ORGAN

The Bruckner Symphonies (Organ Transcriptions), Vol. 5

This series marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Anton Bruckner, which falls in 2024. It’s dedicated to Bruckner’s symphonies, most of them recorded in new transcriptions for organ by Hansjörg Albrecht. The 6th recording was made on the church organ of St. Margaret in Munich with the transcription of Bruckner’s 5th Symphony by Erwin Horn. (Oehms Classics)

Franck: Organ Music / Olivier Penin [3 CDs]

Work began on the basilica of Saint-Clotilde in 1846, and only three years later, construction of the organ began under the supervision of the doyen of French organ builders, Aristide Cavaillé-Coll. The instrument as it comes down to us is one of the most magnificent surviving examples of his art and craft. (Brilliant Classics)

3CD# BRI96220 $16.99

1CD# OC 481

$14.99

Handel: Organ Concertos Op. 4 & Op. 7 [3 CDs]

The Organ Concertos Op. 4 and Op. 7 by George Frideric Handel (1685–1759) were originally composed as musical interludes to be performed during the intervals of the Oratorios. One great example of transcription from the organ repertory is composer and organist Clément Loret’s (1833–1909) transcription of Handel’s Organ Concertos for solo organ. (Brilliant Classics)

3CD# BRI96547 $16.99

Christian Fink: The Great Organ Works

Christian Fink’s organ works include 5 sonatas, 2 fantasias [and a double fugue], 5 preludes [and a fugue], 30 chorale preludes and around 100 free recital pieces. His work lies in the temporal arc between the organ sonatas of Felix Mendelssohn and the chorale fantasias of Max Reger. (Hanssler)

1CD# HC22066 $18.99

Organ Music / Thomas Ennenbach

This album celebrates the 20th anniversary of the Association of Friends of the Baroque Organ and demonstrates Langenbogen’s rich musical life. Up to now, the Association has organized more than 100 events. This release presents mainly organ works played by Thomas Ennenbach. In addition, we hear the Association’s Chairman Ralf Mielke, and members of the Ensemble Arco Lungo. (Querstand)

Companions – Contemporary Organ

Music / Carson Cooman

A new album of ten contemporary organ works from nine composers representing six countries. Carson Cooman presents a program of contemporary music for organ recorded on the remarkable post-romantic Thomas Gaida organ of the Pauluskirche in Ulm, Germany. The music varies widely in character and scope, from smaller character pieces and meditations to several dramatic, large-scale works. (Divine Art)

1CD# DDA25241 $18.99

Stumm: Organ Works [2 CDs]

The Stumm family stands alongside Schnitger and Silbermann as one of Germany’s most famous organ-building dynasties. It was founded by Johann Michael Stumm. He and five generations of his descendants built some 400 organs between Cologne and Karlsruhe, Luxemburg and Amorbach – a tradition unique in the history of German organ building. (Hanssler)

2CD# HC22073 $18.99

Mozart on the Organ / Christoph Schoener

For his latest production, Christoph Schoener combines obvious and surprising arrangements with Mozart’s original works. The new Wegscheider organ in St. Jakobi in Stralsund proves to be the ideal instrument in his respectful reference to the masters of the 18th century. (DG Scenes)

1SACD# 9492269-6 $19.99

1CD# VKJK 2103

$18.99

Saint-Saëns: Complete Music for Organ / Savino [4 CDs]

Saint-Saëns understood how to exploit the full spectrum of tonal colors available on the instruments designed by the greatest organ builder of his age, Aristide CavailléColl. Even the apparently abstract designs of his many Preludes and Fugues invite the kind of swirling mists and brilliant sunshine evoked by Michele Savino on this newly recorded collection.

(Brilliant Classics)

4CD# BRI96219 $21.99

Cooke: Organ Music

The music of Arnold Cooke, born in Yorkshire in 1906, had already fallen into neglect by the time of his death 99 years later. Cooke was a prolific composer, with two operas, six symphonies, numerous concertos and a generous amount of chamber music to his credit – nor did he neglect the organ, as this album of his major organ pieces reveals. (Toccata)

1CD# TOCC0659 $18.99

Mascagni: L’Amino Fritz [Blu-ray or DVD Video]

Building on the success of Cavalleria rusticana, Pietro Mascagni’s commedia lirica L’amico Fritz was given seven encores and thirty-five curtain calls at its premiere in Rome in 1891. Returning to the Teatro del Maggio Musicale in Florence for the first time since 1941, this production was acclaimed for its superb cast and astonishingly effective modern setting.

