Recordings of the Month
Enescu: Symphonies Nos 1-3, Romanian Rhapsodies Nos 1 & 2 (Deutsche Grammophon)
Finely wrought performances, played with complete authority [SG]
Bruckner: Symphony No 7 (Reference Recordings)
A magnificent performance, caught In astonishingly vivid sound, supplemented by an exotic and appealing new work [RMo]
Mahler: Symphony No 9 (Alpha Classics)
Full of surprises, this is a disc that will change the way you hear Mahler 9 [ST]
Gerhard: Don Quixote and Alegrías (Chandos)
The BBC Philharmonic excels in music by the pre-serial Gerhard at his hard-bitten finest [NC]
Schubert: String Quartets Nos 15 & 8 (Hyperion)
Glorious Schubert from the Takács Quartet [LW]
Piers Lane (piano): Russian Variations (Hyperion)
A feast of Russian piano music served up with spectacular aplomb by Lane [RCh]
Tartini: Lieto ti prendo e poi (Da Vinci Classics)
These performances bring us very close to the heart of Tartini’s musical thinking and feeling [JV]
Beach: Piano Music (Hortus)
Fichet fully conveys the heart and intensity of these seductive scores [SG]
Stanford: Te Deum & Elegiac Ode (Lyrita)
An outstanding CD which is likely to be the most important contribution on disc to the Stanford centenary [JQ]
Hungarian String Trios (BIS)
Fascinating repertoire stunningly performed [NB]
Senfter: Chamber Music (cpo)
A debut album that’s a triumph [SG]
Florian Noack (piano) I Wanna Be Like You – The Piano Transcriptions (La Dolce Volta)
A hugely enjoyable celebration of the piano from this supremely gifted pianist [RCh]
Korngold: A Portrait for Piano (TRPTK)
This homage is a gem for admirers of Korngold’s music [GF]
J S Bach: Guitar Transcriptions (Naxos)
One of the best guitar recordings of music by JS Bach [ZT]
Donizetti: Dalinda (Oehms Classics)
Good, honest, open-throated singing in an intriguing and highly enjoyable reconstruction of a formerly lost work – and a star performance by the lead soprano [RMo]
Cristal Bello (Vanitas)
A rewarding collection with a clear historical purpose, though it delights at least as much as it educates [GPu]
Delius: Hassan (Chandos)
The warmest welcome for a superb new realisation of Delius’s greatest work of incidental music [PCG]
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]
Chopin: Études (Decca)
These Études aspire to a narrative unlike any other recording ever made – and is often remarkable in doing that [MB]
Elgar: Symphonies Nos 1 & 2 (Hallé)
Distinguished recordings which surpass the earlier recordings by these performers [JQ]
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]
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Featured Naxos review |
Featured Naxos review |
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