Spam Roundup January 2018

It's a new year, but an old story. I still receive spam comments. Some of it's so oddly written, that it's oddly amusing. Here's a roundup of some of the "best" comments I received this month from spambots around the world.

Know what I mean?

I can only hope these comments made sense before being run through an online translator.

- The best time to make a few plans for the longer term and it's time to be happy. [Thank you, Bobby McFerrin.]

- What's up to all it's actually a fastidious for me to pay a visit this site, it consists of prceless information. [You're misuse of the word "fastidious" -- priceless.]

- It is not my first time to pay a visit to this site. I am visiting this web page daily and obtain good facts from here everyday. [I know. This comment shows up just about every day.]

Unquestionably believe that which you said. Your favorite justification seemed to be on the web the easiest thing to be aware of. I say to you, I certainly get irked while people consider worries that they plainly do not know about. [I'm a little irked right now.]

 Still attracting spam comments from around the world!

"Lumbering along" still lumbers along

This one post in my ongoing series on cheap Japanese toys continues to draw the spam. The Straco Express Layout, Part 23 - Lumbering Along remains a top destination. possibly because I keep posting about it in these spam updates.

- First I want to thank you for the very interesting information you blogged here about lower back pain. [Dude, it's "lumber," not "lumbar!"]

 - This web site really has all of the info I wanted concering this subject and didn't know who to ask. [Well, I can't argue with that.]

 - If you want to grow your familiarity simply keep visiting this website and be updated with the latest gossip posted here. [Yes, I'm the TMZ for the latest gossip about late 1950s Japanese penny toys!]

 - You are so awesome! I don't believe I've truly read through anything like that before. So nice to find another person with some genuine thoughts on this subjet matter. [Said the fake spambot.]

And that reminds me...

Not sure I care for this association.

 - Hey very nice blog! My site... how to cure hemorrhoids at home.

I've got nothing to say after that, except we'll see what comes in next month!

#ClassicsaDay #Opus1 Annotated List Week 5

I'm a regular contributor to the #ClassicsaDay Twitter feed. For January 2018, I decided to mark the first month of the new year with firsts. Each post features the first published work of a different composer.

Emphasis on the word "published," In some cases, the Opus 1 is the first mature work of the composer. Sometimes the work was written mid-career. A few are spurious, and a few were written quite late and simply assigned the Opus 1 designation.

Each work seems to have a story that's a little long for the typical tweet. So here they are. This is the fifth and final week of the #ClassicsaDay #Opus1 series.

Johann Strauss II (1825-1899)- Singedichte Walzer, Op. 1

The Singedichte (Epigrams) Waltzer was the first in a long string of published works by Johann Strauss II. His catalog would eventually contain over 500 works, including numerous waltzes, marches, waltzes, and operettas.

Carl Stamitz (1717-1757) - Viola Concerto in D major, Op. 1, No. 1

Stamitz spent the first part of his career playing in the Mannheim court orchestra. Mannheim was a center for musical innovations. Stamitz incorporated most of them into his music. Stamitz spent most of his life touring as a virtuoso violinist, violist, and viola d'amore player. His viola concerto was one of over 60 that he wrote for various instruments.

Johann Joseph Fux (1660-1741) - Concentus musico-instrumentalis, Op. 1

Fux is best remembered for his Gradus ad Parnassum. This treatise on renaissance counterpoint was a standard reference works for generations of composers. His 1701 Concentus musico-instrumentalis is a compendium of instrumental works. It consists of overtures, suites, sinfonias, serenades, and other late 17th Century forms.



Annotated List Week 1
Annotated List Week 2
Annotated List Week 3
Annotated List Week 4

Diabelli Project 179 - String Trio, Mvt. 3A

The Diabelli Project is about offering my weekly flash-composition sketches freely to all. Like Antonio Diabelli's theme, these sketches aren't great music. But perhaps (as in Diabelli's case) there's a Beethoven out there who can do great things with them.
This string trio series is a bit of a departure. I'm still flash composing, with a 10-minute time limit to write as much as I can. Instead of starting over each week, I'll be attempting to pick up where I left off from the previous week for my 10-minute session.

This is the first part of the third (and final) movement. It starts off with a simple four-note motif in sevenths. The shifting of the meter from 3/4 to 2/4 is designed to keep the pulse from settling into too regular a pattern. That sense of off-balance continues through the cadence points.

As always, you can use any or all of the posted Diabelli Project sketches as you wish for free. Just be sure to share the results. I'm always curious to see what direction someone else can take this material.

#ClassicsaDay #Opus1 Annotated List Week 4

I'm a regular contributor to the #ClassicsaDay Twitter feed. For January 2018, I decided to mark the first month of the new year with firsts. Each post features the first published work of a different composer.

Emphasis on the word "published," In some cases, the Opus 1 is the first mature work of the composer. Sometimes the work was written mid-career. A few are spurious, and a few were written quite late and simply assigned the Opus 1 designation.

