Recommended
Un air d’Italie: the mandolin in Paris in the 18th century (Arcana)
No-one with a fondness for the mandolin should miss this engaging disc [GPu]
Stravinsky: Violin Concerto, Apollon Musagète (Chandos)
Superb recordings of all the works here [SB]
Vaughan Williams: A Birthday Garland (SOMM Recordings)
Lovers of English song should not hesitate: acquire this disc and gatecrash Uncle Ralph’s musical party [JQ]
Beethoven: Complete String Quartets Volume 1 (Chandos)
Consistently magnificent performances, but comparison has a sting in the tail [MG]
Ruby Hughes (soprano): End of My Days (BIS)
An outstanding recital; elegantly conceived, ideally recorded and beautifully performed [RH]
Messiaen: Turangalîla-Symphonie (Harmonia Mundi)
A top-notch Turangalîla from Toronto; stellar sonics, too [DM]
Ymaginacions – Mass upon John Dunstable’s square (Paraty)
A Lady Mass by a leading early Tudor composer in an exciting, unique performance [GH]
Wagner: Die Walküre (Decca)
The last instalment of the Decca ‘Ring’ enhanced by remastering in magnificent sound [JQ]
Rachmaninoff: Symphony 2 & Piano Concerto 2 (Berliner Philharmoniker)
This is in every way a distinguished Rachmaninoff album [JQ]
Mahler: Symphony 3 (High Definition Tape Transfers)
A classic performance in a never-before-heard revelatory recording [NB]
Cage: Music for Three, Music for One (CAvi-Music)
Cage’s ‘thing’ advocated by three superb musicians, in sympathetic sonics [RHa]
Wagner: Das Rheingold (Decca)
A classic Wagner recording in magnificently remastered sound [JQ]
Cavalieri: Lamentations (Pan Classics)
Incisive performances of stylistically groundbreaking and expressive works [JV]
Bedford: In the Voices of the Living (NMC)
Bedford’s music is adventurous, exciting, humane and quite devoid of blandness or the easy option. Terrific performances and sonics [RHa]
Sibelius: Symphony No 4 (Alpha Classics)
A performance to convert the Sibelian reluctant to appreciate the bleak Fourth’s special qualities, in a death-laden programme complete with two superb companion pieces [RMo]
Zayt Gezunterheyt – The Folk Soul of the Eastern Clarinet (Antarctica Records)
A simply outstanding meeting of stunning musicians and glorious music [PJ]
Recharged by Nature – Contemporary Nordic Works (Alba)
Two magnificent, distinctively folk-tinged concertos are vividly brought to life [RHa]
Igor Levit (piano): Fantasia (Sony Classical)
Another outstanding recital from Levit, with a superb version of the big Busoni work [SB]
Ludford: Mass (Paraty)
A new perspective on the performance of the music of the English renaissance [JV]
Donizetti: La fille du régiment (Decca)
Sign me up for this regiment: this recording is as good as it gets [MP]
Messiaen: La Nativité du Seigneur (Aeolus)
A glowing and atmospheric account in spectacular SACD sound [SG]
Bach: Goldberg Variations (Alba)
A poetic, refined, beautifully played account from a remarkable young Finnish pianist [RMo]
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