Strauss' Tod und Verklarung, Vier letzte Lieder: Karajan Reissued as Part of the Original Source Series on 180g LP. Pure Analogue Mix & Cut from the Original Four-Track Tapes at Emil Berliner Studios. Pressed at Optimal.

The recordings of Herbert von Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic are legendary - as is the interpretation of Richard Strauss's tone poem "Death and Transfiguration" and his "Four Last Songs", a reference recording with the singular soprano Gundula Janowitz, released in 1974. Since David Bowie's confession that this was one of his 25 favourite records, it even achieved cult status far beyond the borders of classical music.

For its 125th birthday, Deutsche Grammophon is releasing legendary recordings with highest sound standards: The new audiophile vinyl series The Original Source presents outstanding recordings from the 1970s in a whole new sound quality. For this, the renowned Emil Berliner Studios have remastered and edited the original four-track tapes in 100% analog quality (AAA) using technologies developed specifically to produce the series. The sonic differences to the original releases are considerable: greater clarity, more subtleties and improvements in frequency response, while at the same time less background noise, distortion and compression allow for an audiophile listening experience like never before.

The copies of this series appear on 180g vinyl records and in a deluxe gatefold edition with original covers and lyrics. They are accompanied by additional photos and facsimiles of the recording logs and band boxes, and an article explains the exact technical background.