Marian Anderson — Beyond the Music (15-CD)

Discs: 15
Record Label: Sony
Release Date: August 27, 2021

Sony Classical presents the first release of contralto Marian Anderson’s complete recorded legacy for RCA Victor. Many of the recordings included in this collection appear here on CD for the first time, including her legendary Farewell Recital at Constitution Hall from 1964. From her debut in 1924 for the Victor label to her last LP from 1966, all recordings have been meticulously restored and remastered from the original analog masters. The enclosed 228-page coffee-table book contains numerous photos and facsimiles, a new essay by Raymond Arsenault — author of The Sound of Freedom and Freedom Riders — and full discographical notes.

Additional highlights of this collection include:

• Numerous spirituals, including “Deep River,” “Go Down, Moses (Let My People Go)” and “Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen”
• Lieder and songs by the likes of Johannes Brahms, Franz Schubert, Robert Schumann and Jean Sibelius
• Baroque arias recorded with the RCA Victor Chamber Orchestra
• Gustav Mahler’s Kindertotenlieder with the RCA Victor Chamber Orchestra
• Selection from Verdi’s Un ballo in maschera with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra
• Christmas carols arranged by Robert Russell Bennett, performed with the RCA Victor Symphony Orchestra and Chorus
• The Lady from Philadelphia — an audio documentary featuring performances by Marian Anderson, adapted from the television series See It Now