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RICHARD WAGNER
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Wagner: The Mastersingers Of Nuremberg (Complete opera in English) Norman Bailey, Derek Hammond-Stroud, Noel Mangin, Sadler's Wells Chorus & Orchestra, Reginald Goodall [ Chandos Opera in English / 4 CD Box Set - released 30/Jun/2008 ] "An ensemble singing an ensemble opera: that is perhaps the performance's greatest strength, but there are many moments when it rises far above that… Whether you were around or not, do listen to this supremely humane account of a supremely humane... |
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CARL MARIA von WEBER / JOHANNES BRAHMS / JOSEF HOLBROOKE
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Weber/Brahms/Holbrooke: Clarinet Works Reginald Kell (clarinet) / Orchestra conducted by Walter Goehr, with Louis Kentner (piano) & Anthony Pini (cello) [ Testament / CD - released 1/Jan/1991 ] Reginald Clifford Kell was an English clarinettist. He was noted especially for his career as a soloist and chamber music player. He was the principal clarinettist in leading British orchestras, including the London Philharmonic and Philharmonia. |
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GIACOMO PUCCINI
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Puccini: La Boheme (Highlights from the opera) Renata Tebaldi, Carlo Bergonzi, Gianni d'Angelo / Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Tullio Serafin [ Decca Opera Gala / CD - released 28/May/1988 ] "it still sounds astonishingly vivid,with a very convincing theatrical atmosphere. Vocally the performance achieves a consistently high standard, with Tebaldi as Mim the most affecting." Penguin Guide |
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ALFREDO CATALANI
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Catalani: La Wally (complete opera recorded in 1960 with libretto) Renata Tebaldi, Giacinto Prandelli, Dimitri Lopatto, Jolanda Gardino / Orchestra Sinfonica Di Roma Della RAI, Arturo Basile [ Hommage / 2 CD Box Set - released 16/Jan/1979 ] Recorded Rome 1960 |
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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" |
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FRANCESCO CILEA
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Cilea: Adriana Lecouvreur (complete opera recorded in 1962) Renata Tebaldi, Mario del Monaco, Giulietta Simionato, Giulio Fioravanti / Orchestra & Coro dell'Accademia di Santa Cecilia, Roma, Franco Capuana [ Decca / 2 CD Box Set - released 1/Oct/1991 ] Cilea's opera is based on a popular play which was itself based on the real life story of Adriana Lecouvreur - the great actress of early 18th Century Paris - and her relationship with the aristocratic soldier Maurizio, Count of Saxony. |
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VERDI / PUCCINI / ROSSINI / CILEA / REFICE / BOITO / MASCAGNI / etc
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: La Tebaldi Renata Tebaldi (soprano), Orchestre National de l'Opera de Monte-Carlo, Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, New Philharmonia Orchestr [ Decca / CD Box Set - released 10/Aug/2005 ] In May 1946, when Milan's venerable La Scala theatre reopened after World War II, conductor Arturo Toscanini selected Renata Tebaldi, then 24, to sing music by Rossini and Verdi... the voice of an angel - Toscanini's reported. |
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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 |
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ANDRE PREVIN
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Previn: Diversions - Songs Renee Fleming, Barbara Bonney (sopranos) / Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Andra Previn (piano/conductor) [ Deutche Grammophon / CD - released 25/Jul/2001 ] Recording Venue: The American Academy of Arts and Letters, New York City Recording Venue: Abbey Road Studios, London |
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HEITOR VILLA-LOBOS
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Villa-Lobos: Bachianas Brasileiras, etc Renee Fleming (soprano) / BBC Singers, New World Symphony Orchestra, Michael Tilson Thomas [ RCA Red Seal / CD - released 1/Apr/1996 ] Originally recorded in January 1996 |
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JACQUES OFFENBACH
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Offenbach: La Perichole (Highlights) Regine Crespin, Alain Vanzo, Jules Bastin, Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra, Rhine Opera Chorus, Alain Lombard [ Erato Opera Collection / CD - released 14/Jun/1996 ] "It is 67 minutes of unalloyed joy. I strongly recommend it" MusicWeb July 2004 |
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GUSTAV MAHLER
