CHARLES GOUNOD
The Gounod Edition: Operas, Choral Works, Symphonies Placido Domingo, Regine Crespin, Alfredo Kraus, Nicolai Gedda, Mirella Freni, Marilyn Horne, Rolando Villazon, etc [ Warner Classics / 15 CD Box Set - released 25/Jun/2018 ] "Anyone wanting a share in these darling old steeds at a tempting price will be amply satisfied." Opera |
CHOPIN / BEETHOVEN / BACH / LISZT / MOZART / etc
Pogorelich - Complete Recordings Ivo Pogorelich (piano) with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Claudio Abbado [ Deutsche Grammophon / 14 CD Box Set - released 1/Aug/2015 ] "What matters is not what he can do, for this is only the beginning. What matters is how many ideas occur to him and how much he can demand of the music and of himself. In short, he is an artist who must be taken seriously, a hugely talented pianist... |
DEBUSSY / BEETHOVEN / PROKOFIEV / SCHUMANN / MOZART / BRAHMS / etc
Quartetto Italiano: Prima la musica - The Complete Warner Recordings Quartetto Italiano [ Warner Classics / 14 CD Box Set - released 11/Jun/2021 ] "The finest string quartet, unquestionably, that our century has known." In 1951, when the Quartetto Italiano first visited the USA, composer Virgil Thomson's was enthused: "Perfection is the only word to describe this playing." |
Soundtrack / Rachel Portman
Chocolat [ Sony Classical / CD - released 19/Feb/2001 ] . Rachel Portman's innocuously pretty score for Hallström's innocuously pretty 1999 screen adaptation of The Cider House Rules played by the director's rules, melding pleasantly and forgettably into the glossy period landscape. The score brought her... |
BRAHMS / BEETHOVEN / SCHUBERT / SCHUMANN
The Complete Decca Solo Recordings (special price 10 CD set) Radu Lupu (piano) [ Complete Decca Recordings / 10 CD Box Set - released 1/Aug/2012 ] "This is playing of quite exceptional insight and naturalness...and this set as a whole is well worth seeking out." (Penguin Guide) |
VARIOUS COMPOSERS
50 Most Beautiful Classical Pieces Renaud Capucon, Martha Argerich, William Christie, David Fray, Philippe Jaroussky, Riccardo Muti, Maria Joao Pires, etc [ Warner Classics / 3 CD Box Set - released 20/Nov/2015 ] All works performed by the best and iconic artists of the Warner Classics & Erato catalogues. |
CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Debussy: Sonatas & Trio Renaud Capucon (violin) Gérard Caussé (viola) Emmanuel Pahud (flute), Marie-Pierre Langlamet (harp) Edgar Moreau (cello) Bertrand Chamayou (piano) [ Erato Classics / CD - released 10/Nov/2017 ] Their readings of the late sonatas are packed with glorious detail, while Renaud Capuçon, Bertrand Chamayou and Edgar Moreau make a great case for the early Piano Trio.' BBC Music Award WINNER 2018 - Chamber |
JACQUES OFFENBACH
Offenbach: Les Contes d'Hoffman (The Tales of Hoffman) (complete opera) Roberto Alagna, Jose van Dam, Natalie Dessay, Sumi Jo / l'Opera National de Lyon, Kent Nagano [ Erato Warner Classics Home of Opera / 3 CD - released 20/May/2016 ] "Kent Nagano uses Kaye's complete edition preserving the recitatives. He balances this by taking quite a brisk view of the tempi and the pacing of the piece." MusicWeb |
J. S. BACH
Bach: The Well-Tempered Clavier, Books 1 & 2 Rosalyn Tureck (piano) [ Deutsche Grammophon / 4 CD Box Set - released 10/May/2012 ] Rosalyn Tureck |
SERGEI RACHMANINOV
Rachmaninov: Symphony No. 1 in D minor, Op. 13 / Prince Rostislav Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Vasily Petrenko [ Warner Classics / CD - released 1/May/2014 ] BBC Music Award Nomination 2015 - Orchestral |
