Zimmermann Berg

The world’s great conductors are not the only important artistic companions of the Berliner Philharmoniker. It is also always exceptional soloists who perform regularly with the orchestra, providing individual inspiration in their collaboration and opening up stimulating perspectives on the music. The Berliner Philharmoniker enjoy a productive partnership with many of these esteemed companions – with some, even a friendship.

Grumiaux' version remains to this day one of the best available. He and Markevitch conducting the Amsterdam Concertgebouw have a total mastery of the idiom, and the Concerto's sections unfold naturally and organically: it doesn't sound like "modern" music, but as a language entirely congenial to the performers. Tempos are middle-of-the road, close to the metronome marks, and nothing more is required to bring out the composition's searing lyricism. Grumiaux has a luminous tone, the perfect mix of radiant lyricism and despaired vehemence. Markevitch, the Concertgebouw Orchestra (glorious brass!) and the sonic engineers bring out a wealth of orchestral details from Berg's subtle and delicately intertwined textures, maybe not as much as the best modern versions

Released between 1991 and 2005, the selections in The Warner Recordings encapsulate the period when Pierre-Laurent Aimard was signed to Erato and Teldec, performing mostly 20th-century fare and some music from the 19th century. Aimard is famous for his contributions to the modernist catalog, and his performances of works by Pierre Boulez, Elliott Carter, György Ligeti, and Olivier Messiaen are regarded as scrupulously executed and authoritatively interpreted. Aimard also recorded early 20th century pieces by Charles Ives, Alban Berg, Maurice Ravel, and Claude Debussy, as well as Romantic masterpieces of Beethoven and Liszt. A pianist's pianist, Aimard is well-rounded in his repertoire and a true master of keyboard technique, yet he has received considerably less fanfare than many of his flashier colleagues. Yet connoisseurs of piano recordings know that Aimard is indispensible, especially for his special feeling for French music, and his recordings are important documents that serious students and newcomers should appreciate.

This new release by the award-winning Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Hannu Lintu is dedicated to the music of Bernd Alois Zimmermann (1918–1970), a leading figure in the music of post-Second World War Germany. This album includes a rendering of the composer’s magnificent violin concerto featuring star violinist Leila Josefowicz, orchestral score Photoptosis, as well as the first CD recording of Die Soldaten Vocal Symphony based on an opera that is widely considered as one of the greatest German operas of the 20th century.

Bratsche! It’s not often that the German word for ‘viola’ comes with an exclamation mark attached, but the cover of Antoine Tamestit’s new release heralds something worth celebrating. Among the latest of the new star violists to record Hindemith, Tamestit brings his wonderful musical intelligence to bear on some of the greatest music written for the instrument. Tamestit has selected four contrasting works that reflect that composer’s expressive range: one of the solo sonatas, one of the sonatas with piano, and two very different works for viola and orchestra.

Various Artists - 75 Jahre Donaueschinger Musiktage 1921-1996 (1996) {12CD Set, Col Legno} (Complete Artwork)
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 3.64 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 2.14 Gb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 253 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1996 Col Legno | WWE 12CD 31899
Classical / Modern Classical / Musique Concrète / Avant-Garde

The Donaueschinger Musiktage is an annual music festival, providing a platform for contemporary composers in the eponymous south German town. In 1996 col legno published a 12-CD set with highlights of the (then) 75 years history of the event, complete with an illustrated 125-page booklet. 15 hours of exciting modernist compositions from Stravinsky to Lachenmann. The first of these festivals was held in 1921 but there were interruptions in the Nazi years.