With this set, RICERCAR is beginning the rerelease of one of the jewels in its catalogue: the large collection devoted to sacred music of the German Baroque. Each set will group pieces by theme, the first being devoted to music for Passiontide, Easter and funeral cantatas. This long page in the history of music stretches from Schütz to Bach with the first release of a highly moving live recording of Bach's Johannes Passion by Les Agrémens and the Chamber Chorus of Namur conducted by Guy van Waas.

Simeon ten Holt’s unmistakable minimalist style is the driving force behind Canto Ostinato, one of the composer’s most famous works. Canto Ostinato is the best-loved Dutch piano composition of the 20th century, with its mesmerising melodies never failing to soothe the mind.

The instruments and number of performers for the piece are unspecified; written ‘for keyboard instruments’, the work has been recorded many times with piano, but this unique set brings together 12 arrangements of the work – for piano, as well as for organ, marimba and synthesizer. With a variety of recording venues ranging from throughout The Netherlands to Canada, this compilation is a must-have addition to any classical music collection.

Jeroen van Veen is a leading light in modern piano performance, as well as a successful composer. Chairman of the Simeon ten Holt Foundation, he has won critical acclaim with ensembles such as The International Piano Quartet, DJ Piano and Jeroen van Veen & Friends.

Other information:
- Recorded in 1999 - 2013.
- Anyone having experienced the power of Canto Ostinato by Simeon ten Holt will come under the spell of the hallucinatory effect of this iconic work, the most famous Dutch work for piano of the 20th century, one of the “classics” of minimal music.
- Jeroen van Veen and friends present the work in a variety of arrangements, ranging from piano solo through multiple pianos, organ, marimbas and synthesizers, each revealing other aspects of this deceptively simple work in which the harmonies shift imperceptibly in slowly changing waves.
- Liner notes on the composer by the artist, who worked in close collaboration till the composer’s death last year.

J.S. Bach: Complete Organ Music, Vol. 1, Composer Johann Sebastian Bach, Artist Stefano Molardi organ, Format 4 CD, Stefano Molardi is shaping his recorded survey of Bach's complete organ music as self-sufficient and musically satisfying recitals which, disc by disc, explore the diverse styles at the composer's disposal, the flexible usage to which he, the ultimate 'compleat musician', puts 'his' instrument through it's paces, and the different liturgical demands which he was required to meet during the course of his career as he moved from church to court and back again. Grand Weimar- and Leipzig-composed preludes and fugues rub shoulders with intricate trio sonatas which he had initially conceived as chamber music, and between them nestle intimate chorales from his C�then days. Accordingly, Molardi makes full use of the potential flexibility of his chosen Trost organ in the Stadtkirche 'Zur Gotteshilfe' in Waltershausen, deep in the provincial heart of Thuringia. This is Bach country, and although the organ has been periodically restored since it was finally inaugurated in 1755, almost 30 years after the work was begun, it retains the classic characteristics of it's age and situation: a thorough restoration in 1998 returned the instrument to it's original glory. Born in Cremona, Molardi has undertaken a Renaissance career as not only organist but harpsichordist, conductor and scholar, not only at home in the rarified confines of early music but a virtuoso who has performed the complete organ works of Liszt and Franck and made an extraordinary recording of Verdi arranged for organ. These Bach discs are, perhaps appropriately, less overtly spectacular but no less imaginative in their rhythmic and coloristic response. A new recording (2013) of Bach's complete organ works is, even in these overfed and crisis-stricken days, an event of the first order. First of all because the music is of such overwhelming beauty and power, one of the greatest creations of humanity, and secondly because there is still so much to discover and illuminate in these works. These recordings are based on the choice of instruments: organist Stefano Molardi chose German instruments from Bach's time, lending an authentic character to the project. This first set features the wonderful Trost Organ of the Stadtkirche Zur Gotteshilfe in Waltershausen, Thuringia, built in 1725 and gloriously restored in 1998. Stefano Molardi is a "renaissance man", organist, harpsichordist, scholar, historian and writer. He recorded extensively for Divox, DGG and other labels. His playing is clear, crisp, free and rhythmically vibrant. The CD's are programmed like concerto programs, a fine diversity of genres and styles, to avoid monotony and uniformity.

