Davis Tippett

Michael Tippett’s oratorio A Child of Our Time was composed between 1939 and 1942 as a direct response to the events leading up to (and including) the notorious Kristallnacht, in November 1938, in National Socialist Germany. Tippet first intended to write an opera, but quickly determined that this would inevitably be too literal, and that the (rather neglected) oratorio form lent greater scope for reflective and meditative interjections to the narrative. Hoping to persuade his friend and mentor T.S. Elliot to write the libretto, he sent the poet such an intricately detailed plan that Elliot responded by suggesting that Tippett, having thought so carefully about it, prepare the text himself – which he duly did. (He then went on to write his own libretti for all his future large vocal works).

Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. Anyone who loves twentieth century music, who loves English music, or who just plain loves music will love this collection of the music of Michael Tippett. Culled from previously issued but long out-of-print Philips, London, Argo, and l'Oiseau-Lyre LPs, most of these recordings were world premieres made in close consultation with the composer and in the hands of conductors Colin Davis, Georg Solti, Neville Marriner, pianist Paul Crossley, and the Lindsay String Quartet, they receive what can fairly be described as definitive performances. From the ecstatic lyricism of the Suite for Double String Orchestra of 1939 through the luminous vitality of the First Symphony of 1945, the radiant sensuality of the Ritual Dances of 1955, the blues-based modernism of the Third Symphony of 1972, to the glistening transcendentalism of the Fourth Symphony of 1977, Tippett's unique fusion of line, drive, color, and form is performed throughout with passionate dedication and absolute faith in the music's greatness.

Sir Colin Davis celebrated his 80th birthday on 25 September 2007 and this set of late Mozart symphonies was released to mark that important event in the career of one of the great Mozart conductors of the past fifty years.
It was during the early 1950s when Davis started conducting Mozart operas with the Chelsea Opera Group that attention was first drawn to his genius as a Mozart conductor. In 1960 he conducted Die Zauberflöte at Glynedebourne (replacing an indisposed Beecham); during his tenure as Music Director at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden (he succeeded Solti in 1971) his Mozart performances drew huge critical acclaim.

This set documents over three decades of exceptional artistry by Sir Colin Davis, one of the musical pillars of the Philips label, who died on Sunday 14th April 2013. He was a musician of incomparable integrity and class.
After signing to Philips exclusively in the mid-1960s, Davis produced work for the label of the highest quality and range over the next three decades: the first Berlioz cycle , pioneering Tippett, superb Haydn and Mozart, top-rank Sibelius, Beethoven, Stravinsky, Dvorak and Britten, and much else.

This 6-CD box set pays tribute to one of the greatest English conductors of our time, whom celebrates his 85th birthday this year. Knighted in 1980, Sir Colin Davis has conducted numerous world renowned orchestras including the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the London Symphony Orchestra, to which he was the principal conductor for over ten years.

With the season 2005/06 Deutsche Grammophon launched its visionary initiative for recording and releasing orchestral concert performances - the DG Concerts series collaborates with some of the best orchestras around the globe, making their most acclaimed concert performances available to music lovers worldwide via digital download.

Curated by leading musicologist and writer Nigel Simeone, Decca and DG's 20C series is devoted to the compositional high points of the 20th Century, presenting a comprehensive overview of classical music from an often-turbulent era. Volume One is a 28-CD set that features 26 iconic works by 26 composers from 1900-1949 and includes a timeline of musical premieres from that period with repertoire notes by Simeone.