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London Symphony Orchestra - Bartók Bluebeard's Castle - Valery Gergiev (2018) {B&W Society of Sound LSO97 16-44.1}
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© 2018 LSO / B&W Society of Sound | LSO97
Classical / Early 20th Century

Bartók’s only opera is an intense drama, involving only two characters and underpinned by a rich orchestral score. Bluebeard’s young bride persuades him to open seven doors in his castle to let the light in. Behind each she finds increasingly disturbing sights, until the final door opens to reveal the castle’s secret and her fate.

London Symphony Orchestra - Sibelius Symphonies Nos 3 & 7 - Sir Colin Davis (2018) {B&W Society of Sound LSO96 16-44.1}
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© 2018 LSO / B&W Society of Sound | LSO96
Classical / Early 20th Century

With his Third Symphony, Sibelius began a process of innovation that was to culminate in his Seventh and final symphony. He discarded the conventional structure of a symphony, and into each work condensed a unique aura that evokes beauty, mystery, colour and light together with his love of his Finnish homeland.

London Symphony Orchestra - Shostakovich Symphony No. 5 - Gianandrea Noseda (2018) {B&W Society of Sound LSO99 16-44.1}
FLAC (tracks) - 16bit/44kHz - Official Digital Download (bowers-wilkins.co.uk) -> 174 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 113 Mb
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© 2018 LSO / B&W Society of Sound | LSO99
Classical / Early 20th Century

Following the denunciation by the state of his opera Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District, Shostakovich's Fifth Symphony was viewed as his most socialist symphony, pandering to the demands of the Stalinist regime. However, in Gianandrea Noseda's hands, Shostakovich's cynical intent comes to the fore, highlighting the brutality rather than the glory of the Soviet state.

London Symphony Orchestra - Mendelssohn Symphonies Nos 1 & 4 - Sir John Eliot Gardiner (2018) {B&W Society of Sound LSO98}
FLAC (tracks) - 16bit/44.1kHz - Official Digital Download (bowers-wilkins.co.uk) -> 256 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 147 Mb
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© 2018 LSO / B&W Society of Sound | LSO98
Classical / Early Romantic

Completed when Mendelssohn was only fifteen, his First Symphony is an energetic work, exhibiting the young prodigy’s genius and youthful outlook. Both versions of the third movement (the orchestrated scherzo from his Octet from the London premiere, and the original version) are presented here for comparison. One of his best-loved works, the “Italian” Symphony stems from Mendelssohn’s tour of Europe (1829-31) and is inspired by Italy’s vivid sights, sounds, and atmosphere.