'Classical' music from the last 50 years (or so)

[Hoppy T. Frog]

Finnissey's 2nd and 3rd String Quartets on NMC have been haunting me lately, along with the Jonathan Harvey "Bird Concerto with Pianosong".

[A Lark Ascending]

That Harvey record is wonderful - in fact Harvey in general has been engaging me more and more. Seem to recall my sister saying she was taught by him at Brighton back in the 80s - a culture of music type course, not anything technical.

[king ubu]

Have you ever tried any Feldman in the meantime?

The CD with "Rothko Chapel" on it pictured further up in this thread might indeed be a good entrance point.

For me, the piano works are most fascinating at this time - the hatNOW CD "Early Piano Works" and the "Last Pieces" CD (plenty of duplication between them but different pianists - Steffen Schleiermacher on the former, Stéphane Ginsburgh on the latter -, different approaches, and the later one adds a long and great late piece ... and just in case, those "last pieces" are early ones, really!).

[A Lark Ascending]

Not yet. That one is on my Amazon wish list but saved for another day. I have my hands (or should that be ears) full at present.

[Stefan Wood]

Finally! On cd!!!!!!!

Carl Ruggles

Edited July 23, 2012 by Stefan Wood

[A Lark Ascending]

Whipped that one off e-music last week.

[king ubu]

For Hartmann ... not Metzmacher then. How about the Wergo set:

http://www.wergo.de/shop/de_DE/3/show,93484.html

[StarThrower]

I haven't heard the Wergo recordings. I have the EMI series. The next two composers I want to listen to are Luigi Nono, and Takemitsu. Denon released some fine recordings by Takemitsu which have been reissued in part by Brilliant Classics. I don't know why they didn't reissue all three discs?

http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/advsearch.php?composer=takemitsu&work=&performer=&medium=all&label=brilliant+classics&cat=

I'm trying to decide on a recording of Nono's No hay caminos, hay que caminar. Can anyone identify this recording?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cWltt_IBX8

[mandrill]

Highly recommended.

Also

and

[A Lark Ascending]

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.

Edited December 1, 2012 by A Lark Ascending

[P.L.M]

I'm surprise, reading this topic, that nobody had prononce the names of the "spectral" school of composers who, to my hear, has change the so-call contemporary music, and particularly, the best of them, GERARD GRISEY (1946-1998).

Working on the of the sound "spectrum", they (Grisey, Horatiu Radulescu, Tristan Murail, Hugues Dufourt) came out with a music in which you can hear Debussy, Bartok, Stockhausen, Scelsi and... improvised music.

If you want to a make a try, start with Horatiu Radulescu: "Piano Concerto The Quest" (Radio-sinfonie-Orchester Frankfurt, Lothar Zagrosek, CPO, recorded in 1996), Gérard Grisey: "Vortex Temporum - Talea" (Ensemble Recherche, Kwamé Ryan, Accord, recorded in 1996) and "Les espaces Acoustiques" (Ensemble Court-Circuit-André Valade, Frankfurter Museum Orkester, Sylvain Cambreling, Accord, recorded in 1998) the two masterpieces of Grisey and the "Spectral music" (IMHO), Tristan Murail, "Couleur de mer - L'Attente - Treize couleurs du soleil couchant - Attracteurs étranges - La barque Mystique" (Ensemble Court-Circuit-Pierre André Valade, Accord, recorded in 1994), "Serendib - L'Esprit des dunes - désintégrations" (Ensemble Intercontemporain-David Robertson, Adès, recorded in 1996).

Edited December 13, 2012 by P.L.M

[A Lark Ascending]

Coming very soon on BBC TV, 'The Sound of Fury: A Century of Modern Music' - a three part documentary on 20thC music.

http://www.bbc.co.uk...t-is-noise.html

Given how classical luvvies can scratch one another's eyes out out over 'who's best?' in a 17thC harpsichord composition, I imagine there will be high dudgeon over who is and isn't included and where they are placed in the pecking order.

Tied in, I think, with 'The Rest is Noise' series at London currently.

Edited January 19, 2013 by A Lark Ascending

[David Ayers]

I'm surprise, reading this topic, that nobody had prononce the names of the "spectral" school of composers who, to my hear, has change the so-call contemporary music, and particularly, the best of them, GERARD GRISEY (1946-1998).

Working on the of the sound "spectrum", they (Grisey, Horatiu Radulescu, Tristan Murail, Hugues Dufourt) came out with a music in which you can hear Debussy, Bartok, Stockhausen, Scelsi and... improvised music.

If you want to a make a try, start with Horatiu Radulescu: "Piano Concerto The Quest" (Radio-sinfonie-Orchester Frankfurt, Lothar Zagrosek, CPO, recorded in 1996), Gérard Grisey: "Vortex Temporum - Talea" (Ensemble Recherche, Kwamé Ryan, Accord, recorded in 1996) and "Les espaces Acoustiques" (Ensemble Court-Circuit-André Valade, Frankfurter Museum Orkester, Sylvain Cambreling, Accord, recorded in 1998) the two masterpieces of Grisey and the "Spectral music" (IMHO), Tristan Murail, "Couleur de mer - L'Attente - Treize couleurs du soleil couchant - Attracteurs étranges - La barque Mystique" (Ensemble Court-Circuit-Pierre André Valade, Accord, recorded in 1994), "Serendib - L'Esprit des dunes - désintégrations" (Ensemble Intercontemporain-David Robertson, Adès, recorded in 1996).

