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See Terms & Conditions for p&p rates. | |  | Gennadi Rozhdestvensky
Gennadi Rozhdestvensky (b.1931) is the last living survivor of a great Russian quartet of conductors consisting of Mravinsky, Kondrashin and Svetlanov. He was the highly distinguished principal conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra from 1978 to 1981, an exciting period in the orchestra’s history faithfully captured here. During this period, he conducted many British composers, a favourite being Britten (the Russian premiere of A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Vaughan Williams (a complete cycle on Melodiya), Walton, Elgar, Maxwell Davies (the premiere of Symphony No.2) and John Tavener. These recordings of Holst’s Planets and Britten’s Variations & Fugue on a Theme of Purcell have never been issued before on CD. The Planets is new to Rozhdestvensky’s extensive discography. Rozhdestvensky’s 1980 Royal Festival Hall performance is a freshly conceived interpretation of The Planets which is both exciting and superbly played, and the stereo recording has a spectacular dynamic range. The performance of Britten’s Variations & Fugue on a Theme of Purcell was given on a Far East tour in Osaka, Japan in 1981. Osaka’s Royal Festival Hall has a wonderful natural acoustic which invests each instrument with great clarity and warmth. “Rozhdestvensky's affinity with British music is evident in this marvellously airy, epic Planets and sprightly Variations. Plain broadcast recording sound, but too enjoyable to be merely historic.” BBC Music Magazine, September 2012 ***** | | | (also available to download from $10.50) | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | William Steinberg
William Steinberg (1899–1978), a native of Cologne who spent almost all his career in the U.S., was known principally as Music Director of the Pittsburg Symphony (1952–76), which he made into one of the world’s leading orchestras, and also as the distinguished Music Director of the Boston Symphony (1969–72) at the end of his career. He was celebrated as an orchestra builder, co-founding the Palestine Orchestra which became the Israel Philharmonic as well as helping one of his mentors, Arturo Toscanini, to form the NBC Symphony Orchestra. His other mentor was Otto Klemperer and, like Klemperer, Steinberg conducted and recorded Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner and Mahler superbly together with a fondness for 20th-century works. Steinberg’s recording of Beethoven’s Missa solemnis has never been issued before on CD and is in excellent stereo. “In Steinberg's Gloria, the choir's accent on 'hominibus' is just right: quiet, not overdone...Steinberg hammers out 'consubstantialem Patri' in fine style...Peter Meven intones the the opening to the Agnus Dei with gravitas.” Gramophone Magazine, August 2012 “Steinberg impresses by keeping a firm hand on the tiller. Almost without exception I thought his tempi were judiciously chosen...Beethoven makes the most unreasonable demands on the chorus, the sopranos especially, yet the German singers never flinch and I admired the tenors who produce strong, incisive singing yet never force the tone” MusicWeb International, July 2012 | | | (also available to download from $10.50) | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Wilhelm Backhaus plays Schubert & BeethovenBeethovenhalle, Bonn, 24 September 1959
The great German pianist, Wilhelm Backhaus (1884–1969), made his first concert tour at the age of sixteen. He toured widely throughout his life, making his U.S. debut in 1912 (his final concert there took place in 1962 when he was 78!). Backhaus was well known for his interpretations and recordings of Beethoven, Mozart and Brahms and was also much admired as a chamber musician. His 1909 abridged recording of the Grieg Concerto was not only the first recording of that work, but the first time any concerto had ever been recorded. Apart from this, he was also the first pianist to record the Chopin Études in 1928. He became a Swiss citizen in 1930 and reached the age of 85. The Times praised Backhaus in its 1969 obituary for having upheld the classical German music tradition of the Leipzig Conservatory. These recordings have never been issued before on CD, and are in excellent sound for the period. This 1959 concert gives us a rare experience of hearing Backhaus caught ‘live’ in the Beethovenhalle in Bonn in a typical programme of Schubert and Beethoven. The CD contains a great performance of Beethoven’s monumental ‘Hammerklavier’ Sonata. According to the pianist and Beethoven specialist Stephen Kovacevich, Backhaus was the only pianist to have understood the work. The booklet notes have been written by the distinguished musicologist and writer Bernard Jacobson, who draws comparisons through Backhaus’s playing of the Schubert Impromptu in B flat major and Beethoven’s earlier sonata op.10 no.2 with his interpretation of the ‘Hammerklavier’. “His concert begins with Schubert’s Impromptu No.3 in B flat major from the D.935 set. There is such facility and tonal lustre here, and a dappled, songful lightness propelled by the deftest of left hand rhythms...In the great acres of the Hammerklavier, one finds Backhaus as committed and sagacious as ever...
