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Cat. No.: 478 0368 |
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Mirella Freni, soprano
TRACK LISTING PUCCINI: Viene la sera | Vogliatemi bene | Un bel dì vedremo | Suzuki? Suzuki? Dove sei? | Tu, Suzuki, che sei tanto buona | Come una mosca prigioniera | Con onor muore (Madama Butterfly)
A generously-filled 2-CD set of many of Puccini's most famous soprano arias and scenes sung by one of the greatest Puccini interpreters, the incomparable Mirella Freni. Taken from Mirella Freni's legendary Decca recordings of complete operas and also starring Luciano Pavarotti this is the ideal Puccini compilation for the composer's anniversary year. |
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Cat. No.: 476 5825 |
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Plácido Domingo | Nancy Herrera | Mariola Cantarero | José Bros
TRACK LISTING TORROBA: Luisa Fernanda Following the release last year of two products originated by our Spanish team (Carlos Alvarez’s Quijotes and Isaac Albéniz’s Pepita Jiménez), we are now offering one of Spain’s most famous zarzuelas, Luisa Fernanda by Federico Moreno Torroba, first performed in 1932. The star cast is led by Plácido Domingo in the role of the liberal landowner, Vidal Hernando, with mezzo-soprano Nancy Herrera in the title role. Mariola Cantarero and José Bros take the other two leading parts, and there is a host of supporting characters. The Chorus and Orchestra of the Teatro Real, Madrid are conducted by Jesús López Cobos. This is a live production from the Teatro Real in Madrid in June/July 2006. The recording has been made possible through the collaboration between the Fundación Caja Madrid and Deutsche Grammophon. THE STORY: Set in Madrid (Acts 1 & 2) and Extremedura (Act 3) in 1868-69, during a time of unrest in Spain known as the ‘Revolución Gloriosa’, the plot of this zarzuela is one of love and politics: two men on opposite sides of the political divide (monarchist and liberal – see cover) are enemies in the Revolution and rivals for the hand of the seamstress Luisa Fernanda. THE MUSIC: Wonderfully evocative of Spain, with its characteristic rhythms, melodies and instrumental colours. Moreno Torroba’s melodic gifts are especially striking. There are also reminiscences of Massenet and Gounod, not to mention Puccini’s Tosca! Best known is the Harvesters’ Chorus from Act 3. |
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Cat. No.: 477 7371 |
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Album Website:
ARTISTS Giuliano Carmignola, violin
TRACK LISTING MOZART: Concerto for Violin and Orchestra No. 1 in B flat major, K. 207
When Claudio Abbado, ‘the most respected living conductor’ The New York Times, teams up with renowned period-instrument violinist Giuliano Carmignola the result promises to be an exceptional artistic experience. Abbado and Carmignola are long-standing collaborators and have performed Mozart together for some time; the album was born out of their feeling that it was time to commit their interpretations to disc. This complete cycle of Violin Concertos is Carmignola’s first Mozart recording; it is also the first recording on period instruments by Abbado and his Orchestra Mozart. The album includes Mozart’s beautiful Sinfonia concertante for violin and viola, in which Carmignola is joined by violist Danusha Waskiewicz. The maestro only agrees to projects that fulfil his high expectations, guaranteeing that this will be one of the most important Mozart recordings of the year. The release is being scheduled to coincide with Abbado’s 75th birthday in June 2008. |
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Cat. No.: 477 7558 |
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Album Website:
ARTISTS Vladimir Horowitz, piano
TRACK LISTING MOZART: Rondo in D major, K. 485
On 21 June 1987, before an ecstatic audience in Hamburg’s Musikhalle, 83-year-old Vladimir Horowitz gave the last concert of a career that stretched over nearly seven decades. The recital, taped by North German Radio (NDR), lay in their archives virtually untouched for more than 20 years (one encore was included in Deutsche Grammophon’s anthology The Magic of Horowitz in 2003). It is now being released in its entirety for the first time in any format. The repertoire is familiar, with Mozart and Schumann (Kinderszenen Op. 15) to the fore. There is a last heroic assault on Chopin’s Polonaise in A flat Op. 53 and the final scintillating encore is Moszkowski’s Etincelles, a Horowitz evergreen. The recording provides a unique souvenir of Horowitz’s final public appearance, where the sense of occasion and immediacy is palpable. Among the greatest of 20th-century virtuoso pianists, Horowitz was renowned for his pyrotechnics at the keyboard. For the last five years of his life, as a Deutsche Grammophon artist, he made six best-selling albums that reveal a new side to his artistry – full of charm and intimacy but still instantly recognizable. Horowitz in Hamburg will be presented in a 4-panel digi, with a 24-page colour booklet – something special to reflect the importance of the release. Includes great photos and memorabilia (including the reproduction of an original ticket to the concert, costing 320 Deutschmarks) |
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Cat. No.: 477 7598 |
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Album Website:
ARTISTS Orchestra Mozart
