Orfeo

britten billy budd orfeo

Britten: Billy Budd (Orfeo)

An interesting Billy Budd, but not a library choice [ST]

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Verdi: Don Carlo (Orfeo)

Not only die-hard Verdians but all serious opera lovers should give it a try [GF]

Rossini: Guillaume Tell (Orfeo)

(Déjà Review) I enjoyed the fluency and vibrancy of this live performance [RJF]

Mozart: Don Giovanni (Orfeo)

A re-issue of one of Karajan’s best live Mozart outings with a superb cast, in decent sound [RMo]

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Strauss: Capriccio (Orfeo)

A good but hardly distinguished production, in terms of both performance and sound [RMo]

Schmidt Fredigundis ORF Vienna Orfeo C380012

Schmidt: Fredigundis (Orfeo)

The only recording of Schmidt’s second opera does full justice to an unjustly neglected work [EJW]

Zemlinsky lyrische C210241

Zemlinsky: Lyrische Symphonie (Orfeo)

This CD will be indispensable to admirers of Michael Gielen [JQ]

Mozart: Don Giovanni (Orfeo)

(Déjà Review) A collector’s item specifically for opera buffs and Furtwängler fanatics which fills a gap in his recording legacy [AR]

Britten: Violin Concerto (Orfeo)

An eloquent performance of the main work with an interesting early work to complement it [SB]

Wagner: Die Feen (Orfeo)

A very fine cast and excellent sound makes this a decent version of Wagner’s difficult first opera [MP]

Wagner: Das Liebesverbot (Orfeo)

A colourful Wagnerian romp with two outstanding interpreters among the large cast [MP]

Mozart zaide C055832

Mozart: Zaide (Orfeo)

A very good cast in a version with more linking dialogue than on other recordings [MP]

Schumann: Symphony No. 1; Strauss: Sinfonia domestica (Orfeo)

(Déjà Review) Mitropoulos’ readings offer a must-hear, never less than fascinating experience [CC]

Orff: Prometheus (Orfeo)

A very original setting of the Aeschylus tragedy, declaimed and sung in Ancient Greek [RWe]

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Egk: Columbus (Orfeo)

An operatic rarity returns to the catalogue, and remains a worthwhile encounter [PCG]

Bartok kubelik C551011

Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra (Orfeo)

(Déjà Review) Splendid performances that could hardly be bettered [IL]

Schubert & Mahler: Symphonies (Orfeo)

(Déjà Review) As a piece of history in sound I found these performances fascinating and very enjoyable [TD]

Carl Seemann (piano): The Orfeo Recordings (Orfeo)

Seemann’s live airings make a welcome return [SG]

Carl Seemann (piano) The Orfeo Recordings (Orfeo)

A 40th anniversary salute to a rather overlooked German pianist [JW]

Pfitzner Christ Elflein Orfeo

Pfitzner: Das Christ-Elflein (Orfeo)

Probably the most recommendable of the three recordings of Pfitzner’s Christmas tear-jerker despite its drawbacks [PCG]

Szymanowski stabat C210311

Szymanowski: Stabat Mater (Orfeo)

Penderecki’s Dies Irae is frighteningly powerful, but Szymanowski’s Stabat Mater is given an underwhelming performance [SW]