This month's editorial team favourites include characterful Kurt Weill from Magdalena Kožená, the London Symphony Orchestra and Simon Rattle on the orchestra's own label, oboe trios from Haydn's godson Joseph Weigl on CPO, spellbinding Scriabin from Chinese pianist Yunjie Chen on Accentus Music, and a terrific first outing for José de Nebra's pastoral melodrama Venus Y Adonis from the young Spanish ensemble Los Elementos on Aparté.
Weill: The Seven Deadly Sins
Magdalena Kožená (mezzo), Andrew Staples, Alessandro Fisher (tenors), Ross Ramgobin (baritone), Florian Boesch (bass-baritone), London Symphony Orchestra, Sir Simon Rattle
'This stylish album of music by Kurt Weill is centred around an impressively polished performance of The Seven Deadly Sins. If Joana Mallwitz's Deutsche Grammophon recording of the same work from last year exuded the down-and-dirty feel of a sultry Berlin nightclub, then Rattle by contrast offers a classy, confident swagger, not least in the more lyrical approach to the role of Anna from Magdalena Kožená. For me the highlight of the album has to be an archly knowing account of the Kleine Dreigroschenmusik, which Weill fashioned from his music for The Threepenny Opera. The LSO are on characterful form, oozing suave yet ironic poise in 'The Ballad of Mack the Knife' and cheeky irreverence in numbers such as 'Cannon Song' and 'The Ballad of the Pleasant Life'.' (James Longstaffe)
Available formats: SACD, Download & Streaming (up to 192 kHz, 24 bit)
José de Nebra: Venus Y Adonis
Paola Valentina Molinari (Venus), Natalie Pérez (Adonis), Jone Martínez (Marte), Ana Vieira Leite (Celfa), Judit Subirana (Clarín), Margherita Maria Sala (Cibeles); Los Elementos, Alberto Miguélez Rouco
'Bursting at the seams with colour and vitality, this second-ever recording of the Spanish composer's 1729 pastoral melodrama (written four decades after John Blow's opera on the same subject) is an absolute treat on all counts. The score itself is a gem, melding Italianate bravura with well-placed Spanish accents: the gods and goddesses hold forth in a series of vivid metaphor arias which put me in mind of the raw energy of Leonardo Vinci's operas, but the mortals almost steal the show with their flamenco and zarambeque-inflected numbers. Some distinctive young voices to watch here, too: Paola Valentina Molinari has the full measure of Venus's pyrotechnics, Judit Subirana is a sassy, salty delight as Clarín, and contralto Margherita Maria Sala brings wonderful, lugubrious gravitas to the goddess Cybele.' (Katherine Cooper)
Available formats: 2 CDs, Download & Streaming (up to 192 kHz, 24 bit)
Scriabin: The Complete Piano Sonatas
Yunjie Chen
'Each of Scriabin's ten piano sonatas is a world of its own, yet the composer's sense of colourful exoticism is a binding thread. Recording the complete set is quite a statement, and Yunjie Chen is wholly successful in exploring the technical and musical challenges they present. The piano sound is more rounded than in Ashkenazy's rightly vaunted recordings, and Chen uses this to explore the darker hues and subtle shading of Scriabin's writing without losing climactic power in the right places. There is a spellbinding quality to the playing, and Chen proves an engaging guide from the opening of the first sonata to the intensity of the late sonatas, which can approach being impenetrable in the wrong hands. Scriabin fans also have a complete survey to look forward to from Elina Akselrud which, based on the individual releases so far, also promises to be a valuable addition to the catalogue.' (Matthew Ash)
Available formats: 2 CDs, Download & Streaming (up to 96 kHz, 24 bit)
Joseph Weigl: 6 Trios for Oboe, Violin & Violoncello
Carin van Heerden (oboe), Martin Jopp (violin), Katie Stephens (cello)
'A different spin on chamber music - Joseph Weigl (Haydn’s godson, and roughly contemporary with Beethoven) seems to have missed the memo about what genres he was supposed to be interested in. He earned some fame for his dramatic works and masses, but unusually for his time he wrote not one single symphony or string quartet. He did, however, pen this set of six charming and melodious trios for oboe, violin and cello. Whereas string trios can sometimes feel like a violin with two subordinate parts, here the oboe and violin jostle amicably for the top spot and even the cello has plenty of melodic moments. Don’t go into this album expecting an Angst-ridden baring of the artist’s innermost soul - but if you’re in the mood for taking a stroll through the gardens and fountains of your local stately home then Herr Weigl absolutely has you covered, courtesy of oboist Carin van Heerden, violinist Martin Jopp and cellist Katie Stephens.' (David Smith)
