The New Year´s Concert from the Golden Hall of the Musikverein Vienna with the Wiener Philharmoniker is always one of the best-selling classical albums each year. In 1987 Herbert von Karajan conducted his only performance of the New Year´s Concert performing famous pieces from Johann Strauss I, Johann Strauss II and Josef Strauss. As soloist in one piece you can hear the legendary soprano Kathleen Battle. The New Year´s Eve Concert 1988 was one of the last concerts that Herbert von Karajan gave with the Berliner Philharmoniker in Berlin. For this concert he invited the 17 year old Evgeny Kissin to his debut with the orchestra. After the concert the press did raving reviews about Kissin´s musicality and technical skills and he proves till today that he is one of the best pianists of our time. It was barely half a year after this concert, on July 16, 1989, that Herbert von Karajan passed away. The present recording thus forms an essential document of two highlights in the last years of the maestro’s life. One of many such documents that have made this great conductor immortal.
Vienna Johann Strauss Orchestra – 50 Years Anniversary Concert
The Vienna Johann Strauss Orchestra can rightly claim to be one of the most authentic ensembles for interpreting the music of the Strauss dynasty. In 1966 – nearly 120 years after Johann Strauss I had founded the Strauss Orchestra, the great demand for high-quality interpretations of light music led a group of musicians in Vienna who belonged to the small ensemble of the Austrian Radio Orchestra to found the Vienna Johann Strauss Orchestra. The aim of new orchestra was to cultivate the music of the Strauss dynasty, together with so-called ‘light’ Viennese music. It was formed of fortytwo musicians, that it to say the ensemble was the same size as that which, according to authentic accounts, was preferred by the members of the Strauss family. With this festive concert from the Golden Hall of the Musikverein Vienna the Vienna Johann Strauss Orchestra celebrates its 50th anniversary!
“La Chasse – The Hunt” – Music from Paris and Vienna
The Bläserphilharmonie Mozarteum is one of the leading wind ensembles in the world. The musicians are members from the great symphony orchestras from all over the world. Once a year they come together for a special concert at the Großes Festspielhaus in Salzburg, which is always dedicated to a specific theme. “La chasse – The Hunt” builds a bridge from Vienna to Paris; hunting music of the 17th and 18th century from France and Austria is performed – on historical Parforce horns – as well as great entertaining music of the 19th and early 20th century, from Jaques Offenbach’s Cancan to Johann Strauss’s Radetzky March – original works as well as sensitively balanced stylistic arrangements for symphonic winds. It’s all about the hunt – in terms of content and music and with all its diversity and tradition. After all, people have always been hunting – deer, hares, but also happiness, success and love… . Also available is the documentary Huntsman’s Sound by Chris Kurt Weisz (A04550007 – 25′ min).
New Year’s Concert – Neujahrskonzert 1987
In 1987, Herbert von Karajan was chosen to conduct Vienna’s prestigious New Year’s concert, an iconic annual event that became particularly patriotic that evening when an Austrian conductor led the Wiener Philharmoniker in an all-Viennese concert program! Waltzes, polkas, and Strauss’s unforgettable Radetzky March shared a program with a scintillating vocal waltz called Springtime Voices sung by the masterful Kathleen Battle—the only vocal soloist ever invited in the history of the New Year’s Concert!