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Yehudi Menuhin - The Legendary Early Recordings (1972/2023)

Posted By: Rtax
Yehudi Menuhin - The Legendary Early Recordings (1972/2023)

Yehudi Menuhin - The Legendary Early Recordings (1972/2023)
MP3 CBR 320 kbps - 79 MB
34:01 | Classical, Romantic | Label: Baroque Records

The legendary violinist Yehudi Menuhin was the eldest child of Russian-born Hebrew scholars who met in Palestine, emigrated to New York City, and moved to San Francisco soon after their son's birth. After just three years of violin study, Yehudi made a legendary debut at age seven with the local symphony. His Carnegie Hall debut three years later, in the Beethoven Violin Concerto, garnered praise that likened him to Mozart as a prodigy, whereupon the family (which now included sisters Hephzibah and Yaltah) lived gypsy-like in hotels wherever Yehudi was engaged at enormous fees. But the child's talent was instinctive. As Fritz Kreisler was to remark later on, "Because the young Menuhin had anticipated so early and so much of what nature had given him, I foresaw that he would have great difficulties." And he did.

Riccardo Chailly, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Roberto Prosseda - Mendelssohn Discoveries (2009)

Posted By: ArlegZ
Riccardo Chailly, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Roberto Prosseda - Mendelssohn Discoveries (2009)

Riccardo Chailly, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Roberto Prosseda - Mendelssohn Discoveries (2009)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue & Log) ~ 335 Mb | Total time: 69:41 | Scans included
Classical | Label: Decca | # 478 1525 9 | Recorded: 2009

This album uses the term “discoveries” rather loosely, especially as it applies to the Piano Concerto No. 3 in E minor, for which the third movement existed only as an incomplete sketch. This was reconstructed and finished by Mendelssohn specialist Marcello Bufalini and premiered in 2007. The resulting work is full of buoyant energy, but it’s oddly short on melodic distinction–not a characteristic we normally associate with Mendelssohn. What it does have is some wonderfully bravura piano writing, delivered with engaging brio by Roberto Prosseda, whose masterful technique makes it a bit easier to overlook the music’s shortcomings.

Danish String Quartet - Prism IV (2022)

Posted By: delpotro
Danish String Quartet - Prism IV (2022)

Danish String Quartet - Prism IV (2022)
EAC Rip | FLAC (tracks+log+.cue) - 362 Mb | MP3 CBR 320 kbps - 190 Mb | Digital booklet | 01:19:53
Classical | Label: ECM Records

The Danish String Quartet's Grammy-nominated Prism project, linking Bach fugues, Beethoven quartets and works by later masters, receives its fourth installment. The penultimate volume of the series combines Bach's Fugue in G minor from the Well-Tempered Clavier (in the arrangement by Viennese composer Emanuel Aloys Frster) with Beethoven's String Quartet Op. 132 and Felix Mendelssohn's String Quartet No.2 (composed in 1827). As Paul Griffiths observes in the liner notes, these pieces "sound all the more remarkable for the exquisite brilliance and precision of the Danish players".

Günter Neuhold, Bremen Philharmonic State Orchestra - Giacomo Puccini: Madama Butterfly (2002)

Posted By: ArlegZ
Günter Neuhold, Bremen Philharmonic State Orchestra - Giacomo Puccini: Madama Butterfly (2002)

Günter Neuhold, Bremen Philharmonic State Orchestra - Giacomo Puccini: Madama Butterfly (2002)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue & Log) ~ 595 Mb | Total time: 139:36 | Scans included
Classical | Label: Naxos | # 8.660078-79 | Recorded: 1997

In 1996 Vox released a 4-CD set that included this, the original La Scala fiasco version of Madama Butterfly, as well as Puccini’s revisions for Brescia and Paris. It was a fascinating release and fans of the opera immediately realized what had been wrong with the first version: The first act contained far too much “local color” in the form of music for Butterfly’s relatives (there’s even a drinking song for her uncle Yakuside), and the 90-minute last act, in addition to simply being too long, dragged out the overnight vigil, too abruptly went into Butterfly’s lullaby to her child, and wasted an extra couple of minutes between Butterfly’s final lines and her suicide–what on earth could she be doing?

