Beethoven: The Creatures of Prometheus Overture, Op. 43 (Die Geschöpfe des Prometheus)

Gustavo Dudamel and the Simón Bolívar Orchestra bring their unique energy to one of the summits of the orchestral repertoire - Beethoven’s mighty Symphony No.3, the “Eroica”.

Beethoven’s third symphony is not only one of his most personal works – powerful in both grandeur and pathos – but also the source of some of classical music’s most instantly recognizable melodies.

The album also includes two of Beethoven’s best-loved overtures, Egmont, inspired by Goethe’s play, and the ballet, The Creatures of Prometheus.

No longer a ‘youth orchestra’, the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela is a world-class ensemble in its own right, touring the world’s great concert halls as ambassadors for their country’s unique system of musical education, ‘El Sistema’.

The combination of powerful, accessible repertoire, Dudamel’s irrepressible charisma and the remarkable story of the Simón Bolívar Orchestra make this recording not only desirable for Dudamel fans and those of Beethoven’s music, but a must for anyone wishing to discover the power of classical music at its very best.

Feted like a rockstar in his homeland, Gustavo Dudamel was recently awarded a Grammy for Best Orchestral Recording of 2011. His epic cycle of Mahler symphonies in Los Angeles and Caracas made him front page news in The New York Times and his record-setting Mahler 8 was shown live in hundreds of cinemas around the world. Gustavo made a stellar debut in the Wiener Philharmoniker’s prestigious subscription concerts in December and takes the Berliner Philharmoniker on tour this Spring.

In the 1960s and 70s Claudio Abbado made several recordings for Decca – orchestral works by Mendelssohn, Beethoven and Bruckner, as well as 20th-century repertoire by Hindemith, Janácek and Prokofiev. This recording is part of that legacy and there are plenty of magical touches – real swagger in the finale of the Seventh Symphony, dashing humour in the finale of the Eighth, real nobility at the opening of the Creatures of Prometheus Overture. These were the only Beethoven recordings Abbado made for Decca and they are now collected on one CD. The Seventh and the Overture receive their first international release on CD.

Munch met and heard Richter in 1958 when the Boston Symphony Orchestra toured Russia. He was so impressed that he invited him to appear with the BSO.

Richter’s Boston debut two years later, is presented here from the original stereo tapes for the first time. “The result took your breath away” Boston Globe

This recording of a live performance of music by the young Beethoven – his first operatic, symphonic and concert masterpieces – features one of the best of the newer ensembles on the international scene, Le Cercle de L’Harmonie under its conductor Jérémie Rhorer. The lively and innovative programme includes the early dramatic scene “Ah Perfido”, the concert aria “No non turbati”, “O wär’ ich schon mit dir verein” (an aria from the first version of Fidelio, which was titled “Leonore”), as well as his First Symphony, and the first of the two Romances for violin and orchestra.

Formed in April 2005 in Deauville by Jeremy Rhorer and Julien Chauvin (first violin), le Cercle de l’Harmonie soon established itself as a significant force in the performance of great symphonic and operatic repertoires of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century. The ensemble is now invited to appear at major venues – including London’s Barbican Hall in June – and with artists such as Diana Damrau and Philippe Jaroussky, with whom it has recorded two CDs for Virgin Classics. This, the first in a series of productions for Ambroisie, presents Jérémie Rhorer’s first recording of works by Beethoven.

Today the music of Beethoven is regarded as a remarkable link in the chain of evolution of Western music, a judgement that is based mainly on the pieces he composed after 1800. However there was in his artistic development a transitional period, around the turn of the century, when the works he composed appear to belong to the Classical tradition while presenting ideas that were to be developed later. This recording features the major works of that period, the Symphony No. 1 in C major, and the Romance for violin and orchestra in F major, op. 50. There are also three vocal works on the disc, the aria “O wär’ ich schon mit dir verein” from “Leonore”, the first version of Beethoven’s only opera “Fidelio”, the dramatic scene “Ah Perfido”, and the concert aria “No non turbati”.

"What a pleasant surprise …. this is certainly a beautiful performance... Mehta leads the orchestra into an excellent performance - warm, flowing with serenity and charm. The recording was made during several live performances in Tel Aviv last July, and the quality is very good." Omer Shomroni, Globes newspaper