EMI Classics

EMI Classics
Parent company	EMI
Founded	1990
Chairman EMI Classics	David Kassler
COO	Amanda Cupples
A&R Vice President	Andrew Cornall
President Virgin Classics	Alain Lanceron
Distributed Labels	EMI Classics Virgin Classics Classics for Pleasure (UK) Angel Records Blue Note Label Group (USA)
Genre(s)	Classical Music
Country	UK
Websites	www.emiclassics.com www.emiclassics.co.uk (UK) www.emiclassics.de (DE) www.emivirginclassics.fr (FR) www.angelrecords.com (US)

The EMI Classics logo used until 2003.

EMI Classics is a record label of EMI, formed in 1990 in order to reduce the need to create country-specific packaging and catalogs for internationally distributed classical music releases.

Classical recordings were formerly simultaneously released under combinations of Angel, Seraphim, Odeon, Columbia, His Master's Voice, and other labels, in part because competitors own these names in various countries. These have been moved under the EMI Classics umbrella to avoid the trademark problems. Releases created for distribution in specific countries are still distributed under the historical names, except for Columbia as EMI sold the Columbia name to Sony Music Entertainment. The red logo harkens back to the Red Seal releases, introduced by EMI predecessor the Gramophone Company in 1902. So HMV classical releases had red labels.

EMI Classics also incorporates the Virgin Classics label.

Artists

Composers

Sir Paul McCartney in concert

• Thomas Adès
• Craig Armstrong
• Howard Goodall
• Karl Jenkins
• Jon Lord
• Sir Paul McCartney
• Michael Nyman
• Zbigniew Preisner
• Mohammed Abdel Wahab

Conductors

Claudio Abbado Sir John Barbirolli Daniel Barenboim Sir Thomas Beecham Sir Adrian Boult William Christie Alan Curtis Lawrence Foster Wilhelm Furtwängler Carlo Maria Giulini Emmanuelle Haïm Bernard Haitink Vernon Handley Daniel Harding Richard Hickox Mariss Jansons Paavo Järvi Herbert von Karajan Rudolf Kempe

Otto Klemperer John Lanchbery Sir Charles Mackerras Austrian conductor Franz Welser-Möst, music director of the Cleveland Orchestra. Sir Neville Marriner Jean Martinon Kurt Masur Ingo Metzmacher Riccardo Muti Sir Roger Norrington Antonio Pappano André Previn Sir John Pritchard Sir Simon Rattle Jérémie Rhorer Blair Ellis Robertson Wolfgang Sawallisch Jeffrey Tate Franz Welser-Möst Sir David Willcocks

Chamber ensembles

Ahn Trio L'Arpeggiata Artemis Quartet Alban Berg Quartett

Belcea Quartet Eroica Trio Quatuor Ébène

Choirs and vocal ensembles

Cantorion Choir of Clare College Cambridge Choir of King's College, Cambridge Christ Church Cathedral Choir, Oxford John Alldis Choir

The King's Singers Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir Rundfunkchor Berlin Westminster Abbey Choir Winchester Cathedral Choir

Orchestras

Celebrated Indian sitarist and composer Ravi Shankar

Academy of St. Martin in the Fields Les Arts Florissants Berliner Philharmoniker Le Cercle de l’Harmonie Il Complesso Barocco Le Concert d’Astrée Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen English Chamber Orchestra

Estonian National Symphony Orchestra Europa Galante Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra London Chamber Orchestra London Philharmonic Orchestra London Symphony Orchestra Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte Carlo Philharmonia Orchestra Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Instrumentalists

Piano

Simon Trpčeski Leif Ove Andsnes Piotr Anderszewski Martha Argerich Daniel Barenboim Jonathan Biss Youri Egorov Ingrid Fliter David Fray

Evgeny Kissin Stephen Kovacevich Li Yundi Dong-Hyek Lim Gabriela Montero John Ogdon André Previn Blair Ellis Robertson Ayako Uehara Lars Vogt Alexis Weissenberg

Violin

Korean American violin virtuoso Sarah Chang

Linda Brava Renaud Capuçon Sarah Chang Kyung-wha Chung Nigel Kennedy Sir Yehudi Menuhin

Anne-Sophie Mutter Jascha Heifetz David Oistrakh Itzhak Perlman Blair Ellis Robertson Christian Tetzlaff Maxim Vengerov Frank Peter Zimmermann

Cello

Andreas Brantelid Gautier Capuçon Han-na Chang Natalie Clein Julian Lloyd Webber

Jacqueline du Pré Truls Mørk Mstislav Rostropovich Trey Lee Chui-yee

Trumpet

• Maurice André
• Ole Edvard Antonsen
• Alison Balsom

Guitar

• Manuel Barrueco
• Xuefei Yang

Oboe

• Christoph Hartmann

Clarinet

• Sabine Meyer

Flute

• Emmanuel Pahud

Sitar

• Anoushka Shankar
• Ravi Shankar

Singers

Soprano

Maria Callas Patrizia Ciofi Diana Damrau Natalie Dessay Véronique Gens Angela Gheorghiu Barbara Hendricks

Denise Leigh Natasha Marsh Mady Mesplé Kate Royal Dame Elizabeth Schwarzkopf Dame Kiri Te Kanawa Liping Zhang

Mezzo-soprano

• Dame Janet Baker
• Joyce DiDonato
• Fairuz
• Christa Ludwig
• Réjane Magloire

Contralto

• Umm Kulthum

Countertenor

• Max Emanuel Cencic
• David Daniels
• Philippe Jaroussky
• Gerard Lesne

Tenor

Spanish tenor and conductor José Plácido Domingo Embil, better known as Plácido Domingo

Roberto Alagna Alfie Boe Ian Bostridge Franco Corelli

Plácido Domingo Abdel Halim Hafez Simon O'Neill Rolando Villazon

Baritone

• Olaf Bär
• Thomas Hampson

Bass

• Jonathan Lemalu
• Willard White

Crossover acts

English crossover soprano Sarah Brightman

Keedie Babb Sarah Brightman Celtic Tenors Celtic Woman Keith Emerson Giorgia Fumanti Lesley Garrett Jane Gilchrist

Myleene Klass Libera Mediaeval Baebes Maksim Mrvica Nigel Kennedy Quintet The Planets Anoushka Shankar Wild

Catalogue series

100 Best (6-CD budget series) 20th Century Classics series (2-CD) American Classics Black Boxes (Virgin Classics 5C-D budget series) British Composers Debut (developing artist series) Encore (1-CD budget series) EMI Masters EMI - The Home of Opera Gemini (2-CD mid-price series) Great Artists of the Century Great Recordings of the Century Historical (series of public domain recordings) ICON series The Karajan Collection

The Klemperer Legacy Legend (CD+DVD series) Maria Callas Edition Opera Series (budget opera series without libretto) The Perlman Edition The Platinum Collection (3-CD budget series from EMI UK) Recommends Series (Gramophone / Penguin Guide recommended series from EMI UK) References (historical series from EMI France) Rouge et Noir (2-CD mid price series from EMI France) The Classics (Virgin Classics budget series) Triples (3-CD budget series) Veritas (Virgin Classics original instrument recordings) Virgin de Virgin Virgo (Virgin Classics budget series)

See also

• List of record labels