Beethoven Symphony No. 4 and Symphony No. 7. Recorded 2010 live at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées. Vladmir Jurowski conducts the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. Program also includes the Coriolan Overture. Directed for TV by Olivier Simonnet. Released 2011, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: D+
Read MoreConcert
2009 New Year's Concert
2009 New Year's Concert by the Wiener Philharmoniker conducted by Daniel Barenboim. Recorded January 1, 2009 at the Goldener Saal des Wiener Musikvereins. Here's the program:
1. Johann Strauss II "Ouvertüre" to Eine Nacht in Venedig ("Overture" to A Night in Venice)
2. Johann Strauss II "Märchen aus dem Orient" (Waltz) ("Fairy Tales from the Orient")
3. Johann Strauss II "Annen-Polka" (Anna's Polka)
4. Johann Strauss II "Schnellpost-Polka" ("Express Mail Polka")
5. Johann Strauss II "Rosen aus dem Süden" (Waltz) ("Roses from the South")
6. Johann Strauss II "Freikugeln" (Polka) ("Magic Bullets")
7. Johann Strauss II "Ouvertüre" and "Einzugs-Marsch" from Der Zigeunerbaron ("Overture" and "Entrance March" from The Gypsy Baron)
8. Johann Strauss II "Schatz-Waltzer" ("Treasure Waltz")
9. Joseph Hellmesberger II "Valse espagnole" (Spanish Waltz)
10. Johann Strauss I "Zampa-Galopp"
11. Johann Strauss II "Alexandrinnen-Polka" ("Alexandrine's Polka")
12. Johann Strauss II "Unter Donner und Blitz" (Polka) ("Thunder and Lightening Polka")
13. Josef Strauss "Sphären-Klänge" (Waltz) ("Music of the Spheres")
14. Johann Strauss II "Éljen a Magyár!" (Polka) ("Hurrah for Hungary")
15. Joseph Haydn "Finale" from Abschiedssymphonie ("Finale" from Farewell Symphony)
16. Johann Strauss II "So ängstlich sind wir nicht!" (Polka) ("We're not that worried!")
17. Johann Strauss II "An der schnönen, blauen Donau" (Waltz) ("The Blue Danube Waltz")
18. Johann Strauss I "Radetzky-Marsch" ("Radetzky March")
This disc also has three valuable bonus features, all in great HD TV:
1. Schatz-Waltzer Ballet (Treasure Waltz Ballet)
2. Éljen a Magyár! Ballet (Hurrah for Hungary Ballet)
3. Linz 2009 documentary. The city of Linz and the Weiner Philharmonic create a remarkable video celebrating Linz and the Austrian countryside.
Directed for TV by Brian Large. Released 2009, disc was apparently recording using 48kHz/24 bit sound sampling and has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound output. Grade: A-
Read MoreVolodos in Vienna
Volodos in Vienna piano recital. Arcadi Volodos plays the following pieces in 2009 at the Goldener Saal of the Musikverein in Vienna:
Scriabin: "Prélude in B flat minor op. 37/1"
Scriabin: "Prélude in B flat minor op. 11/16"
Scriabin: "Danse languide in B flat minor op. 51/4"
Scriabin: "Guirlandes in B flat minor op. 73/1"
Scriabin: "Feuillet d'album op. 45/1"
Scriabin: "Sonata in B flat minor No. 7 op. 64" ("Messe blanche")
Ravel Valses nobles et sentimentales (complete)
Schumann Waldszenen (Complete)
Liszt "Après une Lecture du Dante" from Années de Pèlerinage 2 (Dante Sonata)
J.S. Bach "Sicilienne" from D Minor Concerto
Tchaikovsky "Lullaby in A Storm" from Children's Songs
Gramophone magazine rated this performance in its CD version as the best instrumental recording of 2010. Directed for TV by Michael Beyer; the Recording Producer was Friedemann Engelbrecht (Teldex Studio Berlin); produced by Michael Brüggemann. Released 2010, disc has 5.1 Dolby Digital, a lossy technology rendered obsolete by the lossless sound formats used on most Blu-ray recordings. Grade: A-
Read MoreLang Lang Live in Vienna
Lang Lang Live in Vienna, a piano recital by Lang Lang with the following works:
1. Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 3
2. Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 23 "Appassionata"
3. Albéniz Iberia, Book I "Évocation", "El Puerto", and "Fête-Dieu à Sévile"
4. Prokofiev Piano Sonata No. 7
5. Chopin Étude Op. 25 No. 1
6. Chopin Polonaise No. 6 "Heroic"
7. Chopin Grande Valse brillante No. 2
