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LULLABY CLASSICS
Lullaby Classics (Including Clair de Lune, Dance of the Sugar-Plum Fairy, Fantasia on Greensleeves & Sheep May Safely Graze) Various artists including Howard Shelley, Craig Ogden, Cantilena, I Musici di Montreal, Scottish National Orchestra, etc [ Chandos 241 / 2 CD - released 1/Jul/2004 ] 'Proving music that sends you to sleep is no bad thing, these slumbering classics from Fauré's Berceuse to Schumann's Kinderszenen will soothe parents and children alike.' Classic FM Magazine |
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COATES / WALTON / GOODWIN / BLISS / ELGAR / VAUGHAN WILLIAMS / etc
Remembrance Classics Various Artists including Royal Scottish National Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic [ Chandos 241 / 2 CD - released 1/Oct/2004 ] Music with a war or patriotic theme including Land of Hope and Glory, Onward Christian Soldiers & the Battle of Britain March |
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ORCHESTRAL SPECTACULAR
Orchestral Spectacular (Incls 'Bolero', 1812 Overture & 'Polovtsian Dances') Royal Philharmonic Orchestra / St. Petersburg State Symphony Orchestra / Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra / various conductors [ Naxos Super Budget Series / CD - released 30/Jun/2008 ] "The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra provide their own Spanish magic" - Essex Chronicle |
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CLASSICS FOR FUNERALS
In Memory of... (Classics for Funerals) Various performers incls Scottish National Orchestra, the Sixteen, BBC Philharmonic, Emma Kirkby, Detroit Symphony [ Chandos / 2 CD - released 1/Jan/2005 ] Morbid though the subject of this disc may seem, it was very definitely the logical next Bear Essentials release. We are regularly contacted by bereaved relatives, who ask us to suggest suitable music for use at funerals - as indeed, we are told, are... |
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FRANK BRIDGE
Orchestral Works [6 CD set] Various Soloists / BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Richard Hickox [ Chandos / 6 CD Box Set - released 1/Aug/2012 ] The complete orchestral works by Frank Bridge are here released in an attractive six-disc box for the first time, as part of the new Hickox Legacy commemorative series on Chandos Records, leading up to (and continuing beyond) the fifth anniversary,... |
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JOHN TAVENER
Richard Hickox conducts Sir John Tavener (Incls 'Theophany') Patricia Rozario, John Mark Ainsley & Andrew Murgatroyd / Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Richard Hickox [ Chandos 241 / 2 CD - released 28/May/2012 ] "While there may be doubts over the music there can be no doubt as to the excellence and commitment of all three performances on this pair of discs. The recorded sound and booklet are up to the usual very high Chandos standards." (MusicWeb, Aug 2012) |
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JOSEPH CANTELOUBE
Chants d'Auvergne (Selection) Veronique Gens (soprano) / Lille National Orchestra, Jean-Claude Casadesus, conductor [ Naxos / CD - released 2/Apr/2005 ] "This recording is so distinctive that I've little doubt it will be the definitive Chants d'Auvergne for many years to come. Gens raises Naxos's artistic image by her brilliance, and this recording will sell, and sell, and sell ......" - Anne Ozorio |
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JOSEPH CANTELOUBE
Canteloube: Chants d'Auvergne (selections), Vol. 2 / Chant de France / Triptyque Veronique Gens (Soprano) / Lille National Orchestra / Serge Baudo [ Naxos / CD - released 11/Nov/2007 ] "There's more to Canteloube than the Auvergne, so splendidly shown here. At a time when precious few sopranos ascend to true superstardom, I'd say that Véronique Gens deserves to be up there with the likes of (arguably) Natalie Dessay and Angela... |
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HENRI DUTILLEUX / PASCAL DUSAPIN
Dutilleux: Tout un monde lointain / Dusapin: Outscape Victor Julien-Laferrière (cello) / Orchestre National de France; Kristiina Poska, David Robertson [ Alpha Classics / CD - released 26/May/2023 ] Victor Julien-Laferrière, winner in 2017 of the first Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition of Belgium dedicated to the cello, presents here two French works for cello and orchestra: Outscape by Pascal Dusapin: "The title itself carries the... |
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JULES MASSENET
Massenet: Manon (complete opera recorded in 1955) with works by Debussy & Berlioz Victoria de los Angeles / Henri Legay / Jean Borthayre / Michel Dens / Orchestra & Chorus of the Theatre National de lOpera Comique / Pierre Monteux [ Naxos Historical Great Opera Recordings / 3 CD Box Set - released 1/May/2009 ] "This set is essential listening for anyone who wants to get the feel for what Manon sounded like at the Opéra Comique. It is a precious record of a vanished performance style and has the great advantage of a ravishing Manon from de Los Angeles." --... |
