Search Results: classics direct december special
Displaying items 1 to 40 of 49
BELLINI / BERLIOZ / DELIBES / HANDEL / OFFENBACH / PUCCINI
Flower Duet: The World's Most Beautiful Duets Brigitte Fassbaender, Marilyn Horne, Dame Joan Sutherland, Renata Tebaldi [ Decca Australian Eloquence / CD - released 1/Oct/2009 ] Since the beginning of opera, the convention of the duet, in which two characters simultaneously express their feelings, has been one of the staple ploys of musical dramatists. Collected here are all the most beautiful opera duets ever written. |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: La Traviata (complete opera recorded in 1962) Joan Sutherland, Carlo Bergonzi, Robert Merill / Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino / Sir John Pritchard [ Decca Australian Eloquence / 2 CD - released 15/Mar/2012 ] "Sutherland's performance puts lovely things in the listener's way at every stage" (Gramophone) |
RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS
Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on 'Greensleeves' / Oboe Concerto / Tuba Concerto / The Lark Ascending (with music by Delius & Walton) Neil Black (oboe) Arnold Jacobs (tuba) Pinchas Zukerman (violin) / Chicago Symphony Orchestra / English Chamber Orchestra / Daniel Barenboim [ SBS Deutsche Grammophon Australian Eloquence / CD - released 20/May/2007 ] Daniel Barenboim's sumptuous performances of English music have long been favourites and here they are beautifully remastered with state-of-the-art technology for this release. |
GILBERT & SULLIVAN
Gilbert & Sullivan: The Mikado / Trial By Jury Peter Pratt, Donald Adams, Thomas Round, Jean Hindmarsh, Kenneth Sandford, Julia Goss / D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, Isadore Godfrey, Royston Nash [ Australian Decca Eloquence / 2 CD - released 12/Dec/2015 ] I am pretty safe in saying that this recording is probably one of the best G & S recordings..ever! A cast to die for! Listen to Thomas Round's most beautiful rendering of "Wand'ring minstrel" and the horrific crazy laugh of Donald Adams as the Mikado |
ALBENIZ / TURINA / MONTSALVATORE / SURINACH
Alicia de Larrocha - Concertos from Spain Alicia de Larrocha (piano) / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra / London Philharmonic Orchestra / Rafael Fruhbeck de Burgos [ Decca SBS Australian Eloquence / CD - released 12/Dec/2009 ] In 1977 Decca released an LP entitled 'Concertos from Spain' which coupled two contemporary piano concertos - those by Montsalvatge (Concerto Breve, written for Alicia de Larrocha) and Surinach's Piano Concerto. The Surinach - a kind of Spanish... |
RICHARD WAGNER
Birgit Nilsson Sings Wagner Birgit Nilsson (soprano) / Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, Leif Segerstam / London Symphony, Sir Colin Davis [ Decca SBS Australian Eloquence / 2 CD - released 1/Sep/2008 ] "Even allowing for the fact that these were demonstration records when they first appeared, the sound on this CD is astonishing in its lifelike presence and its warmth." Gramophone |
TRADITIONAL CHILDRENS
The Wonderful World of Nursery Rhymes Kenneth McKellar & Vera Lynn [ Australian Decca Eloquence / CD - released 10/Oct/2018 ] In March 1959 and May 1963, respectively, Vera Lynn and Kenneth McKellar - two of Decca's best-selling exclusive artists - went into the studio to record albums of nursery rhymes. Simply, but deliciously scored, with several touches of humour, the... |
ANTONIN DVORAK / JULES MASSENET
Dvorak: Slavonic Dances / Massenet: Le Cid (Ballet music) with Meyerbeer's 'Les Patineurs' London Symphony Orchestra / Israel Philharmonic Orchestra / Jean Martinon [ Decca ABC Eloquence / CD - released 1/Feb/2006 ] "In Martinon's hands, Massenet's tunes fizz and effervesce like the best champagne." (Rosette Penguin Stereo Guide) |
MIKLOS ROZSA
Rozsa: Ben Hur, Julius Caesar & Quo Vadis Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, National Philharmonic Orchestra, Miklos Rozsa & Bernard Herrmann [ Decca SBS Australian Eloquence / 2 CD - released 20/Dec/2010 ] "The whole disc is brilliantly played and as brilliantly recorded" (Gramophone on Ben Hur) |
![Stravinsky: L'Histoire du soldat [The Soldier's Tale] / Octet for Wind Instruments (with Schoenberg - Chamber Symphony No. 1) cover](https://images.marbecks.co.nz/_thumbnails/10178/10178476.jpg)
IGOR STRAVINSKY