TRACK LISTING MOZART: Symphony No. 35 in D major, K. 385 ‘Haffner’ ‘The most respected living conductor’ The New York Times ABBADO 2008 is a celebration of Claudio Abbado's 75th birthday in June, and a cornucopia of six releases is planned to mark the occasion. These include two new Mozart recordings; a new version of his landmark Beethoven symphony cycle plus a new collection of Beethoven concertos; a DVD of Abbado in Concert; as well as a new CD compilation, for which Abbado himself made the selections. The two new recordings are both Mozart themed. They feature the Orchestra Mozart, a handpicked group of players founded in Bologna in 2004, with Abbado as their artistic director – and with Giuliano Carmignola as concert-master. Both recordings bear witness to Abbado’s continuing love of Mozart. Abbado has prepared the orchestra by touring throughout Italy – gathering acclaim for their performances, not only for their Mozart, but also Bach (Brandenburg Concertos) and other composers. In the first new Mozart set Giuliano Carmignola is featured on a complete recording of the Mozart Violin Concertos – released as a specially-priced two-CD set. The energy and freshness found in the performances of the Violin Concertos is also evident in the recordings of five Mozart symphonies, including the ‘Haffner’, the ‘Prague’ and the ‘Jupiter’. Consider these as Abbado’s ‘home recordings’ of the five symphonies – recorded live from concerts in Bologna, Bolzano, Modena and Ferrara between 2004 and 2006 – giving them an extraordinary, raw energy, with the impact of drama and lyricism at the forefront. The recordings of Symphonies Nos. 33 and 38 (Prague) are new to Abbado’s discography. |
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Cat. No.: 477 7645 |
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Album Website:
ARTISTS Claudio Abbado
TRACK LISTING MOZART: Contredanse in C ‘Non più andrai’ | Contredanse in D (Five Contredanses ‘Non più andrai’, K. 609) Claudio Abbado has traditionally been a bit reluctant to sanction compilations drawn from his Deutsche Grammophon recordings – he is no great fan of the ‘bits and pieces’ approach to classical music. But in January this year he himself came up with a themed compilation based on a wide-ranging selection of his recordings going back more than thirty years. The result is a highly varied history of the march from Mozart to Prokofiev – with Brahms Hungarian Dances and other similar treats added. The album, a delight from start to finish, reveals Abbado’s unmatched sense of rhythm and colour.
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Cat. No.: 477 5864 |
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Album Website:
ARTISTS Berliner Philharmoniker
TRACK LISTING BEETHOVEN: Complete Symphonies Claudio Abbado's Beethoven cycle of 2000 with the Berlin Philharmonic was one of the musical events of the new millennium. It has sold nearly 50,000 copies since its release. Abbado also recorded the cycle - during an Italian tour in early 2001 - for release on DVD (Euroarts/TDK). Over the years it is this version that Abbado sees as best expressing his vision of the works. Now, with the agreement of the Berlin Philharmonic and Euroarts, Deutsche Grammophon is bringing out the ‘Rome’ cycle on CD, as part of our massive Abbado 75 celebrations. The Ninth Symphony is taken from the original DG CD set, as Abbado feels that is the best version recorded. The new CD version uses the audio layer of the DVD recordings - which means the sound will be better than that on the DVDs. In addition Abbado's final corrections and wishes have been taken into account in the preparation of the new version. New packaging (capbox) but with a similar look to the 2000 box, new article by Italian journalist Angelo Folletto, setting out Abbado's point of view on this release. |
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Cat. No.: 477 7367 |
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Various
TRACK LISTING MESSIAEN: O sacrum convivium! Herbert von Karajan isn’t alone in celebrating his 100th birthday this year. Among composers whose 100th anniversary falls in 2008, Olivier Messiaen (10 December) is definitely the most important – and our French colleagues are preparing a Complete Edition (consisting of around 30 CDs) to celebrate the event. More details to follow soon. (Pierre-Laurent Aimard is also contributing his own Hommage to Messiaen, with a new high-price CD, 477 7452, in August) To whet your appetites, here is a 1-CD midprice compilation of Messiaen’s ecstatic slow movements: a sequence of eight movements from major works that together make an unforgettable impression: supple in rhythm, subtle in melody and incredibly rich in harmony. Almost like variations on a theme (with plenty of F sharp major too!), the 70-minute disc is uniquely relaxing and moving at the same time – by no means the usual pot-pourri compilation. REPERTOIRE: Movements from the Turangalîla Symphony (title piece), the Quartet for the End of Time (violin and piano), Des Canyons aux étoiles and Éclairs sur l’Au-dela (orchestra), La transfiguration (chorus and orchestra), the Vingt regards (piano solo), and two individual works – Le Banquet céleste (organ solo), and the a cappella motet O sacrum convivium. This last is the killer opening track, which we will be making available for free download on our Webshop. PERFORMERS: Featured are great artists who have long associations with Messiaen’s music: Yvonne Loriot (Messiaen’s wife), Myung-Whun Chung, Daniel Barenboim, John Ogdon and Olivier Latry. |
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Cat. No.: 477 7550 |
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Julian Bream, lute & guitar
TRACK LISTING DOWLAND: Queen Elizabeth's Galliard J.S. BACH: Partita No. 2 in D minor (for solo violin), BWV 1004: Chaconne
Julian Bream is one of the greatest masters of the guitar, admired for the intensity of his playing and the beauty of his tone. His advocacy of the Elizabethan repertory pioneered early music in recital form and brought the lute into the world’s concert halls. To celebrate his 75th birthday in July 2008, we are releasing on Original Masters a 2-CD set of some of Julian Bream’s earliest recordings – none of which has appeared on CD before. The set comprises Bream’s solo Dowland LP (1954) – which was his debut solo recording, played on lute - and his solo Bach LP (1956), both originally recorded on the Westminster label and justly celebrated at the time. Here they are brought together with a wide selection of Dowland ayres, sung by The Golden Age Singers with Bream’s lute accompaniment. The CD booklet has a newly commissioned note by Tully Potter, a personal friend of Julian Bream, and includes reproductions of the original LP covers, LP labels and photos of the artists. |
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