Karl Münchinger conducts Dvorak, Suk, Grieg & Wolf

In 1960, the Stuttgart-born conductor Karl Münchinger (1915-1990), made a Decca recording of Pachelbel’s Canon and Gigue that assured the piece its immortality in years to come. Münchinger recorded extensively for Decca with his Stuttgarter Kammerorchester (Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra). Moderate-size forces, rhythmic sprightliness and judicious ornamentation were the hallmarks of his recordings of 17th and 18th-century repertoire, and their general airiness also informs his readings of the Serenades on this anthology. The Dvorak, Suk and Wolf recordings date from the 1970s, whereas the Grieg, which he only recorded once, and has been on many “reissue request” lists, dates from 1956. This generous CD, released to commemorate the 20th anniversary of his death and nearly 80 minutes long, is comprised entirely of first international CD releases.