Vladimir Ashkenazy’s life work on record released in lavish 80th birthday tribute

IN his years as Sydney Symphony Orchestra’s chief conductor we did not get to hear Vladimir Ashkenazy at the keyboard in the role that made him a household name. Now you can.

Vladimir Ashkenazy has just turned 80 and Decca is releasing full box sets of his recordings.

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IN his years as Sydney Symphony Orchestra’s chief conductor we saw plenty of Vladimir Ashkenazy with a baton in his hand, directing the complete Mahler symphonies and festivals of music by Elgar and Rachmaninov, but we did not get to hear him at the keyboard in the role that made him famous from the 1960s on.

Now you can find out what you have been missing with Decca celebrating the maestro’s 80th birthday by releasing a new recording and paying a lavish tribute to their long-serving artist with two box sets and six new vinyl reissues.

Album cover for Vladimir Ashkenazy's 80th birthday recording of Bach's French Suites.

The new album is a delightful reading of the six French Suites of J.S. Bach, a composer with whom Ashkenazy has had a lifetime affinity. These works, each comprising a set of dances, show the composer in a lighter, more unbuttoned mood rather than praising God or unfolding his mighty fugues and counterpoint exercises.

They are the perfect vehicle for conveying the balance, clarity and nuance of Ashkenazy’s style.

The first of the box sets comprises 46 CDs and two DVDs featuring the complete concerto recordings in chronological order and include three complete Beethoven cycles, two Rachmaninov, and the Brahms, Bartok and Mozart cycles. It is available at Fish Fine Music for $179.99.

Decca box set of Ashkenazy's concertos.

The second set consists of Ashkenazy’s own choice of 56 CDs of solo and chamber recordings, showcasing collaborations with the likes of Andre Previn, Itzhak Perlman, Lynn Harrell and Elizabeth Soderstrom. This will be available in September.

The vinyls comprise concertos by Rachmaninov, Scriabin, Bach, Tchaikovsky, Beethoven and Mozart.

● Ashkenazy returns in November with a baton in his hand to conduct the SSO in a double bill of Shostakovich featuring the Symphony No. 8 and Cello concerto No. 1, performed by Daniel Muller-Schott.