A Lark Ascending

I expect (I hope!) even the most cordon bleu of chefs enjoy chatting about their favourite chippy. Do we have a favourite chippy thread?

There's been quite and industry collecting these sort of things onto albums over the last couple of decades. This is the first of a series on Hyperion: Lots of things you half-recall (well, you might actually recall!) from radio and TV theme tunes. The one that always throws me back into a Kenneth More world is: http://youtu.be/XczVq3ZS5gs I think this set uses the original recordings:

This is a great one to put on when you've had too much incoming from Wizzard, Wham and Noddy. And death might be your Santa Claus! Indeed!

It's actually not that expensive - £55. I can imagine it having some practical value to a scholar researching the RofS. But I suspect Decca are working on the inability to resist an object of desire button. I suspect there will be a lot bought which never get listened to right the way through. I find it hard remembering what disc I've got to in a box with different pieces on!

Here's a lovely new disc. Mainly choral but some nice organ interludes, largely unfamiliar more recent songs and carols: 1. Haflidi Hallgrimsson: Joseph and the Angel 03:43 2. Anthony Piccolo: I look from afar 06:19 3. Thomas Hyde: Sweet was the song 02:08 4. Mark-Anthony Turnage: Christmas Night 02:46 5. John McCabe: Mary laid her child 02:22 6. Malcolm Williamson: This Christmas Night 03:07 7. Matthew Martin: I sing of a maiden 02:29 8. Thomas Hyde: Improvisation on 'Puer natus' 05:16 9. Judith Bingham: Tu creasti Domine 04:02 10. Richard Allain: Balulalow 01:51 11. Mark-Anthony Turnage: Claremont Carol 04:09 12. Howard Skempton: There is no rose 02:39 13. Gabriel Jackson: Hush! my dear 03:30 14. Peter Maxwell Davies: Fleecy Care Carol 02:58 15. Cecilia McDowall: Of a Rose 02:49 16. Geoffrey Bush: 'Twas in the year that King Uzziah died 03:05 17. Elisabeth Lutyens: Nativity 05:56 18. Edmund Rubbra: Let us securely enter 02:19 19. Kenneth Leighton: O leave your sheep 04:15 20. Kenneth Leighton: Veni Redemptor (A Celebration) 10:17

This looks useful: The Guardian: A Guide to Contemporary Classical Music Being the Guardian I expected some unfamiliar names like Noon and Litegi. (Scroll down, look on the right and there are links to 30 different composers) And this looks interesting: Various Luvvies Choose their favourite piece of Contemporary Classical And a spirited defence of contemporary music: The five myths about contemporary classical music I suspect most of us have believed one or two of those over the years.

This one may well win the prize: http://www.amazon.co...dm_cd_album_lnk 20 CDs of The Rite of Spring across the ages. I love the Rite, it's a piece I have a few recordings of (something I try to avoid), but... The Rite of Spring 1946 Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam, Eduard van Beinum The Rite of Spring 1950 L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Ernest Ansermet The Rite of Spring 1954 RIAS Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Ference Fricsay The Rite of Spring 1954 Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra, Antal Dorati The Rite of Spring 1956 Orchestre des cento soli, Rudolf Albert The Rite of Spring 1956 Paris Conservatoire Orchestra, Pierre Monteux The Rite of Spring 1957 L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Ernest Ansermet The Rite of Spring 1959 Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra, Antal Dorati The Rite of Spring 1963 Berliner Philharmoniker, Herbert von Karajan The Rite of Spring 1963 London Symphony Orchestra, Colin Davis The Rite of Spring 1969 Los Angeles Philharmonic, Zubin Mehta The Rite of Spring 1972 Boston Symphony Orchestra, Michael Tilson Thomas The Rite of Spring 1973 London Philharmonic Orchestra, Bernard Haitink The Rite of Spring 1974 London Philharmonic Orchestra, Erich Leinsdorf The Rite of Spring 1974 Wiener Philharmoniker, Lorin Maazel The Rite of Spring 1974 Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Sir Georg Solti The Rite of Spring 1975 London Symphony Orchestra, Claudio Abbado The Rite of Spring 1976 Concertgebouw Orchestra, Colin Davis The Rite of Spring 1977 Berliner Philharmoniker, Herbert von Karajan The Rite of Spring 1978 National Youth Orchestra, Simon Rattle The Rite of Spring 1979 Boston Symphony Orchestra, Seiji Ozawa The Rite of Spring 1981 Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Antal Dorati The Rite of Spring 1982 Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein The Rite of Spring 1984 Orchestre Symphonique de Montreal, Charles Dutoit The Rite of Spring 1985 The Cleveland Orchestra, Riccardo Chailly The Rite of Spring 1991 The Cleveland Orchestra, Pierre Boulez The Rite of Spring 1991 Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Sir Georg Solti The Rite of Spring 1992 The MET Orchestra, James Levine The Rite of Spring 1994 Deutsches Sinfonie-Orchester, Berlin, Vladimir Ashkenazy The Rite of Spring 1995 Orchestre de Paris, Semyon Bychkov The Rite of Spring 1995 Berliner Philharmoniker, Bernard Haitink The Rite of Spring 1999 Kirov Orchestra, St Petersburg, Valery Gergiev The Rite of Spring 2006 Los Angeles Philharmonic, Esa-Pekka Salonen The Rite of Spring 2007 Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Myung-Whun Chung The Rite of Spring 2010 Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela, Gustavo Dudamel The Rite of Spring for two pianos. 1968 Bracha Eden & Alexander Tamir (piano) The Rite of Spring for two pianos. 1983 Güher & Süher Pekinel (piano) The Rite of Spring for two pianos. 1990 Vladimir Ashkenazy & Andrei Gavrilov (piano) Violin Concerto in D Bonus CD. 1935 Samuel Dushkin (violin) Lamoureux Concert Orchestra, Igor Stravinsky ********* Wimps can get the 4 CD version: The Rite of Spring 1956 Paris Conservatoire Orchestra, Pierre Monteux The Rite of Spring 1981 Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Antal Dorati The Rite of Spring 1985 The Cleveland Orchestra, Riccardo Chailly The Rite of Spring 1991 The Cleveland Orchestra, Pierre Boulez The Rite of Spring 1999 Kirov Orchestra, St Petersburg, Valery Gergiev The Rite of Spring 2006 Los Angeles Philharmonic, Esa-Pekka Salonen