Each work seems to have a story that's a little long for the typical tweet. So here they are. This is week four of the #ClassicsaDay #Opus1 series.

Nicolai Medtner (1880-1951) - Acht Stimmungsbilder, Op. 1

Pianist/composer Nicolai Medner wrote his eight betwen 1895 and 1902. By the time his first works were published, Medtner was already an established concert pianist. Medtner, like Chopin, wrote exclusively for the piano. His range was wider, though. In addition to solo piano works, he wrote three piano concertos and several chamber works, mostly for violin and piano.

Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1713)- Sonata da Chiesa Op. 1 No. 1

The twelve trio sonatas of Corelli were published in 1681. Publishing was an expensive business, and most composers of the day relied on patronage and subscriptions to fund publication. That usually meant that only the best works from a composer's catalog saw print. In Corelli's case, Queen Christina of Sweden was that patron.

Robert Schumann (1810-1856) - Variations on the name "Abegg", Op. 1

Schumann's first published composition was written between 1829 and 1830. The work is a set of variations on the name ABEGG. The inspiration was apparently Pauline von Abegg, who Schumann met when he was twenty. The five notes of the name form the theme (in German, "B" is read as "B-flat").

https://youtu.be/0c7ZPGSEjWQ

Alban Berg (1885-1935) - Piano Sonata, Op. 1

Berg's piano sonata was published in 1910 and may have been written a year earlier. Although the exact date isn't known, it was written after Berg had started studying with Arnold Schoenberg. It's the only work Berg assigned an opus number to.

 

Richard Strauss (1864-1949) - Festmarsch, Op. 1

Strauss completed the Festmarch in 1876. It was premiered and published five years later. The premiere was conducted by Franz Joseph Strauss, Richard's father. The elder Strauss tried -- unsuccessfully -- to steer Richard away from the influence of Wagner.



Annotated List Week 1
Annotated List Week 2
Annotated List Week 3

99 Words - An Exceptional Tribute to John Tavener

What a beautiful album. And what a fitting tribute to John Tavener and his unique artistic vision. 99 Words presents music that honors the memory of Tavener, interspersed with music by Tavener. It's a powerful combination.

John Tavener's sublimely spiritual music has a serenity and transparency that sounds like no other. Roxanna Panufnik doesn't try to emulate Tavener's style. But her music seems to come from the same aesthetic.

"Heav'nly Harmony" uses fuller harmonies and more chromatic accompaniment than the Tavener works that precede and follow it. And yet it seems to have a similar sense of spiritual grounding.

The title track, "99 Words," is a heartbreaking, yet inspiring work. It's Panufnik's setting of Tavener's last letter to his children. The words are spoken, wreathen in choral sound clouds with a cello obbligato.

The composer writes, "the cello represents John [Tavener] -- supporting, encouraging, and embellishing the words." And that's exactly what it seems to do. Without copying Tavener, Panufnik has captured the essence of the composer. In the process, she's transformed his deeply personal message into one we can all embrace.

Cellist Michael Barley contributes "Improvisations on Tavener themes." This work for solo cello celebrates Tavener's music as it refashions it.

The Voce Chamber Choir, directed by Suzi Digby, have an exceptional ensemble sound. And it takes an exceptional talent to make Tavener's music sound as ethereal as it should. The Voce Chamber Choir does so every time.

This is just one of those releases where everything's right -- the program, the sequencing, the recording, the performances, and the music.

Especially the music.

99 Words: Sir John Tavener, Roxanna Panufnik
Voce Chamber Choir; Suzi Digby, conductor
Matthew Barley, cello; Simon Russell Beale, narrator; James Sherlock, organ
Signum Classics

Amir Mahyar Tafreshipour - Persian Echoes

Amir Mahyar Tafreshipour isn't the first composer to meld his cultural musical heritage into classical composition. And he does so as convincingly as Dvorak, Bartok, or De Falla (in his own style, of course).

Tafreshipour said this of Persian Echoes, his harp concerto:

"My intention was not to compose an exotic piece simply with the use of Eastern melodies, but rather a work which weaves together sounds associated with Persian traditional music combined with Western classical music."

And he succeeds. The Persian modes he uses gives the work a strong ethnic identity. Yet the structure and use of those modes build on Western art music traditions. It's a fluid work that takes the listener on an engaging journey of discovery.

Alas for chamber quintet also uses traditional Persian motives. In this case, though, the overall sound is more Western -- and more academic. The oboe, clarinet, bassoon, horn and piano pop in and out with little fragments that occasionally grind against each other. It's not a bad work -- just one that sits in stark contrast to the tonal harp concerto that precedes it.

Lucid Dreams, for harp violin and cello, is similar in style to Alas. It has a rhapsodic, dream-like quality to it.

There's little chance Yearning in C will be confused with Terry Riley's In C. And yet both share the same basic idea. Start on C, and use it as an anchor throughout the work. Tafreshipour's concept eschews driving rhythms for an unfolding of the music that that seems to ebb and flow.

