2017 marks the ninetieth anniversary of the births (and tenth anniversary of the deaths) of two of the greatest artists of the latter half of the twentieth century - Mstislav Rostropovich and Régine Crespin, commemorated with new boxes from Melodiya and Warner Classics respectively. There's also a very special fiftieth-birthday issue from The King's Singers (stay tuned for our exclusive interview with the group about the project in the next week or two), and the boxed set of Jean-Efflam Bavouzet's acclaimed series of the complete Beethoven Piano Sonatas on Chandos.
Concertos by Bach, Beethoven, Berg, Bruch, Mendelssohn, Mozart and Tchaikovsky, plus a complete cycle of the Beethoven sonatas (with Pierre Barbizet) and works by Enescu, Debussy, Ravel and Chausson; several recordings on this 13-disc set make their first appearance on CD.
Available Formats: 13 CDs, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
The French pianist’s Beethoven sonatas cycle (completed last autumn) has garnered praise for its ‘pervading sense of freshness and enthusiasm’ (The Guardian), ‘freshness of spirit, rigorous enquiry, openness to instinct’ (Gramophone), and ‘imaginative scope, stylistic freedom and technical fearlessness’ (Financial Times).
Available Formats: 9 CDs, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
2017 also marks the ninetieth birthday in memoriam of the great French soprano (as well as the tenth anniversary of her death); this 10-CD box features excerpts from her Verdi, Wagner and Berlioz heroines, plus substantial selections of songs by Duparc, Poulenc and Wolf, and her legendary Nuits d'été.
Available Formats: FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
