Piccolo Coro Mariele Ventre Dell'antoniano Che Paura!

Chailly and La Scala maintain the gold standard for Verdi in this new release coupling two great but rarely recorded choral works. The Hymn of the Nations (Inno delle nazioni) features Decca’s star tenor Freddie De Tommaso, the first tenor to record this work for Decca since Pavarotti. First performed in London in 1862 the Hymn incorporates ‘God Save the Queen’, ‘La Marseillaise’ and ‘Il Canto degli Italiani’: the national anthems of Great Britain, France and Italy. The Four Scared Pieces were published as a set in 1898, shortly before Verdi died. It portrays themes promising peace and the hope of paradise. This album follows the success of ‘Verdi Choruses’ which BBC Music Magazine awarded a 5* review: “Chorus and orchestra are both on their mettle here: the orchestral playing is clean and brilliant, the choral tone full and healthy.” “Chailly is meticulous and pays attention to the fine details, drawing performances from the chorus that are always sonorous and tasteful.” - Gramophone

The Pavarotti and Friends Collection celebrates the internationally renowned charity concert series that brought together the world's greatest pop performers with the greatest international classical star, Luciano Pavarotti.

Claudio Abbado’s career with Deutsche Grammophon stretched back over more than four decades. He was as much a man of the theater as he was one of the greatest of all late 20th century symphonic conductors, and many of his opera recordings remain unsurpassed in the catalog. Building on the huge success of Claudio Abbado – The Symphony Edition, comes The Opera Edition: 60 CDs presenting Maestro’s complete opera recordings for Deutsche Gramophone and Decca.

Verdi, child of the people, king of popular opera, began life as the son of an innkeeper. He was brought up in modest circumstances. He first received lessons from the village priest, who was amazed by the young musician’s talents. Verdi’s musical education was rounded and complete: at the age of sixteen, the composer wrote fugues, masses and symphonies, which he would later destroy. As he met with reticence in Milan, he settled in Busseto where he fell victim to the pettiness of the town. However, his strong willpower enabled him to pursue his musical path without paying heed to what people said.

Decca is celebrating the 200th anniversary of the supreme master of Italian opera Giuseppe Verdi’s birth in matchless style by releasing in February 2013 a 75-CD box containing his entire canon of works.

Bellini’s penultimate opera was received unenthusiastically at its premiere in 1833, and has never attained the popularity of Norma. Early this century it disappeared completely until revived in 1935, as part of the centennial commemoration of the composer’s death. In recent years, its tragic heroine, the wife of a Milanese duke, falsely accused of infidelity and executed at her husband’s command, has been portrayed by such notable bel canto specialists as Joan Sutherland, Leyla Gencer and June Anderson. This dramatically vigorous and well-constructed work contains some of Bellini’s finest and most characteristic melodies, among them a ravishingly beautiful trio, ‘Angiol di pace’. Its neglect for so many years is difficult to comprehend.

Serse is a light and elegant comedy. It opens with the most famous of all Handel's arias, the notorious “Ombre mai fu“ (or Largo), quite a different piece when heard in context. Its mock solemnity sets the tone for what follows. The opera moves swiftly and charmingly, the recitatives often interspersed with brief ariosos rather than full-fledged arias. Outstanding in the cast is Hendricks, her voice flexible and distinctive, clearer and purer than it would become (after the tone began to unknit). She sings with great charm. Watkinson is a fluent Serse but doesn't leave a lasting impression. Oddly enough, I enjoyed Esswood's work more.

Shirley Verrett makes a deeply impressive Orfeo, firm and pure in sound, classically restrained in expression; and her "Che farò", at a moderate, beautifully judged speed, is very finely sung, poised and quietly moving. The set is conducted by Renato Fasano, whose pacing of the score shows a very sure touch. The dance music has a grace and lightness, and a stylistic command, that one might not have expected from an orchestra which in those days seemed to be fed chiefly on a diet of Vivaldi.

The most comprehensive edition devoted to Gioachino Rossini marking his 150th anniversary. Born in 1792, Rossini was the most popular opera composer of his time. Although he retired from the Opera scene in 1829, he continued to compose in other genres, including sacred music, piano and chamber works. He did gather his late works under the ironic title Péchés de vieillesse (Sins of Old Age), which veils a true collection of masterworks.