This is a great Mass work. It is good that Mr. Domingo and the people from Deutsche Grammophon recorded this work from Bacalov. Placido Domingo is great at always finding and recording new genders of music. I believe this is the first time this work is recorded. His recent recording of Albéniz "Merlin" (Decca London) is also a first. He is accompanied on both works by Ms.Ana Maria Martinez who in my oppinion has one of the best young voices today. She sings beautifully on both works. Her vocal range and musicality is one of the best my ears have listen to. I saw her live singing with Andrea Bocelli and she brought tears to my eyes. What a voice!! I will definetly buy more copies of Misa Tango to give to my friends this holiday season.

Myung-Whun Chung previously has proven his affinity for Dvorák on two occasions: an excellent recording of Symphonies Nos. 7 and 8 for BIS, and later with Symphonies 3 and 7 for Deutsche Grammophon. No, there’s nothing wrong with your computer screen: he’s already recorded Symphony No. 7 twice, and this disc gives us his second reading of No. 8, undoubtedly DG’s response to millions of fan letters sent to their offices by love-struck teenage girls threatening suicide unless Chung’s Vienna Dvorák cycle was allowed to continue. His recording of Symphonies Nos. 3 and 7 was never released domestically, by the way, leading us to speculate about what makes this disc more marketable than that one, assuming of course that such considerations have anything to do with DG’s decision to schedule a recording for domestic distribution.

A few decades from now, someone will put together a series of recordings devoted to “the greatest tenors of the 21st century”. Will Ben Heppner be featured on one of these? Most likely more than one. What other conclusion can you reach after hearing these splendiferous performances of French arias, presented as the Canadian singer’s debut under his new, exclusive DG contract? To begin with, there’s nothing really typical about this recital, from the choice of repertoire–extended arias from some of the less-traveled operatic territory–to this revered label’s confirmation of big-budget stature on an artist who’s neither a “three tenor” nor a singer under the age of 14. No, this is really grown-up stuff, and Heppner proves not only a seasoned and commanding presence, but an artist of the highest magnitude, with the vocal equipment and musical intelligence to at once rivet an audience to its seats and compel it to spontaneously rise in a collective ovation.

Shostakovich's Fourth Symphony is an extraordinary work by any standards. It is cast in three movements, with each of the outer two approaching half an hour in duration, astride a shorter central scherzo. Together these occupy a playing time in excess of an hour. There is a huge orchestra, of some 140 players, so the range of timbres and colours is very wide indeed, and the climaxes are overwhelmingly powerful. But more significant than any of these issues is the nature of the music itself, since the development is flexible and remarkably open-ended, veering this way and that, through passages slow and fast, thinly scored and richly powerful. It is a roller-coaster ride for both the musicians and the audience.

«Light Classics», un jure pour beaucoup, mais c'est exactement ce qui vient à l'esprit de la musique de Georges Bizet (1838-75). Bizet se révèle être un important créateur de mélodies accrocheuses et un grand expert en instrumentation. Il a créé un son orchestral romantique tardif de légèreté française et de richesse des couleurs, ce qui montre la grande compétence de Bizet. L'interprétation de Chung avec l'Orchestre de la Bastille est impeccable et souligne cette légèreté musicale sans tomber dans la douce kitsch. Le CD offre ainsi 68 minutes de pur plaisir d'écoute, musique simple au plus haut niveau.

Herbert von Karajan isn’t alone in celebrating his 100th birthday this year. Among composers whose 100th anniversary falls in 2008, Olivier Messiaen (10 December) is definitely the most important To whet your appetites for further releases in this anniversary year, here is a 1-CD midprice compilation of Messiaen’s ecstatic slow movements: a sequence of eight movements from major works that together make an unforgettable impression: supple in rhythm, subtle in melody and incredibly rich in harmony. Almost like variations on a theme (with plenty of F sharp major too!), the 70-minute disc is uniquely relaxing and moving at the same time – by no means the usual pot-pourri compilation.

