Series

at present 4 productionsHistorical Recordings of Legendary Cellists

This audite series with studio productions and live recordings from the years 1949 to 1976 from the archive of Swiss Radio and Television (SRF) and the German Radio Archive (DRA) provides an overview of the legendary cellists of this period, including Pierre Fournier and Paul Tortelier as well as the both pivotal figures for the establishment of female cellists Zara Nelsova and Jacqueline du Pré.

Pierre Fournier (1906-1986) was one of the most eminent cellists of the generation after Pablo Casals. Praised as an "aristocratof cello playing", he was admired for his soulful, singing tone, his uncomplicated elegance and his refined sound. This disc presents three live recordings from this legacy, recorded at LUCERNE FESTIVAL and all of them released for the first time, including Saint-Saëns' First Cello Concert in Aminor, Op. 33 as well as Casals Cant dels ocells. Beside this Fournier performed together with István Kertész a piece of his core repertoire in the summer of 1967: Antonín Dvořák's Cello Concertoin B minor, Op. 104 - a particularly noteworthy archive discovery since the conductor's tragically early death had prevented him from making a studio recording of the concerto.

The recordings of Zara Nelsova from the sound archives of RIAS Berlin, made between 1956 and 1965, complement her discography substantially, giving a more rounded impression of her artistic profile. They include works which Nelsova never recorded commercially and which are available on disc for the first time, such as the Cello Concertos by Darius Milhaud (No 1) and Dmitri Kabalewski (No 1).

A great moment in Berlin's post-war musical life: on 5 March 1963 the 18-year-old cellist Jacqueline du Pré and the 22-year-old pianist Bruno Leonardo Gelber made their solo concerto débuts. The poetry, energy and musical coherence of du Pré's interpretation of the Schumann Cello Concerto rank alongside her later recording of the piece.

The latest production in this series is dedicated to the exceptional French cellist Paul Tortelier, whose studio recordings from 1949-1964 for the Berlin RIAS are published here for the very first time and impressively reflect the enormous range of his repertoire.

95622 - Cello Concerto, Op. 129 & Piano Concerto, Op. 15

95628 - Pierre Fournier plays Dvořák, Saint-Saëns and Casals

at present 4 productionsHistorical Recorings of legendary Singers

A large number of outstanding singers made their mark in the musical life of post-war Germany, even though some of them were not able to emerge from the shadow of Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau.
Whilst audite has issued an independent series of the extensive production of Fischer-Dieskau, this series of historical recordings of legendary singers completes a collection of various individual portraits. Radio recordings from 1949 until 1951 with the German tenor Peter Anders, who died at the age of just 46, the German-British soprano Elisabeth Schwarzkopf - accompanied for the last time in her lied interpretations by her long-time piano partner Michael Raucheisen - and besides the Lied recital from 1975 Lucerne Festival with Edith Mathis the 3 CD boxes attended to the Spanish soprano Pilar Lorengar. In studio and live recordings from 1959 to 1962 alongside standards, Lorengar pays homage here to the musical traditions of her homeland.

95633 - Elisabeth Schwarzkopf interprets songs by Wolf, Schubert, Strauss, Purcell, Arne & Quilter

21420 - Pilar Lorengar: A portrait in live and studio recordings from 1959-1962

95647 - Edith Mathis sings Mozart, Bartók, Brahms, Schumann and Strauss: Selected Lieder

2 of 2 productionsUlrich Roman Murtfeld: American Recital

This cross-section of North American piano music immerses the listener in a fascinating musical cosmos that is especially notable for its stylistic variety. In its search for an identity, this variety has been characteristic of American music from its beginnings - a unique situation resulting in permanent cultural exchange.
During volume 1 of this series is focusing on the years 1850-1890 with compositions by Gottschalk, Gershwin, Barber, Rzewski and Glass, the pieces presented in the second release span 150 years, ranging from sonatas by the British-born American composer Alexander Reinagle, written in 1790, to works by Roger Sessions (written around 1940), one of the most significant representatives of academic American modernism.

at present 10 productionsFranziska Pietsch

As an emerging talent in the GDR, Franziska Pietsch enjoyed special state support. After her father's escape to the West in 1984, two years of reprisals by the regime followed, intensively shaping Franziska Pietsch's understanding of music: deprived of any possibility of playing concerts or taking lessons, her chosen path towards hope - against desperation, refusal, fear and despotism - led inwards. Music became the only language in which she was able to express herself freely and which gave her the necessary strength to withstand external circumstances, continuing to hope for freedom. These were the origins of the intensity and artistic depth which characterise Franziska Pietsch's playing to the present day.

Pietsch's releases on the audite label present works which reflect facets of her own biography to a significant degree.

97758 - Works for Solo Violin: Bartók - Prokofiev - Ysaÿe

97759 - Richard Strauss & Dmitri Shostakovich: Sonatas for Violin & Piano

97714 - Complete String Trios & Piano Quartet in A Minor, Op. 133

97753 - String Trios by Weinberg - Penderecki - Schnittke

97751 - Fantasque - French Violin Sonatas by Fauré, Debussy, Ravel & Poulenc

at present 3 productionsPiano Duo Takahashi | Lehmann

In this series Norie Takahashi and Björn Lehmann explore the multifaceted cosmos of transcriptions for piano duet. In Part I, the musicians focus on three orchestral and ensemble masterpieces, arranged for piano duet by their own composers. In Part II the two pianists perform original works or arrangements made or sanctioned by the composers themselves. The third audite recording of the PianoDuo Takahashi|Lehmann presents transcriptions of pre-existing works as well as new compositions permeated with musical quotes and allusions. Drawing on musical history, existing works are approached in diverse ways, from using almost original material through to dissolving the classical concept of time and epochs.

The virtuoso pianists combine their passionate expressivity with an intellectual programmatic conception. Their equally intelligent and touching playing makes even seemingly abstract works accessible to the listener.