GIACOMO PUCCINI / GIUSEPPE VERDI
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Great Love Duets Renata Tebaldi, Franco Corelli, Joan Sutherland, Luciano Pavarotti, Leontyne Price, Frano Corelli, Carlo Cossutta. Margaret Price [ Decca Opera Gala / CD - released 5/Apr/1988 ] Decca's recorded legacy is dominated by the huge number of complete opera recordings and vocal recitals. These extracts are taken from complete recordings. |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Verdi: La Forza del Destino (highlights recorded in 1955) Renata Tebaldi, Mario del Monaco, Ettore Bastianini / Orchestra e coro dell'Accademia di Santa Cecilia, Roma / Francesco Molinari-Pradelli [ Decca / CD - released 1/Oct/1997 ] 'Tebaldi, as always, makes some lovely sounds, and the mezza voce in the soaring theme (first heard in the overture) in 'madre, madre, pietosa Vergine' is exquisite...the brilliance and atmosphere of the recording add much to the listener's pleasure" |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Verdi: Il Trovatore (highlights from the opera) Renata Tebaldi, Mario Del Monaco, Giuletta Simionato, Ugo Savarese, Giorgio Tozzi / Grand Theatre de Geneve Orchestra, Alberto Erede [ Decca Eloquence / CD - released 1/Nov/2000 ] One of the great troubadors of his time, Mario del Monaco has power, masculinity and virility to burn in his portrayal of Manrico on this recording of Trovatore. Tebaldi is a sweet and moving Leonora, excelling in such moments as 'Tacea la notte' |
FAURE / DEBUSSY / MARX / R. STRAUSS / RACHMANINOV
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Renee Fleming - Night Songs Renee Fleming (soprano) Jean-Yves Thibaudet (piano) [ Decca Records / CD - released 16/Sep/2001 ] "[Fleming] is best where a song is actually rather hard - the long‚ sustained lines of Strauss's Ruhe‚ meine Seele! - or where she seems eager to put over a less than familiar piece: the Marx songs and Strauss's Leises Lied‚ for example." Gramophone |
CILEA / PUCCINI / MASSENET / JANACEK / KORNGOLD / TCHAIKOVSKY / etc
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Homage: The Age of the Diva Renee Fleming (soprano) / Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, St.Petersburg / Valery Gergiev [ Decca / CD - released 20/Nov/2006 ] 2008 Grammy Award nomination for Best Classical Album |
VARIOUS COMPOSERS
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Guilty Pleasures (featuring "Danny Boy") Renee Fleming (soprano), Philharmonia Orchestra, Sebastian Lang-Lessing [ Decca / CD - released 4/Oct/2013 ] "The American soprano takes us on a whistle-stop tour of Europe on this offbeat and enjoyable album...The diva is in peachy voice throughout." Sunday Times |
MOZART / DONIZETTI / LEHAR / DVORAK & OTHERS
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Renee and Bryn - Under the Stars Renee Fleming, Bryn Terfel / The Orchestra of Welsh National Opera / Gareth Jones / Paul Gemignani [ Decca DVD / DVD - released 24/Mar/2003 ] Filmed 'live' in the magical mountains of Wales at Bryn Terfel's Faenol Festival, this exclusive 'Under The Stars' DVD is released to co-incide with the CD of the same title. |
RICHARD STRAUSS
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Strauss, (R.): Der Rosenkavalier (complete opera) BLU-RAY Renee Fleming / Diana Damrau / Sophie Koch / Franz Hawlata / Munich Philharmonic Orchestra / Christian Thielemann (cond) [ Decca Music Group Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 5/Nov/2009 ] Renée Fleming finally appears on DVD in one of her greatest roles - the Marschallin, in Richard Strauss's magnificent period-comedy of ever-changing love, Der Rosenkavalier. Her peerless performance is supported by "a galactic cast" (Thielemann). |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Verdi: La Traviata (complete opera) BLU-RAY Los Angeles Opera / Renee Flemin, Rolando Villazon, Renato Bruson / James Colon (cond) [ Decca Music Group Limited Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 9/Mar/2009 ] "With the benefit of the latest picture technology, this performance goes to the top of the list for those preferring a traditional production." (Recording of the Month May 2008) |
WILLIAM WALTON
