MusicWeb International One of the most grown-up review sites around 2024
60,000 reviews
... and still writing ...

Search MusicWeb Here Acte Prealable Polish CDs
 

Presto Music CD retailer
 
Founder: Len Mullenger                                    Editor in Chief:John Quinn             


Some items
to consider

new MWI
Current reviews

old MWI
pre-2023 reviews

paid for
advertisements

Acte Prealable Polish recordings

Forgotten Recordings
Forgotten Recordings
All Forgotten Records Reviews

TROUBADISC
Troubadisc Weinberg- TROCD01450

All Troubadisc reviews


FOGHORN Classics

Alexandra-Quartet
Brahms String Quartets

All Foghorn Reviews


All HDTT reviews


Songs to Harp from
the Old and New World


all Nimbus reviews



all tudor reviews


Follow us on Twitter


Editorial Board
MusicWeb International
Founding Editor
   
Rob Barnett
Editor in Chief
John Quinn
Contributing Editor
Ralph Moore
Webmaster
   David Barker
Postmaster
Jonathan Woolf
MusicWeb Founder
   Len Mullenger




Advertising on
Musicweb


Donate and keep us afloat

 

New Releases

Naxos Classical
All Naxos reviews

Chandos recordings
All Chandos reviews

Hyperion recordings
All Hyperion reviews

Foghorn recordings
All Foghorn reviews

Troubadisc recordings
All Troubadisc reviews



all Bridge reviews


all cpo reviews

Divine Art recordings
Click to see New Releases
Get 10% off using code musicweb10
All Divine Art reviews


All Eloquence reviews

Lyrita recordings
All Lyrita Reviews

 

Wyastone New Releases
Obtain 10% discount

Subscribe to our free weekly review listing

 

Alphabetical Listing

Recommendations

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]
[last 5 days] [Recommended recordings]


RECORDINGS OF THE MONTH

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Johann Sebastian BACH (1685-1750) The Well-Tempered Clavier Book II Peter Hill (piano) rec. 2011 DELPHIAN DCD34101 [78:49 + 79:21] [DC]

Bach which will take you out of this world.

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Béla BARTÓK (1881-1945) Works for Violin and Piano - Volume 1 Rhapsodies 1 & 2, Sonatas 1 & 2 James Ehnes (violin) Andrew Armstrong (piano) rec. 2011 CHANDOS CHAN10705 [80:30] [ST]

A magnificent disc, wonderful playing captured in fantastic sound. 

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Ludwig van BEETHOVEN (1797-1828) Symphony 9 Annemarie Kramer (soprano) Wilke te Brummelstroete (alto) Marcel Reijans (tenor) Geert Smits (bass) Consensus Vocalis Netherlands SO/Jan Willem de Vriend rec. 2011 CHALLENGE CLASSICS CC72533 [63:40] [DC]

Remarkably revealing - how did Beethoven do that? 

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Vincenzo BELLINI (1801-1835) Il Pirata Carmen Giannattasio, José Bros, Geoffrey Mitchell Ch, London PO/David Parry rec. 2010 OPERA RARA ORC45 [3 CDs: 159:28] [RJF]

This dramatic performance takes this version well ahead of the dated competition. 

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Hector BERLIOZ (1803-1869) Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14 (1830) [54:58] Overture: Béatrice et Bénédict (1862) [8:14] Scottish Chamber Orchestra/Robin Ticciati rec. 7-10 October 2011, Usher Hall, Edinburgh, UK. Stereo and multi-channel LINN CKD 400 [63:12] [ST]

It’s this disc I’ll be coming back to when I want to be reminded of just how ground-breaking it still sounds.

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Johannes BRAHMS (1833-1897) Brahms by Arrangement – Volume 1 String Quintets Zebra String Trio rec. 2011 TOCCATA CLASSICS TOCC 0066 [77:35]

This is the kind of disc that makes the most jaded listener sit up straight and pay attention

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Benjamin BRITTEN (1913-1976) Serenade, Nocturne Gerald FINZI (1901-1956) Dies Natalis Mark Padmore (tenor) Stephen Bell (horn) Britten Sinfonia/Jacqueline Shave rec. 2011 HARMONIA MUNDI HMU 807552 [78:29] [JQ]

A release that exudes quality.

