La Fille 2013

On 100 X Vive la France there are 100 tracks that perfectly reflect the feeling of 50 years of French music. From veterans such as Charles Trenet, Henri Salvador, Yves Montand and Catherine Sauvage to more recent artists such as In-Grid, Renaud and others. The tracks are arranged chronologically on the CDs and are thus a nice overview of half a century French music.

THE ANALOGUE YEARS presents a 50-Album overview across 54 CDs, in original jackets, of the celebrated international recordings that emerged from the London-based record label in that pre-digital era.

Kathleen Battle ended her operatic career on a sour note when she was fired from the MET, and this album somehow reflects that–it lacks her usual vivacity and joy. This is the only recital I've heard form her that's routine, and things aren't helped by the fact that her voice, a light colorature, isn't substantial enough for many of these arias, which are for a lyric soprano.

By Santa Fe Listener

Andreas Ottensamer - Portraits - The Clarinet Album (2013) {Mercury-Deutsche Grammophon 00289 481 0131}
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© 2013 Mercury Classics / Decca / Deutsche Grammophon | 00289 481 0131
Classical / Concerto / Chamber Music / Clarinet

Mercury Classics/Deutsche Grammophon has released the debut album of Austrian clarinettist Andreas Ottensamer, the first ever solo clarinettist to sign an exclusive agreement with the Yellow Label. Portraits – The Clarinet Album features concertos by Copland, Spohr and Cimarosa, plus arrangements of short pieces. Andreas Ottensamer is accompanied on the recording by the Rotterdam Philharmonic under Yannick Nézet-Séguin.

Various Artists - 101 Relaxing Classics (2016) {6CD Box Set Decca 478 5074 rel 2013}
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© 2013, 2016 Decca Music | 478 5074
Classical

With the stresses and strains of modern life to contend with, many turn to classical music for solace and this varied collection of over seven and a half hours of relaxing favorites is the perfect antidote to the pressures of modern life. The set is themed and starts with two CDs of choral music, many of which are vocal arrangements of familiar favorites. These are followed by CDs devoted respectfully to flute and harp, the classical guitar, piano and orchestral music. Those who enjoyed the 101 Adagios set will find much to enjoy here, and can be reassured that any duplication is kept to an absolute minimum and where it does occur, is in strikingly different arrangements. The artists at the helm of this relaxing journey include the choirs of King s College Cambridge and the New College Oxford, flautist William Bennett and harpist Marisa Robles, Pepe Romero, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Herbert von Karajan and Sir Georg Solti.

Graham Johnson is simply the greatest living authority on French song; an artist whose innate feeling for the music is combined with prodigious scholarship. He also has the ability to discover and nurture singers who here prove to be matchless performers of this repertoire. Following his many wonderful recordings in Hyperion's French Song Edition, Johnson turns to the complete songs of Francis Poulenc, released also to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the composer's death. Each of the four CDs presents a programme of songs in an order that is chronological for that disc alonesignifying four different journeys through the composer's career. Disc 1 features a substantial appearance, recorded in 1977, of Pierre Bernac (Poulenc's long-term collaborator)narrating L'histoire de Babar, a story known to children throughout the world. The singers include Dame Felicity Lott, acclaimed as one of the foremost performers of Poulenc, and many other stars from previous recordings.