Stravinsky: L'Histoire du soldat [The Soldier's Tale] / Octet for Wind Instruments (with Schoenberg - Chamber Symphony No. 1) Sir John Gielgud (narrator), Tom Courtenay (The Soldier), Ron Moody (The Devil) / Boston Symphony Chamber Players [ Australian Deutsche Grammophon Eloquence / 2 CD - released 1/Feb/2011 ] "These Boston players give immaculately polished accounts of all five [chamber] works … The recording is excellent - clear without dryness, warm without over-resonance" (Reissue of the Month Gramophone Feb 2011) |
MODEST MUSSORGSKY
Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition (both piano & orchestral versions) Vladimir Ashkenazy / Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, Zubin Mehta [ Australian Decca Eloquence / CD - released 23/May/2001 ] Two versions of this masterpiece: the original piano work and the Ravel orchestration. |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Serenades & Divertimenti Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, Neville Marriner [ Philips Australian Eloquence / 2 CD - released 20/Aug/2011 ] "This reissue … tends to sweep the board. The playing is marvellous, and Marriner's choice of tempi is equally apt. The Argo recording, rich in texture and detail, sounds admirably fresh here. […] The sparkle of this music-making is irresistible."... |
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Beethoven: Piano Concerto No 5 Emperor / Concerto in D major for Piano & Orchestra (Arranged by the composer from the Violin Concerto) Alicia de Larrocha, Olli Mustonen (pianos) / Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra / Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie [ Decca ABC Australian Eloquence / CD - released 27/Jan/2006 ] Spanish pianist Alicia de Larrocha's first recording of Beethoven's Emperor is a grand and thrilling affair and this recording here receives its first release on CD. |
JOSEF HAYDN
Haydn: Piano Trios Vol 1 Andras Schiff (piano) Yuuko Shiokawa (violin) Boris Pergamenschikow (cello) [ ABC Decca Eloquence / CD - released 1/May/2005 ] 'Schiff and his colleagues relish the wit, brilliance and sheer speed of Haydn's thoughts in the outer movements, with their comic off-beat accents, sudden changes of register and breathtaking harmonic scope., (Gramophone) |
JOSEF HAYDN
Haydn: Piano Trios Vol 2 Andras Schiff (piano) Yuuko Shiokawa (violin) Boris Pergamenschikow (cello) [ ABC Decca Australian Eloquence / CD - released 1/May/2005 ] 'Schiff and his colleagues relish the wit, brilliance and sheer speed of Haydn's thoughts in the outer movements, with their comic off-beat accents, sudden changes of register and breathtaking harmonic scope., (Gramophone) |
JOHANNES BRAHMS
Brahms: Violin Concerto / Alto Rhapsody / Overtures Arthur Grumiaux (violin) Aafje Heynis (contralto) / Concertgebouw Orchestra, Amsterdam / Eduard van Beinum [ Decca SBS Australian Eloquence / CD - released 1/Jul/2010 ] "(Aafje Heynis') This is lovely, spontaneous singing. When the chorus enter the radiant solo line is further enhanced, integrated yet free. A truly moving performance unerringly paced." Gramophone Magazine |
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN / GIOVANNI BATTISTA VIOTTI
Beethoven: Violin Concerto in D / Viotti: Violin Concerto No. 22 Arthur Grumiaux (violin) / New Philharmonia Orchestra / Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra [ ABC Philips Australian Eloquence / CD - released 1/Dec/2005 ] "Among the finest ever committed to disc...imbued with a spirit of classical serenity." - Penguin Guide to Compact Discs |
RICHARD STRAUSS
Strauss (R.): Orchestral Songs / Tod und Verklärung Siegfried Jerusalem (tenor), Gewandhausorchester Leipzig Kurt Masur / Royal Concergebouw Orchestra Bernard Haitink [ Decca Australian Eloquence / CD - released 1/May/2005 ] Lovers of Richard Strauss' music have long considered the Jerusalem disc of orchestral songs a 'must-have' in their collection. They are sheerly glorious - as is the 'heldentenor' of Siegfried Jerusalem. They are now reissued with Haitink's searing... |
MAURICE RAVEL
Ravel: String Quartet / Piano Trio / Introduction et Allegro Beaux Arts Trio / Carmirelli Quartet / Chamber Music Society of Amsterdam / Eduard van Beinum [ Decca ABC Australian Eloquence / CD - released 1/Mar/2006 ] 'this new Beaux Arts performance, even more than their previous one, is most sensitive to the music's ebb and flow, acutely aware of its inventive new combinations of sounds ... the new Beaux Arts recording now becomes the prime recommendation'... |
