Yehudi Menuhin: The Great EMI Recordings (CD21-30)

This set of 50 CDs contains some of Sir Yehudi Menuhin's most celebrated EMI recordings, made during the 70-year period that he recorded for the Company, and commemorates the tenth anniversary of his death on 12 March 1999. Arguably the best-known classical musician of the 20th century, Yehudi Menuhin was born on 22 April 1916 in New York City. In 1918 his family moved to San Francisco where he had his first violin lessons, aged four, with Sigmund Anker. At seven he gave his first public performance accompanied by his then teacher, Louis Persinger. A year later, in 1925, he gave his first full-length recital, also with Persinger. 1926 saw him make his New York début and later that year he gave a performance of Lalo's Symphonie espagnole with the San Francisco Orchestra. In 1927, at the age of ten, Menuhin made his European début in Paris playing with the Lamoureux Orchestra under Paul Paray. Back in New York he gave his first concerto concert with the New York Symphony Orchestra under Fritz Busch and in 1928 he made his first recording for the Victor Company. 1929 was equally eventful for the young Menuhin: he was given a Stradivarius violin; made his Berlin début with the Berlin Philharmonic under Bruno Walter; began studies with Adolf Busch; he gave his début in London and made his first HMV recording. In 1931 Menuhin made his first concerto recording, Bruch Concerto No.1 in London for HMV and in 1932, at the age of 16, he made what was to become one of the most iconic classical recordings of all time when he went to EMI's new Abbey Road Studios to record the Elgar Concerto with the composer and the London Symphony Orchestra. This event put Menuhin firmly on the international map as one of the great violin virtuosi of the century and he continued to be a prolific recording artist for EMI, both as violinist and conductor, for the rest of his long career.