Piano masterpieces and Blighty’s best This month’s round-up also includes Karajan and John Mccormack
‘It all begins with the piano…’. So says the cover of 100 Piano Masterpieces (Harmonia Mundi HMX 2908990.95). It’s an appealing package of six discs, each with a brightly-coloured sleeve. Equally colourful is the music selection, which features a veritable royal family of keyboard stars. There’s Shostakovich from Alexander Melnikov, Ravel and Satie from Alexandre Tharaud and Chopin from Javier Perianes, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Sonatas, waltzes, preludes, nocturnes and still more, all at the fingertips of Paul Lewis, Beatrice Rana, Cédric Tiberghien, Olga Kern and others.
Bruckner – The Symphonies (DG 483 7137) takes in Herbert von Karajan’s remarkable readings with the Berlin Phil. Recorded from 1975-81 and presented across nine discs, this special collection also offers the entire nine-hour (plus) programme on a single Blu-ray Audio disc. Karajan and Bruckner really are a perfect pairing, with the conductor’s controlled and insightful interpretations of these mighty works among the best there is. DG’S package is sleek, modern and pleasing to the eyes.
Some of Blighty’s best feature on The British Line – A Celebration of British Music (Warner Classics 9029545395), a 16-disc collection bringing together Warner’s series from 1991-97. Who better to chart these musical waters than the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Andrew Davis? And what better bonus than their 1994 Last Night of the Proms with Bryn Terfel and Evelyn Glennie? Discs of Britten, Delius, Elgar, Holst, Tippett and Vaughan Williams welcome guest performers Patricia Rozario, Tasmin Little, Thomas Hampson, Amanda Roocroft, Graham Sheen and Jean Rigby. Rule Britannia!
With John Mccormack – A Patrician Artist (Marston 51601-2), a decades-long project comes to a close. Taking in the lyric tenor’s complete electrical recordings, from 1925-42, it is representative of Mccormack’s mass appeal – he really was a superstar in his day. Featuring Irish airs, songs by Irving Berlin, German art songs and classics by Elgar and Vaughan Williams, the 16 discs are lovingly produced and the booklet is a mine of information about one of Ireland’s most famous sons.
Herbert von Karajan and Bruckner really are a perfect pairing