Have you heard him in the chamber wind version?
He also is part of a “composed interpretation” version:
It’s also worth considering some of the female interpreters of Winterreise, notably Christa Ludwig, Nathalie Stutzmann and my current favourite, Christine Schäfer. The novelty of a woman’s voice in this repertoire can be something of a challenge to those of us who are used to traditional tenor and baritone interpreters - but well worth a listen.
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One more recent release with ‘modern’ music… Both works are modern in the sense of their time of commission, but musically very accessible indeed. Both form part of Dudamel’s initiative of exploring Latin American heritage, during his tenure at LA.
The new (2020) violin concerto, commissioned by Ms Meyers from the Mexican composer Arturo Márquez, impresses me as a real crowd pleaser, as made for the Walt Disney Concert Hall. The 1941 Ginastera ballet music is also quite pleasing, and raucous at that… I am not a particular fan of Ms Meyer’s, but I like her performance on this live recording, and I will listen to this album again…
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Another worthwhile BIS release I streamed from Qobuz of Fauré, Debussy, and Ravel via short pieces and transcriptions, framed by Fauré’s A major sonata at the start, and by Ravel’s G major sonata at the end.
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Hilary Hahn’s recent Ginastera Violin Concerto, Op. 30 performance is astounding on her DG album, Eclipse. On the basis of this I look forward to this recording. A fascinating composer.
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And it’s often the Latin American directors programming this music… During Orozco Estrada’s time at Frankfurt, good friends had the opportunity to see him several times in concert… Will have to ask if they went to see Hilary Hahn, too…
An ancient gentleman, a very good friend of mine, quite frail and not very mobile anymore, told me these days that he went to Paris to see and hear Marie Crébassa… In my neck of the woods, the only ‘live’ concert I can appreciate is the croaking of macaws…
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Ah. Country living. For me it’s wind through the trees and cardinals, bluejays and chickadees (hence my love of Messiaen).
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Some time ago, I discovered yet another Italian violinist-composer (and singer!) from the musically so very fertile Baroque. The biography of Carlo Ambrogio Lonati (1645–1710/15) can be found in Roon, so I’ll not go into details. He is said to have taught Geminiani, but there seems to be no definitive proof of this myth…
What’s certain, though, is that in 1701 he published in Salzburg a collection of 12 fabulous violin sonatas; six sonate da camera and six sonate da chiesa… Regrettably, there’s no really satisfying recording of these pieces available, what I have brought to the attention of Isabelle Faust, after listening to her two most recent releases… The chances she’d take interest in these pieces are all too slim, but it’s worth a try… 
Gunar Letzbor from Ars Antiqua Austria fame in 2017 released a near complete recording, but I don’t agree with the recording venue and the resulting sound.
Then there’s this album from 2004, with a German soloist I had never heard of… This was released on the Capriccio label, and while the playing is quite fine, the sound is lacking. Even so, I prefer this album for listening to the sonata no. 12, a really impressive Ciaccona in G major, which in Letzbor’s album erroneously is marked as A Minor… Have a listen; there’s the possibility to discover the most beautiful Italian violin sonata you’ve never heard of…
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Wonderful recording. Thank you. Particularly enjoyed that the Fauré Après un rêve was a Pablo Casals arrangement. I also favored the Ravel Vocalise-étude en forms de habanera, arranged by Georges Catherine.
Because today was such a windy day, I spent more time indoors and enjoyed more music than usual. One recording that I thought would not strike my fancy as much as it did was a compilation of Marc-André Hamelin encores. Some simply stunning (as he so often is), such as Hofmann: Charakterskizzen, Op. 40: IV, Kaleidoscope, his own Etude No. 3 in B Minor “After Paganini-Liszt” and Moszkowski: Etude de virtuosité, No. 13 in A-flat minor. I was also greatly taken with the other performances, but the Kapustin Toccatina was a delight. A virtuoso’s pianistic tasting feast.
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Thanks for another excellent suggestion - I am not at all familiar with Lonati, but will certainly investigate.
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I used to play this one a lot, but haven’t listened to this one in years. Thanks for the post - good excuse to queue it up. So many Hamelin recordings are superb. Recently I have been listening to:
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I am sure you’ll enjoy today’s superb release by Avi Vital with Il Giardino Armonico… I like what this ensemble is doing… and while it seems quite difficult to record and balance the mandolin well against the ensemble sound, this has been superbly done on this recording…
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On my list! I have quite a few of their recordings, all of which are excellent.
In case you are trying to follow the Hyperion streaming releases:
Hyperion streaming site, list by date added.
&
Hyperion facebook page posts streaming bundles and latest releases.
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To me, listening to Scarlatti’s sonatas is an ever fascinating adventure, especially when played on harpsichord. Only recently I discovered the work of the Neapolitan harpsichordist Enrico Baiano, with his exciting Scarlatti playing… I feel quite unable to name what exactly it is what makes his playing so interesting, but I can’t get enough of it…
There are more really good interpretations by Baiano available… Froberger, Frescobaldi and the rather obscure Pietro Domenico Paradisi…
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I can recommend another one, now over 20 years old, 17th CENTURY NEAPOLITAN MUSIC FOR HARPSICHORD:
The sound is not quite as good…
Hat tip to David Vernier
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Just getting around to watching these performances from the Cliburn Competition 2022, which created quite a buzz at the time. The Liszt recital is available on Qobuz and is one of the better collection of Liszt’s etudes on disc.
Hat tip to Jed Distler and to:
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Yes, Yunchan is special. It’s not the superlative technique that dazzles, but the beauty of his phrasing and overall musicality. And to think that he’s only 19. A marvel.
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