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Alfredo CASELLA (1883-1947) Orchestral Works Vol. 2 Concerto for Orchestra, A notte alta, Symphonic Fragments from ‘La donna serpente’ Martin Roscoe (piano) BBC Philharmonic/Gianandrea Noseda rec. 2011 CHANDOS CHAN10712 [73:26] [IL]

The adventurous listener will be very well rewarded by this very imaginative and colourful music. 

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Frédéric CHOPIN (1801-1849) Piano Music Vol. 2 Louis Lortie (piano) rec. 2011 CHANDOS CHAN10714 [75:16] [DMcC]

Thoughtful, engaging, and gorgeous.

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Francisco CILEA (1866-1950) Adriana Lecouvreur Angela Gheorghiu, Jonas Kaufmann, Ch & O Royal Opera House, Covent Garden/Mark Elder rec. 2010 DECCA 074 3459 [2 DVDs: 150:00] [ST]

Two and a half hours of unalloyed operatic pleasure. 

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Claude DEBUSSY (1862-1918) Images, Jeux, Nocturnes, La Mer, Prélude à l’après-midi d’une faune, Marche écossaise sur un thème populaire, Printemps, L’Enfant prodigue Royal Scottish Ntl O/Stéphane Denève rec. 2011/12 CHANDOS CHSA 5102(2) [78:04 + 68:22] [DC]

Sumptuous sonic bathing: thrillingly superb. 

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Claude DEBUSSY (1862-1918) Songs Vol. 2 Lorna Anderson (soprano), Lisa Milne (soprano), Malcolm Martineau (piano) rec. 2011 HYPERION CDA67883 [66:47] [SA]

Thoroughly enjoyable and rewarding in every way.

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Jonathan DOVE (b. 1959) The Passing of the Year Convivium Singers/Neil Ferris, Christopher Cromar (piano) rec. 2011 NAXOS 8.572733 [69:23] [DMcC]

Gorgeous and poignant, performed with wholehearted fervor.

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Carlo GESUALDO (1566-1613) Madrigals Book 4 Delitiæ Musicæ/Marco Longhini rec. 2009 NAXOS 8.572137 [68:57] [MS]

Stylish, convincing, profound and lovely performances. Buy it! 

RECORDING OF THE MONTH George Frideric HANDEL (1685 - 1759) Concerti grossi Concerto Copenhagen/Lars Ulrik Mortensen rec. 2009 CPO 777 488- 2 [58:35] [MG]

Minkowski offers virtuosity and excitement, but Mortensen gives us state of the art. 

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Christian Frederik Emil HORNEMAN (1840-1906) Gurre Suite, Suite from ‘The Contest with the Muses’, Ouverture Héroique, Suite from Kalanus Danish Ntl SO/Johannes Gustavsson rec. 2010-11 DACAPO 6.220564 [image] [66:07] [DC]

A wealth of discovery, and with performances to match.

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Leos JANÁCEK (1854-1928) Taras Bulba, Lachian Dances, Moravian Dances Warsaw PO/Antoni Wit rec. 2010-11 NAXOS 8.572695 [54:27] [BR]

This is the best Taras Bulba I’ve heard, full of original gestures and sumptuously played.

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Gustav MAHLER (1860-1911) Symphony 1, Symphony 5 Adagietto Richard STRAUSS (1864-1949) Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche Boston SO/Erich Leinsdorf rec. 1962/3 ICA CLASSICS ICAD5051 [78:00] [CH]

An astonishingly complete, all-embracing vision of Mahler 1, a brilliant rapscallion of a Till and a gorgeous Adagietto. 

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Gustav MAHLER (1860-1911) Symphony 2 Charlotte Margiono (soprano) Jard van Nes (alto) Ch & O Staatskapelle Dresden/Bernard Haitink rec. 1995 PROFIL EDITION PH07040 [33:16 + 53:11] [MC]

In my experience nothing beats this remarkable Haitink account.

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Claudio MONTEVERDI (1567-1643) Missa In illo tempore Odhecaton/Paolo Da Col rec. 2011 RICERCAR RIC322 [64:35]  [JV]

I strongly urge you to purchase this disc. 

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Serge RACHMANINOFF (1873-1973) Moments musicaux Op.16 (1896) [27:33] Études-tableaux Op.33 (1911) [23:35] Variations on a theme of Corelli Op.42 (1931) [17:45] Xiayin Wang (piano) rec. 2011, 2012 CHANDOS CHAN 10724 [69:18] [NB]

A disc of exceptional quality.