(Dynamic)

1Blu-ray# DYN-37960 $27.99

1DVD# DYN-57960 $27.99

Offenbach: La Vie Parisienne [Blu-ray or DVD Video]

Jacques Offenbach had already achieved fame as an operetta composer by 1866, but that year’s premiere of La Vie Parisienne was his first portrayal of contemporary Parisian life. With significant new musical discoveries and the final acts restored, this opéra-bouffe masterpiece now speaks for itself given the resources of a superb cast and Christian Lacroix’s colourful and much acclaimed Bru Zane France production. (Naxos)

1Blu-ray# NBD0163V $29.99

2DVD# 2110753-54 $29.99

Ades: The Dante Project [Blu-ray or DVD Video]

Originally presented as part of the 700th anniversary celebrations of the poet’s death, Dante’s epic journey through the afterlife in The Divine Comedy, is realized in a major artistic collaboration between trailblazing forces of the contemporary arts scene. Wayne McGregor’s ground breaking choreography comes together with a virtuosic new score by composer/ conductor Thomas Adès. (Opus Arte)

1Blu-ray# OA BD7278D $39.99

1DVD# OA 1319D $29.99

Schubert: Eine Winterreise [Blu-ray or DVD Video]

In Eine Winterreise, renowned director Christof Loy has created a memorable evening of music theatre in which Schubert’s tragically short life is depicted by and extended through his immortal music and songs from Winterreise, Die schöne Müllerin and Schwanengesang The soul of the composer is brought to life by mezzo-soprano Anne Sofie von Otter alongside acclaimed pianist Kristian Bezuidenhout. (Naxos)

1Blu-ray# NBD0165V $27.99

1DVD# 2110751 $27.99

Russian Opera Classics [8 DVDs]

This incredible box set presents the best of Russian opera. Included in the set are Mussorgsky’s Boris Godunov, Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin and Pique Dame, Rimsky-Korsakov’s The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh, and Shostakovich’s Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk

Recorded in renowned opera houses such as Teatro Regio, Torino, and De Nederlandse Opera, these performances are not to be missed. (Opus Arte)

8DVD# OA 1203BD $79.99

Blow: Venus & Adonis; Purcell: Dido & Aeneas [Blu-ray or DVD Video]

Two classic court operas are brought together to tell the stories of love, be it between gods or royalty in the historic Confidencen Theatre, Sweden. Venus & Adonis, composed in 1683 by John Blow, is considered the earliest example of English opera. It tells the enchanting story of two mythical lovers and their cruel fate in scenes reaching from light-hearted comedy to heartfelt despair. (Opus Arte)

1Blu-ray# OA BD7308D $39.99

1DVD# OA 1361D $29.99

Gmeyner: Automatenbüfett DVD

Anna Gmeyner’s play Automat dates from 1932 and was inspired by the technological innovations of her age as well as by the reactionary attitudes of the bourgeoisie. The play proved a draw in major theatres in Hamburg, Berlin and Zurich before its author was forced to flee in the face of persecution by the National Socialists. This production is a true rediscovery. (Densite21)

1DVD# THE08079 $24.99

Bruckner 11 / Thielemann; Wiener Philharmoniker [Blu-ray

or DVD Video]

On the occasion of the Bruckner bicentenary, the Wiener Philharmoniker recorded its first ever complete Bruckner cycle under the baton of Christian Thielemann. In addition to the well-known canon of nine symphonies, the two earliest Bruckner symphonies in F minor and D minor, which are a world premiere on DVD and Blu-ray, were also recorded for the first time in the orchestra’s history. (Unitel)

1Blu-ray# 807404 $42.99

1DVD# 807308 $37.99

Handel: Semele [Blu-ray or DVD Video]

Filmed at the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Auckland, New Zealand, Handel’s Baroque masterpiece Semele is an exciting mix of opera and oratorio. The sensual story explores a love triangle between Jupiter, his wife, the goddess Juno, and his lover, the mortal princess Semele. “A remarkable production... a brilliant theatrical phenomenon, surprising, amusing and utterly engrossing”

(Opera Magazine) (Opus Arte)

1Blu-ray# OA BD7309D $39.99

1DVD# OA 1362D $29.99

Verdi: Falstaff – Salzburg Festival 1982

Blu-ray

Based, in part, on Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor, Falstaff is Verdi’s last work for the stage – and only his second comic opera. In this legendary performance from the Salzburg Festival, Herbert von Karajan is not only leading a stunning cast of singers featuring the Wiener Philharmoniker, he too directed the opera, in the amazing set design of Günther Schneider-Siemssen. (C Major)

1Blu-ray# 761504 $42.99