Hires 24

Camille Saint-Saëns - Piano Concertos Nos. 3 & 5
Anna Malikova, Piano / WDR-Sinfonieorchester Köln / Thomas Sanderling
SACD ISO (2.0/MCH): 2,75 GB | 24B/88,2kHz Stereo FLAC: 941 MB | Full Artwork
Label/Cat#: Audite # aud 10.012 | Country/Year: Germany 2007 | 5% Recovery Info
Genre: Classical | Style: Romantic

"The five piano concertos of St.-Saens are not frequently heard and that is a shame in view of the endless repeats of the Tchaikovsky, Grieg and Schumann warhorses. They are all well-composed examples of the best of French instrumental music of the later 19th century and full of lovely melodies that would appeal greatly to concert audiences. I hadn’t enjoyed any of them for some time and it was a pleasure to have these two concertos in enveloping hi-res surround. … Orchestration is very colorful, with solos originating in the winds and strings." 4/5 ~audiophile-audition

Stile Antico - Song of Songs
Renaissance choral works by Palestrina, Guerrero and others
SACD ISO (2.0/MCH): 3,84 GB | 24B/88,2kHz Stereo FLAC: 1,27 GB | Full Artwork
Label/Cat#: Harmonia Mundi USA # HMU 807489 | Country/Year: US 2009 | 5% Recovery Info
Genre: Classical | Style: Vocal, Choral, Sacred, Renaissance

"…Ancient love-poetry and masterpieces of Renaissance polyphony: the very essence of music. Not to be missed."

Robert Schumann - Wolfram Schmitt-Leonardy - Piano Works
Abegg Variations, Intermezzi Op. 4, Symphonic Etudes Op. 13
SACD ISO (2.0/MCH): 3,69 GB | 24B/88,2kHz Stereo FLAC: 1,03 GB | Full Artwork | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: Brilliant Classics # 93136 | Country/Year: Canada Germany 2007
Genre: Classical | Style: Romantic, Piano

"…The real meat of the disc is the Symphonic Etudes. This is a work that has had two fine portrayals on Super Audio–by Mikhail Pletnev and especially Vladimir Tropp. And while sonically the Schmitt-Leonardy is not in Tropp's league, his is a very moving performance. Again, the first thing I notice is the sense of time and space. Schmitt-Leonardy is at great pains to let every phrase register, to let chords fully decay, and when the spirit calls to rush impetuously forward. This is true Romanitc playing…" ~sa-cd.net

Antonin Dvorak: Concerto in B minor / William Walton: Cello Concerto
Gregor Piatigorsky, cello - Boston Symphony Orchestra - Charles Munch
SACD ISO (2.0/MCH): 2,86 GB | 24B/88,2kHz Stereo FLAC: 1,25 GB | Full Artwork | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: RCA Red Seal "Living Stereo" # 82876-66375-2 | Country/Year: Europe 2005, 1950s/1960s
Genre: Classical | Style: Romantic, Contemporary, Cello

"…As far as sound goes, it's the best I've heard from Living Stereo and perhaps the best I've heard from my stereo period! The soloist to orchestra balance is just about perfectly even, which means the orchestra is considered an equal part by the engineers. I prefer that to the "I'm ready for my closeup now Mr De Mille" balance used by most producers in order to highlight the "STAR"." ~sa-cd.net

Upon first listening to this album, it's hard to imagine that many if any listeners would think that it was a premiere recording for the artist, or that the artist in question was all of 17 years of age when it was made. Argentinean pianist Adriel Gomez-Mansur's choice of repertoire does not focus on the flashy, the ostentatious, or the bravura as one might expect. Rather, many of his selections, such as the Liszt Consolation No. 3 and Schumann Traumerei, are from the more introspective and serene portion of the repertoire. In these works, Gomez-Mansur demonstrates a musical maturity and depth well beyond his young years at the time of recording.

Giacomo Puccini - Turandot
Rome Opera Orchestra & Chorus / Leinsdorf
2xSACD ISO (2.0/MCH): 4,62 GB | 24B/88,2kHz Stereo FLAC: 2,31 GB | Artwork | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: RCA Red Seal "Living Stereo" # Living Stereo 82876-82624-2 | Country/Year: US 2006
Genre: Classical | Style: Romantic, Opera

"This Grammy winner, one of the most successful versions of Puccini's final opera, offers Nilsson's first recording of the title character, and Bjoerling's last operatic portrayal on disc, including a heroic, for-the-ages "Nessun dorma". The extraordinary orchestration, befitting a story set in ancient China, benefits from the new DSD remastering."

By late summer of 1837, the 27-year-old Schumann was secretly engaged to his beloved Clara Wieck. The powerful emotions connected with this event were a stimulus to Schumann’s creative impulses, for he was a Romantic through & through. It was at this time that he composed the deeply personal Davidsbundlertanze -18 dances inspired by the imaginary league of David. This fellowship, invented by Schumann, consisted of Schumann’s own alter egos, plus a number of well-respected musicians & friends including Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy. The group was established as a way of fighting against the Philistines; it was Schumann’s response to contemporary musical trends which he saw as cheap, excessively virtuosic, & superficial.

The early Beethoven, the late Haydn… Where is the borderline between these 2 – what is the connection, what differentiates them? Although their ways of life & characters were clearly different, both masters lived in a time during which it was as important to obey the prescribed musical rules as it was to connect the artists intellect with his creativity, personality, & emotional world.

At 1st sight, they appear to have nothing in common – but disregarding the stylistic elements & a difference of 2 centuries, you soon recognize that both are in a sense, musical architects, who as piano virtuosos were equally interested in miniature forms & inspired by folk music. On the 1 hand you have Scarlatti, who, after moving to Spain in 1729 composed almost exclusively for harpsichord & integrated elements of Spanish folklore into his compositions in an experimental way; on the other hand Bartk, who boosted the recognition of the rich native Hungarian peasant songs to an independent folk art, & was also influenced by Arabic folk music.

Legendary performances, no doubt. Nice sound in the original recording, the processed 3 channel sounds even better. Piano tone is wonderfull, full-bodied and detailed. Nice orchestra perspective.