JOHANNES BRAHMS
Brahms: Ein Deutsches Requiem, [German Requiem] Op. 45 BLU-RAY AUDIO ONLY Christiane Libor (soprano) & Thomas E. Bauer (baritone) / Warsaw Philharmonic Choir & Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, Antoni Wit [ Naxos Blu-Ray Audio / Blu-ray Disc - released 25/Apr/2015 ] The longest work in Brahms's entire oeuvre, A German Requiem was almost certainly triggered by the death of his mother, although it also seems likely that the tragic loss of his friend Robert Schumann, some years earlier, added to its depth and... |
WILLIAM BOLCOM
Bolcom: Songs of Innocence and of Experience Christine Brewer (soprano) / Measha Brueggergosman (soprano) / Ilana Davidson (soprano) / Michigan University Choir / Leonard Slatkin (cond) [ Naxos American Classics / 3 CD - released 1/Feb/2005 ] New York Times: The Best Classical CDs of 2004 "William Bolcom worked on his settings of the 46 poems of William Blake's "Songs of Innocence and of Experience" for 25 years. Leonard Slatkin conducts a gripping live performance of this ambitious... |
LEONARD BERNSTEIN
Bernstein: Symphony No. 3 'Kaddish' / Missa Brevis / etc Claire Bloom (narrator), Kelley Nassief (soprano) Paulo Mestre (countertenor) / Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, The Maryland State Boychoir, Marin Alsop [ Naxos American Classics / CD - released 3/Sep/2015 ] "Claire Bloom delivers [Kaddish] in a calm, inward manner, as if at prayer, without the fierce anger generated on Bernstein's first recording…despite assured, purposeful contributions by the choirs..." - BBC Music Magazine |
JOHN RUTTER
Mass of the Children / Shadows / Wedding Canticle Clare College Choir, Cambridge / Farnham Youth Choir / Clare Chamber Ensemble / Tim Brown (Conductor) [ Naxos / CD - released 9/May/2006 ] "I'm sure this disc will sell well, and I hope it does. Most purchasers will probably be attracted by the Mass but I hope they'll enjoy Shadows as well. That, for me, is the strongest reason to recommend this disc" (MusicWeb June 2006) |
J.S. BACH
St John Passion (Complete Oratorio) Colin Baldy (bass) Matthew Beale (tenor) John Bernays (bass) Choir of New College Oxford / Collegium Novum / Edward Higginbottom [ Naxos / 2 CD - released 20/May/2003 ] Editor's Choice - Gramophone Magazine (June 2003) |
DIETERICH BUXTEHUDE
Buxtehude: Vocal Music, Vol. 2 Copenhagen Royal Chapel Choir / Dufay Collective / Ebbe Munk [ Naxos / CD - released 4/Jan/2008 ] Dietrich Buxtehude was one of the chief figures in North German music of his time. Although he never held a position that required him to compose vocal music, he left over 120 vocal works featuring an extremely wide range of texts, scorings, genres,... |
FELIX MENDELSSOHN
Mendelssohn: Symphony No.2 'Lobgesang' Majella Cullagh, Mary Nelson, Adrian Thompson / NSO of Ireland / RTe Phil Choir / Reinhard Seifrie [ Naxos / CD - released 1/May/2001 ] "This new budget-priced disc might introduce many listeners to a marvelous piece of music; it is a very good performance." American Record Guide |
LUDWIG van BEETHOVEN
Beethoven: Complete Symphonies Danish National Concert Choir, Danish Chamber Orchestra, Ádám Fischer [ Naxos / 5 CD Box Set - released 19/Jul/2019 ] "I find these performances utterly fascinating, though it would be next to impossible to offer a comprehensive catalogue of the various colourful twists and turns that characterise Fischer's performances (there are far too many of them)." Gramophone |
GEORG FRIDERIC HANDEL
Handel: Coronation Anthems (Includes Zadok The Priest) David Bates (counter-tenor) / Elizabeth Franklin-Kitchen / Rebecca Ryan (sopranos) / Royal Academy Consort / Tallis Chamber Choir / Jeremy Summers [ Naxos / CD - released 17/Feb/2003 ] ""Jeremy Summerly and his forces have assembled one of the more consistently fine performances of these challenging works that I have heard in some time, and have thrown in a much lesser known solo motet as a delightful and unexpected bonus...... |
GIACOMO MEYERBEER
Meyerbeer: Semiramide (complete opera) Deborah Riedel / Filippo Adami / Altensteig Rossini Choir / Wurttemberg Philharmonic Orchestra / Richard Bonynge (Conductor) [ Naxos Opera / 2 CD - released 16/Jul/2006 ] "An interesting and very worthwhile release that throws light on a neglected corner of Meyerbeer's career. It is even more welcome as it is well performed and decently recorded" (MusicWeb Nov 2006) |