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GEORGES BIZET
Bizet: Carmen (Complete Opera recorded in 1959) Victoria de los Angeles, Nicolai Gedda, Janine Micheau / French National Radio Symphony Orchestra / Sir Thomas Beecham [ ALTO / 3 CD Box Set - released 20/Nov/2010 ] "This superb Carmen wipes the floor with any other version I know. The instinctive rightness of the whole conception is simply marvellous." (Gramophone) |
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SCHUBERT / WEBERN / RAVEL / BARTOK / BEETHOVEN / TCHAIKOVSKY / etc
Salzburg Festival Concerts [2007 - 2013] BLU-RAY Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra / West-Eastern Divan Orchestra / National Children´s Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela / Various conductors [ C Major Blu-ray / 6 Blu-ray Box Set - released 1/May/2015 ] A Box Set releasing 6 Concerts from the Salzburg Festival recorded between 2007 and 2013, featuring the Wiener Philharmoniker, the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, the National Children´s Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela under the batons of Pierre... |
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ARVO PART
Arvo Part Viktoria Mullova (violin) / Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, Paavo Jarvi [ Onyx / CD - released 21/Sep/2018 ] "Immutable, austere, impassable - the strength of Arvo Pärt's music lies in its ability to project an image as powerful and complete as the religious iconography it often seeks to replicate." Gramophone |
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SAINT-SAENS
Symphony No. 3 'Organ' / Danse macabre, Op. 40 / etc Vincent Warnier (organ) / Orchestre National de Lyon, Leonard Slatkin [ Naxos / CD - released 20/Jan/2015 ] To celebrate the inauguration of the newly restored former organ of the Palais du Trocadéro and Palais de Chaillot in Paris, the Orchestre National de Lyon and their organist-in-residence, Vincent Warnier, present two major works for organ and... |
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HAVERGAL BRIAN
Brian: Symphony No. 1, The Gothic Vladimir Dolezal (tenor) / Eva Jenisova (soprano) / Peter Mikulas (bass) / Dagmar Peckova (alto) / Slovak National Opera / Lenard [ Naxos / 2 CD - released 12/Jun/2004 ] "Now it's reissued at bargain price, no one who claims the slightest interest in 20th-century British music has any further excuse to be without this thrilling, astonishing work." Calum MacDonald, BBC Music Magazine, 08/04 |
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JACQUES OFFENBACH
Les Divas d'Offenbach Véronique Gens (soprano), Hervé Niquet, Chœur Et Orchestre National Des Pays de La Loire [ Alpha / CD - released 12/Oct/2025 ] "...Captured in warm, glowing sound, with the superb Choeur et Orchestre des Pays de la Loire matching the music's joie de vivre under Hervé Niquet, this is simply a delight." BBC Music Five Stars |
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FRANCIS POULENC
Poulenc: La Voix Humaine / Sinfonietta Véronique Gens (soprano) / Orchestre National de Lille, Alexandre Bloch [ Alpha Classics / CD - released 6/Jan/2023 ] "There is little question that it ranks among her finest achievements...Gens and Bloch take us through this complex terrain in ways that combine directness with admirable restraint." Gramophone Editor's Choice Feb 23 |
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BERLIOZ / RAVEL
Véronique Gens sings Berlioz & Ravel Véronique Gens (soprano) / Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire, John Axelrod [ Ondine / CD - released 1/Apr/2013 ] "Gens bring [Herminie] to life as sympathetically as any of her operatic portrayals...It is unusual to encounter a recording of Les nuits d'ete in which the colouring is so consistent throughout...Gens has in her sights a purer kind of poetry."... |
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MAURICE RAVEL
Ravel: Cantates Pour Le Prix de Rome Véronique Gens, Vannina Santoni, Clarisse Dalles, Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire [ BIS SACD / 2 Hybrid SACD - released 6/May/2022 ] "a delicious surprise..what is beyond doubt in the three cantatas and handful of elaborated choruses presented here is his supremely affecting way with the voice above and beyond his already considerable orchestral skills." Gramophone Award Finalist |
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RICAHRD WAGNER
The Best Of Wagner Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra & Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, Michael Halasz, Uwe Mund & Johannes Wildner [ Naxos / CD - released 6/May/1997 ] The perfect introduction to the orchestral music of Richard Wagner |