Recommended
David Ponsford (organ): Corrette & Dandrieu (Nimbus Records)
A perfect match of music, organ and performer [JV]
Shostakovich: String Quartets (Signum Classics)
The Carduccis’ Shostakovich: control and catharsis [NC]
Kabeláč: Complete Chamber Music (Capriccio)
An important set from a composer who had much to say, and said it without any compromise [HC]
Bruckner: Symphony No 4 (Profil)
A magnificent account of the last version of Bruckner’s most approachable symphony, beautifully played in ideal recorded sound [RMo]
Liszt: A Faust Symphony, Les Préludes (St Laurent Studio)
Uncontrived, yet revelatory, interpretations from a neglected podium auteur [NC]
Toscanini: The 1939 Beethoven Cycle (Pristine Audio)
One of the finest Beethoven Symphony cycles in the best remasterings [DF]
Wilhelm Kempff (piano) Live Concert Edition (Meloclassic)
Indispensable for Kempff fans [SG]
In Sara Levy’s Salon – Chamber Music for Viola (Christophorus)
Rare repertoire of fine quality, excellent performances [JV]
Guerra-Peixe: A Retirada da Laguna (Naxos)
Another excellent addition to this revelatory series – brilliant music, brilliantly played [NB]
Mascagni: Cavalleria rusticana & Leoncavallo: I Pagliacci (Pristine Audio)
Remarkable sonic restoration, almost recreation, and a must for Verismo opera lovers [EJW]
Delius: Eine Messe des Lebens (LAWO Classics)
Sir Mark Elder and his Bergen forces present Delius’ A Mass of Life in the best possible light [MC]
Chopin: Études (Decca)
These Études aspire to a narrative unlike any other recording ever made – and is often remarkable in doing that [MB]
Mademoiselle Duval: Les Génies (Château de Versailles Spectacles)
A Baroque opera rarity is one of CVS’s happiest releases of recent years [MP]
Upheaval (OUR Recordings)
Wonderful playing, emotional depth and imagination in this beautiful music [RCh]
Elgar: Symphonies Nos 1 & 2 (Hallé)
Distinguished recordings which surpass the earlier recordings by these performers [JQ]
Stainer: The Crucifixion (Delphian)
An ideal performance of this famous old work which should win it new friends [SB]
R Strauss: Intermezzo (Warner Classics)
The only studio recording of Strauss’s biographical opera is a complete winner on all front [MP]
Légende – Solo harp works (Claves)
A consistently engaging anthology of ‘romantic’ music for solo harp, all perceptively played [GPu]
Wagner: Das Rheingold (Pristine Audio)
A great performance revitalised in extraordinarily vivid sound – another Pristine remastering triumph [RMo]
Michael Spyres (tenor) In The Shadows (Erato)
I enjoyed some unhackneyed repertoire and the marvellous singing [GF]
Samuel Barber: His Life and Legacy (University of Illinois Press)
A first class study, well worth tracking down [SG]
Smith: Dark Flower (Redshift)
The magnificent quintet which gives this exceptional release its title is a must; the couplings are hardly less compelling [RHa]
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