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J.S. BACH
Bach: Clavier-Übung III James McVinnie (organ) [ Pentatone / 2 CD - released 20/Feb/2026 ] James McVinnie brings Johann Sebastian Bach's monumental Clavier-Übung III to life in a recording that captures both its technical brilliance and profound spiritual depth. Bach's 1739 collection, his first published volume of organ music, is a... |
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JANACEK
Orchestral Works, Vol. 2 (Incls Violin Concerto 'Pilgrimage of the Soul') Melina Mandozzi (violin) James Ehnes (violin) Susanna Andersson (soprano) / Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, Edward Gardner [ Chandos SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 20/May/2015 ] "James Ehnes is the plush-toned soloist, but it is the intense and gritty playing of the Bergeners, and Gardner's evident empathy with Janacek, that make this music so compelling and dramatic." (Sunday Times) |
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RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Die Walkure (Complete opera recorded in 2012) BLU-RAY Metropolitan Opera / Bryn Terfel, Jonas Kaufmann, Jay Hunter Morris, Deborah Voigt / James Levine (cond) [ Deutsche Grammophon Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 20/May/2015 ] This award-winning and ground-breaking production has been seen by over 150,000 people at the Metropolitan Opera in New York |
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J.S. BACH
Cantatas Vol 20: BWV18, BWV84, BWV92 & BWV126; BWV144, BWV181 Miah Persson / Wilke te Brummelstroete / James Gilchrist / Gillian Keith / Monteverdi Choir / English Baroque Soloists / John Eliot Gardiner [ Soli Deo Gloria / 2 CD - released 10/May/2009 ] "The standards of performance and presentation are as high in this latest instalment of Gardiner's cantata cycle as they have been in previous issues. The series continues its impressive progress." (MusicWeb April 2009) |
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BERNSTEIN
Bernstein - Symphony No 1 'Jeremiah', Symphony No 2 'Anxiety', Divertimento Michelle DeYoung (mezzo-soprano), James Tocco (piano) / BBC Symphony Orchestra, Leonard Slatkin [ Chandos Classics / CD - released 1/Sep/2001 ] 'Strong Soloists, idiomatic playing and nuanced conducting bring Bernstein to bustling life.' Gramophone |
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The Temple Church Choir with The Temple Players, James Vivian (director)
The Majesty of thy Glory [ Signum / CD - released 13/Dec/2010 ] "...absorbing and diffusing the wide dynamic range with ease. Such enterprising and polishing music-making deserves widespread currency." Gramophone |
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ANTONIO VIVALDI / GIUSEPPE TARTINI / C.P.E. BACH
Vivaldi / Tartini / CPE Bach: Baroque Cello Concertos Mstislav Rostropovich (cello) / The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Hugh Wolff, with Layton James (harpsichord continuo) [ Warner Classics / CD - released 1/Feb/2016 ] While J.S. Bach's Suites for solo cello are, by definition, closely identified with Mstislav Rostropovich as the supreme cellist of his time, the B flat concerto of Carl Philipp Emmanuel Bach represents a more unusual departure. It is programmed here... |
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JOHN ADAMS
Adams: Doctor Atomic (Complete Opera directed by Peter Sellars recorded in 2007) BLU-RAY Netherlands Opera / Gerald Finley, Jessica Rivera, James Maddalena / Lawrence Renes (cond) [ Opus Arte Blu-Ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 1/Mar/2009 ] Blu-Ray - G - 'The cast is flawless… Adams has created a beautiful provocative work that refreshes the repertoire.' The Times |
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W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Requiem in D minor, K626 Jonty Ward (treble), James Swash (alto), Guy Cutting (tenor), Jonathan Howard (baritone) / New College Choir Oxford, Edward Higginbottom [ Novum / CD - released 31/May/2011 ] "Edward Higginbottom has opted to ignore the plethora of more recent completions in favour of Süssmayr's "official" version, his faithfulness extending to drawing individual soloists from the choir, even using male voices for the higher parts. It's a |
