Conference cookie::notes$archive:cd_v1

    Do you want music to listen to or to make out by? Chamber music
    doesn't necessarily fall into the "dreamy, soft, background type
    stuff".
    
    At any rate, some of the CDs I like that might meet your litmus
    test are:
    
    Bach and Sons - RCA ??????? - Isaac Stern, Jean Pierre Rampal, Leslie
    Parnas and I forget who else.
    
    Aurele Nicolet -  Bach Sonatas - Flute and Harpsichord - Denon -
    (There is also a Denon CD with 2 Flutes playing Bach stuff but I
    haven't heard it)
    
    Mozart Flute Quartets - 4 Mozart Quartets with Flute and Strings
    - don't remember the artist(s) or label offhand.
    
    There is also a Pagnini CD with a Violin Concerto (which is definitely
    NOT soft,dreamy,etc.), along with a Terzetto with Violin, Cello and
    Guitar, (which is. I like Paganini chamber music).
    
    
    Also, a suggestion I have made many times to someone in your situation.
    Rather than getting a lot of suggestions, going out and buying some
    or a lot of CDs, which you may or may not like, hike yourself down
    to Electric Gramophone in Sudbury and talk to Rick Oakley. He will
    suggest things for you (he found the Mozart flute CD for me) that
    will meet your requirements and, most important, he will play them
    for you so you will know whether you like them before you buy them.
    True, he gets $16 or $17 a disc, but buying 5 that you like at $16
    is better that buying 7 or 8 at $13, 3 of which you can't stand.
    
    If you decide to go that route call or send mail and I'll be glad
    to give directions (they may be somewhere else in this conference).
    It's a tricky place to find if you've never been there.
    
    Dick Rosenberg 
    

    If you are getting into chamber music at all, get a recording of
    Schubert's Quintet in C Major for 2 violins, viola, and 2 cellos.
    This is considered by a lot of folks to be one of the all time greats.
    Sorry, I can't recommend which CD version to get -- have Rich Oakley
    help you out there.
    
    John

    Some of my favorite chamber music cd's are:
    
    		Mozart: 3 Divertimenti,Sernata Noturnia(sp?)
    			by I MUSICI

                        Symphony #40,#41(jupiter)
    			Solti
    
    		Bach:   The Brandenburg Concertos 1-6
                        Marriner
    
    		Telleman: Five violin concertos
    			  Iona Brown
    
    

    RE:.1
    
    Dick, thanks for your thoughtful suggestions....I guess chamber
    music wasn't the right name to give for what I'm looking for, but
    it was the only title that came to mind to describe it. No, I'm
    not really looking for music to make out by, but if the opportunity
    comes along..... :-) What I do want is some soft sounding stuff,
    ala Handel's Largo - soothing, easy listening classical, without
    a ton of tempo changes.
    
    Yes, I would be interested in directions to Electric Gramophone
    in Sudbury. As I live in Hudson, N.H., I'd be coming at Sudbury
    from the north. Would you please post them as a reply, for the benefit
    of all?
    
    RE: .2
    
    Thanks, John.....your recommendation sounds exactly what I'm looking
    for.
    
    RE: .3
    
    Thanks, JMICHAUD.....again, your suggestions are on the mark...I
    hadn't even THOUGHT of Telleman!
    
    Folks, keep those cards and letters comin' - I'm gettin' one hell
    of an education here!
    

    When I was in high school I use to listen to a lot of radio (even
    go to sleep listening to them) and borrow records from friends or
    library.  It is definitely true that you should not just go out
    and buy chamber music since you might not like it (though since
    there are sooo many greatly masterpieces and only a small number
    of pieces are suggested here, which happens to be some of the most
    popular pieces, you probably will not go wrong with them).  But
    really, with CD's running at $13-14 a piece unlike records at $6,
    you should try to listen to it first before you buy them.
    
    A few of my suggestions are:
    
    Previously recommended Schubert String Quintet, and the very famous
    Piano Quintet named 'Trout'
    
    Beethoven's complete sonata for violin and piano, but namely 'Spring'
    which is absolutely lovely.  Old but very good by Richter and someone
    else for violin.  Also the trio for violin,cello and piano is also
    very good (the whole set) but Op.69 #2 is especially good.
    
    Bach's suits for unaccompanied cello is very good (part of one piece
    was used for Broadway play The Elephant Man, starting Dave Bowie)
    
    Mozart's late quartets are very good.
    
    The list goes on and on.  What you might consider doing to help
    you selection music to sample is to look at the catalog and see
    what piece have many many entries, that means it's very popular.
    
    Charles
    

For directions to Electric Gramophone, see note # 627.

Remember that if you do buy something that it turns out you don't like that
well, "used" CD's are likely to be much easier to sell or swap than a used
record due to the lower wear and tear to which they are subject. See the
CD Swap notes file, for example (PYRITE::CDSWAP).

