WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln
The WDR Rundfunkchor Köln, or West Germany Radio Choir of Cologne, is the house choir of the Westdeutsche Rundfunk or West German Radio network. The choir specializes in contemporary music and has a national and international reputation while still playing a strong role in the musical life of Germany's North Rhine-Westphalia region.
The current WDR Rundfunkchor Köln dates to 1947, when it was founded as the Kölner Rundfunkchor and began rehearsals at St. Agnes Church, one of the few intact rehearsal spaces in Cologne. Its predecessor was the Kammerchor des Kölner Senders, or Cologne Broadcasting Chamber Choir, which was founded in 1927 but dissolved in 1940. The Kölner Rundfunkchor was at first associated with the Nordwestdeutscher Rundfunk (Northwest German Radio) but took its present name when the WDR was formed in 1956. The choir had already begun to specialize in contemporary music, a fortunate choice since so many progressive German works had been banned by the Nazi regime. In 1954, the group performed in the premiere of Arnold Schoenberg's unfinished opera Moses und Aron. That was among the first of more than 150 premieres of new works by the WDR Rundfunkchor Köln, including such major compositions as Karlheinz Stockhausen's Momente (conducted by the composer), Iannis Xenakis' Nuits, and Krzysztof Penderecki's St. Luke Passion. The choir sings a wide variety of repertory, however, and often performs standard works in churches around Cologne. The choir consists of 43 to 48 members. Conductors of the WDR Rundfunkchor Köln have included Bernhard Zimmermann, Herbert Schernus, Helmuth Froschauer, Anton Marik, Rupert Huber, and since 2014, Stefan Parkman, the group's first non-German director.
The WDR Rundfunkchor Köln is especially noted for its large catalog of recordings, appearing on CPO, Delta Classics, Capriccio, and other internationally distributed labels. The group's 2012 recording of György Ligeti's Requiem won Germany's coveted ECHO Klassik award. In 2017, the choir was heard on a recording of the Emmerich Kálmán operetta Die Bajadere. Several times the WDR Rundfunkchor Köln has performed at the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, northern Germany's leading concert hall, and the group appeared there in 2020 in a performance of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, as part of the hall's celebration of the 250th anniversary of Beethoven's birth.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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Frau Luna
WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln, Maria Leyer, René Kollo, Helmuth Froschauer
Operette - Released by CPO on 28 feb. 2023
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Offenbach: Cello Concertos
Guido Schiefen, WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln, Helmuth Froschauer, David de Villiers, Gerard Oskamp
Klassiek - Released by CPO on 1 dec. 2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Strauss II: Die Fledermaus (Excerpts) [Live]
Opera - Released by Archipel on 6 jun. 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Nostalgia
Daniel Behle, WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln, Helmut Froschauer, WDR Rundfunkchor Köln
Opera - Released by CapriccioNR on 6 okt. 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Romanze
Chen Reiss, Andy Miles, Pietro Rizzo, WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln
Klassiek - Released by Profil on 24 jul. 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Popper: Cello Concertos 1-3
Wen-Sinn Yang, WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln, Niklas Willen
Klassiek - Released by CPO on 2 sep. 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Anderson, L.: Orchestral Music -Blue Tango / the Syncopated Clock / Belle of the Ball / Saraband / Sandpaper Ballet (Symphonic Pops)
WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln, Reinhard Ehritt, Werner Brock, Pinchas Steinberg, Hugo Wolf, Mathias Kiefer
Klassiek - Released by CapriccioNR on 1 jan. 1989
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Haydn: Opera Gala
Opera - Released by CapriccioNR on 1 jan. 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Aulin: Master Olof Suite, 4 Swedish Dances & 3 Dances from Gotland
Tomoharu Yoshida, Juraj Cizmarovic, WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln, Niklas Willen
Klassiek - Released by CPO on 28 jan. 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Niccolo Paganini: Concertos for Violin & Orchestra 1-6
Ingolf Turban, WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln, Lior Shambadal
Concertmuziek - Released by Profil on 23 jun. 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Angulo: Conciertos para Guitarra "El Alevin"
Michael Troster, Arthur Fagen, WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln
Symfonische muziek - Released by Thorofon Records on 1 jan. 1999
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Suppé: Pique Dame (Excerpts)
Opera - Released by CPO on 1 nov. 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bilse: Waltzes, Marches & Polkas
WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln, Christian Simonis, Unknown Artist
Klassiek - Released by CPO on 28 okt. 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Aga Mikolaj Sings Strauss & Mozart
Aga Mikolaj, WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln, Karl Sollak
Vocale muziek (wereldlijk en religieus) - Released by CPO on 29 mrt. 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert, F.: Rosamunde (Excerpts)
Klassiek - Released by CapriccioNR on 1 jan. 2002
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kalman, E.: Csardasfurstin (Die) / Kaiserin Josephine / Grafin Mariza
Eva Marton, Jyrki Niskanen, WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln, Michail Jurowski
Operette - Released by CapriccioNR on 1 jan. 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Dvorák: Král a Uhlíř, B. 21
Opera - Released by Orfeo on 1 jan. 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Nacht der Träume
WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln, Stefan Blunier, Juraj Cizmarovic, Bo Skovhus
Klassiek - Released by Delta on 14 nov. 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: La clemenza di Tito, K. 621 (Excerpts)
Opera - Released by Andromeda on 26 jan. 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Gee´s Bend
WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln, Rasmus Baumann, Thorsten Drücker
Klassiek - Released by Querstand on 11 mrt. 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bochmann, W.: Orchestral Music
WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln, Heinz Walter Florin, Reinhard Ehritt, Jaques Trupin, Thomas Gabrisch, Alfredo Marucci
Klassiek - Released by CapriccioNR on 1 jan. 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo