The Label of Discovery
Marco Polo was the first label in the Naxos family to be launched, in 1982. It includes almost 1,000 recordings of works by both familiar and little known composers, light music, film music and world music – a veritable feast of new listening experiences.
With many rarities drawn from the period 1850–1940 as its hallmark, the Marco Polo catalogue boasts a discovery on every page – from Cimarosa to Chen Gang, plus all stops in between.
One of the many distinctions of the catalogue is the significant inclusion of the complete works of members of the Strauss family – Johann I, Johann II and Josef – in multi-volume editions, to which waltzes and polkas by Eduard Strauss have recently been added. The Marco Polo catalogue also features many works by other light classical composers such as Waldteufel and Suppé, and numerous British light music composers.
There's a generous choice of album compilations, representing a rich tapestry of music in different styles and from a variety of countries. Chinese classics occupy a large portion of the catalogue, featuring traditional fare alongside classical works by both the older and contemporary generations of composers, with new releases added regularly.
RECENT RELEASES FROM MARCO POLO
In the following video, Director Dominique Meyer talks about the 2018/2019 programme line-up (in German):
The Wiener Staatsoper Live series on Orfeo presents unforgettable historical recordings from the Wiener Staatsoper. It features particular artists performing various scenes in radio broadcasts from the theatre. Over the years, the number of recordings published has grown considerably.
RECENT RECORDINGS FROM ORFEO’S WIENER STAATSOPER LIVE SERIES
For more titles from the Wiener Staatsoper Live series, please visit www.orfeo-international.de.
Check out the newest video of pianist Boris Giltburg performing Rachmaninov's complete Études-tableaux, Op. 39, filmed by Stewart French of Fly On The Wall in one extraordinary night-time session. “I recorded the cycle for a CD two years ago, but didn’t have a good video version – and suddenly, while practising at home a few weeks ago, an idea materialised: I’ll use my free evening in London to film the etudes,” Giltburg said of the project. Click here to read his blog published on Gramophone’s website.
You may also find the full version of the video on Youtube. Described by Gramophone as “a leading Rachmaninov interpreter of today”, several of Giltburg's recordings have been selected as Gramophone's Recording of the Month.
BORIS GILTBURG’S RECORDINGS OF WORKS BY RACHMANINOV
MORE RECORDINGS FEATURING GILTBURG
Kenneth Fuchs is one of America’s leading composers. He celebrates his unique fifteen-year recording history with conductor JoAnn Falletta and the London Symphony Orchestra with this stunning release of three new concertos and an orchestral song cycle – Piano Concerto ‘Spiritualist’ with renowned pianist Jeffrey Biegel; Glacier, a concerto for electric guitar and orchestra, featuring guitarist D.J. Sparr; the concerto for alto saxophone Rush with soloist Timothy McAllister; and Poems of Life performed by countertenor Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen.
“JoAnn Falletta and I are thrilled to present our fifth Naxos recording with the London Symphony Orchestra. The four works for soloist and orchestra are as distinct and diverse as the soloists they were composed for. The repertoire includes concerti for alto saxophone, electric guitar, piano, and an orchestral song cycle on poems of Judith G. Wolf for countertenor. The stellar soloists – Timothy McAllister, D. J. Sparr, Jeffrey Biegel, and Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen – are four of the most sought-after interpreters of contemporary literature.” – Kenneth Fuchs
Previous Fuchs recordings by JoAnn Falletta and the LSO
We believe that music has some kind of power. So does POWERADE®. The Naxos team is excited to be a part of the new ad “Movie” from its “That’s Some Kind of Power” campaign. It features a familiar bodega owner who envisions the soccer fame he would have enjoyed if he'd only had POWERADE® back in his day. A colourful flashback includes crazy slide tackles and an epic bicycle kick, to the accompaniment of Puccini’s Un bel di, Vedremo from Madama Butterfly.
Check out the advertisements below and celebrate the most powerful moments in sports.
Need to license some music for a project and don’t know where to start? Visit Naxos Licensing to find out how!
