J. S. BACH
Missa (1733) Emiko Iiyama, Helen Watts, Kurt Equiluz, Rotraud Hansmann, Max van Egmond / Wiener Sängerknaben, Chorus Viennensis, Concentus musicus Wien, Nikolaus H [ Warner Das Alte Werk / CD - released 1/Jun/2009 ] "admirable performance and excellent recording … all Bach-lovers must know Harnoncourt's style by now; the buoyant flow of the opening Kyrie, for example, the springy rhythms and lightness of touch." (Gramophone) |
OLIVER MESSIAEN
MessiaenL Saint Francois d'Assise Dawn Upshaw / JosAC van Dam / Halle Orchestra / Kent Nagano [ Deutsche Grammophon / 4 CD - released 1/Jan/1994 ] 1001 Classical Recordings You Must Hear Before You Die A wonderful live recording of the Salzburg production of the only opera by Messiaen. |
BARTOK / BEETHOVEN / BERLIOZ / BRAHMS / DIEPENBROCK / LALO / MENDELSSOHN / etc
Original Masters: Eduard van Beinum (Limited Edition) Eduard van Beinum, conducting the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam and the London Philharmonic Orchestra [ Decca Original Masters / 5 CD - released 24/Mar/2003 ] One of the most important Dutch conductors, Eduard van Beinum was born on 3 September 1901 in Arnhem in the Netherlands. |
ANTONIO VIVALDI
Vivaldi: Gloria RV 589 / Magnificat RV 610b Emily Van Evera, Nancy Argenta, Catherine King, Margaret Cable / Taverner Choir & Players, Andrew Parrott [ Erato Classics Red Line / CD - released 25/Oct/2018 ] "Whatever the finer detail of musical and musicological interpretation, this disc should appeal to anyone with an inquisitive turn of mind...a fascinating and worthwhile experiment, a refreshing way to hear some pretty well-known music" Gramophone |
MONTEVERDI
L'Orfeo (Complete Opera) Rotraud Hansman, Lajos Kozma, Cathy Berberian, Max van Egmond / Concentus musicus Wien / Harnoncourt [ Warner Classics Das Alte Werk / 2 CD - released 5/Nov/2013 ] |
ANTOINE BRUMEL
Missa "Et Ecce Terrae Motus" (Earthquake Mass) / Dies Irae Huelgas Ensemble, Paul van Nevel [ Newton Classics / CD - released 1/Mar/2015 ] |
AGRICOLA / BRUMEL / GOMBERT / REBELO / TALLIS / ET AL
A Secret Labyrinth: A Celebration of Music from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance Huelgas Ensemble / Paul Van Nevel [ SONY / 15 CD Box Set - released 20/Oct/2009 ] MARBECKS STAFF PICK: REISSUE CD OF THE YEAR 2009 - Featuring their famous and now deleted recordings of "Spem in Alium" and the so-called "Earthquake" mass by Antoine Brumel, this 15 CDs boxset includes some of the most prestigious recordings... |
PRAETORIUS
Magnificat;Aus tiefer Not schrei ich zu dir; Der Tag vertreibt die finster Nacht etc. Huelgas Ensemble / Paul van Nevel, director [ Sony Music / CD ] |
Jimmie Van Zant
Feels Like Freedom [ MRI Associated / CD - released 3/Jul/2012 ] |
WAGNER
Die Mastersinger von Nurnberg (Complete Opera) Josa van Dam / Herbert Lippert / Karita Mattila / Chicago Symphony / Georg Solti [ Decca Records / 4 CD - released 11/Aug/2002 ] These legendary recordings were made over the entire course of Solti's career with Decca (almost 50 years!) and boast some of the finest Wagnerian performances ever committed to disc. |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: Don Carlos (complete opera [Five-act French version] recorded in 1996) José van Dam, Roberto Alagna, Karita Mattila, Thomas Hampson / Chœur du Théâtre du Châtelet, Orchestre de Paris, Antonio Pappano [ Warner Classics Home of Opera / 3 CD Box Set - released 20/May/2018 ] Don Carlos, one of Verdi's supreme achievements, received its premiere in Paris and this live recording from the city's Théâtre du Châtelet presents the original, five-act version of the opera. |
GAETANO DONIZETTI