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Walton: Symphony No. 1 & Cello Concerto Robert Cohen (cello) / Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Litton [ Decca / CD - released 1/Apr/1995 ] This programme conveniently brings together Walton's first symphony and his cello concerto onto a well-filled disc (around 74 minutes). |
GIACOMO PUCCINI
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Puccini: La Boheme (complete opera recorded in 1992) Roberto Alagna, Angela Gheorghiu, Elisabetta Scano, Simon Keenlyside / Orchestra & Chorus of Teatro alla Scala, Riccardo Chailly [ Decca / 2 CD Box Set - released 15/Mar/2012 ] "Gheorghiu's glorious singing is powerfully matched by the heroic tones of Alagna, culminating in a deeply moving death-scene." (Penguin Guide) |
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Shostakovich: Piano Concerto No 1 / Jazz Suite Nos 1 & 2 / Tahiti Trot Ronald Brautigam (piano) & Peter Masseurs (trumpet) / Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Riccardo Chailly. Also with Cristina Ortiz (piano) [ Decca / CD - released 25/Jun/1993 ] "The instrumentation is light (saxophone and accordion add a touch of spice to a generally bland recipe), while the playing here is quite superb. In fact, there's little to be said about Chailly's direction other than it is good-humoured,... |
LEONARD BERNSTEIN
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Bernstein: Wonderful Town Rosalind Russell & George Gaynes / 1953 Original Broadway Cast / plus 1945 cast [ Decca Broadway / CD - released 26/Feb/2001 ] Touched by tragedy, conceived in confusion and delivered with dissent, there's no possible reason that Wonderful Town should have lasted past opening night, yet alone become one of the classics of the musical theatre. Yet somehow it did and... |
PAUL HINDEMITH
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Hindemith: Kammermusik [Chamber Music] Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Riccardo Chailly, with Konstanty Kulka (violin), Kim Kashkashian (viola) Norbert Blume (va d'amore), Lynn Harrell (cell [ Double Decca / 2 CD - released 7/Apr/2003 ] "Nearly two hours and twenty minutes of musicmaking and festively brilliant writing and playing." (MusicWeb) |
ANTON BRUCKNER
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Bruckner: Symphony No. 5 Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Riccardo Chailly [ Decca Records / CD - released 25/Mar/1993 ] Recorded in Concertgebouw, Grote Zaal, Amsterdam, June 1991 |
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOSVKY
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Tchaikovsky: Manfred Symphony Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Riccardo Chailly [ Decca Records / CD - released 25/Mar/1988 ] Recorded in the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam November 1987 |
PYOTR Il'yich TCHAIKOVSKY
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Tchaikovsky: Romeo & Juliet / Capriccio Italien / Francesca da rimini Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Vladimir Ashkenazy [ Decca / CD - released 8/Oct/1989 ] "Recorded in the late '80s these recordings bring out their programmatic excitement and Ashkenazy clearly has command of the orchestral detail: recordings and performances stand up well against rival versions." Mr B. |
FELIX MENDELSSOHN / MAX BRUCH
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Mendelssohn/Bruch - Violin Concertos (with works by Saint-Saens) Ruggiero Ricci (violin) / London Symphony Orchestra, Piero Gamba [ Decca Ovation / CD - released 20/Jul/1989 ] Original recordings from 1958 and 1960 |
W. A. MOZART
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Mozart: Die Zauberflote [The Magic Flute] (complete opera recorded the Salzburg Festival in 2006) Salzburg Festival / Rene Pape, Genia Kuhmeier, Paul Groves, Diana Damrau / Vienna Philharmonic / Riccardo Muti (cond) [ Decca Classics / Mozart 22 DVD / 2 DVD - released 9/Nov/2006 ] Unsurpassed Mozartian Riccardo Muti conducts the Vienna Philharmonic and a superb cast in an outstanding performance of Pierre Audi's fantastic, colourful production of Mozart's sublime 'singspiel'. |
CARL NIELSEN
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Nielsen: Symphonies Nos 1 & 6 San Francisco Symphony, Herbert Blomstedt [ Decca / CD Box Set - released 10/Oct/1989 ] 1001 Classical recordings you must hear before you die (1901-1950) |