Box Set Selections,
Boxed Set Selections - September 2019
Great pianists past and present dominate the early autumn heavyweights, with Beethoven cycles from Igor Levit, Ronald Brautigam and Wilhelm Kempff, anthologies celebrating the legacies of Rudolf Firkušný and Friedrich Gulda, and a wide selection of chamber music from Martha Argerich and friends/family, recorded during her residency in Hamburg last summer.
Six years on from his astonishing debut recording of the last five sonatas, the Russian-German pianist completes the set to mark the composer’s 250th anniversary next year: the Financial Times recently described the new recordings as ‘unfailingly alive, thoughtful and rewarding…adding up to a strong, keenly argued, entirely consistent cycle’.
Available Formats: 9 CDs, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
The Dutch keyboard-player recorded Beethoven’s complete piano music between 2003 and 2015, and this SACD set comprises the six discs of variations and bagatelles, recorded on three different instruments in order to reflect the dramatic evolution of the piano during the composer’s lifetime; Classical Music praised the ‘sense of boldly direct communication and utter conviction’ on display in the Diabellis, whilst International Piano observed that ‘Brautigam goes to the heart of these variations'.
Available Formats: 6 SACDs, MP3, FLAC
This 20-disc collection from the Magginis includes music by Alwyn, Bax, Bliss, Bridge, Britten, Elgar, Ireland, Moeran, Rawsthorne, Rubbra, Vaughan Williams and Walton; the recordings have been praised in Gramophone for the ‘luminous refinement and beguiling tonal beauty’ on display.
Available Format: 20 CDs
Seven Days Walking was inspired by the Italian composer’s regular hikes along the same Alpine trail in the winter of 2018. Day One was released on CD in March of this year and topped the UK Classical Chart, with subsequent volumes appearing digitally at monthly intervals; the entire ‘journey’ will be released as a boxed set this Friday.
Available Formats: MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Following on from her hugely popular series of recordings from the Lugano Festival between 2002 and 2016, this collection of performances from Argerich’s residency in Hamburg last summer focuses mainly on chamber music, with guests including the pianist’s daughters Annie Dutoit and Lyda Chen, ex-husband Stephen Kovacevich, and childhood friend Daniel Barenboim.
Available Format: 7 CDs
Recorded between 1966 and 1979, this is the first instalment of a four-volume series of previously unreleased radio broadcasts, remastered from the original tapes; the repertoire includes eight Beethoven sonatas, music by Handel, JS Bach, Couperin, Mozart, Schubert, Debussy and Gulda himself, and a disc devoted to Gulda’s jazz trio, the Inner Circle.
Available Formats: 7 CDs, MP3, FLAC
Released on 27th September to mark the fortieth anniversary of the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra (which Koopman founded in 1979), this 10-CD anthology features music by Frescobaldi, Soler, Buxtehude, Telemann, Handel, and JS, CPE and WF Bach; soloists include Barbara Schlick, Michael Chance, Christoph Prégardien and Monica Huggett.
Available Format: 10 CDs
Described by Gramophone as ‘Handel-singing, playing and direction of the absolute highest order’ and by The Sunday Times as ‘state-of-the-art Handel’, Bonizzoni’s series of chamber cantatas was recorded in the late 2000s, with soloists including Roberta Invernizzi, Raffaella Milanesi, Nuria Rial, Yetzabel Arias Fernández, and Romina Basso.
Available Formats: 7 CDs, MP3, FLAC
Chris O'Reilly - Chief Executive
