That could be quite a dangerous game, some members here (including me) beeing what they seem to be, I'm afraid it could on the contrary give us a few ideas for buying more boxes... 1 : Harnoncourt 2 : Abbado Berlin 3 : Chailly Gewandhaus (out of topic if I say my desert island Brahms orchestral music box set would be the 6 CD Decca Chailly/Gewandhaus ?) 4 : Levine Vienna
A lot of copies available from Japan. Search eBay for "Herbert Blomstedt - Complete Decca Recordings" and you'll see many copies around the US $135 level. Don't wait too long though.
The Art of James Levine, 23 CD DG box Generally excellent imho, Levine was not only a fantastic opera conductor. His Brahms cycle with Vienna is perhaps one of the best DG ever released.
I was able to obtain the corrected disc within the past year after acquiring the box secondhand myself, FYI. Through the above-cited e-mail addresses. On another note, Amazon UK is currently selling the Warner Marriner set for £138.71, which is the cheapest price that I've seen. I'm in the US so shipping and exchange fees added more to the cost, but even with that, the final total price for me comes out to $209.02.
As always, a December 31 date is a placeholder, meaning there's been a delay and they don't know for how long.
I said that the date on fnac or Amazon is not a proof of anything. But you knew better. The truth is that the box may appear in two years or maybe not at all. This is Decca.
I won't buy this boxset *, as I already own by Suzuki, in various boxsets or single CDs, the Complete Sacred and Secular Cantatas, the two Passions (first version of the St Matthew), The B minor Mass and the Lutheran Masses, The three oratorios, the Magnificat and the Motets. I'm a bit curious about the other works included in the content as detailed on JPC : https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/classic/detail/-/art/johann-sebastian-bach-das-vokalwerk/hnum/11786839 particuliarly the works named at the bottom of the content after the 4 short Sanctus recorded with the Lutheran Masses. How are all these works gathered ? Could you post pics of the CDs ? I never saw any recording of these works by BCJ.. Thanks * : Empty promise ? I can always offer some friends what I already have ...
Got the box Wednesday. Only 1 little disappointment: no original jackets. More importantly: with the original SACD's and 4 booklets! Listening now to the cantatas..
Unfortuately, for some unknown reason, Classics Direct do not ship to the EU (or UK). Not even my Australian passport will help in this situation!
"To complement the world of music streams and on-demand consumption, Universal Music Australia introduces Classics Direct – an online retailer specializing in classical and jazz music CDs, DVDs, Blu-ray and vinyl products. First established in 1993, Classics Direct was acquired by Universal Music Australia in 2017 and has since operated as an online platform, offering the world’s greatest labels, among them Deutsche Grammophon, Decca Records, Decca Classics, ABC Classic, ECM, Blue Note, Verve and Eloquence Classics. A regular printed catalogue is also available for consumers to order via mail." Licensing agreements and restrictions must mean that Universal Music Australia is prevented from poaching upon the turf of Universal Music Group UK and Universal Music N.V. thus the unwillingness to ship to either the UK or EU. Two viable workarounds - order the set and have it shipped to someone that you personally know in either Australia or the US and have them forward it on to you in Munich or use one of those package-forwarding services from Oz to the US and then on to you in Deutschland. They have 19 copies in stock as of Saturday, April 27th. On Friday they had 20 copies - One of the dudes here a couple page back snapped up one of 'em. The prices are in Australian dollars and so, anyone in the US will pay the following - 299.99 AUD plus "Express shipping" at 93.74 AUD (which is like 4 bucks more that "Standard" shipping) for a grand total of 393.73 AUD which, when converted to US dollars equals 257.26 USD. 257.26 USD for a new-still-in-the-shrink-wrap copy isn't all that much more than when it was initially released. There's a seller on eBay who wants US $1,699.99 for a new copy and another has a "Very Good" copy for 899.00 USD. If anyone really wants the "Arthur Grumiaux - The Complete Philips Recordings (74CD) set, it's pretty much buy it now or forever hold your peace. The corrected Disc 45 won't be included in the box - but this David Hurwitz video can explain the method for requesting the missing disc or learning how to live happily without it as it's readily available in other releases as the Beethoven concerto/romances recordings on Discs 44 and 45 differ only in a matter of seconds (along, of course, with different conductors but honestly, how many of us have the kind of canine-super-hearing that would allow us to tell the difference from one to the other? - I know I don't.) - "They're almost identical, they really are" according to DH.
Forgot to add (and it's too late to edit my post above) that if you agree to sign up for Classics Direct "Upcoming releases" emails, they'll send you a 15% off coupon which will save you an additional 38.59 USD bringing down the total price for the Grumiaux box to 218.67 USD (about 205 €) which may actually be fairly close to being less expensive now than it was when it was first released.
Hey folks. Looking for opinions as to whether I should splurge for the La Divina set or just go for the Complete Studio Recordings box, which is still available. I believe the new set uses the same 2014 remasters. Amazon has the studio recordings for $183 and La Divina for $323. I know Hurwitz's opinion isn't always well received but based on his review, I gather a lot of the live stuff is not in the best sound. I must admit though, to being somewhat of a completist. Decisions, decisions, decisions... And lest you think I'm trying to be (somewhat) responsible and save money, the real reason I'm thinking about the cheaper alternative is that there are several other sets I have my eye on! For example, the Leonhardt / Harnoncourt Cantatas set, which they're offering for $100, the Copland Conducts Copland Columbia set, the Complete Alban Berg, and even La Nilsson...
It helps a lot, thanks. I'm not sure Bis releases a special physical CD with these short works, mostly from Gemelli and Anna Magdalena books, but it is available on Qobuz.
I got into Parm—and electro-acoustic music in general—back in the early-‘90s. I have several of his CDs on INA-GRM and the vinyl reissues on Recollection GRM. My favorite piece by him is Violostries. It sounds really spooky.
It comes down to how big of a Callas fan you are. You mentioned that you are somewhat of a completist but do you really need the outtakes, the master classes, and the rehearsals? And where do you stop? With Callas you will always miss something. There is a lot out there that is unreleased or only available in bootlegs. Yes, the live recordings are not for audio enthusiasts but they are also showing a more emotional and powerful Callas. A singer in the studio is nothing like a singer on stage. I own both the studio and the live sets and I am listening to both equally and enjoy both although, as I wrote, sound quality often hampers my enjoyment. But for me it was an easy decision to buy the live box set after I purchased the studio collection because I believe that the theatricality of the opera is not something that can be conveyed easily in the studio. And this is Callas! I needed to have her most celebrated live recordings. But for the last La Divina set, I agree with Hurwitz.
