Track of the week

[Erian]

I wanted to share some of my musical passions, so thought I'd provide a track of the week.

#1 Gundula Janowitz singing Im Abendrot by Richard Strauss

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YD_8E4ZVxY

I'm assuming the Youtube recording is with the Berlin PO and von Karajan - I have this on two different discs. One of my friends (our choir's former conductor) swears by the Jessye Norman version.

Gundula Janowitz has an amazing pure sweet tone, free of vibrato.

I find this very emotional, and rarely play it without lump in throat and tear in eye. Strauss wrote it at the end of his life, as one of his Four Last Songs, the last pieces he wrote. This song is normally played last and so considered something of a swansong. The text is from a poem he felt close to. The vision to hold in one's mind is Strauss and his wife of many years sitting together and looking into the evening sun, approaching death with acceptance and peace, and mindful of a fulfilled life nearing its end.

[Vitki]

Thanks Erian... not something I would normally go for (my vocal taste is more Verdi ) but I enjoyed it. (Listened to it while queuing for an LFR )

[Ramael]

Thank you for sharing.

[Tan]

Thank you Erian!

[Hellish]

Its always nice to know what your fellow guildies listen to, and it often tells you something about the person itself
While i must admit this isnt my kind of music either i do understand that there is more to it than just a good song.

I'd like to link one of my own favorites aswell with a nice little background story of a 6 year old boy who got his first Nintendo and ever since fell in love with it and the games that came with this console. Every person that ever owned a Nintendo probably knows that Zelda is one of the biggest successes next to Super Mario and Donkey kong because of the beautiful story, amazing characters, levels and ofcourse the music.

And this is why i would like to share one of the songs played in the game Zelda: Ocarina of Time on the Nintendo 64, covered on the violin by Taylor Davis.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNGbpldBJUI

While not listening to alot of violin play, combined with some of my best childhood memories its a whole different and emotional experience that often still gives me chills down my spine.

This one or the original ingame song are often on repeat here(even during raids or m+) and it just doesnt get old.
Hopefully alot of you will recognise this and if not i hope you still enjoyed it!

[Erian]

#2 The Musical Box, from the album Nursery Cryme by Genesis

There isn't a good youtube recording of this (go buy the album!), but this is the best available:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GXQTEtAc1w

I loved early Genesis, from Tresspass through to A Trick of the Tail. After Peter Gabriel left (before A Trick of the Tail), things were not quite the same and in the late seventies they started to go more into dance and pop, which I hated. The group became much more popular, but most of us early fans deserted them. The early records I would play as loudly as possible, over and over again (and still do). Mum hated the house shaking, so mostly I would wait until everyone else was out and then drown in the sound.

This particular song is redolent of the time, and perhaps the favourite track of many early Genesis fans. It has everything: musicality, imagination, wide dynamics ranging from peaceful melodies to hard driving rock, and great rhythm development. At the time I had not much idea about what the story was, but it seemed to be about sex and orgasm, and basically it is about that, in a weird sense. Something else I love is Peter Gabriel's vocals, and the way he can change the emotional timbre.

[Lilpinkie]

I really appreciate this thread, I love music in all forms and enjoy every genre. At the moment I can't get enough of this song, I love Ed Sheeran anyway (mana will confirm this as I have his music on most of the time at home) but this song just gives me goose pimples whenever I hear it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiDiKwbGfIY

[Aleila]

I'll chuck in a pair of (very different) albums that have really grabbed me recently:

Burial - Untrue
Bit tricky to pin a genre to this one. Electronica with passion, a moody vibe and some great textures. For me it evokes wandering city streets late at night. I've played the hell out of this since discovering it (10 years late...)

Amaseffer - Slaves for Life
Israeli prog metal! Freshly found this week and it blew me away with its beauty, atmosphere and musicianship.
It's a concept album that "tells the story of the events starting with the Hebrews slavery, through the birth of Moses and ends with the ten plagues of Egypt" Lyrics recommended!

Oh, and I'll throw in Bjork - Bachelorette on behalf of my brother chicken who had this to say about it earlier today: "Bachelorette is Bjork's best song, don't @ me". I'm inclined to agree although Pagan Poetry is up there too. Bjork's one of those artists I didn't really 'get' earlier in life but have enjoyed immensely in recent years

[Erian]

#3 Planxty: Hewlett by Planxty, on the album Planxty

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXC2Sw9iSts

The tune was written by O'Carolan (1670-1738); the name "Planxty" is given to some of the tunes he wrote and which became attached to particular people, so Hewlett was a person. O'Carolan is a source of many sweet tunes

I started to discover the new wave of Irish music at uni. I bought a tin whistle and started to make horrible noises in my hall of residence, along with my then best friend, a huge smart Irishman from Ballymena, and his guitar. New groups like Planxty started to bring greater and more modern musicianship to Irish music. In this song, we begin with the tune played solo on the Uilleann pipes, with the "A" section followed by the "B" section. These are then repeated with extra instruments brought in to add harmony and texture on each subsequent repetition - this is typical of how Planxty would develop a tune.

When I started playing in folk sessions at the pub and elsewhere, I would often introduce some of these Irish tunes (most of the other players tended to know Northumbrian and Scottish tunes). We tend to play them with me on whistle taking the place of the Uilleann piper and beginning with a solo, and then with other instruments (accordion, concertina, etc) joining in on the second repetition.

The first three Planxty albums are unbeatable. Look out also for Sweeney's Men, the Bothy Band, the Chieftains, and the Boys of the Lough, among others.

[Lilpinkie]

After the sad news that Dolores O'Riordan passed away, I'd like to link one of my favourite songs from The Cranberries, they were one of the bands I grew up listening to

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ejga4kJUts