Highlights and Rarities
Herbert von Karajan
Bruckner: The Symphonies
Karajan’s Bruckner cycle with the Berlin Philharmonic, recorded between January 1975 and January 1981, is a milestone in the history of Bruckner recordings. These recordings bear witness to the extremely fine sense of this unique maestro and are undoubtedly among Karajan’s most important recordings – but they are certainly also some of the most profound Bruckner interpretations ever
Price: 10-CDs: €59.00
Vienna Philharmonic
Bruckner: The Symphonies
From the magnificent Bruckner catalogs of DG and Decca, Deutsche Grammophon presents the ultimate Bruckner set for the Bicentennial in 2024.
Each symphony in the 9-CD edition is conducted by a different conductor, from Abbado, Böhm and Boulez to Giulini and Haitink, Maazel and Muti, Karajan and Stein. Nine reference recordings in their own right, but all with the Bruckner orchestra par excellence: the Vienna Philharmonic. With wonderful pictures and documents from the Vienna Philharmonic archives in the booklet.
Magdalena Hoffmann
Fantasia
For her album "Fantasia", the harpist has traveled back in time and focused on the music of the Baroque era. Here she presents her instrument in a selection of fantasies and preludes by Johann Sebastian Bach, his sons Wilhelm Friedemann and Carl Philipp Emanuel and his contemporaries Handel and Weiss, which were originally written for keyboard instruments or lute. In the 18th century, the term "fantasia", in use since the Renaissance, referred to an instrumental piece characterized by a combination of stylistic invention and structural discipline. Magdalena Hoffmann emphasizes: "Improvisational freedom and formal rigour combine to form a living, breathing whole – these contrasts form fertile ground for musical creation." The composers she selected may not have written for the harp, but whether they are called fantasies, preludes, overtures, airs or allegros, their works in this genre are perfectly tailored to the instrument.
Price: CD: €25.00
Daniel Hope
Irish Roots
Daniel Hope’s 2024 album "Irish Roots" embodies his deep connection to Ireland, which he inherited from his paternal great-grandfather, who left Waterford for South Africa in the 1890s.
Although he has never lived in Ireland, Hope’s fascination with Irish culture led to the making of the documentary "Celtic Dreams: Daniel Hope’s Hidden Irish Story". Supported by musicologist Olivier Fourés and experiences with the award-winning Irish band Lúnasa, Hope explores the interplay between folk and classical music. "Irish Roots" reflects this journey, presenting compositions by Ina Boyle and Turlough O’Carolan alongside classics such as "Danny Boy" and Vivaldi’s L’estro armonico concertos.
Price: CD: €25.00
Kiri Te Kanawa
A Celebration
On the occasion of Dame Kiri te Kanawa’s 80th birthday, this 23-CD set with her complete recordings for Decca and Philips is being released, supplemented by numerous recordings of sacred music and operas that she recorded for these labels as well as for Deutsche Grammophon. As an outstanding Mozart and Richard Strauss interpreter, her music theater repertoire ranges from Verdi to Puccini and Johann Strauss to Bernstein’s "Westside Story". Accompanied by Jeffrey Tate and the English Chamber Orchestra, Kiri te Kanawa sang the Chants d’Auvergne by Joseph Canteloube as captivatingly as if they had been written for her. We experience the singer with sacred music, together with St. Paul’s Cathedral Choir and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, as well as in a collection of sacred works from Bach to Karl Jenkins.
Price: 24-CDs: €139.00
Christian Thielemann
Das Rheingold
A myth, a heroic epic, a family saga – Richard Wagner’s Ring tetralogy is perhaps all of these combined. This epic production at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden features a remarkable collaboration between Christian Thielemann, one of the most distinguished Wagner conductors of our time, and Dmitri Tcherniakov, one of the great, internationally acclaimed opera directors of our time. The result is "a glittering feast of voices, sounds, ideas and precise character direction. Wagner at his best." (BR-KLASSIK)
Price: 2-DVDs: €49.00
André Schuen
Die Winterreise
Marek Janowksy
R. Schumann: Symphonies Nr. 1 - 4
An energetic and triumphant interpretation of Schumann’s complete symphonies
Marek Janowski presents Schumann: Complete Symphonies, a comprehensive collection recorded together with the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra. After a fruitful decade as a composer for piano and voice, Schumann began writing symphonic works, marking a new phase in his lifeMarek Janowksy
Price: 2-CDs: €29.00
M. Haselböck & Wiener Akademie Orchestra
Beethoven: Violin Concerto
Yuja Wang
The Vienna Recital
Haydn 2032 - Vol.15
La Reine
The fifteenth volume of the Haydn cycle2032 is entitled "La Reine". One might think that this nickname refers to Empress Maria Theresa of Austria, the queen of numerous territories, but in fact the monarch honored with the popular title of Symphony No. 85 is her daughter Marie Antoinette. She was said to be the favorite of "La Reine de France", which is also the work’s full nickname. The new volume also contains Symphony No. 50, which delighted the Empress’s ears when she visited Prince Nicolaus Esterházy in his "Hungarian Versailles" in 1773.
