Casual pronouncements are made every so often that the lute songs (the lute is a plucked stringed instrument, an early cousin to the guitar) and madrigals of Elizabethan and Jacobean England were the popular music of their day. And Sting, who alludes to the likes of Vladimir Nabokov in his lyrics, is hardly uneducated in the legacy of fine arts, and he has a certain cerebral, inward sadness that matches the dominant mood of English music around 1600 well enough…
It was bound to happen sooner or later: pretty much everything known by Mahler put into one box (16 cd's).EMI and DG–which also drew on the catalogues of Decca and Philips–have each produced complete-edition boxed sets to coincide with the 150th anniversary of Mahler's birth. One set seems like an inexhaustible treasure trove; the other one is more like a mere assemblage of all of Mahler's music.
In celebration of the 20th anniversary of Nigel Kennedy's landmark recording of Vivaldi's Four Seasons, EMI Classics presents the 20th Anniversary Luxury Edition. The set includes the original recording, award-winning film, images not previously issued, memorabilia, and a specially-written account of unfolding events. Originally recorded in November 1986 in the Church of St. Johnat- Hackney, London, it was a recording that would achieve unprecedented public and media attention and change the course of music history. It wasn't until March 1989, after the slow movements had been recorded, that the master was completed. Now with this 20 Year Anniversary Luxury Edition you can own it all.amazon.com
…This set is highly recommended. The high quality sound is cool, vivid and well balanced. I just love the consistent purity and nobility of the playing which is marvellously assured and refined. There is never any Romantic wallowing and the performances are characterful but never overacted.
2012 is the 150th anniversary of Diepenbrock’s birth in Amsterdam. Also, it is 100 years since he was acclaimed as the most important Dutch composer since Sweelinck. This definitive collection includes his many vocal compositions as well as those for stage, orchestra and Symphonic Songs.