"• Recorded on four different organs, J. S. Bach's The Well-Tempered Clavier, 48 Préludes and Fugues equally divided into two books, is a veritable manifesto of the art of the keyboard and a founding work of all future keyboard literature. • Organist Frédéric Desenclos clearly reveals the architecture of these gems of imagination and compositional skill, originally composed for harpsichord. • Mr. Desenclos was a student of famed French organists Gaston Litaize and Andre Isoir. • Complete on 4 CD's; digibox."

Classical Music

2014 vinyl LP pressing release from experimental classical composer/producer. He is 'praised as "heady", possessing "elements of post-Minimalism, avant-garde rock, jazz and global-fusion styles that mingle and merge with dreamlike mutability"- New York Times.

R E V I E W S of some of the recordings that make up this set:

It's always fascinating to go back to the early recordings of artists who are firmly ensconced in the classical music pantheon. Such is the case with this recording of the Tchaikovsky and Sibelius concertos made by Itzhak Perlman in the late 1960s.
The Tchaikovsky concerto was written for virtuoso violinist Leopold Auer who actually thought the work unplayable. The young Perlman brings passion and flash to the concerto; his playing is suitably poetic in its sentimental moments and fiery in its finale. Sibelius's concerto was written about the same time that he wrote his second symphony. Perlman grasps the concerto's romantic soul while standing up to its demanding modernist technical challenges. As an added bonus the recording includes Dvorák's Romance, a gentle idyll that displays Perlman's lovely legato playing. -- MUZE [review of RCA 63591]

This album continues the tribute to classic film music from John Williams and Itzhak Perlman's CINEMA SERENADE disc. It is an undeniably old-fashioned and romantic album, befitting the era the music is drawn from. On "As Time Goes By" from CASABLANCA, Perlman proves that he's still one of the world's premier concert violinists, playing the theme with palpable ache. Most of these compositions are by the classic film composers--Alfred Newman, Miklós Rózsa, Max Steiner--with one notable exception. William Walton's theme for HENRY V gets a suitably regal, yet restrained, treatment. Perlman sounds as if he's having a good time with the sprightly Irish motifs of "The Quiet Man." The orchestrations are rich and dramatic, and the recording quality is superb. This album is highly recommended to anyone who remembers when a soundtrack was more than just a bunch of flavor-of-the-month pop tunes. -- MUZE [review of SONY 60773]

Prokofiev's F minor Sonata—surely his greatest chamber work—opens bleakly, then flowers to harmonic richness before switching to a sharp-edged Allegro brusco, a deeply introspective Andante and a closing Allegrissimo that recalls (or anticipates, depending on its precise chronology in Prokofiev's thinking) the finale of the great Eighth Piano Sonata... Perlman's is an immensely assured, sweet-centred reading, delicate where needs be (the ''wind in a graveyard'' passages of the first movement, for example) and yet with a Heifetzian resilience that both sonatas willingly respond to... When it comes to the delightful Second Sonata—of rather less import, and a second-hand utterance (the original was for flute and piano)—Perlman and Ashkenazy play with astonishing virtuosity and here their visceral virtues win hands down, especially in the Scherzo... the playing has real class, the recording is clean and there's a substantial bonus in Perlman's accomplished 1966 version of the Second Violin Concerto, where Leinsdorf and the Boston Symphony trace and characterize the score's every subtle detail—especially among the woodwind. That, for me, is the disc's most indelible interpretative feature. -- Gramophone [review of RCA 61454]

LA TRAVIATA
Mireille Delunsch • Matthew Polenzani • Zeljko Lucic
Orchestre de Paris, Conducted by Yutaka Sado
staged by Peter Mussbach
Recorded at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence (2003)

