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Puccini's Madame Butterfly in Building a Library with Nigel Simeone and Andrew McGregor

Nigel Simeone's ultimate recommendation for Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly, plus pianist Julius Drake's personal choice of new releases.

Nigel Simeone's ultimate recommendation for Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly, plus pianist Julius Drake's personal choice of new releases.

Presented by Andrew McGregor

9,30am
Julius Drake swaps keyboard for microphone as he shares with Andrew his pick of new releases this week.

10.30am
Building a Library
Puccini's searing tragedy about a young geisha who falls in love with an American naval officer has been a staple in the recording studio for many decades. Nigel Simeone picks his ultimate recommendation to buy, download or stream.

Recommended version:

Angela Gheorghiu (Butterfly), Jonas Kaufmann (Pinkerton), Enkelejda Shkosa (Suzuki), Fabio Capitanucci (Sharpless), Gregory Bonfatti (Goro) & Raymond Aceto (Bonzo); Orchestra e Coro dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Antonio Pappano.
Warner 4562152 (2CDs)

11.15am
Record of the Week
Andrew's pick of the best of the best over the last seven days.

2 hours, 47 minutes

Music Played

  • Georg Philipp Telemann

    Ino, TWV 20:41: No. 4, Tanz der Tritonen

    Orchestra: Academy for Ancient Music Berlin. Conductor: Bernhard Forck.
    • Ino & Late Works.
    • Pentatone.
    • 114.
  • Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach

    Hamburg Symphony in B minor, Wq. 182 / 5 (H661)

    Ensemble: Academy for Ancient Music Berlin. Conductor: Georg Kallweit.
    • Harmonia Mundi.
  • Igor Stravinsky

    Infernal dance of King Kashchei; Berceuse (The Firebird Suite)

    Orchestra: Philharmonia Orchestra. Conductor: Santtu-Matias Rouvali.
    • Santtu Conducts Stravinsky: Petrushka (complete ballet, 1947 version), The Fireb.
    • Philharmonia Records Ltd.
  • Louis Beydts

    D'Ombre et de soleil: VII. Le temps irrévocable a fui...

    Performer: Tristan Raës. Singer: Cyrille Dubois.
    • Louis Beydts: Mélodies & Songs.
    • ´¡±è²¹°ù³Ùé.
    • 107.
  • Traditional Scottish

    Scottish Set

    Music Arranger: The Kraken Consort. Ensemble: The Kraken Consort.
    • Alpha.
  • Ralph Vaughan Williams

    Serenade to Music

    Conductor: Henry Wood.
    • Albion.
  • Arthur Butterworth

    Loveliest of Trees

    Singer: Roy Henderson.
    • Albion.
  • Joanna Marsh

    Worthy is the Lamb

    Ensemble: ensemble altera.
    • Alpha.
  • Gabriel Fauré

    Piano Quintet no.1: Adagio

    Performer: Eric Le Sage.
    • Alpha.
  • Gabriel Fauré

    Souvenirs de Bayreuth

    Performer: Eric Le Sage. Performer: Alexandre Tharaud.
    • Alpha.
  • Felix Mendelssohn

    Symphony No.2, Op.52, 'Lobgesang' 8 )Choral Nun danket alle Gott

    Orchestra: Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich. Conductor: Paavo Järvi.
    • Alpha.
  • Sergey Rachmaninov

    14 Romances, Op. 34

    Lyricist: Yakov Polonsky.
    • Rachmaninov: Essentiel.
    • UME - Global Clearing House.
    • 16.
  • Richard Wagner

    Forest Murmurs (Siegfried)

    Orchestra: The Cleveland Orchestra. Conductor: George Szell.
    • CBS.
  • Modest Mussorgsky

    Night on Bald Mountain (1880 Version for Bass and Choir)

    Orchestrator: Vissarion Yakovlevich Shebalin. Singer: Deyan Vatchkov. Choir: Chorus of the National Academy of Santa Cecilia. Orchestra: Orchestra of the Academy of Santa Cecilia, Rome. Conductor: Sir Antonio Pappano.
    • Warner Classics.
  • Gabriel Fauré

    Impromptu No. 2 in F minor, Op. 31

    Performer: Lucas Debargue.
    • Sony.
  • Dorothy Howell

    Three Divertissements: II

    Orchestra: Â鶹ԼÅÄ Concert Orchestra. Conductor: Rebecca Miller.
    • Dorothy Howell Orchestral Works.
    • Signum Classics.
    • 104.
  • Johann Sebastian Bach

    The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1

    Performer: Masato Suzuki.
    • BIS.
  • Sergey Rachmaninov

    All-Night Vigil (Vespers Op. 37): Nos. 5-8

    Music Arranger: Dmitrii Lazarev. Music Arranger: Benedict Sheehan. Music Arranger: Alexander Gretchaninoff. Singer: Igor Morozov. Singer: Evgeny Kachurovski. Singer: Alexis V. Lukianov. Choir: PaTRAM Institute Male Choir. Conductor: Ekaterina Antonenko.
    • Chandos.

Broadcast

  • Sat 23 Mar 2024 09:00

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