Messages

Thank you Giles. I think I may have the Minkus item but it will mean searching through the vinyl library. I don't know the Damase one and will investigate...

I'm not quite sure this is the right category, but I'm sure it will get moved if it's not. Anyway, I subscribe to Spotify and have found it a great resource for discovering 'unsung' composers and their works. Recently someone mentioned 'qobuz' to me - evidently it offers higher quality (at cost). I was wondering if any members here have experience of both and whether qobuz has a similar 'repertoire' as Spotify. The other factor to consider whether it is actually worth paying for 24 bit streaming etc. when one's ears are probably long past their best anyway..

Changing the subject slightly. Does anyone remember the excellent documentary shown by the BBC many years ago on Respighi? It was called  'Respighi - A Dream of Italy' - if memory serves me correct and was one of the Christopher Nupen composer documentaries (he did another on Sibelius). An excellent production and I must dig it out of my video library to watch again. The original was recorded on Betamax (remember that?) and I transferred it to DVD before the Betamax VCR expired...

You can always rely on Respighi to throw everything at it - including the kitchen sink...

Thank you again Hadrianus.. Your knowledge of these works is just awesome! 

I have Belkis as well (on Chandos). There just aren't enough hours in the day to listen to all this wonderful music - and eat, sleep etc. as well

Thank you Hadrianus! I have the Marco Polo CD that you mention in my library and I will retrieve it for further listening. One of the problems of having an extensive library (almost 60 years of collecting), is that having so much material you sometimes miss gems that for one reason or another got passed over. I suspect it is a common enough problem for many folk here. Anyway, thank you for reminding me! Respighi was an early favourite of mine in the days of vinyl - I virtually wore out the Pines.. 

I just wanted to say thank you to the kind folk on here who responded to my post. Some of the suggestions I already had in my library, but the 9 CD set suggested by TerraEpon will keep me going for quite a while!  Also, Saint-Saens "Javotte" was completely new to me - thanks to mjmosca. Also thanks for the information re. Namouna and Lalo supplied by hadrianus - you are certainly a knowledgeable lot! And not least, Christopher's suggestion of Skorulsky's "Forest Tale" was another delightful 'find'.

Hi everyone! Quite recently I was going through my extensive vinyl collection and came across a recording of Lalo's Namouna ballet music (Suisse Romande/Ansermet) I had not played for quite some years. I quite realise that Lalo is not an unsung composer as such, but I had quite forgotten what a wonderful score it is - full of memorable tunes - and particularly 'La Sieste'. The Ansermet recording omitted quite a lot of the music though, more of which is now available on CD.

Anyway, my reason for posting is to ask you knowledgeable folk for any suggestions of less familiar ballet music by unsung composers of a similar style/quality - although it doesn't have to be specifically for the ballet. Thank you in anticipation...