AIDA
Nina Stemme • Salvatore Licitra • Luciana D’Intino Juan Pons • Matti Salminen
Zurich Opera Orchestra, Conducted by Adam Fischer
staged by Nicolas Joel
Recorded at the Opernhaus Zürich (2006)
BBC Magazine DVD of the month (august 07)
Gramophone DVD of the month (august 07)

MACBETH
Dimitris Tiliakos • Violeta Urmana • Ferruccio Furlanetto • Stefano Secco
Orchestre de l’Opéra national de Paris, Conducted by Teodor Currentzis
staged by Dmitri Tcherniakov
Recorded at the Opéra national de Paris (2009)

Three masterpieces by Verdi in a limited edition 5-DVD box set: internationally acclaimed productions from Aix Festival, Zurich Opera House and paris Opera, by Peter Mussbach (Traviata), Nicolas Joel (Aida) and Dmitri Tcherniakov (Macbeth). Artists as Mireille Delunsch, Nina Stemme, salvatore Licitra, Violeta Urmana and world famous conductors as Yutaka Sado, Adam Fischer and Teodor Currentzis.

This material represents some of the earliest televised concerts with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and three of their eminent music directors, Charles Munch, Erich Leinsdorf and William Steinberg. This historical footage has been restored using the greatest care and state-of-the-art techniques. It is of exceptional musical interest and historical value, and has been described by critics as a "rare treat" (Gramophone) and "welcome documentations" (BBC Music Magazine).

Picture format: NTSC 4:3 Sound format: LPCM Mono (DVD 1) / LPCM Stereo (DVD 2) / Enhanced Mono (DVD 3, 4, 5) Region code: 0 (worldwide) Menu language: English Running time: 6 hours 14 mins No. of DVDs: 5

This set contains the following 5 DVDs:

CHARLES MUNCH
RAVEL Ma Mère l’Oye – Suite; DEBUSSY Ibéria, La Mer (1958 & 1961)

ERICH LEINSDORF
SCHUBERT Symphony No. 9 "Great"; SCHUMANN Symphony No. 4; WAGNER Parsifal – Good Friday Music (1962, 1963 & 1964)

BEETHOVEN Egmont Overture; TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 5; MOZART Serenade No.9 "Posthorn" – Minuet I (1963 & 1969)

WILLIAM STEINBERG
HAYDN Symphony No. 55; BEETHOVEN Symphonies Nos. 7 & 8 (1962, 1969 & 1970)

BRUCKNER Symphony No. 8 (2nd revised edition) (1962)

From Tutto Verdi: The Complete Operas, three hardcover slipcase boxes representing Verdi's early, middle and late operas are now available. Tutto Verdi: The Operas Vol. 2 includes the operas from 1847-1853.

Richard Wagner
DIE WALKÜRE

Wotan – John Bröcheler
Siegmund – John Keyes
Hunding – Kurt Rydl
Sieglinde – Nadine Secunde
Brünnhilde – Jeannine Altmeyer
Fricka – Reinhild Runkel
Gerhilde – Irmgard Vilsmaier
Ortlinde – Annegeer Stumphius
Waltraute – Hanna Schaer
Schwertleite – Hebe Dijkstra
Helmwige – Kirsi Tiihonen
Siegrune – Catherine Keen
Grimgerde – Regina Mauel
Rossweise – Elzbieta Ardam

Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra
Hartmut Haenchen, conductor

Pierre Audi, stage director
George Tsypin, set designer
Eiko Ishioka, costume designer
Wolfgang Göbbel, lighting designer

Recorded live from the Het Muziektheater, Amsterdam, 1999

Picture format: NTSC 16:9
Sound format; LPCM Stereo / DTS 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Japanese
Running time: 260 mins
No. of DVDs: 3

Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky
CLASSIC BALLETS
(3-DVD Box Set)