PETER ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY / DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH
Tchaikovsky / Shostakovich: Violin Concertos Boris Belkin (violin) /New Philharmonia, Royal Philharmonic, Vladimir Ashkenazy [ ABC Decca Australian Eloquence / CD - released 1/Sep/2018 ] Now, Eloquence release, for the first time, Belkin's sizzling accounts of the Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich Violin Concertos.. |
JOHANN STRAUSS 11
Strauss Waltz Gala The Waltz Collection (Incls The Blue Danube & Roses from the South) Boston Pops Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Antal Dorati, Arthur Fiedler [ Australian Decca SBS Eloquence / CD - released 14/Jul/2014 ] From 'On the Beautiful Blue Danube' to 'Roses from the South'. The ideal romantic evening escape with the Austrian waltz master. |
JOSEF HAYDN
Haydn: Symphonies No. 94 'Surprise', 96 'Miracle' & 97 Concertgebouw Orchestra, Eduard van Beinum [ Decca ABC Australian Eloquence / CD - released 8/May/2006 ] One of the world's most benevolent conductors who cajoled out of his orchestras some of the most luminous sounds ever to be heard in concert and on record. He recorded extensively with the Concertgebouw for Philips and earlier, for Decca. Three Haydn... |
GUSTAV MAHLER
Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde Dame Janet Baker (mezzo-soprano), James King (tenor) / Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra /Bernard Haitink [ Philips Australian Eloquence / CD - released 16/Apr/2002 ] "This is the only Das Lied you'll ever need, and the recorded sound is of demonstration quality" - 10/10 ClassicsToday.com |
FREDE GROFE
Grofe: Grand Canyon Suite / Mississippi Suite (with Gershwin-Porgy and Bess Symphonic Picture) Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Antal Dorati / Eastman-Rochester Orchestra, Howard Hanson [ Decca Australian Eloquence / CD - released 1/Nov/2007 ] "never more beautifully recorded … the performance is totally memorable and the sound quite superb" [Porgy and Bess] Penguin Guide to CDs |
GILBERT and SULLIVAN
Gilbert & Sullivan: H.M.S. Pinafore (Complete Opera recorded in 1971) D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, with John Reed, Pauline Wales, Thomas Lawlor, Christine Palmer, Ralph Mason / James Walker (cond) [ Decca Australian Eloquence / 2 CD - released 20/Jun/2018 ] "There is a real sense of staging and movement which is all to the good. The dialogue is well handled and is very much a plus factor.' Fanfare, November/December 1983 |
CAMPION / DOWLAND / MORLEY / BARTLETT / etc
An Elizabethan Songbook Emma Kirkby (soprano) Anthony Rooley (lute) [ Decca ABC Australian Eloquence / CD - released 27/Jul/2005 ] "This a wonderful disc. Delightful songs. Kirkby's clear, pure voice complemented by Rooley's sympathetic lute accompaniment" (MusicWeb Dec 2005) |
HAYDN / MOZART / HUMMEL
Haydn, Mozart, Hummel: Oboe Concertos Ernest Rombout (oboe) / Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra [ Decca ABC Australian Eloquence / CD - released 10/Jul/2005 ] These peerless recordings of Oboe Concertos are despatched with beautiful clarity by Ernest Rombout both playing the oboe and directing the Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra. |
J. S. BACH
Bach: Magnificat / Cantata BWV 31 / Easter Oratorio Fritz Wunderlich (tenor) Friederike Sailer (soprano) Margarete Bence (alto) August Messthaler (bass) / Stuttgarter Bach-Orchester, Marcel Couraud [ Decca Australian Eloquence / 2 CD - released 1/Jul/2019 ] In 1957, Fritz Wunderlich together with colleagues Friederike Sailer, Margarete Bence and August Messthaler, set down complete versions of three Bach choral works - the Magnificat, the Cantata BWV 31 and the Easter Oratorio. |
MODEST MUSSORGSKY / PYOTR TCHAIKOVSKY
Galina Vishnevskaya sings Russian Songs Galina Vishnevskaya (soprano) & Mstislav Rostropovich (piano) [ Decca SBS Australian Eloquence / CD - released 1/Nov/2019 ] "Intensity is the keynote of these performances. Mme. Vishnevskaya has a rich dramatic voice of characteristically Slavonic timbre, highly charged emotionally..she is invaluably aided by accompaniments of infinite sensibility by her husband" Gramopho |
CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Debussy: 24 Préludes Hans Henkemans (piano) [ Decca Australian Eloquence / CD - released 1/Jul/2019 ] Debussy's 'Preludes' represent one of the great cultural 'events' of the 20th century, exploring both the vivid and near-invisible colours of the piano...all 24 'Preludes' on a single disc. |