The four works on this release present several sides of Amir Tafreshipour's style. Whether his music is consonant or dissonant, it always retains a trace of his Middle Eastern heritage. And that blend makes his a unique and interesting compositional voice.

Amir Mahyar Tafreshipour: 
Persian Echoes (Concerto for Harp and Orchestra);
Alas; Lucid Dreams; Yearning in C
Gabriella Dall’Olio, Harp
English Chamber Orchestra; Alexander Rahbari, conductor
Crash Ensemble; Darragh Morgan, violin
Naxos 8.579023

Straco Express Layout, Part 62 - Nomura Variations

Read all the installments of the Straco Express layout project here.

I recently added a new vehicle to the display layout, and it's one with some interesting features (at least, I think so).

There's something a little odd about this Nomura vehicle.
Note the side windows.

Made by Nomura

Nomura was pretty consistent about branding their pieces -- even those made for another company. In this case, their TN logo is easy to find on the side.

The design is readily recognizable as well. I already own a set of four Nomura service vehicles. The cars have the same chassis and their bodies are stamped in the same shape.

My original set included a taxi, a police car, and a fire chief's car. And this vehicle is also a working car. Note the uniformed driver in the front and the passengers in the back.  This is a chauffeured limousine.

Two passengers in the back, a uniformed driver at the wheel.
Home, James!

 A question of sequence

Here are the four Nomura cars together.
I believe the limousine was made sometime after the other three.

Setting the cars side-by-side it's easy to see that they are identical, save their lithography. But were they made at the same time? 

I don't think so. The limousine has a shiny plated chassis. It's actually a little thinner than the duller alloy chassis of the other three. 

I believe that the limousine was made in late 1962 or early 1963, at the end of the pure tinplate era. 

In 1963 the United States passed child safety regulations for toys. The stricture against sharp edges spelled the end for most tinplate toys. 

Molded plastic had no sharp edges, and Japanese toy companies quickly made the transition to plastic-bodied vehicles. 

End of an era?

Right from the beginning of the era in 1949, companies looked for ways to economize the manufacture of their toys -- particularly these inexpensive toys that were sold by jobbers to dime stores and drug stores. 

The metal shell and chassis of the limousine is much lighter (relatively speaking) to those of the set. That tells me that it's very late in the life cycle of this toy. 

An oddity

There's something else, too. These vehicles have the occupants projected onto all the windows. To indicate someone's sitting in the back, their head will be shown on the back window and the side window. This limousine has a design error. The driver is not shown in profile on the side window. Whoops.

Still an interesting piece

The Nomura limousine is still a welcome addition to the Straco display layout. It's especially good for use with the Shioji trucks. Proportionally, the larger Nomura cars look correct with the Shioji trucks. 

Layout construction:

• Pegboard: $4.95
• Flathead Screws: $0.40
• Molding: $2.49
• SilClear: borrowed from a friend
• Green Paint: leftover  from another project
• Wood Screws: $3.60
• Felt Pads: $1.99

Power Pack: $5.90
Small Houses: $3.00
Testor's Gray Paint for road: $1.29

Bandai Areo Station: $8.99
Bandai Station: $10.00
2 tinplate signs: $1.00
4 tinplate signs (with train) $5.99
Cragstan HO Light Tower $20.49
4 nesting houses $4.99
Tinplate gas station: $5.00

Vehicles:

• Two Japanese toy cars: $2.00
• A.W. Livestock truck: $4.99
• Taxi: $2.99
• Ambulance: $2.99
• Two Japanese patriotic cars: $6.99
• Haji three-wheel sedan $3.00
• Haji three-wheel tanker $5.00
• 1950's sedan $2.99
• LineMar Police Car $9.00
• LineMar Pepco Truck $8.50
• LineMar Bond Bread Van $8.00
• LineMar Fire Engine $4.95
• LineMar Dump Truck $12.99
• LineMar GE Courier Car $10.98
• LineMar County School Bus $9.99
• Nomura Red Sedan $5.00
• Nomura Police Car $2.52
• Nomura lumber truck $3.48
• Nomura limousine $11.99
• 6 Nomura vehicles $16.99
• Shioji Express Truck $10.00
• Shioji Covered Truck $12.50
• Shioji Dump Truck $9.95
• Shioji Shell Tanker $10.50
• Shioji Tow Truck $25.00
• Orange Sedan $10.99
• King Sedan $9.95
• Indian Head logo sedan $4.99
• Indian Head (?) convertible $18.00
• Yellow/red Express truck $9.99
• Red limousine FREE
• Jeep $12.00

Total Project Cost: $324.29

Line Mar Match Box Construction 074 - Two Wheel Conveyor

I found a Line Mar Match Box Construction Set from the 1930s, complete and with instructions. The box claimed the set made 100 different toys. I decided to test that claim -- one toy at a time. You can read all the posts for the Line Mar construction project at 100 Toys.

