Classical Reviews
-
Operette from Diana Damrau
15th Dec 2023
The German coloratura soprano is on sparkling form on a whistle-stop tour of seven decades of operetta history - taking in Berlin, Paris and Vienna along the way, and including classy cameos from Jonas Kaufmann and Emily Sierra.
-
Christmas from Norway
8th Dec 2023
The powerhouse Norwegian soprano Lise Davidsen is on radiant, affecting form in a programme of Scandinavian carols, seasonal Lieder and a couple of Baroque chestnuts, with luxury support from the Norwegian Radio Orchestra under Christian Eggen.
Featured product
Christmas From Norway
Lise Davidsen (soprano)
-
Bob Chilcott's Christmas Oratorio
1st Dec 2023
Benjamin Nicholas and the choir of Merton College, Oxford perform Bob Chilcott's new Christmas Oratorio - filled with lyrical solo writing, beautiful choral numbers and sweeping congregational tunes.
-
Delius's A Mass of Life from Sir Mark Elder and the Bergen Philharmonic
24th Nov 2023
Elder's beautifully-judged approach to pacing and balance makes the strongest case possible for a score which he describes as 'Delius's magnum opus', aided by Roderick Williams on typically eloquent form in the huge central role of Zarathustra.
-
Saint-Saëns symphonic poems from François-Xavier Roth and Les Siècles
17th Nov 2023
A selection of Saint-Saëns's luscious orchestral pieces - familiar and less-known, and including a real treasure from the very dawn of the cinematic era - get the Les Siècles treatment, leaping off the page thanks to intelligent and sensitive performances on period instruments.
-
Rob Cowan on Artur Rodziński
14th Nov 2023
Our new guest-contributor explores the Polish-American conductor's complete Columbia recordings with the Cleveland Orchestra - including a 'driven and impassioned' Shostakovich Five, and the world premiere recording of the Berg Violin Concerto.
-
Anne-Sophie Mutter and Mutter's Virtuosi
10th Nov 2023
The violinist and her ensemble of virtuoso string players present a dazzingly eclectic programme of works by Vivaldi, Bach, Bologne, and André Previn.
Featured product
Anne-Sophie Mutter & Mutter’s Virtuosi (CD & Download Edition)
Elias David Moncado (violin), Anne-Sophie Mutter (violin), Mohamed Hiber (violin), Lionel Martin (cello), Samuel Nebyu (violin), Matthew Lipman (viola), Margarita Balanas (cello), Dominik Wagner (double bass), Hwayoon Lee (viola), Mutter's Virtuosi
More products from this article -
Ravel's Daphnis et Chloé from Sinfonia of London and John Wilson
3rd Nov 2023
The conductor's new edition of the score incorporates hundreds of tiny amendments which Ravel made to the orchestral parts in rehearsal - and the resulting recording reveals a wealth of fine detail as well as a keen sense of the bigger picture.
-
Verismo from Domingo Hindoyan and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
27th Oct 2023
The orchestra and their Chief Conductor perform a selection of orchestral highlights from verismo operas, from familiar favourites to rarer gems.
Featured product
Verismo
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Domingo Hindoyan
-
Isabelle Faust - Solo
20th Oct 2023
The German violinist is at her intelligent, expressive best in a programme of works for unaccompanied violin by Matteis père et fils, Pisendel, Guillemain, Vilsmayr and Biber.
Featured product
Solo
Isabelle Faust (violin)
-
Folk Songs from Magdalena Kožená
13th Oct 2023
The Czech mezzo teams up with her husband Simon Rattle and the Czech Philharmonic for superbly characterful performances of folk-inspired song-cycles by Bartók, Berio, Ravel and Montsalvatge.
-
A slow-brewed Goldberg Variations from Víkingur Ólafsson
6th Oct 2023
The Icelandic pianist presents the results of twenty-five years of thoughtful preparation, in a recording of Bach's Goldberg Variations that combines control and spontaneity, limpid gentleness and furious virtuosic energy.
-
Igor Levit's Fantasia
29th Sep 2023
The pianist brings clear-eyed precision and cantabile beauty to a programme of works by JS Bach, Liszt, Berg and Busoni, released today on Sony Classical.
Featured product
Fantasia
Igor Levit (piano)
-
Dvořák from Veronika Jarůšková, Peter Jarůšek and Boris Giltburg
22nd Sep 2023
Six years on from their award-winning recording of Dvořák's Piano Quintet No. 2, the first violinist and cellist of the Pavel Haas Quartet reunite with Giltburg for the complete piano trios in interpretations bursting with colour and vitality.
-
John Wilson conducts Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma!
15th Sep 2023
A true labour of love for the conductor, John Wilson and Sinfonia of London's latest project presents the premiere complete recording of the first collaboration between the legendary partnership of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein.
Featured product
Rodgers & Hammerstein: Oklahoma!
Nathaniel Hackmann (Curly), Sierra Boggess (Laurey), Rodney Earl Clarke (Jud Fry), Jamie Parker (Will Parker), Louise Dearman (Ado Annie), Sandra Marvin (Aunt Eller), Nadim Naaman (Ali Hakim), Leo Roberts (Andrew Carnes), Oklahoma! Ensemble, Sinfonia of London, John Wilson
More products from this article -
A fin-de-siècle voyage with Barbara Hannigan and the Emerson String Quartet
8th Sep 2023
The quartet - joined by Barbara Hannigan and Bertrand Chamayou - go out on a high after nearly fifty years of music-making, with a programme of early twentieth-century works themed around journeying and longing.
-
Monteverdi's Vespers from Raphaël Pichon and Pygmalion
1st Sep 2023
Raphaël Pichon and his Pygmalion ensemble offer a vivid, contrast-filled account of Monteverdi's sacred masterwork. A new benchmark recording of the Vespers? Quite possibly.
Featured product
Monteverdi: Vespro della Beata Vergine
Pygmalion, Raphaël Pichon
-
Russian Romances from Piotr Beczała and Helmut Deutsch
25th Aug 2023
The Polish tenor and German pianist are both at the top of their considerable games in an eloquent and imaginative recital of songs by Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff, released today on Pentatone.
-
Sanctissima from the ORA Singers
18th Aug 2023
The London-based vocal ensemble's 'Vespers and Benediction for the Feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary' features striking commissions by Giles Swayne, Julian Anderson, Matthew Martin and the late Sven-David Sandström.
-
Rumon Gamba conducts overtures from Finland
11th Aug 2023
The Oulu Symphony Orchestra and their chief conductor offer a treasure trove of rarely-recorded orchestral gems by Finnish composers contemporary with Sibelius.
Featured product
Overtures From Finland
Oulu Sinfonia, Rumon Gamba
