DVD Videos

The Places

The tour starts in Uzbekistan, of which there are later glimpses. There is a visit to the historic Russian town of Suzdal and scenes from St Petersburg as well as from Ukraine. It would be impossible to avoid the Russian winter, which appears in various guises, providing entertainment for some and for others a seemingly enchanted snow-bound landscape.

The Music

The music for the tour is taken from Russian composers who were, by and large, thoroughly imbued with the spirit of their country. This is reflected in Lyadov’s arrangement of a series folk-songs and his translation of Russian legend into music. Other composers represented are Ippolitov-Ivanov, Kabalevsky and Anton Rubinstein, with two well known excerpts from unfinished operas by Mussorgsky.

Video Format • NTSC / Colour / 4:3

Audio Format • DTS 5.1 / Dolby Digital 5.1 / PCM Stereo 2.0

Region Coding • No Region Coding

The Places

On a hill above the ancient town of Kulmbach stands the imposing 12th century Hohenzollern fortress of Plassenburg. Among various collections on display is the remarkable Tin Soldier Museum, with various figures and dioramas that recreate battles and mirror the great castle itself, with a variety of scenes from all periods of human history.

The Music

The March has an inevitable part to play in human history. Marco Polo remarked on the use of music by the armies of China to terrify the enemy before a battle. Military music, however, has a more precise purpose, whatever alarm it may strike into the hearts of those who hear it. Drums and trumpets may serve as useful signals, to advance or retreat, to eat or to sleep. The same instruments and their near relations may serve to keep an army moving together, and may serve to inspire feelings of bravery and patriotism. At the same time a march can provide a suitable accompaniment to an occasion of solemnity, a wedding, a funeral or a state ceremony. The music chosen for this tour offers a series of Marches by different composers, culminating in Mendelssohn’s Wedding March.

Video Format • NTSC / Colour / 4:3

Audio Format • DTS 5.1 / Dolby Digital 5.1 / PCM Stereo 2.0

Region Coding • No Region Coding

Nottingham boasts a fine collection of organs of richly diverse character. Towards a Modernist Organ showcases some of the city’s best instruments, including the magnificent J.J. Binns organ of the Albert Hall and the stunning Marcussen organ in the church of St Mary.

David Butterworth’s compelling programme ranges from modern Danish pieces by Madsen and Eriksen (never recorded before) that work perfectly on the Marcussen organ, to major works by Parry, Ireland and Hakim for the Binns. Delicate pieces by Gibbons, Tomkins and Stanley allow the historic instrument at Wollaton Hall to sound at its best. Bonus tracks by Bach, Buxtehude and Walther show off an early organ by von Beckerath in the German Lutheran Church and a model organ by Grant, Degens and Bradbeer.

These fine performances are featured on both CD and DVD (on which they are in full 5.1 surround sound). As well as the filmed performances, the DVD also includes a 15-minute film exploring the history of the five organs. The inspiration for the film’s title comes from the stunning ‘modernist’ Marcussen organ in St Mary’s Parish Church. David designed this organ, and was also involved in the restoration or installation of the other organs featured.

The DVD is a filmed performance of the music on the CD, plus seven additional tracks. The DVD features full 5.1 surround sound. To this is added a fifteen minute documentary and an illustrated booklet with details of all the organs.

2 Disc Digipack

DVD and CD

NTSC Region Free

16:9 Widescreen

Dolby Digital

CD running time: 66'50"

DVD running time: 101'06"

The Places • The tour visits the Tin Soldier Museum at Kulmbach, the National Army Museum, the Wellington Memorial and St Paul’s Cathedral in London, and the Bavarian Army Museum at Ingolstadt, with its relics of the Thirty Years War and of conflicts with the Ottoman Empire.

The Music • The tour brings Beethoven’s musical celebration of Wellington’s victorious campaign in Spain, Liszt’s Battle of the Huns and a Georgian war march by Ippolitov-Ivanov. The tour ends with two military works by Rimsky-Korsakov, King Dodon on the Battlefield, from his last opera, The Golden Cockerel, and The Massacre at Kerzhenets from The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh.

Video Format • NTSC / Colour / 4:3

Audio Format • DTS 5.1 / Dolby Digital 5.1 / PCM Stereo 2.0

Region Coding • No Region Coding

Following the success of the enlightening first series of Keeping Score, MTT and SFS return with three further programmes that combine one-hour documentaries with live concert performances. The new programmes explore the music and stories behind the music.

Each of the three DVDs in Keeping Score Series 2 features a documentary episode - with MTT guiding us through the composers’ perspectives and influences - coupled with a live concert performance of each work. The programmes are designed to engage and entertain viewers of all levels of musical background. With outstanding production values, they are released on DVD and Blu-Ray HD formats, making SFS the first orchestra to distribute its product on Blu-Ray disc.

Coming of age at the dawn of the twentieth century, Charles Ives saw the halcyon days of his youth fading fast. Not willing to let them go, he invented a striking new musical language to enshrine the feelings and ideals of a simpler time. But many, shocked by passages like the “fireworks” in ‘Fourth of July,’ found his new-fangled methods at odds with the memories he was trying to preserve. Did Ives go too far? Or did he succeed in turning his memories into music?

Introduction: Bernstein on Ives' Symphony No. 2

Recording Place & Date:

Royal Albert Hall, London, June 1976 (American in Paris, Rhapsody in Blue, Unanswered Question)

Congress Hall of the Deutsche Museum, Munich, June 1987 (Symphony no. 2)

Stephen Cleobury conducts the choir of King's College, Cambridge in this memorable recital of English Romantic choral music, exquisitely sung and superbly recorded in stereo and 5.1 surround sound in the college's famous chapel.

Timed to coincide with the Golden Jubilee celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II, this new DVD presents a mouth-watering collection of favourite anthems. Appropriately, it includes some of the music sung at the Coronation service itself in 1953. It also features two sublime anthems by William Harris, the man who taught Princess Elizabeth the piano.

Specials:

•BBC fly-on-the-wall documentary on the life of the King’s choristers

•Stanford Organ Prelude shot at King’s College with multi-angle user options

•20 page illustrated booklet in English, French and German

PICTURE FORMAT: 16:9

LENGTH: 92 MINS

SOUND: DOLBY SURROUND / LPCM STEREO

SUBTITLES: FR/DE (Documentary only)