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On the eve of his centenary in 2018, Sony Classical is proud to announce the most important collection yet released of Leonard Bernstein s classic American Columbia s, newly remastered from their original 2- and 3-track analogue tapes. This is unquestionably the most comprehensive display of the legendary American conductor s unparalleled dynamism and versatility ever offered in a single package. Many of Bernstein s most memorable and critically accled interpretations are brought together here for the first time. This has allowed for the creation of a natural balance (for example, between the orchestra and solo instruments) that brings the quality of these half-century-old s, excellent for their time, up to the discriminating standards of today s audiophiles. In addition, there has been a meticulous restoration of some earlier masterings in which LP surface noise was too rigorously eliminated at the expense of the original brilliance. In every case, the masterings in this new collection represent the best ever issued of these matchless s by one of the greatest musicians of the last century. Space permits only the mention of highlights, but they will give you a sense of the breadth and depth of this astonishing new set. There are his two classic complete opera s with the Vienna Philharmonic: Verdi s Falstaff (1966) starring Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau and Strauss s Rosenkavalier (1971) with Christa Ludwig, Gwyneth Jones, Lucia Popp and Walter Berry. And his incandescent complete 1966 Haydn Creation from New York. Bernstein s New York Philharmonic s that launched the Mahler Renaissance in the 1960s are here, of course, including the 1961 Third Symphony which has arguably never been surpassed. Ditto for Carl Nielsen, whose great works Bernstein brought to a wide new public with interpretations like the 1962 NYP of the Fifth Symphony, perhaps the most thrilling account of this 20th-century masterpiece ever committed to disc. The Sibelius Fifth from 1961 is another celebrated Bernstein reading. And while we re talking about Fifth Symphonies, Bernstein s Beethoven Fifth from 1961 is still as electrifying now as it was then. His talk about the work is also included, one of many treasurable spoken-word commentaries in this set delivered by one of classical music s most charismatic and influential lecturers and teachers.