Category: Uncategorized

397. Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach

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(April 2022) Episode 397 is CARL PHILIPP EMANUEL BACH. His music bridged the era between high baroque, represented by his father J.S., and the classical era of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven, all of whom were inspired by C.P.E.  He was known for being inventive, even quirky, but to my 21st Century ear it can come off as unexciting. Perhaps he unfairly suffers by comparison, falling between my favorites: Bach’s mathematical beauty and Beethoven’s passionate lyricism.  He was quite prolific, with almost 900 works to his name (of which I captured about three-quarters, which took 10 weeks), many of which featured the relatively new piano.

Favorite piece: Cello Concerto in A major (H. 439)

Favorite keyboard sonata: C major (H. 163)

Favorite keyboard concerto: F major (H. 470)

Favorite symphony: E flat major (H. 654)

Favorite trio sonata: G major (H. 583)

Favorite short piano piece: L’Aly Rupalic in C Major

Compared to expectations: same

Recommendation: it’s a pleasant listen but won’t get you out of your chair

276. The Jesus and Mary Chain

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(August 2020) Episode 276 is THE JESUS AND MARY CHAIN. Another band whose influence was greater than their sales, their biggest mark is planting the seed of Shoegazing with the fuzzy noise of their stunning debut album.  But they chose not to stay and till that ground, instead meandering through many alt forms from the late 80s through 90s.

Favorite album: Psychocandy

Favorite song: Degenerate

Compared to expectations: same

Psychocandy

275. John Coltrane

~ ernopepper ~ 3 Comments

(August 2020) Episode 275 is JOHN COLTRANE. It’s hard to be cooler than Coltrane.  Although I have a mixed relationship with jazz and saxophone is far from my favorite instrument, I appreciate him for his talent, innovation and influence.  I agree that A Love Supreme is his best album and see why My Favorite Things is his most popular song, but I find myself drawn to the sound of his later-career free-form recordings.

Favorite album: Ascension

Best album: A Love Supreme

Favorite song: India

Compared to expectations: same

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263. Georg Philipp Telemann

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(May 2020) Episode 263 is GEORG PHILIPP TELEMANN. I do love me some baroque, but this was like an overdose. Perhaps the most prolific composer ever, Telemann wrote some 3,000 pieces, half of which survive, and I was able to find and listen to about half those — still about 800 pieces. Thanks to self-isolation, I did in 7 weeks what would have taken 7+ months. But his quantity isn’t matched by quality; while it isn’t fair to compare anyone to Bach, Telemann’s music can’t match his friend’s magic and melodicism. It’s all very nice though.

Favorite piece: Concerto for 2 Violins in C major

Favorite chamber piece: Overture-Suite in C major “Wassermusik”

Favorite cantata: Wie liegt die Stadt so wüste

Favorite big choral piece: Magnificat in G Major

Compared to expectations: same

Telemann

262. Alison Krauss

~ ernopepper ~ 2 Comments

(May 2020) Episode 262 is ALISON KRAUSS.  When I subject myself to country music, it usually goes down best as bluegrass. And so I find a lot to like about Alison Krauss, who (with Union Station) kind of propelled a bluegrass revival. But no matter the style of music, she just has the perfect voice. And her fiddlin’ is pretty good too.

Favorite album: Raising Sand (with Robert Plant)

Favorite solo album: I’ve Got That Old Feeling

Favorite song: Jacob’s Dream

Compared to expectations: same

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261. Porcupine Tree

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(April 2020) Episode 261 is PORCUPINE TREE.  When many others were going back to basics with grunge in the early 90s, these guys were reviving prog rock.  Some of the music is enjoyable, especially the heavy metal-tinted later recordings, but the vocals/lyrics tend toward the prog-pretentious which is kind of a turn-off.

Favourite album: Deadwing

Favourite song: Shallow

Compared to expectations: ↓

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260. Luscious Jackson

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(April 2020) Episode 260 is LUSCIOUS JACKSON.  Their funk, syncopation and semi-rap is a Very 90s sound, but unlike so many others of that decade, it holds up.  It is not a surprise they have links to the Beastie Boys.  Did you know they made a children’s album?

Favorite album: Fever In Fever Out

Favorite song: Under Your Skin

Compared to expectations: same

fever in fever out

259. Stevie Wonder

~ ernopepper ~ 1 Comment

(April 2020) Episode 259 of the “opus project” is STEVIE WONDER.  Everybody loves Stevie and knows his hits.  But you should dig deep into his albums, particularly from his “classic” period of 1972-76, to really appreciate his (inner)vision and talent as a song composer and multi-instrumentalist.  Those albums are essential listening — the diversity and mixing of styles, the integration of synthesizers, the social commentary.  His early teenage prodigy recordings are dispensible; the late-60s, early 70s albums a mixed affair, and the 80s pop cringe-worthy.

Favorite album: Innervisions

Masterpiece: Songs in the Key of Life

Favorite song: Superstition

Worst song: I Just Called To Say I Love You

Compared to expectations: ↑

Steviewonder_innervisions

258. Clara Schumann

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(March 2020) Episode 258 of the “opus project” is CLARA SCHUMANN.  I realize I haven’t covered a woman classical composer yet, so it makes sense to do Clara right after her husband Robert.  A child prodigy and piano genius, her greatest fame was from concert performances, but she did some fine composing in her youth.

Favorite piece: Piano Trio in G Minor

Compared to expectations: same

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