Minas Gerais Philharmonic Orchestra & Fabio Mechetti - Gomes: Opera Overtures & Preludes (2023)

Posted By: delpotro
Minas Gerais Philharmonic Orchestra & Fabio Mechetti - Gomes: Opera Overtures & Preludes (2023)

Minas Gerais Philharmonic Orchestra & Fabio Mechetti - Gomes: Opera Overtures & Preludes (2023)
WEB FLAC (tracks) - 214 Mb | MP3 CBR 320 kbps - 140 Mb | Digital booklet | 00:58:17
Classical | Label: Naxos Records

Carlos Gomes was not only Brazil’s leading operatic composer, but he also helped pave the way for Italian verismo during the latter part of the 19th century. The preludes and overtures from his operas chart a course from early experimentation with orchestral sonority to a new conception of atmosphere and tension in his historically based dramas. In Alvorada (‘Dawn’) from Lo schiavo his descriptive writing comes close to the status of a symphonic poem. The music from his greatest artistic triumph, Il Guarany, weaves themes into an organic whole, while his final opera, Condor, is reminiscent of French orchestral music in its employment of whole-tone scales.

Consone Quartet - Mendelssohn: String Quartet in E Flat Major '1823' & String Quartet in E Flat Major, Op. 44 No. 3 (2023)

Posted By: delpotro
Consone Quartet - Mendelssohn: String Quartet in E Flat Major '1823' & String Quartet in E Flat Major, Op. 44 No. 3 (2023)

Consone Quartet - Mendelssohn: String Quartet in E Flat Major '1823' & String Quartet in E Flat Major, Op. 44 No. 3 (2023)
WEB FLAC (tracks) - 266 Mb | MP3 CBR 320 kbps - 138 Mb | Digital booklet | 00:58:56
Classical | Label: Linn Records

Linn is absolutely thrilled to launch a new recording partnership with the Consone Quartet. The first period instrument quartet to be selected as BBC New Generation Artists, the ensemble will embark on a complete Felix Mendelssohn string quartets cycle. Playing on gut strings, thus creating a warm, grainy soundworld akin to analogue photography (as violinist Agata Daraškaitė puts it), the four musicians have drawn inspiration from editions of the time, including Ferdinand David’s own scrupulously marked-up parts, to present fresh accounts of the E flat major quartet ‘1823’ and Op. 44 No. 3. These two works paired together – the former is an early work, the latter is the composer’s penultimate achievement in the genre – allow for some revealing comparisons between styles at different points in Mendelssohn’s life.

Sarah Beth Briggs - Variations (2023)

Posted By: delpotro
Sarah Beth Briggs - Variations (2023)

Sarah Beth Briggs - Variations (2023)
WEB FLAC (tracks) - 206 Mb | MP3 CBR 320 kbps - 173 Mb | Digital booklet | 01:14:45
Classical | Label: Avie Records

Beethoven wrote in his diary that he wanted "to show the British what a treasure they have in God Save the King", a reference to his set of variations on the national anthem, composed in 1803. Sarah Beth Briggs recorded the virtuoso set precisely one month before the passing of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, and the recording heralds the coronation of King Charles III in May 2023. \n\nThe lesser-known Variations on an Original Theme in F major (1802) represent Beethoven the revolutionary. Uniquely, each variation was written in a different key which would have jarred the ears of the composer's contemporaries. \n\nSarah Beth Briggs' collection of Variations underlines a lineage of the genre through the classical and romantic eras. Opening the programme is 9 Variations on a Minuet by Duport by Mozart, whom Beethoven greatly admired. The work takes a theme by cellist Jean-Pierre Duport, chamber music director of the court of the Prussian King, Friedrich Wilhelm II, from whom the composer hoped to gain favour.

