Andris Nelsons's second recording as music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra (and his first in collaboration with Deutsche Grammophon) scoops top honours this month - the first volume of his Shostakovich cycle includes the Tenth Symphony (which he'll be conducting at the Proms in a few weeks' time) and the Passacaglia from Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk.
There's also the penultimate volume of Jaap van Zweden's acclaimed Bruckner cycle with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra on Challenge Classics, Scriabin from Mikhail Pletnev and the Russian National Orchestra on Pentatone, and chamber music by the Scottish composer Eddie McGuire on Delphian, to name but a few.
Recording of the Month
Shostakovich Under Stalin's Shadow
Boston Symphony Orchestra, Andris Nelsons
'Powerful and beautifully crafted, this recording – the first from the relationship between DG and the Boston Symphony under Nelsons – is a hugely impressive sign of just what this ensemble/maestro partnership may go on to achieve.'
Available Formats: CD, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Editor's Choices
Beethoven: Missa Solemnis in D major
Chor and Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Bernard Haitink
'Haitink at 85 makes his first recording of one of music’s choral masterpieces – and what a wonderful performance his wisdom and experience offers.'
Available Formats: CD, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Bach in Montecassino
Luca Guglielmi
'A true recognition of Bach’s genius took some time, but these works were circulating shortly after his death and are here wonderfully played on an organ of the era.'
Available Formats: CD, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Steinberg: Passion Week
Cappella Romana, Alexander Lingas
'A deeply moving, serene performance of the last major sacred work composed in Soviet Russia, one which until recently languished in obscurity.'
Available Formats: FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Entangled Fortunes: Eddie McGuire
Red Note Ensemble
'A beguiling, lyrical grace weaves through much of this Scottish composer’s chamber music, and these performances well capture its questing expressiveness.'
Available Formats: CD, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Bruckner: Symphony No. 1 in C minor
Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Jaap van Zweden
'Van Zweden completes his journey through Bruckner’s symphonies with a richly detailed, passionately played First.'
Available Formats: SACD, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Scriabin: Symphony No. 1 & The Poem of Ecstasy
Russian National Orchestra & Chamber Choir of the Moscow Conservatory, Mikhail Pletnev
'The Scriabin centenary offers an excellent chance to reassess his creativity: this is a fine contribution to that endeavour.'
Available Formats: SACD, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Transcriptions for Two Pianists
Jean-Efflam Bavouzet & François-Frédéric Guy
'Fabulous playing from a pair of completely on-form pianists, which lends The Rite of Spring’s rhythmic themes a quite thrilling intensity.'
Available Formats: CD, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Nielsen: Maskarade
Danish National Symphony Orchestra and Choir, Michael Schønwandt
'As with Scriabin, Nielsen’s anniversary invites us to reassess the composer with new recordings, in this case a fourth – and successful – outing on disc for Maskarade.'
Available Formats: Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Schoenberg: Gurrelieder
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Markus Stenz et al
'Excellent performances throughout from orchestra, soloists and choruses – rarely have the lush textures of Schoenberg’s late-Romantic cantata sounded this fresh.”'
Available Formats: 2 CDs, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
DVD of the Month
Escaich: Claude
Opéra de Lyon, Jeremie Rhorer
'A modern opera in a production that doesn’t shy away from the brutality and bleakness of its story and message.'
Available Format: DVD Video
Reissue of the Month
The Complete Columbia Recordings, 1936-39
Anatole Kitain
'A chance to discover the elegant playing of this largely forgotten pianist.'
Available Formats: 2 CDs, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