Swan Lake

Odette / Odille – Marianela Nuñez
Prince Siegfried – Thiago Soares
The Princess, Siegfried’s mother – Elizabeth McGorian
An Evil Spirit / Von Rothbart – Christopher Saunders
The Tutor – Alastair Marriott
Benno – David Pickering

Royal Ballet
Royal Opera House Orchestra
Valeriy Ovsyanikov, conductor

Anthony Dowell, stage director
Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov, choreographers

Recorded at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London, on 16 and 24 March 2009

Bonus:
- Illustrated synopsis
- Cast gallery
- Interview with Anthony Dowell
- Four Swan Queens - Exclusive 30-minute conversation on the demands of dancing the role of the Swan Queen with former Prima Ballerinas
- Dame Beryl Grey, Dame Monica Mason, Lesley Collier and current principal Marianela Nuñez

The Nutcracker

The Sugar Plum Fairy – Miyako Yoshida
Nephew / Nutcracker – Ricardo Cervera / Steven McRae
The Prince – Steven McRae
Drosselmeyer – Gary Avis

Royal Ballet
Royal Opera House Orchestra
Koen Kessels, conductor

Peter Wright, choreographer and director (after Lev Ivanov)

Recorded live at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London, November and December 2009

Bonus:
- Cast gallery
- Rehearsing at White Lodge
- Peter Wright tells the story of The Nutcracker

The Sleeping Beauty

Princess Aurora – Alina Cojocaru
Prince Florimund – Federico Bonelli
King Florestan XXIV – Christopher Saunders
His Queen – Elizabeth McGorian
Cattalabutte – Alastair Marriott
Carabosse – Genesia Rosato
Lilac Fairy – Marianela Nuñez

Royal Ballet
Royal Opera House Orchestra
Valeriy Ovsyanikov, conductor

Marius Petipa, choreographer

Recorded live at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London on 5 December 2006

Bonus:
- Cast gallery
- Illustrated synopsis

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Picture format: NTSC 16:9
Sound format: LPCM 2.0 / DTS 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles (bonus): French, German, Spanish (Nutcracker) + Italian (Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty)
Running time: 7 hours 37 mins
No. of DVDs: 3

A collection of live recordings of operas by Giuseppe Verdi, filmed at theatres in Liege, Palermo and Venice, and at the historical fortress of Tsaverets in Bulgaria. The operas featured are: 'Attilla', 'Luisa Miller', 'Il Travotore', 'La Traviata', 'Simon Boccanegra' and 'Falstaff'. The soloists featured include Orlin Anastasov, Ventsalav Anastasov, Darina Takova, Cinzia Forte, and Ruggero Raimondi.

Also available on standard DVD

Note: These Blu-ray Discs are playable only on Blu-ray Disc players, and not compatible with standard DVD players.

Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky
CLASSIC BALLETS
(3-DVD Box Set)

Swan Lake

Odette / Odille – Marianela Nuñez
Prince Siegfried – Thiago Soares
The Princess, Siegfried’s mother – Elizabeth McGorian
An Evil Spirit / Von Rothbart – Christopher Saunders
The Tutor – Alastair Marriott
Benno – David Pickering

Royal Ballet
Royal Opera House Orchestra
Valeriy Ovsyanikov, conductor

Anthony Dowell, stage director
Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov, choreographers

Recorded at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London, on 16 and 24 March 2009

Bonus:
- Illustrated synopsis
- Cast gallery
- Interview with Anthony Dowell
- Four Swan Queens - Exclusive 30-minute conversation on the demands of dancing the role of the Swan Queen with former Prima Ballerinas
- Dame Beryl Grey, Dame Monica Mason, Lesley Collier and current principal Marianela Nuñez

The Nutcracker

The Sugar Plum Fairy – Miyako Yoshida
Nephew / Nutcracker – Ricardo Cervera / Steven McRae
The Prince – Steven McRae
Drosselmeyer – Gary Avis

