0201-0400
Cat
No		 Prefix
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Set
 Artist/Title
0201 GEMS 2 THE PRADES BACH FESTIVAL 1950
VOLUME II PABLO CASALS

This second volume of those renowned Prades music festivals contains Bach's first two Orchestral Suites, in C major and B minor; they offer opportunity for the great soloists Marcel Tabuteau and John Wummer, on oboe and flute respectively, to illuminate with Casals and the Festival Orchestra, these major works.

The three Sonatas, for cello and piano, in G major, D major and G minor, are played by Casals himself and Paul Baumgartner.

The solo keyboard works included are the English Suite no. 5 in E minor (Mieczyslaw Horszowski), the Prelude and Fugue no. 8 in E flat minor (Yvonne Lefébure) and the 'Italian' Concerto in F major and Chromatic Fantasy & Fugue in D minor (Rudolf Serkin) - providing a fascinating opportunity to compare the methods and ideas of three great pianists.

No collector or connoisseur can afford to be without these classic discs, especially refurbished as they are here, the original LP issues having been distinctly flawed in a number of directions. The third volume follows in October.

A 2 CD set. Bar code: 7 27031 02012 7

The Perpignan Festival recordings may be heard on GEMS 0167, 0168, 0174 - all 2 CD sets - and GEM 0175
0202 GEMS 2 THE PRADES BACH FESTIVAL 1950
VOLUME III
This third volume is of Concerti: C minor for violin and oboe - Stern/Tabuteau: D minor for 2 violins - Stern/Schneider: A minor for piano, violin and flute - Horszowski/Schneider/Wummer: F minor for piano - Clara Haskil: D minor for violin - Szigeti: A minor for violin - Stern. All are with the Prades Festival
Orchestra conducted by Pablo Casals - and Sonatas: Trio Sonata for violin, piano and flute -Stern/Istomin/Wummer: B minor for flute and piano -Wummer/Mannes. Istomin also plays the Toccata and Fugue in E minor.

As with the first two volumes, no collector or connoisseur can afford to be without these classic discs, especially superbly refurbished as they are here, the original LP issues having been distinctly flawed in a number of directions

A 2 CD set. Bar code: 7 27031 02022 6
Prades Festival Volumes I and II are on GEMS 0200 and 0201.
The Perpignan Festival recordings may be heard on GEMS 01
0203 GEM 1 COVENT GARDEN LIVE
ZENATELLO and CHALIAPIN
Verdi's Otello with Zenatello and Gounod's Faust with Chaliapin and Joseph Hislop - two productions, recorded live at Covent Garden in 1926 and 1928, including much rare and unpublished material, and an absolutely indispensable feast for lovers of great singing. Zenatello was of course the then finest exponent of the role of Otello and it is tragic that we have no recordings, for contractual reasons at the time, of his Desdemona, Lotte Lehmann. Only two sides of Chaliapin's Faust were ever issued; now all 11 extant sides have been gathered together, including a complete Act I.

It is hoped that this volume will be the first of a series of such rare live recordings, all volumes being planned to contain a deal of unknown, rare and unpublished material by the greatest singers. We trust the response of connoisseurs will be encouraging!

Bar code: 7 27031 02032 5

The 2 CD set of Chaliapin on GEMM CDS 9208 received rave reviews on publication. He may also be heard on GEMM CD 9920 and 9921 in Russian Music and on 9182 in Western Music.
0204 GEM 1 A LITTLE BIT OF HEAVEN'
HAll areas of music have provided some sublime moments of homage to the Almighty. On this disc we offer a few absolute favourites, twenty-two tracks for a desert island, sung and performed by some of the greatest and most popular per- formers of all time, superbly refined and refurbished for the twenty-first century: including
Swing Low, Sweet Chariot - Paul Robeson, Adeste Fideles - Vienna BoysChoir, Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring -John McCormack, Easter Hymn - Emmy Bettendorf,
Oh What a Beautiful City Marian Anderson, The Lost Chord - Dame Clara Butt, Panis Angelicus - Beniamino Gigli, Oh For the Wings of a Dove - Ernest Lough, I'll Walk Beside You - Dame Vera Lynn, Little Drummer Boy - Phyllis Robins, Amazing Grace - Mahalia Jackson - and Laudate Dominum sung by Ursula van Dieman, one of the great recordings of the era and a wonderful interpretation of the sacred aria which had such a massive public impact at the wedding of Prince Charles and Princess Diana.

