Spam Roundup April, 2020

There's spam, and then there's spam so oddly written it's somewhat amusing. Here's a roundup of some of the "best" comments I received this month from spambots around the world.

And your point?

These examples raise nonsequiturs to an art form. 

- There isn't any known antagonistic unintended effects of zinc oxide cream.. [This in response to a review of Renaissance dance music..]

- At this moment I am going away to do my breakfast, when having my breakfast coming yet again to read other news.. [Can't wait for the lunch update.]

- Your computing device search causal agent algorithms opt highly-organic data and commercialism arrangements. proceeding can be the new guy on the go.[Highly-organic data -- that's what this new guy's all about.]

Rave reviews for "Lumbering along"

As you read the comments, keep in mind they were
supposedly inspired by a post about this toy truck.

The response to The Straco Express Layout, Part 23 - Lumbering Along continues to be disproportionately enthusiastic. Really, it's just about a cheap vintage toy. 

- Magnificent put up, very informative. I wonder why the opposite specialists of this sector don't notice this. You should proceed your writing. I am confident, you've a huge readers' base already![I think this post's a magnificent put on. ]

- Thankfulness to my father who told me concerning this webpage, this blog is really amazing. [Wow. Intergenerational spam.]

- I have to thank you for the efforts you have put in penning this site. I'm hoping to check out the same high-grade content from you later on as well. [Now see, if they'd put the words "high-grade content" in quotes, I would have taken this for a real comment .]

- Hurrah! At last I got a webpage from where I know how to actually get useful data concerning my study and knowledge. [Can you really get an advanced degree in Japanese penny toys?]

In conclusion, my fellow Americans...

 - Take up your content out location. Don't focalize on acquiring this difficulty occurs, you'll in all likelihood try to be related active whether they are saving far national leader cruciferous plant for party. [I can think of two parties that might be better-led by cruciferous plants.]

Remember -- don't focalize on the acquisition. Rather, opt for highly-organic data. That's the key to "high-grade content." That's all for this month!

Mieczyslaw Weinberg late string quartets strong stuff

The Silesian Quartet tackles two difficult works in this installment of their Mieczyslaw Weinberg quartet cycle. Wienberg was alone and isolated in the late 1970s. His mentor and friend Shostakovich was dead, and increasingly his scores were rejected for performance.

The two quartets in this release seem almost distillations of his anger, sadness, and frustration. String Quartet No. 14 has five attached movements that seem to tumble from one idea to the next. Chords grind against each other, mercurial mood swings abound, and complex motifs rub shoulders with bland, simple tunes.

I often say Weinberg's music reminds me of Shostakovich's. In this case, it sounded more like Alfred Schnittke's. I felt the same way about String Quartet No. 15, completed in 1979. Here Weinberg freely mixes tonal and atonal passages in almost a stream of consciousness manner. And yet it works.

I found both quartets compelling -- especially as performed by the Silesian Quartet. They gave full vent to the pent-up emotions of the music. Bows dug viciously into strings; tutti attacks almost seemed savage at times. And yet the quartet could play tenderly and softly when needed. The Silesian Quartet perfectly captured the emotional storm these quartets express.

In this release, the Three Palms for soprano and string quartet is sequenced between the two quartets. This 1977 work makes a welcome respite. While it's an aggressively modernist work, it has a quiet, lyrical quality the quartets lack. Joanna Frieszel displays phenomenal technique in bringing this music to life.

Late Weinberg might not be everyone's cup of tea. But if it is, buy this release and drink deeply.

Mieczyslaw Weinberg: String Quartets Nos. 14 and 15; Three Psalms
Silesian Quartet; Joanna Freszel, soprano
CD Accord ACD268

Michael Rische plays C.P.E. Bach - No apologies necessary

In the liner notes for this release, pianist Michael Rische writes, "The musician of our time has in his mind, consciously or not, the musical thinking of Debussy and Ravel, of Schoenberg and Stravinsky, and of Messiaen and Ligeti – a large radius of musical experience that reaches into the present day and suddenly reverberates in a piano concerto by [Carl Philipp Emanuel] Bach."

