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BEETHOVEN
Eroica / Symphony No. 3 Ian Hart / Tim Pigott-Smith / Claire Skinner / Jack Davenport / Orchestre RACvolutionnaire et Romantique / Sir John Eliot Gardiner [ BBC / Opus Arte DVD / DVD - released 5/May/2005 ] G :- 'Ian Hart is brilliant as Beethoven, a volatile, magnetic figure of genius and uncouth charm…not to be missed.' -- Daily Mail |
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SIBELIUS / ELGAR
Violin Concertos (recorded 1984 & 1993) Ida Haendel (violin) / City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra / Sir Simon Rattle [ Testament / CD - released 10/Oct/2009 ] "..it is Haendel's thoroughly personal input of humanity, expressive power, and her dynamic fusion of immediacy and profound insight that puts this performance in a class of its own. It is simply mind-blowing." The Telegraph, 28th July 2009 ***** |
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MICHAEL TIPPETT
A Child of our Time (complete) Indra Thomas (soprano) Mihoko Fujimura (alto) Steve Davislim (tenor) / London Symphony Chorus & Orchestra, Sir Colin Davis [ LSO Live SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 1/Sep/2008 ] "There are emotional depths here which turn this recording into something very special." (Gramophone Editor's Choice September 2008) |
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CAMILLE SAINT-SAENS / FREDERICK DELIUS
Saint-Saens/Delius: Cello Concertos Jacqueline du Pré (cello), The Philadelphia Orchestra, Daniel Barenboim, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Malcolm Sargent [ Warner Classics / LP - released 24/Jan/2025 ] In this important live recording, Jacqueline Du Pré's rendition of Camille Saint-Saëns' famous 1st Cello Concerto is made all the more sentimental with her husband Daniel Barenboim conducting The Philadelphia Orchestra behind her. |
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EDWARD ELGAR
Elgar: Orchestral Works, Cello Concerto, Sea Pictures, Dream of Gerontius Jacqueline du Pre (cello) Dame Janet Baker (mezzo) Richard Lewis (tenor) / Halle Orchestra / Philharmonia Orchestra, Sir John Barbirolli [ EMI British Composers / 7 CD Box Set - released 25/Mar/2022 ] Born in London of Italian-French parents, Sir John Barbirolli (1899-1970) trained as a cellist and played in theatre and café orchestras before joining the Queen's Hall Orchestra under Sir Henry Wood in 1916. |
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EDWARD ELGAR / LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Elgar: Cello Concerto / Beethoven: The Ghost... Jacqueline du Pre in Portrait Jacqueline du Pre (cello) / Daniel Barenboim / Pinchas Zukerman / Sir John Barbirolli / Philharmonia Orchestra [ Opus Arte / BBC DVD / DVD - released 1/Sep/2004 ] Jacqueline du Pré's extraordinary career was cut cruelly short by illness in 1973 when she was only 28 years old. When she died 14 years later, she remained as vibrant a figure in the public mind as she had been at the pinnacle of her career. |
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EDWARD ELGAR
Elgar: Cello Concerto / Sea Pictures / Overture: Cockaigne Jacqueline Du Pre (cello) Dame Janet Baker (mezzo) / London Symphony Orchestra, Sir John Barbirolli [ Warner Classics Original Jacket Reissues / CD - released 22/Aug/2015 ] GRAMOPHONE MAGAZINE 100 GREATEST RECORDINGS OF ALL TIME |
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HECTOR BERLIOZ
Berlioz: Harold en Italie / Reverie et Caprice, Op. 8 / etc James Ehnes (violin & viola) / Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Sir Andrew Davis [ Chandos SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 20/May/2015 ] The virtuosic and nine-times Juno-winning Canadian James Ehnes is centre stage in a new recording of orchestral works by Berlioz, with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir Andrew Davis. This recording follows an extraordinarily rare... |
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J. S. BACH
Bach: St Matthew Passion, BWV244 James Gilchrist, Stephan Loges, Hannah Morrison, Zoë Brookshaw, Charlotte Ashley, Reginald Mobley / Monteverdi Choir, Sir John Eliot Gardiner [ Soli Deo Gloria / 2 CD - released 24/Feb/2017 ] "..a thoughtfully moulded, expertly executed and deeply committed reading, so honestly communicative of its intent and so free of self-conscious monumentalism, sententiousness or melodramatics...one of his finest achievements." Gramophone |
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JOHANNES BRAHMS
