A wonderful collection with the works of eleven great composers, most of them first releases of this label, presented on the occasion of Pretre’s 100th anniversary in August. Prêtre worked with the RSO Stuttgart for many years, and in 1996 he was appointed as the new chief conductor. Together they celebrated the orchestra’s 50th anniversary with a major tour. The French conductor was subsequently appointed “Honorary Conductor”. His preferences, as the present edition testifies, were primarily for the Romantic and late Romantic periods. It is therefore not surprising that Prêtre documented works such as Hector Berlioz’s “Symphonie fantastique” and Antonín Dvořák’s symphony “From the New World” with other orchestras in his early years and rehearsed them again during his time in Stuttgart. He also made occasional forays into classical music, for example with Beethoven’s 3rd symphony. In 2004, Prêtre conducted the RSO Stuttgart for the last time, performing Respighi’s symphonic “Roma” impressions, among others. These and many other recordings from their time together are featured in this collection.

The Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1945 and has developed into one of the Germany’s most important musical ambassadors over the following seven decades. Each season, the RSO has performed around 80 concerts in the SWR broadcasting area; it has made guest appearances in national and international music centers and at festivals worldwide. The RSO Stuttgart focuses on the one hand on the large classical and romantic repertoire that is represented by exemplary performances, and, on the other hand, on contemporary music and rare musical works, including little known composers. In September 2016, the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra of the SWR merged with the SWR Symphony Orchestra Baden-Baden and Freiburg and formed the new SWR Symphonieorchester which is headquartered in Stuttgart.