November 2025
Fauré: Masques et Bergamasques Suite
by Alan George
Elgar: The Dream of Gerontius (Hallé)
(Déjà Review) A remarkable achievement [JQ]
Edwards: Symphonies 1 & 4 (ABC Classics)
(Déjà Review) A first class production that deserves to find a wide audience [TP]
Charpentier: Choral music (Château de Versailles)
A carefully devised programme enabling us to understand how Italian polychoral works so heavily influenced Charpentier’s expansive, insistent idiom [RMo]
Rose: Music for String Quartet (Convivium Records)
Difficult music that requires serious listening. Superb performances and recording [WH]
Piano music played by Fanny Davies & Adela Verne (APR)
It is wonderful to have Davies’ Schumann back in the catalogue and Adela Verne’s discs are a delicious bonus [RCh]
Berlioz: Roméo et Juliette (SWR Music)
Not a library choice but there’s much to enjoy [JQ]
Thieriot: Chamber Music Volume 4 (Toccata Classics)
Pleasant Brahms-influenced works, lacking much spark [DJB]
Music’s Odyssey. An Invitation to Western Classical Music (Allen Lane)
A monumental, profoundly valuable book [DHa]
The New Winter Songbook (Convivium Records)
Twenty-one new songs by a diverse selection of British composers [JW]
Mahler: Symphonies 7 & 9 (Chandos)
A re-issue of highly individual, grand and emphatic, even quirky, renderings of two great Mahler symphonies in excellent sound [RMo]
Scriabin: Orchestral Works (Deutsche Grammophon)
Outstanding Scriabin from an orchestra celebrating its centenary [PH]
A Babe is Born. Music for Christmas (Resonus)
A rewarding and refreshing Christmas album [JQ]
Haydn: The Complete Masses (Naxos)
(Déjà Review) The highlight of my anniversary year listening [JS]
Gluck: Iphigénie en Tauride (Decca)
(Déjà Review) Fully in touch with Gluck’s keen sense of drama [ST]
Piazzolla: María de Buenos Aires (Brilliant Classics)
A fine, vigorous performance, but what a shame there are no texts [SB]
Berlioz: Le carnaval romain, Symphonie fantastique (Pentatone)
Finally, a Symphonie fantastique to rival the vintage versions in superb, vivid, beautifully balanced digital sound [RMo]
Fanny Davies and Adela Verne (piano): Complete Recordings (APR)
A leading Clara Schumann pupil excels in the studio, coupled with brilliant, rare recordings from a more shadowy performer [JW]
Rendano: Piano Concerto (Dynamic)
Excellent performances though the concerto’s inspiration falls short [RCh]
Coleridge-Taylor: Orchestral Works (SOMM Recordings)
A valuable, diverse and very well presented programme displays the composer’s strengths and weaknesses [NB]
Glass: Portrait (Analekta)
(Déjà Review) An excellent sampler of the accessible Glass [DJB]
Brahms: Choral Works, Symphony No 3 (Soli Deo Gloria)
(Déjà Review) Refreshing and exciting [JQ]
Haydn: Complete Music for Solo Keyboard (BIS)
For fans of the instruments or neophytes, this is a bargain not to be missed [KM]
Brett Dean – Composer & Performer (BIS)
An astute release showcasing a distinctive and interesting composer [TP]
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