No 'Quatre chants pour franchir le seuil'? Ah, my friend...

[A Lark Ascending]

Coming very soon on BBC TV, 'The Sound of Fury: A Century of Modern Music' - a three part documentary on 20thC music.

http://www.bbc.co.uk...t-is-noise.html

Starts this Tuesday for those in range:

http://www.bbc.co.uk...rammes/b01qnp5f

Be interesting to hear how far they do go into the second half of the 20th. There seems to be a reasonably well accepted narrative (or set of narratives) of the first half of the 20thC. But outside of academia (maybe inside too?), the narrative of the second half (and beyond) seems to be still in flux.

Edited February 10, 2013 by A Lark Ascending

[A Lark Ascending]

Reviving this thread in the light of some discussion on the classical listening thread.

Just listening to this:

Far less scary than I expected. You can hear the Messiaen connection.

Someone might be able to explain to me what a spectral composer is!

[Stefan Wood]

Listening to this:

Really enjoyable!

[7/4]

Reviving this thread in the light of some discussion on the classical listening thread.

Just listening to this:

Far less scary than I expected. You can hear the Messiaen connection.

Someone might be able to explain to me what a spectral composer is!

Spectral music (or spectralism) is a musical practice where compositional decisions are often informed by sonographic representations and mathematical analysis of sound spectra. The spectral approach focuses on manipulating the features identified through this analysis, interconnecting them, and transforming them. In this formulation, computer-based sound analysis and representations of audio signals are treated as being analogous to a timbral representation of sound.

The spectral approach originated in France in the early 1970s, and techniques were developed, and later refined, primarily at IRCAM, Paris, with the Ensemble l'Itinéraire, by composers such as Gerard Grisey and Tristan Murail. Murail has described spectral music as an aesthetic rather than a style, not so much a set of techniques as an attitude – that "music is ultimately sound evolving in time". Julian Anderson indicates that a number of major composers associated with spectralism consider the term inappropriate, misleading, and reductive. The Istanbul Spectral Music Conference of 2003 suggested a redefinition of the term "spectral music" to encompass any music that foregrounds timbre as an important element of structure or language.

more here.

[Ligeti]

If asked, I'd say I listen to Clasical music - but in truth almost everything I listen to is from the last 50 years or so. Not that I don't like some Bach every now and again, but the real excitement for me is in contemporary works. Commontl heard in my home: Stockhausen, RIley, All and sundry Kronos Quartet, Feldman, Vasks, Goreki, John Adams, Glass, Reich, John Luther Adams, , Xanekis, Andriesson, Sundry Bang on a Can, Pendereki, Cage etc. Among others.

Much of this is in keeping with my jazz interests, which tend to veer away from what I'll call "Blue Note" into avant garde. I like music to challenge me, to make me think and work at it. I tend not to enjoy "obvious" work (obvious as defined arbitrarily by me, )

I consider Music for 18 musicians as my favorite piece, though I more often play the longer Nonesuch release than the ECM.

This is a nice thread.

[A Lark Ascending]

I'd be interested in hearing your enthusiasms for things you really like.

I'm enjoying exploring more recent 'classical' music - it's something I've done periodically over the last 35 years but often not really getting it. The last few years have seen things making more sense.

I don't know if you know the NMC label - really interesting exploration of recent (and not too distant) British music.

http://www.nmcrec.co.uk/

Buying records there can be a real leap in the dark.

[Ligeti]

I will try to post some of my favorites. Coming at Classical as I do, my taste may seem a little strange. I tend not have too much respect for musical boundaries.

[Stefan Wood]

Charles Wourinen's Time's Encomium.

[StarThrower]

Anyone listening to Maurice Ohana? I discovered him yesterday. Born in Morocco in 1913. He wrote quite a bit of engaging, interesting music for many different instruments and ensembles. There are a number of recordings on the Timpani label conducted by Arturo Tomayo.

Bio & discography at Archiv.

http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/Name/Maurice-Ohana/Composer/8886-1

Here are a music links:

Chiffres de clavcin

Cello Concerto No. 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95FRY2HbYJA

Avoaha for percussion, piano, and choir

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUcdOgyLJ_8

Concerto for 10 string guitar & orchestra w/ Narciso Yepes

[Larry Kart]

Great performance of a great piece:

Likewise:

[A Lark Ascending]

Anyone listening to Maurice Ohana?

Only know a short guitar piece on this gem of a disc:

[A Lark Ascending]

A couple of recommendations for contemporary operas. I'm no expert (on contemporary music or opera) but thoroughly enjoyed these two in the last few weeks. I'd be hard pressed to follow them as discs alone but with the visuals you are in their world as intended.

Hopefully it will become common practice to film these new productions, given how hard it is to get further productions. Apart from the assistance it lends coach potatoes like me, it might just widen interest for other performances.

I know NMC are putting out an aural recording of Birtwistle's "Gawain" soon. Would like to see a filmed recording.