Bar code: 7 27031 02042 4
0205 GEM 1 BENNO AND SYLVIA RABINOF
Rabinof was one of the last pupils of the legendary Leopold Auer, whose alumni had included Zimbalist, Elman and Heifetz among many other of the greatest players. Sadly, his recordings were few but his glossy tone and ability to play at astonishing velocity, while remaining clearly in love with the music, make this release of rare and unissued material, from the 1940s and '50s, particularly valuable.

He is heard too with his wife Sylvia in Paganini and Handel, Szymanowski and Ravel; they formed one of the most highly regarded violin and piano duos of the century.

Bar code: 7 27031 02052 3
0206 GEM 1 MARCEL MOYSE
FLUTE FANTASTIQUE
He was probably the finest and certainly the most influential flute player-teacher of the 20th century. Fortunately he left a priceless legacy of recordings, yet to be surpassed.

Included in this seventeen-track virtuoso release are the Carmen Fantasy, Saint-Saëns' Le Cygne, Reichert's Fantasy and Variations for flute, Debussy's Syrinx, the Minuet from L'Arlésienne, Carnaval de Venise and the Dance of the Blessed Spirits from Gluck's Orfeo, with the Orchestre Symphonique de Paris, cond. Henri Tomasi.
Bar code: 7 27031 02062 2

Moyse may also be heard in the Mozart Flute Concerti K. 313 and 314, and the Concerto for Flute and Harp, K 299, with Lily Laskine, on GEMM CD 9118.
0207 GEM 1 WILLIAM PRIMROSE
THE EARLY RECORDINGS
Here are gathered the early recordings, including those on violin, of one of the two greatest viola players of the previous generation. Some are rare or unpublished and it is a rewarding harvest: would Primrose have gone on to become one of the great violinists had he not changed instruments? Certainly one of his achievements was to change the way we hear and appreciate the beautiful sonorities of the viola and that has led to the present generation of virtuosi. Violin tracks include Bach Sonata no. 2 and Purcell's Golden Sonata. Viola tracks include works by Schubert, Paganini and Tchaikovsky. Other artists featured include Gerald Moore, Isolde Menges and Sidonie Goossens.

Bar code: 7 27031 02072 1
0208 GEM 1 GERTRUDE LAWRENCE
THE KING & I - Rodgers and Hammerstein
LADY IN THE DARK - Weill/Gershwin
NYMPH ERRANT - Cole Porter
The King & I is with the original Broadway cast, featuring Yul Brynner in his star-making role. Without doubt Gertrude Lawrence was unique, a much-loved star whenever she appeared in the West End, on film or on Broadway - and never just as half of 'Noël and Gertie'. She epitomised glamour and sophistication, a freshness and modernity as she metamorphosed from flapper, to socialite to bouncy modern woman. On this CD are some of her most wonderful and classic realisations, musical romances of the lushest kind.

Bar code: 7 27031 02082 0
0209 GEM 1 HALINA CZERNY-STEFANSKA
CHOPIN
A First Prize winner in the 1949 Chopin International Piano Competition in Warsaw in 1949, nevertheless this unique pianist remained relatively unknown outside her native Poland until the exposure of the spurious Lipatti Chopin 1st Concerto recording as in reality that of Halina Czerny-Stefanska. Her playing has been described as: 'pure poetry' when thought to be his. True, but as her true self, her Chopin is indeed of the greatest refinement, never strident, her dynamic range wide and resourceful, displaying inspired rubato and with the ability to unfurl phrases luminous, illuminating and of exceptional sophistication. This important release includes rare and unpublished items, for the first time on CD

Bar code: 7 27031 02092 9

CD PREMIÈRE RELEASE
0210 GEMS 2 MACBETH
SIR ALEC GUINNESS
This wonderful performance, in the Old Vic production, is one of truth and intimacy - Guinness was breaking new ground, theatrically - and is also one of the few examples to be heard of the fully mature actor, at the height of his powers and in a role he was to essay only once more in his magnificent career.

The supporting cast too could scarcely be stronger, including as it does Pamela Brown, Rachel Gurney, Anthony Service, Philip Guard, Andrew Cruickshank, Robin Bailey and Geoffrey Wincott. Booklet notes are by Sheridan Morley.

This is the latest issue in our 'Plays and Poets' series. The late Sir John Gielgud as Hamlet follows shortly … A 2 CD set.