This is a distinguished release, extremely well recorded, and well documented.” MusicWeb International, August 2012 | | | (also available to download from $10.50) | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Edinburgh Festival, Edinburgh, 25 August 1955
Fernando Corena (Sir John Falstaff), Juan Oncina, Kevin Miller (Fenton), Walter Monachesi (Ford), Dermot Troy (Dr. Caius), Daniel McCosham (Bardolpho), Marco Stefanoni (Pistola), Anna Maria Rovere (Alice Ford), Eugenia Ratti (Nanetta), Fernanda Cadoni (Meg Page) & Oralia Dominguez (Mistress Quickly) Glyndebourne Opera Chorus & Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Carlo Maria Giulini Carlo Maria Giulini was one of the 20th century’s greatest conductors along with fellow Italians Arturo Toscanini, Guido Cantelli and Victor de Sabata. His live performances of operas by Verdi, Rossini and Mozart have acquired legendary status while his distinguished recordings have remained in the catalogues to this day. The recording featuring a Glyndebourne production of Verdi’s Falstaff given in 1955 at the Edinburgh Festival is unique since after extensive research, it has never been published before in any form. This 1955 performance marked Giulini’s UK debut. The Times said, ‘in the final analysis, it was Mr Giulini’s direction which ensured the opera’s success’, and headlined the review by emphatically stating, ‘A wonderful production’. The Times reviewed Fernando Corena’s fresh interpretation of Falstaff as follows, ‘Mr Corena’s Falstaff is admirable because it is creditable … he gave us immense dignity, clarity of word, tone, line, and dramatic authority’. Walter Monachesi’s Ford was likewise praised for ‘the excellence of his vocal delivery and unusual dramatic expressiveness’. The Times also noted: ‘The four women were wonderfully well differentiated, the Quickly of Oralia Dominguez having a touch of succulence that Falstaff renounced and the Alice of Anna Maria Rovere being all sparkle in voice and appearance’. Giulini’s stunning recording of Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia from Covent Garden in 1960 is available on ICAC5046. “An ideal ensemble is headed by Corena's robustly restrained Falstaff and Giulini, livelier than in later years” BBC Music Magazine, September 2012 ***** “Giulini's Falstaff has a sage-like wit that makes a refreshing alternative to the noisier, bouncier comedy of many recent productions. His cast is superb, with Corena, born to sing the title-role, in great voice.” Classical Music, 21st April 2012 **** “The Falstaff (Corena, a first 'official' complete performance from him in the role on disc) and Quickly (the ubiquitous Dominguez) are superb, the Nannetta good, the Fords less so.” Gramophone Magazine, October 2012 “The individual casting is admirable....A wonderfully relaxed and good humoured performance in which nearly everything seemed to have gone right.” MusicWeb International, June 2012 “It is more disciplined, musically, than Gui’s recently released 1960 Glyndebourne live version...the young Giulini is always worth hearing in Verdi.” Sunday Times, 25th March 2012 | | | (also available to download from $21.25) | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Annie Fischer plays Beethoven & Schumann
Beethoven: | Eroica Variations, Op. 35 Saal 1, Funkhaus, Köln, 11 February 1957 Piano Sonata No. 30 in E major, Op. 109 Saal 1, Funkhaus, Köln, 11 February 1957 | Schumann: | Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 54 Saal 1, Funkhaus, Köln, 28 April 1958 Kölner Rundfunk-Sinfonie-Orchester, Joseph Keilberth |
Sviatoslav Richter’s comment that Hungarian-born Annie Fischer (1914–1995) was ‘a great artist imbued with a spirit of greatness and genuine profundity’ is just a sign of the esteem in which her fellow musicians held her. Curiously, of all the mid-century pianists, she seems to have been among the least recorded due to her profound dislike of the studio. Winner of the Franz Liszt International Competition in 1933, she made recordings of Schumann and Liszt with Klemperer (a close friend), Bartók with Markevitch and Mozart with Sawallisch. She recorded over a 15-year period all the Beethoven sonatas for Hungaroton. Annie Fischer’s ‘unerring awareness’ (David Threasher) of the shifting moods in the Schumann Piano Concerto has been caught in wonderful sound by the WDR engineers in this ‘live’ recording which has never been issued before. In the two Beethoven works, ‘she is powerfully authoritative’ (David Threasher). Both these ‘live’ recordings have never been published before. Maurizio Pollini said Fischer’s playing was marked by ‘a childlike simplicity, immediacy and wonder’ while the distinguished writer Bryce Morrison commented on her ‘depth and spiritual serenity’. All these recordings are great additions to her relatively small discography. “you are made aware once more of Fischer's robust poetry, of her economical, never inflated or exaggerated style. Less mercurial than, say Moiseiwitsch, less vertiginous than Argerich in the Schumann Concerto, her performance is none the less one of fiery engagement and a grateful sinking into repose in the first movement's melting A flat episode...Throughout, she abhors trickery of any kind...This is a deeply gratifying issue.” Gramophone Magazine, June 2012 | | | (also available to download from $10.50) | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Sir Adrian Boult conducts Brahms & Elgar
