"I sense a deep humanity in Dvorák's music. He was a great master of orchestration, and he composed unusually beautiful melodies and harmonies. But at the forefront he always presents honesty and generosity. And when we listen to this music, this penetrates deep into our hearts. I consider Dvorák's Violin Concerto to be unique, and it occupies a very special place among all of the violin concertos of this period. Behind its creation lies a very unusual story. The composition dates back to 1879, but its premiere did not take place until 1883, exactly four years later. The reason for this was that the concerto was dedicated to Joseph Joachim, who repeatedly requested a number of changes in the piece. The story subsequently ended in such a way that Joachim, despite the changes and his years of collaboration with Dvorák, ignored the piece when it was completed, leaving it to be premiered instead by Czech violinist František Ondrícek."
-Mikhail Pochekin

Previous albums on Piano Classics by Leonardo Pierdomenico have won enthusiastic praise from the international critics. Of his debut Liszt recital including the Csardas macabre (PCL10151), Fanfare noted: 'scrupulous performances, featuring exceptional textural clarity and rhythmic resilience, coupled with an often striking attention to harmonic nuance.' Gramophone awarded it Editor's Choice: 'His highly developed technique and cultivated sound, both adaptable to a variety of effects, are wedded to those twin essentials for artistic Liszt playing: imagination combined with thoroughgoing, scrupulous musicality.' Such qualities illuminate his new recording of the Piano Concerto by Dvor�k, made in the Czech Republic with an orchestra who live and breathe the composer's music. One of his most neglected works, the Piano Concerto requires particularly devoted advocacy as well as formidable virtuosity to overcome the technical shortcomings of Dvor�k's piano writing, but the effort is rewarded with episodes of no less ardent lyricism than the high points of his concertos for violin and cello. The Piano Concerto, however, burns with a ferocity all it's own, more similar in that regard to Schumann's impassioned writing for soloist and orchestra. The unusual pairings draw on the talents of the Pardubice orchestra's front desks, with two equally unfamiliar concertante miniatures by Dvor�k, the Mazurek for violin and orchestra (dedicated to Pablo de Sarasate) and the Rondo for cello and orchestra intended for Hanus Wihan, who would in time inspire Dvor�k to compose the Cello Concerto. Thus the album will complete a Dvor�k concerto collection on CD as well as offering a further demonstration of Leonardo Pierdomenico's artistry.

This album by violinist Christian Tetzlaff and cellist Tanja Tetzlaff, together with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin conducted by Paavo Järvi, is dedicated in the memory of their longtime artistic partner, pianist Lars Vogt (1970–2022). At the heart of this album is Brahms, one of Lars Vogt’s favorite composers, and his late orchestral masterpiece, the Double Concerto. Brahms himself had admired one of Viotti’s violin concertos so much that he included material from the violin concerto into his work. With Christian Tetzlaff’s recording of the violin concerto, this album finally brings these two works together. Also included is Dvorák’s beautiful Silent Woods for cello and orchestra, a work by another composer that was very close to Lars Vogt’s heart.

One of the leading sopranos of her generation, Ekaterina Siurina enjoys an international career that takes her to the top opera houses in Europe and America. Siurina’s thrilling renditions of famous arias on this recording bring new life to operatic favorites such as “Un bel di, vedremo” from Madama Butterfly, “In quelle trine morbide” from Manon Lescaut, and “Tatiana’s Letter Scene” from Eugene Onegin.

REVIEW:

She can surmount the vocal challenges of Madama Butterfly’s hopeful Un bel di, vedremo and the anguished Tu? Tu? Piccolo iddio! and she can also spin out a legato line to die for and she can cap the end of Senza Mamma with an ethereal pianissimo.

Ms. Siurina can do it all when it comes to the lyric soprano repertoire, be it the other-worldly Rusalka or the girlish Tatiana or the intact Amelia of Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra or the distraught Marguerita of Boito’s Mefistofele

It has been three years since I first heard Ekaterina Siurina in Amour Eternelle, her first album for DELOS. In this, her second album for DELOS, Siurina reinforces her great reputation, accompanied by the superb American conductor Constantine Orbelian, who leads the Kaunas City Symphony Orchestra offering minute by minute support to the soloist.

