Michael Halasz
Exemplifying the efficacy of good recordings, conductor Michael Halász has achieved worldwide recognition for his extensive Naxos discography. Fully prepared to seize the opportunity to preserve his interpretations on disc, the conductor has won strong approbation for both orchestral works and several operas, which critics determined warranted highest recommendation. After his successful recording of Mozart's Die Zauberflöte, even stronger accolades awaited his Fidelio with Inga Nielsen, Gösta Winbergh, and Kurt Moll, singers who matched the best efforts of other legendary casts. For detail and propulsiveness, Halász's own work demanded comparison with the best of those who had preceded him. In 2021, Halász, leading the Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra, issued albums featuring symphonic works of Joseph Boulogne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, and the premiere recordings of six of John Abraham Fisher's symphonies.
Halász was born on May 21, 1938, in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Trained as a bassoonist, Halász began his professional career as principal bassoonist in the Philharmonia Hungarica. After eight years with that ensemble, he elected to train as a conductor in Essen, subsequently making his podium debut at Munich's Gardenplatztheater in 1972. For the next three years, he directed the theater's operetta productions before moving to Frankfurt to assume the position of principal Kapellmeister under Christoph von Dohnányi. In Frankfurt, he learned an extensive opera repertory, and, in 1977, he followed Dohnányi to Hamburg to continue his work as principal Kapellmeister. The following year, Halász was appointed general music director at the Hagen Opera and remained in that position until his engagement as resident conductor at the Vienna Staatsoper in 1991. Halász remained in his Vienna post until 2011, and since then, he has had an ongoing relationship with the Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra in Pardubice.
While primarily devoting himself to his chief positions, the conductor has accepted guest-conducting engagements and has been a frequent visitor to the recording studio. In addition to his opera recordings, Halász has recorded numerous orchestral works for Naxos, most notably symphonies of Beethoven and Mahler, and two volumes of symphonic poems by Liszt, the latter greeted with especially warm reviews. His collaboration with cellist Maria Kliegel in the cello concertos of Elgar and Dvorák also elicited positive remarks. Important works in the choral repertory, too, have been recorded by Halász, including Fauré's Requiem and Pergolesi's Stabat Mater, and Mozart's Mass in C minor and Kyrie in D minor. For the Naxos sister label Marco Polo, Halász has recorded works by Anton Rubinstein, Nikolay Myaskovsky, and Franz Schmidt. Franz Schreker's opera Der Ferne Klang, recorded for Marco Polo, was subsequently re-released on the Naxos label. In 2020, Halász continued his Naxos partnership with the Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra, recording John Abraham Fisher's first six symphonies as well as a symphony and the symphonies concertantes of Joseph Boulogne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, with both albums issued in 2021.
© Erik Eriksson /TiVo
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Saint-Georges: Violin Concertos, Opp. 2 & 7
Mohri Fumika, Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra, Pardubice, Michael Halasz
Concertos - Released by Naxos on 9 Jun 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Saint-Georges: Orchestral Works
Yury Revich, Libor Ježek, Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra Pardubice, Pavla Honsová, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos on 24 Sep 2021
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Bériot: Works for Violin & Orchestra
Ayana Tsuji, Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra Pardubice, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos on 10 Mar 2017
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Saint-Georges: Violin Concerto, Op. 7 No. 1: II. Adagio
Mohri Fumika, Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra, Pardubice, Michael Halasz
Concertos - Released by Naxos on 28 Apr 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fisher: Symphonies Nos. 1-6
Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra Pardubice, Petra Žďárská, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos on 26 Mar 2021
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker & Swan Lake Suites
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos on 1 Aug 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Famous Tenor Arias
Thomas Harper, Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, Slovak Philharmonic Chorus, Michael Halasz
Opera - Released by Naxos on 1 Jan 1991
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Cimarosa: Overtures, Vol. 7
Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra Pardubice, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos on 12 Jun 2020
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Russian Cello Concertos
Li-wei Qin, Czech Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra Pardubice, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos on 11 Jan 2019
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Wagner, R.: Orchestral Highlights From Operas
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos on 6 Oct 1988
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Russian Fireworks
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, Richard Hayman, Kenneth Jean, Stephen Gunzenhauser, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos on 15 Mar 1990
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rossini: Overtures
Zagreb Festival Orchestra, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos on 6 Jan 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Opéra-Comique Overtures
Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos on 8 May 2020
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
BEETHOVEN: Symphony No. 5 / SCHUBERT: Symphony No. 8
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra, Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, Richard Edlinger, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos on 1 Jan 1989
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
GOLDMARK: Symphony No. 2, Op. 35 / Penthesilea, Op. 31
Rhenish Philharmonic Orchestra, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Marco-Polo on 31 Dec 1986
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
LISZT: Symphonic Poems, Vol. 1
Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos on 1 Jan 1991
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wagner: Ride of the Valkyries
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Symphony, Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, Uwe Mund, Gerard Schwarz, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos Special Projects on 26 Aug 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Stabat Mater - Orfeo
Julia Faulkner, Anna Gonda, Camerata Budapest, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos on 27 Dec 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake (Highlights)
Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Michael Halasz, Antoni Wit
Classical - Released by Naxos Special Projects on 26 Aug 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Concerto pour violoncelle - Sonate pour violoncelle & piano - Chants russes pour violoncelle & piano
Maria Kliegel, Bernd Glemser, Nicolaus Esterházy Sinfonia, Michael Halasz
Classical - Released by Naxos on 1 Jun 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
WAGNER, R. (THE BEST OF)
Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, Johannes Wildner, Michael Halasz, Uwe Mund
Classical - Released by Naxos on 15 Feb 1994
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo