I’ll look for that. I had the pleasure of seeing her perform Brahms 2, and I was blown away. It saddens me to think that I don’t do anything half as good as she plays the piano.
By the way, my new favorite thing is her Bach album. What I didn’t realize until I paid attention to the credits was that she was playing transcriptions of non-piano music done by Romantic composers. The result is glorious. Like here:
I will ck that, thanks. I just started a trial for Primephonic today and listened to part of Mahler 6 with Jansons/London and now Rachmaninov Piano 1 with Valentina Lisitsa/London. I referenced her earlier (above) but I really do like the recordings that Decca did with them of all 4 Rachs. Piano does not get buried in overall sound and the timbre/resonance is spot on. PS she is good too lol! Heard a bit of Grimaud’s Bach on yt and can’t wait to try on Primephonic…so much more depth and clarity, which my month old Sundaras do really well!
@dcofficehack Holy crap!!! Just listened to parts of her Bach album.
Wow she is GOOD. With that technique and spaces between notes I thought I was hearing a harpsichord at times. Thanks for the recommendation.
FYI, the Frankfurt Radio Symphonie has a fantastic youtube channel, plus live streaming of concerts on Fridays. Great stuff.
Now I’m listening to this Poulenc organ concerto. It’s glorious music, though suddenly I’m conscious of the limited bass I’m hearing on my rig. This is one of the rare classical pieces where stuff gets LOUD and LOW. Could be the HD 650s, not sure. Still, it’s great music. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsFsBNAmCd0
Thanks, hope others see these. Also some new “empty hall” performances on Concertgebouworkest. Again youtube.
Will do an update on Primephonic after further use, but so far i like it.
Lots to discover!! They told me today that they will be including the bit rate quality info in the next few months (tho the ears can usually tell.) lol
I used to play violin, so there is a bit more bias in my recommendations
Handel-Halverson - Passacaglia in G min played by Perlman/Zukerman
Monti- Czardas
Sarasate - Zigeunerweisen
Hilary Hahn playing Bach Partitas and Sonatas
I like Hahn too. Do you like Julia Fischer? Also our orchestra backed Joshua Bell when he was still a teenager! (Dating myself lol)
An Der Schönen, Blauen Donau, Op.314 Johann Strauss.
https://i.scdn.co/image/ab67616d0000b27348a1fc6569d827cd87a5494b
My very first classical music purchase. Deutsche Gramaphone did good stuff with the early recordings they put onto CD.
Hahn doing Brahms and Sibelius is fantastic. Oh, and the Beethoven violin concerto. She’s so good.
Yes they did. Deutsche and Decca were good even back then!
She makes everything look so effortless, huh?
I wish to call attention to Nathalie Stutzmann, who is both a terrific conductor and an gifted singer. Here she is singing one of the most beautiful piece of music ever written. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAQQSs4P2Rs. See also this performance, one of Bach’s finest: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jeil9S2exIU&list=RDJeil9S2exIU&start_radio=1&t=3
Just happened to ck the thread notif. Well, the Mahler 2 IS hands down one of the most beautiful pieces ever written, and this solo is a highlight. Yes, she is very good. Thanks.
I recently subscribed to Primephonic and will be posting a short review here soon. (lots to discover!!)
I use Tidal, but only because I share with my 13-yr old son, whose musical tastes are, well, shitty :). So I need something that has all sorts of music.
Tidal, in truth, has a great classical collection, but finding things can be a challenge. A big problem is that there’s a gigantic quantity of stupid classical music compilations, stuff like, “greatest music to study by,” or “greatest romantic themese.” They clog searches. And it’s hard to find less well known things by a composer if they wrote something super popular. Again, because it clogs searches. For example, anything by Vivaldi other than the Four Seasons. Or getting past Handel’s Messiah to all of his other work. It’s there…
I think you would like Primephonics search, then. I will get that review done soon and post it here and in the “how do you get your music” thread. They do have a 2 week free trial.
OK re PRIMEPHONIC. I have had it for about a month now and must say I am enjoying it a lot. It is all classical and you can search by piece, composer, performer/orchestra and more.Their Platinum tier is only $14.99/mo and is all CD or Hi Res up to 24/192. Display of bitrate planned for the near future, but many dacs do that too.They have a 14 day free trial.
I would recommend this especially for those wishing to explore classical music for the first time; they have a great section devoted to specific periods (Baroque, Romantic, etc ) with spoken intros and anecdotes and full length samples.
However, even experienced listeners will find a wealth of selections, both well-known and some more obscure but well done.
There are MANY categories and staff created playlists, and lots of info (metadata) about an album’s composer, performer, conductor etc. hint: scroll down! Some albums also have a pdf booklet with extensive liner notes!
You can find more info in the “about” section of their site, and a nice review done by Tech Hive. Also of note, they are one of few that support Chrome browser.
With all the money we spend on gear…for 50 cents a day I am thrilled to have Primephonic available!
Sitting here listening to Dvorak Symphony 8 on Primephonic.
Jansons and BRSO (Bavarian Radio Sym. Orch,)
Wrote an analysis of this in college, so know it well. First, hearing it in cd qual. is great…clean, depth, etc. Second, these Sundaras are awesome for classical, imo. The imaging is so good I can hear the spatial difference between the 1st and 2nd flutes on some pieces. Honest! Also hear instruments that are seated UP and back from the strings, etc. Really glad I got them.
One thing I love about streaming music online is that it encourages discovering new things, and it’s amazing how after all these years I’m still discovering new music.
Anyway, one of these discovers is this amazing piece by Brahms. I have to admit I started watching because I’m crushing hard on the violinist, Veronika Eberle. That dress. But then I stayed for the music, which is glorious. And superbly well recorded.
There’s this moment at about 8:20 where they seem to switch from Brahms to Ravel…it’s like a burst of 20th century. Really gorgeous. Enjoy.
I know I’m months behind in getting my 2cents/recommendation… and I certainly can’t claim familiarity with every (esp recent) Beethoven Cycle, but I have heard a bunch… for a complete cycle my own favorite is Nikolas Harnoncourt and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, 1991. Very well recorded, mostly “modern instruments” — that is, period-trumpets are used — no valves! — and with that historically-informed size and to some extent tempos, but still managing enough of the grandeur of the classic modern-orchestra versions. Intense stuff.
EDIT -
Here’s one professional review: https://www.nytimes.com/1991/11/17/arts/recordings-view-harnoncourt-gives-beethoven-a-mild-jolt.html
The Grammophone review is a step more breathlessly positive, iirc.
Sounds fascinating. I found a great Beethoven 5 and 7 on Primephonic recently. Honeck and Pittsburgh on Reference label. Also a few others by them, all originally done as SACDs.