December heavyweights include collections celebrating Michael Tilson Thomas, Joshua Bell, Irmgard Seefried and George Szell, refreshed Reger and Beethoven editions, and two anthologies from the sound archives of the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris.
Bell was just nineteen (and had been playing the violin seriously for less than a decade) when he signed to Decca in 1986; the first few months of the partnership yielded recordings of concertos by Bruch, Mendelssohn, Tchaikovsky and Wieniawski as well as an album of recital-encores. Other highlights from this set include an album celebrating Bell's hero Fritz Kreisler, sonatas by Prokofiev, Debussy and Franck, and an Argo recording of Aaron Jay Kernis's Air (written for Bell in 1995) which has previously been available only in the US.
Available Format: 14 CDs
George Szell conducts Beethoven: The Remastered Stereo Recordings
The Cleveland Orchestra, George Szell
Recorded between 1957 and 1965, these accounts of the symphonies were praised by Classics Today for their 'stylish perception, orchestral finesse, and the kind of textural clarity associated with the finest chamber ensembles', with Gramophone concurring that 'the Cleveland Orchestra sound as alert and tautly harmonious as a first-rate chamber group.' In fact Szell had increased the size of the orchestra from 80 to 100 by the time these recordings were made, having taken over as Music Director in 1946; such was his enduring impact in Cleveland that Christoph von Dohnányi (who took over the role from Szell's immediate successor Lorin Maazel in 1984) remarked that 'We give a great concert, and George Szell gets a great review.'
Available Formats: FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Reger Collection
Staatskapelle Dresden, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Leipzig, Rundfunkchor Berlin, Roberto Marini, Adriano Falcioni (organ) et al
To mark the 150th anniversary of Reger's birth, Brilliant Classics present an expanded version of their Reger Collection from 2013 - now weighing in at 18 discs rather than the original 11, the new edition features a comprehensive selection of the composer's chamber music, including the Piano Trio, the serenades for flute, violin and viola, the clarinet sonatas, and Reger’s compositions for solo viola and for solo cello. Highlights which reappear from the earlier edition include the Violin Concerto (conducted by Herbert Blomstedt), the Geistliche Gesänge from the Rundfunkchor Berlin, the orchestral Böcklin Suite, and the complete Chorale Fantasias for organ (played by Wouter van den Broeck).
Available Format: 18 CDs
Including previously unreleased material, this collection brings together the German soprano's complete recital recordings for Deutsche Grammophon as well as highlights from her recordings of sacred music and opera for the label (including arias from Der Rosenkavalier, Così fan tutte, Fidelio and Ariadne auf Naxos). Stand-outs include Schumann's Frauenliebe und Leben, Brahms's Liebeslieder-Walzer (with Raili Kostia, Waldemar Kmentt and Eberhard Waechter), Wolf's Spanisches Liederbuch and Italienisches Liederbuch (with Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau), and Respighi's Il tramonto. All recordings have been newly remastered for this edition.
Available Format: 20 CDs
Complete Beethoven Edition
Alfred Brendel, Trio Élégiaque, Suske Quartett, Staatskapelle Dresden, Herbert Blomstedt et al
This refreshed version of one of the best-selling budget collections of recent times features a complete cycle of the piano concertos with Alfred Brendel, the 18 sets of piano variations ‘without opus’ from fortepianist Alessandro Commellato (recorded on a range of historical instruments), the Mass in C from Stuttgart’s Gächinger Kantorei and Bach‐Collegium, and the Violin Concerto and Romances from Dutch violinist Emmy Verhey. The set also includes a limited-edition set of ten Beethoven postcards, complete with envelopes.
Available Format: 85 CDs
This collection of previously unreleased recordings from the sound archives of the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris includes a Bartók and Liszt recital from Edith Farnadi, a programme of Byrd, Bull, Dandrieu and Duphly from Italian harpsichordist Ruggero Gerlin, Schubert's Fantasie in F minor from Adrian Aeschbacher and Friedrich Wührer, and Ravel, Falla & Debussy from Vladimir Golschmann.
Available Format: 10 CDs
Grands Musiciens du Répertoire Classique
Dinu Lipatti, Walter Gieseking, Clara Haskil, Dimitri Mitropoulos, Thomas Beecham, Guido Cantelli et al
This collection of archive recordings from the 1950s is divided into five chapters: 'Masterpieces of French Opera' (featuring Victoria de los Ángeles, Nicolai Gedda and Alain Vanzo), 'An Anthology of French Orchestral Music', 'A Brief History of the Concerto' (with soloists including Arthur Grumiaux, Paul Tortelier and Benny Goodman), 'A Brief History of the Symphony', and the solo piano anthology 'Couleurs et Voyages' (featuring Clara Haskil, Dinu Lipatti and Walter Gieseking).
Available Format: 10 CDs
