# Current Obsession Thread(C.O.T.)



## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

If the current listening thread doesn't adequately describe your raging passion and you would rather not flood that ever moving and dynamic thread with your redundancy, here is the perfect opportunity for you to be as static and redundant as you would like.

Medtner rules! I'm obsessed with a quirky and metallic sounding piece of his, the Campanella op. 20 no. 2. Here's a more classic recording 




Also, Prokofiev's 8th piano sonata! That piece has been amazing me for days. Particularly the finale that sounds like a musical flight on a strange contraption.


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## World Violist (May 31, 2007)

I've caught the Walton Viola Concerto fever. My viola teacher told me I would start working on it next semester, but I sight-read it yesterday and I really want to start work on it ASAP. Luckily, my teacher told me I could "officially" (hehe) start it after juries.


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## Couchie (Dec 9, 2010)

World Violist said:


> I've caught the Walton Viola Concerto fever. My viola teacher told me I would start working on it next semester, but I sight-read it yesterday and I really want to start work on it ASAP. Luckily, my teacher told me I could "officially" (hehe) start it after juries.


 Never heard of it. Who would write a concerto for demented violin?


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## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

Couchie said:


> Never heard of it. Who would write a concerto for demented violin?


Berlioz for one. And though I have the Walton viola concerto, I've yet to listen to it, so the fact that you can have a fever over it bodes well.


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

The Walton viola concerto is a really cool piece. I learned it a year ago. Although, I almost think it sounds better with the piano reduction score.


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## Couchie (Dec 9, 2010)

It would probably also sound better with the viola part reduced from existence.


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## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

Hello my green friend, haven't you heard Harold in Italy by Berlioz? Your hero Wagner owes a lot to Berlioz.


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## Couchie (Dec 9, 2010)

No, but I heard it in France.


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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

Alfred Schnittke's Concerto Grosso 4-Symphony No.5 is really kicking my ****! Incredible music!

I'm also into his Concerto Grosso No. 1, Cello Concerto No. 2, and the orchestrated piano quintet
entitled In memoriam...


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## Tapkaara (Apr 18, 2006)

Haydn's symphonies and string quartets.


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## Meaghan (Jul 31, 2010)

For those who haven't noticed--_Das Lebewohl_! (Beethoven's piano sonata #26) It's an ongoing thing.

I have analyzed it and now I have just started writing about it. It's going to be my senior music theory thesis, and I'm kind of starting in the middle with a chapter tentatively titled "Secondary Dominants and Tonal Ambiguity," of which I have so far written a page.

And I am playing the first movement. I intend to perform the whole sonata before I graduate, but my technical abilities will need to improve somewhat before I can tackle the virtuosic third movement. I have a year and a half until my target performance date; we'll see how that goes.

But yes, I'm obsessed. When I'm done with my thesis, I'll post it on TC in case anyone is theory-geeky enough to want to read it.


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

Im geeky enough to read that.


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## Meaghan (Jul 31, 2010)

violadude said:


> Im geeky enough to read that.


Yay!  Well, it'll be awhile, but it _will be here._ And hopefully interesting. Writing about music is fun! (Maybe it _is_ "like dancing about architecture" in some ways, but that sounds like fun too.)


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

clavichorder said:


> Hello my green friend, haven't you heard Harold in Italy by Berlioz? Your hero Wagner owes a lot to Berlioz.


Wagner doesn't (or didn't, to be more accurate) "owe a lot to Berlioz," but basically totally ripped him off. Idee fixe = leitmotif. Plus Liszt's (& probably late Beethoven's) ideas/techniques of thematic transformation. Big difference is that Wagner put them in the context of huge operas on steroids, got a purpose built opera house built to stage them, had a cult built around his image/name (whether by him or others isn't the point, that's what happened) & BINGO! You have Wagnermania.

There's one obsessive rant by me, needed to get that off my chest, out of the system, now I feel a bit better...


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

As for my current obsession, it's *guitar music*, solo or duo (or even a quartet of them!), or with other instruments in a chamber setting or as a concerto, etc.

Some composers of guitar music I'm listening to lately have been Rodrigo, Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Lhoyer, Boccherini, Haydn, Villa-Lobos, Granados, Albeniz, transcriptions for guitar of originals by J.S. Bach, the Scarlattis & Piazzolla, Australian & Russian guitar music, even some "atonal" stuff (eg. Frank Martin) & jazz, crossover, etc. & I have many other things waiting in the wings for a first listen. This is a huge area, there's much more stuff out there than just Spanish flamenco which everybody knows.

I even went to a guitar recital recently with music of some of those guys and I enjoyed it to the max...


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## chrislowski (Aug 20, 2011)

How the hell do I delete this post?