						Rod Burr

The dreamiest of all chamber music has got to be Pachebel's Canon in D.  This 
piece was used in the movie "Ordinary People".  It's really a chamber 
orchestra, not just a few pieces, but it is a very even slow dreamy tempo.  

This is really considered Barouque music.  Some other composers of this period
are Tellemann, Albinoni, Fasch.  Albinoni's Adagio in G is another one with a 
slow dreamy quality.

Serene Listening,

Bill

My favorite in this vein is L'Oiseau-Lyre 411720-2.  Recorded by
Hogwood and the Academy of Ancient Music.  All by Mozart:

	Eine Kleine Nachtmusik K525   (we all know about this)
	Serenata notturna K239
	Notturno for four orchestras K286

The real gem is the last one, K286, written when Mozart was 21
years old.  It is for 29 musicians divided into four groups.  These
groups are placed variously around the hall, some left, some right,
some near, some far.  As the melodies "echo" around the groups you
get some interesting effects.  If you have good speakers in a quiet
room you can hear the 3-dimensional aspects quite clearly.

    Let us not forget Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons", perhaps the epitome
    of "Concerto Grosso" (excluding Bach's "Brandenburg", of course).
    Some very nice work in this piece.  I don't have a copy (yet) but
    seem to remember hearing a disc of this on Philips by Academy of
    St. Marins in the Fields.  Can someone else assist?
    
    Sorry for the fuzzy input, it IS Monday you know    ;-)
    David.

Try the CD by Christopher Hogwood and The Academy of Ancient Music. 
The interpretation is dynamite, and the sound quality is tops [DDD].

John :-)

    Yeah, nut beware the copy that skips at the end of track 5 and the
    start of track 6!

    Since Vivaldi's Four Seasons is so popular, there are over 20
    different versions available on disc!  I recommend (and so does
    Digital Audio and Compact Disc Review) the version by Issac Pearlman
    and the Israeli Philharmonic.
    
    Glenn

    Wow...all this expertise has got me spinning!  I'm continually amazed
    at the information you can get, just by posting to notes. Let's
    see, I think I should acknowledge the replies I've received since
    .4:
    
    .5 - Charles, thanks for the good suggestions; I've added your
    recommendations to my wish list!
    
    .6 - Dick, thanks for posting the directions to Electric Gramophone.
    I fully intend to visit Rich Oakley this weekend - and I'm bringing
    a fully stuffed pocket.
    
    .7 - Yes Rod, I'm aware of CDSWAP, although I haven't used it yet.
    I agree that one of the great things about the CD format is that
    you can sell unwanted ones for about 70% of what you paid for it.
    
    .8 - Bill, I agree that Pachebel's Canon is perfect for what I'm
    looking for; I have heard it in the past. Thanks for the other
    suggestions, particularly Albinoni's Adagio - both have been added
    to the wish list. You're also right that what I'm looking for is
    most properly categorized as "Baroque."
    
    .9 - Thanks...what I've heard of Mozart (Amedeus) leads me to believe
    I'd like your recommendations. They have also been added to the
    wish list.
    
    .10 - Actually, Vivaldi's "Four Seasons" is what got me started
    and prompted my note. I had purchased (and liked) Sejii Ozawa's
    rendition. Thanks for the response!
    
    .11 - Gee John, I kinda' liked Ozawa'a version :-) - guess I'll
    have to have Mr. Oakley play Hogwood's rendition. As Rod reminded
    me, I can always sell... Thanks for the input.
    
    .12 - Andy, is the skip a manufacturing defect, or a recorded one?
    In any event, thanks for the tip...I'll listen very carefully before
    purchasing.
    
    .13 - Glenn....arrgh! Just what I need, more choices concerning
    the definitive version of "Four Seasons" :-) Have you compared
    Pearlman's version to others?
    
    Again folks, I'd like to sincerely thank you all for your
    recommendations, suggestions, and the education I've received. You've
    made me less a novice in this realm of classical music, and have
    saved me a pocketful of money in the process!
    
                       Headin' down to see Rich,
    
    
                                            Ken Gosselin
    

    re .12, .14, it's a manufacturing defect. I eventually went through
    another two before getting one that was okay.

If I may make a suggestion:

	Brandenburg Concertos 4, 5, and 6.
	J.S. Bach

	The English Concert
	Directed by the Harpsichord by Trevor Pinnock
	Archiv Produktion (DDD)

     This is on all original instruments and I feel that it was done 
     very well. 


			Mike

If you are looking at Mozart's Piano Concertos, then give a
listen to No. 20 (K466) and No. 27 (K595) by Sir Clifford Curzon
and The English Chamber Orchestra directed by Benjamin Britten.
The note with the CD says that Sir Clifford did not want this
recording released because he wanted to do it again having found
"new nuances of interpretations he wished he had discovered
earlier". He finally did allow the release of this recording on
the condition that another recording be arranged, but he died
before it could be arranged. The CD was released after his death
and it is simply one of the finest pieces of music ever recorded.

