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See Terms & Conditions for p&p rates. | |  | EUROPA KONZERT 2011 from MadridRecorded live at Teatro Real, Madrid, 1 May 2011
For over 20 years, the Berliner Philharmoniker have celebrated their foundation on May 1st with the annual EUROPA KONZERT - this year’s event takes place at the magnificent Teatro Real in Madrid. The renowned orchestra, under the baton of Sir Simon Rattle, performs Joaquín Rodrigo's beloved Concierto de Aranjuez, Emmanuel Chabrier's exuberant España, and Sergey Rachmaninov's dramatic Second Symphony. It is joined for the Concierto by the famous flamenco guitarist Cañizares, whose virtuosity and sensitivity are given full opportunity to shine in this multi-faceted and subtle work. Bonus: Interview with Sir Simon Rattle Picture format: 1080i Full HD 16:9 Sounds formats: PCM 2.0, DTS-HD Master Audio Surround Region code: All (worldwide) Booklet notes: English, German, French Running time: 105 mins (97 mins Concert, 8 mins Interview) German FSK: 0 “for all the luxury of the performance, Rattle never milks it; and for all the attention to the music's larger paragraphs, he never scants the particulars of the moment...From first note to last, there's not a moment of questionable ensemble, not a moment of strain. Is this, however, an unmitigated virtue?...This is a first-rate release, made all the more welcome by the excellent engineering and by the tactful camerawork” International Record Review, January 2012 “Flamenco star Cañizares brings nonchalant authority to the Concierto de Aranjuez in a concert fizzing with energy, from a playful Espana to the sweeps of Rachmaninov's Symphony No. 2.” BBC Music Magazine, December 2011 **** | | | This item is currently out of stock at the UK distributor. You may order it now but please be aware that it may be six weeks or more before it can be despatched. |
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| |  | Mahler: Symphony No. 10
The Singapore Symphony Orchestra under Music Director Lan Shui release a unique commemoration of the 150th anniversary of Mahler's birth, the first known video release of Symphony No. 10 as completed by Clinton Carpenter, on DVD. Commemorating the 150th anniversary of Gustav Mahler’s birth is a very special release from The Singapore Symphony Orchestra and their Music Director, Lan Shui: a performance of Mahler’s Symphony No. 10 in the seldom heard completion by American musicologist Clinton Carpenter, on DVD. Recorded live in the spectacular Esplanade Concert Hall in Singapore, this is the first known video release of Carpenter’s realisation of Mahler’s enigmatic final symphony. Adding to the uniqueness of the release is Wu Xing (The Five Elements), a work by one of today’s leading Chinese composers, Chen Qi-gang. Commissioned by Radio France in 1998, Qi-gang’s popular Wu Xing was born out of the idea of wanting to write five short pieces, each representing a different symbol. “From there,” states Qi-gang, “the idea of representing the Five Elements musically was born.” Bonus features include interviews with Lan Shui and photographs from the Mahler 10 recording sessions. The printed booklet is in English, French, German, Japanese & Chinese while the interview is spoken in English and subtitled in Chinese, French, Japanese and German. The American Record Guide has compared Lan Shui’s achievements with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra to those of George Szell in Cleveland and Simon Rattle in Birmingham. He has recorded over a dozen discs that have garnered wide-spread acclaim. Bonus material: Interviews with Lan Shui on Mahler 10, Wu Xing Spoken in English Subtitled in Chinese, Japanese, German, French Total playing time including interviews: 107 minutes “It’s a controversial version, but magnificently played by the Tonhalle, a fitting climax to this rewarding cycle.” Sunday Times, 23rd January 2011 **** | | | Avie - AV2222 (Blu-ray) Normally: $27.00 Special: $24.30 |
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| |  | Chopin: The Piano Concertos
To mark the bicentenary of Chopin’s birth, two leading Russian pianists tackle the great Romantic composer’s two piano concertos: Evgeny Kissin plays the F minor Concerto op. 21, a key work in Chopin’s output, while Nikolai Demidenko performs the E minor Concerto op. 11, a virtuoso display vehicle of the first rank. They are accompanied by the Warsaw Philharmonic under the direction of Antoni Wit. Enthusiastically acclaimed by the audience at Warsaw’s Philharmonic Hall on 27 February 2010, this memorable concert has been captured in first-class sound and picture quality. Picture Format Blu-ray: HDCAM 1080/59,94 Sound Formats Blu-ray: DTS HD Master Audio PCM Stereo Region Code: 0 (worldwide) Running Time: 96:54 min Disc Format: BD 25 FSK: 0 “Anyone who (like me) has found themselves resistant to Kissin's toy-soldier showmanship...needs to hear his brilliant account of the Concerto in F minor...In pianism of bel canto beauty, Kissin uncovers all the yearning of the slow movement, and delivers a crisp finale notable for its elastic buoyancy and perfectly judged rubatos” BBC Music Magazine, January 2011 ***** | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Daniel Barenboim plays The Chopin Piano ConcertosLive Recording from The Philharmonie Essen, 2010
