In these special recordings of Brahms String Quintets No. 1 and 2 the world-famous Takacs Quartet is joined by violist Nabuko Imai as guest artist to form the quintet. The two pieces showcase the full spectrum of the composer's masterful writing for…

Celebrating Bedřich Smetana’s 200th anniversary 2024 Live signal available, 8 June 2024, 8:15 pm CET From the Festival Hall in Litomysl, Czech Republic Bedrich Smetana (2 March 1824 – 12 May 1884) is regarded as the founder of Czech music. His father…

Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau’s Master Class at the Hochschule der Künste in Berlin. Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau is one of the most famous lieder singers of his generation. He is greatly admired for his interpretive insight, note-perfect control of the tonal…

The Verbier Festival celebrates its 25th anniversary with arguably the most phenomenal gathering of soloists in classical music. This all-star program is devised in three parts focusing on strings, piano and orchestra. This exuberant reunion of…

What a strange idea Mondonville had! Based on a cruel fable by La Fontaine with a tragic ending, he wrote a charming opera libretto with a happy ending, and composed a delightful pastoral. In the prologue, Dame Clémence Isaure, the mythical founder…

Pianist András Schiff and cellist Miklos Perenyi come together to perform Schubert’s Arpeggione Sonata. Initially written for Arpeggione, an instrument somewhere between viola and cello that disappeared a few years after the writing of this piece…

The Wiener Streichsextett, founded in 1981, probably is one of the most famous ensembles of all time in its genre. In this special recording they perform the String Sextet Op. 4 by Austrian composer Arnold Schönberg. The work named “Verklärte Nacht”…

Orchestras once played Bach as well as Bruckner. Only specialised ensembles showed that note and performance signs have changed their meaning quite a bit over the centuries. So far, so theoretical: in practice, Handel's "Il Trionfo" awaits us, a…

In this live recording Daniel Barenboim and Itzhak Perlman, two of the most renowned and celebrated classical musicians of all time, came together to perform all of Brahms’ violin sonatas at the Orchestra Hall Chicago. Barenboim and Perlman benefit…

In this live recording Daniel Barenboim and Itzhak Perlman, two of the most renowned and celebrated classical musicians of all time, came together to perform all of Brahms’ violin sonatas at the Orchestra Hall Chicago. Barenboim and Perlman benefit…