HAYDN / MOZART / BOCCHERINI / DVORAK / BEETHOVEN / KELEMEN / etc
Antonio Janigro: the rare Cello Recordings Antonio Janigro (cello), with Gunhild Stappenbec, Paul Badura-Skoda (piano) / Orchestra Sinfonica di Roma della RAI, Zagreb Soloists, etc [ Profil Hanssler / 4 CD Box Set - released 20/Mar/2020 ] "Janigro was one of those all-round musicians who excel in anything they turn their hands to. This welcome release showcases his artistry to the full, and it receives my wholehearted recommendation." MusicWeb |
ANTOINE DE LHOYER
Lhoyer: Complete Guitar Duos Antonio Rugolo, Angelo Gillo (guitars) [ Brilliant Classics / 5 CD Box Set - released 1/Apr/2021 ] Antoine de Lhoyer was born at Clermont-Ferrand, in the heart of France. Although he developed his apparent musicality with excellent teachers in Paris he nevertheless embarked upon a military career and entered the Kings Guards at Versailles shortly... |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Die Walkure (complete opera) (Recorded in stereo live at the 1955 Bayreuth Festival) Astrid Varnay / Gre Brouwenstijn / Hans Hotter / Ramon Vinay / Bayreuth Festival Orchestra / Joseph Keilberth [ Testament / 4 CD Box Set - released 23/Jun/2006 ] "The second instalment of what is proving to be a definitive Ring...Hans Hotter is the crowning glory of this instalment, fresher-voiced than for Solti. But there isn't a weak link in a cast that we can only dream of today. As for Joseph Keilberth,... |
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Beethoven: Complete Symphonies (Nos 1-9) Barbara Bonney, Birgit Remmert, Kurt Streit, Thomas Hampson / City Of Birmingham Symphony Chorus / Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. Sir Simon Rattle [ Warner Classics / 5 CD Box Set - released 1/Jul/2010 ] A superbly played account by one of the world's great orchestras. ***** Five Stars (Pick of the Month) BBC Music Magazine |
JOHANNES BRAHMS
Brahms: Complete Works For Solo Piano Barry Douglas (piano) [ Chandos / 6 CD Box Set - released 5/Jan/2018 ] "..his tone is a deep velvet cushion, the legatos full of affection and the rhythms galvanised with great energy." BBC Music Magazine |
JOHANN LADISLAUS DUSSEK
Dussek: Complete Piano Sonatas & Sonatinas Bart van Oort, Viviana Sofronitski, Petra Somlai, Wolfgang Brunner, Alexei Lubimov, Tuija Hakkila, Zvi Meniker, Ursula Dütschler, Piet Kuijken (period [ Brilliant Classics / 10 CD Box Set - released 22/Mar/2024 ] Johann Ladislaus Dussek (1760-1812) was regarded by his contemporaries as one of the foremost keyboard performers and composers of his age. |
VARIOUS COMPOSERS
Rafael Kubelík: Complete Recordings on Deutsche Grammophon Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Rafael Kubelik [ Deutsche Grammophon / 66 CD Box Set - released 22/Jun/2019 ] "This is a "desert island" set if ever there were one. Kubelik's Slavonic Dances always have rated among the best, and still dazzle by virtue of their fleetness and almost savage intensity." (ClassicsToday) |
ANTON BRUCKNER
Hans Knappertsbusch: The Decca & Westminster Bruckner Recordings Wiener Philharmoniker, Münchener Philharmoniker [No 8], Hans Knappertsbusch [ Decca Australian Eloquence / 4 CD Box Set - released 7/Feb/2020 ] "The consensus as I understand it among those convinced of Kna's wizardry in this music is that we just have to let go of any regrets and enjoy what we have...I am soon under his spell and swept along by his mastery." MusicWeb |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Der Ring des Nibelungen (Recorded Live at the Bayreuth Festival, Germany, in 2008) Bayreuther Festspiele Chorus & Bayreuther Festspiele Orchestra / Christian Thielemann (Conductor) / Tankred Dorst (Director) [ Opus Arte / 14 CD Box Set - released 26/Oct/2009 ] "The live recordings capture the grandeur and theatrical flair of Thielemann's approach very vividly. He's especially good in the big set pieces in Die Walküre and Götterdämmerung." (The Guardian) |
CARL NIELSEN
Nielsen: The Symphonies / Helios Overture / Saga-Drom / Pan and Syrinx BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra conducted by Osmo Vanska [ BIS / 3 CD Box Set - released 1/Oct/2010 ] "Collectors who have not yet sampled Osmo Vänskä in Nielsen should hasten to make good that omission by investing in this excellent set." (Bargain of the Month MusicWeb June 2011) |
BRITTEN / DELIUS / ELGAR / VAUGHAN WILLIAMS / TIPPETT / HOLST
