My apologies, Sir! I guess my enthusiasm is contagious. I’m still very surprised by the whole thing. It’s also exciting that classical music is having such an impact. I have dabbled in the past but it never seemed to stick. This time, however… something is happening and I like it. My target for tonight is Beethoven’s 7th. I can’t wait to get into it. But I have to decide which performance. There are several!
The Frost is warming up as we speak. I think I will go tube this evening. Gotta get dinner out of the way first. And then… we dive in!
Annnd… It’s show time. I think I found a good one to listen to this evening.
8 minutes in and it’s fantastic.
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Decided to stay with Beethoven and found this
I believe I will be enjoying this over a period of time.
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That’s an Excellent performance by Experts!!! With my background as a percussionist,
both combo and 20 years with the symphony, and choral conducting, I LOVE seeing others discover or rediscover the wonders of Classical music. Sooo many tone colors,
moods, layers, complexities, etc. I still enjoy other genres as well however and consider myself a pretty eclectic listener. Classical, though gives both my gear and my brain a real workout, lol. Enjoy! PS Bernsteins B 7th is a winner too.
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This has really been a fun journey. There is so much to learn and take in. For instance, you can grab 2 albums that both say, for instance, Beethoven’s 5th, but they do not sound the same! And I am not referring to the quality of the recording - the music itself seems different. I am not sure why! So now it’s stupid question time… Why is that? Are there different interpretations of a composer’s work? Do I smell a music appreciation class coming? HA!
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Hee hee! One…be sure it’s the same work, lol. Two…I have found that beside an individual conductor’s interpretation (tempo and such) that the resonance of the hall has a lot to do with the overall sound. Some are famed for their fine acoustics, eg. Boston Symph. hall,
The Royal Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, etc. This, combined with the recording techniques used can cause some recordings (imo) to sound very different from others.
I very much enjoy sorting through multiple recordings of a piece to find the one that just
“sounds right” to me. Btw there are many others who are much more professional about all this than I am (at least they say so!) If you websearch “best version of…”
there are sites for this, I also use Primephonic’s suggestions. Again…the main thing is to ENJOY the music and remember that we all have our individual preferences. Sorry for the length…just my passion for music teaching showing through. 
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Great idea. Not sure why I didn’t think to just search “best version of”… That should help a bit! I went ahead and jumped over to the Primephonics site and downloaded a Mendelssohn playlist. Let’s see what they got for me!
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@Raptor168 and others. Here are two “standards” that I feel are well performed and recorded. Lisitsa is a bit fast with it but the recording is excellent. And Chailly’s Brahms 1 is also imo well recorded and interpreted. Youtube for reference as I can’t share from my Primephonic streaming.
YouTube Music
YouTube Music
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Thank you very much. I shall investigate.
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Was just hunting around and found this!!! 2021 Sometimes it’s good to sacrifice a little
sound quality and watch them play it. Yuja is one of the very best of our time!
YouTube Music
I am enjoying Primephonic so far. I like the interface and the stream is of excellent sound quality. I have launched myself into a sea of Mendelssohn! I wanted something with some energy, and boy I got it with Symphony No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 11. This is great. Fantastic work here.
I am working a 14 day trial, but I may end up subscribing. Funny, I’m discovering that I really like Mendelssohn. And I’m back on the SP200! This little THX beast is delivering the music with a heavenly, crystal clear authority that is so detailed and yet so pleasing. I think the tube provides a wider sound stage as well as an overall warmer presentation. It’s great to have both experiences available.
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@Raptor168 Great! Keep me informed. It’s not perfect but they do offer a LOT, imo.
ENJOY. PS That Mendelsohn 1 is wonderful!
It’s fantastic. In fact I think I am going to vote for Movement II as one of the top 250 pieces of classical music in the annual KDFC CA top 250 playlist! I usually try to pick a different composer each evening but this album is so good I may just continue on with this tonight.
@Raptor168 Are you referring to the Mendelsohn 1 or the Rachmaninov concerto I
posted above?
Mendelssohn 1. It’s fantastic. I ended up doing symphonies 1 and 5 last night. But that album is full of beautiful work. I think it’s a 4 CD set, so it’s gonna keep me going for a while.
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Going back to Baroque for a second: I have just discovered Alessandro Scarlatti and even though a lot of his music is your typical Italian early Baroque sound, Concerto No 6 (movement IV) is delightful in it’s uniqueness, rythme and omnipresent bass continuo.
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I have come across a great selection for tonight
I seem to favor this orchestra’s work. I really like this interface that Primephonics has developed. I’m reading an interactive guide that teaches you about the piece itself as you listen. Or you just close your eyes and enjoy the music. It’s really quite nice.
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Vienna Phil. orch is and has been special, indeed; and Kleiber has been praised by many.
I bought the bluray/cd of the concert with John Williams conducting his works (at age 80.)
The musicianship is impeccable and at the end Williams said “Wow” to the orchestra.
Will be a collector’s item someday soon, but I unwrapped mine! 
PS Give Berlin Phil a try…with Karajan! Another legend among conductors.
Well, it seems I am turning into a Mendelssohn junkie!
@TimpTim44 You were right again. Doing Symphonien No 3 and 4 tonight! I am loving this. Great recording as well. And I am continuing to be surprised by these Sivga Phoenix head phones. I am actually selecting these over the Tube/Sundara paring this evening. I’m loving the low power and the presence that these command. I am putting just a little EQ on 'em and it’s fantastic! Perfect for this album.
AMHD > Douk Audio U2 Pro > Schiit Bifrost 2 > SMSL SP200 > Sivga Phoenix
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@Raptor168 Hard to beat that combo of Berlin/Karajan/DG!! Thanks for the Phoenix
info. I do find the Sundaras a bit thin on the low end on some pieces and have been thinking of eventually adding a dynamic headphone to my mix. I actually enjoy using the
KSC 75 (w. headband and Yaxis) for some pieces, lol. Glad you are enjoying Mendelsohn. As my grown daughter said recently when she heard (on Sundaras) the 3rd mvt. of Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto 2…“so many layers.”
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