074. Two Wheel Conveyor

This turned out to be an extremely difficult toy to build. A single beam extends down into the box. In order for the box to sit squarely, the dowel must be perfectly balanced on that beam. 

The pulley mechanism makes the beam a little offset from the center. And that meant trying to shift the dowel back and forth incrementally to balance the box. The photograph shows how close I got after a half hour of work. 

The illustration is also quite misleading. The shortest dowels provided are much too long. The illustration implies that they extend only a little out the other side. Not so. I photographed the toy at an angle that hid most of the excess. But if you look carefully you can see a little bit of a dowel extending out the back. 

Diabelli Project 178 - String Trio, Mvt. 2D

The Diabelli Project is about offering my weekly flash-composition sketches freely to all. Like Antonio Diabelli's theme, these sketches aren't great music. But perhaps (as in Diabelli's case) there's a Beethoven out there who can do great things with them.

This string trio series is a bit of a departure. I'm still flash composing, with a 10-minute time limit to write as much as I can. Instead of starting over each week, I'll be attempting to pick up where I left off from the previous week for my 10-minute session. 

This is the fourth part of the second movement.

I didn't get quite as far as I wanted to, but there's still enough there for me to finish the movement. The viola solo ends, and with it, the ostinato pattern in the other strings. If I were to continue, I'd have a section of long, slow-moving chords that continually shifted and changed. And the movement would end with a modified return to the opening section -- perhaps with a star role for the cello.

But for this project, it's time to move on to the final movement for its series of four flash sessions...

As always, you can use any or all of the posted Diabelli Project sketches as you wish for free. Just be sure to share the results. I'm always curious to see what direction someone else can take this material.

#ClassicsaDay #Opus1 Annotated List Week 3

I'm a regular contributor to the #ClassicsaDay Twitter feed. For January 2018, I decided to mark the first month of the new year with firsts. Each post features the first published work of a different composer.

Emphasis on the word "published," In some cases, the Opus 1 is the first mature work of the composer. Sometimes the work was written mid-career. A few are spurious, and a few were written quite late and simply assigned the Opus 1 designation.

Each work seems to have a story that's a little long for the typical tweet. So here they are. This is week two of the #ClassicsaDay #Opus1.

Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975) - Scherzo for Orchestra, Op. 1

Shostakovich was a precocious musical talent and was taking advanced piano instruction at age nine. He wrote this work when he was thirteen years old. Shostakovich was enrolled at the Petrograd Conservatory at the time, and his progress was closely monitored by the director, Alexander Glazunov.

Johann Christian Bach (1735-1782)- Harpsichord Concerto Op. 1 No. 1

The Opus 1 of J.C. Bach were hardly his first compositions. These keyboard concertos were published by Peter Welcker of London in 1763. Bach had become the music master to Queen Charlotte, and his music was much in demand. The concertos were written to either be performed on a harpsichord, or the new pianoforte that was just coming into fashion.

Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847) - Piano Quartet No.1, Op. 1

Mendelssohn's first published work was a piano quartet. It was one of three, and he completed it in 1822. Mendelssohn was thirteen, but already an experienced composer. By 1822 he had written several chamber works, as well as eight of his twelve string symphonies.

Samuel Barber (1910-1981) - Serenade for Strings, Op. 1

The first published work of Samuel Barber was a piece he completed when he was eighteen. The original version was for string quartet. In 1944, the work was republished with revisions, and also in a version for string orchestra. This is the version that's most frequently performed today.

Edward Elgar (1854-1934) - Romance for violin and piano, Opus 1

As a professional composer, Elgar was something of a late bloomer. He wrote his first published work in 1878. It was published It was published in 1885 when Elgar was thirty-one. The work is dedicated to Oswin Grainger, an amateur violinist. Goswin and Elgar played in the same community orchestra.



Annotated List Week 1
Annotated List Week 2

Joseph Schuster String Quartets -- as good as Mozart's?

So just how good are these string quartets? Good enough to be attributed to Mozart. Joseph Schuster (1748-1812) wrote these six string quartets in 1780, on commission from Marquis Giuseppe Ximenes, an ardent amateur violinist. The Paduan-based Ximenes collected string quartets from all of the important composers of the day -- including Mozart.

The full story of how Schuster's Paduan quartets became mixed up with Mozart's Milanese quartets is told in the booklet. It's a convoluted tale, but fascinating reading. So, too, the story of how scholars eventually sorted out the authorship of these works.

And while the story adds interest, the music stands on its own merits. The quartets are a set of six, three-movement works. They do sound somewhat like Mozart, with the same light texture and inventiveness.

Because these were written for amateur musicians, the technical demands are light. Schuster makes up for that by making every note count. The ensemble may sound transparent, but motivically this is music of real substance.

The Quartetto Joseph Joachim performs with instruments of the period. They play in a simple, yet deliberate fashion. The end result is some finely nuanced performances that reward the attentive listener.