Performed 2010 at the Musikverein, Großer Saal, Wien. 40 minutes of bonus features give us our first taste of 3D in a fine-art HDVD. Main program directed by Christian Kurt Weisz; 3D program directed by Andreas Morell. The main program was recorded with 48kHz sound sampling; there is no information on the disc or the package as to what bit rate or word length was used. Released in 2010, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: A
Read MoreNobuyuki Tsujii Live at Carnegie Hall
The Nobuyuki Tsujii Live at Carnegie Hall solo piano concert was performed in November, 2011. Soon thereafter, the material on this disc came out in an Avex Classics disc sold in Japan. I bought the Japanese version. I don't know any Japanese, so there were a lot of things about the Avex Classic title that I couldn't read or report on. In the mini-review I wished that this program would be published for the Western markets. In July, 2012, this happened. This EuroArts version has the same has the same music that Avex Classics released. The keepcase booklet is in English, with notes also in German and French. Now I can report that the executive producer is Hiroyuki Nakashima; audio recording is by Leszek Maria Wojcik; cameras and video recording are credited to Manny Gutierrez, David Smith, and Julie Brenckle.
The program is as follows:
1. John Musto Improvisation and Fugue
2. Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 17 ("Tempest")
3. Liszt Étude No. 3, "Un sospiro"
4. Liszt Rigoletto Paraphrase
5. Mussorgsky Pictures at an Exhibition
6. Steven Foster "Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair," arranged by Nobu.
7. Chopin Prélude No. 15 "Raindrop"
8. Nobuyuki Tsujii "Elegy for the Victims of Earthquake and Tsunami of March 11, 2011."
This disc is region free. Released 2012, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio. Grade: A
Read MoreBerliner Philharmoniker 3D in Singapore
Berliner Philharmoniker 3D in Singapore concert. Simon Rattle conducts the Berliner Philharmoniker in the Rachmaninov Symphonic Dances and Mahler Symphony No. 1. This disc was published by EuroArts. It isn't easy to tell from the PR or the package, but this disc plays in 2D or 3D. This title was released previously by EMI Classics in a version intended for the Japanese market that also could be viewed in 2D or 3D. Subject disc is intended for western audiences; we assume it is the same as the EMI version except for language dress and artwork. Released 2013, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. We reviewed the EMI version. We never reviewed subject EuroArts disc. We assume the two recordings are the same and give subject disc the same grades we gave the EMI edition: 2D Grade: C- 3D Grade: D
Nobuyuki Tsujii - Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 and Shostakovich Symphony No. 14
Nobuyuki Tsujii - Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 and Shostakovich Symphony No. 14 concert. (The real name of this title is Nobuyuki Tsujii at White Nights.) Nobuyuki Tsujii plays piano and Valery Gergiev conducts the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra at the 2012 White Nights Festival. Here's the program:
1. Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1
2. Rachmaninov Prelude in G sharp minor
3. Tsujii Elegy for the Victims of the Tsunami of March 11, 2011
4. Tchaikovsky "November" from The Seasons
5. Shostakovich Symphony No. 14
Singers are Olga Sergeyeva (soprano) and Yuri Vorobiev (bass). Released 2013, disc has 5.1 Dolby Digital sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreBruckner Symphony No. 4
Bruckner Symphony No. 4 concert. Part of the BrucknerMature Symphonies series by Accentus. Daniel Barenboim conducts the Staatskapelle Berlin at the Philharmonie Berlin in 2010. Directed for TV by Andreas Morell; produced by Paul Smaczny. Released 2013, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreSchumann Symphonies 1-4
Schumann Symphonies 1-4 concert: Symphony No. 1 "Spring"; Symphony No. 2; Symphony No. 3 "Rhenish"; Symphony No. 4. Paavo Järvi conducts The Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen. Perfomed at Pier2, a former dockyard in Bremen. Directed for TV by Christian Berger; produced by Bernard Fleischer. Has a 98-minute documentary Making of Schumann at Pier 2 + other extras. Subtitles in English, German, French, Spanish, Korean, and Chinese. Released 2012, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MorePhilippe Jaroussky: La voix des rêves