JEAN SIBELIUS
Sibelius: Violin Concerto in D minor / En Saga / Tapiola / Finlandia / Four Legends / etc (rec 1953 & 1958) Jan Damen (violin) / Concertgebouw Orchestra, Amsterdam / London Philharmonic Orchestra / Eduard van Beinum [ Decca ABC Australian Eloquence / 2 CD - released 20/Jul/2008 ] Eduard van Beinum was quite a Sibelius pioneer and collected here are his complete Sibelius recordings for Decca and Philips. The set also marks the first appearance on CD of his Violin Concerto in a 1952 performance by Jan Damen. |
FRANZ LISZT
Liszt: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 / Hungarian Fantasy / etc Jean-Yves Thibaudet (piano) / Orchestre symphonique de Montreal / Charles Dutoit [ Decca Australian Eloquence / CD - released 1/Dec/2006 ] "Indeed, I have only praise. Each of the four works here is well characterized, and the typically Lisztian varying tempos are spot on, unrushed but never deliberate and always leading naturally from one to the next. Climactic passages are powerful,... |
J. S. BACH / DOMENICO & ALESSANDRO SCARLATTI
Bach & Scarlatti: Guitar Suites and Sonatas John Williams (guitar) [ Decca Australian Eloquence / CD - released 14/Apr/1994 ] 'self recommending' 24 Hours |
NICOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV
Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade / Russian Easter Festival Overture London Philharmonic Orchestra, Adrian Boult / London Symphony Orchestra, Pierre Monteux [ Decca SBS Australian Eloquence / CD - released 10/Aug/2015 ] In his most famous orchestral composition, Scheherazade, Rimsky-Korsakov, like Beethoven in his 'Pastoral' Symphony before him, was more interested in evoking feelings and impressions than in spoon-feeding listeners a pre-digested program. So the... |
OTTORINO RESPIGHI
Respighi: Pines of Rome, The Birds, Fountains of Rome London Symphony Orchestra, Istvan Kertesz [ Decca Australian Eloquence / CD - released 1/Jun/2019 ] Three of Respighi's most colourful and popular orchestral works in truly legendary performances. |
PIOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY
Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker (complete ballet) / Suite No. 3 / Suite No. 4 'Mozartiana' LOrchestre de la Suisse Romande, Ernest Ansermet [ Decca ABC Australian Eloquence / 2 CD - released 1/May/2009 ] The 2CD Tchaikovsky/Ansermet sets represent his complete Tchaikovsky recordings for Decca. For many, Ansermet's recording of The Nutcracker is in a league of its own. Refined, yet passionate, many of the pieces on these recordings make their first... |
PIOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY
Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake / Rococo Variations / Symphony No. 6 'Pathetique' L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Ernest Ansermet, with Maurice Gendron, cello [ Decca ABC Eloquence / 2 CD - released 1/May/2009 ] The 2CD Tchaikovsky/Ansermet sets represent his complete Tchaikovsky recordings for Decca. Many will find fascinating his own sequencing of numbers from Swan Lake and The Sleeping Beauty. Refined, yet passionate, many of the pieces on these... |
SERGEI RACHMANINOV
Rachmaninov: Symphonies Nos. 1-3 L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande / London Philharmonic Orchestra / Walter Weller [ ABC Australian Eloquence / 2 CD - released 1/Jul/2008 ] Although they have been intermittently available, Walter Weller's cycle of the three Rachmaninov Symphonies have hidden their blazing light under the Decca bushel for far too long. Recorded in absolutely thrilling Decca sound with L'Orchestre de la... |
MAURICE RAVEL
Ravel - The Early Ansermet Recordings Motet de Genève / L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Ernest Ansermet [ Decca Australian Eloquence / 2 CD - released 9/Apr/2007 ] Recorded between October 1951 and June 1953, these mono recordings have been much prized and sought-after by collectors and now reappear on CD at super-budget price. Ravel and Ansermet were well acquainted and that adds a special authenticity to... |
J. S. BACH
Bach: Concertos Neil Black (oboe d'amore) Carmel Kaine (violin) William Bennett (flute) / Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, Neville Marriner [ Decca Australian Eloquence / 2 CD - released 13/Jan/2003 ] 'it makes fascinating listening … excellence of playing and recording' Gramophone |