Alessandro De Marchi, Orchestra La Scintilla, Cecilia Bartoli, Juan Diego Florez - Vincenzo Bellini: La Sonnambula (2008)

Posted By: ArlegZ
Alessandro De Marchi, Orchestra La Scintilla, Cecilia Bartoli, Juan Diego Florez - Vincenzo Bellini: La Sonnambula (2008)

Alessandro De Marchi, Orchestra La Scintilla, Cecilia Bartoli, Juan Diego Flórez - Vincenzo Vincenzo Bellini: La Sonnambula (2008)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue & Log) ~ 599 Mb | Total time: 134:11 | Scans included
Classical | Label: Decca | # 478 1087 | Recorded: 2007-2008

This recording of La Sonnambula is notable on a number of fronts. It's the first recording of the opera based on a 2004 critical edition of the score that confirms the leading role was indeed written for a mezzo-soprano, although it has been performed by sopranos for much of its history. (Among the first Aminas were the celebrated mezzos Giuditta Pasta and Maria Malibran.) It's also the first recording using period instruments, in this case Orchestra La Scintilla, based at the Basel Opera and conducted by Alessandro de Marchi in an idiomatic and lively reading. And, as the promotional materials trumpet, it's the first recorded collaboration between superstars Cecilia Bartoli and Juan Diego Flórez. Although less hoopla is made of him, the recording also features a superbly lyrical performance by baritone Ildebrando D'Arcangelo.

Riccardo Chailly, Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi - Puccini Discoveries (2004)

Posted By: ArlegZ
Riccardo Chailly, Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi - Puccini Discoveries (2004)

Riccardo Chailly, Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi - Puccini Discoveries (2004)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue & Log) ~ 357 Mb | Total time: 80:47 | Scans included
Classical | Label: Decca | # 475 320-2 | Recorded: 2003

This is the third in a series of "Discovery" discs dedicated to unknown or rare works by three famous Italian composers, Rossini, Verdi and now Puccini. Chailly had already recorded some Puccini rarities in the early 80's but this new issue contains quite a few works that never seem to have seen the light of day.

Leif Ove Andsnes, Artemis Quartet - Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms: Piano Quintets (2007)

Posted By: Designol
Leif Ove Andsnes, Artemis Quartet - Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms: Piano Quintets (2007)

Leif Ove Andsnes, Artemis Quartet - Schumann, Brahms: Piano Quintets (2007)
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 259 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 157 Mb | Scans ~ 64 Mb
Genre: Classical | Label: Virgin Classics | # 00946 395143 2 8 | Time: 01:08:31

EMI Classics pianist Leif Ove Andsnes and Virgin Classics' string quartet, the Artemis, have joined their formidable musical forces to record two of the most beautiful piano quintets of the Romantic chamber music repertoire. Their collaboration makes for what will certainly be considered a landmark recording, bringing a new vigour to these well-known masterpieces. The programme couples 2 major piano quintets by Brahms and Schumann. Brahms' Piano Quintet in F minor Op.34 is the composer's only piano quintet and is considered one of his finest compositions. The work began life as a string quintet, later evolving into a sonata for two pianos, before taking its final form in 1866. Of Schumann's Piano Quintet in E Op 44, Clara Schumann, who premiered it said: "A glorious piece, extremely brilliant and effective. Schumann's sole composition for piano quintet was composed in 1842, a year practically devoted to the composition of chamber works for piano and strings.

Antonino Fogliani, Virtuosi Brunensis - Gioacchino Rossini: Guillaume Tell (2015)

Posted By: ArlegZ
Antonino Fogliani, Virtuosi Brunensis - Gioacchino Rossini: Guillaume Tell (2015)

Antonino Fogliani, Virtuosi Brunensis - Gioacchino Rossini: Guillaume Tell (2015)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue & Log) ~ 1,09 Gb | Total time: 04:12:21 | Scans included
Classical | Label: Naxos | # 8.660363-66 | Recorded: 2013

Performed for the first time in its original uncut version, this production of Guillaume Tell was the jewel in the crown of the 25-year history of the ‘Rossini in Wildbad’ opera festival. Rossini’s final, great, operatic masterpiece is a story of liberation, the oppressed Swiss attaining their ideal of emancipation by hounding the tyrannical Habsburgs out of their country. Although it was composed for the complex demands of the Paris Opéra, numerous dances, choruses and arias were dropped for reasons of practicality. These are restored in the present recording which also includes the stunning finale of the shorter 1831 version of the opera.

