BEDRICH SMETANA
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Ma Vlast: complete orchestral works Janacek Philharmonic Orchestra / Theodore Kuchar [ Brilliant Clasics / 3 CD - released 20/Nov/2008 ] "The performances are of a superfine brilliance, energy and affection, making it invidious to single out this or that special success or the individual triumphs of wind, brass or strings." (Gramophone) |
CARL NIELSEN
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Nielsen: Complete Symphonies [3 CD set] Janacek Philharmonic Orchestra, Theodore Kuchar [ Brilliant Classics / 3 CD - released 20/Jul/2012 ] Half a bar of Carl Nielsen and you know it's him - a characteristic of great composers down the ages, to be sure, but one peculiarly concentrated around nationalist composers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Nationalist, not necessarily... |
JOHANNES BRAHMS / RICHARD STRAUSS / RICHARD WAGNER
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Brahms: Alto Rhapsody / Strauss: Four Last Songs / Wagner: Wesendonk Lieder Janet Baker (contralto) / London Philharmonic Orchestra & John Alldis Choir, Sir Adrian Boult [ EMI / 2 CD - released 20/Oct/2006 ] "Dignified, unfussy performances, with Boult keeping his powder dry for the big moments." (BBC Music) |
MAHLER / ELGAR / BERLIOZ / CHAUSSON / SCHUBERT / etc
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Icon: Janet Baker - The Beloved Mezzo (5 CD set) Janet Baker (contralto) with various orchestras & conductors [ Warner Classics / EMI Icon / 5 CD Box Set - released 1/Nov/2008 ] A singer's career brings many challenges, not the least of them being the balancing act involved in a professional life divided between opera and song. "this is a treasurable set" Penguin Guide |
GUSTAV MAHLER
Mahler: Symphonies 1, 5, 6, 9, Kindertotenlieder, Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen, Ruckert-Lieder Janet Baker (mezzo) / Halle & New Philharmonia Orchestras, Berliner Philharmoniker, Sir John Barbirolli [ Warner Classics / 5 CD Box Set - released 28/Aug/2021 ] "Barbirolli's famous 1969 version on any count is one of the greatest, most warmly affecting performances ever committed to disc, expansive, yet concentrated in feeling: the Adagietto is very moving … A classic version." Penguin Guide (5th Sym] |
GUSTAV MAHLER
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Mahler: Kindertotenlieder / Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen / Das Lied von der Erde / Das Hnaben Wunderhorn / etc Janet Baker, Lucia Popp, Murray Dickie, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau / Halle & New Philharmonia Orchestras, Sir John Barbirolli, and more [ EMI / 2 CD Box Set - released 27/Aug/1999 ] 1001 Classical recordings you must hear before you die (1901-1950) [Kindertotenlieder/Ruckert Lieder] "The spontaneous feeling of soloist and conductor of this music comes over as in a live performance and brings out the tenderness to a unique... |
MAURICE RAVEL / ERNEST CHAUSSON / MAURICE DELAGE
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Janet Baker - French Songs Janet Baker (mezzo soprano) with Melos Ensemble of London [ Decca / CD - released 20/May/1991 ] 'The performances of French mélodies included on this record are very beautiful indeed. With superb, atmospheric playing by the Melos Group, this ravishing collection must be placed among Dame Janet's most outstanding recordings." Penguin Guide |
HAMISH MacCUNN
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: MacCunn: Land of the Mountain and the Flood / Excerpts from Jeanie Deans / The Lay of the Last Minstrel / etc Janice Watson (soprano) Lisa Milne (soprano) Jamie MacDougall (tenor) Peter Sidhom (bass) / BBC Scottish Orchestra & Chorus. Martyn Brabbins. [ Hyperion / CD - released 25/May/2005 ] 'Yet again Hyperion successfully rediscovers one of our neglected Victorian composers ... Admirers of Hyperion's earlier efforts need not hesitate to buy this' (Classic CD) |
GEORGES BIZET
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Bizet: Les Pêcheurs de perles [The Pearl Fishers] (Complete opera recorded in 1960 with libretto) / Plus Ivan IV (extraits) Janine Micheau, Nicolai Gedda, Ernest Blanc / Chœurs et Orchestre du Théâtre National de l'Opéra Comique, Pierre Dervaux [ EMI Classics / 2 CD Box Set - released 1/Sep/1988 ] Original 1960 recording coupled with excerpts from Ivan IV recorded in 1958 |
EDVARD GRIEG
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Grieg: Peer Gynt Suites 1 & 2 / Lyric Suite / Sigurd Jorsalfar Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Neeme Jarvi, with Barbara Bonney & Marianne Eklof [ Deutsche Grammophon / CD - released 21/Sep/2004 ] "This coverage of Grieg's 'music with orchestra', with many of the performances unsurpassed, would make an ideal basis for any Grieg collection." (Five Stars Penguin Guide) |
