Editor's Choices include the world premiere recordinf of Stephen Hough's new piano concerto The World of Yesterday on Hyperion, Ravel's Daphnis et Chloé from the London Symphony Orchestra and Sir Antonio Pappano on the orchestra's own label, and Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius from the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Nicholas Collon (with John Findon as Gerontius, Christine Rice as The Angel and Roderick Williams as The Priest/Angel of the Agony) on Ondine.
Recording of the Month
Paganini: 24 Caprices
María Dueñas (violin), Itamar Golan (piano), Boris Kuschnir (violin), Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Mihhail Gerts
'I’d be hard-pushed to name another modern recording offering anything close to the multicoloured lyrical imagination produced by this 22-year-old.'
Available Formats: 2 CDs, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Editor's Choices
Busoni, Françaix, Milhaud & Nielsen: Works for Clarinet & Orchestra
Oleg Shebeta-Dragan (clarinet), Odense Symphony Orchestra, Anna Skryleva
'With his warm tone, Shebeta-Dragan is a splendid advocate [for the Busoni] with playing of grace and fluidity, his silken touch making light of the tricky ‘string-inspired arpeggios’ of which Jack Brymer used to complain.'
Available Formats: CD, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Stephen Hough: Piano Concerto, Sonatina & Partita
Sir Stephen Hough (piano), The Hallé, Sir Mark Elder
'In all three works, the richness of Hough’s ideas and their working out handsomely repays repeated listening. Now, will some enterprising director please have Hough write a film score?'
Available Formats: CD, Hi-Res+ FLAC/ALAC/WAV, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Ravel: Daphnis et Chloé
London Symphony Orchestra, Tenebrae, Sir Antonio Pappano
'The competition is fierce, of course, but Pappano’s account of this wonderful score has the smell of the theatre about it, and that has to be a good thing.'
Available Formats: SACD, Hi-Res+ FLAC/ALAC/WAV, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Schumann: Violin Sonatas
Alina Ibragimova (violin), Cédric Tiberghien (piano)
'Amid limited but tough competition...it will more likely than not be Ibragimova and Tiberghien’s set for which I will reach first from henceforth.'
Available Formats: CD, Hi-Res+ FLAC/ALAC/WAV, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Shostakovich: String Quartets Nos. 2, 7 & 10
Jerusalem Quartet
'Shostakovich can, of course, be played differently...But when we hear the Jerusalem Quartet playing these pieces, we are fully convinced by their account. This music clearly speaks to them, and they, in turn, become some of its most persuasive advocates.'
Available Format: SACD
Beethoven Piano Sonata Op. 110 & Brahms: Piano Sonata No. 3
Kate Liu (piano)
'Throughout, Liu’s fingerwork is unfailing...and her balances are breathtaking, especially in passages featuring superimposed rhythms. Overall, a major appearance by a pianist who has remained too deeply in the shadows.'
Available Formats: CD, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
Elgar: The Dream of Gerontius
John Findon (Gerontius),Christine Rice (Angel), Roderick Williams (Priest/Angel of the Agony); Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, various choirs, Nicholas Collon
'The combined chorus, who play such a vibrant and diverse role in Elgar’s oratorio, acquit themselves with aplomb throughout...This is a captivating recording of a complex score in which the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra justify their reputation.'
Available Formats: 2 CDs, Hi-Res FLAC/ALAC/WAV, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
The Krasiński Codex
Ensemble Peregrina, Agnieszka Budzińska-Bennett
'The lion’s share of music that’s recorded here for the first time is superbly done. Mostly known only to specialists of Central European music, Nicholas of Radom gets a proper outing here, his unfussy, stylish music beautifully showcased.'
Available Formats: 3 CDs, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
DVD/Blu-ray of the Month
Grétry: La caravane du Caire
Le Concert Spirituel, Le Ballet de l'Opéra Royal, Hervé Niquet
'The chorus and orchestra of Le Concert Spirituel are all one could wish for, and Hervé Niquet conducts admirably. One pleasure not to be missed is the sight of the percussion stick known as a ‘jingling Johnny’. I enjoyed this enormously and so, I hope, will you.'
Available Format: Blu-ray + DVD Video
Reissue/Archive Issue of the Month
Debussy, Rachmaninoff, Tchaikovsky & Prokofiev
Philharmonia Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Evgeny Svetlanov
'ICA treats us to a memorable Philharmonia concert conducted by Evgeny Svetlanov just a year before his death in 2002. The main item is Debussy’s La mer, a far more elemental reading than Svetlanov’s 1992 Philharmonia recording for Collins Classics.'
Available Formats: CD, FLAC/ALAC/WAV, MP3
