Historical
Recordings over 50 years old.
A huge catalogue featuring many of the greatest artists of the 20th Century.
Made up of the following series:
Great Cellists - Great Conductors - Great Opera Recordings
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Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 2 & Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1
RecommendedVladimir Horowitz (piano)
NBC Symphony Orchestra, Arturo Toscanini
Awards:
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Penguin Guide, Rosette
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Building a Library, November 2022, Also Recommended - Tchaikovsky
CD
$12.50Downloads
Audio formats guide -
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Stravinsky conducts Stravinsky
Recommended1940 & 1946 Recordings
Philharmonic-Symphony of New York, Igor Stravinsky
Invaluable new transfers of Stravinsky on top form as a conductor. This electrifying performance is the finest of his Rite of Spring recordings, and the 1945 Firebird Suite is gripping. — More…
Awards:
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Building a Library, March 2013, First Choice
CD
$13.75Downloads
Audio formats guide -
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Great Violinists - Kaufmann
RecommendedLouis Kaufman (violin), Peter Rybar (violin)
Winterthur Symphony Orchestra, Clemens Dahinden
this is avowedly old-school Vivaldi; indeed, the oldest on disc. Recorded in 1947, this is the first-ever recording of The Four Seasons; Louis Kaufman is worlds away from Alessandrini's account... — More…
Awards:
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Penguin Guide, Rosette
2 CDs
$21.50Downloads
Audio formats guide -
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The Composers Conduct - Holst / Vaughan Williams
RecommendedLondon Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Gustav Holst, Ralph Vaughan Williams
Awards:
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Building A Library, May 2022, Also Recommended
CD
$13.75Downloads
Audio formats guide -
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Verdi: Rigoletto
RecommendedRobert Merrill (Rigoletto), Roberta Peters (Gilda), Jussi Björling (Il Duca), Anna Maria Rota (Maddalena), Giorgio Tozzi (Sparafucile)
Rome Opera Orchestra and Chorus, Jonel Perlea
[On the original release in 1956] under Perlea, the orchestral playing is firm and dramatic, well balanced with the voice. The music is well paced. Björling’s tone is a constant pleasure. He... — More…
Awards:
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Presto Favourites, Recommended Recording
2 CDs
$21.50Downloads
Audio formats guide -
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A 1950s benchmark and a record that forever altered the way we hear Bach's Goldberg Variations, Glenn Gould's 1955 CBS recording, elegant and exuberant, a fast-lane excursion that occasionally... — More…
Awards:
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Presto Recording of the Week, 26th March 2007
CD
$13.75Downloads
Audio formats guide -
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The LSO plays out of its skin for the composer; Falstaff is brilliantly characterised, the Symphony has serious intensity. Fair sound for the vintage, with some harshness in the Symphony. — More…
Awards:
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Presto Recording of the Week, 16th February 2009
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Building a Library, October 2016, Historic Choice
CD
$13.75Downloads
Audio formats guide -
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Great Violinists - Joseph Szigeti
RecommendedJoseph Szigeti (violin)
London Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, Orchestre de la Société des Concerts du Conservatoire, Paris, Thomas Beecham, Constant Lambert, Charles Munch
Awards:
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Penguin Guide, Rosette
Downloads
Audio formats guide -
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Awards:
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Building a Library, March 2010, First Choice (Scherzo 4)
2 CDs
$21.50Downloads
Audio formats guide -
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Cortot’s 1928 recording of the Second Sonata is one of the earliest studio recordings of the work. He takes dizzying tempos at various points: both the scherzo and the finale are rapid and threaten... — More…
Awards:
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Gramophone Magazine, March 2007, Re-issue of the Month
CD
$12.50Downloads
Audio formats guide -
