IN MEMORIAM MAESTRO LOVRO VON MATAČIĆ

On 28 February 2025, Supraphon will release the first complete edition of unique historical recordings of the Czech Philharmonic led by the conductor Lovro von Matačić, who died 40 years ago this past January. From 1959 to 1980 in Prague, Supraphon made recordings with one of the most important conductors of his generation. The recordings will now be available as a complete 6-CD set and in the digital formats MP3, FLAC, and Hi-Res.

Lovro von Matačić, born in Croatia when it was still part of Austria-Hungary, studied in Vienna, where the world of music and especially of opera was opened up to him. Despite the two world wars, he became a charismatic figure who inspired and dominated every orchestra. He repeatedly conducted such renowned orchestras as the Philharmonia Orchestra, the London Symphony Orchestra, the Dresden Staatskapelle Orchestra, the Munich Philharmonic, the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, and the NHK Symphony Orchestra, and he stood at the helm of the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra.

The Czech Philharmonic always welcomed him as an honoured guest, and Supraphon enabled him to make recordings beginning with Beethoven’s Eroica followed by two of Tchaikovsky’s famous symphonies. The rare recordings of three symphonies by Anton Bruckner –⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ the Seventh, the Fifth, and the Ninth –⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ represent the climax of Late Romanticism. These recordings show the orchestra of Ančerl and Neumann in a new light. Matačić is better know to us for his opera recordings, but Supraphon captured his artistry in a unique set of orchestra recordings.