To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of Hideo Saito and the 40th anniversary of the founding of the Saito Kinen Orchestra, we are releasing 40 limited edition historic masterpieces!

Universal Music LLC (headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Fujikura Hisashi; hereinafter referred to as “Universal Music”) will release 40 of the Saito Kinen Orchestra’s greatest albums in a two-part series on Wednesday, June 19th and Wednesday, July 10th to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of Saito Hideo and the 40th anniversary of the founding of the Saito Kinen Orchestra.

The Saito Kinen Orchestra (SKO) was founded in 1984. It was named after Hideo Saito, Seiji Ozawa’s teacher, to commemorate the 10th anniversary of his death. In 1992, the Saito Kinen Festival Matsumoto began in Matsumoto, and in 2015, the name was changed to Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festival. It has now become a well-established music festival that attracts many musicians from all over the world every year.

This limited edition series includes a lineup of 40 carefully selected titles, ranging from “November Steps and Others,” a collection of Toru Takemitsu’s representative works recorded during the European tour of Seiji Ozawa and the Saito Kinen Orchestra in 1989 and 1990, the early days of their activities, to a live recording of the gala concert held at Suntory Hall in 2018 to commemorate the 120th anniversary of the founding of Deutsche Grammophon. High-quality UHQCD & green color label coat specifications are used.

“40th Anniversary of the Founding of the Saito Kinen Orchestra and 50th Anniversary of the Death of Hideo Saito”

Saito Kinen Orchestra Masterpiece Series: All 40 songs

1st issue: Released on Wednesday, June 19, 2024 21W

2nd Release: Wednesday, July 10, 2024 19W

Product number: UCCD-41083～41126 / UCCG-41172

[First press limited edition][UHQCD][Green color label coat]

1 ticket: ￥1,980 (tax included)

2-disc set: ¥2,640 (tax included)

3-disc set: ¥3,850 (tax included)

■Series lineup

1st edition: Released June 19, 2024

1) Toru Takemitsu: November Steps and more

2) Brahms: Symphony No. 4 and others

3) Brahms: Symphony No. 1, etc.

4) Brahms: Symphony No. 2 and No. 3

5) Tchaikovsky: String Serenade, etc.

6) Stravinsky: Oratorio “Oedipus Rex”

7) Beethoven: Symphony No. 7 / Schubert: Symphony No. 8 “Unfinished”

8) Schoenberg: Pure Night, etc.

9) Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4, etc.

10) Mozart: Oboe Quartet, etc.

11) Stravinsky: Opera “The Adventures of a Debaucher”

12) Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 6 “Pathétique” and others

13) Schubert: Symphony No. 9 “The Great”

14) Toru Takemitsu: Ceremonial and others

15) Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 “Eroica” and others

16) Bach: St. Matthew Passion

17) Beethoven: Symphony No. 6 “Pastoral” and others

18) Beethoven: Symphony No. 1, etc.

19) Dvorak: String Serenade, etc.

20) Bach: Mass in B minor

21) Poulenc: Comic opera “The Breasts of Tiresias”, Secular Cantata “Masquerade”

2nd edition: Released on July 10, 2024

22) Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 “Fate”, No. 2, etc.

23) Beethoven: Symphony No. 4, No. 8, etc.

24) Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 “Choral”

25) Bruckner: Symphony No. 7

26) Bartok: Concerto for Orchestra, etc.

27) Gershwin: Piano Concerto in F, etc.

28) Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique, etc.

29) Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5

30) Mahler: Symphony No. 1 “Titan” and others

31) Britten: War Requiem

32) Brahms: Symphony No. 2 / Ravel: Clown’s Morning Song, etc.

33) Brahms: Symphony No. 1

34) Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique

35) Britten: War Requiem

36) Bartok: Opera “Bluebeard’s Castle”

37) Ravel: Opera “The Child and the Magic”

38) Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique

39) Beethoven: Symphony No. 7, etc.

40) DG 120th Anniversary SPECIAL GALA CONCERT

■ Links

Saito Kinen Orchestra Universal Music Official Website

https://www.universal-music.co.jp/sko/

Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festival

https://www.ozawa-festival.com/