Ein Heldenleben

Richard Strauss: Also sprach Zarathustra, tone poem for orchestra, Op. 30; Ein Heldenleben, tone poem for orchestra, Op. 40 -
Chicago Symphony Orchestra; Fritz Reiner, conductor
Classical | 1 CD | EAC Rip | 437 MB | FLAC+LOG+Cue | Full scans | RS links
Publisher: RCA Red Seal/BMG | Year of release: 2004

Editorial Reviews - Amazon.com essential recording
This recording was the hi-fi demo disc of the 1950s. On CD, it still sounds pretty incredible; an achievement as remarkable technically as it is musically. And what playing! Fritz Reiner sadistically enjoyed driving his players to despair. There's a famous story about principal trumpeter Adolph (Bud) Herseth, who played his tricky little fanfare at the beginning of the second half of Zarathustra so perfectly so many times that even Reiner finally gave up. Most critics and Strauss lovers consider Reiner's performance of A Hero's Life to be the best ever committed to disc, and I'd be the last one to disagree. This is one of those recordings where everything just went right.
–David Hurwitz

Rudolf Kempe’s recordings of Richard Strauss have long been prized for their unparalleled clarity and subtlety in music that has come to define the late-Romantic temperament and its expression of highly strung emotions, whether in a state of Nietzschean exaltation, on the summits of Also sprach Zarathustra and the Alpine Symphony, or in the post-war despair of Metamorphosen. Even in his lighter moods, such as the early and carefree Aus Italien and the late concertos for wind instruments, Strauss loves the complex textures that Kempe and the Staatskapelle Dresden clarify with the utmost skill and sympathy. A classic set, remastered from the original East German master tapes.

Wolfgang Sawallisch was a German conductor and pianist, known for his refined interpretations of orchestral and opera repertoire. As a pianist, he was a revered accompanist and chamber musician, as well as an accomplished soloist. He was born in 1923 in Munich to Maria and Wilhelm Sawallisch, and had a brother named Werner who was older by five years. He started learning the piano at age five, and by the age of ten he had already decided that he wanted to be a concert pianist as an adult. Upon graduating high school in Munich in 1942, he studied piano with Wolfgang Ruoff until he was drafted into the military, where he served in France and Italy with the Wehrmacht, a branch of the Nazi armed forces. During the final stages of World War II in 1945 he was captured and held in a British POW camp.

The set includes several recordings which appear as international CD releases for the first time (symphonies by Haydn, Beethoven, Schubert) as well as first CD releases of works by Hendrik Andriessen and Stravinsky. Several other recordings have been unavailable for a number of years and are included here.

Herbert von Karajan was an Austrian conductor. He was principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic for 34 years. During the Nazi era, he debuted at the Salzburg Festival, with the Vienna Philharmonic, the Berlin Philharmonic, and during World War II he conducted at the Berlin State Opera. Generally regarded as one of the greatest conductors of the 20th century, he was a controversial but dominant figure in European classical music from the mid-1950s until his death. Part of the reason for this was the large number of recordings he made and their prominence during his lifetime. By one estimate, he was the top-selling classical music recording artist of all time, having sold an estimated 200 million records.

Herbert von Karajan was an Austrian conductor. He was principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic for 34 years. During the Nazi era, he debuted at the Salzburg Festival, with the Vienna Philharmonic, the Berlin Philharmonic, and during World War II he conducted at the Berlin State Opera. Generally regarded as one of the greatest conductors of the 20th century, he was a controversial but dominant figure in European classical music from the mid-1950s until his death. Part of the reason for this was the large number of recordings he made and their prominence during his lifetime. By one estimate, he was the top-selling classical music recording artist of all time, having sold an estimated 200 million records.

In memoriam Maestro Maazel, Sony Classical re-releases the ‘Maazel Great Recordings’ 30-CD Box to honour his great work.

Deutsche Grammophon presents: Shanghai Symphony Orchestra Great Recordings (Vol. 2). Shanghai Symphony Orchestra performs Beethoven Berlioz, Mahler, Mozart, Rachmaninov, Shostakovich, Strauss.

In memoriam Maestro Maazel, Sony Classical re-releases the “Maazel Great Recordings” 30-CD Box to honour his great work. During his career, he conducted more than 150 orchestras in some 5,000 opera and concert performances. He served as general manager and artistic director at the Vienna State Opera and conducted the Bayreuth Festival in Germany, the first American to do so in both cases. He also served at the Radio Symphony of Berlin, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra and the Munich Philharmonic.