Haydn: String Quartets Op. 33 Nos 1 3

Louis Spohr’s string quartets combined the Classical finesse of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven with the early Romantic innovations of the Quatuor brilliant, in which the virtuosic first violin enjoys particular prominence. Popular with contemporary audiences and influential during the first half of the 19th century, these suavely imaginative chamber works are now once more becoming appreciated for their originality, emotional light and shade, and historical importance.

Luigi Boccherini was one of the major figures in 18th century music, and was close to both Haydn and Mozart. Boccherini was to base himself in Spain at the royal court, and found himself cut off from mainstream European musical trends. Although less dramatic than either Haydn or Mozart, his music does have moments of explosive drama that appear all the more effective when bursting fortissimo from an otherwise calm movement.

Alban Berg Quartet - The Complete Recordings [62CDs Box Set] (2020)
EAC Rip | FLAC (tracks) | Run Time: 61:07:20 | 15.13 Gb
Genre: Classical | Label: WARNER CLASSICS

Spanning repertoire from the Classical to the contemporary and some 30 years of the Alban Berg Quartett's career, these recordings evince the achievement of an ensemble whose very name honours both the tradition and innovative musical spirit of its home city, Vienna. Founded in 1970, it soon became recognised as one of the defining quartets of the 20th century and went on to make two landmark recordings of the complete Beethoven cycle, the first in the studio, the second live at Vienna's Konzerthaus (presented here in both CD and DVD versions). This 70-disc set, which in addition features DVDs of Schubert and a live performance in St Petersburg, also documents the Alban Berg Quartett's collaborations with such artists as Sabine Meyer, Elisabeth Leonskaja, Alfred Brendel, Rudolf Buchbinder and Philippe Entremont.

Alban Berg Quartet - The Complete Recordings [62CDs Box Set] (2020)
EAC Rip | FLAC (tracks) | Run Time: 61:07:20 | 15.13 Gb
Genre: Classical | Label: WARNER CLASSICS

Spanning repertoire from the Classical to the contemporary and some 30 years of the Alban Berg Quartett's career, these recordings evince the achievement of an ensemble whose very name honours both the tradition and innovative musical spirit of its home city, Vienna. Founded in 1970, it soon became recognised as one of the defining quartets of the 20th century and went on to make two landmark recordings of the complete Beethoven cycle, the first in the studio, the second live at Vienna's Konzerthaus (presented here in both CD and DVD versions). This 70-disc set, which in addition features DVDs of Schubert and a live performance in St Petersburg, also documents the Alban Berg Quartett's collaborations with such artists as Sabine Meyer, Elisabeth Leonskaja, Alfred Brendel, Rudolf Buchbinder and Philippe Entremont.

This monumental release documents the Emerson String Quartets exceptional longevity and dynamism founded in 1976, they are still as youthfully active and inquisitive as ever 40 years later. Moreover it charts the New York-based ensembles musical breadth, encompassing virtually all of the important repertoire for their formation.
This 52 CD collection includes their complete output on DG and features highlights such as the Nine Grammy Awards, Three Gramophone Magazine Awards; complete cycles by Shostakovich, Beethoven and Bartok; plus String Quartets by Haydn, Tchaikovsky, Schubert and many more.

The first two of the three string quartets of Mendelssohn's Op. 44 were recorded by the Cherubini Quartett in 1990. With its transparent textures, elegant phrasing, and refined execution, the ensemble is temperamentally suited to this music, which seems to require those qualities above others. While Mendelssohn acquired many advanced compositional techniques from studying Beethoven's quartets, he never presumed to plumb the master's spiritual depths, and preferred instead to emulate the Classical gentility and poise of Haydn and Mozart. The String Quartet No. 3 in D major, Op. 44/1, is predominantly exuberant and optimistic, and the Cherubini Quartett delivers it in a light, effervescent style, and only occasionally touches on the deeper passions that Mendelssohn prized in this work. More serious and fervid in expression, the String Quartet No. 4 in E minor, Op. 44/2, evokes the tense emotions of eighteenth century Sturm und Drang. The Cherubini Quartett renders the work with a darker coloration and richer tone, but these shadings neither interfere with the clarity of the parts nor weigh down Mendelssohn's fleet lines.

Leonard Bernstein bestrode the musical scene in the second half of the 20th century like few others. For the last decade of his life he recorded exclusively for Deutsche Grammophon, having also made several recordings for the label in the 1970s, starting with his celebrated Carmen in 1973.
VOLUME ONE comprises Bernstein's complete recordings of composers from Beethoven to Liszt, and includes all of Bernstein's recordings of his own works, those of Brahms and Haydn, and individual CDs of Bruckner, Debussy, Dvorak, Elgar, Franck, Hindemith and many American composers.

Today we take high fidelity sound quality for granted, but how did it start? When was the moment when compressed and scratchy sound gave way to natural, realistic sound that captured the whole picture of a performance? Decca Sound ‘Mono Years’ seeks to answer that question and shows how, 70 years ago, amidst war-time privations, a small team at Decca made technological breakthroughs that brought hi-fi to the world. This latest cube explores Decca’s earliest high-fidelity history, and restores some restores critically acclaimed albums from ensembles such as the Trio di Trieste, Quintetto Chigiano and Griller Quartet which have not been available since their original LP release more than sixty years ago. An equally impressive array of soloists includes pianists Clifford Curzon, Julius Katchen, Friedrich Gulda and Moura Lypmany and violinists Ruggiero Ricci and Alfredo Campoli. Several generations of cellists are represented with recordings by Pierre Fournier, Maurice Gendron and Zara Nelsova.