d'Albert Symphonic Prologue to the Opera 'Tiefland'

[petershott@btinternet.com]

I don't wish to take issue with any of the comments in this now quite extended thread or intend to disparage anyone's enthusiasm for Tiefland (far from it!).

Yes, it is a good opera to listen to once in a while....but it surely isn't that good? Rather an overblown piece maybe?

But I can't help being irked by the fact that glancing through Amazon UK there are available no less than 18 different complete recordings of it (including now somewhat historical ones). And given the competition between, as it were, 18 different purveyors of Tiefland, they are often extremely inexpensive.

In comparison, there are few or even no commercial recordings of other works. For example, there are two String Quartets (Op. 7 in A minor, and Op. 11 in E flat major). Quoting from the Silvertrust catalogue, of the first "Brahms and Hanslick were astounded a 23 year old could write such a mature master quartet"; and the second was "dedicated to Brahms with his approval....this is a rich, late romantic work with many original ideas".

Given such accolades wouldn't folk agree that the world might be a slightly better place if we had, say, 17 different recordings of Tiefland and 1 of the quartets?

[eschiss1]

Are you suggesting that we don't have a recording of the quartets? (Sarastro Quartet, Pan Classics, 1997. Only available used from Amazon.com, but it is still available used at the moment (one copy, US$ 49.99.))

[petershott@btinternet.com]

Point granted, Eric. I was aware of the Sarastro Quartet recording. But I presume the disc is now deleted? And with only 1 (remarkably expensive) copy available on Amazon.com (and none on Amazon.uk), I think my point still stands! All I'm asking is for a currently available commercial recording of the quartets as against yet another (19th?) account of an over-recorded opera. Not unreasonable surely!

[eschiss1]

Ah. I get you. I have (excuses, excuses, excuses!) difficulty telling what people mean, a lot of the time... one thing, or another?... but really, I do apologize!

[petershott@btinternet.com]

Utterly no need for an apology, Eric, for I wasn't upset by your comment. After all, strictly you were right. I had written there was no commercial recording of the d'Albert quartets. You replied, 'Ha, yes, there is'. But then I'm sure we can agree that the Sarastro recording, now being obtainable by only one well endowed person in the world, can be ignored. Would be good, eh, if it was re-released. I should apologise to you for not being clear!

[eschiss1]

And as I at least think I've heard one or both of the quartets, I think they're worth a quiet suggestion-wise-poke in some quartet's direction (I'm trying to remember if I saw it mentioned in some other group's repertoire, online, besides Sarastro- or even theirs, now)- and perhaps a CD (erm- or whatever they use now) label... anyhow... erm... *poke.*

[eschiss1]

Oh. This out-of-date and tentative repertoire suggestions page from 7 years back is what I half-noticed- I wonder if anything ever came of it?...

Edinburgh Quartet

[minacciosa]

Both Tiefland and Der Toten Augen are wonderful operas! I don't want to see another effing Rigoletto; come one Met, do something interesting.

[sdtom]

I'm a bit surprised that we got off the topic and started to talk about the opera when I was talking about orchestral prologue. I've not heard the opera and likely will not given the vast amount of material I've not heard that does interest me.
Tom

[eschiss1]

Well, discussion of the prologue is a natural prologue to discussion of the opera... (though the ex-mathematician/logician in me does not like that sentence one bit.)

[Alan Howe]

I'm a bit surprised that we got off the topic...

Well, the topic's merely been extended a little...