The British Line: A celebration of British Music BBC Symphony Orchestra, Sir Andrew Davis, with Dame Evelyn Glennie, Thomas Hampson, Tasmin Little, Sir Bryn Terfel, etc [ Warner Classics / 16 CD Box Set - released 19/Jul/2019 ] In 1991, Hamburg-based record label Teldec Classics embarked on a fruitful partnership with Sir Andrew Davis and the BBC Symphony Orchestra. "The British Line" was soon to become an essential series of critically acclaimed digital recordings of major... |
BEETHOVEN
The Complete String Quartets Belcea Quartet [ Alpha Classics / 8 CD Box Set - released 23/Aug/2019 ] Alpha is reissuing the complete Beethoven quartets by the Belcea Quartet : 'Beethoven's music has been at the center of our life as a quartet from our very first rehearsal together back in 1994. However, it is more recently that we immersed ourselves... |
FREDERIC CHOPIN
Chopin: Complete Edition [17 CD set] Alessandro Deljavan, Ewa Kupiec, Vittorio Ceccanti, Lucius Ruhl, Earl Wild, Frank van de Laar, etc [ Brilliant Classics / 17 CD Box Set - released 20/Apr/2015 ] This 17CD set is the third Chopin Edition by Brilliant Classics, an all-time favourite of one of the most popular and universally loved composers of all times. |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Der Ring Des Nibelungen (complete operas recorded in 2021) BLU-RAY Berlin Opera / Nina Stemme, Iain Paterson, Brandon Jovanovich, Elisabeth Teige / Sir Donald Runnicles (cond) [ Naxos Blu-ray / 4 Blu-ray Box Set - released 15/Sep/2022 ] "Donald Runnicles leads an impressive account of the score. His deep knowledge of the music comes through in the naturalness of the discourse, the easy communication with the singers and the vibrant colours he draws from the orchestra." Fanfare |
ANTON BRUCKNER
Bruckner: The Nine Symphonies Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Daniel Barenboim [ Warner Classics / 9 CD Box Set - released 20/Aug/2021 ] "Daniel Barenboim and the Berlin Philharmonic have given us one of the finest (and certainly the best-recorded) Bruckner Sixths of all time - this represents a major landmark in Brucknerian discography." Fanfare |
JOHANNES BRAHMS
Brahms: The Symphonies, Ein deutsches Requiem & Concertos Berlin & Vienna Philharmonic Orchestras, Wilhelm Furtwangler, with Yehudi Menuhin, Edwin Fisher, Willi Boskovsky, etc [ Warner Classics / CD - released 20/Aug/2008 ] Wilhelm Furtwängler saw "a wild, fantastic and even demonic universe" in the symphonies of Brahms. "Music is not something that is invented and constructed," he wrote, "but something that grows, emerging … directly from the hands of nature." With... |
ANTON BRUCKNER
Bruckner: 9 Symphonies [9 CDs plus Blu-ray audio] Berliner Philharmoniker [Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra], Herbert von Karajan [ Deutsche Grammophon Karajan Edition CD set plus Blu-ray audio / 10 CD/Blu-ray Disc - released 19/Jul/2019 ] "It is Karajan who is best able to present a Bruckner Symphony as a single vision … some of the most consistently impressive Bruckner recordings of recent years" - Gramophone |
BEETHOVEN / RICHARD STRAUSS / WAGNER / BRUCKNER / MENDELSSOHN / BRUCH / TCHAIKOVSKY / RACHMANINOV
Berliner Philharmoniker [Berlin Philharmonic] - Great Recordings Berliner Philharmoniker Orchestra, Claudio Abbado, Seiji Ozawa, Herbert von Karajan, Zubin Mehta, Daniel Barenboim, Lorin Maazel, Gunter Wand, etc [ Sony Music / 8 CD Box Set - released 11/Sep/2015 ] The Berlin Philharmonic is consistently ranked as one of the greatest orchestras in the world. As is fitting such an eminent orchestra, they consistently work with the world's most renowned conductors and soloists. |
SIBELIUS / NIELSEN / GRIEG / SVENDSEN / STENHAMMAR / ALFVEN
Nordic Symphonies Berliner Sinfonie‐Orchester, Kurt Sanderling / Janáček Philharmonic Orchestra, Theodore Kuchar / Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Bjarte Engset / etc [ Brilliant Classics / 10 CD Box Set - released 2/Feb/2024 ] This generous 10 CD set presents a comprehensive collection of symphonies written by Nordic composers. Their Symphonies hold a unique place in music history, blending lush melodies with the evocative power of nature. |
JEAN SIBELIUS
Sibelius: Complete Symphonies / Symphonic Poems Berliner Sinfonie-Orchester, Kurt Sanderling / Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, Vassily Sinaisky [ Brilliant Classics Quintessence / 5 CD Box Set - released 25/Sep/2020 ] "Sanderling glories in detail..brings out details that others gloss over or elide. He is not afraid to allow these Northern flowers and trees to bloom at a natural pace. He is no stranger to drama but will not force it unnaturally." MusicWeb |