Ariadne auf Naxos (complete opera recorded in English)

"The dialogue crackles and there's a palpable sense of drama, notably when Alice Coote, a Composer of poise and ardour, is centre-stage...The recording's value lies in preserving Christine Brewer's Ariadne - warm, majestic and humane, rising to radiant heights in the finale with Robert Dean Smith's Bacchus." Financial Times, 28th August 2010 ****

"Richard Strauss in English? Yes, when the cast is as smart and committed as this...Hofmannsthal's fine but word-rich libretto is clear and audible in Christopher Cowell's translation...Sir Richard Armstrong conducts a voluptuous but brisk performance, with sinewy playing from the Scottish Chamber Orchestra" The Observer, 29th August 2010

"Few singers can beat [Brewer] for matching a full vocal bloom to vivid dramatic gifts. Close your eyes and you easily see both her characters. The Prologue's backstage artisans squabble vigorously, with Alice Coote in ringing good form as the tormented composer...Delightful, tuneful and always understandable, this set represents another victory for Chandos's Opera in English series." The Times, 3rd September 2010 ****

"Christine Brewer's Ariadne boasts a gleaming, sumptuous dramatic soprano, capable of vulnerability and tenderness. Zerbinetta's stratospheric writing and coloratura hold no terrors for Gillian Keith, while Alice Coote's Composer ranks with the best on disc. Indeed, the cast has no weak links, and Richard Armstrong and the SCO set the seal on the recording's success." Sunday Times, 12th September 2010 ****

"...it could hardly be sung with more spirit or fun. Stephen Fry is delightful in the short spoken role of the Major Domo...Brewer makes a glorious Ariadne and tenor Robert Dean Smith impresses with his unforced, shining account of the cruelly demanding role of Bacchus." Classic FM Magazine, November 2010 ****

"the real vocal honours belong to Alice Coote's exquisitely troubled Composer and Gillian Keith's vulnerable Zerbinetta - while Robert Dean Smith is a fine Bacchus. The real hero, though, is conductor Richard Armstrong, whose understanding of the work's tricky dividing line between irony and genuine emotion is outstanding." The Guardian, 7th October 2010 ****