Joseph Schuster: String Quartets
Quondam Mozart, KV Anh. 210-213
Quartetto Joseph Joachim
Pan Classics PC 10379

Ralph Vaughan Williams: Beyond My Dream -- Music for Greek Plays

"Beyond My Dream" brings some early music of Ralph Vaughan Williams to light -- and gives us a hint of what might have been.

George Gilbert Murray published what were considered to be the definitive English translations of ancient Greek plays. And he had very definite ideas of how they should be staged -- including music.

He was not happy with settings of his translations by Granville Bantock and Gustav Holst. Murray wanted something that more closely followed the rhythm and stress patterns of the original Greek.

Enter graduate student Ralph Vaughan Williams. He was recommended to Murray by his friend Herbert Fisher -- who was also Vaughan Williams' brother in law.

Murray and Vaughan Williams worked together, developing three plays for performance. Along the way, famed dancer Isadora Duncan became involved. Her innovative dance techniques further inspired the young composer.

Unfortunately, the productions fell through, and the plays were never produced. Some of Vaughan Williams' music was heard in a concert performance, then filed away. Only recently did conductor Alan Tongue find it again and prepared it for performance

Not all of the music has survived, but there's enough to give the listener a sense of what RVW could have done. The Bacchae has but one selection: "Thou immaculate on high." Two selections survive from "Electra." "Iphigenia in Taurus" has five pieces, including the overture.

This music isn't the pastoral English style Vaughan Williams would later perfect. There's an indefinite modal quality to these works as if the music continually oscillates between tonalities. The phrasing is irregular, matching the declamation of the text without following English speech patterns.

To me, some of the selections sounded like prototypes of later spiritual works, such as "Pilgrim's Progress." Still, in these works, RVW's style doesn't sound fully gelled. And that's a good thing. It gives this music an other-worldly quality.

Whether you're a fan of RVW's music or not, I think there's quite a bit here to enjoy.

Ralph Vaughan Williams: Beyond My Dream
Music for Greek Plays
Heather Lowe, mezzo-soprano, The Joyful Company of Singers; Britten Sinfonia; Alan Tongue, conductor
Albion Records ALBCD033

Diabelli Project 177 - String Trio, Mvt. 2C

The Diabelli Project is about offering my weekly flash-composition sketches freely to all. Like Antonio Diabelli's theme, these sketches aren't great music. But perhaps (as in Diabelli's case) there's a Beethoven out there who can do great things with them.

This string trio series is a bit of a departure. I'm still flash composing, with a 10-minute time limit to write as much as I can. Instead of starting over each week, I'll be attempting to pick up where I left off from the previous week for my 10-minute session. 

This is the third part of the second movement. The grayed out area was where I stopped last week.

In this section, the solo instrumental duties transfer from the violin to the viola. The quintuplet accompanying figure continues. The violin steps back to take over from the viola. In the next part I'm sure the viola solo will continue. But after that? I'm not sure. We'll find out together.

As always, you can use any or all of the posted Diabelli Project sketches as you wish for free. Just be sure to share the results. I'm always curious to see what direction someone else can take this material.

#ClassicsaDay #Opus1 Annotated List Week 2

I'm a regular contributor to the #ClassicsaDay Twitter feed. For January 2018, I decided to mark the first month of the new year with firsts. Each post features the first published work of a different composer.

Emphasis on the word "published," In some cases, the Opus 1 is the first mature work of the composer. Sometimes the work was written mid-career. A few are spurious, and a few were written quite late and simply assigned the Opus 1 designation.

Each work seems to have a story that's a little long for the typical tweet. So here they are. This is week two of the #ClassicsaDay #Opus1 series.

Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953) - Piano Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 1

Prokofiev's first published work seems not to be liked by anyone. Premiered by the composer in 1910, it was coldly received by critics. Prokofiev's style isn't fully formed in the work. His influences -- Tchaikovsky, Busoni, Rachmaninov -- lie close to the surface, making the piece at times sound derivative. Even Prokofiev wasn't entirely happy with the sonata. He dropped the second and third movements before publication, leaving the single somewhat formal first movement sonata-allegro.

Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) - Trio Sonatas for two violins and basso continuo, Op. 1

Vivaldi's first published works were hardly his earliest compositions. His Opus 1 Trio Sonatas were published in 1705 when he was 27. In the Baroque period, publication was often reserved for those works that might have broad appeal (and generate sales). The twelve trio sonatas of the Opus 1 set could be performed with two violins, flutes, oboes, or any combination thereof.

Franz Schubert (1797-1828) - Der Erlkönig

Der Erlkönig is a poem by Gothe, set to music by Schubert in 1815. The poem tells the story of a man riding furiously through the night with his ailing son. The boy succumbs to the call of the Erlkönig (Elf King) that pursues them. The father reaches safety, but not before the boy dies. Schubert published this lied in 1815 as his Opus 1. He had already completed over 300 compositions. Though very demanding, the work is often performed and is considered one of Schubert's best lieder.

