Pupil of Saint-Saëns, teacher of Ravel, titular organist of the Madeleine church and impactful director of the Paris Conservatoire, Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924) was a foremost figure in the French musical history. His complete works - including the emblematic Pavane, Requiem, Sicilienne, Berceuse and Après un rêve… - are documented here by a host of well-reputed artists of the French repertoire, and reveal his clear, pure and absolute style.This 26-CD complete edition spans Fauré's entire career and includes among the finest recordings in Warner Classics' rich catalogue, showcasing Fauré's exquisite lyrical style, emotional depth, and timeless beauty.

The most comprehensive edition devoted to Gioacchino Rossini marking his 150th anniversary. Born in 1792, Rossini was the most popular opera composer of his time. Although he retired from the Opera scene in 1829, he continued to compose in other genres, including sacred music, piano and chamber works. He did gather his late works under the ironic title Péchés de vieillesse (Sins of Old Age), which veils a true collection of masterworks.

With his voice in its heady first bloom, Fischer-Dieskau dramatises rather than merely relates. In the third song, "Ich wandelte unter den Bäumen", he is dulcet at the opening, finds a disembodied colouring for the mysterious birdsong, and then uses a harder, darkened tone to convey the mingled disillusion and defiance of the close. Elsewhere, Fischer-Dieskau combines a yearning legato with an edge of neurosis in "Schöne Wiegen meiner Leiden", hauntingly catches the numbed fear of "Lieb' Liebchen" - where Heine equates his heartbeat with a carpenter hammering his coffin - and sings the final "Mit Myrthen und Rosen" with rueful tenderness.

This collection of all of Schubert's songs for low voice is one of the landmark recordings of the 20th century because it features two of the greatest Schubertians of their era, baritone Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau and pianist Gerald Moore. The recordings, made by Deutsche Grammophon between 1966 and 1972, come from Fischer-Dieskau's prime, when he was in his early to mid-thirties, his voice fully mature and its youthful bloom gloriously resplendent.

Starker’s complete recordings with pianist Gerald Moore. This recording's first half has been released in the past as an LP in 1959, the second half had laid dormant in the Warner Classics archive for decades then finally had been digitized and revealed in 2014! Including virtuoso pieces for cello by Popper, Saint-Saëns or Cassadó and beautiful transcriptions of Bach, Chopin or Schumann.

Pierre Fournier was born in Paris on 24 June in 1906 the son of a French army general. He was known for his lyrical playing and his impeccable artistic sensitivity and this, during his lifetime, earned him the title 'the aristocrat of cellists'.
Fournier was first taught piano by his mother but at the age of nine he suffered a mild case of polio and lost some of the agility in his legs and feet. He was no longer able to master the use of the piano pedals and so turned to the cello.

The French division of the massive EMI corporation has released a compendium called Les Introuvables de Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (EMI 68509, six CDs), and it contains so much outstanding material that one feels churlish complaining about what it lacks. But here we go. These six discs contain more than 125 lieder, ballads, cantatas and songs – primarily in German, but also in French, Italian, Latin and English – recorded mostly in the 1950s and '60s when Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau's voice was one of the wonders of the musical universe.

The set includes 17th and 18th century arias and songs from England by Purcell, Handel and Green, French art-songs by Debussy and Fauré, as well as canciones by Spanish composers including Enrique Granados and Joaquín Turina.

"In the typically genial 2 CD collection of Schubert duets, trios and quartets are resurrected golden age stereo analogue recordings made in 1973. These come to 25 works, all piano accompanied. The artists are the elite of the day. The only name unfamiliar to me was the tenor Horst R Laubenthal. No corners are cut with the notes which have been freshly penned by Malcolm Macdonald. On the other hand there are no texts or translations.