rb
Rob Barnett
Fritz Busch (conductor) In Stockholm (Pristine Audio)
Unusual Busch late-life survivals from Swedish Radio archives [RB]
Jacob, Addison, Rubbra: Piano Concerti (Lyrita Recorded Edition)
Otherwise unheard, these works are neither rugged nor rebarbative but beckon and reward [RB]
Bax: Violin Concerto, Symphony No. 3 (Dutton)
(Déjà Review) De rigueur addition for all Baxians and an antidote to the sleepy sloppy school of Baxian interpretation [RB]
Overtures from Finland (Chandos)
A ramble, with delights along the way, through some of Finland’s most neglected overtures [RB]
Bonnal: String Quartets (Arion)
(Déjà Review) I urge you strongly to seek out Bonnal’s sheerly magical impressionistic music [RB]
Kõrvits: The Sound of Wings (Ondine)
Inhabits and gives voice to regions of angelic eternity [RB]
Bowen: Violin Concerto & Piano Concerto 1 (Dutton)
(Déjà Review) Such lavish extravagance of melody and sentiment [RB]
Speaking Musically (Royal Academy of Music Press)
Weighty, serious and far-striding interviews; a rich resource [RB]
Mills B: Elan Valley, Evening Rain (Claudio)
Light-suffused, sun-dappled romance, ecstatic sounds of nature …concisely expressed [RB]
Winkler: Chamber Music (Da Vinci Classics)
Romantic intensity piled high and wide [RB]
Eugene Goossens – Cincinnati Symphony Vol 2 (Pristine Audio)
So-so Stravinsky, nervous hyper-fast Schumann and masterly Tchaikovsky [RB]
Tchaikovsky: Symphony 4 (Vox)
A conductor and orchestra in the shadows of time takes a step out and is not found wanting [RB]
Sibelius: The Tempest (Naxos)
Okko Kamu gives voice to one of Sibelius’s most enigmatic utterances [RB]
Vladigerov: Stage Music (Capriccio)
Instantly captivating – to date the most desirable of the seven Vladigerov Capriccio sets [RB]
Martinů: Symphonies 3 & 4 (Supraphon)
(Déjà Review) An auspicious launch for the first fresh new Martinů cycle of the new century [RB]
Liebermann: Concertos (Blue Griffin)
Romantic high voltage music with an absorption in the expression of melody [RB]
K Fuchs: Orchestral Works Vol. 1 (Chandos)
A brilliant tonal voice unleashed and heard through dustless unsmeared glass [RB]
Alberga: Violin Concertos (Lyrita)
A dizzying mercury-high landmark in little known music – enjoyable in its own right [RB]
Leigh: Partings (Tremula Records)
The recesses of a deep oubliette replete with works variously moving and entertaining [RB]
Sibelius: Sagas (Salamandre)
A hushed voice; music teetering on the cliff face between sorrow and excitement [RB]
Herrmann: Wuthering Heights (Chandos)
A great and extremely effective recording drenched in splendour [RB]
Airs and Graces (Tremula)
Virtuosic brilliance which like all enjoyable things leaves you regretting we could not have had more [RB]
Rubinstein: Cello Concertos (Northern Flowers)
Engagingly unfamiliar works from the last two centuries each presented with conviction [RB]
Weinberg: String Quartets (Alto)
Early accounts of two introspective quartets and of two often upbeat orchestral works [RB]