Lowell Liebermann (1961 - ) - Piano sonata No. 1, Op. 1

Like Brahms, Lowell Liebermann is both a talented pianist and composer. And also like Brahms, his first published work was a piano sonata. Liebermann premiered his Piano Sonata No. 1 in a Carnegie Hall performance. He was sixteen at the time. Liebermann's gone on to have a highly successful career. His flute concerto is considered a standard of the repertoire.

Frederic Chopin (1810-1849)- Rondeau in C minor, Op. 1

Chopin's first published work was originally titled "Adieu à Varsovie" ("Farewell to Warsaw"). It was published when he was fifteen. Although it isn't the first piece he composed, the rondeau is often seen as a lesser work. Schumann wrote that "there is plenty of spirit in it and few difficulties."



Annotated List Week 1
Annotated List Week 3
Annotated List Week 4

Vittoria Vittoria - beautiful restoration of 17th Century song

"Vittoria - Vittoria" is a DVD-Audio reissue of a 1997 release. Both the performances and sound quality are first-rate.

Richard Wistreich is a well-established performer of 16th and 17th Century repertoire. This release presents a selection of Italian and English songs from approximately the same time period.

Wistreich's bass voice has an extraordinary range. Some selections, such as Sigismondo d'India's "Che farai" plumb the depths of his register. Wistreich maintains control, even when his voice is in the basement.

Overall, Wistreich's performances are relatively straight-forward. His expressiveness is always in service of the text. It's never overly dramatic, though.

The ensemble is beautifully balanced against the voice. Great care was taken in the recording of this release. The current reissue is a transfer from the original master tapes to 192kHz/24 bit high-resolution audio.

If you have a choice, opt for the DVD-A disc. With a high-end audio system, you should hear all the subtleties of Witreeich's performances.

Vittoria Vittoria
A Recital of Seventeenth-Century Italian and English Songs
Richard Wistreich, voice; Robin Jeffrye, lute and chitarrone; Celia Harper, chamber organ; Erin Headley, lirone
Claudio CR3710-2
DVD-A

Julius Beliczay, Composer and Railroad Man

This disc was originally released by the Hungarian State Railroad in 1995 and for good reason. It marked the 150th anniversary of the service, and the recording was by the railroad's own orchestra.

Yes, the Budapest Concerto Orchestra MÁV is an arm of the state railroad. And the choice of composer for this special release makes sense as well.

In addition to being a composer and teacher, Julius Beliczay was also a railroad engineer. Despite his day job, Beliczay was one of the most prominent composers in Hungary in the late 1800s.

Beliczay's First Symphony premiered in 1888. Beliczay was an admirer of Wagner and Bruckner, but this work leans more towards Brahms. Beliczay's orchestrations are well-crafted if a little conservative. In many ways, it reminded me of Dvorak's first symphony, in that it never colors outside the lines. But within those lines, Beliczay's written an attractive work.

I particularly like the slow movement, which spins out a simple and beautiful melody. It's here that the Hungarian folk influence is strongest.

The companion piece shows has an even stronger nationalist flavor. The 1875 Serenade is more relaxed, with some clear borrowings from Hungarian folk music. At no time, though, does it go as far as Brahms' Hungarian Rhapsodies. Beliczay's style is mostly cosmopolitan. There are some interesting chord progressions toward the end, though, that hint of Wagner.

Beliczay is cited as paving the way for the next generation of Eastern European composers, such as Antonin Dvorak. And that also is fitting. Dvorak was an avid trainspotter.

I found these works well-written and appealing. Even if you're not a train buff, there's plenty of reasons to give Beliczay an audition.

Julius Beliczay 
Symphony No. 1 in D minor, Op. 45 Serenade in D minor, Op. 16
Budapest Concert Orchestra MÁV; Tamál Gál, conductor

Diabelli Project 176 - String Trio, Mvt. 2B

The Diabelli Project is about offering my weekly flash-composition sketches freely to all. Like Antonio Diabelli's theme, these sketches aren't great music. But perhaps (as in Diabelli's case) there's a Beethoven out there who can do great things with them.

This string trio series is a bit of a departure. I'm still flash composing, with a 10-minute time limit to write as much as I can. Instead of starting over each week, I'll be attempting to pick up where I left off from the previous week for my 10-minute session. 


Observant readers have noted there's a bit of a lag time between the date written on the sketch and the date it gets posted. It takes a little while to get a sketch into a fair copy, scanned, cleaned up, and ready to post.

My Diabelli Project posts go out on Mondays. To keep to the schedule, this post should have gone live 12/25/17, and the following post 1/1/18. So I decided to take a break and resume publication after the holidays.

This is the second part of the second movement. The quintuplet rhythm introduced at the end of the first part turns into an accompanying figure. The violin solos over top of the chugging quintuplets. There's no doubt that solo will continue into the third part.

