ClassicalCritic
@classicalcritic.bsky.social
Roving Classical Critic-at-Large & Translator. Opinions are my own - or stolen.
https://ionarts.blogspot.com/search/label/jfl
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jenslaurson/
Amazon links are affiliate links
https://ionarts.blogspot.com/search/label/jfl
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jenslaurson/
Amazon links are affiliate links
#morninglistening to #JSBach’s MassInBminor w/EVLausanne
& MichelCorboz on Mirare. I love Bach obsessively but I'm too old and w/too little space to keep every recording on principle - and this is just too indifferently executed & boring. :-(
Amazon: amzn.to/3Fsg1rt
& MichelCorboz on Mirare. I love Bach obsessively but I'm too old and w/too little space to keep every recording on principle - and this is just too indifferently executed & boring. :-(
Amazon: amzn.to/3Fsg1rt
November 21, 2025 at 7:48 AM
#morninglistening to #JSBach’s MassInBminor w/EVLausanne
& MichelCorboz on Mirare. I love Bach obsessively but I'm too old and w/too little space to keep every recording on principle - and this is just too indifferently executed & boring. :-(
Amazon: amzn.to/3Fsg1rt
& MichelCorboz on Mirare. I love Bach obsessively but I'm too old and w/too little space to keep every recording on principle - and this is just too indifferently executed & boring. :-(
Amazon: amzn.to/3Fsg1rt
#morninglistening to Brendel's FranzLizst recordings which really are superb. From his fuming, sulphuric Totentanz (LPO/Haitink) via the Sonata & XMasTree to the WKSZ-Variations: Some of the best Liszt *and* Brendel on record, up there with his Haydn (if it weren't Liszt).
Amzn: amzn.to/47Qz9Qe
Amzn: amzn.to/47Qz9Qe
November 21, 2025 at 12:34 AM
#morninglistening to Brendel's FranzLizst recordings which really are superb. From his fuming, sulphuric Totentanz (LPO/Haitink) via the Sonata & XMasTree to the WKSZ-Variations: Some of the best Liszt *and* Brendel on record, up there with his Haydn (if it weren't Liszt).
Amzn: amzn.to/47Qz9Qe
Amzn: amzn.to/47Qz9Qe
Nordic #Weidringer[TM] w/the @Wiener Symphoniker at the @Musikverein for @Tjøgersen, Sibelius & LvB w/Jacquot & Tetzlaff.
November 19, 2025 at 7:44 PM
Nordic #Weidringer[TM] w/the @Wiener Symphoniker at the @Musikverein for @Tjøgersen, Sibelius & LvB w/Jacquot & Tetzlaff.
#morninglistening to #AlfredBrendel, whose Mozart Concertos w/the @ScottishChamberOrchestra & birthdayboy #CharlesMackerras, BOD 100 years ago -22 & 27- are superb. Still love the earlier, genial Marriner versions. But the felt K482 is a dream.
Amzn: amzn.to/4pj2KYg
Amzn: amzn.to/4pj2KYg
November 19, 2025 at 4:25 PM
#morninglistening to #AlfredBrendel, whose Mozart Concertos w/the @ScottishChamberOrchestra & birthdayboy #CharlesMackerras, BOD 100 years ago -22 & 27- are superb. Still love the earlier, genial Marriner versions. But the felt K482 is a dream.
Amzn: amzn.to/4pj2KYg
Amzn: amzn.to/4pj2KYg
#morninglistening to #AliciaDeLarrocha in Granados' #Goyescas: her 2nd recording for Decca, 1976, after Hispavox/EMI, 1962, & before her 1989 3rd on RCA. Which is your favorite and why?
Amzn: amzn.to/3XudWp8
Pantaléon Enrique Costanzo Granados y Campiña
Amzn: amzn.to/3XudWp8
Pantaléon Enrique Costanzo Granados y Campiña
November 19, 2025 at 10:15 AM
#morninglistening to #AliciaDeLarrocha in Granados' #Goyescas: her 2nd recording for Decca, 1976, after Hispavox/EMI, 1962, & before her 1989 3rd on RCA. Which is your favorite and why?
Amzn: amzn.to/3XudWp8
Pantaléon Enrique Costanzo Granados y Campiña
Amzn: amzn.to/3XudWp8
Pantaléon Enrique Costanzo Granados y Campiña
#morninglistening to Rimskykorsakov's Scheherazde (horrid tag, curiously!) w/good #LorinMazel and the @berlinphil on DG, 1985. Lyrical but with fire! it is better than his 1977 Cleveland take? Or Kempe's BPhil rec?