-- All About the Arts

Piano Trio No. 4, “Dumky”, ranking among Antonín Dvořák’s most celebrated works, is one of the most frequently recorded chamber pieces in existence. After attending a performance, with the composer on the piano, Leoš Janáček summed up his impressions succinctly: “A new source of light has flashed.” When it comes to Piano Trio No. 3, the renowned Vienna-based critic Eduard Hanslick called it a gem, demonstrating that Dvořák was “one of the best modern masters”. Piano Trios No. 1 and 2, however, have been scarcely performed. In this light, the complete recording of Dvořák’s piano trios is a project richly deserving attention. All the more so due to the artists who have made it: Boris Giltburg, winner of the Queen Elisabeth Competition and one of the world’s most distinguished contemporary pianists, alongside Veronika Jarušková and Peter Jarušek, members of the globally celebrated Pavel Haas Quartet, who have earned great recognition for performing Dvořák’s music – Gramophone Recording of the Year (quartets) and Gramophone Chamber Award (quintets, together with Giltburg).

The three musicians featured on the album manifest an incredible chime. Possessing the uttermost technical brilliance, they breathe as one. The album was made at the studios in the picturesque Wye Valley, straddling the border between England and Wales, under the supervision of the legendary producer Andrew Keener while London was celebrating the coronation of Charles III. Exceptional moments for Dvořák’s exceptional music... Giltburg – Jarušková – Jarušek: A truly one-of-a-kind Dvořák festivity.

REVIEWS:

Make no mistake, this is Dvořák playing of the highest order and – even against some strong competition – these performances as a whole set a new benchmark in this marvellous quartet of works. Urgently recommended!

-- Europadisc

Happily, the present ensemble is equal to the demands of these fine works. The string players have a wealth of experience in the Czech repertoire as long-standing members of the celebrated Pavel Haas Quartet. Indeed, one of the most immediately striking aspects in these performances is the sheer beauty of the string sound. They are ably matched by pianist Boris Giltburg whose care over articulation and unfussy, nuanced playing is a constant delight. Among highlights, the conclusion of the development of the first movement of the B flat trio is quite magical and the entire F minor trio is powerfully focussed while resisting the hectoring tendency that mars even some committed renditions.”

-- BBC Music Magazine, November 2023

These performers bring out the rustic elements in this music; they connect with the childlike stargazers that we all are at heart, and that is a good part of Dvořák’s appeal. I suppose you could call it the ultimate in authentic performance, and that’s fine by me. Great sound, too (Wyastone Concert Hall, 2022 23, producer Andrew Keener). Strongly recommended.

-- Gramophone, Awards Issue 2023

The ‘Dumky’ trio is a delight here, as it should be; but I found myself drawn more to the others, enjoying the way they bring the folk rhythms and Dvorak’s lyrical gifts together, and the sense of effortless virtuosity and power Giltburg brings, even though a lot of the time he isn’t unleashing it.

-- BBC Radio 3, 30th September 2023

What a marvellous disc. Jaruskova and Jarusek of the Pavel Haas Quartet and the renowned pianist Giltburg are so at home in the four piano trios they might almost be tearing the freshly finished pages from Dvorak’s hands. Superbly recorded by Andrew Kenner, this is a total delight.

-- The Sunday Times, 8th October 2023

I found this disc an example of chamber musicianship at its best: the excellent sound engineering balances and blends parts, which underscores the ensemble’s suc­cessful delivery of Dvořák’s most sensitive nuances and extroverted peaks. Listening to all the selections in succession, we are treated to a vibrant experience indeed—but one in which the distinctive essence of each trio is aptly captured.

-- The Classic Review, October 2023

With their new CD "Hymne à l'amour"; the Duo Minerva once again shows how exciting and multifaceted classical music can sound. Their arrangements; woven with great artistry; their virtuosity and their exceptionally emotional style of music-making breathe fresh life into often-heard works. With a great deal of playfulness; the well-rehearsed duo moves between the most diverse genres and combines classical masterpieces with contemporary avant-garde; folk music and a pinch of the as yet unheard on the subject of love - entirely in Duo Minerva style.

This latest release in the Great Composers in Words and Music series portrays Antonín  Dvořák as a complex and wide-ranging composer, and explores the creation and performance of his music as well as its reception on both sides of the Atlantic, tracing his art in all its richness and variety. Musical excerpts include the Cello Concerto, the ‘New World’ Symphony and the Slavonic Dances, as well as selected chamber pieces, songs, opera excerpts and more.

Sony Classical is pleased to present a special edition of Leonard Bernstein’s American Columbia recordings from the 1950s and 1960s. Some of the conductor-composer’s most celebrated interpretations and works are collected here on these carefully chosen 10 original albums on 11 CDs. 

There is, of course, the still-astonishing album that launched Leonard Bernstein’s international reputation as the most dynamic and charismatic conductor of his era, Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring recorded in January 1958 – two months after his appointment as the youngest music director in the New York Philharmonic’s history. Reviewing a 2013 reissue, ClassicsToday.com declared: “It has an excitement, spontaneity, and primal fury that no other version quite matches.” 

