Great Conductors (C Major, 4 DVDs)

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This impressive four-DVD set features four documentaries that revolve around the lives and careers of four of history’s finest conductors. The first is “I Am Lost to the World,” a documentary about Carlos Kleiber, that includes several musical excerpts conducted by Kleiber. The second is “Journey of a Lifetime,” which focuses on Sir Georg Solti. The film includes interviews with Valerie Solti, Valery Gergiev, and more. “Larger Than Life” revolves around Leonard Bernstein, and includes interviews with his children and other music giants like Stephen Sondheim and Gustavo Dudamel. Finally, “Maestro for the Screen,” is about the life of Herbert von Karajan and shows the fascinating development of Karajan’s language for filming orchestral productions and starts with the very first concert production in 1957 in Japan, followed by the impressive cooperation with director Henri Georges Clouzot in 1965 to Karajan’s own film company Telemondial.