December 2024
30 Years of MusicWeb
by Len Mullenger
Quilter: Go, Lovely Rose (Chandos)
A fine recital of songs is a welcome addition to the Quilter discography [PT]
Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra – The Early Years Vol. 5 (Pristine Audio)
Excellent restorations of Ormandy’s ‘World’s Greatest Music’ recordings of the late-30s [JW]
Humperdinck’s Hänsel und Gretel
A survey by Lee Denham
Fred over jorden (Peace to the World) (2L)
Something rather special [DC]
Sun Forest Lake (Candle Row Press)
A perceptive study of Sibelius and his key orchestral works [JQ]
Bellini: Norma (Divina Records)
Simply one of the greatest ‘bel canto’ performances on record [MBu]
Corelli ajusté à la flûte traversière (Da Vinci Classics)
Every lover of Baroque music will be delighted to listen to Corelli à la française [JV]
Bruckner: Symphony No 5 (NCPA Classics)
Another grand, weighty, live account from the NCPA of Bruckner’s most hieratic symphony, beautifully played and engineered [RMo]
Kats-Chernin: Wild Swans (ABC Classics)
(Déjà Review) Future listeners will wonder how music of this quality could possibly have escaped their attention [ZT]
Bartók: Piano Concerti (Capriccio)
Satisfying performances of two concertos, a few doubts about the third [WH]
Erlanger: La sorcière (B Records)
A tremendous performance of an unexpectedly compelling French rarity [PSt]
Michael Rabin (violin) Unpublished (Parnassus)
An unpublished live Beethoven Concerto spearheads this Michael Rabin release [JW]
Dvořák: Symphonies 5 & 6 (Melbourne Symphony Orchestra)
Fresh, vital, exuberant, strikingly energetic and authentic performances [RMo]
Bruckner: The Symphonies (Naxos)
A superb contribution to the anniversary celebrations: original interpretation, fine playing, good sound and outstanding documentation [RWe]
Handel: Fernando, Re di Castiglia (Erato)
(Déjà Review) A delightful score, fortunate here in being both sensitively and expressively performed [IB]
Coleridge-Taylor, Harrison: Violin concertante works (Lyrita)
(Déjà Review) Underappreciated English concertante works given fine readings [JF]
Brahms: Piano Concertos 1 & 2 (Sony Classical)
The concerto performances are very fine but the late piano pieces should not be missed on any account [JQ]
Handel: Messiah (Alto)
A brilliant, flawless live performance graced by some stellar solo singing [RMo]
Ukrainian Christmas (Naxos)
Dazzling orchestral arrangements of traditional and recent Ukrainian Christmas music [GH]
Phibbs: String Quartets 2-4 (Nimbus Records)
If you enjoy Britten’s quartets you will enjoy these [SB]
Earliest French Piano Recordings (APR)
A splendidly remastered and historically important tranche of piano recordings [JW]
Bruckner: Symphony No 7 (Atma Classique)
(Déjà Review) A dedicated performance, with sensitive awareness of Bruckner’s idiom and musical characteristics [TB]
Arnold: Concerto for Two Pianos (Naxos)
(Déjà Review) A valuable addition to the growing Arnold catalogue [BBr]
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Featured Naxos review |
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