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W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Don Giovanni (complete opera recorded in 2013) BLU-RAY Festspielhaus Baden-Baden / Anna Netrebko, Luca Pisaroni, Erwin Schrott, Malena Ernman, Jonathan Lemalu / Thomas Hengelbrock (cond) [ Sony Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 20/Feb/2015 ] "[Schrott] looks wonderful, is a natural and extraordinarily gifted actor, and has so much sinister charm that one understands why no woman can resist him. He has a rich voice, with many subtle shades...a definitive account [of the title-role]" BBC |
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EDWARD ELGAR
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Elgar: Three Movements for Piano Trio [arr Rooke] (with chamber works by Maddison & Bridge) The Fibonacci Sequence: Benjamin Nabarro (violin) Benjamin Hughes (cello) Kathron Sturrock (piano) Helen Paterson (violin) Louise Williams (viola) [ Dutton Epoch / CD - released 20/Mar/2009 ] "The biggest revelation… may be the 1916 Piano Quintet by Adela Maddison (1862? - 1929). French influences are patent, but this is overall a captivating work with a gorgeous slow movement and vivacious scherzo and finale." BBC Music |
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A film for Pina Bausch by Wim Wenders
Pina [ Hopscotch Entertainment Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 11/Apr/2012 ] PINA is a feature-length dance film with the ensemble of the Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch, featuring the unique and inspiring art of the great German choreographer, who died in the summer of 2009. |
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FELIX MENDELSSOHN
Mendelssohn: String Quintets (Complete) Fine Arts Quartet (with Danilo Rossi, viola) [ Naxos / CD - released 1/Jun/2008 ] "So unfamiliar as this repertoire is, it repays the effort in getting to know it, and one can hardly imagine these works being given a more sympathetic reading." (MusicWeb Recording of the Year 2008) |
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EINOJUHANI RAUTAVAARA
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Rautavaara: Sacred Works for mixed chorus Finnish Radio Chamber Choir [ Ondine / CD - released 1/Jan/1999 ] Sung variously in Latin, Finnish, or Swedish. Recorded at the St. John's Church, Helsinki 1/1999. |
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WITOLD LUTOSLAWSKI
Lutosławski: Symphonies Nos. 2 & 3 Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Hannu Lintu [ Ondine / CD - released 28/Feb/2020 ] "His musicians respond with brilliant, punchy playing but are also capable of dazzling refinement…Altogether, Lintu's Lutosławski cycle sets a new standard" Five Stars BBC Music Magazine May 2020 Orchestral Choice |
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ERICH WOLFGANG KORNGOLD
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Korngold: String Quartets Nos. 1 & 2 Flesch Quartet [ ASV / CD - released 5/Jun/1996 ] "..here is an accessible and inspired CD of the first two (quartets) and a strong pair of performances satisfying in themselves...If you enjoy chamber music you will relish these recordings and should snap them up without delay." MusicWeb |
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FREDERIC CHOPIN
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Chopin: Piano Sonata No. 3 / Three Mazurkas / Three Waltzes / etc Ingrid Fliter (piano) [ EMI Classics / CD - released 7/Apr/2008 ] "…her playing is now enriched immeasurably by a poetic depth and subtle expressive imagination." BBC Music Magazine **** |
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GEORG FRIDERIC HANDEL / NICOLA ANTONIO PORPORA
Handel/Porpora: "The Rivals" Four Nations Ensemble, Andrew Appel (harpsichord/director), with Christine Brandes (soprano) & Geoffrey Burgess (oboe) [ ASV / CD - released 31/Jul/1999 ] The Four Nations Ensemble brings together leading soloists, generational front-runners of period instrument performance. With a core group of soprano, flute, violin, viola, cello and harpsichord Four Nations distinguishes itself with innovative... |
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KAROLY GOLDMARK
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Goldmark: String Quartet in B-flat major Op. 8 / String Quintet in A minor Op. 9 Fourth Dimension String Quartet [ ASV / CD - released 1/Sep/1999 ] "What an amazingly responsive, fine-tuned, and utterly flexible ensemble they are. A major addition to the chamber catalog." ClassicsToday 10/10 |
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FRANCIS POULENC