CHARLES VILLIERS STANFORD
Stanford: Choral Music Elizabeth Cragg (soprano), Catherine Hopper (mezzo), Robert Murray (tenor), David Soar (bass) / Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Bach Choir, David Hill [ Naxos / CD - released 20/Sep/2016 ] "This CD is fast lining itself up to be one of my 'discs of the year.'...the Stabat Mater is an absolute masterpiece and is stunningly presented on this CD" (Recording of the Month MusicWeb Nov 2016) |
ARVO PART
Part: Music for Unaccompanied Choir Elora Festival Singers / Noel Edison (Conductor) [ Naxos / CD - released 20/Oct/2006 ] "A fascinating sound-picture of the later developments in Pärt's choral writing, well sung and well recorded" (Bargain of the Month MusicWeb Nov 2006) |
SHUYING LI • JESS LANGSTON TURNER • KEN STEEN GILDA LYONS • ROBERT CARL • JOSEPH TURRIN
Crimson Roses: Contemporary American Choral Music Erinn Sensenig, Frederica von Stade (mezzo-soprano) Musica Viva NY Choir, Musica Viva NY Orchestra, Alejandro Hernandez-Valdez [ Naxos / CD - released 22/Nov/2024 ] The three world premiere choral recordings on this album represent the enduring commitment of Musica Viva NY's artistic director, Alejandro Hernandez Valdez, to perform new works by living composers. Richard Einhorn's The Luminous Ground is a deeply... |
GUSTAV MAHLER
Mahler: Symphony No. 3 / Symphony No. 10 (Adagio) Ewa Podles (alto) / Cracow Philharmonic Choir / Cracow Boys' Choir / Polish NAtional Readio Symphony Orchestra / Antoni Wit [ NAXOS / 2 CD - released 1/Jan/2007 ] "This is a very impressive recording indeed" (American Record Guide) |
SERGEI PROKOFIEV
Prokofiev: Alexander Nevsky / Lieutenant Kije Suite Ewa Podles (Mezzo-soprano), Latvian State Choir, Lille National Orchestra / Jean-Claude Casadesus (Conductor) [ Naxos / CD - released 9/May/2006 ] "These are fine performances...the disc is worth purchasing for the wonderful six-and-a-half minutes of PodleÅ›'s performance of "The Field of Death"." (MusicWeb July 2006) |
JOHANNES BRAHMS
Brahms: Alto Rhapsody / Choral Music Ewa Wolak (contralto) / Warsaw Philharmonic Choir & Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, Antoni Wit [ Naxos / CD - released 1/Feb/2012 ] Brahms's first connection with choral music came in 1857, and his first appointment in Vienna, in 1863, was to conduct the Singakademie. He premièred A German Requiem in the city and wrote widely for choral forces, taking a variety of poetic source... |
EDINO KRIEGER
Krieger: Ludus Symphonicus / Variações Elementare / Canticum Naturale / etc Flavia Fernandes (soprano), São Paulo Symphony Choir, Goiás Philharmonic Orchestra • Neil Thomson [ Naxos The Music of Brazil / CD - released 10/Nov/2023 ] Edino Krieger was a leading figure in Brazilian music as both composer and arts director who influenced a generation of his compatriots during his long life. |
BELLINI
La Sonnambula (complete opera recorded in 1992) Francesco Ellero d' Artegna / Alexander Papadjiakou / Raul Gimenez / Netherlands Radio Choir / Netherlands Radio Chamber Orchestra / Alberto Zedda [ Naxos Opera Classics / 2 CD - released 20/Aug/2007 ] "The singing is of amazingly high quality.. Orgonasova is simply wonderful - vibrant, girlish, fluid, singing off the text and with no problem with the role's sometimes outlandish upper reaches....I can't imagine a finer current exponent of the role.... |
PHILIP W. J. STOPFORD
Stopford: Sacred Choral Music Grace Davidson (soprano) / Choir of St Luke's Chelsea, Chelsea Camerata, Jeremy Summerly [ Naxos / CD - released 16/Feb/2024 ] Philip Stopford is admired in Britain and America for his beautifully crafted music, rooted in the Anglican tradition. His works are memorable and colourful, as these world premiere recordings demonstrate. The biggest piece on this album is the Missa... |
JOSEPH HAYDN
Haydn: Masses, Vol. 1 - Stabat Mater Ann Hoyt (soprano) Luthien Brackett (alto) Stephen Sands (tenor) / Trinity Choir, Rebel bel Baroque Orchestra, Owen Burdick [ Naxos / CD - released 20/Apr/2010 ] Together with the Missa Cellensis, the Stabat Mater (1767) was one of the first sacred works that Haydn composed in his new position as Kapellmeister of the Esterházy court. The Virgin Mary's vast range of emotions during the Crucifixion are... |