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE:: Mahler - Symphony No.3 in D minor (plus Bach Suite, arr Mahler) Petra Lang (mezzo) / Prague Philharmonic Choir, Netherlands Children's Choir, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Riccardo Chailly [ Decca / 2 CD - released 2/Feb/2004 ] "Chailly's account of the concluding Adagio as one of the two or three finest on disc. The timing (just under 23 minutes) strikes me as just right, and the orchestra simply outdoes itself in the eloquence and poetry of its response" 10/10 Class.Today |
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AARON COPLAND / LEONARD BERNSTEIN / GEORGE GERSHWIN
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Copland: Clarinet Concerto / Bernstein: Sonata / Gershwin: Three Preludes Richard Stoltzman (clarinet) / London Symphony Orchestra, Michael Tilson Thomas, Eric Stern [ RCA Red Seal / CD - released 30/Sep/1993 ] "Richard Stoltzman could be claimed as the James Galway of the clarinet. He has developed the personality of the instrument in new ways, often drawing on jazz" Gramophone |
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VERDI / PONCHIELLI / PUCCINI / BEETHOVEN / MOZART
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Rita Hunter - Great Soprano Arias Rita Hunter (soprano) / Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Dobbs Franks [ ABC Classics / CD - released 1/Aug/1990 ] The great British soprano Rita Hunter will always be remembered as a great Wagnerian soprano, having sung Brünhilde at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, ENO and the Australian Opera. This CD of Arias stands as a fitting memorial to her. |
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BELA BARTOK / TIBOR SERLY
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Bartok: Concerto for Viola & Orchestra / Hungarian Peasant Songs / Serly: Concerto for Viola & Orchestra Rivka Golani (viola) / Budapest Symphony Orchestra, Andreas Ligeti [ Conifer Classics / CD - released 1/Apr/1990 ] Recorded in January 1990 |
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SIR EDWARD ELGAR / SIR ARNOLD BAX
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Elgar: Cello Concerto, Three Characteristic Pieces / Bax: Phantasy for Viola & Orchestra Rivka Golani (viola) / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Vernon Handley [ Conifer Classics / CD - released 1/Apr/1989 ] Rivka Golani is an Israeli viola player. She has performed as soloist with many orchestras throughout the world and more than 250 pieces have been written for her, including over 60 concertos. |
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BACH / BEETHOVEN / DEBUSSY / FAURE / SCARLATTI / etc
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Great Pianists of the 20th Century - Robert Casadesus Robert Casadesus (piano) / Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy [ Philips / Sony / 2 CD - released 1/Jun/2000 ] Besides Mozart and Bach, Casadesus was also particularly known for his recordings of French repertoire by composers such as Rameau, Chabrier, Fauré, Debussy, and Ravel. In 1951, Casadesus made the first integral recording of the complete solo piano... |
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ERNEST BLOCH / LUKAS FOSS / PAUL BEN-HAIM
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Bloch: Sacred Service / Foss: The Song of Songs / Ben-Haim: Sweet Psalmist of Israel Robert Merrill (baritone) Jennie Tourel (mezzo) Sylvia Marlowe (harpsichord) / New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein [ Sony Classical / 2 CD Box Set - released 1/Nov/1992 ] Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990) was perhaps the most influential figure in classical music in the last half of the twentieth century. Composer, conductor, author, lecturer and often controversial media personality. |
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FREDERICK DELIUS
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Delius: A Village Romeo and Juliet (complete opera recorded in 1971) Robert Tear, Elizabeth Harwood, John Shirley-Quirk, Benjamin Luxon / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, John Alldis Choir, Meredith Davies [ EMI / 2 CD - released 1/Feb/2002 ] "Elizabeth Harwood and Robert Tear are both excellent as Vreli and Sali, winningly characterful and clearly focused...[Shirley-Quirk] is firm and forthright with an apt hint of the sinister" Penguin Guide, 2010 edition *** |
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GEORGE DYSON
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Dyson: The Canterbury Pilgrims / At the Tabard Inn / In Honour of the City Robert Tear, Stephen Roberts, Yvonne Kenny / London Symphony Chorus & Orchestra, Richard Hichox [ Chandos / 2 CD Box Set - released 1/Jul/2007 ] "...The London Symphony Chorus sings with incandescent tone, superbly recorded, and the orchestra brings out the clarity and colourfulness of Dyson's instrumentation." Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010 |