Brahms: Serenades Nos. 1 & 2 / Alto Rhapsody / Variations on a theme by Haydn / etc Janet Baker (alto) / London Philharmonic Orchestra & London Symhony Orchestra, Sir Adrian Boult [ EMI Gemini / 2 CD - released 20/Oct/2006 ] "Sir Adrian, courteous and thoughtful English gentleman, was for some reason not always willing to thrust Brahms's arguments fully home, and there is a little too much reserve in his music-making. Yet when he conducts for Dame Janet Baker, who sings... |
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DONIZETTI
Mary Stuart (Scenes from the opera in English) Janet Baker, English National Opera Orchestra and Chorus, Sir Charles Mackerras [ Chandos Opera in English / CD - released 17/Nov/2001 ] Janet Baker made her last appearances with English National Opera |
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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] |
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CHARLES IVES
Ives: Orchestral Works, Vol. 3 [ Incls Symphony No. 3 'The Camp Meeting'] Jean-Efflam Bavouzet (piano) / Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Sir Andrew Davis [ CHANDOS SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 3/Mar/2017 ] "This is one of the finest recordings - perhaps the best - of all the many I have heard of Ives." Recording of the Month MusicWeb |
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SIBELIUS
Violin Concerto / Finlandia, Op. 26 / Karelia Suite, Op. 11 / etc Jennifer Pike (violin) / Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Andrew Davis [ Chandos SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 1/Mar/2014 ] Jean Sibelius is perhaps best known for his seven great symphonies but there is also a large body of music for the concert hall, the theatre, and the salon, some of which is explored on this release. The Violin Concerto in D minor, Sibelius's only... |
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ARNE / ELGAR / WOOD / PARRY / WALTON / WILLIAMSON
The Last Night Of The Proms 1969 • 1971 • 1972 - Highlights Jessye Norman (soprano) Elizabeth Bainbridge (mezzo-soprano) / BBC Symphony Orchestra, BBC Choral Society, BBC Chorus, Sir Colin Davis [ Decca SBS Australian Eloquence / 2 CD - released 1/Jun/2019 ] Compiled together for the first time, historic recordings of the grand finale to the world's greatest music festival. |
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ELGAR
Symphonies 1 & 2 London Philharmonic Orchestra / Sir Adrian Boult [ Lyrita / 2 CD - released 21/Jun/2007 ] Elgar's two symphonies have a special place in English musical history. When they were first played they towered head and shoulders - in sheer technique, let alone content - above previous symphonic offerings by British composers. Today when we have... |
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GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: Requiem / Quattro pezzi sacri Joan Sutherland, Marilyn Horne, Luciano Pavarotti, Martti Talvela / Chicago Symphony Orchestra & Chorus / Sir Georg Solti [ Decca Originals / 2 CD - released 11/Nov/2007 ] "Horne is the formidable mezzo, although her singing isn't always lit with inner feeling. The beauty of the youthful Pavarotti's tone is admirable, but he is sometimes restrained by four-square support. Talvela is sonorous but lacks legato.... |
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GUSTAV MAHLER
Mahler: Symphony No 3 (with John Barbirolli - Elizabeth Suite) Lucretia West (alto) / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir John Barbirolli [ Testament / 2 CD - released 24/Oct/2005 ] Recorded 1969 & 1964 |
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JOHN IRELAND
These Things Shall Be / Piano Concerto / Overture: Satyricon / etc John Carol Case (baritone) Eric Parkin (piano) / London Philharmonic Choir & Orchestra / Sir Adrian Boult (conductor) [ Lyrita / CD - released 1/Jun/2007 ] "The 1970s origins of many of Lyrita’s too long delayed CD revivals need hold no fears for any purchaser. The forty plus year old sound remains an object lesson taught by the analogue tradition to the digital era. Not the essential Ireland apart from... |
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ERNEST JOHN MOERAN
Moeran: Concerto for Violin and Orchestra / Rhapsody in F sharp for Piano and Orchestra / Rhapsody No. 2 John Georgiadis (violin) John McCabe (piano) / London Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Adrian Boult / London Symphony Orchestra, Vernon Handley [ Lyrita / CD - released 1/Jun/2007 ] "A fine coupling including some classic Moeran in enduringly rewarding performances and recordings." (MusicWeb June 2007) |