Amzn: amzn.to/3LJFWTb
Amzn: amzn.to/3LJFWTb
November 18, 2025 at 7:26 PM
#morninglistening to Rimskykorsakov's Scheherazde (horrid tag, curiously!) w/good #LorinMazel and the @berlinphil on DG, 1985. Lyrical but with fire! it is better than his 1977 Cleveland take? Or Kempe's BPhil rec?
Amzn: amzn.to/3LJFWTb
Amzn: amzn.to/3LJFWTb
Curious #Weidringer[TM] at the MV for the #FauréQuartett's attempts at Schubert, Brahms, and intersting-in-theory Mel Bonis Piano Quartets.
November 18, 2025 at 7:25 PM
Curious #Weidringer[TM] at the MV for the #FauréQuartett's attempts at Schubert, Brahms, and intersting-in-theory Mel Bonis Piano Quartets.
#morninglistening to the largely forgotten #LvBeethoven Sonatas of #WalterGieseking on EMI which was left 11 sonatas short of completion when he suffered a stroke.
Amzn: amzn.to/48a0fRo (Toshiba/EMI set)
#BeethovenCycle #Beethoven #nowplaying
Amzn: amzn.to/48a0fRo (Toshiba/EMI set)
#BeethovenCycle #Beethoven #nowplaying
November 17, 2025 at 4:52 PM
#morninglistening to the largely forgotten #LvBeethoven Sonatas of #WalterGieseking on EMI which was left 11 sonatas short of completion when he suffered a stroke.
Amzn: amzn.to/48a0fRo (Toshiba/EMI set)
#BeethovenCycle #Beethoven #nowplaying
Amzn: amzn.to/48a0fRo (Toshiba/EMI set)
#BeethovenCycle #Beethoven #nowplaying
#morninglistening to #AliciaDeLarrocha in Granados' #Goyescas on RCA: her 1989/90 3rd recording after Hispavox/EMI, 1962/63, and Decca, 1976. Which is your favorite and why?
A @schallplattenkritik winner when it came out.
Amzn: amzn.to/3XudWp8
Pantaléon Enrique Costanzo Granados y Campiña
A @schallplattenkritik winner when it came out.
Amzn: amzn.to/3XudWp8
Pantaléon Enrique Costanzo Granados y Campiña
November 16, 2025 at 9:03 PM
#morninglistening to #AliciaDeLarrocha in Granados' #Goyescas on RCA: her 1989/90 3rd recording after Hispavox/EMI, 1962/63, and Decca, 1976. Which is your favorite and why?
A @schallplattenkritik winner when it came out.
Amzn: amzn.to/3XudWp8
Pantaléon Enrique Costanzo Granados y Campiña
A @schallplattenkritik winner when it came out.
Amzn: amzn.to/3XudWp8
Pantaléon Enrique Costanzo Granados y Campiña
#morninglistening to more of a set I have coveted for years! AlessioCorti's complete Bach Organ Works. And yes, despite being played on just two and modern organs, this has been a wildly enjoyable ride! ♡♡♡
Bach for sunshine!
Amzn: amzn.to/47sFQGz
#JohannSebastianBach #organmusic #nowplaying
Bach for sunshine!
Amzn: amzn.to/47sFQGz
#JohannSebastianBach #organmusic #nowplaying
November 15, 2025 at 11:43 PM
#morninglistening to more of a set I have coveted for years! AlessioCorti's complete Bach Organ Works. And yes, despite being played on just two and modern organs, this has been a wildly enjoyable ride! ♡♡♡
Bach for sunshine!
Amzn: amzn.to/47sFQGz
#JohannSebastianBach #organmusic #nowplaying
Bach for sunshine!
Amzn: amzn.to/47sFQGz
#JohannSebastianBach #organmusic #nowplaying
November 15, 2025 at 2:31 PM
#morninglistening to what I maintain to be the finest cycle of the (difficult) #Brahms #StringQuartets - by the #MandelringQuartett on Audite. The fact that it comes w/Brahms-contemporary gems (Gernsheim, Herzogenberg, Dessoff) is just the cherry on the top.
#ChamberMusic #StringQuartet
#ChamberMusic #StringQuartet
November 15, 2025 at 7:23 AM
#morninglistening to what I maintain to be the finest cycle of the (difficult) #Brahms #StringQuartets - by the #MandelringQuartett on Audite. The fact that it comes w/Brahms-contemporary gems (Gernsheim, Herzogenberg, Dessoff) is just the cherry on the top.
