain passages, tempos and so on. Karajan and kleiber per instance come to my mind. Or also Anne.Sophie mutter in her adaptation of 4 seasons that I recommended in my list (which to me is the best 4 seasons by far. The only one that after more than 10 years I still revisit frequently despite many critics by purists).
Personally, I do not have the technical knowledge or skills to say if that is the case or not when comparing to the original. I can uderstand people with a deep technical knowledge, professionals and the like may have a strong view on that. And is fun to read and learn their sayings But after doing it, if it moves me that is what I care for. Someone said that different recordings or interpretations of same piece are good for different moments or moods. I agree. . |
Al, I was reading a post about a diferent subject and saw comments made by you that seemed really knowledgable. i would like to ask you a few questions. Do you mind if I send you pa private mail? |
Ok I understand. Lets hope they start that mssging service soon.
Thanks |
Thanks Mapman. What 2 or 3 would you recomend of Mahler? I havent listen to it that much.
Donjr did you get your order in? How do you like it? |
Thanks Newbee. Could you please recommend (now only for me...) another VIolin concerto edition? Not that I find anything wrong with the one you said, but I already have 4 or 5 violin concertos of Tchaikovsky, and although great, I would rather have more of Sibelius or another piece that I don't own. (ONLY if you feel the performance is as good as the one you recommended). Considering the artists involved I bet it is a great one.
thanks |
Thanks newbee, reprince, mapman,
I very much like both Heifetz and Mutter ( most of the time). I have some living stereo SACDs and sound great in general, one including Brahms and Tchaikovsky VC played by him and are fantastic. I will order the living stereo first I think.
Re Khachaturian, i also like Fisher a lot and have maybe 5 or 6 mainly VC including a great series of 2 discs with schuberts complete works for violin and piano not so well known but fantastic. So I will also place an order for his VC and see.
What are they, romantic era?
Jult, I have already more death and the maiden I can remember right now.... But I am always ready to search for another one if it is that good. So will also place and order for this and will let you know. What is the other piece on disk? Or is it played alone? I think is Takacs quartet that has only this in their CD. As much as I like them per instance in their middle beethoven quartets double cd, their schubert quartet I did not thought iit was that special, regardless of the very high critics they got. |
Thanks. I will aslo check the vivaldi.
As an aside, One question for those of you woth several 100s or even over 1000s disks.
How,do you keep track ofmall the discs and different recordings you have? Do you use a catalog program, database or similar? I may have maybe 200 tp 300, not sure and find it hard to keep track of all I have by performers, and so on. specially for second pieces on discs or when there are 2 or 3 small pieces as fillers. |
Ok, i would need a few more responses, in a list format if possible, to try to do a first compilation. Anyone else willing to contribute? |
Thanks Goofyfoot for your list. Devilboy same for yours.
Regarding Bach, I think he has some great compositions including masterpieces no doubt. not sure though he would be one of my top picks, but that is just personal liking and subjective. It is what the mayority syas that is important within this context.
I am no expert in history of art, let alone history of music. But I remember I read somewhere, some book I think, where the writer made a point and gave facts acusing Bach of copying Vivaldi, and giving examples of different pieces where he made comparations and dates. He argued that the real genius was in fact Vivaldi.
Saying Beethoven, Mozart are over rated is for sure a strong sentence. I do not think so. handel is great but I do not think he would be on a list of 5 top composers of history of classical music of most people, while the other 2 probably would.
In any case we will see |
Hi Donjr, you bought the mozart from my initial list. i certainly hope you like it. Think is a very good point to start listening to mozart and see if you like it to explore farther. The recording and performance of ashkenazy is superb.
If you read farther down on the list of 5 composers I made you will find Rachmaninov. He is romantic era, late. Went well into early XX century. In any case also a master in my opinion. I would start with his piano concertos 2 and 3. Would also recommend Ashkenazy performance. There are 2 recordings of Ashkenazy of these performances. Both are great but the older one, when he was younger of the concerto 3 and also 2 is just incredible in my opinion. I think that is the one I recommended for both pieces. You can really tell he was younger in his playing and his playing at the time I like it better for these 2 particular pieces.
There is a movie that goes around his cojcerto for piano 3 and the technical dificulty and challenge it represents for the piano performer. I remember reading somewhere that it is one ofnthe most dificult to perform, if not the most, piano piece and that many refused to perform it. i think the movie was called Shine and got an Oscar award If I recall correctly as best movie. It is a fantastice movie and I also recommend it.
Regarding mozar you bought, I would start with 21. You will love it I hope, and will probably be familiar with it, than maybe 20, and take it from there. You now what? i have not listened to that record for a long while andI I am just now going put it in my stereo. I want to listen to it all but specially second movement of.21st came to my memory... |