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Franz SCHUBERT (1797-1828) Piano Trios, Arpeggione Sonata Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio rec. 2010 BRIDGE 9376A/B [64:15 + 74:07] [JS]

Likely to give real and lasting musical pleasure.

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Maria SZYMANOWSKA (1789-1831) Ballads and Romances Elizabeth Zapolska (mezzo), Bart van Oort (piano – Broadwood, 1825) rec. 2011 List of songs at end of review Texts and translations included ACTE PREALABLE AP0260 [71:54] [SA]

This is a disc of rare quality

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Pyotr Ilyich TCHAIKOVSKY (1840-1893) Violin Concerto, Sérénade Mélancolique, Valse-Scherzo, Souvenir d’un lieu cher James Ehnes (violin) Sydney SO/Vladimir Ashkenazy rec. 2010 ONYX 4076 [69:43] [ST]

An altogether outstanding disc.

RECORDING OF THE MONTH  Pyotr Ilyich TCHAIKOVSKY (1840-1893) Eugene Onegin Bo Skovhus, Krassimira Stoyanova, Andrej Dunaev, Royal Concertgebouw O/Mariss Jansons OPUS ARTE OA 1067 D [151:00 + 30:00 extras] [JS]

A version which anyone who loves this most personal of operas needs to see and hear.

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Alexander TCHEREPNIN (1899-1977) Complete Piano Music - Vol. 1 Giorgio Koukl (piano) rec. 2011 GRAND PIANO GP608 [62:38] [SA]

This is one of those discs that makes me want to shout with delight... A wonderful disc altogether! 

RECORDING OF THE MONTH Dancing on Ivory Romantic transcriptions for piano Jue Wang (piano) rec. 2011 MSR CLASSICS MS1404 [55:10] [BR]

An adventurous program which exposes a strong young pianist truly coming into his own.

RECORDING OF THE MONTH New Favourites Swedish Chamber Choir/Simon Phipps rec. 2011 MUSICA REDIVIVA MRSACD103 [73:47] [WH]

A magnificent collection of modern Swedish choral music.

 

 


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]
[last 5 days] [Recommended recordings]


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



EXPLORE MUSICWEB INTERNATIONAL

Making a Donation to MusicWeb

Writing CD reviews for MWI

About MWI
Who we are, where we have come from and how we do it.

Site Map

How to find a review

How to find articles on MusicWeb
Listed in date order

Review Indexes
   By Label
      Select a label and all reviews are listed in Catalogue order
   By Masterwork
            Links from composer names (eg Sibelius) are to resource pages with links to the review indexes for the individual works as well as other resources.

Themed Review pages

Jazz reviews

 

Discographies
   Composer
      Composer surveys
   National
      Unique to MusicWeb -
a comprehensive listing of all LP and CD recordings of given works
.
Prepared by Michael Herman

The Collector’s Guide to Gramophone Company Record Labels 1898 - 1925
Howard Friedman

Book Reviews

Complete Books
We have a number of out of print complete books on-line

Interviews
With Composers, Conductors, Singers, Instumentalists and others
Includes those on the Seen and Heard site

Nostalgia

Nostalgia CD reviews

Records Of The Year
Each reviewer is given the opportunity to select the best of the releases

Monthly Best Buys
Recordings of the Month and Bargains of the Month

Comment
Arthur Butterworth Writes

An occasional column

Phil Scowcroft's Garlands
British Light Music articles

Classical blogs
A listing of Classical Music Blogs external to MusicWeb International

Reviewers Logs
What they have been listening to for pleasure

Announcements

 

Community
Bulletin Board

Give your opinions or seek answers

Reviewers
Past and present

Helpers invited!

Resources
How Did I Miss That?

Currently suspended but there are a lot there with sound clips


Composer Resources

British Composers

British Light Music Composers

Other composers

Film Music (Archive)
Film Music on the Web (Closed in December 2006)

Programme Notes
For concert organizers

External sites
British Music Society
The BBC Proms
Orchestra Sites
Recording Companies & Retailers
Online Music
Agents & Marketing
Publishers
Other links
Newsgroups
Web News sites etc

PotPourri
A pot-pourri of articles

MW Listening Room
MW Office

Advice to Windows Vista users  
Questionnaire    
Site History  
What they say about us
What we say about us!
Where to get help on the Internet
CD orders By Special Request
Graphics archive
Currency Converter
Dictionary
Magazines
Newsfeed  
Web Ring
Translation Service

Rules for potential reviewers :-)
Do Not Go Here!
April Fools




Error processing SSI file