Special CD Boxed Sets Big Sellers – In these times of wholesale downloading and economic crunches it doesn’t seem that multiple CD boxed sets would have much appeal, but according to the president of DGG, “Europe and Japan have always been box-set crazy.” The label commemorated the centennial of conductor Herbert von Karajan last year with a 38-CD box set of his Berlin Philharmonic recordings marketed as a special limited edition. 35,000 copies were pressed and it sold out after just a year. There is also an Olivier Messiaen Complete Edition on DGG for $225.
Nonesuch released a set of Philip Glass works in a ten-CD box set titled “Glass Box,” selling for $100. They have also done ten-CD boxes on both Steve Reich and John Adams. Sony BMG has all of Murray Perahia’s performances of the 27 Mozart piano concertos in a box. They also have a ten-CD set of Vladimir Horowitz recordings in their “Original Jacket Collection." Although the covers reproduce in five-inch dimension the cover art of the original LPs, the up-to-80-minute CD memory allows adding many additional tracks to those of the original vinyl release. Last year Sony’s nearly 80-CD collection of Glenn Gould’s recordings for Columbia sold out after a run of 20,000 sets. In October they will reissue a deluxe set of the essential Yo-Yo Ma recordings – 88 CDs total. Many Haydn sets are coming out to tie in with the 200th anniversary of the composer’s passing. Harmonia mundi has issued the first installment of “A Haydn Celebration.” included a documentary DVD, a deluxe double-CD book about Haydn, and volumes of the master’s work. Brilliant Classics has a 150-CD Haydn Edition (We awarded two of the sets to readers in our December drawing.)
Cellphones at the Opera – A new production next month of Mozart’s Cosi Fan Tutte by Underworld Productions Opera Ensemble at NYC’s Symphony Space will invite audience members to vote during the intermission on which characters should be married in the opera’s final scene. They will send text messages from their cellphones to vote. Cast members will then perform the ending the audience has chosen. The production is set in modern-day Massachusetts.
More TV Stations To Stop Analog Signals – According to the FCC, 158 more TV stations will soon join the 641 stations that have already permanently turned off their analog transmitters, and will broadcast DTV signals only. That will mean that about half of the TV stations in the U.S. will have made the switch, well ahead of the upcoming June date moved ahead by the Obama administration.
