Anton Bruckner's Symphony No. 7 in E major is among the most popular of his works, and there is no dearth of recordings of this masterpiece, with reissues and new releases appearing every few months. Kent Nagano and the Bavarian State Orchestra have approached it with an apparent lightness of feeling and textural transparency that are essential to the bright sound of the outer movements, and they deliver the music with accuracy and appealing expression.

Sony Classical's Great Performances Series has scored yet another winner with its coupling of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 1 and the First Cello Concerto. Previously released individually, the close proximity in the recording dates of these two works (1959 and 1960) makes them a natural choice for a pairing. Continuing in the Philadelphia Orchestra tradition, the performance of the Symphony No. 1 follows the 1928 United States premiere of the work, given by the same orchestra and conducted by Ormandy's predecessor, Leopold Stokowski. Inherited from him is the notably lush sound of Philadelphia's lower strings, which capture the essence of Shostakovich's weighty harmonies.

Celebrated opera star Erwin Schrott dedicates his debut album on the label to the irresistible and passionate music of his Latin American origin. This highly personal album has great significance for Erwin and comes from the depth of his heart. He chose to collaborate with Astor Piazzolla’s former pianist Pablo Ziegler, who not only plays piano on the album, but also provides both authentic musical arrangements, as well as his own original compositions.

Les danses hongroises n°5 et 6 de Brahms (respectivement captées en 1967 et 1966) mettent d'entrée de jeu l'auditeur au parfum : c'est à une démonstration de dynamisme et de lyrisme que le grand chef américain nous convie. Ces danses de Brahms se hissent parmi les meilleures, et ne font poindre qu'un seul regret : qu'il n'y en ait que deux !
Les Préludes de Liszt (1963) nous rappellent alors quelles formidables affinités Bernstein trouvait dans l'univers lisztien (il faut connaitre absolument sa fantastique Faust-Symphonie ).

The Wiener Philharmoniker, conducted by James Levine, presents a delightful selection of highlights from Mozart’s “Die Zauberflöte, K620” in this exquisite recording. The album encapsulates the essence of Mozart’s final opera, offering listeners a curated experience of its most memorable moments.

Vladimir Horowitz’s interpretation of Beethoven’s Piano Sonatas Op. 57 “Appassionata,” Op. 27, No. 2 “Moonlight,” and Op. 53 “Waldstein” is a testament to his unparalleled virtuosity and deep understanding of Beethoven’s work. The album, a collection of these iconic sonatas, showcases Horowitz’s technical brilliance and emotive playing.

Murray Perahia's account of the Grieg Concerto is utterly absorbing. The playing is brilliant, but the pianist's approach–more Chopinesque than Lisztian–keeps that brilliance at the service of larger expressive goals. The result is a performance aglow with understated intensity, one in which the prevalent feeling is often melancholy, at times even bleak. Sir Colin Davis draws a wonderfully refined accompaniment from the Bavarian orchestra in this live reading of the score. The recording, from Munich's Philharmonic Hall, is excellent and effectively captures the beautiful tone Perahia coaxes from his piano.

I have many versions of this great concerto. My first ever exposure to this work was a recording by Witold Malcuzynski that I have now acquired on CD. Since the 1960s I have collected recordings by many great pianists including Bronfman, Glemser, Ashkenazy, Janis, Gilels, Vasary, Horowitz, Lympany, Gieseking, Helfgott, de Larrocha, Rachmaninoff, Wild, Kapell, Bolet, Argerich, Malcuzynski - and just when I thought I'd heard all the Rach 3 had to say, along comes this sublime recording by the late great Lazar Berman. The playing is clear, romantic, musically intelligent, exciting and enjoyable and satisfying in every way.

French oboist Francois Leleux presents a stunning recording of works by Richard Strauss, including his oboe concerto, one of the finest written for the instrument, and two chamber works, which he performs with his own ensemble, the Paris Bastille Ensemble. Joining Leleux on the concerto recording is the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra with Daniel Harding, one of our greatest young conductors.

For his third album for Sony Classical Fabio di Càsola has recorded works by Carl Maria von Weber, accompanied by the Chamber Philharmonic of St. Petersburg under the baton of its principal conductor Juri Gilbo. Weber came to know and love the clarinet through his friendship with Heinrich Baermann, a famous clarinettist of his day. The three most important works dedicated to Baermann are brought together on this CD: the two Clarinet Concertos and the Clarinet Quintet, which is to be heard on our recording in a version for clarinet and string orchestra.

Vladimir Horowitz confined himself mainly to the Romantic repertoire of the nineteenth century, particularly Schumann, Liszt, Mendelssohn and Chopin (in whose music, especially perhaps the mazurkas, he was held by many to be peerless). Horowitz recorded for RCA from 1927 to 1962 and for Columbia/CBS/Sony thereafter. The repertoire of this release includes Bizet’s Carmen variations, his arrangement of Sousa’s Stars and Stripes Forever, the Rákóczy March, Scarlatti and Clementi’s sonatas, as well as works by Mozart, Beethoven, Rachmaninov and Moszkowski.

In the series of live recordings with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, this outstanding recording took place both in Germany and abroad. Jansons’ previous Ravel/Bartók recording has received an ECHO Klassik in 2008. On this new album, the orchestra presents key symphonic works by Joseph Haydn: the Sinfonia Concertante No. 105 and symphonies No. 100 and No. 104. Once again Jansons and the Orchestra prove to have a superb flair for the musical content of those works.

In honor of Philip Glass' 70th birthday, Sony has devoted two CDs to 18 short works and movements of larger works, from recordings in its archive. The set provides a useful introduction to the composer's work from a relatively brief span in his long career, from 1976 to 1988. It was an exceptionally productive period for Glass; works written during that period include his three large-scale portrait operas – Einstein on the Beach, Satyagraha, and Akhnaten – all represented here, as well as two very popular albums of short pieces: Glassworks and Songs From Liquid Days.