As always, you can use any or all of the posted Diabelli Project sketches as you wish for free. Just be sure to share the results. I'm always curious to see what direction someone else can take this material.

#ClassicsaDay #Opus1 Annotated List Week 1

I'm a regular contributor to the #ClassicsaDay Twitter feed. For January 2018, I decided to mark the first month of the new year with firsts. Each post features the first published work of a different composer.

Emphasis on the word "published," In some cases, the Opus 1 is the first mature work of the composer. Sometimes the work was written mid-career. A few are spurious, and a few were written quite late and simply assigned the Opus 1 designation.

Each work seems to have a story that's a little long for the typical tweet. So here they are. This is week one of the #ClassicsaDay #Opus1 series.

Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943) - Piano Concerto No. 1 in F-sharp minor, Op. 1

Rachmaninov had attempted to compose a piano concerto when he was sixteen but abandoned it. He composed what's known as the Piano Concerto No. 1 when he was 18. He premiered the concerto in 1892. Rachmaninov extensively revised the concerto in 1917, and revised it again in 1919.

George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) - Sonates pour un traversiere un violin ou hautbois con basso continuo composées par G. F. Handel, Op. 1

by John Walsh n 1732 weren't the first works by Handel. Both their origin and their instrumentation are in question. Some were originally sonatas for other instruments (violin, oboe, or recorder). At least four are spurious, though all are of good enough quality to remain in the repertoire.

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) - Piano Trio No. 1 in E-flat major, Op. 1

Beethoven's Opus 1 is a set of three piano trios. He may have started work on them as early as 1791, and weren't ready for publication until 1795. They were published in 1795.

Alan Hovhaness (1911-2000) - Oror (Lullaby) for Violin and Piano, Op. 1

Alan Hovhaness's first published work was written in 1922 and revised in 1926. Oror shares the Opus 1 designation with two other works (although it's not labeled Opus 1, No. 1). Opus 1 No. 2 is an unpublished Suite for violin and piano (1927). Opus 1, No. 3 is a four-movement work completed in 1934. The first movement is for piano and cello, while the remaining movements are for piano alone.

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) - Piano Sonata No. 1 in C major, Op. 1

Brahms completed the Piano Sonata No. 1 in 1853. It was actually the second sonata chronologically for this 20-year old composer. What would be published as Piano Sonata No. was his first. Brahms felt the C major sonata the stronger of the two works, and so submitted it first for publication. Robert Schumann recommended the sonata to Breitkopf & Härtel, beginning a long association between the publishing house and Brahms.



Annotated List Week 2
Annotated List Week 3
Annotated List Week 4

Three Snapshots From Clementi's Career

I love Naxos' passion for completeness. It matches my own compulsion. I have no doubt that they will eventually have every piano work by Muzio Clementi available. And probably all of his orchestral works, concertos, and other pieces besides.

This release features works from three points in Clementi's career. The Op. 23 sonatas were published in 1790. Clementi was in England, running a pianoforte company. These sonatas are similar in structure to those of Haydn. They're well-balanced, with a transparent texture.

The first movement of the Op. 34, No. 1 sonata was originally part of a piano concerto. this 1795 work has a bigger sound than the Opus 23 sonatas. The texture's a little thicker, and the musical construction a little more complex.

By 1821 styles had changed dramatically, and Clementi did his best to keep up. The Op. 48 variations on "Au clair de la lune" has a good deal of early Romantic expressiveness. The harmonies are a little more complex, with more technical challenges. Still, there's no mistaking this for a work of Schubert. There's still a lightness to it.

Pianist Juan Carlos Rodríguez wisely adjusts his playing to fit the work. He performs the Op. 23 sonatas with a light touch that gives these work an air of refined elegance. Rodríguez is more forceful with the Op. 34 sonata, bringing out the dynamic contrasts that's especially effective in the transcribed first movement.

For the Fantasia, Rodríguez's delivers a more nuanced performance. His phrasing is more subtle, separating the work stylistically from the Op. 23 sonatas written three decades before.

Well performed, and well-recorded. Even if you're not a completist, there's much to enjoy here.

Muzio Clementi: Keyboard Sonatas 
Op. 23, Nos. 1-3; Op. 34, No.1
Fantasia concertante
Juan Carlos Rodríguez, piano

George Dyson's Early "Choral Symphony" Shows Composer's Promise

George Dyson's Choral Symphony is a remarkable rediscovery. The work was written for Dyson's Doctor of Music examination in 1917. It was dutifully evaluated (he passed), then filed away and forgotten with countless other such examination pieces. There it remained until Paul Spicer ran across it while researching Dyson's biography.

It's an impressive work for a student. Dyson had an early mastery of orchestration and a fascination with the sea. Both come together in this massive work.

The symphony is a four-movement setting of Psalm 107. I heard some influences of Elgar's "Dream of Gerontius" and Vaughan William's "Sea Symphony." But the music is Dyson's own.

