It seems that Gary Bertini, like Gustav Mahler, is destined to be better remembered after his death than he was known during his life. When he passed away in 2005, he was little known outside Israel, Japan and continental Europe and nowhere near as widely recognised as the glamour conductors who appear on the пїЅmajorпїЅ labels. His recordings were few and hard to find. A year after his passing, Capriccio has launched a Gary Bertini Edition (see, for example, review) featuring live recordings drawn from the archives of the KпїЅlner Rundfunk-Sinfonie-Orchester, and EMI has re-released his Mahler cycle.
Though well known throughout Europe as a contralto/mezzo-soprano of distinction, Lilli Paasikivi is too little known in this country and this CD should be heard as an introduction to her high standards of artistry. Yes, she can be heard on other recordings (Mahler's Symphony No. 3 with Zander conducting, a new recording of Sibelius' 'Kullervo', and Stravinsky's 'Mavra' among others), but this recording of the songs of Mahler's wife, Alma Mahler, places her center stage with Jorma Panula conducting the Finnish Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra in his own orchestrations of Alma Mahler's song for voice and piano.
Few record labels can boast as glorious a legacy as Sony Classical. This lavish four-disc set chronicles the finest performances available on the label from the past ninety-five years. Eighty selections comprising over four hours of music are accompanied by two lavishly illustrated booklets highlighting Sony Classical's stellar history.
With the season 2005/06 Deutsche Grammophon launched its visionary initiative for recording and releasing orchestral concert performances - the DG Concerts series collaborates with some of the best orchestras around the globe, making their most acclaimed concert performances available to music lovers worldwide via digital download.