KAREL ANČERL LIVE RECORDINGS / CONCERTOS

Karel Ančerl (*11 April 1908 Tučapy – †3 July 1973 Toronto), one of the most important conductors of post-war Europe, was a man who survived Nazi concentration camps and the blatant antisemitism of communist Czechoslovakia and an artist who, by his boundless patience and effort, built up the Czech Philharmonic into a world-class orchestra and successfully introduced it at the world’s most prestigious concert halls. Supraphon released an important part of his artistic legacy, his complete studio recordings with the Czech Philharmonic, to great acclaim in 2002–2008 on 43 albums as part of the unique Ančerl Gold Edition. In 2022, Supraphon came out with the Ančerl Live Recordings on 15 CDs. Now tying in with that set is the new 7-CD box set Karel Ančerl Live Recordings / Concertos, which will be released on Friday, 14 February 2025 as a physical product and in the digital formats FLAC, MP3, and Hi-Res.

This time we have live recordings with Ančerl conducting in the role of an accompanist. The list of soloists he invited for collaborations over the years is imposing. Predominant among these world-class artists are musicians from Czechoslovakia’s former ally, the Soviet Union, for which Prague was the gateway to the West. The greatest treasures are the two oldest recordings: a one-of-a-kind performance of Dvořák’s Violin Concerto with David Oistrakh (1950), who made a major contribution towards the choice of Ančerl as chief conductor of the Czech Philharmonic after Kubelík’s emigration, and released here for the first time is Rostropovich’s oldest recording of Dvořák’s Cello Concerto, made two weeks earlier than the legendary studio recording with Václav Talich. There were also other stars coming to Prague from the West to appear on stage alongside Ančerl, as well as great Czech artists. This 7-CD collection Karel Ančerl Live Recordings / Concertos captures the inimitable performances of soloists and orchestra in their authentic form. All of the recordings have been carefully remastered from the original magnetic tapes.