San Antonio College Library

Christian Thielemann and the Staatskapelle Dresden open their Brahms Cycle with a performance at the stunning NHK Hall in Tokyo, Japan. The program includes Brahms' Symphonies No. 1 in C minor and No. 3 in F major.

This theater performance, was presented "in the round" in 1991 at the Promenade Theater in New York City, had never been seen in its entirety before the initial release of the DVD. Abbey Lincoln looks exquisite and is backed by a stellar jazz quintet. The show offers original compositions including: "Bird Alone" and "When I'm Called Home" as well as standards like "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime".

Christian Thielemann, one of the most widely recognized conductors of our time, joins forces with the prestigious Wiener Philharmoniker for their first-ever highdefinition recording of all nine symphonies by Ludwig van Beethoven. This is a performance of Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 36.

Bernstein discusses different transmogrifications or treatments of Bach's works. After an organ recital of the Little Fugue, guest conductor Leopold Stokowski conducts his own transcription of the fugue for symphony orchestra. Other transmogrifications include Foss' Phorion and a version of the Brandenburg Concerto No.5 performed by the New York Rock and Roll Ensemble.

Andris Nelsons continues his Shostakovich series with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra with the Fourth Symphony. This complex symphony of gigantic proportions was written during the period when Dmitri Shostakovich had been relegated from the status of a national hero to that of a potential enemy of the state by Stalin. When rehearsals for the Fourth proved disastrous, Shostakovich decided to withdraw the work. Even today, the Fourth Symphony is performed...

In La Sonnambula, Amina sleepwalks before her wedding and awakens in another man's bed. When Elvino discovers the situation, he cancels the wedding, believing she was unfaithful.This version of the Vincenzo Bellini opera is set during the 1930's in Switzerland and features Jessica Pratt and Shalva Mukeria, both experiencedbel cantosingers.

Leonard Bernstein introduces young conductors and performers. The program opens with cellist David Domb playing Dvorák Concerto in B Minor, conducted by Kenneth Schermerhorn. Stefan Mengelberg conducts the final movement of the Wieniawski Violin Concerto in D Minor with Barry Finclair on the violin. Finally, Leonard Bernstein conducts Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf with nine year old Alexandra Wager narrating.

The Austrian piano virtuoso Rudolf Buchbinder, widely acclaimed for his technical perfection, is also known as an expert on Mozart. Together with the Staatskapelle Dresden, where he was the first pianist to hold the title of "Capell-Virtous," he plays and conducts three of Mozart's most beloved Piano Concertos - Nos 20, 21, and 27. The concert was recorded in Dresden in an unique setting, which matched not only the musical perfection, but also the...

The Staatskapelle Dresden reunites with its former principal conductor Herbert Blomstedt for a memorable performance at the Semperoper Dresden. The grand seigneur amongst today's conductors leads the orchestra in an impressive rendition of Beethoven's First Piano Concerto, which features Sir András Schiff as acclaimed soloist "with an exquisite touch and finest nuances in his play," followed by an performance of Anton Anton Bruckner's Fourth Symphony....

Bernstein pays tribute to many of his teachers by conducting works important to his mentors, or written by them. The program closes with a tribute to the man who is, for Bernstein, "the greatest conductor alive today," Fritz Reiner. Pieces include Mussorgsky's Prelude to Khovanshchina, Randall Thompson's Symphony No. 2 (3rd movement), Walter Piston's The Incredible Flutist, and Brahms' Academic Festival Overture.