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Malcolm Sargent's reputation as one of the great popularizers of classical music in Britain arose not only through his long association with the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts (1947-67), but was evident much earlier through chief conductorships of the Halle (1939-42), Liverpool Philharmonic (1942-48), and BBC Symphony Orchestras (1950-57).

By the time he became a fixture at the Proms in 1947 Sir Malcolm (he was knighted in 1947) his was one of the best-known names in England. In personality, showmanship, and energy he was ideal for the nightly concerts.

Sargent amassed a commercial discography of imposing breadth and variety. His first HMV recordings date from as far back as 1924 with excerpts from Vaughan Williams's opera Hugh the Drover, which was captured by the pre-electric acoustic process, and his career with the company ended in 1966 with Walton's First Symphony.

Sargent's wide-ranging repertoire extended from Handel to Gilbert and Sullivan operettas. 'Messiah and The Mikado have been the twin pillars of my career,' he once joked; it was hardly true - his inspirational handling of choral bodies ensured that Handel's oratorios and others such as Mendelssohn's Elijah would be indelibly associated with him all his life.

CD Listing:

CD 1: Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 'Eroica'; Schubert: Symphony No. 8 'Unfinished'

CD 2: Rossini, Berlioz, Mendelssohn, Wagner: Overtures

CD 3: Rossini: La Boutique fantastique: Concert Suite; Dohnányi, Ibert: Suites

CDs 4-5: Handel: Messiah

CDs 6-7: Mendelssohn: Elijah

CD 8: Elgar: Enigma Variations, Serenade in E minor; Delius: A Song before Sunrise, Songs of Farewell

CD 9: Walton: Belshazzars Feast; Elgar: The Dream of Gerontius Part 1

CD 10: Elgar: The Dream of Gerontius Part 2; Parry, Arne, Elgar: Anthems

CD 11: Vaughan Williams: The Wasps Overture; Greensleeves & Tallis Fantasias; Serenade to Music Toward the Unknown Region; Romance in D; Holst: St. Pauls Suite

CD 12: Holst: The Perfect Fool; Beni Mora; The Planets

CD 13: Coolridge-Taylor: Hiawathas Wedding Feast; German: Henry VII; Nell Gwynn; Warlock: Capriol Suite; Britten: Simple Symphony

CD 14: Britten: The Young Persons Guide to the Orchetra; Walton: Façade excerpts; Symphony No. 1

CD 15: Bax; Morning Song; Bliss, Rubbra: Piano Concertos

CD 16: Sibelius: Symphonies 1 & 5; Pojohlas Daughter

CD 17: Sibelius: Finlandia; En saga; The Swan of Tuonela; Karelia Suite; Greig: Lyric Suite; Smetana: The Bartered Bride Overture

CD 18: Smetana: Má