BBC Music Magazine Choices,
BBC Music Magazine - September 2019 Choices
Vox Luminis’s exploration of cantatas by the Bach family on Ricercar is top of the pile this month – you can read David’s full review here.
Pride of place in the Instrumental category goes to Elizabeth Kenny, whose hypnotic recital of old and new music for theorbo on Linn wins praise for the ‘sense of spontaneous re-creation’ on display throughout; Elizabeth spoke to us last month about the evolution of the instrument and its repertoire and about working with Nico Muhly and Benjamin Oliver on the new commissions which feature on the album.
Recording of the Month
'In this project Vox Luminis celebrates not just the Bach family, but the power of music-making itself'.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Orchestral Choice
Henze: Heliogabalus Imperator - Works for Orchestra
Anssi Karttunen (cello), BBC Symphony Orchestra, Oliver Knussen
'It’s hard to imagine finer, more compelling elucidation of these four, dense and acrobatic scores.'
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC
Concerto Choice
'The two concertos on this disc represent a real discovery, and a welcome alternative to the endlessly recycled Mozart and Beethoven canons.'
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Chamber Choice
'The Jerusalem Quartet has assembled a well-contrasted array of music.'
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Instrumental Choice
'Kenny’s performances are technically assured in the trickiest variations, and always with a sense of spontaneous re-creation.'
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Choral & Song Choice
Hieronymus Praetorius: Motets in 8, 10, 12, 16 & 20 Parts
Stephen Farr (organ), Alamire, His Majestys Sagbutts & Cornetts, David Skinner
'All the interlocking elements of vocal and instrumental ‘choirs’ are balanced with exceptional skill.'
Available Formats: 2 CDs, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Opera Choice
Barber: Vanessa (DVD)
Emma Bell (Vanessa), Virginie Verrez (Erika), Edgaras Montvidas (Anatol), Rosalind Plowright (The Old Baroness); Glyndebourne Chorus & London Philharmonic Orchestra, Jakub Hrůša, Keith Warner
'Vanessa is a great American masterpiece. Here now is the production and cast that Vanessa has been waiting for.'
Available Format: DVD Video
Barber: Vanessa (Blu-ray)
Emma Bell (Vanessa), Virginie Verrez (Erika), Edgaras Montvidas (Anatol), Rosalind Plowright (The Old Baroness); Glyndebourne Chorus & London Philharmonic Orchestra, Jakub Hrůša, Keith Warner
LPCM 2.0
5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
Available Format: Blu-ray
Chris O'Reilly - Chief Executive
