March 2024
Beethoven: Overtures (Elatus)
(Déjà Review) There’s some great music here, so go and treat yourself [TH]
Path to the Moon Works for cello & piano (Chandos)
Three sonatas and a raft of transcribed songs offer fruitful material for the Chandos pairing [JW]
Mozart: Zaide (Orfeo)
A very good cast in a version with more linking dialogue than on other recordings [MP]
American Counterpoints (Bright Shiny Things)
Committed performances of works by distinguished but underperformed Black composers [JH]
Cavalieri: Lamentations (Pan Classics)
Incisive performances of stylistically groundbreaking and expressive works [JV]
Wagner: Das Rheingold (Decca)
A classic Wagner recording in magnificently remastered sound [JQ]
O L Fernândez: Piano music (Nimbus Records)
Imaginative and evocative music vividly played makes for a fabulous addition to this series [RCh]
Brahms: Piano Concertos (Linn)
Trpčeski delivers interesting if flawed performances of these two warhorse concertos [RC]
Bach: Sonatas for Violin & Harpsichord Vol. 1 (Analekta)
A disc that will have pride of place on my shelf and one that is sure to get repeated listening [KS]
Aretino: Sabbato Sancto – Lamentationes et Responsoria (Arcana)
The low tessitura and the slow tempi make these settings quite moving [JV]
Janáček: Káťa Kabanová (Decca)
An incandescent central performance heads an excellent ensemble cast under Mackerras’ renowned leadership [MP]
Bedford: In the Voices of the Living (NMC)
Bedford’s music is adventurous, exciting, humane and quite devoid of blandness or the easy option. Terrific performances and sonics [RHa]
Howell: Orchestral Works (Signum Classics)
Excellent performances of a raft of previously unheard Dorothy Howell scores though Lamia eclipses them all [JW]
The Monarch’s Music (CRD)
A timely and enjoyable celebration of music for royal occasions [WH]
Leguay: Momenti – Piano Works (Cybele)
Serious, monumental piano music with a distinctive French flavour [DC]
Scenes of Horror: Baroque Arias From the Shadows (Perfect Noise)
Thoroughly disappointing – a voice of no great distinction in a gimmicky programme [RMo]
Hahn: Violin Concerto & Piano Concerto (Maguelone)
(Déjà Review) A truly enchanting album calculated to chase away the winter blues [IL]
Rossini: L’italiana in Algeri (Decca)
A pleasing but hardly essential recording of Rossini’s opera, noteworthy for being the first recorded in stereo [MP]
From the Airwaves (MPR)
Lighter fare for clarinet and piano from a fine duo [JW]
Mozart: Piano Concertos Nos 20 & 23 (Analekta)
Illuminating, especially the clarified swing between minor and major perspectives in Concerto No 20 [MG]
Pickard: Mass in Troubled Times (BIS)
A lesser-known facet of Pickard’s output, with a viscerally thrilling performance of the Mass [HC]
Ponchielli: La Gioconda (Pristine Audio)
No one who loves this opera can afford to be without this recording for Callas’ unique insight into the title role [GF]
Puccini: I Canti – Orchestral Songs (BR Klassik)
The youthful Puccini’s complete songs, robustly sung – and an even more pleasing trio of early orchestral pieces [RMo]
Shostakovich & Arensky: Piano trios (DUX)
Performances that underplay the essential character of each work [DJB]
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