The
McCormack Edition Volume 6: 1915-16 Acoustic
Recordings 
John
McCormack (tenor) rec. 1915/6 NAXOS
HISTORICAL 8.111316 [78:17] 
[GF]
More
than worth the price for the unsurpassed recording of Il mio tesoro
alone ... see Full Review
Irén
Marik - From Mozart to Messiaen
Irén Marik (piano) rec. 1952-1981
ARBITER 152 [79:51 + 78:41][JW] 
Arbiter
honours Marik’s memory with great commitment and assurance ...
see Full Review
Matins
for Ascension Day
The Choir of Lincoln Cathedral/Colin Walsh rec. 1993
PRIORY PRCD5028
[60.46]
[RH]
You
really do feel as if you are eavesdropping on a service at the
Cathedral ... see Full Review
Musique
à Versailles
Includes Marin MARAIS (1656-1728) Les Folies
d’Espagne Marin MARAIS Suite Michel-Richard DELALANDE (1657-1726) Symphonies de Noël
François COUPERIN (1668-1733)
Concerto Trio Marie-Antoinette
rec. 1999 CAMPANELLA
MUSICA C130090 [68:41] 
[BW]
An
attractive and entertaining hour of refined music-making ... see Full
Review
Opera Night Deutsche Oper Berlin
2007
Orchestra and Chorus from
the Deutsche Oper Berlin/Lawrence Foster Gala rec. 2007
ARTHAUS 101455 
[122.00][MM-B]
The
public responded warmly and one is left with an uplifting, cheerful
feeling ... see Full Review
Operetta
Favourites - Arias and Duets from operettas by Franz LEHÁR (1870-1948)
and Johann STRAUSS II (1825-1899)
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf (soprano); various accompanists
REGIS RRC1291 [75:11][JS]
I very much enjoyed this disc … quite simply
too good to carp over ... see Full
Review
Orpheus
400 Twenty
electroacoustic pieces Stefan
Fricke (curator) CYBELE
960.209 [76:17] [CR]
Musical
ideas, thoughts and experimentations, varied, successful and inspiring
... see Full Review
Emmanuel
Pahud - Flute Concertos by Marc-André
DALBAVIE (b. 1961), Michael
JARRELL (b. 1958) and Matthias
PINTSCHER (b. 1971)
Emmanuel Pahud (flute); Orchestre Philharmoniqe
de Radio France/various conductors rec. 2006-7
EMI CLASSICS 5012262 [54:59][KS]
Hit
and miss new music which will mainly appeal
to the esoterica set ... see Full
Review
Rolando Panerai
Arias
Rolando Panerai (baritone) Mattiwilda
Dobbs (soprano) ; Margherita Carosio (soprano)
; and others rec. 1953/1954
NIMBUS PRIMA VOCE NI7949 [72:46] 
[JW]
Shows
Panerai’s strengths and weaknesses with fidelity
... see Full Review
Ezio
Pinza - Volume V
rec. 1950-54
PREISER 89707 [74:17]
[JW]
Many
nourishing and likeable, echt-Pinza moments ... see Full
Review
Romantic
Organ Music William
H. HARRIS (1883-1973) Fantasia
on a theme of Thomas Campion Peggy
HADDON (1931-2004) Suite Piccanin Josef
RHEINBERGER (1839-1901) Sonata 18 Edward
ELGAR (1857-1934) Chanson de Nuit, Severn Suite Roger
Fisher (organ) Peta-Ann Holdcroft (cello).
rec. 2007 PRIORY PRCD895 [70:33] [CB]
Fisher
plays the late Romantic literature with great panache ... see Full
Review
Andrés Segovia - 1950s American
Recordings Vol. 4
see review for details
rec. 1952–1957
NAXOS HISTORICAL 8.111092 [71:06]
[JF]
Music
to be savoured - not taken at a gulp ... see Full Review
Lars
Sellergren Plays: Volume 3 Music by
Ludwig van BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)
Robert SCHUMANN (1810-1856) Franz
LISZT (1811-1886) Frédéric CHOPIN
(1810-1849) and Claude DEBUSSY
(1862-1918)
Lars Sellergren (piano) rec. 1966-1981
STERLING CDA1662-63-2 [73:41 + 68:44][BW]
Decent
performances, well recorded, but the programme is too disparate to warrant
an overall recommendation ... see Full
Review
Berl
Senofsky - The Art of the Violin Vol. 3
Ludwig van BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)
Violin Concerto Sergei PROKOFIEV
(1891-1953) Violin Concerto 2
Boston SO/Pierre Monteux, American SO/Leopold Stokowski rec. live 1958-66
CEMBAL D’AMOUR CD126
[70:57]
[JW]
Senofsky
plays with enviable assurance ... see Full
Review
Cesare Siepi
- Giuseppe VERDI etc
Orchestra Sinfonica Radio Italiana/Arturo
Basile (1-6); unknown (7, 9, 10); Alfredo
Simonetto (8), remaining items unknown rec.
