One of Decca/London's 2 CD sets, providing two discs for the price of one (even less, when downloaded from Amazon.com on MP3), this set is a bargain as well as a treat. It's lovely to hear from Mme. Robles in her concerted repertoire. The Handel, Boieldieu and Rodrigo concerti have hardly ever been in better hands (the Rodrigo transcription was made at the request of the Spanish harpist Nicanor Zabaleta, who played it brilliantly as well), and it's a delight hearing them again in such excellent sound.
One of Decca/London's 2 CD sets, providing two discs for the price of one (even less, when downloaded from Amazon.com on MP3), this set is a bargain as well as a treat. It's lovely to hear from Mme. Robles in her concerted repertoire. The Handel, Boieldieu and Rodrigo concerti have hardly ever been in better hands (the Rodrigo transcription was made at the request of the Spanish harpist Nicanor Zabaleta, who played it brilliantly as well), and it's a delight hearing them again in such excellent sound.
One of Decca/London's 2 CD sets, providing two discs for the price of one (even less, when downloaded from Amazon.com on MP3), this set is a bargain as well as a treat. It's lovely to hear from Mme. Robles in her concerted repertoire. The Handel, Boieldieu and Rodrigo concerti have hardly ever been in better hands (the Rodrigo transcription was made at the request of the Spanish harpist Nicanor Zabaleta, who played it brilliantly as well), and it's a delight hearing them again in such excellent sound.
James Galway is universally regarded as the supreme interpreter of the classical flute repertoire as well as a consummate entertainer whose appeal crosses all musical boundaries. Now for the first time ever, all of Sir James's recordings for RCA Red Seal are being issued together in a single box set.
With The Man with the Golden Flute performing the whole spectrum of classics from Baroque to modern, including virtually every important concerto and other solo music composed for his instrument, plus flute transcriptions from every corner of the repertoire and the globe the range and comprehensiveness of this set is staggering. Sir James s list of collaborators is a musical Who's Who in its own right: names like Martha Argerich, Cleo Laine, Andr Previn, Neville Marriner, Lorin Maazel and Michael Tilson Thomas as well as Galway s wife and fellow flautist Jeanne Galway, the Canadian Brass, Tokyo String Quartet and, needless to say, The Chieftains.
James Galway is universally regarded as the supreme interpreter of the classical flute repertoire as well as a consummate entertainer whose appeal crosses all musical boundaries. Now for the first time ever, all of Sir James's recordings for RCA Red Seal are being issued together in a single box set.
With The Man with the Golden Flute performing the whole spectrum of classics from Baroque to modern, including virtually every important concerto and other solo music composed for his instrument, plus flute transcriptions from every corner of the repertoire and the globe the range and comprehensiveness of this set is staggering. Sir James s list of collaborators is a musical Who's Who in its own right: names like Martha Argerich, Cleo Laine, Andr Previn, Neville Marriner, Lorin Maazel and Michael Tilson Thomas as well as Galway s wife and fellow flautist Jeanne Galway, the Canadian Brass, Tokyo String Quartet and, needless to say, The Chieftains.
Ultimate Classical Chill Out: The Essential Masterpieces basically delivers what it promises: a large selection of mellow classical music appropriate for unobtrusive background listening. The pieces are from a variety of genres, including orchestral, symphonic, vocal, chamber, and keyboard music. Most are gently lyrical and are from the Romantic and post-Romantic periods, but there are also pieces from the Baroque, Classical, and Modern eras. The performances come from Decca's extensive archive and are consistently top-notch in quality, and the notes identify the performers of each piece. The sound ambience varies somewhat from track to track, but it is never less than very good. This five-disc set with over six hours of music is a good bargain for anyone looking for a broad assortment of quiet classical pieces.
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.
The Academy of St Martin in the Fields (ASMF) is an English chamber orchestra, based in London. John Churchill, then Master of Music at the London church of St Martin-in-the-Fields, and Neville Marriner founded the orchestra as "The Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields", a small, conductorless string group. The ASMF gave its first concert on 13 November 1959, in the church after which it was named. In 1988, the orchestra dropped the hyphens from its full name.
For Mozart, wind instruments had their own voices, full of warmth and tenderness, as much as singers did, and his concertos are animated with an operatic sense of drama. His own experience as a violinist allowed him to write five concertos for the instrument that are full of sparky virtuosity, here conveyed with sovereign authority by Henryk Szeryng. This collection (originally released as part of the legendary Philips Classics Mozart Edition) is full of truly authoritative performances featuring internationally acclaimed artists.