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RECORDINGS
OF THE MONTH
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Béla
BARTÓK (1881-1945) Violin Concertos 1 & 2, Viola
Concerto 
James Ehnes (violin/viola) BBC Philharmonic/Gianandrea Noseda rec. 2009-11
CHANDOS
CHAN 10690 [77:45] 
[DC]
Tremendous
achievement.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Béla BARTÓK
(1881-1945) Duke Bluebeard’s Castle
Laszló Polgár (bass) Ildikó Komlósi (mezzo) Budapest Fest O/Iván Fischer
rec. 2002
CHANNEL CLASSICS 
CCSSA90311
[55:27]
A
magnificent performance of Bartók’s masterpiece from all-Hungarian forces
… not to be missed.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Ludwig van BEETHOVEN
(1770-1827) The Complete Symphonies +
Coriolan and Egmont overtures, Discovering Beethoven:
a documentary about each symphony
Wiener Philharmoniker/Christian Thielemann rec. 2010
UNITEL C MAJOR 705308 
[9 DVDs: Music: 446:00; Documentaries: 510:00]
[ST]
A
bold attempt to recapture and redefine Beethoven for the 21st
century.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Ludwig van BEETHOVEN
(1770-1827)
Piano Sonatas 30-32
Penelope Crawford (fortepiano) rec. 2010
MUSICA OMNIA MO0308 [64:25] 
[BR]
Probably
the top choice for Beethoven’s last sonatas on a period instrument:
a magical choice of piano and artistry which can stand up to the greats.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Johannes
BRAHMS (1833-1897) Symphonies 1-4
Tonhalle O Zurich/David Zinman rec. 2010
SONY/RCA RED SEAL 88697 933492 [3 CDs: 166:00]
[ST]
Traditional
Brahms … excellent, rich and bloomy.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Johannes
BRAHMS (1833-1897) Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 77*
(1878) [41:14] 21 Hungarian Dances WoO 1 (1868 and 1880) (arr. Joseph
JOACHIM)** [52:58]
Baiba Skride (violin); Lauma Skride (piano) ** Royal Stockholm Philharmonic
Orchestra/Sakari Oramo* rec. 2009/2010,
ORFEO C 829 112 A [41:14 + 52:58]
[JQ]
This
winningly lyrical account of the Brahms Violin Concerto is worth serious
consideration by collectors.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Havergal BRIAN
(1876-1972)
Symphony
1 The Gothic
Susan Gritton (soprano) Bach Choir, Brighton Festival Ch, CBSO Youth
Chorus, Huddersfield Choral Soc, London Symphony Ch, BBC National Ch
& O of Wales; BBC Concert O/Martyn Brabbins rec. live, 2011
HYPERION CDA67971/2 [54:07 + 60:41]
[RB]
A
momentous and remarkable work receiving its finest performance and recording
to date.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Anton BRUCKNER
(1824-1896)
Symphonies 4 & 7
Basle SO/Mario Venzago rec. 2010
CPO 777 615-2 [61:15 + 64:21]
[CH]
Venzago’s
Bruckner may be for the 2020s as iconic as Wand’s was for the
1990s.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Frederick DELIUS
(1862-1934)
Double Concerto for Violin & Cello, Violin Concerto, Cello Concerto
Tasmin
Little (violin), Paul Watkins (cello) BBC SO/Sir Andrew Davis rec. 2010
CHANDOS
CHSA5094
[68:59]
[IL]
Spellbinding
performances of three concertos of languid beauty
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Charles DESMAZURES
(1670-1736) Pičces de Simphonie - Suites I & III
Vespres d'Arnadí/Dani Espasa rec. 2008
MUSIČPOCA MEPCD-001 [73:56] [Byz]
Without
doubt one of the finest CD releases of the year.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Louis
Moreau GOTTSCHALK (1829-1869) The Complete Solo Piano
Music
Philip Martin (piano)
HYPERION CDS 44451/8 [8 CDs: 578:13] 
[DM]
It’s
an unqualified success, a winning blend of fine pianism and infectious
music, and all presented in top-notch sound.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Leoš
JANÁČEK
(1854-1928) Suite for String Orchestra; String Quartet 1
Bohuslav MARTINŮ (1890-1959) Sextet Pavel
HAAS (1899-1944) Study for string orchestra
Janáček CO rec. 2009/10
CHANDOS CHAN 10678 [64:36]
[BR]
For
fans of Janáček, Haas, and Martinů, an hour of guaranteed
satisfaction.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Franz LISZT (1811-1886)
Venezia e Napoli; Années de Pčlerinage III Troisičme Année;
Michael Korstick (piano) rec. 2010
CPO 777 663-2 [72:18]
[DC]
Nothing but admiration and wonder for this
achievement.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Gustav MAHLER
(1860-1911)
Symphony 1
Pittsburgh SO/Manfred Honeck rec. 2008
EXTON EXCL-00026
[57:59]
[MC]
Manfred
Honeck is on course to be a great Mahlerian.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Wolfgang
Amadeus MOZART (1756-1791) Horn Concertos 1-4
Alessio
Allegrini (horn) Orchestra Mozart/Claudio Abbado rec. 2005-7
DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON 477 8083 [53:20]
[MG]
Glorious
horn playing with alert, sensitive orchestral backing.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Arnold SCHOENBERG
(1874-1951)
Accompanying Music to a Film Scene, Chamber Symphony 1
Johannes BRAHMS (1833-1897) Piano Quartet 1 (orch.
