JOHANNES BRAHMS
Jessye Norman Complete Studio Recitals - Philips, Deutsche Grammophon, Decca (44CD + 3DVD) Jessye Norman (soprano) with Daniel Barenboim, Kathleen Battle, Herbert von Karajan, John Williams, etc [ Deutsche Grammophon / 45 CD Box Set - released 27/Oct/2023 ] Celebrating the life & recording career of the majestic American dramatic soprano Jessye Norman. Unquestionably one of the exceptional vocal performers of recent times, and most decorated sopranos of all time. |
SERGEI RACHMANINOV
Rachmaninov Edition: Complete works [Symphonies, chamber, concertos, operas, songs, choral & instrumental] Joan Rodgers (soprano) Sergei Leiferkus (baritone) Nikolai Lugansky (piano) Earl Wild (piano) Garrick Ohlsson (piano) and many more [ Brilliant Classics / 29 CD Box Set - released 1/Dec/2008 ] Here is the most complete collection of Rachmaninoff 's output ever assembled on disc: from the piano concertos and preludes of worldwide affection and esteem to his many songs and three operas. |
VINCENZO BELLINI
Bellini: I Puritani (complete opera) Joan Sutherland, Luciano Pavarotti, Piero Cappuccilli, Nicolai Ghiaurov / Royal Opera House Covent Garden / London Symphony Orchestra / Richard Bonyng [ Decca / 3 CD - released 10/Aug/2006 ] 1001 Classical recordings to hear before you die (1801-1850) -- Building a Library First Choice - January 2005 |
PROKOFIEV
Erich Leinsdorf conducts Prokofiev [6 CD set] John Browning (piano) Erick Friedman (violin) / Boston Symphony Orchestra, Erich Leinsdorf [ Sony Classical Masters / 6 CD Box Set - released 20/May/2011 ] "All the hard work RCA have put in on their methods of recording the Boston Symphony seems to have been well worth while. The orchestral sound is splendidly solid but not thick, with excellent internal balance and a very full dynamic range." Gramophone |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Die Walkure (Complete Opera recorded in 1967) [Remastered CDs plus Blu-ray Audio] Jon Vickers, Martti Talvela, Thomas Stewart, Gundula Janowitz, Régine Crespin / Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Herbert von Karajan [ Deutsche Grammophon Remastered CDs plus Blu-ray audio / 4 CD Box Set - released 12/Jun/2020 ] Remastered at Emil Berliner Studios in 24 bit/192kHz. Blu-ray Audio in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. CDs are produced from the new remastering. |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Die Walkure (complete opera recorded in 2011) Jonas Kaufmann, Nina Stemme, Rene Pape / Mariinsky Theatre, St Petersburg, Valery Gergiev [ Mariinsky SACD / 4 Hybrid SACD - released 1/Mar/2013 ] "Act I has Jonas Kaufmann's heroic, poetic Siegmund at the peak of his powers, partnering a limpid, youthful-sounding Sieglinde in Anja Kampe - a dream pair of Wälsung twins for our time, and one to compare with the greatest on disc." (Sunday Times) |
CESAR FRANCK
Franck: Complete Organ & Harmonium Works Joris Verdin (organ/harmonian) [ Ricercar / 5 CD Box Set - released 13/May/2022 ] César Franck gradually abandoned his career as a virtuoso pianist as he completed his training under various Parisian masters, one of whom was the organist François Benoist. Franck then served as organist in various important Parisian churches. |
MASSENET / VERDI / ROSSINI / MASSENET / BERLIOZ / DONIZETTI / TRADITIONAL / etc
Jose Carreras - The Philips Years Jose Carreras (tenor), with Montserrat Caballé, Katia Ricciarelli, Agnes Baltsa, Frederica von Stade, etc [ Philips / 21 CD Box Set - released 22/Dec/2023 ] Celebrating one of the most remarkable tenors of our time, this 21-CD set brings together the legendary Philips recital recordings of José Carreras: 17 CDs of recitals discs including Spanish and popular songs, plus highlights from complete operas. |
CHARLES-MARIE WIDOR
Widor: The Complete Organ Works Joseph Nolan (organ) [ Signum / 9 CD Box Set - released 25/Oct/2019 ] Charles-Marie Widor was born to the organ. Raised in a family of organ-makers, he showed early talent for the instrument and would later come to embody all its might and splendour. His life heavily intertwined with that of the great French organ... |
BACH / BEETHOVEN / BARTOK / DEBUSSY / RAVEL / COWELL / etc
Joseph Szigeti - The Complete Sony Recordings Joseph Szigeti (violin) with Myra Hess, Pablo Casals, Benny Goodman, Bela Bartok, etc [ Sony Classical / 17 CD Box Set - released 26/Mar/2021 ] "Full of immediacy - and star turns - these remastered recordings make for a compelling time capsule" The Guardian |