FRANZ SCHUBERT
Schubert: Complete Secular Choral Works Ruth Ziesak, Angelika Kirchschlager, Christoph Prégardien, Robert Holl / Wiener Concert-Verein, Arnold Schoenberg Choir, Erwin Ortner, with András Sch [ Warner Classics / 7 CD Box Set - released 19/Mar/2021 ] A voyage of discovery through a lesser-known area of Schubert's rich and prolific output, this collection comprises seven themed CDs: Transience; Love; Eternity; Heroism; Nature; Celebrations, and Circle of Friends. |
GUSTAV MAHLER
Bruckner: Symphony No. 9 (2LP) Sir Simon Rattle & Berliner Philharmoniker [ ANTON BRUCKNER / 2 LP - released 23/Aug/2024 ] Bruckner was working on the Ninth Symphony until the day he died. He left a stark and magnificent torso that marks the end of the 19th-century symphony - but he also left fragments and sketches for a magnificent finale that would cap his life's work.... |
STEVE REICH
Phases - A Nonesuch Retrospective Steve Reich and Musicians / Kronos Quartet / Theatre of Voices / Pat Metheny [ Nonesuch / 5 CD Box Set - released 31/Oct/2006 ] Pioneer of US minimalism Steve Reich is 70 this year and to celebrate Nonesuch has released a bargain-priced 5 CD set of his greatest works including definitive recordings of "Music for 18 Musicians", "Different Trains" and "Drumming". |
GEORG FRIDERIC HANDEL
Handel: Theodora (Complete Oratorio) Susan Gritton, Susan Bickley, Robin Blaze, Paul Agnew / Gabrieli Consort, Paul McCreesh [ Archiv / 3 CD Box Set - released 14/Aug/2000 ] 1001 Classical recordings to hear before you die (1700-1760) - 2001 GRAMOPHONE AWARD FINALIST - Baroque Vocal |
JOHANNES BRAHMS
Brahms: Piano Concerto No.2 in B flat, op.83 (with Beethoven - Piano Sonata No. 23 "Appasionata") Sviatoslav Richter (piano) / Chicago Symphony Orchestra / Erich Leinsdorf (Recorded 1960 & 1988) [ Sony Classical Originals / CD - released 1/Aug/2011 ] "This is a legendary, visionary statement about the music, to be heard on its own terms." - MusicWeb Sept 2004 |
SVIATOSLAV RICHTER
Icon: Sviator Richter - The Master Pianist (Complete EMI Recordings, 1961-1980) Sviatoslav Richter (piano) with with Oleg Kagaan (violin) David Oistrakh (violin) and others [ Warner Classics / EMI Icon / 14 CD Box Set - released 1/Feb/2011 ] 'Idiosyncratic, plain-speaking, heroic, reserved, lyrical, virtuosic and perhaps above all profoundly enigmatic, Sviatoslav Richter remains one of the greatest recreative artists of all time.' (Bryce Morrison) |
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOSVKY
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5 (LP) Teatro alla Scala, Guido Cantelli [ Warner Classics Vinyl / LP - released 1/Jun/2020 ] The very first 12" Long Play record issued by The Gramophone Company (EMI) on His Master's Voice (ALP 1001) in October 1952 - previously issued on 78RPM in 1951. The 27th April 2020 marked Guido Cantelli's centenary. |
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOSVKY
Versailles - Alexandre Tharaud (LP) Teatro alla Scala, Guido Cantelli [ Warner Classics Vinyl / LP - released 1/Jun/2020 ] "Even for aficionados of this repertoire there are surprises to be had." Gramophone |
VARIOUS COMPOSERS
Aranjuez (LP) Thibaut Garcia (guitar) [ Erato / LP - released 2/Oct/2020 ] Expressing his own cultural identity, guitarist Thibaut Garcia combines Rodrigo's archetypally Spanish Concierto de Aranjuez with a declaration of l'esprit français: Alexandre Tansman's neoclassical Musique de cour, inspired by the court of Louis... |