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## chrislowski (Aug 20, 2011)

Couchie said:


> Never heard of it. Who would write a concerto for demented violin?


Martinu, Milhaud, Penderecki, Bax, Rosza, Schnittke & Vaughan Williams...


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## Huilunsoittaja (Apr 6, 2010)

I guess I could say that I've finally found my first favorite Bartok piece 

Piano Concerto No. 3. I'm playing in an ensemble at UMD that's going to accompany a pianist playing this concerto. I LOVE the 2nd mvmt, and parts of the other mvmts. It's still kinda barbaric, but it makes sense to me, and that makes all the difference.


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## World Violist (May 31, 2007)

Couchie said:


> Never heard of it. Who would write a concerto for demented violin?





Couchie said:


> It would probably also sound better with the viola part reduced from existence.


Making fun of the viola is _so_ 19th century...


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## Sonata (Aug 7, 2010)

I've been obsessed with consuming as much classical music as I can lately....I'm wanting to get around to Beethoven's piano sonatas, more Bach works, Schubert lieder and symphonies, and piano concertos of every kind. And I STILL haven't had the chance to even break into Liszt, Bartok.

Specifically, I find Mendelssohn REALLY darn pleasing to the ear. I have a 99 piece compilation by him that I downloaded just two months ago, and I'm already on my second go around with it.


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

I have no obsessions.


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## Aramis (Mar 1, 2009)

IMCURRENTLYOBSESSEDWITHALLTHOSEFASTTALKINGARIASANDENSAMBLESFROMITALIANOPERASWHEREYOUCANHARDLYRECOGNIZEANYWORDBUTITSPRETTYAWESOMEWITTYMUSICALLYANDSTUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUuuu-UUUUuuuuuuUUU-UUUUUUUFF!


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## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

Really syncopated and "mechanized" piano music of any sort really. Give me something metallic and groovy at the same time.


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## tdc (Jan 17, 2011)

Sid James said:


> As for my current obsession, it's *guitar music*, solo or duo (or even a quartet of them!), or with other instruments in a chamber setting or as a concerto, etc.
> 
> Some composers of guitar music I'm listening to lately have been Rodrigo, Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Lhoyer, Boccherini, Haydn, Villa-Lobos, Granados, Albeniz, transcriptions for guitar of originals by J.S. Bach, *the Scarlattis* & Piazzolla, Australian & Russian guitar music, even some "atonal" stuff (eg. Frank Martin) & jazz, crossover, etc. & I have many other things waiting in the wings for a first listen. This is a huge area, there's much more stuff out there than just Spanish flamenco which everybody knows.
> 
> I even went to a guitar recital recently with music of some of those guys and I enjoyed it to the max...


I'm pretty sure its only Domenico who has had any of his works transcribed for guitar, no?


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## myaskovsky2002 (Oct 3, 2010)

Martin


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## Comistra (Feb 27, 2010)

Lately I've been listening a lot to:


 The symphonies of Hugo Alfvén.
 "The Sea" by Mikalojus Čiurlionis.
 The piano concerto of Ignacy Paderewski.


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## Igneous01 (Jan 27, 2011)

starthrower said:


> Alfred Schnittke's Concerto Grosso 4-Symphony No.5 is really kicking my ****! Incredible music!
> 
> I'm also into his Concerto Grosso No. 1, Cello Concerto No. 2, and the orchestrated piano quintet
> entitled In memoriam...


I am listening to his Concerto Grosso 4 now, its quite an interesting piece, It makes me laugh, be scared, be dementedly happy, and want to kill someone in my dreams 

Other than that, I totally concur.


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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

^^^^^^^^^^^
Have you heard symphony no. 1 yet? That one will really send you on a killing spree!


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

tdc said:


> I'm pretty sure its only Domenico who has had any of his works transcribed for guitar, no?


THIS disc has John Williams playing transcriptions of music by both of the Scarlattis, but they are only short works, bonus tracks/fillers on this disc, the main works are a couple of J.S. Bach's cello suites played on guitar...


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## Igneous01 (Jan 27, 2011)

starthrower said:


> ^^^^^^^^^^^
> Have you heard symphony no. 1 yet? That one will really send you on a killing spree!


yes I did, I couldn't stop myself from laughing at the Beethoven 5th Excerpt and Ride of the valkyries - pure genius that part.

But I need to listen to it a few more times, as some parts were obscured in my listening of it.


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## bassClef (Oct 29, 2006)

Currently, Stravinsky's Symphony in Eb


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## tannhaeuser (Nov 7, 2011)

Wow does no one have a more conventional obsession? (Don't get me wrong, I love those too, just surprised no one had a more conventional one).

