Description
Kathleen Ferrier – The Historic Decca Recordings
UPC: DECCA AKF.1–AKF.7
Product Details:
- Label: Decca
- Format: 7-LP Box Set, Vinyl, Stereo, 33⅓ RPM, Microgroove, Full Frequency Range Recording
- Country: United Kingdom
- Released: 1950s–1960s (compilation)
- Genre: Classical Vocal / Song Recital
Product Features
- Comprehensive Retrospective: Seven LPs showcasing Kathleen Ferrier’s definitive recordings for Decca, from English folk songs to Baroque arias, Romantic Lieder, and Mahler’s masterpieces.
- Renowned Collaborators: Accompanied by pianists Phyllis Spurr, Frederick Stone, John Newmark, Max Gilbert; Boyd Neel and London Symphony orchestras under Sir Malcolm Sargent; Vienna Philharmonic under Bruno Walter; and more.
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Wide Repertoire:
- Folk Songs by Vaughan Williams, Warlock, Purcell
- Baroque & Classical Arias by Purcell, Handel, Gluck, Bach, Handel, Mendelssohn
- Romantic Lieder by Brahms, Schumann, Schubert
- Mahler: Rückert Lieder & Das Lied von der Erde
- Historic Sound: Full-frequency-range Decca engineering preserves Ferrier’s rich contralto timbre and emotional nuance.
Overview
Kathleen Ferrier (1912–1953) remains one of the 20th century’s most beloved contraltos. This seven-LP Decca box set collects all her landmark studio recordings, from the simple beauty of English folk songs to the dramatic intensity of Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde. Ferrier’s warm, expressive voice is captured in intimate recital settings and full orchestral forces alike. Whether interpreting Vaughan Williams’s pastoral “Silent Noon,” Handel’s aria “He was despised,” Brahms’s meditative Vier ernste Gesänge, or the sublime final movement of Mahler’s Rückert-Lieder, Ferrier’s artistry shines.
Track Listing
AKF.1 (LP 1–2)
- Sides 1–2: English Folksongs (piano: Phyllis Spurr)
AKF.2 (LP 3–4)
- Side 3: Songs by Stanford, Perry, Vaughan Williams, Bridge, Warlock (piano: Frederick Stone)
- Side 4: Songs by Purcell, Handel, Wolf (piano: Phyllis Spurr)
AKF.3 (LP 5–6)
- Side 5: Arias from Bach’s St. Matthew Passion (Bach Choir & Orchestra; Reginald Jacques)
- Side 6: Arias by Purcell, Handel, Gluck, Mendelssohn (LSO/Sargent; Boyd Neel Orchestra/Neel)
AKF.4 (LP 7)
- Side 7: Bach: Arias from Mass in B-minor, St. Matthew & St. John Passions
- Side 8: Handel: Arias from Samson, Messiah, Judas Maccabeus (London Philharmonic; Sir Adrian Boult)
AKF.5 (LP 8)
- Side 9: Brahms: Vier ernste Gesänge & Two Songs (pianos: John Newmark, Phyllis Spurr)
- Side 10: Brahms: Two Songs Op. 91 (piano/viola) & Alto Rhapsody Op. 53 (LPO/Choir; Clemens Krauss)
AKF.6 (LP 9)
- Side 11: Schumann: Frauenliebe und -leben Op. 42 (piano: John Newmark)
- Side 12: Schubert: Four Songs (piano: Phyllis Spurr); Mahler: Three Rückert-Lieder (Vienna Phil.; Bruno Walter)
AKF.7 (LP 10)
- Sides 13–14: Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde (with Julius Patzak; Vienna Phil.; Bruno Walter)
Key Credits
Contralto: Kathleen Ferrier Pianists: Phyllis Spurr, Frederick Stone, John Newmark, Max Gilbert Viola: Max Gilbert Choirs & Orchestras: Bach Choir & Orchestra (Reginald Jacques), London Symphony (Sir Malcolm Sargent), Boyd Neel Orchestra, London Philharmonic (Sir Adrian Boult), LPO & Choir (Clemens Krauss), Vienna Philharmonic (Bruno Walter) Label & Engineering: Decca “ffrr”
BOX #59
