Among modern recordings of the opera, this one is a safe bet, assuming you want a safe version of this opera. Unlike Herbert von Karajan's oppressively string-heavy reading with the Berlin Philharmonic on EMI, this is a balanced, idiomatic account of the score, given a special luster by the Montreal Symphony Orchestra's coloristic instincts and the warm recording acoustic at St. Eustache Church. Conductor Charles Dutoit has a fine instinctive feel for Debussy in general and this score in particular. The singers in the title roles–Didier Henry and Colette Alloit-Lugaz–have both come to terms with the opera's enigmatic dramaturgy. However, it's very much a symphonic rather than operatic performance, clearly a product of the recording studio rather than of the stage.
Perhaps no other conductor has done more for Sibelius or has championed him more consistently on record than Herbert von Karajan. Celebrating Karajan’s great affinity to Sibelius, we present the reissue of his complete recordings of the composer’s works on the Yellow Label, across 5 CDs + 1 Blu-ray. The analogue recordings are newly remastered and presented on Blu-ray Audio disc in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, 5.1 Surround Sound and Dolby Atmos.
Volume 2 of EMI's comprehensive Herbert von Karajan centenary edition gathers virtually all of the conductor's operatic and vocal output for the label in one place, taking up 71 CDs (Disc 72 contains complete librettos in the form of PDF files). I use the word "virtually" because the package omits four posthumously issued archival items taped live during the 1957-60 Salzburg Festivals (Beethoven's Missa solemnis, Brahms' German Requiem, Bruckner's Te Deum, and Verdi's Requiem). Otherwise, it's all here.
The Berliner Philharmoniker elect their own conductor: after von Karajan’s death they chose Claudio Abbado. He rejuvenated the orchestra, expanded its repertoire, and created a less autocratic atmosphere, inspiring levels of commitment and communication from his musicians that resulted in performances and recordings that stand the test of time. Abbado’s tenure with the Berliner Philharmonic can be considered as one of the highlights in the orchestra’s history and many of their recording together still remain unsurpassed on record. DG celebrates this partnership with a 60-CD limited edition collection of their complete recordings – many classics right from the start.
The Berliner Philharmoniker elect their own conductor: after von Karajan’s death they chose Claudio Abbado. He rejuvenated the orchestra, expanded its repertoire, and created a less autocratic atmosphere, inspiring levels of commitment and communication from his musicians that resulted in performances and recordings that stand the test of time. Abbado’s tenure with the Berliner Philharmonic can be considered as one of the highlights in the orchestra’s history and many of their recording together still remain unsurpassed on record. DG celebrates this partnership with a 60-CD limited edition collection of their complete recordings – many classics right from the start.
Karajan’s Deutsche Grammophon complete recordings is recorded on chronological order. From the “Magic Flute” overture of the 1938 recording used as first recording to the recording of the last in 1989, and the Symphony No.7 of Bruckner. There is no selling separately. It becomes ordering limited production.
Seiji Ozawa was the first Asian conductor to rise to international stardom. After his Koussivitzky Prize at Tanglewood, he honed his skills as assistant to Leonard Bernstein in New York and Herbert von Karajan in Berlin. Directorships of the Nissei Theatre in Tokyo, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Tanglewood Festival, the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Vienna State Opera followed. In 2016 he withdrew from the international scene to Japan, dedicating his time to the Mito Chamber Orchestra and to teaching.
With more than 7 hours of tender music by Tchaikovsky, Mozart, Debussy, Puccini and more, performed by greats like Luciano Pavarotti, Andre Previn and Jose Carreras, this set can complete any romantic evening at home. And if we can't play upon your heart strings, 100 classics for this low price is quite a deal.
Victoria de los Angeles was one of the finest lyric sopranos in the decades after World War II. She was born Victoria Gómez Cima. She learned to sing and play piano and guitar while still in school. She entered the Conservatorio de Liceo in Barcelona to study piano and singing, completing the six-year program in three, and graduating with full honors at the age of 18. Her membership in the Conservatory's Ars Musicae gave her wide exposure to the art song repertory and Baroque and Renaissance music.