Available formats: CD, Download & Streaming (up to 96 kHz, 24 bit)
C. P. E. Bach: Flute Concertos
Ariel Zuckermann (flute), Georgian Chamber Orchestra Ingolstadt
'If Weigl’s delightful trios perhaps slightly risk reinforcing popular tropes about Classical music being too refined and genteel for its own good (how many adverts have we seen using Eine kleine Nachtmusik or Boccherini’s Minuet as shorthand for posh sophistication?), then the first flurries of this album should instantly dispel any such notions. CPE Bach’s flute concertos feature vigorous, bracing instrumental tuttis and some breathtakingly virtuosic writing for the solo instrument. Much of this would surely have taxed the players and instruments of the time to their very limits, and it retains its dazzling power today. Flautist Ariel Zuckermann appears to be channelling Voldemort on the album’s striking cover, and together with the musicians of the Georgian Chamber Orchestra Ingolstadt, he certainly works a unique kind of magic with these three concertos.' (David Smith)
Available formats: CD, Download & Streaming (up to 96 kHz, 24 bit)
Richard Strauss
Renaud Capuçon (violin), Wiener Symphoniker, Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester, Petr Popelka, Seiji Ozawa
'Renaud Capuçon spearheads this delightful collection of violin-centred works by Richard Strauss, kicking off with spirited renditions of the concerto and sonata, followed by a radiant reading of the sextet from Capriccio and a charming performance of the rarely-recorded miniature, the Etude for solo violin based on a theme from Daphne. There's a moving yet noble bleakness to Metamorphosen as heard here in the arrangement for string septet by Rudolf Leopold, and the album concludes with a majestic account of Ein Heldenleben conducted by Seiji Ozawa, during which Capuçon despatches the many fiendish violin solos with apparently effortless ease.' (James Longstaffe)
Available formats: 3 CDs, Download & Streaming (up to 44.1 kHz, 24 bit)
Alone Together
Cantus
'A moving and thought-provoking collection of songs, sung by the warm-toned and beautifully blended voices of Cantus. The album explores shifting human relationships in this age where life and technology are woven together, beginning with a quiet plea to 'Come listen, in the silence of the moment'. The programme is eclectic, Beethoven rubbing shoulders with songs by contemporary American composer Libby Larsen, and Paul Simon, yet this is a wholly coherent album. The arrangement of Arcade Fire's 'Deep Blue' is impactful, the lyrics imploring us to 'put the cell phone down' and reinforcing the need to experience the living, breathing moment. Larsen's five-song sequence, 'You', weaves through the album, offering up a lovely combination of both angular and melodic shapes, and touching on themes including burning the candle at both ends and questions of knowing who and where we are, and what we need. Positivity comes from a stirring 'You Will be Found', and Rosephanye Powell's 'When We Sing' closes the album with a joyful reminder of the power of music to bring people together. An engaging release to which a few words cannot do justice, recorded in glorious sound.' (Matthew Ash)
Available formats: CD, Download & Streaming (up to 96 kHz, 24 bit)
Mozart: Concert Arias
Reinoud Van Mechelen (tenor/director), A Nocte Temporis
'They may have been eclipsed in popularity by their counterparts for soprano, but the concert-pieces and 'suitcase' arias which Mozart composed for the tenor voice make for fascinating listening when heard in sequence here: even the very earliest examples (such as 'Va, dal furor portata', written when the composer was just nine) are shot through with little touches which point the way to mature operas such as La clemenza di Tito, whilst the later extended scena Misero! o sogno seems to anticipate the musical language of Beethoven and Weber. Directing his period forces with a sure hand, Van Mechelen brings the occasionally stolid texts to life and handles the high tessitura of the earlier works with mellifluous ease.' (Katherine Cooper)
Available formats: CD, Download & Streaming (up to 192 kHz, 24 bit)