For the 200th anniversary of the birth of Frédéric Chopin, the renowned Ruhr Piano Festival in Essen invited the Staatskapelle Berlin to give a truly special program: the rare combination of Chopin‘s two piano concertos in one concert. For this purpose Daniel Barenboim, the orchestra‘s principal conductor, handed over the reins of „his“ ensemble to up-and-coming young conductor Andris Nelsons, assuming the role of piano soloist instead. The press raved: „Storms of applause for a dream couple: Daniel Barenboim and Andris Nelsons won over the audience […] with their rousing Chopin interpretations“. While Barenboim fi lls the solo parts with pulsating life and dance-like grace, the exciting young talent Andris Nelsons dazzles with his magnetic physical presence and the broad gestures with which he fires on or pulls back his enthusiastic musicians. Nelsons opens the concert with a rousing account of Joseph Haydn’s Symphony No. 44, the “Mourning” Symphony. Chopin wrote the two piano concertos when he was only 19 and 20; they were among the last works that he composed in Poland before leaving for France. Filled with youthful fire and freshness, the works showcase the pianist‘s virtuosity, and contain much of interest for the orchestral musicians as well, including poignant solo interludes for clarinet and bassoon. Sound Format: PCM Stereo, dts-HD Master Audio 5.1 Picture Format: 16:9 Resolution: 1080i FULL HD Running Time: 110 mins Blu-ray Disc: 25 GB (Single Layer) FSK: 0 “One cannot help but admire his effortless command in the two Chopin piano concertos...captured in pin-sharp picture quality and excellent, well-balanced sound...His almost boyish enthusiasm (despite the relaxed tempos) and obvious relish of performing show no sign of waning as he nears his 70th birthday, and (particularly for a part-timer) his technique shows remarkably little evidence of wear and tear.” International Record Review, January 2012 | | | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. |
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| |  | Garrick Ohlsson playing Chopin Piano ConcertosRecorded at the Warsaw Philharmonic, 2009
This concert programme includes both Chopin Concertos with Garrick Ohlsson and the Warsaw Philharmonic under the baton of Antoni Wit. Bonus: The documentary pays tribute to Chopin’s art to his highly original writing and show how much of a contribution it made to 20th century music and modern-day piano music with the participation of Garrick Ohlsson, Bella Davidovich, Evgeny Kissin, Piotr Anderszewski, Yuja Wang . To this end we are combining two approaches: a narrative approach with a biographical account, which focuses on the composer’s most creative periods. And an analytical approach with first-hand accounts by some of the greatest performers of his works. Among them: Garrick Ohlsson, Bella Davidovich, Evgeny Kissin, Piotr Anderszewski and Yuja Wang. The first approach captures Chopin’s genius in his time by evoking his life, his work, his existential concerns and his musical influences. The second approach, which forms the mainstay of this documentary, conveys the passion artists have for performing Chopin and their understanding of his music today, which appears to be so easy and is yet so difficult to play. Filmed archives of prestigious pianists, some of whom are no longer with us, complete this portrait of Chopin’s art. Picture format: 1080i Full HD 16:9 Sounds formats: PCM Stereo, DTS Master Audio HD Region code: All (worldwide) Booklet notes: English, German, French Running time: 150 mins (97 min performance, 53 min documentary) | | | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. |
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| |  | Lang Lang: Dragon Songs
Lang Lang (piano) with Fan Wei (lute), Ji Wei (zither) & Zhang Jiali (double-reed pipe) Released in 2006 on DVD and has since shipped over 60k units, now also available on Blu-ray. Lang Lang has fascinated audiences all over the globe – with “Dragon Songs” he takes them home to show them “his” China. Discover the musical culture that forged one of the most acclaimed classical musicians of our day. The BD features a full-length documentary offering a fascinating look behind the scenes of Lang Lang’s China tour, from the privacy of his parents’ flat (where Lang Lang revisits his very first piano), to a Lang-family lunch and a visit to the local temple, to his successful master classes and stage performances. Additionally this BD includes a concert of the piano solo and chamber music pieces, all filmed in Beijing. The Yellow River Concerto, a large-scale, highly virtuosic piano concerto with colourful sound scales, is juxtaposed with miniature pieces for piano solo and with chamber pieces, each combining the piano with traditional Chinese instruments. Though all the pieces were written in the early 20th century, most of them are based on much older sources, merging traditional Chinese melodies and idioms with the Western classical music tradition – the result is music of astonishing beauty and ease that will strongly appeal to a broad audience. | 
