ARTISTS
Eastman Wind Ensemble
Eastman-Rochester 'Pops' Orchestra*
London 'Pops' Orchestra**
Frederick Fennell

TRACKLISTING
CD 1 : Hands Across the Sea - Marches from Around the World by Sousa · Ganne · Miguel · Tieke · Prokofiev · Hanssen · Cese · Coates · Meacham · Goldman · McCoy · Alford · Klohr
CD 2 : GRAINGER * : Country Gardens · Shepherd's Hey · Colonial Song · Children's March · The Immovable Do · Mock Morris · Handel in the Strand · Irish Tune from County Derry · Spoon River · My Robin is to the Greenwood Gone · Molly on the Shore · COATES ** : The Three Elizabeths - Suite
CD 3 : COATES : London Suite* · Four Ways Suite - excerpts* · ANDERSON: Pirate Dance** (Goldilocks) · Suite of Carols** - excerpts · A Christmas Festival** · Sandpaper Ballet* · Forgotten Dreams* · Trumpeter's Lullaby* · Penny-Whistle Song* · Bugler's Holiday* · Irish Suite*
CD 4 : JACOB: Suite 'William Byrd' · WALTON: Crown Imperial · HOLST: Hammersmith - Prelude & Scherzo, Op. 52 · RICHARD RODNEY BENNETT: Symphonic Songs for Brass · CLIFTON WILLIAMS: Fanfare and Allegro

This set presents Frederick Fennell in a program featuring the celebrated Eastman Wind Ensemble and the Eastman-Rochester 'Pops' Orchestra . Fennell was one of the most famous conductors of wind bands and had studied at the Eastman school of music, where he joined the school's conducting faculty in 1939. He founded the Eastman Wind Ensemble in 1953 and that same year the ensemble made its first recording for Mercury - the first in a series of albums that would number more than 20 in the following years and which would range in repertory and scope from Monteverdi and Mozart to Hindemith and Stravinsky as well as lighter fare by such masters as Leroy Anderson and Eric Coates. Fennell ended his links with the Ensemble in 1961 when he became associate conductor of the Minneapolis Symphony; this was not a great success and Fennell went back to the academic world and the University of Miami. He continued his conducting activities and remained active in this and teaching until his death in December 2004.

ARTISTS
Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra
London Symphony Orchestra*
Antal Dorati

TRACKLISTING
CD 1: STRAVINSKY: Petrouchka · Le Sacre du printemps · 4 Etudes for Orchestra*
CD 2: PROKOFIEV: Scythian Suite* · The Love for Three Oranges - Suite* · Symphony No.5
CD 3: GERSHWIN: An American in Paris · Copland: Rodeo · SCHULLER: 7 Studies on Themes of Paul Klee · Bloch: Sinfonia Breve
CD 4: RICHARD STRAUSS: Don Juan · Tod und Verklärung · Till Eulenspiegel · Der Rosenkavalier - Suite
CD 5: ALBÉNIZ (orch.Arbós): Iberia - Suite · FALLA: La vida breve - Interlude & Dance No.1 · MUSSORGSKY: Khovanshchina - Prelude & Dance of the Persian Slaves · SMETANA: The Bartered Bride - Overture · Polka · Furiant · Dance of the Comedians

ARTISTS
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Rafael Kubelik
Antal Dorati*

TRACKLISTING
CD 1: MOZART: Symphony No.38 in D major, K504 'Prague' · DVORÁK: Symphony No.9 in E minor, 'From the New World'
CD 2: SMETANA: Má vlast
CD 3: MUSSORGSKY (orch.Ravel): Pictures at an Exhibition · BARTÓK: Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta
CD 4: HINDEMITH: Symphonic Metamorphosis on Themes of Weber · SCHOENBERG: 5 Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 16 · KODÁLY: Variations on a Hungarian Folksong, 'The Peacock'* · BARTÓK: The Miraculous Mandarin - Suite*  

Czech-born Rafael Kubelik made these acclaimed Mercury recording with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra between 1951 and 1953. Born at Bychory on 29 January 1914 (he died at Lucerne on 8 November 1996) his early career was with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra where he was music director from 1941-1948. He later worked at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden for three seasons between 1955 and 1958. One of the highlights of his tenure there was the first (almost) complete performances of Les Troyens. Following this period Kubelik was appointed to the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra where he worked from 1961-85. Kubelik's musical sympathies were wide-ranging and across these four CDs that breadth of repertory is immediately apparent - particularly in his commitment to twentieth-century repertory.

ARTISTS
Alfred Mouledous, piano
Eastman School of Music Chorus*
Eastman-Rochester Orchestra
Eastman Philharmonia**
Howard Hanson

TRACKLISTING
CD 1 : Symphony No.1 in E minor, Op. 21 'Nordic' · Symphony No.2, Op. 30 'Romantic' · Song of Democracy*
CD 2 : Symphony No.3 · Elegy in Memory of My Friend Serge Koussevitzky, Op. 44 · The Lament for Beowulf*
CD 3 : Merry Mount Suite · Mosaics · For the First Time** · Concerto for Piano & Orchestra, Op. 36
CD 4 : Howard Hanson discusses his music: Merry Mount Suite · Mosaics · For the First Time

Howard Hanson conducts Howard Hanson is another release in a group of box sets which makes more of these justly celebrated recordings available again - this time with the composer conducting a selection of his own works and with 'his' orchestra - the Eastman-Rochester Orchestra.

This set presents a selection of Hanson's works from the popular Symphonies 1-3 and the Piano Concerto as well as other orchestral works including the haunting Elegy in Memory of My Friend Serge Koussevitsky and the Merry Mount Suite and Mosaics. A fascinating document is the inclusion of the CD in which the composer talks about the compositional process with particular reference to three of the featured works.