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The Tower of Babel of performances and recordings of Sergei Rachmaninoff's music pleases the ear and the sight of the music lover today as it has been throughout the 20th century. In that Tower one can easily distinguish the voices of Rachmaninoff's music's "native speakers" - performers who spoke Rachmaninoff's mother's tongue, breathed the same air and enjoyed the same autumnal landscapes in childhood. In fact, it is the Tower of its own: looking through the list of Rachmaninoff's works and the names of Russian and Soviet performers in the Rachmaninoff Collection offered by legendary label Melodiya on the composer's 145th anniversary, one can assume just that. To a great surprise of the scholars and amateurs, such a collection has never been assembled previously. The "Russian idiom" (if we are to continue with the metaphor) has never been presented in such a massive and powerful way, reaching the "critical mass" that may lead to important conclusions about the Russian musical style and interpretation in general. The list contains the names of great singers from the generation of Soviet classics such as Irina Arkhipova, Ivan Kozlovsky, Georgy Nelepp, Elena Obraztsova, Mark Reisen, to the most current internationally renowned stars such as Hibla Gerzmava. One can find a smorgasbord of chamber music performed by the exceptional ensembles and individuals such as David Oistrakh, Leonid Kogan, Mstislav Rostropovich, Gidon Kremer and Daniil Shafran. An unusual component in the collection is the recordings of Rachmaninoff's Russian Orthodox church music - something that was carefully shoved under the rug in the Soviet times. The operas are represented by the best that the country could give - and here, for sure, the native Russian diction raises the level of performance to the classical height. And, of course, that poetics of the piano, in which Sergei Rachmaninoff expressed himself in the most unencumbered way, is represented in the Collection by the names that do not need promotion: Sviatoslav Richter, Emil Gilels, Grigory Sokolov, Vladimir Krainev, Alexei Nasedkin, Pavel Serebryakov - the list goes on until it reaches the latest acquisition on the Montparnasse of piano, Dmitry Masleev. For the connoisseurs, the Collection offers rare examples, many of them previously unreleased by Melodiya, together with those delicious brand-name tube-mic recordings that carry an unrivaled human quality and a tint of nostalgia. The edition comprises 33 CDs and 1 LP with previously unreleased recordings (Piano Concerto No. 2 performed by Vladimir Krainev and the Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Yuri Temirkanov; and Vocalise orchestrated by the composer and performed by the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Dmitri Kitaenko). The edition includes a booklet in four languages (Russian, English, French and German).

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Äntligen är den här! Ett och ett halvt år efter att Arvo Pärts "Tractus" släpptes på CD, efter otaliga provpressningar, kommer den nu ut på exklusiv dubbelvinyl.

Zimmer Hans: The World Of Hans Zimmer [3 Vinyl LP]

Presenting Sì: Andrea Bocelli's first album of new material in 14 years. It's a set of powerful, emotional songs, some featuring interpolations of classical themes (from, for example, Bach and Massenet), and all encompassing a positive message of the power for good of love, family and music. The album will also be featuring sensational duets with globally renowned artists. More to follow...

The six Cello Suites, BWV 1007-1012, are suites for unaccompanied cello by Johann Sebastian Bach. They are some of the most frequently performed and recognizable solo compositions ever written for cello. Bach most likely composed them during the period 1717-23, when he served as Kapellmeister in Köthen. The title given on the cover of the Anna Magdalena Bach manuscript was Suites à Violoncello Solo senza Basso (Suites for cello solo without bass).<br/><br/>Due to the works' technical demands, étude-like nature, and difficulty in interpretation because of the non-annotated nature of the surviving copies, the cello suites were little known and rarely publicly performed until they were revived and recorded by Pablo Casals in the early 20th century. They have since been performed and recorded by many renowned cellists and have been transcribed for numerous other instruments; they are considered some of Bach's greatest musical achievements.<br/><br/>Yo-Yo Ma performed the Bach Unaccompanied Cello Suites in its entirety - nearly three hours! - in London at The Proms concert to more than 5,000 people. And the reviews were fantastic:<br/><br/>"Without doubt, we were in the presence of a great musician, and a great man. One to file in the concerts of a lifetime."- BBC Music Magazine"<br/><br/>The cellist's grand interpretation at Prom 68 would have left the composer astonished and incredulous."- The Guardian<br/><br/>Yo-Yo Ma won a Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist Performance for his performance of The six Cello Suites in 1985.<br/><br/>J.S. BACH - UNACCOMPANIED CELLO SUITES (COMPLETE)<br/>180GR./DELUXE TRIFOLD GATEFOLD SLEEVE W/ GLOSS LAMINATE<br/>LINER NOTES BY PETER ELIOT STONE<br/>1985 GRAMMY AWARD FOR BEST INSTRUMENTAL SOLOIST<br/>PERFORMANCE. YO-YO MA PERFORMED THE BACH UNACCOMPANIED<br/>CELLO SUITES IN ITS ENTIRETY - NEARLY THREE HOURS -<br/>IN LONDON AT THE PROMS CONCERT TO MORE THAN 5000 PEOPLE<br/><br/>GATEFOLD SLEEVE<br/>HIGH QUALITY

Two Steps From Hell: An Epic Music Experience [3 Vinyl LP]