Honourable mentions in despatches include Mozart playing of 'unfailing distinction' from Canadian pianist Jan Lisiecki (again with the Bamberger Symphoniker, this time under Manfred Honeck), 'bracing' Beethoven from Alina Ibragimova and Cédric Tiberghien on BIS, and the late American pianist Ann Schein's 'life-enhancing' Kapp recordings from 1958-60, reissued on APR.
Recording of the Month
Bohuslav Martinů: The Symphonies
Bamberger Symphoniker, Jakub Hrůša
'The results have sounded openhearted and welcoming before but not, I think, so consistently luminous and assured....This is a release to cherish.'
Available formats: 3 CDs, Download & Streaming (up to 96 kHz, 24 bit)
Editor's Choices
Copland: Symphony No. 3 & Walker: Sinfonia No. 5, 'Visions'
London Symphony Orchestra, Sir Antonio Pappano
'Copland's Third Symphony is so well suited to Pappano's temperament and dare I say it this live performance (which I attended) comes over even better on disc.'
Available formats: SACD, Download & Streaming (up to 192 kHz, 24 bit)
Mozart: Symphony No. 41 'Jupiter' - Haydn: Symphony No. 104 'London'
Accademia Bizantina, Ottavio Dantone
'Dantone is able to build excitement not through extremes of tempo or eccentric expressive tweaks but by building the contrapuntal edifice patiently and allowing its symphonic rigour to make its mark.'
Available format: Download & Streaming (up to 96 kHz, 24 bit)
Mozart: Piano Concertos Nos. 9 & 22
Jan Lisiecki (piano), Bamberger Symphoniker, Manfred Honeck
'Mutual awareness and dialogue might be cited as the highlight of the album, were it not for the unfailing distinction of Lisiecki's playing. Here, balance is all.'
Available formats: CD, Download & Streaming (up to 96 kHz, 24 bit)
Schubert/Liszt: Wanderer Fantasy - Tchaikovsky: Concert Fantasy
Lukas Geniušas (piano), Sinfonieorchester St. Gallen, Modestas Pitrėnas
'It's one of those recordings when everyone is on the same page from beginning to end, and palpably enjoying themselves. Lukas Geniušas, one of the brightest talents of his generation, brings an admirable variety of touch and colour to both scores.'
Available formats: CD, Download & Streaming (up to 96 kHz, 24 bit)
Beethoven: The Violin Sonatas Vol. I
Alina Ibragimova (violin), Cédric Tiberghien (fortepiano)
'Everywhere is colour, drama and thought-filled expressive detail...This is what decades of constantly collaborating friendship sounds like.'
Available format: SACD
ZELENKA
Ángel Luis Sánchez Moreno, Ramón Ortega Quero, Marc Trénel, Wies de Boevé, Alfonso Sebastián Alegre
'It is joyful and intelligent, impeccably put together yet free...Has Zelenka's instrumental music ever sounded this good? Possibly not.'
Available formats: 2 CDs, Download & Streaming (up to 96 kHz, 24 bit)
Schumann: Waldszenen, Carnaval, Geistervariationen
Dasol Kim (piano)
'Schumann's imagination to take flight, its freshness restored. Unmistakably, this is Schumann interpretation of a high order, filled with character yet unencumbered with eccentricity.'
Available formats: CD, Download & Streaming (up to 96 kHz, 24 bit)
Troubled Times: Music and Espionage in Renaissance England
The Queen's Six, Rose Consort of Viols
'The Queen's Six bring to this repertoire the seamless blend you'd expect from singers who share not merely a concert platform but a postcode within Windsor Castle's walls. Indeed, their daily proximity to the Chapel Royal tradition lends these performances an unforced liturgical gravity.'
Available formats: CD, Download & Streaming (up to 192 kHz, 24 bit)
Lully: Proserpine
Marie Lys (Proserpine), Ambroisine Bré (Arethusa), Jean-Sébastien Bou (Crinise), Véronique Gens (Ceres), Nick Pritchard (Mercury), Laurence Kilsby (Alphée); Les Talens Lyriques, Christophe Rousset
'Marie Lys makes much of the few opportunities she is given...this penultimate instalment in Christophe Rousset's magnificent survey of Lully's operas should not be missed.'
Available formats: 3 CDs, Download & Streaming (up to 96 kHz, 24 bit)
Reissue/Archive Issue of the Month
Ann Schein: The Complete Kapp Recordings 1958-1960
Ann Schein, Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Eugene Goossens
'They are something of a holy grail among devoted pianophiles...Were there still a category for historic recordings, this would be a shoo-in for a Gramophone Award.'
Available format: 3 CDs