Royal Ballet
Royal Opera House Orchestra
Koen Kessels, conductor

Peter Wright, choreographer and director (after Lev Ivanov)

Recorded live at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London, November and December 2009

Bonus:
- Cast gallery
- Rehearsing at White Lodge
- Peter Wright tells the story of The Nutcracker

The Sleeping Beauty

Princess Aurora – Alina Cojocaru
Prince Florimund – Federico Bonelli
King Florestan XXIV – Christopher Saunders
His Queen – Elizabeth McGorian
Cattalabutte – Alastair Marriott
Carabosse – Genesia Rosato
Lilac Fairy – Marianela Nuñez

Royal Ballet
Royal Opera House Orchestra
Valeriy Ovsyanikov, conductor

Marius Petipa, choreographer

Recorded live at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London on 5 December 2006

Bonus:
- Cast gallery
- Illustrated synopsis

---

Picture format: 1080i High Definition Sound format: LPCM 2.0 / DTS 5.1 Region code: 0 (worldwide) Subtitles (bonus): French, German, Spanish (Nutcracker) + Italian (Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty) Running time: 7 hours 37 mins No. of Discs: 3 (Blu-ray)

R E V I E W S:

This generally acclaimed Royal Ballet production of Swan Lake follows on the heels of the somewhat disappointing Blu-ray Mariinsky performance starring Ulyana Lopatkina (Odette/Odile) and conducted by Valery Gergiev (Fanfare 32:5). Both versions are based on the choreography of Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov, with additional choreography for the Royal Ballet production by the esteemed Frederick Ashton. Any Swan Lake revolves around the central roles of Odette/Odile. In the case of Marianela Nuñez versus Lopatkina, one is not necessarily better than the other. Rather, they are very different. Nuñez is all about elegance, grace, and smooth, legato flow. She exhibits a persistent and rather resigned sadness and vulnerability in the white swan act. It is critical that there is ample contrast as Odile. In the ballroom scene, Nuñez is far more animated, saucy, and seductive. She cannot match Lopatkina’s flawless, almost surgically precise technique, but Lopatkina is cold, sterile, and certainly not very vulnerable as Odette. Nuñez radiates humanity in her finely nuanced but somewhat subdued acting. Thiago Soares (Siegfried) clearly has developed admirable rapport with Nuñez (apparently offstage as well as onstage). He is far preferable to the terminally bland Danila Korsuntsev in the Mariinsky Swan Lake. Conductor Valeriy Ovsyanikov, as in his Royal Ballet Sleeping Beauty, applies generally fast tempos, with an emphasis on clarity of instrumental lines. Compared to Antal Dorati in his legendary Mercury recording, Ovsyanikov can be equated with an overdose of valium. This beautifully staged Swan Lake is just too sedate. The whole thing gives the impression of a subdued and reverential allegiance to tradition. The sumptuous sets evoking Imperial Russia (presumably in the time of Tchaikovsky) and colorful costumes are gorgeous. The high-resolution sound features excellent mid-range detail, sparkling high frequencies, and warm bass. Extras include a short interview with Anthony Dowell discussing Swan Lake and this production, and a more lengthy presentation entitled “Four Swan Queens.” The comments of the four ladies are pretty superficial, with a few interesting anecdotes. The young Nuñez appears to be intimidated or deferential to the three older prima ballerinas to the point where she has little to say.

This production offers nothing that is new or remotely controversial. Viewers will have to choose between Lopatkina’s technical perfection and the lyrical grace of the far more likable Nuñez (who, by the way, is no slouch from a purely technical standpoint). Neither Ovsyanikov nor Gergiev are particularly memorable when compared to the electricity generated by Dorati. If I had to choose, I would probably go with the Royal Ballet, primarily because of Nuñez and her obvious rapport with Soares.

