Alexandre Tharaud - Satie: Avant-Dernières Pensées (2009)

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Alexandre Tharaud - Satie: Avant-Dernières Pensées (2009)

Alexandre Tharaud - Satie: Avant-Dernières Pensées (2009)
EAC | FLAC (image+.cue, log) | Covers Included | 02:07:22 | 497 MB
Genre: Classical | Label: Harmonia Mundi | Catalog: HMC 902017.18

World premiere recordings as well as relaxing favourites (including the famous Gymnopedie No. 1) from France's chicest, quirkiest composer. Alexandre Tharaud is renowned as an expert in French chamber music. Features acclaimed violinist Isabelle Faust. Beautifully packaged 2-CD set with access to downloads of extra bonus tracks. 'My aim in these two discs has been to offer the richest possible panorama of Satie's piano and chamber music, spanning his whole lifetime. Immersed in the world of Satie, we were touched, and often deeply moved by the trust he shows in his interpreters."

Wiener Philharmoniker, Herbert von Karajan - Verdi: Falstaff (1996)

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Wiener Philharmoniker, Herbert von Karajan - Verdi: Falstaff (1996)

Wiener Philharmoniker, Herbert von Karajan - Verdi: Falstaff (1996)
EAC | FLAC (image+.cue, log) | Covers Included | 02:08:55 | 558 MB
Genre: Classical, Opera | Label: Deutsche Grammophon | Catalog: 447 686-2

Falstaff was one of Verdi's greatest creations and this set is the finest of all reacordings of the work. Only Toscanini comes close and even then his cast is a shade less accomplished. Gobbi may not have a 'fat' voice, but his keen intelligence and magnificent shading of phrases and text more than compensates.

Anner Bylsma, Bob van Asperen - J.S. Bach: Sonatas for Viola da Gamba, J.C.F. Bach: Sonata A-Dur (1990)

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Anner Bylsma, Bob van Asperen - J.S. Bach: Sonatas for Viola da Gamba, J.C.F. Bach: Sonata A-Dur (1990)

Anner Bylsma, Bob van Asperen - J.S. Bach: Sonatas for Viola da Gamba, J.C.F. Bach: Sonata A-Dur (1990)
EAC | FLAC (image+.cue, log) | Covers Included | 51:22 | 500 MB
Genre: Classical | Label: Sony Classical | Catalog: SK 45945

That said, Anner Bylsma's disc gets a great deal more playing time. The timbre of the piccolo cello is ideally matched with the organ. While purists may balk at such unusual instrumentation, I cannot help but think such an experiment is quite in keeping with the spirit of Baroque era practices. In general, I try not to judge the success of a recording by a preconceived idea of what a musical elite would or would not approve of.

Renée Fleming, Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, Valery Gergiev - Homage: The Age of the Diva (2006)

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Renée Fleming, Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, Valery Gergiev - Homage: The Age of the Diva (2006)

Renée Fleming, Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, Valery Gergiev - Homage: The Age of the Diva (2006)
WEB | FLAC (tracks) - 296 MB | 01:07:26
Genre: Classical, Vocal | Label: Decca

Acclaimed throughout the world's great opera houses, American soprano Renee Fleming enjoys particular success in roles from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when glorious vocal writing and opulent orchestrations took the art of opera to new heights. In studying and performing this passionately lyrical music, Fleming became increasingly fascinated with her predecessors-sopranos of a golden age who made this intensely emotional music their own. Homage: The age of the Diva is a tribute to these iconic sopranos and their signature arias.

Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, Valery Gergiev - Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake (2007)

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Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, Valery Gergiev - Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake (2007)

Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, Valery Gergiev - Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake (2007)
WEB | FLAC (tracks) - 575 MB | 01:46:21
Genre: Classical | Label: Decca

Anyone who has been searching for a powerful rendition of Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake, Op. 20, should consider this dynamic performance by Valery Gergiev and the Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre, undoubtedly one of the most forceful available, and perhaps one of the very best, notwithstanding one idiosyncrasy that must be directly addressed.