The Bernstein recording that launched the “Mahler Renaissance” in the 1960s is also here: his Third Symphony with the New York Philharmonic, which has arguably never been surpassed. And while we’re talking about Third Symphonies, Bernstein’s “Eroica” still sounds “wonderfully vibrant” (Gramophone) a half century after its first release. There is also his reading of Dvořák’s most popular symphony – “There’s no such thing as a ‘definitive’ recording [of the “New World”], but if there were, this one would come close to that imagined ideal” (ClassicsToday) – and two from Haydn’s magnificent “Paris” set: “It’s debatable whether there have been better performances” (ClassicalNet).  

Bernstein himself conducts and plays Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue (“The one indispensable recording of this familiar work, paired with an equally fine American in Paris” – New York Times). Bernstein the pianist also accompanies Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, at the peak of his matchless career, in an acclaimed album of Mahler lieder. The ballets Rodeo and Billy the Kid by Bernstein’s mentor and friend Aaron Copland are included: “Even the composer couldn't make [them] dance the way Bernstein does” (New York Times).  

Bernstein the composer is also generously represented. The original Broadway cast recording of Candide from 1956 is included, as is the definitive version of his most famous work: the original Broadway cast recording of West Side Story from 1957. 

The re-masterings in this new collection are the best ever issued of these thrilling recordings by one of the last century’s greatest musicians, selected from the Grammy® award-winning Leonard Bernstein – The Composer and the Leonard Bernstein – Remastered editions. Sony Classical’s new 11-CD Leonard Bernstein box set is the perfect introduction to the work of this American genius.

Past praise of previously released recordings included in this set:

Mahler: Symphony No. 3 / Lipton, Bernstein, NYP

This was the finest performance of Mahler’s Third when it was first issued back in 1962, and in some ways it has never been surpassed. Bernstein catches the riotous vulgarity of the first movement march music like no other conductor–not even his own digital remake reaches the level of sheer abandon he whips up here, and he also has the best of all fifth movements (bright and cheery, with dazzlingly prominent percussion).

-- ClassicsToday.com (10/10; David Hurwitz)

Dvořák: Symphony No. 9 / Bernstein, NYP

There’s no such thing as a “definitive” recording, but if there were, this one would come close to that imagined ideal. Its special qualities haven’t dimmed a bit in decades since it was recorded, and every interpretive decision comes across with the inevitability of fate itself. First, you get the first-movement exposition repeat (very unusual for its time), then there’s the very slow (but still very flowing) Largo, gorgeously played and far from the trudge-fest that Bernstein would make of for DG. The scherzo goes like the wind, the fastest ever, and the finale offers simply the last word in excitement. If you don’t own this performance in some form, then you don’t know the “New World”.

-- ClassicsToday.com (10/10; David Hurwitz)

The Chicago World’s Fair of 1893 is often regarded as the most important of all World’s Expositions. It highlighted the amazing technological revolution of the 19th Century.
This is an album featuring some of the best classical music from this important era. Scott Joplin (arr. Vazquez): Pleasant Moments; Rose Leaf Rag; Jules Massenet: Meditation from Thaïs; Edgar Gabriel: Sakura, Sakura Variations; Antonin Dvorák: Terzetto, Op. 74; Johann Schrammel: Erinnerung An Wien; Bei Guter Laune: George Valasi: Chicago Day Waltz

Some legends remain concealed … The name Martin Ballý may be new to many, yet it is definitely worth remembering. Proof in this respect is given by the renowned pianists Jan Bartoš and Miroslav Sekera, his pupils, whose extraordinary art bears witness to Ballý’s outstanding qualities as a teacher. Yet the main testimony is Ballý’s own recordings, hitherto untouched and patiently waiting in the radio archives.

His repertoire as a solo pianist centers on 20th-century Czech music: unrivaled interpretations of Janáček and Martinů works, mesmerizing renditions of Kabeláč pieces. In his straightforward expressiveness, Ballý is not afraid to venture to the very limit of his instrument’s potential, but his tone remains radiant and colorful. Besides solo piano (his teachers included Josef Páleníček), Ballý devoted to chamber music (studying with the no less famous Josef Vlach). As a member of Ars Trio, his partners were children of the mentioned teachers, the violinist Dana Vlachová (today a member of the Czech Trio) and the cellist Jan Páleníček (now a member of the Smetana Trio). Their recordings feature gems of Czech trio music (Dvořák, Novák, Martinů) and two remarkable global repertoire creations (Shostakovich, Mozart). The majority of the recordings, dating from between 1980 and 1992, are from the Czech Radio archives and are now being released for the very first time. legends are well worth waiting for.

