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I've started exploring Szymanowski's music, both orchestral and for solo piano. So far I'm finding the orchestral more interesting than the piano.
I've been listening to the NAXOS recordings. What else is out there that challenges these performances/recordings? Suggestions anyone?
Follow Ups:
Well I've completed listening to the Naxos CD's of Orchestral as well as solo piano. I'm going to concentrate on the violin concertos first and have followed your guidance. I also ordered the Babe's Violin sonatas so I can look at the pictures while I listen - I don't have a clue what I'm going to hear. :-)
BTW, I did really enjoy Naxos Vol 4 of Roscoe's performances of the solo piano music which included Nine Preludes which I really enjoyed as well as as Sonata #3 and other pieces. I wish I started off with this disc.
Thanks for your help.........
'My Young Years' autobiography. He describes how a person who was eavesdropping on AR's late night practice sessions told him 'Oh I know this wonderful composer, let me bring you some of his music'. With appropriate scepticism, AR tried it, and within a few notes knew this was no amateur scribbling. He demanded to meet this composer. Who was, of course, Karol Szymanowski. Rubinstein was instrumental in promoting the career of his new best friend.
sound is merely OK though. The other enduring Szy works are King Roger, (Rattle)--if the opening doesn't move you, with its stylized religious pomp--I don't know what would; The 3rd Symphony (Rattle again), the "Symphony" #4 for piano and orchestra and the Choral Stabat Mater. The obscure orchestral songs are steamy hot too, but not very well recorded, (on Koch I believe).
Glad you got bit.
Funny you mention that because the Wilkomirska was the first performance of the 1st concerto I ever heard and it made quite an impression. I didn't know it had been released on CD.
Thanks for the other recommendations. I will put them on my listening list. Do try out the Lutoslawski Concerto I mention. Really a tremendous work.
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I think are great, and you get a fine Stravinsky as well.
A very beautiful, even magical CD. After hearing it, I sought out other Szymanowski, with much less successful results. Let us know what you find out.
By the way, another really exciting work by a Polish composer from this era is the Lutoslowski Concerto for orchestra, which no one seems to know. It was written in the late 40s, before Lutoslowski turned to more avant-garde techniques. The Concerto is a little more modern than the Bartok equivalent. It's propulsive and accessible.
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Alina Ibragimova's recording of Szymanowski's complete violin works is just great. As the Amazon poster contends, this recording will surely attain legendary status, particularly for the variety of timbre she achieves from her consummate bowing. I couldn't agreee more!
Also, if you have a blu-ray player hooked up to your system, by all means check out the Naxos recordings of the four Szymanowski Symphonies with Wit and the Warsaw Philharmonic. You couldn't wish for more idiomatic playing, and the sound quality is really state of the art - just wonderful:
(Only 1 and 2 are shown here, but 3 and 4 are also available.)
I'm always up for babes. I've venerated Suwanai (Dvorak VC) but its time she had some competition. So I ordered Baliashvili (Brahms) and now I'll put this young lady's Szymanowski on my list. Treat my eyes and ears.BTW, I just finished listening to the Sonata 1 in C minor. I found it very interesting and much different than some of his other works I had worked through. This was Roscoe's on Naxos. Does he have any competition?
Looks like I've got a lot of new music to look forward to. :-)
Oh, do you think the regular CD's are worthwhile sonically or is the BlueRay disc something special. I've got a BlueRay on my TV system but the sonic's in that system are terrible. I listen to TV with headphones and a dedicated headphone amp. As my wife laughs!
Edits: 04/20/12
I like that piece too, but it's somewhat more derivative than his other piano music. In fact, I'd say that it's not really typical of his musical style as a whole. I'm not up on the latest recordings of this piece, but I notice that there's a DG recording by Rafal Blechacz - he's not the latest Chopin Competition winner, but was the previous winner. I didn't think his Chopin Preludes were quite in the top category, but for the most part, I do respect the Chopin Competition winners, and I suspect Blechacz may have more to offer than he showed in that previous recording. Unfortuantely, the Szymanowski recording seems to be available only in Japan, where you will pay top dollar for it - but it might be worth the risk. (It also includes some Debussy works.)
As for blu-ray, there are a lot of unknowns in your set up. Can your player decode and send the decoded DTS HD Master Audio through the analogue outputs? If so, I would think you would hear the difference if you can route the sound directly to your headphone amp. Come to think of it, I can't remember whether the two-channel output of that Naxos recording is DTS HD Master Audio or PCM. I'll try to update this post once I check. In either case, it should be better than plain old CD.
Edits: 04/22/12
See link. I have it. I haven't caught on to the Szymanowski, but I do like the Debussy.
The Jennifer Koh release gives you the first concerto and other interesting works in great sound.
And the Nicola Benedetti has the same concerto and a hodge-podge of extra works.
Multiple images thanks to Chris.... :)
I like his violin concerti. I have the one with Lydia Mordkovitch playing the solo.
Another interesting recording is a transcription of string quartets, by Szymanowski, Janacek and Hass, for small string orchestra that Chandos put out.
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