The Elora Festival celebrates its 39th anniversary with a musical feast of warmth, passion and sheer vocal brilliance in a 3-week programme. The festival kicked off with the Canadian Opera Company on July 13, following which the renowned Elora Singers, under their new artistic director Mark Vuorinen, are scheduled to take centre stage in a dozen different concerts, performing works by J.S. Bach, Mendelssohn, Handel, Mozart and Healey Willan, plus a concert tribute to Leonard Bernstein.
Established in 1979, The Elora Festival was originally known as the Three Centuries Festival based in Ontario, Canada. The annual Festival continued to grow in stature and fame; the refining of its mission and name along the way resulted in the establishment of the Elora Festival in 1990. Over the years, the festival's programming has encompassed all forms of classical music, jazz and folk.
The Elora Singers, formerly known as the Elora Festival Singers, have produced some of Naxos’ best-selling albums of recent years. Past Naxos releases from the choir include a GRAMMY® nominated album of music by Eric Whitacre (8.559677), described by Gramophone as a “stimulating and superb disc … and an absolute ‘must have’”; a recording of Arvo Pärt’s choral music (8.570239) “draped in luminous colors and arresting timbres … a truly enjoyable hour of music” (ClassicsToday.com); and Poulenc’s Mass in G minor (8.572978) in a performance that is “finely tailored and buoyantly expressive.” (Gramophone)
This new recording traverses Canada, America and the British isles in music that has helped define the culture of those nations. England is represented by two of its most celebrated composers, Holst and Vaughan Williams, alongside the iconic Scottish Auld Lang Syne, which is traditionally sung to greet each New Year. Celebrated Canadian songs include Jimmy Rankin’s Juno Award-winning Fare thee well love. Eric Whitacre’s distinctive harmonic clusters can be heard in Go lovely rose. And there's music by Gordon Lightfoot, who can count Bob Dylan among his many fans, Dylan once declaring that when he heard a song such as Pussywillows, cat-tails he wished ‘it would last forever’.
PREVIOUS RECORDINGS FEATURING THE ELORA SINGERS
Enescu’s oratorio Strigoii (Ghosts) remained a forgotten work until the manuscript, lost like many others in the turmoil of the First World War, was returned to the public domain by the director of the Enescu Museum. Scored for narrator, soloists and orchestra, the work proved to be the ‘missing link’ between the composer’s early songs and his great opera Oedipe and exhibits musical affinities to contemporaries such as Alexander von Zemlinsky and the young Alban Berg.
The Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra is conducted by Gabriel Bebeşelea, who predicts: “When an audience hears the work for the first time, they will immediately want to hear it live.” Bebeşelea and the soloists talk about this work and the recording in the following video:
It is the month of July, which for many of us means that summer and holidays are finally here. To get you in the mood, listen to our Summer playlist, with the best classical collection inspired by the season. Get your beach balls and towels ready and turn up Classical Music for your Beach Vacation. Fire up the grill and get cooking with unCLASSIFIED’s Classical Cookout! Finally, over the next several months, unCLASSIFIED will be embarking on an epic road trip across the USA. Follow along as we visit our friends in Seattle, Los Angeles, New York, and more, and learn about the music, life, and culture in these amazing cities. These playlists are sure to make your summer even better, so add them to your library today!
John Georgiadis started playing the violin at the age of six, which led to a career as a professional violinist culminating in his appointment as concertmaster, first with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, then with the London Symphony Orchestra at the age of 26, a position he held for a total of 11 years. He was a founder member of the London Virtuosi Chamber Ensemble and Orchestra, and played first violin in the celebrated Gabrieli String Quartet. His interest in conducting began during the mid- 1970s, and he studied conducting for eight years under the legendary Sergiu Celibidache. Georgiadis has conducted concerts with many British orchestras, and he established the Viennese-style New Year’s concert in London, which he conducted for 40 consecutive years until 2015. Both those performances and his concerts with the Oxford Philharmonic were well known for their varied repertoire. He has made Viennese repertoire his speciality, recording Strauss family music not only with top British orchestras, but also with other European orchestras for labels including Marco Polo and Naxos. He is a longstanding honorary member of The Johann Strauss Society of Great Britain.
RELEASES FEATURING JOHN GEORGIADIS ON MARCO POLO
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