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[New] Stanfordian Thoughts -
11. God and the Universe by Christopher Howell
[New] An Interview with Eduardo Chibás by Marc Medwin
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10. A Child’s Garland of Songs by Christopher Howell
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Thursday
June 30th
Georgios Axiotis (1875-1924)
Orchestral Music - New Festival Opera-Symphony Orchestra Sofia/Byron Fidetzis rec. 2003
NAXOS 8.574353 [78] [RB]
Axiotis has a beguiling relaxed way about him.
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Violin Sonatas Nos 4-6 - Aleksandra Bryła (violin)
Maria Banaszkiewicz-Bryła (harpsichord) rec. 2021 PRELUDE CLASSICS [52]
[JW] Scrupulous, intelligent performances that can lack variation of colour.
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Piano Sonatas Nos
15, 19, 30 & 32 -
Annie Fischer (piano)
rec. 1971-87 ICA CLASSICS ICAC5165 [76] [PBW] Great musicianship - some of the finest Beethoven one will ever hear.
Claude Le Jeune (c1530-1600)
Motets pour le culte catholique et Psaumes protestants -
Les Pages et les Chantres du Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles/Olivier Schneebeli
rec. 2002 ALPHA 616 [59] [JV] A welcome reissue of a disc with little-known music by Claude Le Jeune.
Juliusz Łuciuk (1927-2020)
Vesperae In Assumptione Beatae Mariae Virginis - Collegium Cantorum of the Częstochowa Philharmonic/Janusz Siadlak rec. 2021
DUX 1795 [52] [GPu]
A powerful yet subtle work, supremely sung and well recorded.
Isang Yun (1917-1995) Music for Cello and Piano
-
Luigi Piovano (cello)
Aldo Orvieto (piano)
Japan Philharmonic Orchestra/Tatsuya Shimono
rec. 2018-21 KAIROS 0015090KAI [68] [GT]
A fine release devoted to Korea’s greatest composer.
John Matthew Myers (tenor)
Desiderium - Myra Huang (piano) rec. 2020
AVIE AV2512 [64] [GF]
Myers can feel satisfied with his debut album, and Myra Huang gives excellent support.
Wednesday June 29th
Maya Fridman (b.1989)/Maarten van Veen (b.1971)
Nuït - Maya Fridman (cello)
Maarten van Veen (piano) rec. 2021 TRPTK TTK0081 SACD [50]
[DMD]
An instant modern classic – go and buy it!
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791)
Lucio Silla - Olga Pudova (soprano), Franco Fagioli (countertenor), Alessandro Liberatore (tenor), Chiara Skerath (soprano), Ilse Eerens (soprano), Insula Orchestra/ Laurence Equilbey rec. 2021
ERATO 9029637734 [2 CDs: 126]
[DF]
A valuable, albeit abridged, addition to the Lucio Silla discography.
Ottorino Respighi (1879–1936)
Crepuscolo - Timothy Fallon (tenor), Ammiel Bushakevitz (piano) rec. 2021 BIS BIS-2632 SACD [74]
[GF]
A valuable disc that shows Respighi’s too seldom heard songs in a very good light.
Humanos y Divinos
Cancionero de Uppsala
- Baltazar Zúñiga (tenor)
Accademia degli Imperfetti rec. 2020 DA VINCI CLASSICS C00442 [56]
[JV] I appreciate the singing and playing, but I am not sure that this is the way these songs should be performed.
Thomas Jensen (conductor)
Legacy Vol. 10 - Charles Senderovitz (violin), Erling Blöndal Bengtsson (cello), Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra rec. 1957–62 DANCORD DACOCD920 [2 CDs: 151]
[JW]
A twofer with a difference: first-ever performances coupled with already-reissued material.
Rooted in Northampton
The Arnolds and the Haweses - Malcolm Arnold’s family tree by Alan Poulton
publ. 2021 Malcolm Arnold Society [RB]
A book that was waiting to be written - recondite but satisfying to out-and-out Arnold devotees.
Tuesday June 28th
Carl Frühling (1868-1937)
Piano Quintet, Piano Quartet - Oliver Triendl
(piano) Daniel Giglberger, Nina Karmon (violin)
Roland Glassi (viola) Floris Mijnders (cello)
rec. 2020-21 HÄNSSLER CLASSIC HC21062 [61]
[JWe]
Fascinating, unknown works by a sadly neglected figure, excellently played and recorded.
Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683-1764)
Les Fêtes d’Hébé - Chantal Santon
Jeffrey, Marie Perbost (soprano)
Purcell Choir,
Orfeo Orchestra/György Vashegyi rec. 2021 GLOSSA GCD924012 [3 CDs: 176]
[GF] Admirers of Rameau, or baroque opera at large, can safely invest in this issue.
Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958)
Complete Symphonies -
Hallé/Sir Mark Elder
rec. 2010-2021 HALLÉ CDHLD7557 [5 CDs: 366]
[NB]
Good value box hampered by reticent recordings and occasionally cautious interpretations.
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Siegfried
- Matti Kastu (tenor) Laila Andersson-Palme (soprano)
Royal Swedish Opera O/Sixten Ehrling rec. 1987 STERLING CDA-1847/1849-2 [3 CDs: 224]
[MP] This Siegfried loses the battle against other, more notable recordings.
The Film Music of Malcolm Arnold Compiled by Alan Poulton and David Dunstan
publ. 2021 Malcolm Arnold Society
[RB] The Arnold film music documented in gleeful detail … glowingly attractive.
Ruutsu: The Girls in the Magnesium Dress Valentina Ciardelli (double bass),
Anna Astesano (harp)
rec. 2021 DA VINCI CLASSICS C00553 [61] [JW] Evocative Japanese watercolours from an unlikely instrumental combination.
Monday June 27th
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Quartets Opp. 132 & 135 - Ehnes Quartet rec. 2020 ONYX 4227 [68] [DMD]
A fine Op. 132 partners a superb Op. 135.
Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (1875-1912)
Nonet, Piano Trio, Piano Quintet - Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective rec. 2021
CHANDOS CHAN20242 [64] [NB]
Confident large-scale scores performed with panache and conviction.
Ed Hughes (b.1968)
Music for the South Downs -
New Music Players,
Primrose Piano Quartet rec. 2021 MÉTIER MSV28623 [69] [RB]
Witchery spun out of complexity.
Bernardo Storace (c. 1637-1707)
In Modo Pastorale -
Marouan Mankar-Bennis (organ & harpsichord) rec. 2020 ENCELADE ECL2101 [76]
[SW] A strange but compelling musical journey through 17th century Sicilian keyboard music.
Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
Macbeth, Don Juan, Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche
- Cleveland Orchestra/Franz Welser-Möst
rec. 2021 CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA TCO0004 SACD [46] [JQ] A disc that shows the Cleveland Orchestra’s Strauss tradition is very much alive.
Isabel Bayrakdarian (soprano)
La Zingarella -
Mark Fewer (violin)
Juan-Miguel Hernandez (viola)
Gryphon Trio rec. 2021 AVIE AV2506 [67] [GF] A delightful journey through Romany Songland!
Frieda Kwast-Hodapp (piano)
German Radio Recordings 1948
MELOCLASSIC MC1059 [2 CDs: 156] [JW]
The dedicatee of Reger’s Piano Concerto heard in late performances of real importance.
Friday June 24th
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Piano Concertos Nos 1-5 -
Margarita Höhenrieder (piano) rec. 2008-2020 ACCENTUS MUSIC ACC70551 DVD [3 discs: 197]
[MZ] A thoughtful and delightful set of live performances, with over an hour of bonus materials.
Arrigo Boito (1842-1918) Nerone
- Rafael Rojas (tenor)
Alessandra Volpe (mezzo)
Prague Philharmonic Choir, Wiener SO/Dirk Kaftan rec. 2021 C MAJOR Blu-ray 761304 [149]
[EJW] The performances and production
captured here are excellent.
Johannes Brahms (1833-1896), Amanda Maier (1853-1894)
& Julius Röntgen (1855-1932) Violin Concertos -
Cecilia Zilliacus (violin)
Malmö Symphony Orchestra, Västerås Sinfonietta/Kristiina Poska DB PRODUCTIONS DBCD202 [79]
[SV]
The side dishes outshine the main course.
Anton Bruckner (1824-1896)
Symphony No. 7
-
Gürzenich-Orchester Köln/François-Xavier Roth rec. 2019 MYRIOS MYR030 [57]
[JQ]
Roth presents a refreshing, individual view of this symphony, but other conductors offer more.
Emile Jaques-Dalcroze (1865-1950) Works for Violoncello
& Piano -
Pi-Chin Chien (cello)
Bernhard Parz (piano) rec. 2021 TYXART TXA22167 [42] [RB] Short-playing time but there’s an amiable talent at work here.
David Oistrakh (violin)
Recorded Rarities from Melodiya - Alexander Goldenweiser, Zara Levina (piano)
rec. 1947-1959 BIDDULPH 85013-2 [78]
[SG]
This release is an essential purchase, not only for Oistrakh devotees, but more generally for violin mavens.
Schwarze Messe
Works by Lourié, Staude, Scriabin & Wyschnegradsky -
Asasello Quartet rec. 2019-21 GENUIN GEN22745 [71] [GT]
An outstanding recording celebrating the Asasello Quartet’s twentieth anniversary.