For Mr Viola up there, an age old joke: What is a string quartet composed of? A good violinist, a not so good violinist, a *failed violinist* and a violin hater. No offense though, I love the viola!

My current obsession: Mahler's 2nd Symphony, the Resurrection.


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## Chrythes (Oct 13, 2011)

It was Brahms Sextets - especially the first movement of the first one.
Now it's either Beethoven's Razumovsky Quartet No.1 or Tchaikovsky's Souvenir De Florence.


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## Klavierspieler (Jul 16, 2011)

World Violist said:


> Making fun of the viola is _so_ 19th century...


Unless you're Schumann.


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## Klavierspieler (Jul 16, 2011)

Aramis said:


> IMCURRENTLYOBSESSEDWITHALLTHOSEFASTTALKINGARIASANDENSAMBLESFROMITALIANOPERASWHEREYOUCANHARDLYRECOGNIZEANYWORDBUTITSPRETTYAWESOMEWITTYMUSICALLYANDSTUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUuuu-UUUUuuuuuuUUU-UUUUUUUFF!


See? You see why I hate opera?


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## Klavierspieler (Jul 16, 2011)

I'm currently obsessed with folk music, especially that from the British Isles.


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## Oskaar (Mar 17, 2011)

Couchie said:


> It would probably also sound better with the viola part reduced from existence.


Viola is absolutely one of my favourite instruments. Your sarcasm may have a history of intern joking that I dont know...  But thumbs up for the viola!


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

oskaar said:


> Viola is absolutely one of my favourite instruments. Your sarcasm may have a history of intern joking that I dont know...  But thumbs up for the viola!


Oskaar. you're my new favorite member.


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## Dodecaplex (Oct 14, 2011)

While we're on the subject of the viola, I think I've been obssessed with Shosty's last work, the sonata for piano and viola, for quite some time now. Especially the last movement.


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

Dodecaplex said:


> While we're on the subject of the viola, I think I've been obssessed with Shosty's last work, the sonata for piano and viola, for quite some time now. Especially the last movement.


I just want to say, as a violist, those double glissandi in the second movement are INSANE.


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## Chrythes (Oct 13, 2011)

Tchaikovsky's Souvenir De Florence!
Such beautiful work.


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## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

Currently still obsessed with Medtner, but lets get a bit more refined shall we? I love his skazka, I forget which opus it is, but it has the title, "The Magic Violin". Has a terrific melody, I think Aramis would agree. Something really touching about the piece. I'm taking this one Skazka at a time.


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## Comistra (Feb 27, 2010)

tannhaeuser said:


> Wow does no one have a more conventional obsession? (Don't get me wrong, I love those too, just surprised no one had a more conventional one).


I tend not to "obsess" over works I'm familiar with. Instead, I'll discover something new and start listening to it a lot. Once I'm more familiar with it, I put it in the rotation, so to speak, and listen to it periodically from then on out.

So since I'm at least familiar with a good chunk of what I figure would be called "conventional", I tend not to obsess over it (anymore).


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## CountessAdele (Aug 25, 2011)

I've only just dipped my toes in the classical music pool, and I don't want to focus on any one piece or composer untill I've done more exploring. Or at least that was the idea, I keep going back to Tchaikovsky, I've got more Tchaikovsky on my playlist than any other composer so he's quickly becoming a candidate for favorite composer. I'm listening to Valse Sentimentale as I type this post:


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## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

@Countess, this thread may help if you want recommendations on any composers or genres 
http://www.talkclassical.com/13320-collection-deepening-thread.html


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## CountessAdele (Aug 25, 2011)

clavichorder said:


> @Countess, this thread may help if you want recommendations on any composers or genres
> http://www.talkclassical.com/13320-collection-deepening-thread.html


Oooh yeah, thanks Clavi I'll definately look it over. By the way I'm listening to the first of your suggestions right now!


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## tdc (Jan 17, 2011)

I've been kind of obsessed with William Walton's 5 Bagatelles for guitar lately:


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## Manok (Aug 29, 2011)

Nothing in particular but I've been obsessing over Penderecki lately. I just can't get enough of the music.


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## Albert7 (Nov 16, 2014)

clavichorder said:


> If the current listening thread doesn't adequately describe your raging passion and you would rather not flood that ever moving and dynamic thread with your redundancy, here is the perfect opportunity for you to be as static and redundant as you would like.
> 
> Medtner rules! I'm obsessed with a quirky and metallic sounding piece of his, the Campanella op. 20 no. 2. Here's a more classic recording
> 
> ...


I am obsessed with Morton Feldman... like seriously it's driving me nuts.

Okay, but I need a break now and then.

Nice job, clavi!


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