McLaughlin is working with his guru to prepare:

Expect the Mahavishnu reunion soon.

Strongly recommend Honegger's 'Une Cantate de Noel' to Xmas music lovers who don't know it. A 25 minute piece in two parts, the first extremely dark and brooding with absolutely no tinsel. The way the light comes in in the second part, built round a childrens choir singing the carol 'Il est né le divin enfant,' weaving in and out of other themes ('er ist ein ros entsprungen') is pure Christmas. There's another recent version on this disc that I've not heard; but the couplings are better known Honegger - more spring like!

Oh, I really like it too. And will get this reissue - the CD-R from Neil was always temperamental. I really like Norma Winstone on "Will You Walk A Little Faster?" Thanks for the alert, by the way.

Orwell was the first 'proper' writer I got obsessed with whilst reading 'Animal Farm' for 'O' Level.

First read this 35+ years ago. Still holds up.

A very enjoyable record. I have a copy that Neil Ardley had available on his website before he died. Well worth getting if that era of British jazz interests you. I'm not entirely clear why it is "One of the most important British jazz albums ever recorded". I'm not aware of any obvious legacy stemming from it. Sounds like record company publicity.

I'll swap with you, Sidewnder! ******* Sadly not able to make it, Corey - missed you at Worksop library a few weeks back too, Only a couple of miles away. Hope the concert goes well. Sounds like an inventive project. Brilliant painting:

Although recommendations pop up in other threads I don't recall a Christmas specific classical thread (if there is one I'm happy to have this one torpedoed). Lots out there. What do you especially enjoy? Some of my regulars: A fair bit of Easter in the Handel, but...

A point in Decca's favour. I bought a 2012 reissue of Schrecker's 'Die Gezeichneten' in London a couple of weeks back to find no libretto inside. However there was an online link - to my mind a perfectly sensible solution. Had real problems getting it to open but Decca were really helpful. Turns out Chrome was the problem - opened without trouble in IE.

Yet another illustration of the superiority of the download - far less fattening.

A complete Mozart package with a separate Mozartkugeln for every K number. Now that beats a trumpet mouthpiece. The possibilities are endless - Wagner sets with boil in the bag vegetarian dishes, Richard Strauss with lashings of schlagsahne.....

Try this thread:

Headbutting that brik-a-brak market stall?

You gave us 'Madmen'; we've given you 'The Hour'. A pretty good exchange, I'd say (though I'd give 'Madmen' the advantage).

This week: 'The Hour' Series 2, episode 2 'The Killing III' episode 3/4 'Crossfire Hurricane' - a new Rolling Stones documentary. Episode 1. Some intriguing 60s/early 70s footage.

If I go via the widget and then into Amazon UK does that register?