Franziska Pietsch, Detlev Eisinger - Szymanowski & Franck: Works for Violin & Piano (2017)

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Franziska Pietsch, Detlev Eisinger - Szymanowski & Franck: Works for Violin & Piano (2017)

Franziska Pietsch, Detlev Eisinger - Szymanowski & Franck: Works for Violin & Piano (2017)
WEB | FLAC (tracks) - 286 MB | 58:12
Genre: Classical | Label: audite Musikproduktion

We experience a meeting of two musical worlds in this recording with Franziska Pietsch and Detlev Eisinger: Karol Szymanowski's often experimental, highly original sounds (particularly in Mythes, Op. 30) are heard alongside the direct musical language of Franck's Romantic A major Violin Sonata.

Christophe Rousset - J.S. Bach: English Suites (2004)

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Christophe Rousset - J.S. Bach: English Suites (2004)

Christophe Rousset - J.S. Bach: English Suites (2004)
EAC | FLAC (image+.cue, log) | Covers Included | 02:06:34 | 948 MB
Genre: Classical | Label: Naive | Catalog: 9942

Christophe Rousset's performances as a harpsichordist have attracted the attention of the international press as well as record companies. A member of 'Les Arts Florissants', then I'l Seminario Musicale', he finally embarked on a career as a music director, which led his to the form his own ensemble, 'Les Talents Lyriques', in 1991. This recording marks the beginning of a collaboration between Christophe Rousset and Ambroisie, especially with Bach.

Piccolo Concerto Wien - Georg Christoph Wagenseil: Quartets for Low Strings (2013)

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Piccolo Concerto Wien - Georg Christoph Wagenseil: Quartets for Low Strings (2013)

Piccolo Concerto Wien - Georg Christoph Wagenseil: Quartets for Low Strings (2013)
EAC | FLAC (image+.cue, log) | Covers Included | 01:37:35 | 492 MB
Genre: Classical | Label: Accent | Catalog: ACC 24242

The importance of Georg Christoph Wagenseil (1715-1777) in the development of the classical symphony cannot be underestimated, and his concertos were also significant in the formation of the style of early Viennese classicism. As its chief representative, Wagenseil unites Italian, French and German stylistic elements in his works, as was typical of the 'mixed style' of the early 18th century. Moreover, he is considered one of the perfectors of the gallant-sentimental stylistic epoch which became so essential for the formation of classicism in 18th-century music history.

Míceál O'Rourke, London Mozart Players, Matthias Bamert - John Field: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 (1995)

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Míceál O'Rourke, London Mozart Players, Matthias Bamert - John Field: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 (1995)

Míceál O'Rourke, London Mozart Players, Matthias Bamert - John Field: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 (1995)
EAC | FLAC (image+.cue, log) | Covers Included | 55:44 | 242 MB
Genre: Classical | Label: Chandos | Catalog: CHAN 9368

For many years, John Field, the Irish composer of wonderful piano music, was unjustifiably neglected by musicians and critics alike. If considered at all, Field, who came between Beethoven and Chopin, was considered at best a transition figure, or at worst a musical curiosity. Nothing could be further from the truth. Field's music is nothing short of a revelation. It is lyrical yet complex, the work of a master musician who could stand with the best of the writers for the piano. Fortunately Field's music is now beginning to be heard more often on classical radio and is more available on recordings. And this one, especially of his Second Piano Concerto, is excellent. .

Charivari Agréable, Kah-Ming Ng - Torelli: The Original Brandenburg Concertos (2009)

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Charivari Agréable, Kah-Ming Ng - Torelli: The Original Brandenburg Concertos (2009)

Charivari Agréable, Kah-Ming Ng - Torelli: The Original Brandenburg Concertos (2009)
EAC | FLAC (image+.cue, log) | Covers Included | 01:01:48 | 377 MB
Genre: Classical | Label: Signum Classics | Catalog: 157

The "original Brandenburg concertos" subtitle of this release means less than it seems to suggest; the works have nothing to do with Bach's Brandenburg Concertos, which didn't even have that name until many years after the fact. The connection is that Torelli's concertos here were dedicated, in 1698, to Sophie Charlotte, Electress of Brandenburg-Ansbach and eventually the leader honored by the Charlottenburg castle in Berlin. Bach's concertos were dedicated to the Margrave of Brandenburg, member of another branch of the Prussian ruling line. The big news here is not the Brandenburg connection but the entirely fresh performances of Torelli's Op. 6 concertos.

