The Spanish maestro Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos (1933-2014) concluded his acclaimed international conducting career of almost six decades with two memorable years as the venerated Principal Conductor of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra. Recorded live in concert at the new DR Koncerthusetin Copenhagen, this Blu-ray box set combines Frühbeck de Burgos’s powerful interpretation of the complete symphonies by Ludwig van Beethoven with his spectacular renderings of Symphonie fantastique by Hector Berlioz and Richard Strauss’s Eine Alpensinfonie as well as Joaquín Rodrigo’s popular Concierto de Aranjuez, featuring the world-renowned Spanish guitarist Pepe Romero.

Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos was born in 1933 in Burgos, Spain, and studied violin, piano and composition at the conservatories in Bilbao and Madrid followed by studies at the Musikhochschule in Munich. After beginning his career as chief conductor of the Bilbao Orkestra Sinfonikoa, de Burgos was appointed chief conductor of the Spanish National Orchestra. He was also music director of the Düsseldorf Stadtorchester, the Düsseldorfer Symphoniker and Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal. He was principal guest conductor for the Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo and the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington. Lastly, Rafael Frühbeckde Burgos was chief conductor and artistic director of the Dresdner Philharmonie. From 2012 until his death, he was chief conductor of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra.

Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos has led the most renowned American orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, to name just a few. In 2010, Frühbeck de Burgos was named “Conductor of the Year” by the prestigious magazine Musical America. More than 100 recordings testify to his reputation as one of the most renowned orchestra conductors in recent times. Some of his albums are considered to be reference recordings: Mendelssohn’s oratorios Elijah and St Paul, Mozart’s Requiem, Orff’s Carmina Burana, Bizet’s Carmen and the complete works of Manuel de Falla.