Bar code: 7 27031 02102 5
0211 GEM 1 HAMLET
SIR JOHN GIELGUD
Sir John Gielgud made this role his own and had by 1951 become the stage Hamlet of the century. This production he both adapted and directed, his clarity, stillness and economy of style still amazing to audiences after 25 years and brilliantly delivering Hamlet the Prince as well as the poet and dreamer. It is one of Gielgud's greatest and most lyrical performances. This NBC production has a magnificent cast, including Pamela Brown, Dorothy McGuire, Barry Kroeger, John Merivale, Peter Bull and Esmé Percy. Booklet notes are by Sheridan Morley. The latest release in the 'Plays and Poets' series.

Bar code: 7 27031 02112 4
0212 GEMS 2 OFFENBACH THE TALES OF HOFFMANN

Following the great success of The Red Shoes, it was Sir Thomas Beecham, ever an enthusiast for Hoffmann, who approached the mighty duo of Powell and Pressburger with the idea of a film of this most popular of light operas. This recording was used for the film, famous for its balletic pairing of Moira Shearer and Robert Helpmann [who appear on the cover of the booklet]. Cast and conductor provide a freshness and magic to the score perhaps unequalled since: Monica Sinclair, Robert Rounseville, Bruce Dargavel, Owen Brannigan, Margherita Grandi, Murray Dickie, with the RPO and Sadler's Wells Chorus, cond. Sir Thomas Beecham.

This then ground-breaking optical recording of 1949 has been given wonderful new life to become again a standard of the catalogue.

A 2 CD set.

Bar code: 7 27031 02122 3
0213 GEM 1 PIERRETTE ALARIE
CHOPIN
Alarie's lyric soprano has perhaps been undervalued, except by cognoscenti. Her repertoire was immense, from Mozart to Verdi to Poulenc, and her beautiful silvery voice was likened by Elisabeth Schumann, whose pupil she was, to that of Lotte Schöne. There can scarcely be higher praise. With her husband Léopold Simoneau her career in France and North America has been long and magnificent, as befits a superb musician of such calibre. This release contains some of her most important and charming recordings - of Debussy and Ravel songs.

Bar code: 7 27031 02132 2
0214 GEM 1 KEITH HARDWICK - IN MEMORIAM
The influence of the late Keith Hardwick, multi-award-winning engineer in the field of historic record restoration, for EMI and later for Pearl [for whom he won two further Gramophone Awards], cannot be over-estimated. We who had the privilege and pleasure of working with him wish to offer this tribute - a newly restored [by Roger Beardsley, no less] selection of some very fine singing from his own collection of vinyl pressing.

There are 19 tracks on this 78 minute disc: artists represented include Maria Nemeth, Toti Dal Monte, Peter Dawson, Nina Koshetz, Gigli and Pinza, Frida Leider, Supervia, Chaliapin, Lotte Schöne and Melchior. Original pressings were of the finest and the delights here are rare indeed for collectors and all connoisseurs of the finest of vocalists. The extensive notes are by Larry Lustig, editor of The Record Collector.

Bar code: 7 27031 02142 1
0215 GEM 1 THE UNPUBLISHED TREASURY

The word 'unpublished', for the connoisseur and record collector, carries magic messages: the pulse races, the adrenalin flows. What riches might there be here, which few people will ever have heard? The rarity of the particular items in this collection and the sheer quality of the artists in these performances surely does justify the title of 'Treasury'. Luck has played a major part in the survival of the metal masters of these recordings and thus that today they may be heard in sound far better than would originally have been possible.

There are 20 tracks in this nearly 77 minute release: the artists are Caruso, with Frances Alda and Geraldine Farrar, Bori, Galli-Curci, Chaliapin, Igor Gorin, Koshetz, Schipa, Gigli, with Dusolina Giannini, Ponselle, Pinza, Tibbett, with Richard Crooks, and Zanelli. All are new transfers by Roger Beardsley.

Bar code: 7 27031 02152 0
0216 GEMS 2 BRANDENBURG CONCERTOS and CANTATAS

These classic and triumphantly successful Brandenburg performances created a mighty stir when first published in 1950, for their revelatory recording quality and for 'the super-abundant vitality, firmness and intelligence' of Münchinger and his Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra.

They well deserve their reinstated place in the catalogue and have to be counted among the milestones of recording history.

Suzanne Danco, the admired Belgian soprano, was under contract to Decca when these Cantata recordings were made in 1953 and her sure intonation and purity of tone are well shown in the sacred Cantata no. 51 ('Jauchzet Gott in allen landen') and in the secular no. 202 ('Weichet nur

A 2 CD set. Bar code: 7 27031 02162 9
0217 GEM 1 TENORS OF IMPERIAL RUSSIA - VOLUME I

The genesis of this collection goes back to the energies of the late Keith Hardwick, whose skills and experience were rewarded by the acceptance of a Gramophone Award on Pearl's behalf for the first four volumes of the original collection. A fifth volume was added later, making 15 CDs in all.