SERGEI PROKOFIEV
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Prokofiev: Symphony No. 5 / Waltz Suite, Op. 110: Nos. 1, 3 & 4 Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Neeme Jarvi [ Chandos / CD - released 1/Aug/2013 ] "Järvi celebrates [the symphony's] epic grandeur" International Record Review |
J. S. BACH
Bach: Goldberg Variations, BWV988 (LP) Jean Muller (piano) [ Hänssler / LP - released 29/Sep/2017 ] In 1741, at the height of his creativity, Bach published one of his pioneering works under the modest title "Keyboard exercise comprising an ARIA with diverse variations for harpsichord with two manuals". The title "Goldberg Variations" has attached... |
FRANZ JOSEPH HAYDN
Haydn: Complete Piano sonatas Jean-Efflam Bavouzet (piano) [ Chandos / 11 CD Box Set - released 3/Nov/2023 ] This boxed-set of the complete Haydn piano sonatas performed by Jean-Efflam Bavouzet is presented in a clam-shell box, retailing at eleven discs for the price of five. Recorded between 2009 and 2021, this mammoth project has consistently drawn the... |
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Beethoven: Piano Concertos Jean-Efflam Bavouzet (piano / director); Karin Egardt (oboe); Kevin Spagnolo (clarinet); Mikael Lindström (bassoon); Terése Larsson (horn) [ Chandos SACD / 3 Hybrid SACD - released 4/Sep/2020 ] Following his acclaimed recording of sonatas by contemporaries of Beethoven, Jean-Efflam Bavouzet further celebrates the great composer's anniversary year with this set of the complete Piano Concertos. |
TELEMANN / LECLAIR / LALANDE / COUPERIN / RAMEAU / etc
French Baroque Music Jean-François Paillard Chamber Orchestra, Jean-François Paillard, with Jean-Pierre Rampal (flute), Pierre Pierlot (oboe), Maurice Andre (trumpet), etc [ Erato / 14 CD Box Set - released 26/Aug/2022 ] A founding member of Erato, Jean-François Paillard always placed French Baroque music at the heart of his orchestra's repertoire and maintained it in a privileged position despite the growth of musical range and number of concerts. |
JOSEF HAYDN
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Cello Concertos (with Monn - Concerto for cello, strings and harpsichord) Jean-Guihen Queyras (cello) / Freiburger Barockorchester / Petra Mallejans - director [ Harmonia Mundi Haydn Edition / CD - released 20/Apr/2009 ] "Queyras benefits from the much more alert playing of the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra: and in their account of the D minor central episode, the piece suddenly springs to life. (This) can confidently be recommended as a period-instrument choice." (BBC) |
ROBERT SCHUMANN
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Schumann: Piano Music (Incls 'Papillons', 'Carnaval' & ' Piano Sonatas) Jean-Philippe Collard, Christian Zacharias, Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, Leif Ove Andsnes, Sviatoslav Richter, Lars Vogt [ EMI Budget Boxes / 6 CD Box Set - released 15/Oct/2010 ] Celebrating Robert Schumann's 200th Anniversary with CD sets from EMI's catalogue performed by many of the world's leading artists, orchestras and conductors. |
GABRIEL FAURE
Fauré Edition - Piano Works, Chamber Music, Orchestral Works & Requiem JeanâPhilippe Collard (piano) Augustin Dumay (violin) Frédéric Lodéon (cello) Michel Debost (flute) Nicolai Gedda (tenor) / Michael Plasson (cond) [ Erato / 12 CD Box Set - released 24/Aug/2018 ] Gabriel Fauré, whose long and influential life spanned the eras of romanticism and early modernism, enriched a diversity of genres with music of proverbial subtlety. |
MOZART / TARTINI / TELEMANN / C.P.E. & J. S. BACH / MERCADANTE / VIVALDI / etc
Jean-Pierre Rampal: Famous Flute Concertos Jean-Pierre Rampal (flute) with various orchestras & soloists [ Erato / 12 CD Box Set - released 25/Aug/2023 ] Legendary flautist Jean-Pierre Rampal devoted just as much effort to establishing the masterpieces in their rightful place as to unearthing countless works from the baroque, classical and romantic eras. As far as concertos are concerned, cornerstones... |
VARIOUS COMPOSERS
Perfect Piano: Best loved classical piano music Jenö Jandó, Idil Biret, Einar Steen-Nøkleberg, François-Joël Thiollier, Benjamin Frith, Boris Giltburg [ Naxos / CD - released 28/Feb/2020 ] For those who are new to an instrument, the first question is often: where to start? The 'Best Loved' series offers an easy answer to that question and a perfect introduction to the wonderful, varied world of classical music. Spotlighting individual... |