Deutsche Harmonia Mundi: 100 Great Recordings / Various

Included are many period composers generally not easily available.

Since 1958, the German label Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, now owned by Sony, has been releasing music from the Renaissance to the Classical era, but principally from the Baroque. These works are played on period instruments and led by such distinguished scholars as Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Andreas Staier, Andrew Lawrence-King, Thomas Hengelbrock, Gustav Leonhardt, Franzjosef Maier, and Sigiswald Kuijken. The quality of the performances and sound in this enormous re-release of albums is uniformly superb, and listeners are sure to make many new discoveries. There are 100 original-cover CDs in this 2017 collection, which is currently on sale for just $90 -- less than a dollar per disc! A handful of these selections were previously issued on 50-disc boxes in 2008 (50th Anniversary Edition) and 2014 (50 CD Collection), both of which I also own, but 90% of this huge set does not appear in either of those anthologies. The average playing time per disc is approximately one hour. Unfortunately, despite ample space in the box for a thick booklet, no supplemental information is provided about the music, the composers, or the performers. Of these 100 great recordings , there are 17 CDs devoted to C.P.E. and J.S. Bach, 14 to Händel and Haydn, 12 to Mozart, Monteverdi, and Rameau, 10 to Schütz and Telemann, and 14 to the music of various European courts and periods. The remaining 33 discs represent such important figures as Boccherini, Buxtehude, Corelli, Frescobaldi, Lully, Pachelbel, and Zelenka, as well as many other lesser-known but worthy composers. Three Christmas albums are also included to brighten the season. Collectors should snap this up! CD 1: C.P.E. Bach - Hamburg Symphonies & Concerti CD 2: C.P.E. Bach - Magnificat, Cello Concerto CD 3: C.P.E. Bach - Sonatas & Fantasies CD 4-5: J.S. Bach - Die Kunst der Fuge CD 6-7: J.S. Bach - Brandenburg Concertos CD 8: J.S. Bach - Goldberg Variations CD 9-10: J.S. Bach - Complete Lute Works CD 11-12: J.S. Bach - Johannes Passion CD 13: J.S. Bach - Organ Works CD 14-15: J.S. Bach - Cantatas, Non sà che sia dolore CD 16-17: J.S. Bach - Sonatas & Partitas CD 18-19: Biber - The Rosary Sonatas CD 20: Boccherini - Cello Concertos & Sinfonias CD 21: Buxtehude - Abendmusik CD 22: Buxtehude - Organ Works CD 23: Caccini - Le nuove musiche CD 24: Corelli - Concerti Grossi CD 25: Desprez - The Legend of Josquin Desprez CD 26: Frescobaldi - Canzoni da sonare CD 27: Galán - Fire & Ice CD 28: Geminiani - Concerti Grossi CD 29: Guerrero - The angel's voice CD 30-32: Handel - Concerti Grossi CD 33-35: Handel - Rodelinda CD 36: Handel - Water Music CD 37-38: Handel - Sonatas for Woodwind Instruments CD 39: Haydn - Cello Concertos CD 40-41: Haydn - The Creation CD 42: Haydn - London Symphonies CD 43: Haydn - Three Paris Symphonies CD 44: Literes - Acis y Galatea CD 45: Locatelli - Introduttioni teatrali CD 46: Lully - Divertissements CD 47: Martines - Il primo amore CD 48: Martino - Lute Trios CD 49: Mozart - Trio Sonatas, Divertimento CD 50-51: Mozart - Zaide CD 52: Monteverdi - Monteverdi e il suo tempo CD 53-54: Monteverdi - Vespro della Beata Vergine CD 55: Nebra - Miserere, Iphigenia en Tracia (excerpt) CD 56: Pachelbel, J.C. & J.M. Bach - Motets CD 57: Purcell - Instrumental Music CD 58: Rameau - Les Indes Galantes, Dardanus CD 59-61: Rameau - Zoroastre CD 62: Reusner - Lute Suites CD 63: Rore - Passio Domini Nostri Jesu Christi Secundum Johannem CD 64: Rosenmüller - Sacri Concerti CD 65: Schein - Diletti Pastorali CD 66: Schütz - Il primo libro de madrigali CD 67-68: Schütz - Psalms, Motets, Concertos CD 69-70: Schütz - Symphoniae Sacrae III CD 71: Schubert - Winterreise CD 72: Telemann - Concertos from Tafelmusik CD 73-74: Telemann - Orpheus CD 75: Telemann - Suites (Ouvertures), Concerto CD 76: Telemann - Die Tageszeiten CD 77-78: Torrejón y Velasco - La púrpura de la rosa CD 79: Torres - Cantatas CD 80-81: Zavateri - Concerti CD 82: Zelenka - Pisendel, Concerti CD 83: Zelenka - Lamentationes Jeremiae Prophetae CD 84: English Harpsicord Music CD 85: Festa Teatrale: Carnival in Venice & Florence CD 86: His Majesty's Harper: Airs & Dances, Fancies & Farewells from the Royal Courts of 17th-century England CD 87: Barroco Español (Vol. 1) CD 88: Mediterraneum CD 89: Music at the Court of Louis XIV CD 90: Music at the Salzburg Court CD 91: Music in Sanssouci CD 92: Music of the Tudor CD 93: Musique à Versailles CD 94: Barroco Español (Vol. 3) CD 95: Sappho and Her Time CD 96: Tinto CD 97: Viaggio Italiano: Music of the Library of the Counts of Schönborn CD 98-99: Renaissance Christmas Music CD 100: Schelle - Baroque Christmas Music

