Classical Reviews
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Two recent re-discoveries light up Martinu year
25th May 2009
The fiftieth anniversary of the Czech composer’s death is marked by a superb programme of excerpts from his opera Juliette (conducted by Sir Charles Mackerras, with Magdalena Kožená in the title-role) and a collection of his chamber music from Ensemble Calliopée.
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Idomeneo from René Jacobs
18th May 2009
Following his landmark accounts of the three Da Ponte opera, Jacobs tackles Mozart’s early opera seria, with Richard Croft as the Cretan king, Bernarda Fink as his estranged son, and Alexandrina Pendatchanska spitting fire as Elettra.
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Telemann: Brockes Passion
Birgitte Christensen, soprano (Tochter Zion I, Gläubige Seele I, Maria, 3. Magd), Lydia Teuscher, soprano (Tochter Zion II, Gläubige Seele II, 2. Magd), Marie-Claude Chappuis, mezzosoprano (Judas, Gläubige Seele III, 1. Magd), Donát Havár, tenor (Petrus, Pilatus, Gläubige Seele IV, Hauptmann), Daniel Behle, tenor (Evangelist, Gläubige Seele VI) & Johannes Weisser, baritone (Jesus, Gläubige Seele V) RIAS Kammerchor & Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, René Jacobs
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A&R and Kate Royal's Midsummer Night
11th May 2009
The British soprano and Kathleen Ferrier Award winner’s second recording for EMI Classics includes opera arias by Walton, Stravinsky, Britten, Korngold and Dvořák, all on a nocturnal theme.
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Rachmaninov Preludes
27th Apr 2009
In ‘one of his finest recordings to date’, Scottish pianist Steven Osborne showcases the infinite variety of Rachmaninov’s 24 Preludes in performances which combine musical intelligence with fire and tenderness.
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Rachmaninov - 24 Preludes
Steven Osborne (piano)
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20 Years of NMC
20th Apr 2009
Founded by composer Colin Matthews in 1989, the British contemporary music label celebrates its twentieth birthday with a songbook featuring music by composers including Thea Musgrave, Tarik O’Regan and Mark-Anthony Turnage.
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Shostakovich 11 from the RLPO
6th Apr 2009
The latest instalment of Vasily Petrenko’s Shostakovich cycle with his Liverpool orchestra prompts Chris to draw comparisons with Rattle’s landmark work with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra…
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Bach's Brandenburg Concertos
9th Mar 2009
Richard Egarr and The Academy of Ancient Music record Bach’s six concerti grossi at French baroque pitch (A = 392Hz), which has ‘a remarkable effect on the richness of the sound’.
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Angela Gheorghiu in Puccini's Madama Butterfly
2nd Mar 2009
The Romanian soprano assumes the role of the tragic teenage geisha for the first time, with Jonas Kaufmann as the American naval officer who abandons her, and Antonio Pappano conducting.
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The world's most celebrated violins
23rd Feb 2009
James Ehnes explores one of the world’s finest private collections of violins, including instruments by Stradivari and Guarneri, and showcases their unique qualities in a programme including music by Elgar, Ravel, Falla and Sibelius.
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Sarah Connolly gets Purcell year off to a flier
2nd Feb 2009
The British mezzo ushers in the 350th anniversary of Purcell’s birth by masterminding a new recording of Dido and Aeneas, on which her assumption of the title-role ranks with the very best on disc.
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Monteverdi as you've never heard it before!
26th Jan 2009
Christina Pluhar and L’Arpeggiata make their debut on Virgin Classics with a fascinating exploration of Monteverdi’s ‘Theatre of Love’, aided by superb contributions from Philippe Jaroussky and Nuria Rial.
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Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin put Platti firmly on the map
19th Jan 2009
The Italian oboist and baroque composer (1697-1763) emerges as a worthy heir to Corelli in this world premiere recording of three of the concerti grossi which he based upon Corelli’s chamber works.
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Hamelin proves his real class with Chopin
12th Jan 2009
The French-Canadian virtuoso ‘demonstrates that he really is a great musician as well as a phenomenal pianist’ in an all-Chopin programme centring on the Second and Third Piano Sonatas.
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Jerusalem - in search of peace
29th Dec 2008
Jordi Savall creates an homage to the city of Jerusalem through an evocation of its rich history of more than 3000 years, bringing together Jewish and Palestinian musicians as well as performers from Iraq, Armenia, Turkey, Morocco and Syria.
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Top new Christmas recommendations
8th Dec 2008
Honegger’s Cantate de Noël, A Christmas Festival from John Rutter, and a superb anthology of twentieth-century carols from The Choir of Westminster Abbey.
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Tchaikovsky's Manfred Symphony
3rd Nov 2008
The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and their principal conductor Vasily Petrenko give a ‘bright and characterful’ account of Tchaikovsky’s Byron-inspired symphony, coupled with the symphonic ballad The Voyevoda.
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Vivaldi in a new light
13th Oct 2008
Daniel Hope directs the Chamber Orchestra of Europe in a programme of music by the ‘Red Priest’, including the ‘Tempesta di mare’ concerto, the ‘La Follia’ sonata, and ‘Andromeda Liberata’, with guest soloist Anne Sofie von Otter.
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Americans in Pyongyang
6th Oct 2008
The New York Philharmonic’s visit to North Korea with Lorin Maazel is charted in an insightful and moving documentary, culminating in a concert of music by Wagner, Dvořák and Gershwin.
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Songs her mother taught her
22nd Sep 2008
The Czech mezzo Magdalena Kožená goes back to her roots with a programme of songs by Janacek, Dvorak, Leopold Kozeluch, Petr Eben and others, accompanied with style and sensitivity by Malcolm Martineau.
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Zig Zag and the Atrium Quartet
8th Sep 2008
The French independent label zig-Zag Territoires go from strength to strength – as do the winners of the London International String Quartet Competition, who display ‘beautiful burnished tone’ in a programme of Beethoven and Shostakovich.
