The first digitally recorded Bartók quartet cycle, long unavailable: ferociously intelligent readings in superb sound that have stood the test of time against other classic interpretations in the storied discography of these works. The Lindsays’ Bartók cycle, recorded by ASV in 1980–81, marked the culmination of a decade of intense study and concert performances of […]
From the earliest days of his career, Anthony Collins (1893–1963) earned a reputation as a musician of parts: violist, conductor, arranger and composer. He had led the viola section of the London Symphony Orchestra under Beecham and Mengelberg before swapping bow for baton in the 1930s, and by then had already begun to promote the […]
Real and Right and True marks the debut of prolific Australian composer Calvin Bowman on the Decca (Australia) label. The album title is derived from a set of nine poems by celebrated Australian cartoonist, writer and painter Michael Leunig, whose beautiful painting ‘Autumn Harvest’ also graces the cover artwork. Bowman specialises in artsong and has, […]
A clear crowd favourite at the 2016 Sydney International Piano Competition (SIPCA) due to his incendiary technique and warm stage presence, Moye Chen was awarded the George Frederick Boyle Prize and was signed to Universal Music Australia shortly after. For his debut recording – released in Australia on the legendary Deutsche Grammophon label – the Chinese pianist […]
On two days in October 2016, Russian pianist and conductor Vladimir Ashkenazy and Australian cellist Catherine Hewgill went into the studio to make their first recording together. An all-Russian program, it features the Cello Sonatas of Shostakovich and Prokofiev with the added pendant of the Rachmaninov Vocalise in an arrangement by American cellist Leonard Rose. […]
Described by The Australian as ‘a boon for lovers of the piano and those keeping an ear on exciting musical talent’, the Sydney International Piano Competition (The Sydney) has become a fixture on the classical music landscape. This unique retrospective chronicles more than 100 fascinating performances. They were recorded by 77 pianists during seven events […]
Groundbreaking technology, dynamic musical leadership, world-class orchestral playing: a brief marriage of lasting impact for the history of recorded music. To mark the 70th anniversary of Mercury Living Presence, this limited-edition box presents the complete Chicago Symphony/Rafael Kubelík recordings, newly remastered by Thomas Fine and including never-before-published material. Original cover albums New booklet essay on […]
Rafael Kubelik, the Czech conductor, was in every way a big man: tall and robust in physique, he was the most generous of human beings and he inspired devoted affection among his friends and colleagues. This complete Decca collection finds Kubelík working with the Wiener Philharmoniker, the Israel Philharmonic, the Symphony Orchestra of the Bavarian […]
A new collection of Decca’s legendary ‘ffrr’ recordings from the early 1950s, made by an underrated Spanish master of orchestral colour in London and Paris. Includes several items new to CD. Enrique Jordá described conducting as a ‘hair-raising’ business, and his career never recovered from a very public dressing-down by George Szell while music director […]
Complete on CD for the first time, the Deutsche Grammophon legacy of cult violinist Johanna Martzy, and of violist Michael Mann. Five original DG albums complete on two CDs. The brilliant tone and discriminating taste of the recordings made by Johanna Martzy (1924-79) mark her out among the finest violinists of her generation. Her EMI […]
Six Violin Sonatas from the 20th century performed by German violinist Max Rostal and recorded for Argo and Deutsche Grammophon. Having fled from the Nazis and moved to London in 1934, the German violinist Max Rostal became a fixture of the English capital’s musical scene and an inspired interpreter of English music. With his regular […]
A trio of twentieth-century classics, sardonic and timely tales, in long-unavailable Decca/Argo recordings from the 1970s. Roberto Gerhard’s imagination was immediately fired by reading Albert Camus’ 1947 novel, La Peste, about a French-Algerian town in the sudden grip of bubonic plague. He determined to make a musical setting (The Plague), and after its premiere in […]