-- Arthur Lintgen, Fanfare [3-4/2010] reviewing blu-ray version of Swan Lake


The Royal Ballet’s new production of The Sleeping Beauty , which debuted in 2006, is based on their successful 1946 staging with designs by Oliver Messel. Visually, this is a significant improvement over the RB’s 1994 Sleeping Beauty designed by Maria Bjørnson. The sets used in 1994 had an immediate “Wow!” factor when first viewed (wild perspectives), but quickly wore out their welcome and so dominated the stage they detracted from the dancers. Adding to the visual impairment were many costumes that matched the scenery in color and tone, further reducing the prominence of the dancers. The new sets are beautiful. They’re very old-fashioned wing and drop; painted in warm colors that are nicely subdued so they offer a pleasant backdrop and the dancers stand out.

Marius Petipa is credited with the choreography in both productions, but contributions from Frederick Ashton, Anthony Dowell, and Christopher Wheeldon are noted. Further credit for this 2006 production is also given to Monica Mason and Christopher Newton “after Ninette de Valois and Nicholas Sergeyev.” Sergeyev was Petipa’s assistant. The original designs by Oliver Messel are augmented and interpreted by Peter Farmer. The result of their efforts is a very classy Sleeping Beauty that is a joy to watch.

The dancing in both 1994 and 2006 productions is of a very high order. Of the six principal roles (Aurora, Florimund, Carabosse, Lilac Fairy, Florine, and Blue Bird), there are individual differences between the two casts, and one significant casting difference. In 2006, Carabosse is played by a woman, Genesia Rosato, in a role usually performed by a man. Anthony Dowell’s Carabosse in 1994 is something to behold. Looking like he just rose from the swamp, he dominates the stage whenever he appears. In comparison, Rosato in 2006 is more restrained, offering a character reminiscent of a blend between Mrs. Danvers and Elsa Lancaster in Bride of Frankenstein.

Alina Cojocaru and Federico Bonelli are nicely paired as Aurora and Florimund. Neither is as flashy as their 1994 counterparts, but they combine technical expertise with convincing acting. They look like royalty from Fairy Land, and like they care about each other. In the 1994 cast, Viviana Durante and Zoltan Solymosi, were significantly mismatched in height (I’ve read Durante was a last minute stand-in for a taller dancer), and they were only superficially into their characters, but they still offered impressive performances. Durante is tiny and elflike; being on point seemed natural to her. During the Rose Adagio she so successfully achieved her balance she refused the fourth courtier’s hand. Solymosi doesn’t have quite the technical expertise of Federico Bonelli, but Solymosi, one of the tallest dancers on the stage, has stage presence in abundance. He commands attention even when standing still.

Conductor Valeriy Ovsyanikov pulls all the Romantic stops out of Tchaikovsky’s unabashedly flamboyant score, in contrast to Barry Wordsworth’s more elegant approach. Carabosse’s curse, the Rose Adagio, the finale, and Apothéose benefitted from Ovsyanikov’s muscular conducting, whereas the waltzes, the Panorama, the character dances, and the adagio in the act III Pas de deux were more lovingly handled by Wordsworth.

The 1994 Sleeping Beauty is full screen; the 2006 is wide screen. Ross MacGibbon, the video director in 2006 was listed as editor in 1994. His part in both of these videos is restrained and rarely intrudes on the dancing. There are some shots of bouncing torsos (dancers viewed from the waist up) when I would have preferred to see the entire performer, but MacGibbon’s direction in this Sleeping Beauty is how I wish more of these videos of stage performances were filmed, a vast improvement over his direction of the Mariinsky Swan Lake (see Fanfare 31:5).

There are some cuts to the score (a few numbers are deleted, a few are shortened), but the abridgements are slight and the key dances, such as the Rose Adagio, are presented in full. The image is bright and clear; the sound, available in either LPCM stereo or DTS Digital surround is excellent. The Sleeping Beauty has long been one of the Royal Ballet’s premier productions; this 1946 updated to 2006 version does the company proud.

-- David L. Kirk, Fanfare
reviewing Sleeping Beauty

Classical Music