One of the great British conductors of the 20th century, Sir Adrian Boult studied under the legendary Arthur Nikisch in Berlin, which makes his Brahms interpretations so special. Similarly his friendship with Sir Edward Elgar ensured that all his interpretations of the composer’s works were without question authoritative, achieving an iconic status. The Proms recording of Brahms’s Symphony No.3 from 1977 is in superb stereo and represents Boult’s ‘golden years’. He recorded two cycles of Brahms symphonies in 1954 and in the 1970s but all in the studio, whereas this ICA recording catches him ‘live’ producing a sense of drama and passion. Martin Cotton comments in his booklet notes, ‘Perhaps most surprising is the final Allegro where there is an organic shape to the movement which doesn’t compare with the rather more staid LSO (studio) recording of seven years earlier.’ In his notes, Martin Cotton emphatically states that the 1976 ‘live’ recording in wonderful stereo of Elgar’s Symphony No.1 from the Proms, ‘is completely astonishing’. Boult, one of the last living conductors to have known Elgar, had effectively been blessed by him: ‘I feel that my reputation in the future is safe in your hands’ – and here he gives what is arguably his greatest performance of the work. Cotton attended the 1976 concert and describes it as ‘one of the greatest musical experiences of my life’. Boult’s recent recording of Brahms’s Symphony No.1 coupled with Elgar’s Enigma Variations (ICAC5019) was acclaimed in International Record Review: ‘This is a very powerful reading, from the quite fast introduction of the first movement to the triumphal close. Much the same can be said of the Elgar “Enigma” Variations from the Royal Albert Hall Centenary Concert in 1971, again with the BBCSO. Boult keeps “Nimrod” flowing, but in the finale his speeds are more flexible – starting steadily, then pushing on. It all works extremely well.’ This CD represents stunning value at over 81 minutes long. “the sense of joyous homecoming in the closing pages is truly overwhelming in its cumulative impact and rightly accorded a thunderous ovation. There's much that is cherishable, too, in the performance of Brahms's Third...Again, Boult's contribution evinces a sureness of purpose, unassuming honesty and lofty wisdom that stem from a lifetime's experience...generous coupling that shows the veteran Boult at his inimitable best. Absolutely not to be missed.” Gramophone Magazine, August 2012 | | | (also available to download from $10.50) | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Amadeus Quartet play Haydn & Mozart
Founded in 1947, the Amadeus Quartet dominated the British chamber music scene for over 40 years. The quartet was renowned for its impeccable ensemble playing as well as sensitive interpretation, making over 200 recordings during their four decades together, which ended with Peter Schidlof’s death in 1987 – just four years after the Royal Opera House performance on this DVD. The quartet’s Wigmore Hall debut in 1948 was sold out with hundreds turned away at the door. Particularly well known for performances of the Viennese Classics, the ensemble’s core repertoire included all three works on this DVD, performed here with great warmth and exuberance. Norbert Brainin’s standard answer to how the Amadeus Quartet was able to reach such great mastery of interpretation was that they ‘simply listened into the music – again and again’. The Penguin Guide praises the quartet’s DG recording of the later Haydn quartets as ‘bright and truthful’ with a ‘warm acoustic and plenty of presence’ – ‘outstanding’. All four members were awarded an OBE, the German Great Cross of Merit, and the Austrian Cross of Honour for Arts and Sciences. This is the first DVD release of this material. 1DVD Sound format: Enhanced Mono Picture format: 4:3 Running time: 75’ Subtitles: n/a Menu languages: English Booklet languages: E/F/G Region code: 0 Territory Restrictions: None “High-powered, boldly etched, larger-than-life, impassioned 1980s performances” BBC Music Magazine, September 2012 *** | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Charles Munch conducts Mozart & Handel
