Late start—to be continued…
I got a late start today and have a busy day. So I’ve only managed to grind one post out so far, but there are so many things to talk about that I plan to post some more this evening.
Till then, please talk amongst yourselves.
Okay. I think Dvorak’s works are pleasant and accessible. I’ve been listening to some of them lately at work. Does anyone else here like them?
Philip:
I sure do.
My favorite:
And now I’m going to eat dinner.
Will post later tonight.
Enjoy your supper, Neo. Meanwhile, I’m enjoying the Dvorák. And thanks to you too, Philip. :>)
Schumann piano concerto, A-m — Claudio Arrau
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrYAQkYaLnw
Chopin Ballade No. 1, G-m — Horowitz — c’est merveilleux! :>)))
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QXz8-rQ2hE
Rachmaninoff Prelude, G#-minor, Op. 32 No. 12 — Horowitz 1986 Moscow performance
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvhZ2CXIyOc
I could go on forever … but I won’t …
Villa-Lobos, Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5 – Aria — Victoria de los Angeles
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvhZ2CXIyOc
Does anybody watch Man in the High Castle?
Were you shocked at the portrayal of American Nazi’s tearing down statues and trying to, quite literally, erase American History?
I’ve been cheating by looking at YewT00b clips of it, Ed. I don’t know much about it as yet; my priorities in peeking at the series have been mostly 2 so far: (1) I hadn’t heard anything about Rufus Sewell in so long that I’ve been getting over the shock of seeing him on screen again; (2) checking the accuracy of the spoken German as far as I’m still able. I don’t know if I find the premise sufficiently gripping as yet. Your point, of course, reveals a certain direct relevance.
Julie (I grew up partly near there, too), my mom loved Horowitz back then. I’ve found myself listening to Scheps and Christopher Park a lot lately. Orion Weiss is interesting to me, too; he’s coming to town soon.
Julie, the entire collection (24 in all major and minor keys) of Rachmaninoff is well worth the time. What a range of emotions within 24 pieces.
Yancey, I couldn’t agree more. Rachmaninoff is my favorite composer by far, and Horowitz is my single most-favorite pianist.
Both books of Preludes give me chills, and especially this one. Do you play? I don’t have the technique for the real virtuoso pieces, but there are a few … The Op. 23 #4, D-M, that I used to play a lot…. Oh, they’re all wonderful. Naturally Horowitz is terrific in the 3rd Concerto and the Bb-m Sonata…the best recording I’ve heard of the 2nd Concerto is Rubenstein’s … Ormandy’s E-m Symphony…The Suite for 2 pianos, Argerich & Friere….
Heh. For Change of pace, Horowitz in the Prokofiev Toccata. Wow! And “Big Scriabin,” D-m Etude IIRC. I struggled womanfully with that one, but let’s face it, Horowitz I ain’t. :>)
Another favorite — Richter playing Op. 23 No.7, C-m.
Oooops –Rachmaninoff and Stokowski, 2nd Concerto…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddTVZy-ZwVI — Restored as a labor of love, see the description….
I am glad we share this passion, Yancey. Thank you for telling me.
Neo – given the run of comments, you should re-categorize this in Music instead of Uncategorized — is that even possible?
Nice to take a break from politics.
Julie, I self taught myself until I left home for good for graduate school at age 22, and lost access to a piano. I could play the B minor prelude (my favorite) to a passable degree at one time, and parts of the C# Minor. I was working on the G Minor one for a while, but could never really get to the point that it sounded good me. I haven’t tried to play in 25 years now. One of my real regret was not buying myself a piano or at least an electronic keyboard when I left home. By this point in my life, I would have probably been pretty good at it.
Yancey,
I don’t know what your graduate degree is in, but you should have stayed home and become a concert pianist instead of going to grad school! Especially if you were able to develop a technique that let you play Rach. at all!….
Seriously, though, I hope you’ve been happy with whatever you ended up doing. :>)
I had not one but two callings. My mother trained at Conservatory to be a concert organist (and ended up teaching piano and being our church organist and choir director) and my dad was trained as an operatic tenor. (He had a beautiful, lush voice. Similar to the tenor Richard Tucker, if you know of him.) Anyway, I desperately wanted to be a concert pianist. But at the age of seven I figured out I was never going to be Horowitz. And Mother was busy looking after all of us and teaching to put biscuits on the table, so I was “the shoemaker’s child who went without shoes,” meaning she taught me, but not in the necessary intensely focussed way. [My other calling turned out to be math, … bachelor’s, master’s, went on to program and be a Mom…so that didn’t work out as planned either, but as Mom used to say to me often, “Many are called but few are chosen.” THEY (my folks, *g*) wanted me to be a classical soprano. Well, I did have a good voice, and I loved singing, but if I’d become a singer I’d have wanted to be a lounge singer, like Julie London. LOL]
I did manage the “Bells of Moscow” (you probably know, Rachmaninoff said he hated to give concerts because they always made him play the damn thing as an encore. *g* –I think that’s in Harold Schoenberg’s book), at least sort of. And I worked and worked at the G-m prelude, but I just couldn’t quite get there. But that haunting middle section…always made me think of some sort of celestial spirits singing far off in the mist in the hills….
But I do love music, and above all piano.
Agree, the B-m Prelude is beautiful. Agree, they all are. So I’ve been indulging myself all evening. I’ve been mining YT, so if you like….
Horowitz — G-m Prelude, Op. 23 #5, NYC, 1981
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cB_mNGFFrcI
Rachmaninoff, allegedly playing it himself (dispute about that in the comments)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8RyWFA7PSY
Horowitz — Op. 32, #5 in G-M
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9TAYfxgGNUk
Horowitz — Rach., Sonata #2, B-m
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kaLkpDrdifc
Argerich & Friere — Rachmaninoff, Second Suite for Two Pianos, Part 1/3
Oops, sorry.
Argerich & Friere — Rachmaninoff, Second Suite for Two Pianos, Part 1/3 (2/3, 3/3 in sidebar or playlist)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=daakjUIeX84&list=PLbKCZQ30ZHeNdDOlCJvcbTVGUCy1yNelh
Well, the B Minor, because of the pace, was within my capabilities with lots of practice- I would go measure by measure until I mastered a section (or not). The C# minor, of course, is quite different in that regard, and parts of it were beyond my abilities at that time- same with the G minor.
You gave a link to the Suite for Two Pianos with Agerich- thanks for that- that is one I had not seen before. There is, of course, a quite famous video on YouTube of Agerich playing the 3rd Piano Concerto from 1982 that stuns me every time I hear it. I grew up with a cassette of the that concerto played by Horowitz with Ormandy and the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra, but the Agerich version from 1982 is superior, and I didn’t think that possible.
Thanks for the mention of the Argerich concerto. I’d forgotten about it — always lived by Hortz./Ormandy. I will be very glad to hear it. She really is quite amazing. :>)
By the way, are you in the mood for the Liszt Funerailles, the Mephisto Waltz, and more, as played by the Great One? All together, ending with Funerailles and Mephisto, at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5l8xfussjU
Another favorite pianist, Alicia De Larrocha: Granados — “The Lady and the Nightingale” at 8:18:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1a9fQ4nKck
also de Falla, Nights in the Gardens of Spain…Aahhh
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1a9fQ4nKck
Grew up with Guimar Novaes’ recording, also beautiful….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vr0oQ_EoOnk
“My other calling turned out to be math” — Julie
I noticed in college that a large number of computer & math geeks also had musical proficiency. Bach especially appeals to the rational mind.
Cross-reference this to the Paglia thread on male/female personality stereotypes.