NEW YORK, Nov. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Sony Classical releases Glenn Gould: The Complete Original Jacket Collection on September 25 to commemorate the beloved pianist's 75th birthday (September 25) and the 25th anniversary of his death (October 4). Considered one of the most important pianists of all time, even today, the idiosyncratic interpretations and the eccentric personality of the "James Dean of the piano" continue to fascinate.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20071114/NYW057 )

A limited edition, the recordings in Glenn Gould: The Complete Original Jacket Collection have the "look and feel" of the original vinyl discs and have been remastered for optimum sound quality. From Glenn Gould's legendary 1955 recording of the Goldberg Variations to piano works by Richard Strauss released posthumously on April 4, 1984, all the artist's recordings have been transferred on to 78 CDs - including all of his legendary Bach recordings. Each of the 60 single and nine double CDs consists of the exact recordings as first issued on vinyl. Each disc is a miniature replica of the original vinyl LP, packaged in cardboard slipcases in the original design.

With two bonus CDs, Glenn Gould: The Complete Original Jacket Collection includes 80 CDs, presented in a high-quality display case with a hard-cover book of more than 240 pages. The book contains a new and detailed essay by the German Gould specialist Michael Stegemann, along with texts and repertoire details regarding all recordings in the edition, as well as a listing and depiction of the recordings with reissue dates for repertoire that has appeared before.

The bonus CDs include the last great interview that Glenn Gould gave to Tim Page in 1981 and an essay on Johann Sebastian Bach and the fugue that Gould recorded in 1972 for a bonus LP. Also featured are a number of late recordings that never appeared on vinyl: fragments of the "Italian Album" and Wagner's Siegfried Idyll, recorded on September 8, 1982 with members of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra - the pianist's recording debut as conductor and his last recording of all, made on September 8, 1982. Also included is the music Gould's created for director George Roy Hill's film of Slaughterhouse Five in 1972.

RCA Red Seal, Sony Classical, Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, Masterworks Broadway and Masterworks Jazz are labels of SONY BMG Masterworks. For email updates and information regarding RCA Red Seal, Sony Classical, Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, Masterworks Broadway and Masterworks Jazz artists, promotions, tours and repertoire, please visit http://www.sonybmgmasterworks.com/

CONTACT: Susan Schiffer, +1-212-833-4763, or Susan.Schiffer@sonybmg.com,
or Silke Zimmermann, +49-89-41369646, or Silke.Zimmermann@sonybmg.com, both of
Sony Classical

Web site: http://www.sonybmgmasterworks.com/