Wagner: Die Walküre (Pristine Audio)
This reissue may still have sound issues, but Amy Shuard’s performance alone makes it a worthy addition to anyone’s collection [SGa]
Chimera (Urlicht)
An enriching and engaging album of improvised music led by the quixotic and brilliant Iva Bittová [JW]
Borrett: Interlude, Rebellion, Then (Signum Classics)
Lyrical works that follow in the long tradition of British string music [DJB]
Monteverdi: Vespro della Beata Vergine (Erato)
(Déjà Review) Sheer vitality and excitement [GH]
Liszt: Harmonies du soir (Decca)
(Déjà Review) An absolutely superlative recital [RBe]
Bach: Water Through Ice (Diversions)
Crudely played and recorded, this simply cannot be recommended [RMo]
The Viola Sonatas from the Royal Chapel of Madrid (Eudora Records)
An important recording of viola sonatas from the classical period in Spain [JV]
Brahms & Contemporaries: Piano Quartets, Vol 3 (Chandos)
The next volume in the Kaleidoscope’s Brahms series proves again that he is mightier than his contemporaries [ST]
JS Bach: The Cello Suites · Guitar Transcriptions (IBS Classical)
A thoroughly convincing, beautifully played, and sensitively transcribed version of these masterworks [RMo]
Čiurlionis: Complete Works for Orchestra (Northern Flowers)
Čiurlionis’s nature scores heard in eloquent performances by a foremost interpreter of his music [JW]
John Williams: Spotlight (Prospero Classical)
An enjoyable selection of lesser-known Williams, showcasing his versatility [DJB]
Minkus: La Bayadère (Opus Arte)
(Déjà Review) One of the best productions of a classical ballet that the ROH has ever staged or filmed [MMB]
Liszt: A Faust Symphony (Sony Classical)
(Déjà Review) White heat roller-coaster thrills [IL]
Paris 1200 – École de Notre-Dame (Musica Ficta)
These performances may cause the same excitement as those in Paris 800 years ago [JV]
Victor Schiøler (piano) The Great Danish Pianist Vol 8
An apt final volume saluting the admirable pianist Victor Schiøler [JW]
Bruckner: Symphony 4 (Warner Classics)
A loving, dedicated performance which combines drama, mystery and, ultimately, triumph [RMo]
Maija Einfelde: Organ music (SKANi)
Contemporary organ works evoking the Northern Sea by a composer highly adept in nuance and shading [ACG]
Haas: Violin Concerto 2 & de terrae fine (Urlicht AudioVisual)
Big-boned, capricious and unremittingly serious [RB]
Karłowicz: Rebirth Symphony & The White Dove (Naxos)
(Déjà Review) Wonderfully satisfying performances of striking music [WH]
Haydn & Schubert: Symphonies (Forgotten Records)
(Déjà Review) The Jochum brothers’ reputations don’t need to be reversed, but it’s quite an enjoyable peep into the past [CH]
Papandopulo: Symphony No. 2 (cpo)
Well worth investigation if you enjoy colourful late-Romantic orchestral scores [EJW]
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]
Sibelius: Symphonies 1-7 (Ondine)
Lean and lovely Sibelius, consistent and convincing throughout [RMo]
Jorge Bolet – The Ambassador Auditorium Recitals (First Hand Records)
Bolet heard in a rare surviving example of live recitals – occasionally fallible but far more energising than in the studio [JW]