Trio Nebelmeer - Chausson - Saint-Saëns: Piano Trios (2023)

Posted By: delpotro
Trio Nebelmeer - Chausson - Saint-Saëns: Piano Trios (2023)

Trio Nebelmeer - Chausson - Saint-Saëns: Piano Trios (2023)
WEB FLAC (tracks) - 267 Mb | MP3 CBR 320 kbps - 140 Mb | Digital booklet | 01:00:33
Classical | Label: Mirare

Inspired by the great Romantic works of the piano trio repertoire, the Nebelmeer Trio – named after the emblematic painting by Caspar David Friedrich – embark on a joint exploration of a turmoiled romanticism. Composed ten years apart by two composers with a 20 year age difference, the trios for piano, violin and cello featuring in this album epitomize the quintessence of French Romantic music of the late 19th century.

Ellinor D'Melon, RTE Symphony Orchestra & Jaime Martin - Tchaikovsky & Lalo (2023)

Posted By: delpotro
Ellinor D'Melon, RTE Symphony Orchestra & Jaime Martin - Tchaikovsky & Lalo (2023)

Ellinor D'Melon, RTE Symphony Orchestra & Jaime Martin - Tchaikovsky & Lalo (2023)
WEB FLAC (tracks) - 324 Mb | MP3 CBR 320 kbps - 168 Mb | Digital booklet | 01:12:05
Classical | Label: Rubicon Classics

Ellinor D’Melon releases her debut album on March 24th 2023 for Rubicon Classics featuring Tchaikovsky Violin concerto and Lalo Symphonie Espagnole with the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra and Jaime Martín.

Riccardo Chailly, Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi - Verdi Discoveries (2003)

Posted By: ArlegZ
Riccardo Chailly, Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi - Verdi Discoveries (2003)

Riccardo Chailly, Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi - Verdi Discoveries (2003)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue & Log) ~ 310 Mb | Total time: 80:48 | Scans included
Classical | Label: Decca | # 473 767-2 | Recorded: 2002

Of the 10 selections on this disc of Verdi “discoveries”, four are bona fide world premieres, though in one of those, the Variations for Oboe and Orchestra, only the orchestral part is by Verdi. In the late 1830s clarinetist Giacomo Mori hired the young Verdi to provide an orchestra accompaniment to his variations on the theme “Canto di Virginia”. Here, Verdi displays his early skill at handling large orchestral forces, and the same can be said of his Variations for Piano and Orchestra. However, there are few musical hints in these works–or in the Capriccio for Oboe and Orchestra, the Sinfonia in C, or the Adagio for Trumpet and Orchestra–that suggest the great master Verdi was to become.

Riccardo Chailly, Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi - Rossini Discoveries (2002)

Posted By: ArlegZ
Riccardo Chailly, Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi - Rossini Discoveries (2002)

Riccardo Chailly, Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi - Rossini Discoveries (2002)
EAC | FLAC | Image (Cue & Log) ~ 330 Mb | Total time: 70:23 | Scans included
Classical | Label: Decca | # 470 298-2 | Recorded: 2001

Philip Gossett calls this 'a Rossinian curio cabinet'. 'A banquet made with leftovers from the Rossini kitchen' would do as well. Whatever the analogy, the art is as much in the assembling of the materials as in the materials themselves. The most familiar music – gleanings from Zelmira, Armida and La donna del lago – is to be found in the very first item, the overture to the Rossinian pastiche Robert Bruce, assembled for the Paris Opéra in 1846 by the composer Louis Niedermeyer. The other orchestral items are all echt-Rossini.