Contemporary Choral Works (Regent)
An enjoyable and stimulating album of recent church music [JQ]
The Last Castrato. Arias for Velluti (Château de Versailles)
Mostly unheard gems by less familiar composers of the Bel canto era [MP]
Puccini: Tosca (Pristine Audio)
Much here is vivid and compelling, especially with Pristine’s enhanced sound, but for me de Sabata prevails [RMo]
Elgar: Symphony No.1 (NDR Radiophilharmonie)
Another great take on Elgar’s First from a top German orchestra and their outgoing chief [PH]
Dring: Complete Works for Oboe (Chandos)
A disc of unexpected delights – delicious music played with wit and elegance [NB]
Maria Lettberg (piano): Europolis (Oehms Classics)
Music that should be better known and will reward the listener on every hearing [SA]
Bruckner: Symphony No.5 (Elatus)
(Déjà Review) Bruckner would surely have been pleased with the passionate commitment shown here [TB]
Philippe Quint (violin) Milestones (Pentatone)
An enterprising programme of premieres [LW]
Ben-Haim: Orchestral & Chamber Music (cpo)
A thoughtfully assembled set [EJW]
Williamson: Chamber Music for Wind and Piano (Divine Art)
This is a thoroughly entertaining release, including a really excellent mix of Williamson’s chamber music [KT]
Puccini: Le Villi (BR Klassik)
As satisfying an account of the youthful Puccini’s first success as one could wish to encounter [RMo]
R & C Schumann & Liszt: Piano Works (Danacord)
A thought-provoking recording of Schumann and Liszt on an 1856 Erard [RMas]
Bruckner & Gesualdo: Motets (Soli Deo Gloria)
A stimulating and interesting musical programme, superbly performed by the Monteverdi Choir [JQ]
Peter Moore (trombone): Shift (Chandos)
Peter Moore has built on his astonishing debut and his world renown is well deserved [SA]
Schumann: Piano Quintet & Brahms: Piano Quartet No 2 (Naxos)
(Déjà Review) This recording has been absent from the catalogues for too long [JW]
Ravel: Daphnis et Chloé (Warner Classics)
A delicate, subtle, very Gallic account, beautifully engineered [RMo]
Bruckner: From the Archives Vol 1 (SOMM Ariadne)
An uneven but promising start to a large-scale exhumation [SV]
Verdi: Il trovatore (Pristine Audio)
A performance which captures the absolute essence of Verdi’s masterpiece in remarkably fine sound [PSt]
Vali: Esfahan (Navona)
A fascinating collection of cross-cultural music [GPu]
Chopin & Scriabin (Forgotten Records)
A perfect blend of two great piano traditions from an unremembered master of the keyboard [PH]
Elgar: The Kingdom (Signum Classics)
A fine achievement which amply demonstrates the greatness of Elgar’s score [JQ]
Boulez: Livre pour Quatuor (Pentatone)
An authoritative recording of Boulez’ only quartet in its final completed form [SB]
Beethoven: Violin Concerto, Grosse Fuge (Archipel)
It’s great that these performances are newly available, but sample before you buy [JW]
Folk Trails: Anya Alexeyev (Toccata Next)
Works from three continents, inspired by folk music, played on a concert grand [EJW]
