Recordings of the Month
Schubert: Symphonies 8 & 9 (Recursive Classics)
A superb double-bill of Schubert’s last two symphonies which trumps its predecessors in terms of sound, playing and edition [RMo]
Bach: The Well-Tempered Clavier – Book I (Hyperion)
‘What will he do next?’ we ask ourselves, about music we already know back to front [DC]
Couperin: Pièces de violes avec la basse chiffrée (Challenge Classics)
Excellent in every way [DC]
Enescu: Octet & Piano Quintet (Chandos)
I was bowled over by this one [SB]
Adès, Kurtág & Tippett: Concertos (Hallé)
Modern masterpieces in superb accounts [LW]
Bloch: Violin Sonatas, Baal Shem (Naxos)
Remarkably wide-ranging repertoire, performed with passion and skill [NB]
Stephen Hough’s Piano Postcards (Hyperion)
Magical from start to finish [RCh]
Mentor and Muse (Albion Records)
Women who shaped RVW’s musical world [JF]
Hillborg: Orchestral & Concertante Works, Vol 1 (BIS)
A magnificent release on all counts and the Cello Concerto is a true masterpiece [HC]
McCabe: Symphony 2 & 3, Cello Concerto (Signum)
Each of these commanding works surely merits the epithet ‘masterpiece’ [WH]
Dupré: Symphonie-Passion (Base2 Music)
The music-making and the engineering make this a memorable disc [JQ]
Mozart: Complete Works For Clarinet Vol. 2 (Alpha Classics)
Volume 2 of Baldeyrou’s Mozart survey is every bit as successful as volume 1 [ST]
Dvořák: Symphony 9 (Reference Recording)
A vivid, thrilling account of a warhorse symphony as the main course, enough to reinvigorate any jaded palate – followed by a piquant dessert [RMo]
Martinů: Symphonies (Deutsche Grammophon)
A Martinů symphony cycle for the ages [DJB]
Akiho: Beneath Lighted Coffers (Reference Recordings)
Two brilliant ear-opening works that show what steel pans are capable of [PRJ]
Biber & Aufschnaiter: Choral Music (Accent)
Superb performances of three musical treasures from Austria’s musical heritage [JV]
Chopin sans Chopin (First Hand Records)
A glorious, widely varied recital of Chopin-influenced piano music [RCh]
Alkan: Complete Organ Works Vol. 1 (Signum Classics)
Probably the best recorded organ disc I have yet encountered [RHa]
In Plain Sight: Piano works by women composers (Rubicon Classics)
A delightful surprise [DJB]
Rediscovering Liszt (Prima Facie)
One of the finest all-Liszt discs I’ve heard in recent years; a unique program concept and personality [MK]
Bruckner: Symphony No. 9 (Profil)
The finest recording yet of Schaller’s completion of Bruckner’s Ninth, enhanced by the prowess of a great orchestra recorded in studio sound [RMo]
Johann Ludwig Bach: The Leipzig Cantatas (Ricercar)
An outstanding set of the church music of Johann Ludwig Bach [JQ]
Heise: Complete String Quartets (Dacapo)
I was totally unprepared for how good these six quartets are [DJB]
Beethoven: Late Piano Sonatas (BIS)
Enthralling late Beethoven from Paul Wee [DHa]