The CD is released by DECCA under the LONDON label (# 417 288-2)
and many copies were available at Newbury Comics when I last checked.

    Like some of the other respondents, I'm not quite sure what you're
    looking for.  But if it's true chamber music  you're trying to learn
    about (3-8 musicians), you might be interested in a most attractive
    offering from Book-of-the-Month Records (of all places!). 
    
    The above-named group (a division of Book-of-the-Month Club), has
    a modest catalog of lps, cassettes and cds.  Only a few are CDs
    so far, but one is a collection titled "The Great Romantic Quartets,"
    performed by the Emerson String Quartet.  This is what's included
    on 4 CDs:
    
    	Dvorak		Quartet in F major("American")
    	Smetana		Quartet in E Minor("From My Life")
    	Schumann	Quartet in A Major
    	Brahms		Quartet in C Minor
    	Tchaikovsky	Quartet in D Major
    	Borodin		Quartet No. 2 in D Major
    	Debussy		Quartet in G Minor
    	Ravel		Quartet in F Major
    
    All are digital recordings, and the package includes a good set of
    notes (though the page size is too big to allow the notes to be tucked
    into the cover of the jewel box - strange!).  The Emerson Quartet is
    one of the best groups around.  I bought the set, and would recommend
    them highly from personal experience.  The best part, though, is the
    price:  $36.95 + $1.86 postage and handling = $38.81, or $9.70/CD. 
    
    I belong to the Fortune Book Club (a division of the Book-of-the-Month
    Club) and learned of this through their members' catalog, but if you
    send a check to the address below, I'm sure that they'd be happy to
    take your money: 
    
    	Book-of-the-Month Records
    	Camp Hill, PA 17012
    
    This is item no. 21-7526.
    
    Other items from the same catalog might be of interest:
    
    Chopin	Complete Polonaises	Arthur Lima	2 CDs	$25.95*
    Beethoven Piano Sonatas Richard Goode		2 CDs	$25.95*
    The Bach Family,
    performed by Eugenia & Pinchas Zukerman & Anthony Newman 2 CDs $25.95* 
    
    *additional charge for postage and handling
    
    A few CD shops have these, but mainly they sell by mail.
    
    One last suggestion.  If you're anxious to know what kinds of music you
    might like, try listening to a weekly PBS program called "St. Paul
    Sunday Morning," hosted by Bill Mclaughlin (sp?).  The show is billed
    as a forum for chamber music, but the host has an unusually catholic
    outlook.  For example, yesterday's guest was the Tokyo String Quartet,
    and the week before it was Jean Pierre Rampal and John Steele Ritter,
    but other guests have included Leo Kottke (12-string guitar), Cleo
    Lane (the British jazz vocalist), and Chanticleer (male a capella
    vocal ensemble).  Call your local PBS radio station for the time. 
                                                                   
    Happy exploring.

    
    Two other things you might try:
    
    Haydn Quartets Op. 76 -- Tatrai Quartet (2 CDs)
    Beethoven Quartet Op. 57, #1 -- Lindsay Quartet
    
      John
    
    
    

    
    Make that Op. 59 # 1.

    
    Well, it's been about 4 months since the last note on this subject
    and you've probably heard your fill of chamber music, but here's
    some info on a couple of recent releases.
    
    On RCA, the Quintet in E-flat, Op.44 and the Quartet in E-flat,
    Op.47 (both for piano and strings) by R. Schumann.  Players are
    Emanuel Ax and the Cleveland Quartet.  These romantic chamber pieces
    are beautifully played and recorded and it sounds like what you
    were looking for earlier this year.  I was a little skeptical of
    the Cleveland Quartet after hearing them with Yo-Yo Ma playingthe
    Shubert Quintet in C major.  That disc has some inexplicable and
    extremely irritating noises that eventually become fixations.
    
    Another new disc I recently purchased:  the Medici String Quartet
    playing Shostakovich's String Quartet No.8, Op.100 paired with
    Debussy's only string quartet, the String Quartet in G minor, Op.10.
    I don't recommend this disc whole heartedly.  The players have a
    little difficulty getting the mood on the Debussy piece (although
    they get better as the music progresses).  Debussy's string quartet
    is well recorded - I'm sure there are better versions.
    I bought this disc for the Shostakovich and I'm content with it
    (although not crazy about it).  To play this music correctly, you
    have to watch 8 straight hours of documentaries on the battle of
    Stalingrad.  The Medici Quartet brings some of the required intensity
    to it.  One thing it ain't is dinner music.
    
    Happy listening
       Marty