Classical Reviews
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Beethoven's Triple Concerto from Benjamin Grosvenor, Nicola Benedetti and Sheku Kanneh-Mason
31st May 2024
A charming, music-first performance by three young musical stars with a legendary orchestra, and a glimpse of Beethoven's wider influences and capacity for elegance.
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Rachel Podger and Brecon Baroque: The Muses Restor’d
24th May 2024
An exciting exploration of a moment of transition in British music - the glory days of the consort tradition, the emerging Baroque, and beautiful folksong adaptations.
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The Muses Restor'd
Rachel Podger (violin), Brecon Baroque
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Florent Schmitt's ballet, La tragédie de Salomé
17th May 2024
Normally only performed as a cut-down symphonic suite, Alain Altinoglu and the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra present the rarely-recorded full-length version of a work much admired by Stravinsky.
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Four Hands - Alexandre Tharaud & Friends
10th May 2024
The French pianist is joined by an array of distinguished guests (including Beatrice Rana, Bertrand Chamayou, Philippe Jaroussky & Víkingur Ólafsson) for a programme ranging from Bach to Piazzolla.
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Tippett's A Child of Our Time from the late Andrew Davis
3rd May 2024
A long-term champion of Tippett's music, the British conductor leads a meticulously-detailed account of his wartime oratorio with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and soloists Pumeza Matshikiza, Dame Sarah Connolly, Joshua Stewart and Ashley Riches.
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Paul McCreesh conducts Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius
26th Apr 2024
Using instruments from around the time of the work's premiere in 1900, Paul McCreesh and Gabrieli offer an illuminating recording that not only provides great textual clarity but also shows off the fine details of Elgar's orchestration.
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Chopin Études from Yunchan Lim
19th Apr 2024
The South Korean pianist makes an impressive début with Chopin's Études, combining breathtaking agility with a real sense of musical narrative.
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Chopin: Études, Opp. 10 & 25
Yunchan Lim (piano)
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Isabelle Faust performs Britten's Violin Concerto
12th Apr 2024
The German violinist yet again demonstrates absolute mastery of her instrument with commanding performances of works by Britten, including the world premiere recording of two pieces written whilst the composer was still a schoolboy.
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A new Bach cantata project from Les Arts Florissants
5th Apr 2024
Paul Agnew and Les Arts Florissants kick off a new project aimed at retracing the steps of Bach's life - focusing on his early work in Arnstadt and Mühlhausen, still barely out of his teens.
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Mozart and Strauss Lieder from Sabine Devieilhe & Mathieu Pordoy
29th Mar 2024
The French coloratura soprano and her new recital-partner draw all manner of illuminating parallels between the two composers in a recital which includes Mozart's Das Kinderspiel and Abendempfindung & Strauss's Mädchenblumen, Morgen! and Amor.
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Paavo Järvi conducts Mendelssohn symphonies
22nd Mar 2024
The Estonian conductor and the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich present stylish, propulsive accounts of Mendelssohn's five symphonies, plus the incidental music to A Midsummer Night's Dream.
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Mendelssohn: Symphonies
Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, Paavo Järvi
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Vienna Octet Old and New
19th Mar 2024
Our guest-contributor Rob Cowan explores two anthologies of chamber music which 'will bless your listening hours with countless joys'.
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Chopin and Beethoven from Beatrice Rana
15th Mar 2024
The Italian pianist presents an unusual pairing of sonatas - a sensitive, light performance of Chopin's Piano Sonata No. 2 complemented by a masterful and fearless Hammerklavier.
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Chopin & Beethoven: Sonatas
Beatrice Rana (piano)
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Orchestral Works by Dorothy Howell
8th Mar 2024
Rebecca Miller conducts the BBC Concert Orchestra in world premiere recordings of the Humoresque, The Rock, the Three Divertissements and Koong Shee plus a terrific account of Lamia - the Keats-inspired tone-poem which made the 21-year-old composer an overnight success after its Proms premiere in 1919.
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In The Shadows with Michael Spyres
1st Mar 2024
The American singer teams up with Les Talens Lyriques and Christophe Rousset to explore some of the operas which influenced Wagner - including works by Méhul, Beethoven, Meyerbeer and Spontini.
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Janáček's Katya Kabanova from Simon Rattle and the London Symphony Orchestra
23rd Feb 2024
Amanda Majeski is riveting as the doomed heroine grasping for happiness in the face of a loveless marriage (and a monstrous mother-in-law) in provincial Russia, with Rattle expertly balancing the score's elemental power and claustrophobic intensity.
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A Lifetime of Vivaldi from Théotime Langlois de Swarte
16th Feb 2024
A lively re-telling of Vivaldi's life through a selection of his violin concertos, from perhaps the most exciting young Baroque violinist around - including a number of world premiere recordings, and a gorgeous recent rediscovery.
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Rob Cowan on Victoria de los Ángeles
15th Feb 2024
Our regular guest-contributor explores the Catalan soprano's collected recordings on Warner Classics, released at the end of last year to mark the centenary of her birth.
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Handel's Alcina from Marc Minkowski
9th Feb 2024
Magdalena Kožená is at the height of her powers as a vocal actress in the title-role, with peerless performances from Anna Bonitatibus, Erin Morley and Elizabeth DeShong as Ruggiero, Morgana and Bradamante respectively.
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Marc-André Hamelin performs his own compositions plus Messiaen's Turangalîla-Symphonie
2nd Feb 2024
The virtuoso pianist presents a dazzling album of his own works, alongside taking the solo role in Messiaen's Turangalîla with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and conductor Gustavo Gimeno.
