Description
The composer Francis Poulenc said in 1954, ‘Music buffs believe that the greatest living conductor is Toscanini: musicians know that it is Hans Rosbaud.’ Similarly, Gramophone hailed Rosbaud as ‘one of the unsung heroes of mid-20th-century music’. Hans Rosbaud (1895–1962), a native of Graz, was a champion of contemporary works while strongly advocating Mahler’s music after the Second World War. This ‘live’ studio recording from 1951 is a new addition to the Rosbaud discography, released for the first time on ICA Classics. Rosbaud is captured here at the height of his powers with the Cologne Radio Symphony Orchestra, one of his favourite orchestras. The 50th anniversary of Rosbaud’s death was in December 2012 so this release is a belated tribute to this great conductor.
