# Year-End Gumdrops for 2013



## itywltmt

En français

As we do every year, time for our yearly "gumdrops" post, kind of a special edition of our regular look at acquisitions, but picking up stuff I acquired or discovered through the year that hasn't made it on the _Tuesday Blog_.

Facebook Groups

I would not be a Blogger wort my salt if I didn't use Social Media to promote my activities, and Facebook has been very good for me at doing just that.

In the process of trying to "spread the word" about my blogs here and elsewhere as well as to promote my weekly podcast, I have partaken in "interest groups" on Facebook, where many music lovers post typically _YouTube _clips, but sometimes some of their own stuff. Here are a few groups I have found that may be of interest, that is of course if FB is your thing...


Opera Music Lovers
J.S. Bach
Sinfomelomania
I Love Chopin

There are tons more: groups, promotional artist pages...

Torrent Downloads









*POULENC 5 CDs*
[Torrent]​
Yes Five CDs under this download, including the Georges Prêtre recording of some of Poulenc's sacred music, a 2-CD set by Sir David Willcocks and the City of London Sinfonietta, and singles featuring Charles Dutoit and Eric Ericson. There are some duplicate works here (the Organ Concerto, piano concerto...) but also some interesting choices. I especially liked the Eric Ericson disc of a capella sacred works. For the *Puilenc *lover.









*RACHMANINOV, S. Etudes-tableaux (Complete) (Lugansky)*
[Torrent]​
Of *Rachmaninov*'s piano music, the preludes and Etudes-Tableaux stand out as being "his" homage to *Chopin*, showcasinng both his own prowess as a pianist and his ability to craft great romantic melodies. In my collection, I own Weissenberg's set of the preludes, and now this equally masterful set of the Etudes Tableaux by Nikolai Lugansky. As was the case for the Weissenbefg set, Lugansky show himself both a great pianist and an astute student of Rachmaninov, and displays great musicianship. Terrific!









*Erich Wolfgang Korngold - The Film Music*
[Torrent]​
*Eirich Korngold *is one of the most memotrable film composers of the so-called "Big Studio Era" in Hollywood. A child prodigy, Korngold was recognized as a genius by the likes of *Gustav Mahler *and *Richard Strauss*, and composed large works including some operas that are to this day both grand in scale and amazing in their depth and colour. Forced to flee Austria with the rise of Nazism, he found refuge in Hollywood where he plied his wares with scores to films like _The Adventures of Ribin Hood_,_ Captain Blood _and _The Sea Hawk_. This 1962 recording by a film sytudio orchestra conducted by Lionel Newman, this is the first authorized recording of Korngold's film music by the Korngold Estate. Other than selections fro the aforementioned Robin Hood and Sea Hawk, other films represented include _King's Row_, _Anthony Adverse_, _Elizabeth And Essex_, _The Prince And The Pauper _and _The Constant Nymph_. A fine recording done with care and respect for the Composer's legacy.









*Clara Schumann - The Complete Piano Works*
[Torrent]​
The story of the coutshuip and marriage of *Robert Schumann *to Clara Wleck is well-documented. *Clara Schumann* was prepared by her father not only to be a virtuoso pianist; he also envisaged her as the first great female composer. Clara's first group of compositions were published when she was only 11 years of age. Over time, her compositions have widely been regarded as worth little attention in comparison to those of her husband - agreed that her gifts as a composer didn't fully bloom, these works are noinetheless interesting to hear, and played with conviction by Jozef de Beenhouwer.









*Salieri - Two Concertos and a Sinfonia*
[Torrent]​
I know it's easy to fall into the *Salieri *Vs. *Mozart *trap, but the works proposed here should not be compared with the masterly concertos Mozart would produce but a few years later. The work which comes closest to the mature classical style as we know it through Mozart and *Haydn *is the Keyboard Concerto in B flat, performed with care by Paul Badura-Skoda, who visits these pages from time to time on our _Once Upon the Internet _series. The performances try to remain authentic without sounding overthought, if you get what I mean… Nice job!

L'Idée Fixe

My last gumdrop starys close to home. For almost a month now, I have been hosting a new _French _blog, l'Idée Fixe, which should complete its Beta trial in time for an official launch on New Year's Day. Please check it out @ http://ideefixe-musique.blogspot.com/

_Have a merry (and safe!) Christmas and we'll see you for our last post of the year, next Tuesday!_


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