Reviews
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Beethoven: Sonatas in C op 2/3, in B flat, op106 Hammerklavier etc
A complete recital from a master at the very height of his powers, recorded in the Royal Festival Hall in 1975.
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Mozart In Between: Piano concerto no 9, symphony no 23
An elegant reading of the ninth concerto, directed from the keyboard with real flair and a convincing ‘period’ feel follows one of Mozart’s neglected...
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L'Infinito: songs by Respighi, Casella, Alfano, etc
A carefully-planned treasure-trove of fascinating repertoire, warmly recorded and sympathetically performed. If Kader’s vibrato may be a touch too much,
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Charlotte Tomlinson | Music from the Inside Out: A Musician’s Guide to Freeing Performance
A 2003 documentary DVD about the Philadelphia Orchestra is also called Music from the Inside Out. There is no connection between the DVD and...
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Mark-Anthony Turnage: Orchestral works, vol. 3
Showing remarkable commitment and faith in the composer’s ability to mint new sounds and exciting textures, the LPO’s final collection of recent works by...
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Dvořák: Symphonies 3&6
A lovely record from an old-school maestro with nothing to prove, content to inspire his players to performances of natural grace and unforced virtuosity.
The Sea: Songs by Fauré, Schubert & Debussy
A delightful recital that effortlessly transcends the potential naffness of the title. Neven’s melodies are every bit as persuasive, as idiomatic as his Lieder,
Beethoven: Symphonies 1-9
Twenty years on from his pioneering, long-deleted Philips set, Franz Bruggen’s Beethoven with his crack European ensemble is again a breath of fresh air.
Gary Kahn | The Power of the Ring
This large and weighty tome could be described as the ultimate in vanity publishing, as the Ring in question is the Royal Opera House’s...
Dominic McHugh | Loverly: The Life and Times of My Fair Lady
Despite being the most successful musical of its day and one of the most influential in the development of the Broadway musical,
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Anthony Phillips (trans.) | Sergey Prokofiev, Diaries 1924-1933: Prodigal Son
This is the third and final volume of these enthralling diaries, also the longest, totalling some 1,147 pages in all.
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Viola Sonatas: Idylls and Bacchanals
A highly rewarding double-disc collection. John McEwan’s wartime sonata will be a discovery for many; tunefully approachable with a glorious slow movement a gift...
Brahms: Ballades, op10; 8 Pieces, op76; Paganini Variations, op35
Bax chooses an unusual programme, one that is not entirely effective. He is more successful in the serious, early Ballades,
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Schumann & Dvořák: Piano Quintets
A delightful coupling that brings heart-on-sleeve joy to the Schumann and bold, quick-silver energy to the Dvořák. Both performances fizzle with ideas and unabashed...
Britten: War Requiem
Recorded 50 years after the work’s famous premiere in the very same space for which it was written, Nelsons’ take on Britten’s enduring masterpiece...
Donald Greig | Time Will Tell
Donald Greig is a musicologist and baritone member of the Tallis Scholars, who have done him proud with a solid plug for his debut...
Nicole V Gagné | Historical Dictionary of Modern and Contemporary Classical Music
This new volume in a long-running series is impressively wide-ranging, including not only composers and performers, but also such phenomena as just intonation,
Christoph Wolff | Mozart at the Gateway to his Fortune: Mozart at the Gateway to his Fortune
In 1790 Mozart wrote a letter to his friend Michael Puchberg, the most significant part of which reads ‘I now have more cause to...
Schumann: Violin Concerto in D minor; Concerto in A minor op129; Fantasy in C op 131
Adding Schumann’s own transcription of the Cello Concerto to the little-heard Fantasy and the belatedly-discovered Violin Concerto, Marwood’s disc is a delight from start to finish.
Alexander Tcherepnin: Piano Music 1913-1961
An inspired idea to open the disc with a selection of 1960s archival recordings by this most dynamic of composer-pianists.
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