#ChamberMusic #StringQuartet
#ChamberMusic #StringQuartet
Celebratory #Weidringer[TM] for the anniversary of the year: 125 Years of Krenek! W/Wolfgang Holzmair, who can't be far behind - a staple of my musical socialization in DC and Krenek-Veteran.
November 14, 2025 at 6:02 PM
Celebratory #Weidringer[TM] for the anniversary of the year: 125 Years of Krenek! W/Wolfgang Holzmair, who can't be far behind - a staple of my musical socialization in DC and Krenek-Veteran.
#morninglistening to the latest (?) installment of one of the great #JosephHaydn StringQuartet-Cycles (survey on ionarts in order, maybe) by the #LeipzigerStreichquartett on MDG. Op.54, 1-3.
Like being kissed on the ears.
amzn.to/4i0hfh6
#nowplaying #StringQuartets #Haydn
Like being kissed on the ears.
amzn.to/4i0hfh6
#nowplaying #StringQuartets #Haydn
November 14, 2025 at 5:13 PM
#morninglistening to the latest (?) installment of one of the great #JosephHaydn StringQuartet-Cycles (survey on ionarts in order, maybe) by the #LeipzigerStreichquartett on MDG. Op.54, 1-3.
Like being kissed on the ears.
amzn.to/4i0hfh6
#nowplaying #StringQuartets #Haydn
Like being kissed on the ears.
amzn.to/4i0hfh6
#nowplaying #StringQuartets #Haydn
Legendary #Weidringer[TM], Vienna-Edition: BFO - Budapest Festival Orchestra & Ivan Fischer w/ Veronika Eberle at the Musikverein Wien w/Mendelssohn VC & Strauss' JosephsLegende
Rezension ( @diepressecom.bsky.social ) zum Bild:
www.diepresse.com/20268693?gif...
Rezension ( @diepressecom.bsky.social ) zum Bild:
www.diepresse.com/20268693?gif...
November 13, 2025 at 4:43 PM
Legendary #Weidringer[TM], Vienna-Edition: BFO - Budapest Festival Orchestra & Ivan Fischer w/ Veronika Eberle at the Musikverein Wien w/Mendelssohn VC & Strauss' JosephsLegende
Rezension ( @diepressecom.bsky.social ) zum Bild:
www.diepresse.com/20268693?gif...
Rezension ( @diepressecom.bsky.social ) zum Bild:
www.diepresse.com/20268693?gif...
#morninglistening to #AlexandreTharaud's Rameau on @harmoniamundi_inter. ♡♡♡ They say there's no such thing as bad pizza. But certainly there's no such thing as Tharaud in baroque miniatures that won't brighten your day immeasurably.
Amzn: amzn.to/4nSgSXu
Amzn: amzn.to/4nSgSXu
November 13, 2025 at 11:02 AM
#morninglistening to #AlexandreTharaud's Rameau on @harmoniamundi_inter. ♡♡♡ They say there's no such thing as bad pizza. But certainly there's no such thing as Tharaud in baroque miniatures that won't brighten your day immeasurably.
Amzn: amzn.to/4nSgSXu
Amzn: amzn.to/4nSgSXu
#morninglistening to #AlfredBrendel. Here in hus fine analog #FranzSchubert Impromptus, including the But the 3 Klavierstücke D946 which he arguably improved upon in the later digital set.
Amzn: amzn.to/47F13i8
#Schubert #NowListening
Amzn: amzn.to/47F13i8
#Schubert #NowListening
November 12, 2025 at 11:47 AM
#morninglistening to #AlfredBrendel. Here in hus fine analog #FranzSchubert Impromptus, including the But the 3 Klavierstücke D946 which he arguably improved upon in the later digital set.
Amzn: amzn.to/47F13i8
#Schubert #NowListening
Amzn: amzn.to/47F13i8
#Schubert #NowListening
#morninglistening to the absolutely fabulous #Rachmaninov PC 1 (& 2) from a young #ZoltánKocsis & EdoDeWaart w/the @sfsymphony on Philips. Why the whole cycle isn't in print, only the record executive gods know.
#nowplaying #Rachmaninoff
#nowplaying #Rachmaninoff
November 12, 2025 at 7:47 AM
#morninglistening to the absolutely fabulous #Rachmaninov PC 1 (& 2) from a young #ZoltánKocsis & EdoDeWaart w/the @sfsymphony on Philips. Why the whole cycle isn't in print, only the record executive gods know.