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STRAVINSKY
Les Noces and other Russian Choral Music New London Chamber Choir and Instrumental Ensemble; James Wood, director; The Voronezh Chamber Choir (Institute of the Arts); Oleg Shepel director [ Hyperion Helios / CD - released 20/Jan/2014 ] BBC 'BUILDING A LIBRARY' FIRST CHOICE |
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XENAKIS
Medea / Nuits / Knephas / Serment / A Colone New London Chamber Choir / Critical Band / James Wood [ Hyperion / CD - released 1/Jul/2010 ] New London Chamber Choir, Critical Band, James Wood |
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GEORGE GERSHWIN
Gershwin: An American in Paris / Porgy and Bess Suite / Cuban Overture / etc New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, James Judd [ Naxos American Classics / CD - released 1/May/2002 ] Recorded at the Michael Fowler Centre, Wellington, New Zealand, 2001 |
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EDWARD ELGAR
Elgar: Marches (Including Pomp and Circumstances) New Zealand Symphony Orchestra / James Judd (conductor) [ Naxos / CD - released 29/Apr/2005 ] "a desirable bargain-price collection which should certainly find a niche in the market" - MusicWeb April 2005 |
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FRANK BRIDGE
The Sea / Enter Spring / Summer New Zealand Symphony Orchestra / James Judd (conductor) [ Naxos / CD - released 12/Aug/2004 ] Now generally remembered as the teacher of Benjamin Britten, who made his gratitude clear in his variations on a theme by his mentor, Frank Bridge has been largely neglected as a composer until recent years. Born in Brighton in 1879, he was a pupil... |
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RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS
Vaughan Williams: Tallis Fantasia / Norfolk Rhapsody No. 1 / Fantasia on Greensleeves and others New Zealand Symphony Orchestra / James Judd (conductor) [ Naxos / CD - released 25/Aug/2003 ] "The whole is nicely balanced in a warm but clear acoustic. There is good solo work, too, from the leading string players as well as the woodwind and brass soloists." Gramophone |
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VIRGIL THOMSON
Thomson: Symphonies Nos. 1-3 New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, James Sedares (conductor) [ Naxos American Classics / CD - released 18/Aug/2002 ] "the New Zealand Symphony is the best [Thomson recording] yet" |
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VAUGHAN WILLIAMS / JAMES MacMILLAN
Vaughan Williams / James MacMillan: Oboe Concertos Nicholas Daniel (oboe) / Britten Sinfonia, James MacMillan [ Harmonia Mundi SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 15/Apr/2015 ] BBC Music Magazine Awards 2016 - Contemporary Winner |
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WILLIAM BYRD / JOHN DOWLAND / HENRY PURCELL / etc
Elizabethan Lute Songs / Purcell: Birthday Odes for Queen Mary Norma Burrowes (Soprano), James Bowman & Charles Brett (Countertenors) / Robert Lloyd (Bass) / Early Consort of Music / David Munrow [ Erato Veritas / 2 CD - released 1/Feb/2019 ] "The solo singing, however, is strong, and the music represents Purcell at his finest - the counter tenor duet "Sound the trumpet" (Bowman and Charles Brett) never palls." (Irish Times) |
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CHARLES IVES
Ives: Complete Sets for Chamber Orchestra Orchestra New England, James Sinclair [ Naxos American Classics / CD - released 9/Jun/2023 ] Though Charles Ives wrote large-scale works, he also thrived on miniatures. Ives' Sets for Chamber Orchestra are largely based on his songs and display a panoply of style and technique that proves to be among the most colorful and creative of his... |
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CHARLES IVES / FRANZ SCHUBERT / ROBERT SHUMANN
Ives: Orchestral Works Orchestra New England, Orquesta Sinfónica de Navarra, James Sinclair [ Naxos American Classics / CD - released 1/Nov/2024 ] Charles Ives was a master of miniatures, and this program brings together a miscellanea of numerous shorter pieces that includes seven world premieres. Embracing ragtime before it became a craze at the end of the 19th century, Ives' Four Ragtime... |