Czech-Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra - Message from the Moon-Chinese - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Paul Wranitzky moved to Vienna from his native Moravia at the age of 20, mixing with the likes of Haydn and Mozart. As the most important symphonist in Vienna in the late 1790s, his style influenced the early symphonies of Beethoven. The Symphony in D major 'La Chasse' reflects the popularity of hunting music, and is heard here for the first time in it's expanded version. The overtures to Mitgefühl and Die gute Mutter represent Wranitzky's skill as a composer for the theatre, as does the masterfully scored Symphony in C major in which the composer repurposes some incidental and ballet music.

Hovhaness / Stratton / Slovak Radio Orchestra - Celestial Fant [COMPACT DISCS] date 08/25/1998

Is there any music more instantly recognisable and beautifully scored than Tchaikovsky's wildly popular ballet Swan Lake? These and other works have become enduring classics, yet they were not uncontroversial in Tchaikovsky's day, and there are those that still wonder if his style is fundamentally European or ardently Russian. Find out more about Tchaikovsky's childhood obsession with music, his turbulent relationships with friends and colleagues, and how he overcame the deepest of personal crises to transcend all with a creative ambition that has left us with some of the greatest music ever written. The narrative is illustrated with musical excerpts from Piano Concerto No. 1, Symphonies Nos. 4 and 6, the 1812 Overture, The Nutcracker, Swan Lake and The Sleeping Beauty, among others.