Planet Lenny

[Karl Henning]

A thread dedicated to his conducting legacy. [If there is a prior thread into which this ought to be merged, I have no quarrel.]

So, with the Concertos & Orch. Works box, is the organizational scheme that first the Concertos are (roughly) alphabetical by composers;  and then the Orch. Works likewise?  (First-off impression on opening the box and reaching for the Holst . . . .)

[springrite]

"I love Grandpa Lenny!" Kimi says.

[Brian]

Yes, that is the organizational scheme. At the very end are collections of works not organized by composer - like a Russian album with Borodin, Gliere, Prokofiev's Scythian Suite, and a piece by Lopatnikoff.

I love the two giant Lenny boxes I have from Sony, and, provided a winning lottery ticket, will invest in the giant box from DG, too. Good to have a special thread to gossip about our favorites. 

[Karl Henning]

"I love Grandpa Lenny!" Kimi says.

She's got great taste!

[Karl Henning]

Yes, that is the organizational scheme. At the very end are collections of works not organized by composer - like a Russian album with Borodin, Gliere, Prokofiev's Scythian Suite, and a piece by Lopatnikoff.

I love the two giant Lenny boxes I have from Sony, and, provided a winning lottery ticket, will invest in the giant box from DG, too. Good to have a special thread to gossip about our favorites. 

Per the driver for my pulling the trigger on this, I am starting with The Planets.  Gracious, the sound of this Mars is fabulous;  and while the interpretation certainly trends towards "the edgy side," I find it completely, fabulously convincing.

Damn, but when you listen to this, you feel that the NY Phil is the best-sounding band in the world.

[springrite]

She's got great taste!

She especially loves the dancing, and air conducts in the same style, with all the Lenniism signature moves all of which she has completely mastered!

[EigenUser]

I just found a recording of a rehearsal of the Turangalila-Symphonie with Lenny/BSO on Spotify. I literally just finished listening to it (about 26 minutes long).

[Karl Henning]

The Big Tunes in Jupiter have a nice gravity to them (in comparison to some other interpretations — themselves, not bad interpretations — where both tunes are taken a bit quicker).  This is wonderfully sweet and gracious.

[Sergeant Rock]

The Big Tunes in Jupiter have a nice gravity to them (in comparison to some other interpretations — themselves, not bad interpretations — where both tunes are taken a bit quicker).  This is wonderfully sweet and gracious.

I agree with Greta: Lenny's is the best Jupiter.

Sarge

[Karl Henning]

At his best, Lenny was unbeatable.

There:  I said it.

[mc ukrneal]

The Big Tunes in Jupiter have a nice gravity to them (in comparison to some other interpretations — themselves, not bad interpretations — where both tunes are taken a bit quicker).  This is wonderfully sweet and gracious.

The trumpets don't always seem as sure as they should. I wish the tempo were just a shade faster in the middle section, but well done for all that. What is interesting to note is that comparing to Steinberg, the strings seem to have a bit more presence in Steinberg. Whereas with Lenny, I hear the other parts a bit more and the brass don't quite excite as much in their entrances. Both are good.

[Ken B]

I just found a recording of a rehearsal of the Turangalila-Symphonie with Lenny/BSO on Spotify. I literally just finished listening to it (about 26 minutes long).

Turangalila in 26 minutes? Lennie was a god!

[Ken B]

I agree with Greta: Lenny's is the best Jupiter.

Sarge

The parts I thought best were Jupiter -- nobilmente done right -- Venus (mystery over swoon), and the last two movements where Lennie's brilliance with sound-worlds shows through. Not the best performance I know of but a very darn good one.

[EigenUser]

Turangalila in 26 minutes? Lennie was a god!

Right after I posted that, I thought to myself "Oh, Ken is certainly going to have fun with that comment!" I was going to edit it, but why bother?!

Idea: Instead of listening to Messiaen in the form of CDs or .mp3s, you should try listening in .zip.

[Moonfish]

There already are two Bernstein threads at GMG...       0:)

http://www.good-music-guide.com/community/index.php/topic,1346.msg31985.html#msg31985

http://www.good-music-guide.com/community/index.php/topic,12455.msg307396.html#msg307396

[Pat B]

I have too many Bernstein discs (and too many other things on my wishlist) to invest in any of the big boxes. My favorites off the top of my head include his '60s Mahler cycle and Beethoven 3, 4, and 5, and the 1989 "Ode to Freedom." That last might be considered a guilty pleasure around here -- regardless, I think it's great.

His 1958 Rite of Spring may join that list, but I have only listened to it once.

I hardly need another Planets but I have added his to my wishlist.

This may veer off-topic, but does anybody know why he left Columbia? Lebrecht says they dropped him because they didn't think he was #1 in anything but his own compositions. (Grain/mound of salt as usual with Lebrecht.) Considering that at the time, Bruno Walter was dead, Ormandy had already left for RCA, Szell was getting very old, and severe austerity measures were not yet in effect, that seems like a spectacularly poor decision even by classical record industry standards.

[North Star]

There already are two Bernstein threads at GMG...       0:)

http://www.good-music-guide.com/community/index.php/topic,1346.msg31985.html#msg31985

http://www.good-music-guide.com/community/index.php/topic,12455.msg307396.html#msg307396

Seems like a good idea to me to combine the first one and this, as they both focus on his conducting.

[Karl Henning]

There already are two Bernstein threads at GMG...       0:)

http://www.good-music-guide.com/community/index.php/topic,1346.msg31985.html#msg31985

http://www.good-music-guide.com/community/index.php/topic,12455.msg307396.html#msg307396

Well, I knew there was the Composer thread.  And I guess I was lazy about seeking the Conductor thread 

[Ken B]

I have too many Bernstein discs (and too many other things on my wishlist) to invest in any of the big boxes. My favorites off the top of my head include his '60s Mahler cycle and Beethoven 3, 4, and 5, and the 1989 "Ode to Freedom." That last might be considered a guilty pleasure around here -- regardless, I think it's great.

His 1958 Rite of Spring may join that list, but I have only listened to it once.

I hardly need another Planets but I have added his to my wishlist.

This may veer off-topic, but does anybody know why he left Columbia? Lebrecht says they dropped him because they didn't think he was #1 in anything but his own compositions. (Grain/mound of salt as usual with Lebrecht.) Considering that at the time, Bruno Walter was dead, Ormandy had already left for RCA, Szell was getting very old, and severe austerity measures were not yet in effect, that seems like a spectacularly poor decision even by classical record industry standards.

I believe DG offered him more money. I vaguely recall some anecdote about his shock at just how much.
Interesting factoid. In 1963 Karajan earned more from recordings royalties than a Beatle. He made millions a year from DG, plus his other gigs.

[Pat B]

I believe DG offered him more money. I vaguely recall some anecdote about his shock at just how much.

Well, that is certainly more plausible.

BUT: Lebrecht also says that he didn't sign an exclusive contract with DG until 1981, which I believe since he made a handful of recordings for other labels in the late 70s (2 Berlioz for EMI, Tristan und Isolde on Philips, and the live Shostakovich 5 back on Columbia). I would expect that the shocking money would have come with exclusivity.

(As an even-further-aside, I didn't realize until recently how much Karajan had recorded for EMI in that era. That helps explain why DG was so interested in Bernstein. I'm still a bit surprised they ended up on the same label.)

This might not interest anybody else, but I'm really curious. Lebrecht's source on that was former Columbia exec Paul Myers, who just happens to have written a bio on Bernstein. What are the odds! I ordered a cheap used copy. For good measure I also put a newer bio on hold at the library.