#nowplaying #Rachmaninoff
#nowplaying #Rachmaninoff
#morninglistening to CharlesMackerras and the @SCOmusic on @Telarc in WAMozart's CosìFanTutte. I've seen shade thrown in this, but heck, it's a FABULOUS Così. Not quite Jacobs - but just Mozartian goodness.
#NowListening
#NowListening
November 11, 2025 at 1:32 PM
#morninglistening to CharlesMackerras and the @SCOmusic on @Telarc in WAMozart's CosìFanTutte. I've seen shade thrown in this, but heck, it's a FABULOUS Così. Not quite Jacobs - but just Mozartian goodness.
#NowListening
#NowListening
Wintry #Weidringer[TM] at the wonderful Mozart-Saal ( Wiener Konzerthaus ) for a Winterreise.
And the reviews are in: English (ionarts.blogspot.com/2025/11/crit...) and German (www.diepresse.com/20268657/kee...)
And the reviews are in: English (ionarts.blogspot.com/2025/11/crit...) and German (www.diepresse.com/20268657/kee...)
November 11, 2025 at 9:34 AM
Wintry #Weidringer[TM] at the wonderful Mozart-Saal ( Wiener Konzerthaus ) for a Winterreise.
And the reviews are in: English (ionarts.blogspot.com/2025/11/crit...) and German (www.diepresse.com/20268657/kee...)
And the reviews are in: English (ionarts.blogspot.com/2025/11/crit...) and German (www.diepresse.com/20268657/kee...)
#morninglistening to #Milhaud symphonies 1 & 2 w/the OrchestreNationalDuCapitole und Plasson on DG. Despite instances that are awesome (finale of no.1, for example), the music tends to annoy me, unfortunately.
November 10, 2025 at 2:23 PM
#morninglistening to #Milhaud symphonies 1 & 2 w/the OrchestreNationalDuCapitole und Plasson on DG. Despite instances that are awesome (finale of no.1, for example), the music tends to annoy me, unfortunately.
Biblical #Weidringer[TM] for RichardStrauss' JosephsLegende at the @Müpa w/the Budapest Festival Orchestra and Ivan Fischer. Also: LvB VC w/Alina Ibragimova
November 9, 2025 at 3:50 PM
Biblical #Weidringer[TM] for RichardStrauss' JosephsLegende at the @Müpa w/the Budapest Festival Orchestra and Ivan Fischer. Also: LvB VC w/Alina Ibragimova
#morninglistening to #SviatoslavRichter's famed 1958 Sofia-recital containing his legendary Musorgsky #PicturesAtAnExhibition. But in all honesty: it doesn't hold up; if it weren't for the reputation, it wouldn't pass muster today; it's really not even that enjoyable. 😬
Amz: amzn.to/4p2dEBH
Amz: amzn.to/4p2dEBH
November 9, 2025 at 8:56 AM
#morninglistening to #SviatoslavRichter's famed 1958 Sofia-recital containing his legendary Musorgsky #PicturesAtAnExhibition. But in all honesty: it doesn't hold up; if it weren't for the reputation, it wouldn't pass muster today; it's really not even that enjoyable. 😬
Amz: amzn.to/4p2dEBH
Amz: amzn.to/4p2dEBH
#morninglistening to what I think will never not be my favorite recording of #Boito's #Mefistofele. With Domingo, Caballé, the unique, superb Treigle, furiously conducted by JuliusRudel. Also love the vivid sound. 52 years young but golden.
Amzn: amzn.to/3LsBhoA
Amzn: amzn.to/3LsBhoA
November 8, 2025 at 10:59 PM
#morninglistening to what I think will never not be my favorite recording of #Boito's #Mefistofele. With Domingo, Caballé, the unique, superb Treigle, furiously conducted by JuliusRudel. Also love the vivid sound. 52 years young but golden.
Amzn: amzn.to/3LsBhoA
Amzn: amzn.to/3LsBhoA
#morninglistening to Czech RichardStrauss from Garmisch. Pilsen Philharmonic & @RemyBallot at the RichardStraussTage - on @GramolaKlassik: Swift DonJuan & thundering Heldenleben
November 8, 2025 at 8:51 AM
#morninglistening to Czech RichardStrauss from Garmisch. Pilsen Philharmonic & @RemyBallot at the RichardStraussTage - on @GramolaKlassik: Swift DonJuan & thundering Heldenleben