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Poulenc: Concerto for Piano,, 2 Pianos & Aubade Francois-Rene Duchable, Jean-Philippe Collard (piano) / Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, James Conlon [ Erato / 2 CD - released 30/Jan/1986 ] Francis Poulenc (January 7, 1899 - January 30, 1963) had his first major successes as an 18-year-old composer without a single composition lesson. Despite some study, he remained largely self-taught. In fact, his music is so individual, it's remained... |
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MAURICE RAVEL
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Ravel: Piano Concerti (with Debussy: Fantaisie pour piano & orchestre François-René Duchâble (piano) / Orchestre du Capitole de Toulouse, MIchel Plasson [ EMI Classics / CD - released 1/May/1996 ] "Duchâble's recordings are considered a "splendid collaboration" with the conductor." Gramophone |
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VIVALDI / BACH, J.S. / SAINT-SAENS / HAYDN / SCHUMANN / etc
Charming Cello - Best loved classical cello music Franz Bartolomey Michael Grebanier, Janet Guggenheim; Havenith, Raimund; Hurvey, Keith; Madoka Inui; Ina-Esther Joost Ben-Sasson; Maria Kliegel (cello [ Naxos / CD - released 2/Aug/2019 ] The ancient origins of the modern cello came from India and the Far East, arriving in Europe through Arab trade routes. By the time of the instrument's advanced construction in the mid-18th century, the greater volume of sound and versatility that... |
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ARNOLD SCHOENBERG
Schoenberg: Moses und Aron (complete opera recorded in 1984) Franz Mazura, Philip Langridge, Barbara Bonney / Chicago Symphony Orchestra & Chorus, Sir Georg Solti [ Decca / 2 CD Box Set - released 1/Oct/2007 ] 'Solti gives Schoenberg's masterly score a dynamism and warmth which set it firmly - if perhaps surprisingly - in the grand romantic tradition...As Aaron, Philip Langridge is lighter and more lyrical." Penguin Guide |
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CARL ORFF
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Orff: Carmina Burana Barbara Hendricks (sop) Jeffrey Black (baritone) Michael Chance (countertenor) / London Philharmonic Chorus & Orchestra, Franz Welser-Most [ EMIClassics / CD - released 10/Sep/1990 ] No other 20th century work delights music-lovers as much as Carl Orff's "Carmina Burana". The opening number, "Oh Fortuna", is a huge classical hit in its own right. |
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GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: Un Ballo in Maschera (complete opera) Freddie de Tommaso, Saioa Hernández, Lester Lynch, Elisabeth Kulman / [ Pentatone SACD / 2 Hybrid SACD - released 23/Jun/2023 ] "De Tommaso turns out to be the real deal, singing with a confidence and ease that seem astonishing for a singer who was only 28 at the time of the recording, His is a real *spinto* tenor: bright yet intensely masculine." BBC Music Opera Choice |
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MOZART / ROSSINi / THOMAS / SCHUMANN / CHAUSSON / BRAHMS
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: A Portrait of Frederica von Stade Frederica Von Stade (soprano) / Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Antonio De Almeida [ MK39315 / CD - released 1/Sep/2009 ] Described by the New York Times as "one of America's finest artists and singers," Frederica von Stade continues to be extolled as one of the music world's most beloved figures. |
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J. S. BACH
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Bach, (J.S.): Alio Modo (keyboard works transcribed for viols) Fretwork [ Harmonia Mundi / CD - released 25/Dec/2005 ] "Fretwork play with a gorgeous simplicity of expression and deep musicality." - The Independent, UK |
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W. A. MOZART
Fritz Busch at Glyndebourne - Mozart Willi Domgraf-Fassbaender, Audrey Mildmay, Heddle Nash, John Brownlee, Ina Souez, Sena Jurinac, Alexander Young, Richard Lewis / Fritz Busch (cond) [ Warner Classics / 9 CD Box Set - released 8/Jul/2017 ] Fritz Busch (1890-1951) was one the greatest German conductors of the first half of the twentieth century, noted for his illuminating performances and his ethical principles. |
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MOZART / FLOTOW / WAGNER / CORNELIUS / J. STRAUSS II / KALMAN / LEHAR / etc
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Fritz Wunderlich: The Very Best Of Fritz Wunderlich (tenor) with various orchestras & conductors [ EMI Classics / 2 CD - released 10/Oct/2003 ] "I urge every lover of the tenor to buy this set...one of the most beautiful, natural, refined and unforced tenor voices we have ever heard." (MusicWeb) |