For our pre-Christmas and Hannukah miscellanea let's have an all-envoi extravaganza.
These were all chosen because they are all performances and works that have captivated me recently. In the case of Bach, it was not that piece, but the St. Matthew Passion by the Netherlanders, but I think I just posted it a few weeks ago, so let's have something seasonal. But I have definitely been captivated (obsessed by?) the Haydn symphonies recently. And by Celibidache's Bruckner. And by Alain Altinoglu's Shostakovich. Right now, I am convinced that the 4th Symphony could be the finest ever written. I could happily listen to nothing but it, over and over. And the Grigory Sokolov concert is as perfect as a piano recital could be. Not least because he played five pieces by Rameau as his first five encores (!) followed by some Brahms.
If this is the last gasp of a disintegrating European civilization, then at least it is a glorious one.
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