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Barry Knight, Chandos Concert Orchestra, Marilyn Hill Smith, Peter Morrison, Ambrosian Singers & Chandos Singers

Marilyn Hill Smith & Peter Morrison Sing Treasures of Operetta

Barry Knight, Chandos Concert Orchestra, Marilyn Hill Smith, Peter Morrison, Ambrosian Singers & Chandos Singers

36 SONGS • 2 HOURS AND 19 MINUTES • MAR 01 1985

  • TRACKS
    TRACKS
  • DETAILS
    DETAILS
TRACKS
DETAILS
1
Der Schätzmeister, Act I: Do re mi fa so la si, "The Scale Song"
04:24
2
Casanova, Act I: O Queen of my delight
03:56
3
Die Csárdásfürstin (The Gipsy Princess), Act II: Let me dance and let me sing
03:42
4
The Chocolate Soldier, Act I: My Hero
04:46
5
Old Chelsea, Act I: My Heart and I
03:40
6
7
Naughty Marietta, Act I: Tramp! Tramp! Tramp!
03:19
8
Die Lustige Witwe (The Merry Widow), Act II: Love unspoken
03:31
9
10
The Arcadians, Act II: Charming Weather
02:09
11
Die Lustige Witwe (The Merry Widow), Act I: I'm off to Chez Maxim
02:42
12
Giuditta, Scene 4: On my lips every kiss is like wine
05:44
13
14
15
The Quaker Girl, Act I: A Bad Boy and a Good Girl
03:24
16
Der arme Jonathan, Act II: The Doleful Prima Donna
03:58
17
Der Schätzmeister, Act II: O let me hold your tiny little hand
03:46
18
19
Der Fremdenführer, Act I: Military Life!
02:39
20
Die Lustige Witwe (The Merry Widow), Act II Scene 1: Vilia
05:45
21
22
Paganini, Act II: Girls were made to love and kiss
03:22
23
Monsieur Beaucaire, Act I: Lightly, lightly
03:13
24
25
Die drei Wünsche, Act II: Thin, thin is my dear Gwendolin
03:46
26
Monsieur Beaucaire, Act II: Philomel
04:16
27
Ein Walzertraum (A Waltz Dream), Act I: Waltz of my dreams
04:25
28
Der singende Traum: You are the world to me
04:18
29
Das Land des Lächelns (The Land of Smiles), Act I: Dance while you may
03:27
30
The Maid of the Mountains, Act II: A Paradise for two
03:46
31
The Fortune Teller, Act I: Romany Life
03:47
32
Bruder Straubinger, Act II: It's not a sin to kiss
03:48
33
34
Friederike, Act II: Why did you kiss my heart awake
03:42
35
The Geisha, Act I: Star of my soul
04:09
36
Les Saltimbanques, Act I: It is love
04:45
℗© 2004: Chandos Records

Artist bios

The Chandos Concert Orchestra is a studio ensemble formed in 1991 by the British label Chandos to record a series of discs devoted to selections from the opera and operetta repertoire. The group released approximately eight discs, including contributions to the series Treasures of the Opera and Treasures of Operetta. Other discs have featured Marilyn Hill Smith singing works by Lehár, Kálmán, and Ivor Novello. Conductors of the orchestra have been Barry Knight and Stuart Barry.

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Among the best-known London choral groups for many years, the Ambrosian Singers was particularly notable for its work in opera and was sometimes known as the Ambrosian Opera Chorus or Ambrosian Light Opera Chorus. The group emerged from the early music movement in Britain after World War II, but it expanded greatly in both size and repertory. The Ambrosian Singers had a large recording catalog that included several well-loved holiday releases. The group disbanded in 2009, but the choir's music has continued to appear in reissues.

The Ambrosian Singers were founded in 1951 by musicologist and violist Denis Stevens, who had been involved since 1949 in developing Renaissance and early Baroque music programs for the BBC, and tenor John McCarthy. Their intent was to make available a small professional choir that would give authentic performances of medieval and Renaissance choral polyphony and, eventually, to make recordings of music in this tradition. This was something to which the large British university and cathedral choirs of the time were unsuited. The group was soon hired to provide music for a BBC radio series, The History of Western Music. This allowed the singers to stretch their wings in repertory other than early music and broaden the group's aims. Stevens departed in 1955 for a career in academia, but a group of members organized themselves under McCarthy's leadership, performing under various names. While McCarthy served as choral director for the London Symphony Orchestra in the early '60s, they were called the London Symphony Orchestra Chorus, but this group was essentially the Ambrosian Singers.

The Ambrosian Singers' recording career dates back to the '50s; they made an early appearance backing countertenor Alfred Deller on his 1957 recording of Monteverdi's Il Ballo delle Ingrate and Lamento d'Arianna on the Vanguard Classics label. Both opera and film music were heavily represented in the group's catalog; in the latter field, they appeared on both original film soundtracks, such as that by composer Vangelis for Chariots of Fire (1981), and new recordings of older soundtrack music. The Ambrosian Singers were also featured as the primary artists on choral releases of their own, including an album of Beethoven's late choral music with Michael Tilson Thomas conducting the London Symphony Orchestra; that album appeared in 1975 on the CBS label and was reissued in 1988.

The Ambrosian Singers were a frequent presence in major British opera performances and recordings for many years. They released several Christmas recordings of their own and also backed a diverse set of pop stars ranging from Julie Andrews to Talk Talk to Grace Jones. A unique feature of the Ambrosian Singers was that the group generally did not have a fixed membership; instead, there were some 700 singers who could be called upon for projects as needed. Many of the most famous British opera and art song performers, including soprano Heather Harper, mezzo-soprano Janet Baker, and tenor Robert Tear, passed through the group at one time or another. McCarthy remained the group's director, and the Ambrosian Singers slowed their activities as his health deteriorated; they disbanded completely after his death in 2009. However, Ambrosian Singers material continued to appear on recordings into the 2020s; by 2024, the group had appeared on more than 500 releases, including a 2024 album devoted to Neville Marriner, The Distinguished Conductor. ~ James Manheim

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