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Pristine Classical: the finest historic recorded music, remastered to award-winning acclaim!
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Reiner conducts Bach
"In this recording Reiner is assisted by a group of excellent soloists and a fine, responsive chamber orchestra. What results is a virtuoso reading, incisive, with sparkle and rhythmic propulsion. German conductors probably would look with horror upon what Reiner does; and it cannot be denied that his tempos occasionally race, and that there generally is a slick, machine-tooled feeling. Reiner, though, keeps the music moving, which is after all the important thing: there is nothing more deadly than Bach mooned over."
- The Gramophone, 1950
"Reiner appears to use only a few strings, and they play most pointedly throughout— indeed, this is possibly the set’s major virtue. Their small number is symptomatic of a rewarding care for balance: the oboes can hold their own for once, where necessary, and accompanying voices will drop to allow the tune through in a most satisfying way."
- The Gramophone, 1956
BACH The Six Brandenburg Concertos
BACH The Four Orchestral Suites
Soloists, Chamber Group, RCA Victor Orchestra
Fritz Reiner, conductor
Recorded 1949-53
PASC425 (3hr 9:54)
Toscanini conducts La Bohème
A fabulous new XR remastering of this timeless classic recording brings incredibly vibrant sound quality to Toscanini's La Bohème.
"Toscanini's hand-picked cast for the broadcasts of February 3 and 10, 1946, was as good as any in the world at the time. Licia Albanese as Mimi was the finest interpreter of the role since Geraldine Farrar. The broadcast found her in lovely voice, and she turns in a touching performance that never becomes hackneyed or tiresome. Her crystalline “Mi chiamano Mimi” and her rapturous duet with Jan Peerce as Rodolfo, “O soave fanciulla,” remain evergreen ... Every other that has been made or will be made in the future, will be reduced to fighting it out for the number two position. Number one will remain, unassailably, Arturo Toscanini's."
- Fanfare, 1991
PUCCINI La Boheme
Licia Albanese (Soprano)
Jan Peerce (Tenor)
Other soloists (see full notes)
NBC Symphony Chorus and Orchestra
Arturo Toscanini, conductor
Recorded 1949
PACO110 (1hr 41:34)
Mahler 9 - unheard Horenstein
"A vibrant and meditative interpretation, a transcendent recreation of this farewell to the world" - Les Nouvelles litteraires (original concert review)
Jascha Horenstein conducts the Vienna Symphony Orchestra in Mahler's Ninth Symphony live in 1960.
This previously unreleased recording, made at the closing concert of the Vienna Festival in June 1960, shows the Mahlerian master at his finest, and in superb sound quality, in a recording from the archives of the conductor's cousin, Misha Horenstein and generously offered to Pristine for restoration, remastering and release here at Pristine Classical.
It follows the release earlier this year of our most popular recording of 2014 so far, Horenstein's Mahler 5 (PASC416), and is surely bound to be another smash hit!
Unmissable.
MAHLER Symphony No. 9
Vienna Symphony Orchestra
Jascha Horenstein, conductor
Recorded 1960
PASC426 (79:11)
Pristine Classical - what the reviewers say:
"These transfers represent such clean, careful, and intelligent work that they still demand to be heard" - Fanfare
"Pristine Audio is to be commended for their stunning remastering" - Classical CD Review
"Recording quality such as could only be dreamed of back then..." - MusicWeb International
"The Pristine sound has a clarity, body, presence and focus..." - International Record Review
"Quite a revelation - they've done an amazing job!" - CD Review, BBC Radio Three
"Studio 8-H is transformed into a free, open space, as beautifully atmospheric as the originals were dead" - Classical Recordings Quarterly
"The SACD was nice, but next to the Pristine remasterings, the piano was rather wooden-sounding and somewhat opaque..." - Audiophile Audition
Pristine Classical T-Shirts!
Seven exclusive designs - available October 2014 only
Choose from seven designs featuring Maria Callas, Arturo Toscanini, Artur Schnabel and more, or maybe something more discreet with the Pristine XR logo. A unique opportunity to wear something a little different! We're taking orders until 31st October, and shirts will ship mid-November, in plenty of time for Christmas. Don't miss this one-off opportunity!
Hanson's Merry Mount: 25% off
One week only: Save 25% on downloads of this recording
"This is something quite fresh: a stereo recording of Hanson himself conducting his own Eastman School forces in an ardent performance of his one and only opera Merry Mount. This set was within a hair's breadth of Record of the Month status but ultimately the somewhat recessed solo voices of the lovers especially in the key Act II duet must deny the set that accolade ... by a whisker. Even now I haver over that decision such is the potency of this performance and recording. The orchestra is superbly rendered. If you like the towering, upfront and personal balance of the Mercury recordings of symphonies 1-3 and Lament of Beowulf then you know exactly what to expect. A blistering account of Hanson's one and only opera. Do hear it." - MusicWeb International, 2014
To get bulk discount (on downloads only) simply enter the codes below on the cart page and click apply.
