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LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 3 (with Weber-Konzertstuck / Piano Sonata No. 1) (recorded 1941-47) Claudio Arrau (piano) / Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy / Chicago Symphony Orchestra / Desire Defauw [ Naxos Historical Great Pianists / CD - released 2/Oct/2007 ] "This is an account that does Weber proud and should ever be available. The documentary nature of this disc makes it a mandatory purchase for those interested in the great work of Claudio Arrau." (MusicWeb Nov 2007) |
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RICHARD STRAUSS
Strauss, (R.): Don Quixote / Don Juan Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Daniel Barenboim [ Warner Classics Maestro / CD - released 7/Apr/2008 ] |
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BRAHMS
Four Symphonies / Overtures / Variations on a theme by Haydn Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Daniel Barenboim [ Warner Classics / 4 CD Box Set - released 7/Mar/2005 ] "These well-played performances provoke modified rapture. […] the orchestral execution is quintessentially Brahmsian, with the conductor cultivating a dark, mellifluous, echt-German sonority, in contrast to the usual chrome-plated American style." (I |
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W. A. MOZART
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik & Divertimentos Chicago Symphony Orchestra, NBC Symphony Orchestra, Fritz Reiner [ Testament / CD - released 1/Jan/2015 ] |
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CAMILLE SAINT-SAENS
Saint-Saens: Symphony No 3 'Organ' / Le Deluge op.45 / Bacchanale from Samson et Dalila / Danse macabre Gaston Litaize (organ) / Chicago Symphony Orchestra / Orchestre de Paris / Daniel Barenboim [ Deutsche Grammophon The Originals / CD - released 6/Oct/2003 ] "I certainly do not know a rival version to match this in its warmth, its power and its sumptuous sound" (Gramophone) |
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HECTOR BERLIOZ
Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique / Lélio, ou Le Retour a la vie Gérard Depardieu (narrator), Mario Zeffiri (tenor) & Kyle Ketelsen (bass-baritone) / Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Riccardo Muti [ CSO Resound / 2 CD - released 1/Oct/2015 ] This recording features Berlioz's 'Symphonie fantastique' with its sequel 'Lelio' presented as Berlioz intended. Actor Gerard Depardieu is the narrator in 'Lelio', and Riccardo Muti and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, as part of their 120th season,... |
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JOHANNES BRAHMS
Brahms: Double Concerto for Violin and Cello (LP) Itzhak Perlman (violin) Yo-Yo Ma (cello) / Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Daniel Barenboim [ Warner Classics / LP - released 29/Aug/2025 ] This recording of Brahms' Double Concerto with Itzhak Perlman and Yo-Yo Ma, with Daniel Barenboim conducting the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, was originally released in 1997, captured from a live recording at Orchestra Hall in Chicago in 1996. |
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ANTONIN DVORAK
Dvorak: Cello Concerto / Waldesruhe (Silent woods) Jacqueline du Pre (cello) / Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Daniel Barenboim [ Warner Classics Original Jacket Reissues / CD - released 15/Oct/2017 ] "Impressively remastered, spectacular in its realism, with well-defined detail, superb warmth and body, and fine perspective." |
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BOCCHERINI / DVORAK / ELGAR / HAYDN / MONN / etc
Jacqueline Du Pre - The Great Cello Concertos Jacqueline Du Pre (cello) / English Chamber Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, New Philhamonia Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra [ Warner Classics SACD / 4 Hybrid SACD - released 4/Apr/2025 ] Du Pré was born in Oxford, England, the second child of Iris Greep and Derek du Pré. Derek was born in Jersey, where his family had lived for generations. After working as an accountant at Lloyds Bank in St Helier and London, he became assistant... |
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RAVEL
Daphnis et Chloe [complete ballet] (with Poulenc - Gloria) Jessica Rivera (soprano) / Chicago Symphony Orchestra & Chorus / Bernard Haitink, Conductor [ CSO Resound / CD - released 1/Jun/2009 ] "The exultant devotion of the music radiated from their singing. Haitink led a fervent performance, majestic for the opening 'Gloria in excelsis Deo,' light-footed thereafter." Chicago Tribune |
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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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ZOLTAN KODALY
Kodaly: Háry János Suite; Dances of Galánta;'Peacock' Variations; Dances of Marosszék (recorded 1956-59) Minneapolis Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonia Hungarica, Antal Dorati [ Alto / CD - released 10/Feb/2020 ] "(Suite) "Suite is crisp and vigorous, excellent stereo …outstanding disc" (Penguin) |
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PROKOFIEV
'Romeo and Juliet' Suite Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Riccardo Muti [ CSO Resound / CD - released 1/Nov/2014 ] "The bite and the weight to the sound of this recording is certainly impressive. There's elegance as well: "The Young Juliet" is bewitching; "The Balcony Scene" breathless; the final scene at the tomb, as heartfelt as you could wish … there's some fa |
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GEORG FRIDERIC HANDEL
Balbulus: Liber ymnorum Schola Antiqua of Chicago, Michael Alan Anderson [ Naxos / CD - released 28/Mar/2025 ] Notker Balbulus, also known as Notker of St Gall or Notker the Stammerer, was a renowned Benedictine monk at the Abbey of St Gall in Switzerland who made substantial contributions to both the music and literature of his time. |
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LISZT
A Faust Symphony / Dante Symphony / Les Preludes / Prometheus Siegfried Jerusalem (tenor) Chicago Symphony / London Philharmonic / Georg Solti [ Double Decca / 2 CD - released 12/Jul/2000 ] A 2-CD set offering Liszt's two powerful and dramatic symphonies. With their vivid "programme" material they make a strong coupling with two of the most famous pieces in the genre of "programme" music: the symphonic poems Les Préludes and Prometheus |
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GIACOMO PUCCINI
Puccini: Heroines Sondra Radvanovsky, Lyric Opera of Chicago Orchestra, Enrique Mazzola [ Pentatone / CD - released 27/Mar/2026 ] Sondra Radvanovsky, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and Enrique Mazzola present Puccini: Heroines, a live recording of an all-Puccini program performed in February 2025. Radvanovsky's extraordinary voice brings vivid individuality to each heroine, from the... |
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GAETANO DONIZETTI
Donizetti: The Three Queens Sondra Radvanovsky (soprano) / Lyric Opera of Chicago, Riccardo Frizza [ Pentatone / 2 CD - released 4/Mar/2022 ] "She is at her best as Maria Stuarda with a fine version of Mary's prayer soaring over the chorus." BBC Music |
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JOHANNES BRAHMS
Richter plays Brahms: Piano Concerto no.2, Piano Sonata no.2, etc Sviatoslav Richter (piano) Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Erich Leinsdorf [ Alto / CD - released 6/Jun/2025 ] "Richter's performance has all the intensity of a live occasion and finds him in splendid form. ... the basic structure is always kept in sight: there is impressive weight and authority as well as a warm Brahmsian feeling and it is far more dashing... |
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BRAHMS
Piano Concerto No. 2 / Violin Sonata No. 1 Sviatoslav Richter (piano) with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra [ Alto / CD - released 27/Jun/2014 ] |