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LP
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ERM 5029LP
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I Musici, founded in 1952, followed in the path of the Virtuosi di Roma. Felix Ayo, their first violin, had been the pupil of Remy Principe, concertmaster of I Virtuosi. I Musici were a sort of young Virtuosi di Roma, cadets of sorts. At least this is how they were seen by the public, who adopted them the way mascots are adopted. I Musici later went their own way, at least in part, and took on Bach and Handel, Mozart (some splendid recordings of divertimentos and serenades), Haydn and Rossini, 20th century composers (Britten, Bucchi, Hindemith, Martin, Roussel), and even the late 19th century with the Little Suite Op. l by Carl Nielsen. They were a string group open to a wide-ranging repertory rather than an ambassador of Italian music. But in the concert presented here, I Musici were still the cadets of I Virtuosi di Roma and offered a program composed entirely of 18th century music that culminated in Vivaldi. Typical of those years was the inclusion of a pre-classical composer -- or Rococo, if you like -- in a Baroque context. The works performed were written by Arcangelo Corelli, Francesco Antonio Bonporti, Georg Philipp Telemann, and Antonio Vivaldi. Features violinists Franco Tamponi, Felix Ayo, Annamaria Cotogni, and Franco Tamponi, and violaist Cino Ghedin.
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LP
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ERM 5007LP
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Nathan Milstein was born in Odessa, Ukraine, in 1904. A virtuosic violinist, Milstein made his US debut in 1929 with Leopold Stokowski and the Philadelphia Orchestra. He later settled in New York City and became an American citizen. On the first side here is his wonderful interpretation of Bach's Ciaccona. Using the general architecture of Ferdinand David's arrangement of the piece from the 19th century, Milstein reaches a peak in the second major part, in an exciting and frenzied progression, that shows impressive control of bow speed and vibrato. An emotional and impressive player and interpreter, Milstein's performance of Bach's Ciaccona, Partita in D minor for solo violin presented here is one of the finest performances of his long and storied career. On the B side, Milstein is joined by the noted pianist Arthur Balsam for a recital of Beethoven's Spring: Violin Sonata No. 5 in F maj. Milstein's playing speaks volumes, resulting in a wonderful recital. Though he may not be a household name, Milstein is a hero who deserves a place in the annals of classical music history.
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LP
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ERM 5014LP
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Sergiu Celibidache never conducted opera (perhaps a single Carmen, or maybe an act of Don Giovanni...) because, he said, opera performance is subject to too many approximations. Celibidache was the great conductor of symphonies and concertos and here, in this recital, his performance is the best. Featuring a sublime rendition of Franz Shubert's "Unfinished", this is a magical recording with great sound.
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ERM 5017LP
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The Italian instrumental group that quickly gained international fame, Quartetto Italiano, were formed in a period of national isolation: the campaign to colonize Ethiopia, the alliance with Germany, and then the war, had limited the presence of international ensembles in Italy, and had at first made difficult, and then blocked, foreign travel by young musicians. Quartetto Italiano, the string quartet founded by Paolo Borciani in Reggio Emilia in 1945, are particularly noted for their activities and for their historic performances. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonín Dvořák are featured in this 1968 recital.
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LP
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ERM 5004LP
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The Chilean pianist, Claudio Arrau, known for his interpretations of a vast repertoire spanning the baroque to 20th-century composers, in an exclusive 1963 recital that contains Maurice Ravel, Franz Liszt and Fryderyk Chopin. With Liszt, Arrau undoubtedly deserved to be mentioned among the big ones, those who make history, even if his following development would lead him to retrench and to control the magniloquence which he had temporarily embraced to get rid of "Canovism". For this very reason, this 1963 recital is unique and the evidence of a very special moment in the development of one of our greatest contemporary artists.
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