Donizetti: Maria Stuarda (complete opera recorded in 2013) Metropolitan Opera / Joyce DiDonato, Elza van den Heever, Matthew Polenzani / Maurizio Benini (cond) [ Erato DVD / 2 DVD - released 7/Apr/2014 ] "The two main protagonists brilliantly capture all the opera's drama and passion; DiDonato is magnificent and moving." Gramophone Magazine Editor's Choice August 2014 |
J. S. BACH
9 Cantatas [18, 59, 89, 90, 106, 118, 152, 161, 182] Sheila Armstrong, Rotraud Hansman, Helen Watts, Kurt Equiluz & Max van Egmond / Concerto Amsterdam, Monteverdi Chor Hamburg, Jürgen Jürgens [ Warner Classics Das Alte Werk / 2 CD - released 6/Oct/2008 ] |
C.P.E. BACH
The C.P. E. BACH Collection Konrad Hunteler (flute) Anner Bylsma (cello) Bob van Asperen (harpsichord) / Amsterdam Baroque, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, etc [ Warner Classics / 13 CD Box Set - released 20/Aug/2014 ] "this is a superb box set and a great boost to anyone's music collection, C.P.E. Bach or otherwise. It's stuffed with refreshingly vibrant performances and recordings, and is a joy to dip into or even to dive in and wade through in unseemly haste." ( |
Kronos Quartet with Michael Collins (Clarinet) Christopher van Kampen (cello) John Constable (piano)
Gorecki, Henryk - Lerchenmusik (Chamber Music) [ Nonesuch Records / CD - released 3/May/1991 ] "Lerchenmusik, completed in 1986, is the longest of the two compositions on this superlatively well performed and recorded disc." (Gramophone) |
DELIBES / MASSENET / DONIZETTI / OFFENBACH / SATIE / VIVALDI / etc
Mady Mesplé: A Portrait Mady Mesplé (soprano) with Nicolai Gedda, Michel Dens, Jose van Dam, & Charles Burles [ Erato / Warner Classics / 4 CD Box Set - released 5/Jul/2018 ] Homage to the remarkable French soprano Mady Mesplé, these four CDs comprise opera, operetta, song and contemporary music in many of her most celebrated roles, such as Lucia di Lammermoor & Lakmé (the Flower Duet was her most famous success) |
GAETANO DONIZETTI
Donizetti: Maria Stuarda (complete opera recorded in 2013) BLU-RAY Metropolitan Opera / Joyce DiDonato, Elza van den Heever, Matthew Polenzani, Matthew Rose / Maurizio Benini (cond) [ Erato / Warner Classics Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 16/Nov/2015 ] On New Year's Eve 2012 Joyce DiDonato became the first singer to take the title role in Donizetti's Maria Stuarda at New York's Metropolitan Opera. With her at its heart, the production became, in the words of Opera magazine, "a high point of the... |
HANDEL
Messiah (Complete oratorio arranged by Mozart) Audrey Michael, Magali Dami, Jard van Nes, Hans Peter Blochwitz / Ensemble Vocal et Instrumental de Lausanne, Michel Corboz [ Warner Classics / 2 CD - released 6/Apr/2009 ] 'There is much to praise in Corboz's realization of Mozart's revision… he has most appealing soloists… the orchestral playing is very stylish…the recording is truthful and well balanced and the acoustics of the Casino de Vevey, Switzerland, are very |
VARIOUS COMPOSERS
Jose van Dam - Autograph José van Dam (bass-baritone) with Roberto Alagna, Karita Mattila, Richard Leech, Cheryl Studer, etc [ Erato / Warner Classics / 10 CD Box Set - released 15/Mar/2015 ] As one of the great singers of his era, and an artist favoured by such conductors as Herbert von Karajan and Georg Solti, José van Dam recorded for all the major labels, including Warner labels Erato and Teldec, but he enjoyed an especially close... |
GEORG FRIDERIC HANDEL
Handel: Israel in Egypt (complete oratorio) Nancy Argenta (soprano) / Emily Van Evera (soprano) / Anthony Rolfe Johnson (tenor) David Thomas (bass) / Taverner Choir and Players / Andrew Parrott [ Erato / Warner Classics / 2 CD - released 18/Mar/2003 ] 'If anyone needs to assure themselves as to whether the English choral tradition is alive and well, they need only buy this CD.' Gramophone |