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GRIEG / BRAHMS / SCHUBERT / MOZART / RACHMANINOV / SCHUMANN / etc
Leif Ove Andsnes - The Warner Classics Edition 1990 - 2010 Leif Ove Andsnes (piano), with Christian Tetzlaff, Sarah Chang, Artemis Quartet & Ian Bostridge [ Warner Classics / 36 CD Box Set - released 7/Mar/2011 ] Leif Ove Andsnes is a leading pianist of his time, known for his exceptional musicianship and subtle touch, his considerable technical flair being unfailingly put at the service of his interpretations. |
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CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Claude Debussy: Pelléas et Mélisande Julien Behr, Vannina Santoni, Alexandre Duhamel, Marie-Ange Todorovitch, etc / Les Siècles, Chœur de l'Opéra de Lille François-Xavier Roth [ Harmonia Mundi / 2 CD - released 28/Jan/2022 ] 'I enjoyed the orchestral contributions of Les Siècles and the lucidity that period instruments bring to Debussy's score...there's an almost clinical clarity to their playing.' Gramophone Award Finalist 2022 - Opera |
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BELA BARTOK
Bartók: String Quartets Nos. 1-6 Lindsay String Quartet [ Decca Eloquence / 3 CD Box Set - released 23/Jul/2021 ] "These players have their own kind of distinction in this music and should not be missed." Gramophone, December 1989 |
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RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS
Vaughan Williams:Complete Symphonies London Symphony Orchestra & Chorus, Philharmonic Orchestra, Richard Hickox, Sir Andrew Davis [ Chandos Classics / 6 Hybrid SACD - released 27/May/2022 ] 'Impeccable playing' The Times |
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GEORGES BIZET
Bizet: Carmen (DVD + Blu-ray) l'Opera de Rouen Normandie / Deepa Johnny, Stanislas de Barbeyrac, Nicolas Courjal, Iulia Maria Dan / Ben Glassberg [ Bru Zane DVD & Blu-ray / 2 Multi-Format Box Set - released 8/Apr/2025 ] Carmen, the most famous heroine of Romantic opera, has never been so moving and rebellious as in the historical staging of 1875, whose flamboyant Spanishry is brought back to life here with the help of unpublished archive material. -... |
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RODRIGO / VIVALDI / FLAMENCO / TRADITIONAL
Los Romeros - The Mercury Masters Los Romeros, with San Antonio Symphony, Victor Alessandro [ Decca / Philips / Mercury / 10 CD Box Set - released 8/Dec/2023 ] Los Romeros was the first guitar quartet to achieve eminence across continents and on stages of the world. Their first recordings were made in January 1960 and released on Contemporary Records. |
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BEETHOVEN / BRAHMS / R. STRAUSS / TCHAIKOVSKY /
Lorin Maazel conducts the Cleveland Orchestra Lucia Popp (soprano) Jon Vickers (tenor) Elena Obraztsova (mezzo) Martti Talvela (bass) / The Cleveland Orchestra and Chorus. Lorin Maazel [ Sony Classical / 15 CD Box Set - released 21/Mar/2025 ] Lorin Maazel burnished the Cleveland image and maintained the exalted standards set by Szell, who had elevated his ensemble to pre-eminence among the US "Big Five" orchestras. |
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MENDELSSOHN / MOZART / HAYDN / SCHUMANN / BRAHMS / WAGNER / REGER / etc
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Joseph Keilberth: The Postwar Telefunken Recordings - 1953-1963 Ludwig Hoelscher (cello) / Berliner Philharmoniker, Bamberger Symphoniker, Bayerisches Staatsorchester, Joseph Keilberth [ Warner Classics Icon / 22 CD Box Set - released 1/May/2018 ] 20 July 2018 marked the 50th anniversary of the death of the German conductor Joseph Keilberth. His name is perhaps not so widely remembered as some of his contemporaries, but he was an important figure in the musical life of Germany in the mid-20th |
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ALWYN / BAX / BERKELEY / BRITTEN / MOERAN / RAWSTHORNE / etc
British String Quartets Maggini Quartet, with David Campbell (clarinet), Peter Donohoe (piano) [ Naxos / 20 CD Box Set - released 4/Dec/2019 ] "Another British string quartet rarity from the Maggini Quartet. Fine performances of two superbly confident chamber works." Editor's Choice - Gramophone |
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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 |
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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] |
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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 |
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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 |
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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) |
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CESAR FRANCK
Franck: Hulda (complete opera original version) Meagan Miller, Joshua Kohl, Irina Jae-Eun Park, Anja Jung / Opernchor des Theater Freiburg, Freiburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Fabrice Bollon [ Naxos / 3 CD Box Set - released 10/Oct/2021 ] "An intrepid cast led by Meagan Miller as Hulda and Joshua Kohl's Eiolf, her faithless lover, negotiates a top-heavy score that mixes Franck's thunderous organ chords with Berlioz and Wagner..all credit to Fabrice Bollon and the Freiburg Phil." BBC |
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W. A. MOZART
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Mozart - String Quartets Melos Quartett [ Deutsche Grammophon / 2 CD Box Set - released 18/Jun/2005 ] Recorded February 1979 to 1982 at Liederhalle, Stuttgart; and at Zentralsaal, Bamberg. |
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SCARLATTI / RACHMANINOV / BEETHOVEN / TCHAIKOVSKY / SCRIABIN / etc
Mikhail Pletnev - The Erato Recordings 1988 - 2001 Mikhail Pletnev (piano/conductor), with Michael Collins (clarinet) [ Erato / Warner Classics / 16 CD Box Set - released 22/Aug/2025 ] Mikhail Pletnev, a virtuoso pianist of the Russian school, rose to global fame after winning the 1978 Tchaikovsky International Piano Competition. Known for his formidable technique and deep musical insight, this collection of his Erato recordings... |
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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. |
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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 |
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HERRMANN / NEWMAN / KORNGOLD / TIOMKIN / ROZSA / WAXMAN
Charles Gerhardt conducts Classic Film Scores National Philharmonic Orchestra, Charles Gerhardt, with Kiri te Kanawa (soprano) & Norma Procter (contralto) [ RCA Red Seal / Sony music Masters / 12 CD Box Set - released 13/Mar/2020 ] In the 1970s, the Classic Film Scores series introduced a new generation to the sumptuous sound of music in Hollywood's "Golden Age." |