BELLINI / ROSSINi / DONIZETTI / VERDI / PUCCINI / BIZET / etc
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Maria Callas - 100 Best Classics Maria Callas (soprano), with Richard Tucker, Luiso Villa, Tito Gobbi, Giuseppe di Stefamo, Nicolai Gedda, etc [ EMI / 6 CD Box Set - released 4/Jun/2007 ] Maria Callas was an American-born Greek soprano and one of the most renowned and influential opera singers of the 20th century. Many critics praised her bel canto technique, wide-ranging voice and dramatic interpretations. |
BEETHOVEN / ELGAR / BRAHMS / SAINT-SAENS / FAURE / POPPER / etc
Maria Kliegel - Anniversary Edition Maria Kliegel (cello) / with Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Bournemouth Sinfonietta, Camerata Transsylvanica, National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland [ Naxos / 3 CD Box Set - released 11/Nov/2022 ] "Her playing has great virtuosity, but it is her phrasing especially in the Elgar, which suggests a great musical intelligence" - Classic CD |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Das Rheingold (complete opera recorded 2012) Mariinsky Orchestra, Valéry Gergiev (conductor) [ Mariinsky / CD - released 2/Aug/2013 ] [Gergiev] draws plenty of vivid drama and glowing colour from the Mariinsky players, particularly the uniquely silken but powerful brass...Mikhail Petrenko and Evgeny Nikitin [make a] rich-voiced pair of giants, a splendid characterisation. (Gramopho |
MENDELSSOHN / ROSSINI / VERDI / SCHUMANN
Riccardo Chailly in Leipzig MArtha Argerich, Alexandrina Pendatchanska, Manuela Custer, Stefano Secco / Mirco Palazzi / Gewandhaus Choir / Gewandhausorchester Leipzig / Riccardo [ EuroArts DVD / 4 DVD Box Set - released 16/Feb/2018 ] "Mr Chailly's genius for the Rossini style has ripened with the years. His performance has daring and velocity." Gramophone [on Missa Solennelle] |
BARTOK / RAVEL / PROKOFIEV / CHOPIN / MOZART / SCHUMANN / BEETHOVEN / BACH / etc
Martha Argerich: The Warner Classics Edition Martha Argerich (piano) with Renaud Capucon, Mischa Maisky, Gautier Capucon, Natalia Gutman, Nelson Freire, Itzhak Perlman, Truls Mork, etc [ Warner Classics / 46 CD Box Set - released 21/Feb/2025 ] "Unquestionably one of the greatest pianists of all time" is how Gramophone magazine has described Martha Argerich. Her relationship with the label goes back to 1965 and her victory at the International Chopin Competition in Warsaw. |
PERCY GRAINGER
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Grainger: The Complete Piano Music, and transcriptions Martin Jones (piano) [ Nimbus / 5 CD Box Set - released 2/Feb/1997 ] "..He handles Grainger's complex counterpoints and voicing with superb clarity, achieving quasi-orchestral textures and colouring" BBC Music |
MATTHIAS WECKMANN
Weckmann: Complete Organ Music Matteo Venturini (organ) [ Brilliant Classics / 3 CD Box Set - released 14/Feb/2020 ] "On all three CDs, Matteo Venturini proves himself to be an assured and perceptive guide through this enriching and deeply satisfying music. ...I don't believe that any organ lover who invests in this fine issue will be disappointed by it." MusicWeb |
GEORG FRIDERIC HANDEL
Handel: Arminio (complete opera) Max Emanuel Cencic, Layla Claire, Ruxandra Donose, Vince Yi, Juan Sancho, Xavier Sabata, Petros Magoulas / Armonia Atenea, George Petrou [ Decca / 2 CD Box Set - released 11/May/2016 ] "Petrou's direction keeps the drama moving, animated by clean articulation from Armonia Atenea . . . On balance, this "Arminio" is probably now the best out there." Gramophone May 2016 |
JOHN FIELD
Field: Piano Concertos (complete) Maceal O'Rourke (piano) / London Mozart Players / Matthias Bamert (with David Juriz, violin, & Julia Desbruslais, cello) [ Chandos Classics / 4 CD Box Set - released 20/Aug/2008 ] "O'Rourke seems to have adopted the style of Field himself; he has a lovely touch and flow." (American Record Guide) |
FRANZ SCHUBERT
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Schubert: The Last Quartets Melos Quartett [ Harmonia Mundi / 2 CD Box Set - released 2/Jul/1995 ] |
PROKOFIEV / LISZT / BEETHOVEN / TCHAIKOVSKY / MENDELSSOHN / DEBUSSY / etc
