All on YouTube:
- Harrison Birtwistle, Earth Dances (Boulez)
- Igor Stravinsky, "Adoration of the Earth," first section of The Rite of Spring (Take your pick)
- Claude Debussy, La Mer (Karajan/Philharmonia)
- Edgard Varese, Deserts (Boulez)
- Charles Ives, From the Steeples to the Mountains (MTT/SFS)
- Richard Strauss, Alpine Symphony (Haitink/VPO)
- Olivier Messiaen, Des canyons aux etoiles (Salonen/Crossley/London Sinfonietta)
H/T Thomas May for the idea!
6 comments:
Great choice for the first one, it's the best recording of it too. :-)
I was so lucky to hear the City of Birmingham Symphony in their great concert hall when they did one concert that had Earth Dances and then the next night, Nicholas Maw's incredible Odyssey. How lucky to be able to hear those great pieces be performed live....
Boulez: isn't he usually best at everything? :)
I'll be hearing Earth Dances in a few short weeks!
Boulez sometimes gets the criticism "Well, of course he's the best conductor of [name of non-tonal composer here], that's because he's the ONLY conductor of that music!". I was very surprised when recordings of Scriabin and Szymanowski with him conducting appeared, but less surprised when they turned out to be great performances.
Ah yes, your trip to England. [shakes fist at Lisa]
Is there really that much music that only Boulez conducts?? I think of him as a great conductor in a wide repertory, though, you know, there's a lot I have never heard him in.
Boulez has done a lot of premieres, usually with the people connected to IRCAM or the Ensemble Intercontemporain. I'd love to see a list or summary, but I couldn't find anything via Google.
I can't find anything comprehensive on line either, just scattered references to him conducting the premier of something - UK premier of Webern 3 pieces for orchestra!
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