| | | DG - 0735037 (Blu-ray) Normally: $29.25 Special: $21.93 |
| | Scheduled for release on 8 July 2013. Order it now and we will deliver it as soon as it is available. |
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| |  | Karajan and Menuhin
Director Henry-Georges Clouzot The first Karajan Blu-ray ever! Karajan is the classical music star! Karajan/Menuhin first time on DVD and Blu-ray (no CD recording exists too) Filmed in 1966 on 35 mm by film director H.–G. Clouzot, the creator of classic "films noirs" such as "Quai des Orfèvres" and "Wages of Fear" Mozart violin concerto and Dvorák Symphony No. 9 are very popular works. Total: 107 minutes Violin Concerto 29´ Symphony 40´ 24 minutes rehearsal Mozart violin concerto No. 5 15 minutes rehearsal Dvorák Symphony No. 9 Booklet English, German, French “an electrifying performance by a rejuvenated Berlin Philharmonic at the peak of its powers; it is also a visually stunning record of a masterclass in virtuoso conducting...[The bonus-feature] is a high-speed, high-octane conversation...with a fascinating array of musical, historical and wider cultural references thrown in by both parties.” Gramophone Magazine, February 2011 | | | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. |
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| |  | Martha Argerich & Mischa Maisky
At one of her rare appearances with orchestra, Martha Argerich, the grande dame of the piano, joined forces with world-famous cellist Mischa Maisky and the fabulous Lucerne Symphony Orchestra for the world premiere of a newly commissioned work by Russian composer Rodion Shchedrin – “Romantic Offering”, a double concerto for piano, cello and orchestra dedicated to its very first soloists. “I’ve attempted to depict and highlight the most distinctive individual qualities of these two musicians … Romantic Offering should inspire new thoughts and experiences. Music isn’t only the product of experiment. It should move your soul and touch your heart.” Rodion Shchedrin The programme was rounded off by late-Romantic masterpieces by César Franck, Antonín Dvořák and Dmitri Shostakovich’s Ninth Symphony under the baton of renowned maestro Neeme Järvi. BONUS: Behind the Scenes of a WORLD PREMIERE with Rodion Shchedrin, Martha Argerich and Mischa Maisky. Picture Format Blu-ray: Full HD Sound Formats Blu-ray: DTS HD Master Audio, PCM Stereo Region Code: 0 (worldwide) Running Time: 111:36 min Running Time Bonus: 16:20 min Disc Format: BD 25 FSK: 0 “There's plenty of contrast [in the Shchedrin]: the misalliance of the two soloists, who only really come together in the climbing apotheosis; the cello in extreme registers; the piano's toccata mania; and all of it done with the highest artistry. Argerich is superb in every nuance.” BBC Music Magazine, September 2011 ***** | | | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. |
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| |  | The Pyongyang ConcertEast Pyongyang Grand Theatre, Pyongyang - North Korea, 26th February 2008
Hundreds of millions watched the historic concert on television. Now exclusively on DVD: the New York Philharmonic concert in Pyongyang. Music became diplomacy when this courageous musical project united Americans and North Koreans. The musicians went from strength to strength in a beautiful programme which illustrated the excellence of the orchestra. Lorin Maazel once more proved his reputation as one of the best contemporary conductors. Includes previously unreleased documentary with 53 min of exclusive material. The first classical concert release on Blu-ray Disc offers professional technical standards in the comfort of your own home. "Astounding was the fact that the orchestra played the North Korean national anthem and the Star Spangled Banner on a stage flanked by flags of both nations … a rare moment of harmony, proving the power of music that bridges the divides." The Korea Times (South Korea) "For at least 90 minutes in a theatre in Pyongyang it was possible … to believe that 55 years of cold-war hostility were coming to an end." James Miles, The Economist | | | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. |
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| |  | Zubin Mehta conducts Dvořák, Mozart & BartókRecorded live at the Music Center, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles, 1977
Zubin Mehta, at the age of only twenty-six, became the youngest person ever to head a major American Orchestra. In sixteen years as music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic he elevated the orchestra to international top rank. These acclaimed concerts from 1977 with works from the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries show them at their best, fully proving Mehta’s words: "Not only do we play great music together, but we are individually proud of one another.” Zubin Mehta Picture format Blu-ray: 1080i Full HD 16:9 Sound format Blu-ray : PCM Stereo Region code: 0 Booklet notes: English, German, French Running time: 110mins |
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