Access to the publicly broadcast BSO concerts from this era has been extremely difficult even for researchers. This series of DVDs will make these performances available for the first time since they were broadcast. Munch launched the BSO into television in 1955. He was an immensely popular conductor and well suited to being filmed. This material represents some of the earliest televised concerts with the Boston Symphony and Charles Munch, and has been restored using the greatest care and state-of-the-art techniques. It is of exceptional musical interest and rare historic value. Munch was particularly fond of the Sir Hamilton Harty arrangement of Handel’s Water Music Suite, having performed it 53 times with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and having recorded it with the BSO for RCA in 1950. His interpretations of the two Mozart symphonies are characteristically lively and exhilarating with the usual committed performances from the BSO. Never commercially recorded by Munch, both Mozart symphonies are completely new to his discography. The booklet note contains references to an interview the writer conducted with Doriot Anthony Dwyer, the BSO’s principal flautist, who was appointed by Munch and remained in the position for 38 years. It gives a fascinating insight into Munch as a conductor and his interaction and relationship with the orchestra. Two of ICA’s BSO DVDs featuring Charles Munch as conductor have been awarded the Diapason d’Or in France’s Diapason magazine. 1DVD Sound format: Enhanced Mono Picture format: 4:3 Running time: 62’ Subtitles: n/a Menu languages: English Booklet languages: E/F/G Region code: 0 Territory Restrictions: None “Exhilarating performances of Mozart's Linz and Prague Symphonies and a splendid Handel Water Music, all from 1959-60. Occasional picture fuzziness.” BBC Music Magazine, May 2012 **** | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Erich Leinsdorf conducts Beethoven, Tchaikovsky & MozartVolume 3
This series of DVDs will make the publicly broadcast BSO concerts from this era available for the first time since they were broadcast. This rare material represents some of the earliest televised concerts with the Boston Symphony and Erich Leinsdorf, and has been restored using the greatest care and state-of-the-art techniques. It is of exceptional musical interest and historic value. The BSO’s Music Director for seven seasons, Leinsdorf had a long and distinguished career, having worked with Toscanini and Walter, conducting at the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera, Cleveland Orchestra and Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra in addition to his tenure at the BSO. This 1969 performance of Tchaikovsky’s Fifth Symphony has been the object of some attention from internet bloggers, with one site featuring an almost complete audio recording of the performance. Readers were astonished at the intensity and drive behind Leinsdorf’s interpretation. Because he didn’t perform the work regularly (on only 14 occasions with the BSO) the performance is fresh and insightful – the emotional commitment is great both from Leinsdorf and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, which Richard Dyer describes as ‘solid, flexible and brilliant’. All three featured works are new to Leinsdorf’s discography. Two of ICA’s BSO DVDs featuring Charles Munch as conductor have been awarded the Diapason d’Or in France’s Diapason magazine. 1DVD Sound format: Enhanced Mono Picture format: 4:3 Running time: 57’ Subtitles: n/a Menu languages: English Booklet languages: E/F/G Region code: 0 Territory Restrictions: None “A hard-driven but very exciting Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 5 and Beethoven's Egmont from 1969 is countered by a delightful, stylish Mozart's Posthorn Serenade.” BBC Music Magazine, May 2012 **** “The standard of playing is little short of sensational and Leinsdorf's actual interpretation...possesses prodigious energy, drama and sweep. Granted, the maestro's disconcertingly exaggerated podium manner takes some getting used to, but his authority is never in doubt. The closing pages shoot off like a rocket, Leinsdorf's audible exhortations merely intensifying the giddy rush of adrenaline.” Gramophone Magazine, June 2012 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Sir Neville Marriner & Academy of St Martin in the Fields
Beethoven: | Grosse Fuge in B flat major, Op. 133 arr. Marriner. Royal Albert Hall, London, 25 August 1975 | Britten: | Les illuminations, Op. 18 Royal Albert Hall, London, 12 August 1983 Anthony Rolfe-Johnson (tenor) | Handel: | Arrival of the Queen of Sheba (from Solomon) St John’s Smith Square, London, 23 & 24 May 1974 Concerto grosso, Op. 6 No. 11 in A major, HWV329 St John’s Smith Square, London, 23 & 24 May 1974 | Mendelssohn: | Symphony No. 4 in A major, Op. 90 'Italian' Royal Albert Hall, London, 12 August 1983 |