1947-1948
NIMBUS PRIMA VOCE NI 7942 [72:59]
[JW]
Siepi’s
youthful élan permeates this wholesome and impressive selection
... see Full Review
Leopold
Simoneau & Pierrette Alarie - Vol. 1
Pierrette Alarie
(soprano), Leopold Simoneau (tenor) rec. 1952-67
DOREMI DHR79169 [79:46 + 78:32 + 79:41 + 78:09][GF]
There
is a lot of valuable material here and it is a pity that the quality
of the transfers isn’t better ... see Full
Review
Songs by Great
Conductors Hans
von BÜLOW (1830–1894) Fünf Lieder Bruno
WALTER (1876–1962) Drei Lieder nach Joseph v.
Eichendorff; Drei Lieder nach Heine Clemens KRAUSS (1893–1954) Acht Gesänge nach Gedichten
von Rainer Maria Rilke
Petra Lang (soprano), Michael Volle (baritone), Adrian Baianu (piano)
rec. 2004-7
OEHMS CLASSICS OC808 [58:29][GF]
It
is difficult to imagine better advocates for
this music ... see Full
Review
Songs
Without Words:
Music for Flute and Harp
Andrea Kollé (flute); Jasmine Vollmer (harp) rec. 2007
GUILD GMCD7316 [58:28]
[CR]
Sensitivity,
intelligence and excellent communication …... see Full
Review
Leopold
Stokowski and
the NBC Symphony Orchestra
Serge PROKOFIEV
(1891-1953) Suite
from The Love of Three Oranges Op.33a
(1921) [8:26] Edward
MACDOWELL (1860-1908) Piano Concerto
No.2 in D minor Op.23 – movements 1 and 2
only (1888-89) [18:11] Johannes
BRAHMS (1833-1897) Symphony No.4
in E minor Op.98 (1884-85) [35:48] Deems
TAYLOR (1885-1966) Ramuntcho
– Introduction and Ballet Music, Act III
(1942) [8:12]
NBC Symphony Orchestra/Leopold Stokowski rec.
1941/2/3
GUILD HISTORICAL GHCD 2335 [73:52]
[JW]
A
balanced and valuable programme for the assiduous
collector ... see Full
Review
La Superbe - French
Harpsichord Music from the 18th Century
Louis-Nicolas CLÉRAMBAULT
(1676-1749) Pièces de Clavecin François
COUPERIN (1668-1733) Pièces de Clavecin, Troisième Livre,
Dixseptième Ordre Jacques DUPHLY
(1715-1789) Pièces de Clavecin, Troisième Livre
Albert-Jan Roelofs (harpsichord) Elisabeth Wallfisch (violin) rec. 2004
Private recording [54:23]
[DC]
Superbe!
... see Full Review
Teatro
Lirico Includes Arcangelo CORELLI (1653-1713) Improvisation
I on the Folia bass Giulio CACCINI (c.1550-1618) Amarilli, mia bella Carlo FARINA (c.1600-c.1640) Sonata
II detta La desperata Giovanni Battista GRANATA (c.1620-c.1687) Sonata
di chitarra, e violino, con il suo basso continuo anon/Johann Caspar
HORN (c.1630-c.1685) Suite Teatro
Lirico/Stephen Stubbs rec. 2004 ECM
NEW SERIES 1893 (4763101) [74:22] [JV]
An
interesting programme of mostly Italian music, showing the skills
and fine musicianship of Teatro Lirico ... see Full
Review
Günter
Wand Edition Vol. 19 Ludwig
van BEETHOVEN (1770-1827) Piano
Concerto 4 Franz Josef HAYDN (1732-1809) Symphony
92 Johann Sebastian BACH (1685-1750) Violin
Concerto, BWV1041 Robert
Casadesus (piano); Roland Greutter (violin)
Kölner RSO, NDR SO/Günter Wand
rec. 1967-92 HÄNSSLER PROFIL
PH06006 [68:40] [KS]
Bold
and ripe performances of some established classics. Casadesus is
in perfect form! ... see Full
Review
Camilla
Wicks: Great Norwegian Performers 1945-2000 – Volume
3 Includes Alexander
GLAZUNOV (1865 - 1936) Violin Concerto Ralph
VAUGHAN WILLIAMS (1872-1958) The Lark Ascending Bjarne
BRUSTAD (1895-1978) Suite for solo violin Camilla
Wicks (violin) Bergen PO/Karsten Andersen
rec. 1950-75 SIMAX PSC1832 [61:22] [JW]
Tremendously
attractive playing; unforced, unpressed, subtly tinted and voiced
... see Full Review
Wind
Trios Music by Georges
AURIC (1899-1983), Antonio
VIVALDI (1678-1741), Georges
BARBOTEU (b. 1924), Ludwig van BEETHOVEN
(1770-1827) and Astor
PIAZZOLLA (1921-1992)
Trio Quantz rec. 1999
QUANTUM QM7009 [51:01][KS]
A
lovely little collection of hidden gems ... see Full
Review
Dolora Zajick - The
Art of the Dramatic Mezzo-Soprano
Dolora Zajick (mezzo); Royal Philharmonic Orchestra/Charles Rosekrans
rec. 1999 TELARC CD80557
[69.25][RJF]
I
welcome the all too rare opportunity to wallow in a disc devoted to
this voice type from one of the few singers capable of doing justice
to the fach ... see Full Review
BOOK REVIEWS
Discover
Music of the Classical Era by
Stephen Johnson NAXOS BOOKS [MMB]
Delightful. I would recommend it to any person who loves
music ... see Full Review
[Click
here for the most recent reviews (last
five days)]
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]
[Recommended
recordings]
T