Grabaciones impecables y perfectas. Será un reto escuchar todos los trabajos.

A nice collection of DHM recordings. I haven't purchased this box since I already have more than 2/3 of this collection because most of these discs have been released in other DHM and Sony budget boxes, so check your collection if you have purchased any of these boxes. The contents is available in the photos of the box at the top of the page. If you haven't purchased any, or many of them, then this is a great way to get some great recordings at a little more than a dollar a disc.

I am enjoying these recordings. Richard in Dallas, Texas.

Wonderful overview of the label's recordings. Performances and recording quality are both exceptional.

Harmonia Mundi una Garanzia. Conoscevo parti di queste incisioni, strettamente filologiche e con strumenti originali, ma sono rimasto affascinato da quelle composizioni quasi sconosciute di compositori poco conosciuti. Ottimo prodotto ..... poi al quel prezzo! Lo riacquisterei

When I started collecting LPs about five decades ago, the move to original instruments and period performances was just getting underway. One of the labels leading that charge was Deutsche Harmonia Mundi (DHM), who were releasing not just period performance and instruments, but also non-mainstream composers. Back then, finding obscure composer's music was a lot harder than it is now, so my frequent trips to the record store were often inspired by a need to find previously unknown-to-me music. A few labels were automatic purchases; DHM was one of them. Over the last decade DHM has released quite a few box sets (roughly 50 CDs each box, dedicated to renaissance, baroque, and more. With the announcement of this box of 100 CDs, I was worried about lots of overlap between the CDs in this box and the many boxes of DHM I have on my shelves. Going through the disc list, though, I was surprised at how few overlaps there really are. I was also impressed by the collection this 100 CD box presents, as a quick scan of the music shows. 83 of the CDs are arranged in alphabetic order by composer, while the remaining 17 CDs are thematic collections. The range of composers is impressive, too: sure you get the Bachs, Purcells, Haydns, Mozarts, and Telemanns, but you also get the Caccinis, Galans, Guerreros, Literes, Martines, Nebras, De Rores, Rosenmullers, and Zavateris. There's bound to be quite a few discs of new music here for all but the most complete collector. Some of these discs have been available for a while but escaped my attention, and some are in other box sets I bought over the years, but at the low price of this 100 CD box, I have no objections to the duplicates at all! As for the recording quality, well, this is DHM. The recording engineers know what they are doing. The dynamics and frequency range is excellent, and while you don't get the deep diapason organ stops, or the massive thwacks of a bass drum, the music is presented clearly and cleanly. DHM doesn't do "big" orchestras, but that doesn't imply these are small ensembles only, either. As a history of music, especially the earlier centuries from renaissance through early classical, this is an excellent range of music. The box is a treasure-trove of discoveries, and I spent many hours digging through CDs. I have two complaints: the first is a complete lack of any documentation to accompany this box (there's a one-inch-thick foam filler in the box, which would have been ideal for a nice set of booklets!); the second is the design of the box lid, which is only a centimeter deep and continually drops off the box when I reach for it on my shelves. The addition of good documentation would have made this box a true stellar presentation, but alas, not to be: there's not even the reproduction of the back--of-album liner notes, unfortunately. Whining aside, this is a great box. Probably one of the best I bought in 2018, and highly recommended for avid classical fans who want to add some (inexpensive) new content to their libraries, as well as to those who are discovering classical. At this price per CD, it's a no-brainer. And one I have greatly enjoyed working through. I'll be buying additional copies as gifts!

Es una excelente selección de música clásica antigua. Alta calidad en interpretes y fidelidad

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