Well okay then. These days, playing pre-Classical keyboard music on historically accurate pianofortes seems to be the norm. So I can understand Ricshe feeling the need to justify these recordings with a modern piano.

But he didn't really need to. His performances make the case quite nicely. Rische takes full advantage of his instrument, shaping the music with thoughtful phrasing and subtle dynamic changes.

The Piano Concerto in D major, Wq.11 was completed in 1743. Bach wrote it in the new empfindsamer Stil. The effect of this "sensitive style" is heightened by Rische's playing (and the expressive qualities of a modern piano).

Accompanying Ricsche is the Berlin Barock Solisten. The ensemble comprises of Berlin Philharmonic, and they're just the right size for these works. They balance the sound of the modern piano well, creating a pleasing ensemble blend.

CPE Bach was a talented composer, and these works demonstrate the high degree of his skill and imagination. And Michael Ricshe presents compelling performances of these works on his chosen instrument. No apologies needed.

Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach: Keyboard Concertos
Michael Rische, piano
Berlin Barock Solisten
Hanssler Classics HD19041

#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalQuartet Week 4

April is the fourth month of the year. And so the Classics a Day team decided to make classical quartets this month's theme. One could easily fill up a month of postings with nothing but great string quartets. But I decided to explore further.

A piano trio is made up of four musicians. So is a vocal quartet, a percussion quartet, a brass quartet, and so on. I decided to seek out some of the more unusual quartet compositions. And while I do include some string quartets, they're not written by the usual suspects. 

Here are my #Classicsaday selections for the fourth week of #ClassicalQuartet

04/20/20 Doris Pejacevic (1885-1923): Piano Quartet in D minor, Op. 25

The music of this Croatian composer was performed extensively throughout Eastern Europe during her lifetime. This 1908 quartet was written when she was just 23.

04/21/20 Nikolai Tcherepnin (1873-1945): Six Horn Quartets, Opus 35

These quartets date from 1910, while Tcherepnin was conductor of the Mariinsky Theater, and head of the Conservatory at St. Petersburg.

04/22/20 Ulvi Cemal Erkin (1906-1972): String Quartet

Erkin was part of the "Turkish Five," composers who integrated Turkish folk music and modes into traditional Western classical music forms.

04/23/20 Gabriel Pierné (1863-1937): Introduction et Variations for Saxophone Quartet

This French composer/organist/conductor is noted for many things (like conducting the premiere of Stravinsky's Firebird). His saxophone quartet is a repertoire standard.

04/24/20 Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767):'Paris' Quartet in E minor, TWV 43:e4

The Paris quartets is a collection of chamber works in two sets. The name was added by the editors of Telemann's catalog in the 20th Century.

Emil Mlynarski Violin Concertos deserve wider audience

In Poland, Emil Mlynarski (1870-1935) is a major musical figure. He was the founding conductor of the Warsaw Symphony in 1901. He was also a virtuoso violinist who studied with Leopold Auer. And he studied composition with Nicolai Rimsky-Korsokov. Mlynarksi's noted for incorporating Polish traditional music into his works.

This release features his two violin concertos. Mlynarski completed his Violin Concerto No. 1in D minor in 1897. As a violinist, Mlynarski was a rising star, and this concerto is a real showpiece of his skill.

Polish violinist Piotr Plawner performs with a keen sense of musicianship. While there are some extremely difficult passages in this work, he never loses track of the melodic line. It helps pulls the work together, particularly in the cadenzas. to

Mlynarski revisited the genre in nineteen years later. His Violin Concerto No. 2 in D major seems a more fully-developed work. The orchestra has more to do, and Mlynarski seems to use them more effectively. The form is also looser, giving the music an elegiac and sometimes improvisatory feel.

The technical tricks seem to have been dialed back as well. There's still plenty for Plawner to do, though. His playing in this work is wonderfully expressive, making the lyrical passages sound exceptionally beautiful.

My only quibble with this release is that the ensemble has a slightly hollow sound to it. Perhaps the mics should have been a little closer? But that's minor. Otherwise, a fine release of two concertos that should be better known outside of Poland.

Emil Mlynarski Violin Concertos
Piotr Plawner, violin
Arthur Rubinstein Philharmonic Orchestra; Lawel Przytocki, conductor
DUX 1616