Schoenberg)
Berlin PO/Sir Simon Rattle rec. 2009
EMI CLASSICS 4578152 [73:40]
[MC]
Without
doubt, this release will be a strong contender for my Recordings of
the Year.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Franz SCHUBERT
(1797
- 1828) Winterreise
Natalie Stutzmann (contralto), Inger Södergren (piano) rec. 2003
SAPHIR
LVC1153 [76:21]
[GF]
No
performance of Winterreise has touched me as much as this one.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Franz
SCHUBERT (1797-1828)
Schwanengesang, Auf dem Strom, Die Sterne
Mark Padmore (tenor) Paul Lewis (piano) Richard Watkins (French horn)
rec. 2010
HARMONIA MUNDI HMU907520 [67:25]
[JQ]
A
magnificent reading of Schwanengesang.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Dmitri
SHOSTAKOVICH
(1906-1975)
Symphony No. 4 in C minor, Op. 43 (1936) [65:30]
Staatsorchester Rheinische Philharmonie, Philharmonisches Staatsorchester
Mainz/Daniel Raiskin rec. 2009,
C-AVI 8553235 [65:30]
[DM]
Shattering,
unforgettable Shostakovich.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Dmitri
SHOSTAKOVICH (1906-1975) New Babylon
Basel Sinf/Mark Fitz-Gerald rec. 2011
NAXOS 8.572824-25 [43:15 + 48:08]
[NB]
Without
doubt this is one the finest all-round achievements by Naxos.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Charles Villiers
STANFORD (1852-1924)
Piano Trio 1, Legend, Irish Fantasies, Piano Quartet 2
Gould Piano Trio, David Adams (viola) rec. 2009
NAXOS 8.572452 [79:47]
[JF]
How
anyone could listen to this CD and still believe that Stanford’s
music is ‘as dry as dust’ totally evades me.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Allan
STEPHENSON (b.1948?) Double bass
concerto, Burlesque, Cello concerto
Leon Bosch (double bass) Peter Martens (cello) Cape PO/Allan Stephenson
rec. 2010
MERIDIAN CDE84602 [62:00] [RB]
Power-floated
melodies of sumptuous breadth and superb emotional impact.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Richard
STRAUSS (1864-1949) Capriccio
Renée Fleming, Anne Sofie von Otter, Robert Tear, Paris Ntl Opéra O/Ulf
Schirmer rec. 2004
ARTHAUS MUSIK 107
327 [2 DVDs: 148:00] 
[ST]
Watching
it helped me to rediscover afresh the joys of Strauss’s final masterpiece,
and that’s high praise to give to any recording.
BARGAIN
OF THE MONTH Joaquin
TURINA (1882–1949) Songs
Carolina Ullrich (soprano) Débora Halász (piano) rec. 2009
NAXOS 8.570707 [71:29]
[GF]
A
whispered breeze directly from the Virgin Mary’s lips.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH Ralph
VAUGHAN WILLIAMS (1872-1958)
Symphony 2, Oboe concerto
Stéphane Rancourt (oboe) Hallé O/Sir Mark Elder rec. 2010
HALLÉ CDHLL7529 [65:56]
[JQ]
This
disc continues the rich vein of recordings of English music by Sir Mark
Elder and the Hallé.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH The
Grand Organ of Canterbury Cathedral
John
Robinson (organ) rec. 2010
PRIORY PRDVD6
[78:06]
[ST]
Will
give tremendous pleasure to any discerning music-lover.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH My True Love
Hath My Heart Songs by British composers
Sarah Connolly (mezzo) Malcolm Martineau (piano) rec. 2011
CHANDOS CHAN 10691 [63:00] [JQ]
An
outstanding recital of English song.
RECORDING
OF THE MONTH
Note by Note
- The
making of Steinway L1037
Ben Niles (director) Featuring Pierra-Laurent Aimard, Hélène
Grimaud, Lang Lang & Harry Connick Jnr rec. 2007
DOCURAMA FILMS
NNVG146510 [81:00 + extras]
[DJB]
Inspirational
and illuminating.
BARGAINS
OF THE MONTH
BARGAIN
OF THE MONTH William PERRY
(b. 1930) Music for Great Films of the Silent Era
RTÉ Ntl SO/Paul Phillips rec. 2010
NAXOS 8.572567 [78:41] [IL]
A
glorious, joyous, tuneful celebration of the days of Silent Cinema.
BARGAIN
OF THE MONTH Echoes
Classic Works Transformed
Seattle SO/Gerard Schwarz rec. 2006
NAXOS 8.559679 [53:35] [BR]
If
there is a thesis to this album, it is that today’s composers are never
too far from their predecessors, and something great can come of the
marriage of old and new.
Click
for alphabetical listings by composer:
[Part
1 New] [Part
2 A-B] [Part 3 C-L]
[Part 4 M-R] [Part
5 S-Z]
[Part 6 Misc A-L] [Part
7 Misc M-Z]
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