Max Richter C/D/S/D

So ... buy the single CD version, the eight CD version or buy something on Erased Tapes?

Kind of surprised with myself for not buying this (in any format). Think I'm slightly put off by the novelty. Does anyone really like it?

Live show at Blenheim Palace, in June:

http://serious.org.uk/events/max-richter-ensemble-1

Sleep is a great album. I keep listening to it.

Waking up for the last hour of Sleep is pretty nice.

The album release of Woolf Works has been timed to coincide with the stage revival:

http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/22783-three-worlds-music-from-woolf-works/

I saw it last night and it's rather lovely. The Pitchfork review of the soundtrack gets it about right.

Yes, that review is fairly spot-on.

What film/TV work is his is best? I have the proper albums, but haven't listened to any of his scores yet.

(Completely messed up the wording there, but you know what I meant.)

I've yet to hear a single pop-cum-classical blend that transcends generic millennial prettiness™. If anything, Richter is among the worst offenders: his recontextualizations are utterly gratuitous, a pot pourri of 'greatest hits for strings and a wistful piano, from the baroque to the post-Khrushchevian… over a bed of bleep-bloopy sounds indicative of our undying postmodernism!' At their best, his models are far more compelling, especially the Eastern Europeans (barring a name or two, I've little patience for NYC's repetitive music scene). Unfortunately, however, Richter appears to have a preference for Pärt & co.'s laziest gestures, which does a disservice to all involved.

If I really enjoy his music but don't know enough to critically break down the parts, does that matter? If it sounds good to me, does it need to do anything else?

I love this guy. I don't spend a lot of time analyzing his music, though; it mostly just sounds great when I'm writing / working / reading / getting sleepy

pomenitul what are the barred names? asking for serious

Pomenitul - I'm intrigued ... I'd (genuinely) love to hear some recommendations. (This is completely non-snarky ... Over on the "classical music you buy from Boomkat" thread, I have wondered about the idea that there might be *better stuff* that I'm missing).

Some album suggestions—

Conventionally pretty, melodically-oriented 'classical' music from the past 50 years or so:

Ole Buck, Landscapes
Victor Kissine, Between Two Waves
Alexander Knaifel, Svete Tikhiy
Kate Moore, Dances and Canons
Octavian Nemescu, Musique pour réveil
Hans Otte, Das Buch der Klänge (Herbert Henck)
Arvo Pärt, Tabula rasa
Doina Rotaru, L'éternel retour
Valentin Silvestrov, Piano Sonatas & Cello Sonata (Alexei Lubimov & Ivan Monighetti)
Howard Skempton, Lento
Toru Takemitsu, riverrun / Water-ways / Rain Coming / Rain Spell / Tree Line
Anna S. Þorvaldsdóttir, In the Light of Air

Slightly further afield:

Hans Abrahamsen, Schnee
Jérôme Combier, Gone
Pascal Dusapin, O Mensch!
Sofia Gubaidulina, The Canticle of the Sun / Music for Strings, Celesta and Percussion (Mstislav Rostropovich, et al.)
Saed Haddad, Les deux visages de l'Orient
Marko Nikodijević, dark/rooms
Per Nørgård, Works for Harp and Ensemble
Bent Sørensen, Mignon
Haukur Tómasson, Flute Concertos 1 & 2 / Skima
Helena Tulve, Sula

It goes without saying that there is infinitely more to contemporary 'classical' music, but since we're discussing Max Richter's output, I'd argue that these records broadly adhere to a more or less 'traditional' conception of aesthetic beauty (especially the former list). As a side note—and this is no coincidence—quite a few of them are from ECM's catalogue.

Thanks Pomenitul!

You should definitely participate if we do another notated music poll!

Really enjoyed Richter at Blenheim Palace at the weekend, helped by the weather and wine (which induced a vague "being on holiday" feeling).

Got the impression that the crowd was split between people wanting to hear Vivaldi at Blenheim and those wanting to hear "Max Richter" (though I suppose there's some cross-over). A handful of people left when he started playing his own music. Standout track was "Tuesday" from Woolf Works. Someone sat along from us sobbed and sobbed through it.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b08xypdv/the-royal-ballet-woolf-works

Excellent!

Oh wow, thanks for the heads up!

Have watched about half of it, so far. I'm intrigued as to how it is viewed as a "ballet" as distinct from a "Max Richter score".

New music video for 'On the Nature of Daylight':

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=InyT9Gyoz_o

i think if i were a Serious Composer i would still be bitter about film scores having ever been a thing

x-post: can't stand that video for "On The Nature of Daylight". Feels like misery porn.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIQf3lw4INA

It's probably a laughable giant cliche that makes me a boring predictable shithead, but I play this album for my daughter to sleep to every night. She loves it. She'll now tell Alexa to put it on when she's ready for bed.

The clip posted above is actually the only section she doesn't like. If she hasn't fallen asleep by the time that section comes on she has to skip it. Kind of creepy / scary sound for something occurring in the middle of sleep.

I must admit I'm intrigued as to where his/his partner's Oxfordshire studio is ... on the site of an old llama farm, apparently (which made me think the bottom of Cumnor Hill).