From a great conductor to rare operas
This month’s round-up also sees early recordings by a mighty baritone
Hot on the heels of its set of Igor Markevitch’s Philips recordings, Eloquence has put together The Deutsche Grammophon Legacy (Eloquence 484 1659). It’s the first complete set of the prolific conductor’s recordings for the label, charting his time in the studio from 1953-65. The majority was recorded in Paris with the Lamoreux Orchestra, but there are renderings from sessions in Prague, London and New York, too. Never one to be pigeonholed, Markevitch’s remarkable range on the podium is on show here with everything from Haydn to Honegger. Original artwork tops off this quality collection.
Similarly wide-ranging repertoire usually marks the music-making of the Belgian period ensemble Anima Eterna. Its new self-titled collection (Alpha Classics ALPHA 654), however, sticks to the Romantic or relatively recent, with seven discs taking in works by Liszt, Orff, Rimsky-korsakov, Borodin, Janácˇek, Johann Strauss, Tchaikovsky and Gershwin. Gathering releases on Alpha from 2002 to the present, it’s a glittering collection charting the group’s passion and attention to detail.
You’d think there wouldn’t be much else to discover on CD when it comes to a legendary figure like Dietrich Fischer-dieskau. But you’d be wrong. Some of the baritone’s earlist recordings, made for radio broadcasts or gramophone discs, have barely seen the light of day. In Early Recordings – An Anthology (Profil Hanssler PH20074), we are treated to seven discs: two devoted to Lieder, two to opera, one to sacred music and a further pair taking in his concert performances. Most notable is his first ever recording, made in 1948 for the radio, and his first Lieder recording – Brahms’s Four Serious Songs.
Opera Rara continues its 50th-anniversary celebrations with Donizetti in the 1830s (Opera Rara ORB01), a seven-disc collection of three complete operas. These recordings of Il diluvio universale, Ugo, conte di Parigi and L’assedio di Calais have been out of print for over a decade, so it’s a welcome return indeed. Recorded in London in in 2005, 1977 and 1989, they feature performances by company luminaries like Janet Price, Della Jones and Yvonne Kenny. A glittering tribute to the label’s work.
Most notable is Fischerdieskau’s first ever recording, made in 1948