To coincide with Messiaen’s 100th anniversary DG presents this recording of rarely heard spiritual works of the beloved French composer. Religiosity and Catholicism have been important sources of inspiration for Olivier Messiaen throughout his artistic life and form the key aspect of the repertoire selected for this album. The Trois Petites Liturgies for piano, ondes martenot, choir and orchestra were premiered in occupied Paris in 1943, and received highest praise by Jean Cocteau, Francis Poulenc and Arthur Honegger among others – with the aim of bringing “a kind of organized act of praise into the concert room” Messiaen achieved one of his most colourful and enduring works up to that point – he himself described the music as “nothing but an act of love”.

What a pleasant surprise that this recording of Carmen, that, on the basis of its packaging looks like it was intended to be essentially a showcase for Andrea Bocelli, is an entirely respectable version of the opera. Much of the credit goes to Myung-Whun Chung, who leads Orchestra Philharmonique de Radio France in an exceptionally brisk account of the score, starting with a prelude that's bracingly impetuous, but he can be languidly flexible when the music calls for it. He uses a sort of hybrid version of the score, with some of the spoken dialogue and some of Guiraud's recitatives, and it works just fine.

The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra was founded in 1948 and has always played a key role in the development of the classical music scene in South Korea. The appointment of the respected Myung-Whun Chung as music director and principal conductor in 2005 heralded an artistic renaissance for the orchestra. And now that the famous German yellow label has, by way of maestro Chung, taken the Seoul Philharmonic under its wings, the ensemble also seems destined for brilliant horizons outside of the Korean border.

In the opening funeral movement, the rich and rock solid sound of the orchestra is quite ear-catching. To borrow some critic's word, it is 'beefy', a quality that is hard to find in Asian orchestras. Based on this and previous CD releases that feature Chung/SPO, it is clear that under maestro Chung's leadership the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra has grown into a world class ensemble with the unique sonority and high discipleship.

For this 2013 Deutsche Grammophon release, Myung-Whun Chung and the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra present Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 in D minor, "Choral," in a mainstream performance that traditionalists will heartily endorse. This is somewhat surprising, considering the music world's increasing adoption of authentic Classical and early Romantic practices in Beethoven performances, and even the most conservative conductors and orchestras have made concessions to period research.

In this 2006 recording of Ravel's Daphnis et Chloé, Myung-Whun Chung leading the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France turns in a lithe, lean, limber, and lovely performance – but not ultimately a persuasive performance. Described by the composer as a "Symphonie chorégraphique," Daphnis et Chloé is not just another brilliantly colorful, appealingly tuneful, and irresistibly rhythmic work in Ravel's canon; it is also by far his most dramatically cohesive and formally unified large-scale work. These were the crucial qualities the great performances of the past – Cluytens, Monteux, and Martinon – had in equal measure.

Beethoven’s Triple Concerto, completed about the same time as the Eroica Symphony, has suddenly become popular. One reason for its previous lack of popularity was the fact that three soloists cost three times as much as one normally expensive pianist, violinist or cellist. Another reason is that the work seeks to be a popular success, hence the Rondo alla Polacca with which it concludes. The piano part was intended for Beethoven’s patron and pupil, the Archduke Rudolph von Habsburg, and hence is less technically demanding than the composer’s usual pianistic writing, destined for himself. The standard CD (previously LP) of the work was a spectacular performance and recording made by EMI many years ago with David Oistrakh, Rostropovich and Richter with the Berlin Philharmonic under Karajan. It was opulently played with the BPO’s luscious sound, but has little to do with what Beethoven would have heard in 1804. Another choice was the version of Stern, Rose and Serkin (Sony), less lush and not so high-powered as Karajan’s.

This is a beautiful anthology of sacred liturgical music. Chung coordinates his forces in larger choral pieces with power and vertical balance. Contributions by Cecilia Bartoli find the mezzo in top form, and Bryn Terfel brings charismatic presence to “Pie Jesu” from the Fauré Requiem. Also included are the interminable "Song for Athene" by John Taverner and a great performance by Andrea Bocelli in Eric Levi's hymn for the world, "I Believe".