Among the final albums made by the late Nikolaus Harnoncourt was a history in sound of Viennese dance, the waltzes and polkas that made contemporary millionaires of the Strauss dynasty and have since travelled the world not least thanks to the Vienna Philharmonic’s New Year’s Day concert. The leader of those concerts for 25 years, […]
Is nothing sacred? The Cambridge Buskers bring their madcap humour to the greats of classical music – everything from the ‘Hallelujah Chorus’ and the ‘1812 Overture’ to Ravel’s ‘Bolero’ and the ‘Teddy Bears’ Picnic’! And not forgetting Beethoven’s Nine Symphonies in under four minutes… This 4CD set brings together the pair’s most famous albums, released […]
The version of Mozart’s Requiem most frequently performed today – and heard on this recording – is Süssmayr’s completion. Many have labelled his edition as a rushed, student effort (his own opera, ‘Moses’, was postponed due to his working on the Requiem) while others believe that no new edition or reworking, irrespective of how learned […]
‘From Melba to Sutherland: Australian Singers on Record’ is the first-ever comprehensive survey of the recordings of Australia’s greatest singers – in a unique, new, 4CD set from Decca, complete with biographies of each of the 80 artists, rare photographs, all contained within a 68-page booklet. Why has there been such an extraordinary procession of […]
Georg Solti’s first recordings were as a pianist – those with the great German violinist, Georg Kulenkampff, here collected in their entirety. The two artists recorded Brahms’s G major sonata in February 1947 and Beethoven’s ’Kreutzer’ Sonata in June 1947. They completed the Brahms sonatas in July 1948. Sadly, this would be their only collaboration. Kulenkampff died […]
Zubin Mehta was one of Decca’s stars in the 1960s and 1970s, known more for his recordings of 19th and 20th-century repertoire than of the 18th. Yet, he has long had an abiding love for Mozart and conducts his symphonic and operatic music on a regular basis. Issued to coincide with his 80th birthday year, this 2CD […]
In the 1950s and much of the 60s, the great bass roles in the Italian repertoire and the title part in ‘Don Giovanni’, were synonymous with the name of Cesare Siepi. Gifted with a commanding presence on stage and a firm, sonorous, pliant ‘basso cantante ‘– a true successor to the mantle of Pinza and Pasero, […]
As part of the Eloquence series of early Solti recordings, this 2CD set features the conductor in music by Haydn and Mozart, recorded between 1949 and 1958. The 1949 recording of Haydn’s ‘Drum Roll’ Symphony and the 1958 recording of Mozart’s ‘Eine kleine Nachtmusik’ (recorded in spatial early stereo) make their first international appearances on Decca […]
The Vienna State Opera resumed its performing schedule very soon after the end of the fighting over the Austrian capital in 1945. As the ‘House on the Ring’ had been destroyed by direct hits, the company had to move to the Theater an der Wien though it had been closed since 1938 and was therefore […]
Taken from Anda’s much-vaunted complete recordings of Mozart’s concertos, Nos. 18 & 19 are here presented in performances that have held their sway for limpidness, clarity and unforced beauty.
Karl Böhm’s recordings of any Mozart carried with it the imprint of greatness and those of the Mozart Symphonies have become benchmark recordings, renowned for their poise, elegance and essential beauty of sound.
Karl Böhm’s recordings of any Mozart carried with it the imprint of greatness and those of the Mozart Symphonies have become benchmark recordings, renowned for their poise, elegance and essential beauty of sound.
