Chandos Records
| Chandos Records | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1979 |
| Founder | Brian Couzens |
| Genre | Classical |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Location | Colchester |
| Official website | www |
Chandos Records is a British independent classical music recording company based in Colchester. It was founded in 1979 by Brian Couzens.
Chandos Records arose from a band music publisher Chandos Music, founded in 1963, and Chandos Productions, a record production company which produced LPs for Classics for Pleasure, and, especially, RCA's work in the UK. Its first record was Bloch's Sacred Service (ABR1001). Important early recordings were made with Mariss Jansons, Nigel Kennedy and the King's Singers – before they moved to bigger contracts with EMI.
In 2005, Chandos Records was the first classical label to offer mp3s on its website. They now run The Classical Shop with over 45 labels on offer, including Naxos, LSO Live, Coro, Avie, Onyx and many rarer European labels, which are not available in physical format in the UK.
The current managing director of Chandos Records is Ralph Couzens, son of Brian Couzens.
The name "Chandos" refers to James Brydges, the first Duke of Chandos (1674-1744), at whose Palladian-style house, Cannons, Handel was engaged as a composer-in-residence for approximately a year (1717-1718). In addition to the eleven "Chandos" anthems, Handel also wrote other works, including Acis and Galatea, at Cannons. The company originally had its office in Chandos House, Chandos Place, London SW1, the street name derived from the Duke.
The Chandos catalogue contains a range of classical music - for example, much orchestral, choral and chamber music by such lesser-known British composers as Herbert Howells, Gerald Finzi, Charles Villiers Stanford and Arnold Bax, conducted by eminent conductors including Richard Hickox, Gianandrea Noseda, Neeme Järvi and Vernon Handley. They also specialise in early music, on their label Chaconne, with performances by artists such as the Purcell Quartet, Collegium Musicum 90 and Sophie Yates. Chandos is also known for its Movies series, preserving previously lost film scores. In 1990 they launched the Opera in English label, in association with the Peter Moores Foundation, which has resulted in over 80 recordings.
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