The brainchild of Neville Marriner, the Academy of St Martin in the Fields was founded in 1959, quickly becoming an example of the highest level of chamber musicianship in Britain, paving the way for the revival of Baroque performances. Described by Denis Stevens as owning ‘more sense of style than all the chamber orchestras in Europe’, the Academy made a prolific number of recordings over the years, becoming the most recorded chamber orchestra in the world. Having taken conducting lessons from Pierre Monteux, Marriner became known for his rhythmic and precise style, and was responsible for the refined string sound for which the Academy became famous. Marriner’s rendition of Mendelssohn’s ‘Italian’ Symphony is energetic and committed, yet sensitively communicated. Rolfe-Johnson’s Proms performance of Britten’s Les Illuminations took place at the height of his career. He performed at the world’s major opera chouses (the Royal Opera House, La Scala, The Met) and with major orchestras (New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony Orchestra), recording mainly for Hyperion. This performance is utterly convincing. Beethoven’s Große Fuge is a performance of Marriner’s own arrangement for chamber orchestra. Their recording of Beethoven 3 is described in the Penguin Guide as having the impression ‘of weight and strength, coupled with a rare transparency of texture and extraordinary resilience of rhythm’. The ‘interpretive skill and musicianship’ of Marriner and the ASMF, his ‘superb ensemble’ are described in the Penguin Guide featuring Marriner’s recording of the Handel Concerti grossi on Decca. This is the first DVD release of this material. Picture format: 4:3 Running time: 86’ Subtitles: n/a Menu languages: English Booklet languages: E/F/G Region code: 0 Territory Restrictions: None “As the Academy of St Martin in the Fields continues on into its sixth decade...this collection provides a worthwhile reminder of its length of service and the range of its founder...Despite their use of modern instruments and vibrato, Academy of St Martin in the Fields's music-making here is clean and decisive, their unhurried account of the Arrivel of the Queen of Sheba spry and animated.” BBC Music Magazine, July 2012 *** | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Yuri Temirkanov at the BBC PromsRoyal Albert Hall, London, 26 August 1992
Representing the first visit to the Proms by the St Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, this exhilarating and refreshing concert from 1992 sees the orchestra on top form under Yevgeny Mravinsky’s esteemed successor, Yuri Temirkanov. Temirkanov was appointed Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the orchestra four years prior to this recording, having made his debut with them several decades earlier, which lead to his appointment as Mravinsky’s assistant conductor in the sixties. Temirkanov is not averse to making changes to musical scores, and the Manfred Symphony featured on this DVD is subject to a convincing set of alterations, closing with a reprise of the first movement’s dark coda, a compelling and appropriate substitute for the customary happy ending. Temirkanov’s profound love of Tchaikovsky’s music is evident in this passionate interpretation from an orchestra that was established nearly 130 years ago, and according to Gramophone is one of the top 20 orchestras in the world. A frequent guest conductor of major orchestras in Europe, Temirkanov and ‘his orchestra’, were described in the Corriere della Sera (Milan) as ‘something unique in world music panorama… Amazing musicians, everyone is a soloist, but in perfect ensemble and confluence with others.’ Temirkanov has received many distinguished awards in Russia, such as the President’s Medal from Vladimir Putin, the Abbiati Prize for Best Conductor, and Conductor of the Year in Italy in 2003. Recently, he was made an Honorary Academician of Santa Cecilia. This is the first DVD release of this material. Picture format: 4:3 Running time: 72’ Subtitles: n/a Menu languages: English Booklet languages: E/F/G Region code: 0 Territory Restrictions: None “The Tchaikovsky is a beautiful and dramatic performance, though whether the DVD is worth buying rather depends on your feelings about the last two movements. Both have extensive cuts...and amendments...Overall, the orchestra makes a lovely sound and responds well to Temirkanov's expressive hands.” BBC Music Magazine, July 2012 **** “the orchestra, drilled so long and so relentlessly under the Mravinsky regime, they play with rare warmth and spontaneity; that said, the old discipline kicks in where necessary...really this is a fine tribute to the BBC, whose Proms productions then were often superior to the ones we see now. An indispensable record of a memorable night.” MusicWeb International, June 2012 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Symphony Hall, Boston, 5 November 1977
