Beethoven: Kreutzer Sonata [Polina Osetinskaya, Maxim Vengerov]

Russian classical pianist Polina Osetinskaya and Soviet-born Israeli violinist Maxim Vengerov perform Ludwig Van Beethoven’s Violin Sonata No. 9, Op. 47 in A major, commonly known as the Kreutzer Sonata. Recorded at Sala Verdi, Milano, on November 15, 2022. It is an 1803 sonata for piano and violin notable for its technical difficulty. The piece was nicknamed the Kreutzer Sonata (German: Kreutzer-Sonate) after the French violinist Rodolphe Kreutzer (15 November 1766 – 6 January 1831). But, Kreutzer actually disliked the piece and never played it.

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Mozart: Symphony No. 39 [hr-Sinfonieorchester, Andrés Orozco-Estrada]

Conducted by Andrés Orozco-Estrada, the hr-Sinfonieorchester (Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra) performs Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Symphony No. 39 in E-flat Major, K. 543. Recorded at the Alte Oper Frankfurt on September 10, 2020.

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Pavarotti sings Nessun Dorma at the Madison Square Garden, New York [1987]

Legendary Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti sings Nessun Dorma, a very famous tenor aria from Giacomo Puccini’s (22 December 1858 – 29 November 1924) opera Turandot. Recorded during a concert at the Madison Square Garden, New York, in 1987. New Jersey Symphony Orchestra conducted by Emerson Buckley.

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Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 3 [Yunchan Lim]

Accompanied by the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, South Korean pianist Yunchan Lim performs Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30. Conductor: Marin Alsop. Recorded during the Final Round of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in Fort Worth, Texas, on June 17, 2022, where Lim won the gold medal and became the youngest-ever pianist who won the competition (at the age of 18). Lim also took two special prizes. An amazing performance from the brilliant young pianist, enjoy!

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Bizet/Waxman/Kugel: Carmen Fantasie [Dana Zemtsov & Anna Fedorova]

Violist Dana Zemtsov and pianist Anna Fedorova perform Carmen Fantasie, part of Franz Waxman’s score to the 1946 movie Humoresque, arranged for viola and piano by the Ukrainian violist and composer Michael Kugel. Recorded during the Afternoon concert at the International Chamber Music Festival 2021 on July 1, 2021, at the TivoliVredenburg in Utrecht.

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Dowland: In Darkness Let Me Dwell [Jaroussky, Garcia]

French countertenor Philippe Jaroussky and the Franco-Spanish classical guitarist Thibaut Garcia perform “In darkness let me dwell”, a beautiful song ascribed to the lutenist and composer John Dowland (1563-1626). Published in 1610, late in Dowland’s career, the song shows the influence of Italian music of the early Baroque.

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Beethoven: Moonlight Sonata (Full) [Eric Zivian, fortepiano]

Eric Zivian performs Ludwig van Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp minor, marked Quasi una fantasia, Op. 27, No. 2, popularly known as the “Moonlight sonata” on fortepiano, the original instrument.

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Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue [Yuja Wang]

Accompanied by the Austrian chamber orchestra Camerata Salzburg, the Chinese classical pianist Yuja Wang performs George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue. Conductor: Lionel Bringuier. Composed in 1924, the work is for solo piano and jazz band, which combines elements of classical music with jazz-influenced effects. Recorded during the Salzburger Festspiele on August 12, 2016.

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Erik Satie: Gymnopédie No. 1 [Kalnciema: organ, Circenis: clarinet]

Latvian organist Liene Andreta Kalnciema and clarinetist Mārtiņš Circenis perform Gymnopédie No. 1, the first of the three piano compositions written by French composer and pianist Erik Satie (17 May 1866 – 1 July 1925). This performance was recorded live on the great Walcker organ (1883) at Riga Cathedral in Latvia in 2019. Assistant: Arnold Dimas.

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Chausson: Concert for Violin, Piano, and String Quartet, Op. 21 [Janine Jansen, Sunwook Kim, Opus13]

Dutch violinist Janine Jansen, South Korean pianist Sunwook Kim, and the string quartet based in Oslo, Norway, Opus13 perform Ernest Chausson’s Concert for Violin, Piano and String Quartet, Op. 21. Recorded on December 30, 2022, during the final concert of the Internationaal Kamermuziek Festival Utrecht (International Chamber Music Festival Utrecht) in TivoliVredenburg in Utrecht.

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