Classical Reviews
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Vaughan Williams from the Hallé and Mark Elder
25th Feb 2013
Following a splendid London Symphony last year, Elder and his Manchester orchestra continue a cycle which is shaping up to be one of the finest modern sets on disc with magnificent accounts of the Fifth and Eighth symphonies, with the Hallé’s horns emerging as first among equals.
Featured product
Vaughan Williams: Symphonies Nos. 5 & 8
Hallé, Sir Mark Elder
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JS Bach: St John Passion from Polyphony and Layton
18th Feb 2013
The crowd-scenes crackle with terrifying energy and Ian Bostridge’s volatile Evangelist brings great narrative momentum, whilst Iestyn Davies and Richard Tunnicliffe’s eloquence in ‘Es ist vollbracht’ is worth the price of the set alone.
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Wagner from Jonas Kaufmann and others
11th Feb 2013
Gergiev conducts an electrifying Walküre starring René Pape as Wotan, Nina Stemme as his rebel daughter, and Jonas Kaufmann and Anja Kampe as the Walsung Twins; Kaufmann’s solo album of opera scenes and the Wesendock-Lieder, meanwhile, is the best thing he’s ever done.
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Elgar & Carter from Alisa Weilerstein
4th Feb 2013
The American cellist worked closely with Carter (who died last year) whilst preparing his 2001 Cello Concerto, and brings a touching elegiac lyricism to the Japanese-influenced slow movement; her introverted and tender account of the Elgar is no less engaging.
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I was glad: Sacred Music by Stanford & Parry
28th Jan 2013
Robert King and his Consort present lavish orchestrations (on period instruments) of Parry’s Te Deum, I was glad, Blest Pair of Sirens and Jerusalem, and four of Stanford’s canticle settings, with Carolyn Sampson and David Wilson-Johnson as soloists.
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Steven Osborne plays Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition
21st Jan 2013
Osborne’s journey through Mussorgsky’s gallery proves a highly intelligent, thoughtful interpretation that aims to be more than just a showy series of programmatic events.
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Little Britten
14th Jan 2013
Cellist Matthew Barley marks the centenary of the composer’s birth with a recital centring on the Third Cello Suite, whilst Edward Higginbottom and The Choir of New College Oxford bring a vital, pleasingly rough-round-the-edges approach that recalls Britten’s own children’s choirs to the scared choral music.
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Mendelssohn from the Quatuor Ebène
7th Jan 2013
The award-winning young French quartet bring their trademark commitment and passion to chamber-music by the Mendelssohn siblings, including Felix’s ‘quartet-Requiem’ for his beloved sister.
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Quatuor Ebène play Felix and Fanny Mendelssohn
Quatuor Ebène
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Looking ahead to 2013 - Verdi, Britten and Wagner
24th Dec 2012
Previews of boxed sets and new recordings marking next year’s three significant anniversaries, including The Rape of Lucretia from Oliver Knussen (starring Ian Bostridge and Angelika Kirchschlager), Wagner scenes from Jonas Kaufmann, and a comprehensive Verdi collection from EMI Classics.
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Wispelwey and Schiff re-visit Bach
17th Dec 2012
For his third recording of the Suites, the Dutch cellist tunes his instrument down by a whole tone to the pitch which was commonly used in Cöthen where Bach composed the works, whilst Schiff’s second take on The Well-Tempered Clavier is more direct and less sentimental than its predecessor.
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Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty from Neeme Järvi
10th Dec 2012
A new trilogy of complete Tchaikovsky ballet scores from the veteran Estonian conductor and the Bergen Philharmonic gets off to a glittering start, with outstanding solo contributions from violinist James Ehnes and cellist Robert deMaine.
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Christmas roundup
3rd Dec 2012
The Choir of King’s College Cambridge launch their own record-label with a collection of music commissioned for their Nine Lessons and Carols services over the decades, plus Zelenka’s Missa Nativitatis Domini from Musica Florea and Britten’s St Nicolas from Trinity College Cambridge.
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Alexandre Tharaud: Le Boeuf sur le toit
26th Nov 2012
The French pianist and friends (including Natalie Dessay, Madeleine Peyroux, Juliette and Bénabar) get together for a joyous compendium of music by regular visitors to the eponymous Parisian nightclub during the 1920s, including Ravel, Milhaud, and Clément Doucet.
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Belcea Quartet launch their Beethoven cycle
19th Nov 2012
Excellent ensemble and complete sympathy and understanding between the players are the hallmarks of this projected complete cycle by the former BBC New Generation Artists, who have been winning plaudits galore for their live performances of these works over the past few years.
Featured product
Beethoven: The Complete String Quartets Vol. 1
Belcea Quartet
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Rare baroque vocal delights
12th Nov 2012
Philippe Jaroussky and Max Cencic lead an all-male cast (featuring no fewer than five countertenors!) in the world premiere recording of Leonardo Vinci’s Artaserse, and Christophe Rousset & Company make a splendid case for Antoine Dauvergen’s Hercule mourant.
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Elgar and the First World War
5th Nov 2012
Sir Andrew Davis presides over a touching account of the incidental music for The Starlight Express, whilst John Wilson champions wartime rarities including Polonia, Carillon, and Le drapeau belge*; Simon Callow narrates with gusto on both recordings.
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Rodgers & Hammerstein at the Movies
29th Oct 2012
John Wilson and his orchestra are joined by a stellar line-up of soloists including Maria Ewing, Joyce DiDonato and Anna Jane Casey for a programme of hits from South pacific, Carousel, The Sound of Music and others, given in their glorious technicolour film orchestrations.
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Mission: Cecilia Bartoli
15th Oct 2012
The intrepid Roman mezzo explores the music of Agostino Steffani - Italian composer, cleric, diplomat and spy – in a programme of blazing martial show-stoppers, coloratura pyrotechnics, long-breathed laments, and four delectable duets with countertenor Philippe Jaroussky.
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Alison Balsom: Sound The Trumpet
8th Oct 2012
In her first solo album to be performed exclusively on the natural trumpet, Balsom joins The English Concert and Trevor Pinnock for a programme of music celebrating real or mythic monarchs by Handel and Purcell, including excerpts from The Fairy Queen, King Arthur and Ode for the Birthday of Queen Anne.
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Glenn Gould
24th Sep 2012
To mark the eightieth anniversary of the birth of the extraordinary Canadian pianist, Sony Classical present two sets celebrating his legacy: The Schwarzkopf Tapes from 1966 (previously unreleased), and a handsomely-documented 38-CD box of his legendary Bach recordings.
