Icon - Great Recordings

Icon - Great Recordings

Malcolm Sargent's reputation as one of the great popularizers of classical music in Britain arose not only through his long association with the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts (1947-67), but was evident much earlier through chief conductorships of the Halle (1939-42), Liverpool Philharmonic (1942-48), and BBC Symphony Orchestras (1950-57).<br><br>By the time he became a fixture at the Proms in 1947 Sir Malcolm (he was knighted in 1947) his was one of the best-known names in England. In personality, showmanship, and energy he was ideal for the nightly concerts.<br><br>Sargent amassed a commercial discography of imposing breadth and variety. His first HMV recordings date from as far back as 1924 with excerpts from Vaughan Williams's opera Hugh the Drover, which was captured by the pre-electric acoustic process, and his career with the company ended in 1966 with Walton's First Symphony.<br><br>Sargent's wide-ranging repertoire extended from Handel to Gilbert and Sullivan operettas. 'Messiah and The Mikado have been the twin pillars of my career,' he once joked; it was hardly true - his inspirational handling of choral bodies ensured that Handel's oratorios and others such as Mendelssohn's Elijah would be indelibly associated with him all his life.<br><br>CD Listing:<br><br>CD 1: Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 'Eroica'; Schubert: Symphony No. 8 'Unfinished'<br><br>CD 2: Rossini, Berlioz, Mendelssohn, Wagner: Overtures<br><br>CD 3: Rossini: La Boutique fantastique: Concert Suite; Dohnányi, Ibert: Suites<br><br>CDs 4-5: Handel: Messiah<br><br>CDs 6-7: Mendelssohn: Elijah<br><br>CD 8: Elgar: Enigma Variations, Serenade in E minor; Delius: A Song before Sunrise, Songs of Farewell<br><br>CD 9: Walton: Belshazzars Feast; Elgar: The Dream of Gerontius Part 1<br><br>CD 10: Elgar: The Dream of Gerontius Part 2; Parry, Arne, Elgar: Anthems<br><br>CD 11: Vaughan Williams: The Wasps Overture; Greensleeves & Tallis Fantasias; Serenade to Music Toward the Unknown Region; Romance in D; Holst: St. Pauls Suite<br><br>CD 12: Holst: The Perfect Fool; Beni Mora; The Planets<br><br>CD 13: Coolridge-Taylor: Hiawathas Wedding Feast; German: Henry VII; Nell Gwynn; Warlock: Capriol Suite; Britten: Simple Symphony<br><br>CD 14: Britten: The Young Persons Guide to the Orchetra; Walton: Façade excerpts; Symphony No. 1<br><br>CD 15: Bax; Morning Song; Bliss, Rubbra: Piano Concertos<br><br>CD 16: Sibelius: Symphonies 1 & 5; Pojohlas Daughter<br><br>CD 17: Sibelius: Finlandia; En saga; The Swan of Tuonela; Karelia Suite; Greig: Lyric Suite; Smetana: The Bartered Bride Overture<br><br>CD 18: Smetana: Má