January 2025
Donizetti: Grand Seigneur – Baritone Arias (Dynamic)
A valuable collection of rarely heard scenes from Donizetti’s operas [GF]
Endless Fascination: The life and work of Thomas Pitfield (Forsyth Brothers)
A fitting tribute to a remarkable polymath [JF]
The Charm of the Lyre-Guitar (Brilliant Classics)
A disc which evokes a significant cultural phenomenon from Napoleonic France [GPu]
Delius: Florida Suite, Paris, Brigg Fair (Warner Classics)
(Déjà Review) These are gorgeous performances and recordings of Delius favourites played unaffectedly yet con molto amore [RB]
Beethoven: Symphony No 5, Leonore Overture No 3 (BR Klassik)
Not necessarily so great an improvement over previous issues but wonderfully grand and energised [RMo]
Glerup: Perhaps Thus The End (Dacapo)
If you are looking for harmony and easily accessible melodies this probably isn’t for you but it’s well played and full of emotion [KT]
Sweelinck: The Orpheus of Amsterdam (Pan Classics)
These excellent performances offer a different perspective on Sweelinck’s vocal and keyboard works [JV]
The Secrets of Andalusia (First Hand Records)
An enjoyable excursion through Southern Spain across three hundred years [GH]
Busoni: Doktor Faust (Naxos)
A new recording of Busoni’s operatic masterpiece which falls short of expectations in a number of aspects [PCG]
Torroba: La Voz De La Guitarra (BIS)
Original works for guitar, masterfully played [ZT]
Lehár: Symphonic Works, Piano Sonatas & 39 Lieder (cpo)
This very well-produced collection will appeal to those who enjoy Lehár’s operettas [EJW]
Copland and his American Contemporaries (Avie)
(Déjà Review) A very good disc, which nicely rounds off a most stimulating mini-series [JQ]
Kaleidoscope – Contemporary Piano Music by Female Composers (Grand Piano)
This is a disc to savour through repeated hearings [SA]
Schumann & Taneyev: Piano Quintets (Signum Classics)
The Schumann is excellent; the Taneyev can be skipped (SV)
Smetana: Má Vlast (Gramola)
A pioneering version still has appealing elements despite the appearance of many later rivals [PCG]
Journey to the Orient – Music for Flute and Guitar (Dynamic)
An enchanting musical journey towards the Orient involving familiar and brand new music [KT]
Schubert: Lieder (Erato)
Dynamically small-scale but vocally very attractive readings, sensitively nuanced [GF]
Ysaÿe: Poème nocturne (Musique en Wallonie)
More varied fare from Eugène Ysaÿe’s seemingly inexhaustible workbench [JW]
Pachelbel: Magnificat II (cpo)
An impressive display of Pachelbel’s art [JV]
Britten: Gloriana (Arthaus Musik)
The closest recorded representation of the full operatic experience [MG]
The Art of Harpsichord Duets (Da Vinci Classics)
Energetic performances of pieces for two keyboards [JV]
Václav Neumann (conductor): Lucerne Festival (Audite)
Convincing examples of Neumann and the Czech Philharmonic heard during Lucerne Festivals of the 1980s [JW]
Mozart: Serenades (Berlin Classics)
Rapturous: two Mozart Serenatas composed (and recorded) in Salzburg [DF]
Machaut: The Fount of Grace (Hyperion)
The penultimate release in The Orlando Consort’s Machaut Edition explores more highlights of this master of the Middle Ages [PH]
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Featured Naxos review |
Featured Naxos review |
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