March 2024
Strauss: Four Last Songs (Alpha Classics)
A thoughtful project and, as such, a significant addition to the discography of the Vier letzte Lieder [JQ]
S Jones: Three Concertos (BMOP/sound)
A warm welcome to a trio of Samuel Jones’ finely wrought concertos [RHa]
Puccini: Il trittico (Decca)
Not a first choice recording but worth spending some time with for a few excellent individual contributions [MP]
Stanford: Irish Song Cycles (SOMM Recordings)
Winsome, windy and windswept with the occasional folkloric moment, but Stanford on auto-pilot [JW]
Duo Menurida: In Two Minds (Métier)
Sensuous, inventive and often fantastic improvisations [JF]
Donizetti: Lucia di Lammermoor (Pristine Audio)
Pristine refreshes Callas’s 1959 stereo recording and prompts a re-evaluation of its considerable merits [PT]
Mahler: Symphony 8 (Warner Classics)
(Déjà Review) Lean and direct, intent on clarity and sense of direction, but an apparent lack of some grandeur and sense of occasion [TD]
Magnard & Fauré: String Quartets (Aeon)
(Déjà Review) Substantial works in immaculate performances [HC]
Leoni: L’Oracolo (Decca)
Worth getting to know even in a less than successful recording [MP]
Handel: Handel for Trumpet (Linn)
A superbly programmed set of pieces by Handel, reimagined for trumpet and piano [PB]
Lloyd: Symphonies (Lyrita)
George Lloyd conducts his first six symphonies in Lyrita’s reissues [JW]
Labor: Piano Concertos for the left hand (Capriccio)
Three conservative concertante works for the left hand in exemplary performances [NB]
Schubert: Lieder. Love’s Lasting Power (Delphian)
Two recent competition winners in an impressive debut recital, more than promising [PT]
Beethoven: Complete String Quartets Volume 1 (Chandos)
Consistently magnificent performances, but comparison has a sting in the tail [MG]
Dvořák: Symphony No. 9, Carnival Overture; Smetana: The Bartered Bride Overture (RCA)
(Déjà Review) Ebullient and powerful and the finale sweeping but not overdone, and with tremendous inner rhythm [JW]
Lauridsen: Choral music (Hyperion)
(Déjà Review) This disc is a must – I hope you enjoy it as much as I have [JPh]
Messiaen: Turangalîla-Symphonie (Harmonia Mundi)
A top-notch Turangalîla from Toronto; stellar sonics, too [DM]
Liszt-Beethoven: Complete Symphonies Vol 3 (Dynamic)
Vigorous and purposeful performances with an eye for detail [RCh]
Handel: Theodora (Alpha Classics)
A splendidly cohesive musically-rewarding example of integrated casting and performance [JW]
Rossini: Il barbiere di Siviglia (C Major)
Vocal riches in a depressingly hyperactive production that is devoid of amusement [MP]
Ruby Hughes (soprano): End of My Days (BIS)
An outstanding recital; elegantly conceived, ideally recorded and beautifully performed [RHa]
Tůma: Motets, Dixit Dominus & Sinfonia (Aparté)
Andreas Scholl’s fine performances should help in promoting Tůma’s music [JV]
Chopin: Reminiscences (Linn)
(Déjà Review) It depends on whether you’re a fan of Pizarro, or his personal selection [TH]
Quatuor Kandinsky: French Piano Quartets (Erato)
(Déjà Review) A sultry recording of surgingly romantic music given the hot-blooded approach [RB]
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Featured Naxos review |
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