Kurt Masur - The Complete Warner Classics Edition (Teldec & EMI recordings) Michel Beroff, Boris Berezovsky (piano) Sharom Kam (clarinet) Klaus Konig (tenor) Sylvia McNair (soprano) Sarah Chang (violin), etc / Kurt Masur [ Warner Classics / 70 CD Box Set - released 22/Apr/2022 ] Kurt Masur's achievement is defined above all by his relationships with two orchestras exemplifying vastly different traditions. This 70CD set consolidates the entirety of the catalogues that Masur built for EMI and Teldec between 1974 and 2009. |
JOHANNES BRAHMS
Brahms: The Symphonies Münchner Philharmoniker, Zubin Mehta [ Münchner Philharmoniker / 4 CD Box Set - released 7/Mar/2025 ] Zubin Mehta has long been a constant in Munich's musical life. Mehta has enjoyed an artistic relationship and deep friendship with the Munich Philharmonic in particular for decades. |
J. S. BACH
Bach: St.Matthew Passion Jozef Mukk, Istvan Gati, Judit Nemeth, Ibolya Verebits / Hungarian Festival Choir, Hungarian State Symphony Orchestra, Gerza Oberfrank [ Naxos / 3 CD Box Set ] "A refreshingly lithe and young sounding Evangelist, Jósef Mukk, leads a team of Hungarian soloists with fresh clear voices" Penguin Guide |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Piano Concertos (Complete) / Rondos K382 & K 386 [12 CD set] Murray Perahia (piano & conductor) / English Chamber Orchestra [ Sony Classical Masters / 12 CD Box Set - released 20/May/2012 ] "An indispensible set in every respect." Penguin Guide Rosette Recording / GRAMOPHONE MAGAZINE 100 GREATEST RECORDINGS OF ALL TIME |
BELLINI / OFFENBACH / MOZART / DELIBES / MONTEVERDI / DONIZETTI / etc
Natalie Dessay: The Opera Singer [33 CD & 19 DVDs] Natalie Dessay, with Francesco Meli, Jose Van Dam, Patricia Petibon, Sara Mingardo, Kathleen Kim, Ian Bostridge, Veronique Gens, and others [ Erato / Warner Classics / 52 CD Box Set - released 26/Feb/2021 ] "Dessay's performance is simply jaw-dropping.' BBC Music Magazine Award Finalist 2008: Opera [La Sonnambula] |
VERDI / PAER / ROSSINI / MOZART / TCHAIKOVSKY / MENDELSSOHN / etc
The Peter Maag Edition New Symphony Orchestra of London, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, London Symphony Orchestra, Peter Maag, with Barry Tuckwell (horn) [ Decca Australian Eloquence / 20 CD Box Set - released 5/Feb/2021 ] Newly compiled for the first time, the Decca career of a pre-eminent Mozart conductor, complemented by his recordings for Deutsche Grammophon and Westminster. |
W. A. MOZART / SCHOENBERG / SCHUBERT / HAYDN / BEETHOVEN / DANZI / etc
New Vienna Octet, Vienna Wind Soloists - The Decca Recordings New Vienna Octet, Vienna Wind Soloists [ Decca Australian Eloquence / 18 CD Box Set - released 15/Mar/2024 ] Postcards from Vienna: drawn largely from the supreme players of the Wiener Philharmoniker, collected here are the Decca recordings of Viennese chamber music ensembles, including the New Vienna Octet, Vienna Wind Soloists, Wiener Waldhornverein, etc |
VARIOUS COMPOSERS
Leonard Bernstein's Young People's Concerts Vol. 1 BLU-RAY New York Philharmonic, Leonard Bernstein (conductor & narrator) [ C Major Unitel Blu-ray / 4 Blu-ray Box Set - released 16/Dec/2018 ] Young People's Concerts Vol.1 comprises 17 episodes of the legendary series, which remains unmatched until today. 'Leonard Bernstein did this better than anyone. He was brilliant - as a musician and as an ambassador for music' (Whoopie... |
VARIOUS COMPOSERS
Leonard Bernstein's Young People's Concerts Vol. 2 BLU-RAY New York Philharmonic, Leonard Bernstein (conductor & narrator) [ C Major Unitel Blu-ray / 4 Blu-ray Box Set - released 1/Jul/2019 ] 'There had never been a communicator about music with anywhere near Bernstein's brilliance, humour, energy, reach and importance' - New York Times. |
ANNE-LOUISE BRILLON de JOUY / HELENE de MONTGEROULT / CLARA SCHUMANN / FLORENCE PRICE / AGATHE BACKER GRONDAHL / etc
Three Centuries of Female Composers Nicolas Horvath; Alexander Kostritsa; Sara Aimee Smiseth; Alexandra Oehler; Giorgio Koukl; Tanya Ekanayaka; Ishimoto Hiroko [ Grand Piano / 10 CD Box Set - released 11/Mar/2022 ] Ranging from the 18th century to the music of our time, this collection of critically acclaimed recordings explores the significant contribution to solo piano repertoire made by a wide variety of women composers. |