Richard Hickox, Eric Parkin - George Dyson: Concertos (1992)

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Richard Hickox, Eric Parkin - George Dyson: Concertos (1992)

Richard Hickox, Eric Parkin - George Dyson: Concertos (1992)
EAC | FLAC (image+.cue, log) | Covers Included | 01:11:08 | 315 MB
Genre: Classical | Label: Chandos | Catalog: CHAN 9076

George Dyson (1883-1964) studied with Charles Villiers Stanford at the Royal College of Music and Dyson's own compositions tend to reflect the kind of romanticism of both Stanford and Perry or the era just before Elgar, Vaughan Williams, and William Walton. His music is always lyrical if a bit modest,or perhaps understated is a better word after all, leggiero means "lack of pomp or pretention or prolixity." In this, he resembles Frederick Delius. The works on this disc come from Dyson's later years 1949 to 1951 which were his most creative.

Serena Malfi, Douglas Boyd - Schubert: Rosamunde (2011)

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Serena Malfi, Douglas Boyd - Schubert: Rosamunde (2011)

Serena Malfi, Douglas Boyd - Schubert: Rosamunde (2011)
EAC | FLAC (image+.cue, log) | Covers Included | 58:06 | 226 MB
Genre: Classical | Label: MDG Scene | Catalog: MDG9011633

Hearing the three dramatic chords that open the Zauberharfe overture played by this excellent Swiss orchestra (the oldest in Switzerland) I was immediately struck by the clarity of attack and rich instrumental color. As the performance progresses the Musikkollegium Winterthur exhibits an alluring full-bodied tone and characterful playing completely in the Schubertian style. The same goes for the pensive B minor Entr’acte, the lovely Entr’acte 3, and the charming No. 9 Ballet.

moderntimes_1800 - Sinfonias From The Enlightment: Hasse, Graun, C.P.E. Bach, W.F. Bach, J. Haydn, Mozart (2008)

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moderntimes_1800 - Sinfonias From The Enlightment: Hasse, Graun, C.P.E. Bach, W.F. Bach, J. Haydn, Mozart (2008)

moderntimes_1800 - Sinfonias From The Enlightment: Hasse, Graun, C.P.E. Bach, W.F. Bach, J. Haydn, Mozart (2008)
EAC | FLAC (image+.cue, log) | Covers Included | 01:33:14 | 483 MB
Genre: Classical | Label: Challenge Classics | Catalog: CC72193

The symphonic works featured on this 2CD set all come from a period during the second half of the eighteenth century that has come to be known as the “Age of Enlightenment” when Frederick the Second ruled over Prussia. Alongside acknowledged masterpieces by Mozart and Haydn, the program also includes pieces by Hasse, Graun and C.P.E Bach that are receiving their first ever recording. The music is performed by the rising stars of the Austrian Chamber Group “Modern Times_1800”.

Jessye Norman - Schubert: Lieder (1985)

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Jessye Norman - Schubert: Lieder (1985)

Jessye Norman - Schubert: Lieder (1985)
EAC | FLAC (image+.cue, log) | Covers Included | 42:30 | 181 MB
Genre: Classical, Vocal | Label: Philips | Catalog: 412623

I can claim possibly some very small influence on this record. Some years ago Jessye Norman broke the last and very difficult phrase of Ganymed with a breath. I then pointed out in a review that Gerald Moore (in Singer and Accompanist London: 1953) had urged singers to phrase it in one as Norman has done in recitals, and now on record, ever since. Cause and effect? I don't know. This is, in any case, one of the most rewarding performances on the record, sung with conviction and, throughout, with long-breathed phrasing.

Fazil Say - Stravinsky: Le Sacre du Printemps (2000)

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Fazil Say - Stravinsky: Le Sacre du Printemps (2000)

Fazil Say - Stravinsky: Le Sacre du Printemps (2000)
EAC | FLAC (image+.cue, log) | Covers Included | 31:12 | 130 MB
Genre: Classical | Label: Teldec Classics | Catalog: 8573-81041-2

Ever since Michael Tilson Thomas and Ralph Grierson made the first recording of Stravinsky’s four-hand reduction of The Rite of Spring in 1967 for EMI, a good number of piano duetists have taken up the work’s challenges on disc. This latest offering features Fazil Say, who shares the spotlight with himself via studio multitracking. Say essentially sticks to what Stravinsky wrote, while fleshing out the piano textures with effective octave doublings, registral changes, and an occasional added bass note in the Danse Sacrale.