Many vinyl records are invaluable documents of their time, and hardly any series shows this as clearly as the Cologne recordings in the Electrola Collection. The re-release of these classics and rarities has met with an enthusiastic reception from  music-lovers and critics alike, and after the change from EMI Classics to Warner Classics the series is being continued under the name 'Cologne Collection'. The new additions cover opera and operetta, choral music and Lieder as well as the very first concerto recording made by top clarinettist Sabine Meyer.

I wanted "to create a musical mystery that reveals the utmost beauty and eternal order", Walter Braunfels said about his motivation for writing Die Verkündigung (The Annunciation) between 1934 and 1937. The composer had found the ideal source material in Paul Claudel's touching poem 'L’Annonce faite à Marie', which gave him new hope after the Nazis had seized power, causing him deep humiliation, in response to which he withdrew within himself.

With its mystical atmosphere, its hymnal choruses and the colourful orchestral sound, Die Verkündigung is one of the composer's most important mature works.