Dyson writes from the English choral tradition, using the inherent drama of the text to great effect. This is especially true in the final movement, The text begins "They that go down to the sea in ships... these men see the works of the Lord and in wonders in the deep." The orchestra rises and swells, depicting the roiling sea. In the end, though, the storm cloud dissipates, and the work ends with calm assurance.

St. Paul's Voyage to Melita was commissioned by the Three Choirs Festival. Dyson conducted the 1933 premiere. This is a more mature work. It's not quite an oratorio and not quite an opera. Rather, it's a musical drama for choir, orchestra, and soloists. The choir sets the stand and comments on the action.

And what action! The apostle Paul is arrested and shipped off to Rome for trial. The vessel is engulfed in a storm, then shipwrecked. Only Paul's demonstration of faith saves him and the other prisoners.

Tenor Joshua Ellicott makes an effective Paul. At the center of the work, Dyson pares down the ensemble to just Paul, contemplating his faith. Ellicott's plaintive performance imbues that monologue with just a hint of self-doubt.

Large-scale works such as these can sometimes just lumber along. Conductor David Hill keeps the performances focussed and moving forward. Highly recommended for anyone who loves modern English music.

George Dyson: Choral Symphony; St. Paul's Voyage to Melita
Elizabeth Watts, soprano; Caitlin Hulcup, mezzo-soprano; Joshua Ellicott, tenor; Roderick Williams, baritone
The Bach Choir; Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, David Hill, conductor
Naxos

Straco Express Layout, Part 61 - Shioji Service

Read all the installments of the Straco Express layout project here.

In Part 28 of Collecting-- and collecting information I tried to fit all the variations of the Shioji friction truck into a timeline. I didn't own the tow truck. But based on photos, I deduced that it was probably a first generation model.

Recently a Shioji tow truck became available at a reasonable price (for me). So I got to compare it first-hand to the trucks I already own.

 An early model for sure

Based on direct comparison, I'm confident that this is a first generation Shioji friction truck. The primary markers -- hubcaps, number of tabs in the chassis, chassis contour -- all check out.

The Shioji trucks, from the newest (left) to oldest (right) in design.

Left to right: newest to oldest. It's pretty easy to see the changes in the chassis.

Shared components

In the original post, I speculated that the crank mechanism was the same for the tow truck and the dump truck. That's not quite correct.

The steel crank of the tow truck is different than the dump truck lift. But they both use the same rubber knob.

No strings attached

One additional piece of information I could gather from examining the truck. The crank suggested that there was a hook that could be raised and lowered. Although I've never found an example of the truck with the hook, I have a little better idea of what to look for.

The crankshaft still had some of the original twine wrapped around it.

There was some twine still wrapped around the crankshaft. The age of the twine suggests that it was original to the truck. To me, it suggests that the hook would need a little weight to keep the string taut. Perhaps the hook was cast metal?

A welcome addition

In any case,  the tow truck looks good on the Straco Express display layout. It's a little oversized for the service station, but on the road it makes a nice piece. And if I can find a replacement hook of some kind, I might have it displayed towing a vehicle!

Layout construction:

• Pegboard: $4.95
• Flathead Screws: $0.40
• Molding: $2.49
• SilClear: borrowed from a friend
• Green Paint: leftover  from another project
• Wood Screws: $3.60
• Felt Pads: $1.99

Power Pack: $5.90
Small Houses: $3.00
Testor's Gray Paint for road: $1.29

Bandai Areo Station: $8.99
Bandai Station: $10.00
2 tinplate signs: $1.00
4 tinplate signs (with train) $5.99
Cragstan HO Light Tower $20.49
4 nesting houses $4.99
Tinplate gas station: $5.00

Vehicles:

• Two Japanese toy cars: $2.00
• A.W. Livestock truck: $4.99
• Taxi: $2.99
• Ambulance: $2.99
• Two Japanese patriotic cars: $6.99
• Haji three-wheel sedan $3.00
• Haji three-wheel tanker $5.00
• 1950's sedan $2.99
• LineMar Police Car $9.00
• LineMar Pepco Truck $8.50
• LineMar Bond Bread Van $8.00
• LineMar Fire Engine $4.95
• LineMar Dump Truck $12.99
• LineMar GE Courier Car $10.98
• LineMar County School Bus $9.99
• Nomura Red Sedan $5.00
• Nomura Police Car $2.52
• Nomura lumber truck $3.48
• 6 Nomura vehicles $16.99
• Shioji Express Truck $10.00
• Shioji Covered Truck $12.50
• Shioji Dump Truck $9.95
• Shioji Shell Tanker $10.50
• Shioji Tow Truck $25.00
• Orange Sedan $10.99
• King Sedan $9.95
• Indian Head logo sedan $4.99
• Indian Head (?) convertible $18.00
• Yellow/red Express truck $9.99
• Red limousine FREE
• Jeep $12.00

Total Project Cost: $338.30