From her legendary debut through the succeeding years, Jeanne Demessieux brought virtuosity allied to intellect and sensitivity, and went on to become the glory of the French organ school. This 8-CD celebration of one of the instrument’s most spoken-of, yet enigmatic figures, brings together for the first time her complete Decca recordings and a previously […]
The complete Decca recital recordings compiled and newly remastered in tribute to a superlative Mozart soprano of the last century – released to commemorate the 20th anniversary of her passing (10 August 2000). The Belgian-born Suzanne Danco (1911–2000) made her operatic debut in Genoa as Fiordiligi in 1941, and it seems appropriate that in July […]
Snow White sings Canteloube, accompanied by the composer: a rare and newly remastered album, transferred to CD on Decca, from the original master tapes, for the first time. As R.J. Stove outlines in a new essay for this important Eloquence release, Lucie Daullène (b.1931) was nearer 19 than (as the legend has it) 15 years […]
Fascinated by children, Ravel composed two one-act operas, ‘L’enfant et les sortileges’ and ‘L’Heure espagnole’. These priceless Ansermet recordings now return to the catalogue, coupled with the rare and much-requested disc of Ravel vocal works with Danco and Ansermet. As a coupling we have the Paris Conservatoire recordings of Bolero (the stereo version making its […]
This volume of Debussy’s dramatic works and ballet music is dedicated, by and large, to ‘rarities’ by the composer. Few of Debussy’s works have divided critical opinion more than ‘Le Martyre de Saint Sébastien’, banned as it was by the Archbishop of Paris six days before its premiere. The beautiful, rarefied ‘Six Épigraphes Antiques’ were […]
This was the first of two recordings by Ernest Ansermet of ‘Pelléas et Mélisande’, a work he conducted several times on stage. It was made in April 1952, to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the premiere. In his liner notes, Juan Pons observes: ‘In this recording we can hear Ansermet’s best qualities: subtlety, clarity, a […]
To the delightfully muddled ‘Marriage of Figaro’-like plot of ‘El amor brujo’, Ansermet brings an earthy sensuality and piquant wit. Ansermet recorded ‘El sombrero del tres picos’ twice and while the later recording with Teresa Berganza has rarely been out of the catalogue, this earlier mono, 1952 recording with Suzanne Danco is rare and much sought-after, not […]
Contrary to the imaginative view offered by many commentators, Fauré’s Requiem had nothing to do with the death of Fauré’s parents. ‘My Requiem was written for nothing,’ the composer confided to Maurice Emmanuel, ‘it was written, if I may say so, for fun.’ Ernest Ansermet recorded the piece with two stellar artists – Suzanne Danco […]
The DECCA ANSERMET LEGACY has been systematically releasing the vast recorded legacy of Ernest Ansermet, a key Decca artist in the 1950s and 1960s. It has become one of the most sought-after and praised of all reissue series. The latest brings together Ansermet’s Honegger recordings, including the first international release on CD of the Symphony […]
Two distinguished soloists – soprano Suzanne Danco and tenor Robert Tear – contribute to this disc of Schubert songs. Both of the composer’s ‘obbligato’ songs (‘Der Hirt auf dem Felsen’ and ‘Auf dem Strom’) are included as are five of Schubert’s most popular Lieder in recordings by Danco previously unreleased on CD. But at the centre […]
Karl Münchinger recorded all the major orchestral and choral pieces by Bach for Decca, and over a period of some 30 years (from the Mono to the Digital eras), five of the Cantatas. All boast remarkable soloists from their eras. Suzanne Danco sings the two solo cantatas, BWV 51 and 202, recorded in 1953 and […]