From this collection, and with the addition of other rarities which have surfaced since, and sometimes using better copies of originals than were available to the original producer, this digest of some of the notable tenors of the period has been edited. Among them were some of the very greatest voices of their kind, of the century.

It is generally accepted that to connoisseurs of the tenor voice early Russian vocal records are amongst the rarest and most desirable, with prices to match. Many of those presented on this CD (and its companion Volume II, to be published in September) would cost hundreds, if not thousands of pounds. They are desirable not least because they give us a fascinating glimpse into the long-vanished world of the Imperial Russian Opera, at a time of opulence and famed artistry.

The great names to be found in this first volume are: Ivan Ershov, Nicolaj Figner, Leonid Sobinov, Vasili Damaev and Dmitri Smirnov. Of particular interest perhaps, are the extra four recordings of Smirnov's wonderful first recordings.

Even if one or two of these names may not immediately be well known, be prepared to be surprised and delighted by the pleasures they present.

Bar code: 7 27031 02172 8
0218 GEM 1 TENORS OF IMPERIAL RUSSIA - VOLUME II

To complete this set comes the second volume: the genesis of this collection goes back to the energies of the late Keith Hardwick, whose skills and experience were rewarded by the acceptance of a Gramophone Award on Pearl's behalf for the first four volumes of the original collection. A fifth volume was added later, making 15 CDs in all.

From this collection, and with the addition of other rarities which have surfaced since, and sometimes using better copies of originals than were available to the original producer, this digest of some of the notable tenors of the period has been edited. Among them were some of the very greatest voices of their kind, of the century.

It is generally accepted that to connoisseurs of the tenor voice early Russian vocal records are amongst the rarest and most desirable, with prices to match. Many of those presented on this CD (and its companion Volume I, published in August, GEM 0217) would cost hundreds, if not thousands of pounds. They are desirable not least because they give us a fascinating glimpse into the long-vanished world of the Imperial Russian Opera, at a time of opulence and famed artistry.

The great names to be found in this second volume are: Andrej Labinsky, Gavril Morskoj, David Juzhin, Alexander Davydov, Alexander Bogdanovich and a number of the somewhat later recordings of both Sobinov and Smirnov.

Bar code: 7 27031 02182 7
0220 GEM 1 FACETS OF BENJAMIN BRITTEN
- as soloist, director, chamber player, accompanist and arranger.

MOZART: Concerto in F major, K.459, Benjamin Britten, piano, with the English Opera Group Chamber Orchestra, dir. Benjamin Britten

Piano Quartet in E flat major, K.493, with the Amadeus Quartet and Benjamin Britten, piano

Nine Folk Songs, arr. Benjamin Britten, with Peter Pears, tenor and Benjamin Britten, piano

There are few to compare with Britten, in the twentieth century, as a musician in the widest possible sense. His empathy with Mozart is already legendary, as pianist and accompanist he has been lauded for many decades and as composer there is little more to be said. These particular live recordings are no less than revelatory and deeply satisfying - and we are more than grateful to the Earl of Harewood for being able to make them available for issue. They are amazing treasures.

Bar code: 7 27031 02202 2
0222 GEM 2 JOAN SUTHERLAND and JON VICKERS

Who could possibly resist a CD of two of the greatest operatic stars of the 20th century, in roles they never recorded commercially, at the very peak of their powers in 1957 and 1958, and then in repertoire from a disc so rare as to be all but unobtainable?

MOZART: The Magic Flute, Overture and Who treads the path of toil, w. John Lanigan & Michael Langdon.

WAGNER: The Mastersingers of Nuremburg Act III, Prelude, Fools, everywhere fools (Wahnmonolog), w. James Pease
Prize Song, w. James Pease
Quintet, w. James Pease, Noreen Berry & John Lanigan

DONIZETTI: Emilia di Liverpool Cavatina and Rondo Finale

SPOHR: Zemira and Aphor Rose softly blooming

ROSSINI: La Fioraia Fiorentina

ROH, Covent Garden Orchestra and Chorus, cond. Rafael Kubelik and (Donizetti, Spohr, Rossini), Joan Sutherland, soprano and Richard Bonynge, piano.

Great thanks are due in particular to the artists and to Lord Harewood for making this important release possible

Bar code: 7 27031 02222 0
Next catalogue numbers will be new releases