Pentatone

Sean Shibe (guitar) – Profesión (Pentatone)

Lovers of guitar music should invest in this disc [GF]

Kozena Folksongs Pentatone PTC5187075

Magdalena Kožená – Folk Songs (Pentatone)

A real Winner! [MP]

Handel: Un’alma Innamorata (Pentatone)

An ideal introduction to a delightful corner of a great composer’s output [RWe]

Puccini: Tosca (Pentatone)

An indifferent Scarpia, so this is not a premier choice, but great singing by Melody Moore and Ștefan Pop [GF]

Corigliano: The Lord of Cries (Pentatone)

An astounding new opera from John Corigliano receives a benchmark performance [PCG]

Folksongs PTC518707

Folk Songs (Pentatone)

A life-enhancing experience of which I wish every music lover could be a part [GF]

Bartok PCs Aimard Salonen Pentatone PTC5187029

Bartok: Piano Concertos Nos 1-3 (Pentatone)

One good and two superb performances of these modern classics [SB]

Mozart: Haffner Symphony, Paris Symphony, Oboe Concerto (Pentatone)

An auspicious start to a period-instrument series of Mozart symphonies [DF]

Russian Violin Concertos (Pentatone)

A worthy reissue of fine accounts in an unusual coupling [RWe]

Purcell: Dido and Aeneas (Pentatone)

A colourful and dramatic performance of “The only perfect English opera” – with a modern twist [GF]

Rachmaninov Tchaikovsky Romances Pentatone PTC5186866

Rachmaninov & Tchaikovsky: Romances (Pentatone)

An attractive selection from this marvellous repertoire, very well performed [RWe]

Mahler Symph 1 Bychkov Pentatone PTC5187043

Mahler: Symphony No 1 (Pentatone)

A recording in which those who have been following the Bychkov cycle can invest with confidence [JQ]

Rachmaninov Tchaikovsky Romances Pentatone PTC5186866

Rachmaninov & Tchaikovsky: Romances (Pentatone)

A valuable addition to the discography of the songs of Rachmaninov and Tchaikovsky with sensitive and deeply considered performances [GF]

Tebaldi remembering PTC5187070

Remembering Tebaldi (Pentatone)

A lovely recital presenting Melody Moore as a worthy inhabitant of the pantheon of the present generation of sopranos [GF]

Verdi: Un ballo in maschera (Pentatone)

In no way does this new recording displace its illustrious predecessors except in terms of the clarity of its digital sound [RMo]

Handel: Water & Fire (Pentatone)

Handel’s grand outdoor showpieces reduced in scale to intimate chamber works [RMo]

Yulianna Avdeeva (piano) Resilience (Pentatone)

A thoughtful enterprising collection brilliantly executed [DMD]

deified pentatone

Deified (Pentatone)

Resplendent brass playing with Wagner’s Ring ruling lesser contemporary works [NB]

schnittke psalms pentatone

Schnittke: Psalms of Repentance (Pentatone)

One of the essential works of the last century given an exemplary performance [DMD]

Mahler symphony PTC5186992

Mahler: Symphony 2 (Pentatone)

Unspectacular but deeply satisfying [DMD]

Bartok Concerto for Orchestra Canellakis Pentatone PTC5187027

Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra (Pentatone)

An outstanding version of the rare Four Orchestral Pieces and a very good one of the Concerto for Orchestra [SB]

Verdi ballo PTC5187048

Verdi: Un ballo in maschera (Pentatone)

The old Leinsdorf recording with Bergonzi and Price will never be redundant, but this is an admirable newcomer [GF]

Bach Sonatas and Partitas Fischer Pentatone PTC 5186072 SACD

Bach: Sonatas and Partitas for violin (Pentatone)

(Déjà Review) One of the finest, maybe the finest, set of these works [PSh]

Schubert: Symphonies – Unfinished & The Great (Pentatone)

Virtuoso playing and an excellent recording but Janowski’s tempi are not invariably well judged [RMo]