This series of DVDs will make the publicly broadcast BSO concerts from this era available for the first time since they were broadcast. This rare material represents some of the earliest concert footage that exists of Klaus Tennstedt from this key chapter in his career and has been restored using the greatest care and state-of-the-art techniques. It is of exceptional musical interest and historic value. This concert took place just 3 years after Tennstedt made his dramatic US debut with the BSO performing Bruckner 8 – a newspaper headline the following day described the experience as ‘once in a lifetime’. Tennstedt formed a very special relationship with the BSO, conducting it regularly for 10 years. They covered a great deal of the core Austro-German repertoire that suited Tennstedt so well. This DVD is only the second instance of a performance featuring Tennstedt with the BSO having been made available to the public and represents some of the earliest concert footage with this great conductor. The Gramophone Classical Music Guide describes Tennstedt’s live recording of Bruckner 4 with the LPO as a performance sufficient unto itself, and his recording of Bruckner 8 with the LPO as comparable with Barbirolli, Furtwängler, Karajan and Klemperer. ICA Classics’ recent DVD release of Tennstedt with the LPO performing Mahler 5 was described in BBC Music Magazine as epitomising ‘the combination of immensely detailed precision and overwhelming expressive intensity that Tennstedt’s many admirers found so special’. Two of ICA’s BSO DVDs featuring Charles Munch as conductor have been awarded the Diapason d’Or in France’s Diapason magazine. Picture format: 4:3 Running time: 66’ Subtitles: n/a Menu languages: English Booklet languages: E/F/G Region code: 0 Territory Restrictions: None “Some of the earliest extant footage of Tennstedt with the Boston Symphony in a superb Bruckner Symphony No. 7, monumental yet warm, with terrific momentum in the faster parts.” BBC Music Magazine, May 2012 ***** “Tennstedt’s rendition of this symphony is deeply satisfying and it’s marvellous to have an example of him at work with one of the finest orchestras in the USA...The thing that really matters is that the Boston Symphony of 1977 vintage was a fine, seasoned ensemble and it’s a joy to hear them play under this great conductor.” MusicWeb International, June 2012 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | William Steinberg conducts Beethoven & Haydn
This series of DVDs will make the publicly broadcast BSO concerts from this era available for the first time since they were broadcast. This rare material, filmed in colour, represents some of the earliest televised concerts with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and William Steinberg, and has been restored using the greatest care and state-of-the-art techniques. It is of exceptional musical interest and historic value. The BSO’s Music Director for just three seasons, Steinberg spent a great deal of time in the USA, having left Europe following Music Director positions in Cologne, Prague and Frankfurt. He also co-founded the Palestine Orchestra, later the Israel Philharmonic. His time with the BSO came at the end of his career following his position as the Music Director of Pittsburgh Symphony, which he held for over twenty years. Steinberg’s precise and minimalist technique belies the intensity with which the orchestra responds to his baton – the performances are lively and full of character. Steinberg’s CD release of Mahler’s Second Symphony on ICA Classics has received excellent reviews, described by Gramophone as ‘a startlingly direct statement of a score that is too often treated to extremes of mood and tempo’ – and by Classics Today as having ‘moments that set a new standard in this music’. The Haydn is new to Steinberg’s discography. Two of ICA’s BSO DVDs featuring Charles Munch as conductor, have been awarded the Diapason d’Or in France’s Diapason magazine. Picture format: 4:3 Running time: 86’ Subtitles: n/a Menu languages: English Booklet languages: E/F/G Region code: 0 Territory Restrictions: None “Precise yet expressive, Steinberg's Beethoven Symphonies Nos 7 & 8 are models of clarity and rhythmic dynamism. The Haydn is excellent.” BBC Music Magazine, May 2012 **** “Useful documentation of a conductor whose time with the orchestra was short.” MusicWeb International, June 2012 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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Gramophone Magazine