Price: CD: €25.00
Lang Lang
Saint-Saëns
Lang Lang presents a veritable treasure trove of musical discoveries on his new album. At the heart of the recording are Saint-Saëns' Carnival of the Animals and his virtuoso Piano Concerto No. 2, recorded with a star line-up: the Gewandhaus Orchestra and Andris Nelsons. For Lang Lang, this concerto is a true romantic masterpiece that can compete with the famous piano concertos by Rachmaninoff or Liszt. The combination with the Carnival of the Animals not only offered another chance to get young people excited about classical music, but also a wonderful opportunity to work together with his wife, pianist Gina Alice. "Many of us remember the famous Carnival of the Animals from our childhood. There are a lot of clever ideas behind all the fun," says Lang Lang. These two works are complemented by some popular classics for piano solo and four hands by Ravel, Fauré and Debussy, as well as arrangements such as the famous "Flower Duet" from the opera Lakmé.
Price: 2-CD: €29.00
Daniil Trifonov - Sergei Babayan
Rachmaninoff for Two
Daniil Trifonov and his mentor and friend Sergei Babayan are releasing a double album of Rachmaninoff’s piano duets. Rachmaninoff for Two presents the Russian composer’s two suites for two pianos and his Symphonic Dances in an arrangement for two pianos, as well as the poignant slow movement of the Second Symphony, which Trifonov transcribed for two pianos. The album is a tribute to the great pianist and composer in honor of his 150th birthday.
Price: 2-CD: €29.00
Elina Garanča
When Night Falls...
Elīna Garanča’s new album "When Night Falls…" will be released just in time for World Sleep Day on March 15, 2024 and conveys a feeling "for that time of day when you retreat from the world, come home, close the door and devote yourself entirely to your own private life in a protected setting." Accordingly, it is a very personal album, with Garanča highlighting her homeland for the first time in her discography to date. "My Latvian identity should definitely be part of such an intimate, personal program," says the artist. Latvian composers such as Raimonds Pauls, Alfrēds Kalniņš and Jānis Zālīts can be heard on this album.
Price: CD: €22.00
Rudolf Buchbinder
Brahms-Lieder
Rudolf Buchbinder, one of the great pianists of our time, presents the rarely recorded Max Reger arrangements of Brahms lieder on his new album for Deutsche Grammophon. Reger greatly admired Johannes Brahms and this admiration can be heard in his arrangements. Rudolf Buchbinder writes about the arrangements: "When I came across the treasure trove of Brahms songs that Max Reger arranged for piano, I was immediately hooked. It touched me deeply to immerse myself in these gems, to walk in them as if in a world of my own, to let myself be carried away by the pull of the words poured into music."
Price: CD: €22.00
Bryn Terfel
Sea Songs
Wolfgang Muthspiel
Dance of the Elders
Wolfgang Muthspiel and his trio with Scott Colley on bass and Brian Blade on drums reach a new creative peak on "Dance of the Elders".
On the follow-up to the much-praised "Angular Blues", which The Times described as a "gently impressive album", Wolfgang once again demonstrates a fine knack for a particularly lively exchange with his trio colleagues and brings his unique compositional signature to the fore. The guitarist’s special jazz idiom is influenced by both folk and classical music – both aspects are clearly emphasized on the album.
Price: LP: €39.00
Víkingur Ólafsson
J.S. Bach: Goldberg-Variationen
Following his outstandingly successful album "Johann Sebastian Bach" (2018), which won an Opus Klassik Award, Víkingur Ólafsson has now recorded the composer’s monumental Goldberg Variations. The album is released with an extensive essay in which the pianist talks about the work and its history. To this end, he reflects on his interpretive choices for a recording he dreamed of making for 25 years, "…for me, the genius of the Goldberg Variations lies not in the general, but in the particular," Ólafsson says. "As each variation unfolds, you have to be completely gripped by its specific drama and emotion, drawn into its wonderful little microcosm and filled with the joy of discovering it."
Price: 2-LP (Crystal Clear Vynil, limited edition): €69.00
Anton Bruckner
11 Symphonies
The box set, featuring the composer’s nine numbered symphonies, his ‘Study Symphony’ and his ‘Nullified’ symphony, incorporates 11 CDs and a 172-page booklet. This release constitutes the first complete recording of the Austrian composer’s symphonies from the orchestra under a single conductor. Christian Thielemann enjoys a strong rapport with the Vienna Philharmonic and has established himself as one of his generation’s most esteemed interpreter of the Romantic Austro-German repertoire.
11-CDs: €85.00