The young John Barbirolli was hardly known in America when the New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra chose him to be Arturo Toscanini's successor starting in 1937. The 36-year-old Londoner's first season was a triumph with both players and audiences, and although his years in New York would be increasingly marred by unfair rivalry with Toscanini - lured back to lead a specially created NBC Symphony - and by partisan hostility from two influential critics, Barbirolli's tenure can now be looked back on as a real success. From 1938 until 1943, when he returned to the UK to take over Manchester's Hallé Orchestra, Sir John made a series of recordings in New York for American Columbia and RCA Victor which are still essential for a full appreciation of this revered conductor's career, "performances that are as competitive today as they were when initially released" (Fanfare). Sony Classical is pleased to reissue them in a newly remastered six-album set.
1 Mozart: Clarinet Concerto in a Major, K. 622 with Benny Goodman, Clarinet
2 Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 27 in B-Flat Major, K. 595 (Remastered) with Robert Casadesus, Piano
3 Mozart: Symphony No. 25 in G minor, K. 183 (Remastered)
- Disc 5 -
1 Bruch: Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, Op. 26 (Remastered) with Nathan Milstein, Violin
2 Tchaikovsky: Suite No. 3 in G Major, Op. 55: IV. Tema Con Variazioni. Andante Con Moto (Remastered)
3 Various (Arr. Barbirolli): An Elizabethan Suite (Remastered)
The young John Barbirolli was hardly known in America when the New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra chose him to be Arturo Toscanini's successor starting in 1937. The 36-year-old Londoner's first season was a triumph with both players and audiences, and although his years in New York would be increasingly marred by unfair rivalry with Toscanini - lured back to lead a specially created NBC Symphony - and by partisan hostility from two influential critics, Barbirolli's tenure can now be looked back on as a real success. From 1938 until 1943, when he returned to the UK to take over Manchester's Hallé Orchestra, Sir John made a series of recordings in New York for American Columbia and RCA Victor which are still essential for a full appreciation of this revered conductor's career, "performances that are as competitive today as they were when initially released" (Fanfare). Sony Classical is pleased to reissue them in a newly remastered six-album set.