BEETHOVEN / BRAHMS / STRAVINSKY / HONEGGER / Prokofiev / DEBUSSY / etc
Joseph Szigeti - The Mercury Masters Joseph Szigeti (violin) with Roy Bogas, Artur Balsam, Mieczysław Horszowski (piano), various concductors & soloists [ Mercury Living Presense Australian Eloquence / 6 CD Box Set - released 17/Feb/2023 ] Issued internationally and complete, for the first time on CD in this Limited Edition original-jackets collection, these Mercury recordings were made in New York and London during the autumn of Szigeti's career, between 1959 and 1961. |
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. |
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Beethoven: The Complete String Quartets (the 1964-1970 recordings) Juilliard String Quartet [ RCA / Sony Classical / 9 CD Box Set - released 20/Jul/2020 ] On the 'Sony Classical' label - In celebration of Beethoven's 250th anniversary year, Sony Classical is pleased to release the internationally renowned Juilliard String Quartet's recordings of Beethoven's String Quartets recorded from 1964-1970. The... |
WAGNER
Gotterdammerung (complete opera) [Recorded in stereo live at the 1955 Bayreuth Festival] Jutta Vulpius, Elisabeth Schartel, Maria Graf, Wolfgang Windgassen, Georgine von Milinkovic / Bayreuth Festival Chorus & Orchestra / Joseph Keilberth [ Testament / 4 CD Box Set - released 1/Feb/2007 ] "Windgassen may be more vocally secure for Solti but nowhere else is he so tender, so moving as here. Josef Greindl is a far more saturnine, charismatic Hagen here than elsewhere. But it is Astrid Varnay who is the great revelation." Recording of... |
SAMUEL BARBER
Barber: Complete Orchestral Works [6 CD set] Karina Gauvin (soparno), Thomas Trotter (organ), Stéphane Rancourt (oboe), John Gracie (trumpet) / Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Marin Alsop [ Naxos American Classics / 6 CD Box Set - released 6/Dec/2010 ] "The RSNO positively glows in this extremely welcome and romantically rewarding and alluringly-priced set. It hardly matters that this is in fact the only such collection." (MusicWeb Sept 2010) |
SCHOENBERG / WEBERN / BERG
Second Viennese School (5 CD set incls 'Gurrelieder') Karita Mattila, Anne Sofie von Otter, Philip Langridge / Berlin Philharmonic Simon Rattle [ EMI Classics Budget Box Sets / 5 CD Box Set - released 10/Feb/2011 ] GRAMOPHONE AWARD WINNER 2002 - Choral (for Gurrelieder) |
CESAR FRANCK
Cesar Franck: Edition Khatia Buniatishvili, Aldo Ciccolini, Jean-Philippe Collard, Marie-Claire Alain, Renaud Capucon, Nathalie Stutzmann, Augustin Dumay, etc [ Warner Classics / CD - released 20/Apr/2016 ] A towering figure in French music of the later 19th century, César Franck created a distinctive fusion of German Romanticism and French Classicism, enriching the symphonic, chamber, instrumental, vocal and sacred repertoires. As a teacher and mentor... |
THE KING'S SINGERS
The King's Singers: Madrigals & Songs from the Renaissance The King's Singers with The Consorte of Musicke, Anthony Rooley & Tragicomedia [ Warner Classics / 8 CD Box Set - released 1/Mar/2018 ] Founded at King's College in Cambridge in 1968, the King's Singers are one of the world's most sought-after and acclaimed vocal ensembles. This amazing set repackages eight of their greatest albums. |
W. A. MOZART
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Mozart: The Marriage of Figaro (Complete Opera with full libretto) Kiri te Kanawa, Lucia Popp, Frederica von Stade, Samuel Ramey, London Philharmonic. Georg Solti [ Decca Records / 3 CD Box Set - released 20/Feb/2010 ] "Samuel Ramey, a firm-toned baritone, makes a virile Figaro, superbly matched to the most enchanting of Susannas on record, Lucia Popp." *** Three Stars. Penguin Stereo Guide |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Die Zauberflote [The Magic Flute] (Complete opera recorded in 1978) Kiri Te Kanawa, Peter Hofmann, Edita Gruberova, Kurt Moll, Kathleen Battle / Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg, Alain Lombard [ Decca / 2 CD Box Set - released 8/Jan/2021 ] A real gem looking at the incredible cast, a veritable "Who's Who" of opera singers of the time: Kiri Te Kanawa, Peter Hofmann, Edita Gruberova, Kathleen Battle, Kurt Moll and Jose Van Dam. |