Pavarotti Tribute
Pavarotti died September 6, 2007. The Pavarotti Tribute is our name for The Tribute to Pavarotti concert presented in 2008 in Petra, Jordan by Nicoletta Mantovani Pavarotti and Princess Haya Bint al Hussein of Jordan. (We changed the name of the title slightly to make it easy to find on the Alphlist.) Stars José Carreras, Plácido Domingo, Sherrill Milnes, Cynthia Lawrence, Andrea Griminelli, Jonanotti, Sting, Zucchero, Angela Gheorghiu, Andrea Bocelli, Laura Pausini, and Alem Kandour (juvenile artist). Eugene Kohn conducts the Prague Philharmonia. This title also has a long documentary with memorial comments about the decedent by family members, friends, and colleagues. Released 2009, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: C
Read MoreMozart Masterpieces
2006 Europakonzert: Mozart Masterpieces (my name) concert. Daniel Barenboim conducts the Berliner Philharmoniker at the 2006 Europakonzert. This is the annual May 1st concert given by the Berlin Philharmoniker each year in a special venue, usually in a different European city. In 2006 the venue was the Theater of the Estates in Prague---the theater in which Mozart conducted the premier of Don Giovanni. For this performance the orchestra sits on a stage that is a reconstruction of the sets used in the first production of Don Giovanni. Grade: B
Read MoreIsrael Philharmonic 75 Years
Israel Philharmonic Orchestra 75 Years Anniversary Concert. Zubin Mehta conducts the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. The program:
1. Saint-Saens Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso op. 28, Julian Rachlin, violin
2. Bach Partita No. 2 in D minor, Julian Rachlin, violin
3. Chopin Piano Concerto No. 1, Evgeny Kissin, piano
4. Chausson Poème for violin and orchestra, op. 25, Vadim Repin, violin
5. Beethoven Symphony No. 8
Concert film directed by János Darvas; audio producer was Friedemann Engelbrecht.
Also included is a documentary, Coming Home, directed by János Darvas and produced for TV by Lothar Mattner, about the history of the the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. Released 2012, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreMahler Symphony No. 8 "Symphony of a Thousand"
Mahler Symphony No. 8 "Symphony of a Thousand." Gustavo Dudamel conducts the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Simón Bolivar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela in Caracas, Venezuela, augmented by multiple student choruses (Chorus Masters Lourdes Sánchez and Manuel López Gomez). Soloists are Manuela Uhl (soprano), Julianna Di Giacomo (soprano), Anna Larsson (contralto), Charlette Hellekant (mezzo-soprano), Burkhard Fritz (tenor), Brian Mulligan (baritone), and Alexander Vinogradov (bass). Produced by Bernhard Fleischer and Chris Ayzoukian; video direction by Michael Beyer. Released 2012, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
There were a lot of performers in this massive effort. I haven't seen any such claim, but with all the student choirs and orchestras available in Venezuela, putting 1,000 musicians in a piece might be possible.
Read MoreWar Requiem
Britten War Requiem. Recorded 2012 at Coventry Cathedral. Andris Nelsons conducts the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Chorus and Youth Chorus. Features soprano Erin Wall, tenor Mark Padmore, and baritone Hanno Muller-Brachmann. Directed for TV by Ute Feudel. Released 2012. The information on the back of the package says that the surround sound is Dolby Digital. Wonk James Kreh reports this is incorrect; the disc in fact has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Probably the art department at Arthaus Musik copied the mistaken information from the DVD version of this production, which does use 5.1 Dolby Digital. Kreh also reports that the music was recorded at 48kHz24 bit. Grade: A+
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