DCD 072 - Token Creek Bach

This episode of the "DCD Classical 'Cast" we continue our survey of the Token Creek Recordings catalog. One of the purposes of the Token Creek Chamber Music Festival is to present familiar works in new and interesting ways -- and their performances of Bach concerti illustrate that nicely.

The festival's performance of Bach's Concerto for Two Keyboards features two very different makes of pianos, which provides dynamic contrast. The accompanying orchestra has been reduced to a very small chamber group, which throws the soloists into stark relief.

Also included on this CD are two "Brandenburg" Concerti, both with stripped-down orchestras that reveal the multiple layers of Bach's writing. The same is true of the festival's presentation of Bach's Violin Concerto in A minor, which features an amazingly fast (but perfectly appropriate) opening movement.

These live recordings must be heard in order to comprehend just how refreshingly original are the performances.

Remember, you don't need an iPod to enjoy a podcast -- just a computer.

- Ralph

This program we play:

Bach: Concerto for Two Keyboards in C major, BWV 1061, mvt. 1
Soloists: Judith Gorden & Christopher Taylor, piano
Rosemary Harbison, Rictor Noren, violin; John Harbison, viola; Parry Karp, cello; Ross Gilliland, bass
Token Creek Recordings

Bach: Brandenburg Concerto No. 6 in B-flat major, BWV 1051, mvt. 2
Soloists: Larry Neuman & Sally Chisholm, viola
Rictor Noren, John Harbison, viola; Karl Lavine, cello; Ross Gilliland, bass; John Chappell Stowe, harpsichord
Token Creek Recordings

Bach: Violin Concerto in A minor, BWV 1041, mvt. 1
Soloist: Rose Mary Harbison, violin
Kangwon Kim, Edith Hines, violin; John Harbison, viola; Rhonda Rider, cello; Ross Gilliland, bass; John Chappell Stowe, continuo
Token Creek Recordings

Bach: Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 in F major, BWV 1047, mvt. 2
Soloists; Adam Kuenzel, flute; Mark Fink, oboe
Rose Mary Harbison, Edith Hines, violin; John Harbison, viola; Rhonda Rider cello; Ross Gilliand, bass; John Chappell Stowe, continuo
Token Creek Recordings

DCD 071 - Token Creek 2001

Episode 71 of the "DCD Classical 'Cast" features music from the Token Creek Chamber Music Festival. The festival's series of recordings document some of the performance highlights since the founding in 1989. In this podcast we play selections from three works featured on a single release.

The three performances featured in this program all come from the 2001 season, and demonstrate the far-ranging programming of the festival.

- Ralph

In this program we play:
Igor Stravinsky: Sonata for Two Pianos, mvts. 1 and 2
Judith Gordon and Robert Levin, pianos
Token Creek Recordings

Franz Joseph Haydn: Piano Trio in D, Hob. XV:23 (first movement)
Rose Mary Harbison, violin; Ronda Rider, cello, and Robert Levin, piano
Token Creek Recordings

John Harbison: Between Two Worlds: Part Four
Margorie Elinor Dix, soprano, Rhonda Rider and Karl Levine, cello; Judith Gorden and Robert Levin, pianos
Token Creek Recordings

DCD 070 - Das Jahr

Episode 70 of the "DCD Classical 'Cast" features music by Fanny Mendelssohn-Hensel; specifically, "Das Jahr." This musical cycle for solo piano was completed in 1842 and remained unpublished during Fanny's lifetime. 

The work has twelve movements, each named for a different month of the year, and each with a different character. Wolfram Lorenzen, the pianist for this recording, clearly has an affinity for the work, balancing technical brilliance with a lightness of touch required for this mid-century masterwork.

This Troubadisc release is actually the first recording of the original manuscript version of this work, which makes Wolfram's performance of "Das Jahr" doubly enlightening.

And remember, you don't need an iPod to enjoy a podcast -- just a computer.

 - Ralph

This program we play selections from:

"Das Jahr" by Fanny Mendelssohn-Hensel

Wolfram Lorenzen, piano

A Troubadisc release