PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOSVKY
Tchaikovsky: 1812 Overture / Marche Slave / Romeo and Juliet / Capriccio Italien / Hamlet / Symphonies New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein [ Sony Classical / 5 CD Box Set - released 13/Mar/2020 ] "The 1812 Overture in particular (has) a freshenss and exultancy notable even among the best of the other high-powered versions...the sound is thrillingly vivid throughout." (High Fidelity) |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: 6 String Quartets dedicated to Haydn / String Quintets Guarneri Quartet, with Ida Kavafian & Kim Kashkashian (violas) [ Sony / RCA Classical Masters / 6 CD Box Set - released 1/Jun/2012 ] "The E flat major Quartet has a high seriousness that the Guarneri rightly bring out without, I think, overloading the music...The Guarneri bring plenty of vigour and weight to the more boisterous Hunt Quartet." (original Gramophone review) |
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOSVKY
Tchaikovsky: The 6 Symphonies / The Nutcracker Suite / Romeo and Juliet / The Tempest / etc Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Claudio Abbado [ Sony Classical Masters / 6 CD Box Set - released 20/May/2011 ] "Romeo & Juliet played by Chicago SO is one of the most exciting and powerfully moving accounts on record, and the sound is sumptuous and every part of the score is articulated and vividly captured." 1001 Classical recordings you must hear before... |
W. A. MOZART
Alicia de Larrocha Plays Mozart Alicia de Larrocha (piano), André Previn (piano) / English Chamber Orchestra, The Orchestra of St. Luke's, Sir Colin Davis [ Sony / RCA Classical Masters / 6 CD Box Set - released 13/Mar/2020 ] "...this is a profound reading with many subtleties of touch and altogether a more weighty approach, especially evident in the slow movement. K491 is predictably dramatic. Marriner's orchestra is excellent." classical-music |
GEORGE GERSHWIN
Gershwin: An American in Paris / Rhapsody in Blue (with works by Bernstein) Columbia Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Leonard Bernstein (piano/conductor) [ Sony Classical Masters / CD - released 20/May/2011 ] "Mr. Bernstein is not only brilliant where brilliance is called for but he is supremely affectionate in the improvisatory passages and gives the impression of thoroughly enjoying himself, one that is by no means common." (Gramophone on Rhapsody in Blue) |
DVORAK
Andrew Davis conducts Dvorak (incls Symphonies 1-9) [7 CD set] Philharmonia Orchestra, Sir Andrew Davis [ Sony Classical Masters / 7 CD Box Set - released 1/Nov/2012 ] "This reissue of Andrew Davis's clean-cut, fresh performances has much in its favour. As a sample of Davis at his finest try the finale of the New World, an exhilarating reading of a movement which normally comes as a disappointment." (Gramophone) |
VIVALDI / BOCCHERINI / HAYDN / BEETHOVEN / SERVAIS / FRANCHOMME
Anner Bylsma plays Concertos and Ensemble Works [6 CD set] Anner Bylsma (cello) with Tafelmusik, L'Archibudelli, Collegium Aureum, etc [ Sony Classical Masters / 6 CD Box Set - released 15/Sep/2014 ] "Anner Bylsma is a tremendous enthusiast, whose high spirits and nervous energy never fail to manifest themselves in his performances." (Gramophone) |
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Beethoven: Symphonies 1-9 / Missa Solemnis NBC Symphony Orchestra, Arturo Toscanini, with Jerome Hines (bass), Robert Shaw Chorale [ Sony Classical Masters / 6 CD Box Set - released 1/Nov/2019 ] Between 1949 and 1952, in his mid-80s, Arturo Toscanini conducted his hand-picked NBC Symphony Orchestra in the 9 Symphonies, with RCA Victors microphones (mostly in Carnegie Hall) capturing the legendary maestros final thoughts on the great works.... |
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125 'Choral' Regula Mühlemann (soprano), Marie-Claude Chappuis (mezzo), Maximilian Schmitt (tenor), Thomas E. Bauer (bass) / Kammerorchester Basel, Giovanni Antoni [ Sony Classical Masters / CD - released 20/Feb/2019 ] "If you're in the market for a Ninth full of surprise and delight rather than soulful yearning or triumphalist breast-beating, look no further." Gramophone |