This box set documents Andris Nelson's work with two world-class orchestras. After Claudio Abbado's death, he led the Lucerne Festival Orchestra in 2014-15, the "greatest challenge" - as he himself called it - of his career until then. In the recording of his first concert with the orchestra, Nelsons explores the musical landscape of the German Romantic composer Johannes Brahms through his Second Symphony and Second Serenade. A year later, he impresses with a fiery and powerful interpretation of Mahler's Fifth Symphony and excerpts from "Des Knaben Wunderhorn" with Matthias Goerne. For his inaugural concert as the new Gewandhauskapellmeister, Andris Nelsons chose three pieces with great symbolic power: the "Scottish" Symphony by his probably most important predecessor in office, Felix Mendelssohn, Alban Berg's Violin Concerto, played by Baiba Skride, and a commissioned work by the Leipzig-based composer Steffen Schleiermacher. A recording of Dvorák's Ninth Symphony "From the New World" and arias with Kristine Opolais demonstrates the instantly close relationship between the Gewandhaus Orchestra and their chief conductor.

The lasting fame of conductor Karl Böhm is based on qualities that were praised by listeners, musicians and critics throughout his long career: his discipline and meticulousness when rehearsing compositions as well as his modesty, his willingness to take second place to work and composer. After many years serving as principal conductor in several opera houses he left his administrative duties behind and embarked on an international career as an acclaimed guest, concert and opera conductor. He was regularly invited by the New York Met and the Deutsche Oper Berlin, to the festivals in Salzburg (as of 1938) and Bayreuth (as of 1962), he gave guest performances from Tokyo to Moscow, from Milan to Buenos Aires, and at the broadcasting corporations in Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt and Stuttgart where he was invited whenever there was something important to celebrate.

The Radio Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart (formerly known under a few different names and since 2016 merged with its sister from Baden-Baden and Freiburg to form the SWR Symphonieorchester) not only played in its home region, the Southwest of Germany, but toured extensively all over Europe. It has a catalogue of several hundreds of recordings and accompanied during its history many famous soloists. Branka Musulin was an extraordinary pianist who worked with some of the most important conductors of her time, among them Willem Mengelberg, Hermann Abendroth, Franz Konwitschny, Georg Solti and Sergiu Celibidache.

Rudolf Kempe (1910–1976) was born near Dresden and in 1930 joined the celebrated Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra as first oboe. After his debut as a conductor in 1935, he joined the German army in 1942 but was ‘retired’ the same year and went back to conducting. A large number of engagements followed after the War, at the Saxon State Opera, the Dresden Staatskapelle, and as music director of the Bavarian State Opera (1952–1954). Kempe opened the 1951 season at the Vienna State Opera, and appeared at Covent Garden in 1953 (conducting Strauss with enormous success), and later at the Metropolitan Opera in New York in 1955.

He declined to become Covent Garden’s director twice but remained a regular and much-admired conductor at Covent Garden and on the concert platform both in London and on the Continent. He became chief conductor of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (1961–1975) and the BBC Symphony Orchestra in 1975 until his untimely death in 1976. In Europe, he became chief conductor of the Zürich Tonhalle Orchestra in 1965 and in 1966, general music director of the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra.

The Czech composer Antonín Dvořák was gaining international fame during the latter part of the 19th century for a string of highly successful and popular works across many genres. His Cello Concerto was premiered in London in 1896 – its symphonic character and wonderful melodic invention made the concerto one of his most beloved and frequently performed works. The Rondo, Op. 94 owes its Slavic nature to the popular melody on which it is based, while the enchanting Silent Woods and soulful Laßt mich allein! are both arrangements from previous works. The pieces on this album are performed by the award-winning cellist Enrico Dindo – praised by Rostropovich for an extraordinary sound that ‘flows as a splendid Italian voice’.

Noted for having “an extraordinary range of color” (Montreal Gazette) and “poetic brilliance” (Toronto Star), pianist Francine Kay is acclaimed for the beauty of her sound and the intensity and depth of her interpretations. Ms. Kay has performed at venues such as Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium and Weill Recital Hall, the Lincoln Center’s Rose Studio, Salle Gaveau in Paris, and the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. She has also appeared on the Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concerts and the Bargemusic series in New York City, and she has been a soloist with orchestras across Canada and the United States. Ms. Kay’s recordings have received international accolades. She dedicates this new album to important Czech composers, highlighting this rich musical culture: evocative melodies, inspired harmonization, dance rhythms, and a variety of moods.