I thought Mr. Sherwood's remarks spot-on. I do have a few remarks on the
remarks, however.
>-Skip Schoenberg. Substitute Tchaikovsky: ... his violin concerto is one
>that even people who detest Tchaikovsky respect, and audiences have been
>thrilled by it for over a century: Kyung-Wha Chung's recording of this is
>wonderful.
Wise words, indeed. FWIW, I really like Kyung-Wha Chung's playing. (Keep
your original list, though; when you're ready to experiment more, that's a
good place to find ideas.)
>-You need Brahms ever so much more than you need Janacek or Hindemith ...
>Brahms' first symphony- a mature work, unlike many first symphonies- is
>deservedly one of the war horses of the concert hall.
I second this. Brahm's First is a potential favorite for anyone. He wrote
only four, so here's an opportunity for knowing *all* a composer's
symphonies!
>His violin concerto is similarly masterful and approachable. I have
>a recording by the late Emil Gilels that was recommended to me,
I think L. S. missed a stitch here; Emil Gilels played the Brahms *piano*
concertos, which certainly are among the greatest ever written. For the
violin concerto, try Kreisler (EMI) or Heifetz (RCA Victor) or Menuhin or
almost anybody. It's a difficult concerto to destroy.
>-No collection should be without Beethoven. I'm personally not a great
>fan of his symphonies, but his piano concertos and sonatas are another
>matter. ...
However, if it so happens that you go the symphony route, Beethoven will be
a natural beginning. No 3 (Eroica) and No 5 (C minor) are sine-qua-non's
of the symphonic repertoire.
>I think what I most want to say to you, however, is do not be content with
>recordings: they are only a pale reflection of a good live performance.
Words to live by. (Go for it!)
My two cents:
cent 1: Try Mozart. Even if you don't like him, it gives you
something to talk about. Borrow the Amadeus soundtrack
from your local library; it's a smorgasbord of the best of
Mozartiana
cent 2: Try concertos. These are so much fun, you run the
small risk of never going beyond them. But it's important
to have fun in this business, imo.
Concertos:
Bach (Double and Triple concertos, and the Brandenburgs)
Mozart (5 violin concertos, all good, 25-odd piano concertos,
the last 5 are immortal. Clarinet concerto- -to die
for. Also Horn, Bassoon, Flute & Harp concertos and more
Sinfonia concertante: for violin and viola- -incredibly romantic)
Beethoven (1 wonderful violin c, and 5 incredible piano concertos)
Schumann (1 violin, 1 piano)
Brahms (2 piano, 1 violin, violin & cello double concerto)
Mendelssohn (violin. You're in for a treat.)
Dvorak (violin, cello)
Tchaikovsky (as stated above)
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