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Beethoven: The Complete String Quartets (the 1982 Live recordings) Juilliard String Quartet [ Sony Classical Masters / 9 CD Box Set - released 13/Nov/2020 ] The Juilliard String Quartet, which was founded in 1946 is one of the world's most prestigious string quartets in the world. In February 2011, the quartet received the NARAS Lifetime Achievement Award for its outstanding contributions to music. |
VERDI / PUCCINI / BIZET / WAGNER / LEONCAVALLO
The Best of the 3 Tenors Placido Domingo / Luciano Pavarotti / Jose Carreras / various conductors [ Sony Classical Masters / CD - released 20/May/2011 ] Here they are! The greatest tenor lineup in the world in a special programme of popular tenor arias and duets. |
RAVEL
Bolero / Rapsodie Espagnole / la Valse / etc (rec 1984) L'Orchestre National de France, Lorin Maazel [ Sony Classical Masters / CD - released 20/May/2011 ] "La valse is high powered with a mannered ending, but I enjoyed the rather sultry performance of the Rapsodie espagnole, while the Alborada is certainly brilliant." (Gramophone) |
MAHLER
Bruno Walter conducts Mahler [7 CD set] New York Philharmonic, Columbia Symphony, Bruno Walter [ Sony Classical Masters / 7 CD Box Set - released 20/May/2012 ] "This record comes to us so loaded with history and legend, and it carries its burden with such triumphant sure-footedness, that I have no hesitation in declaring it one of the greatest musical monuments of our time." (Gramophone on Symphony No 9) |
W. A. MOZART
Bruno Walter conducts Mozart [6 CD set] Zino Francescatti (violin) Irmgard Seefried (soprano), Jennie Tourel (alto), Léopold Simoneau (tenor) & William Warfield (bass) / Columbia Symphony [ Sony Classical Masters / 6 CD Box Set - released 1/Sep/2011 ] Born in Berlin in 1876, Bruno Walter entered the Stern Conservatory at the age of eight, intending to become a concert pianist, and made his conducting debut in Cologne at 17. Following appointments in Pressburg (now Bratislava), Riga and Berlin, he... |
CHOPIN / SCHUMANN / LISZT / RACHMANINOV / BEETHOVEN / etc
Byron Janis: The RCA Recordings 1950 - 1959 [5 CD set] Byron Janis (piano) / Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Fritz Reiner [ Sony / RCA Classical Masters / 5 CD Box Set - released 16/Oct/2016 ] Byron Janis has been called one of the most exciting and dynamic American pianists to emerge on the post-war scene. All of his RCA recordings, dating from 1947 to 1959, are collected in the new 5-CD set. |
BACH / GABRIELI / HANDEL / MOZART / VIVALDI / etc
Canadian Brass: from Monteverdi to Mozart [5 CD set] Canadian Brass [ Sony Classical Masters / 5 CD Box Set - released 1/Sep/2011 ] This album is a re-issue of the acclaimed ensemble Canadian Brass who have recorded works from the Renaissance and Baroque as well as a number of works by Mozart. |
FREDERIC CHOPIN
Artur Rubinstein: The Chopin Collection (10 CDs special price) Artur Rubinstein (piano) with New Symphony Orchestra & Symphony of the Air [ Sony Classical Masters / 10 CD Box Set - released 1/May/2011 ] "The florid gusto of Rubinstein's playing may not suit modern tastes, but he is clearly engaged with his material, rendering such considerations meaningless; and at his best, he is breathtaking." the Independent |
HERRMANN / NEWMAN / KORNGOLD / TIOMKIN / ROZSA / WAXMAN
Charles Gerhardt conducts Classic Film Scores National Philharmonic Orchestra, Charles Gerhardt, with Kiri te Kanawa (soprano) & Norma Procter (contralto) [ RCA Red Seal / Sony music Masters / 12 CD Box Set - released 13/Mar/2020 ] In the 1970s, the Classic Film Scores series introduced a new generation to the sumptuous sound of music in Hollywood's "Golden Age." |
FELIX MENDELSSOHN
Claus Peter Flor conducts Mendelssohn Lucia Popp (sop) Marjana Lipovšek (mezzo) Josef Protschka (tenor) Sergei Edelmann (piano) Kyoko Takezawa (violin) / Bamberg Symphony, Claus Peter Flor [ Sony / RCA Classical Masters / 6 CD Box Set - released 1/Jun/2017 ] "Claus Peter Flor's Mendelssohn enjoys the classical virtues of good taste, fine attention to detail, and a real sense of style...these are perfectly respectable and entertaining performances, well recorded. You won't be disappointed." (ClassicsToday) |
ANTON WEBERN
The Complete Music of Anton Webern Robert Craft (conductor & musical director) with Marni Nixon, Grace-Lynne Martin, Richard Robinson, Charles Scharbach & others [ Sony Classical Masters / 4 CD Box Set - released 10/Dec/2021 ] The most comprehensive collection of Anton Webern. All of the performers, as well as additional instrumentalists and choral singers, were selected from Hollywood film studios. |