RICHARD STRAUSS
Don Quixote / Romance for cello & orchestra in F major Alexander Rudin (cello) / Ireland National Symphony Orchestra, Gerhard Markson [ naxos / CD - released 25/Apr/2010 ] "The Naxos sound, too, is commendable for its smooth reliability...comfortable listening...now that I think about it, that's quite a bargain itself!" - John Puccio Sensible Sound August/September 2001 |
EDMUND RUBBRA
Sinfonia concertante / Ode to the Queen / etc Susan Bickley (mezzo) Howard Shelley (piano) / BBC National Orchestra Wales, Richard Hickox [ Chandos Classics / CD - released 17/Nov/2001 ] 'A mouthwatering reissue comprising four outstandingly eloquent performances...' Gramophone |
MENDELSSOHN
Paulus (St Paul) Op.36 Susan Gritton / Jean Rigby / Barry Banks / Peter Coleman-Wright / BBC National Chorus & Orchestra of Wales / Richard Hickox [ Chandos / 2 CD - released 1/May/2009 ] 'Another superb performance from Hickox, who gets a quartet of tremendous soloists and a first-rate orchestra and chorus… One of this year's musts.' (Cathedral Music) |
GEORG FRIDERIC HANDEL
Handel: Rodelinda (complete opera) Joan Sutherland, Alicia Nafe, Curtis Rayam, Isobel Buchanan / Welsh National Opera Orchestra, Richard Bonynge [ Decca Australian Eloquence / 2 CD - released 1/Jun/2019 ] "[The recorded sound] is vivid, rather spacious … Dame Joan Sutherland produces generous quantities of golden tone … Nafé does ['Dove sei'] very beautifully, gently yet with firm, well-formed tone." gramophone |
RACHMANINOV
The Bells / Vocalise / Dances from 'Aleko' / Capriccio bohemien Suzanne Murphy (soprano) Keith Lewis (tenor) David Wilson-Johnson (baritone) / Royal Scottish National Orchestra / Philharmonia Orchestra Neeme Jarvi [ Chandos Classics / CD - released 12/Jul/2005 ] Rachmaninov, one of the twentieth-century's most enduringly popular composers, is represented here with acclaimed performances of some of his greatest compositions. |
SCHUMANN / TCHAIKOVSKY
Piano Concertos Sviatoslav Richter (piano) Warsaw National Philharmonic Orchestra & Vienna Symphony Orchestra, Stanislav Wislocki & Herbert von Karajan [ ALTO / CD - released 17/Mar/2013 ] (Schumann): "lacks no style" (Tchaikovsky): "The element of struggle for which this work is famous is all too clear: these two musical giants did not always agree" (Penguin Guide) |
EMIL TABAKOV
Tabakov: Complete Symphonies, Volume 5 Symphony Orchestra of Bulgarian National Radio, Plovdiv Philharmonic Orchestra, Emil Tabakov [ Toccata / CD - released 5/Jun/2020 ] The music of the Bulgarian composer-conductor Emil Tabakov (b. 1947) explores the darker side of the human spirit in epic scores as austere as they are powerful. |
MODEST MUSSORGSKY
Mussorgsky: Boris Godunov Martti Talvela, Nicolai Gedda, Leonard Mroz / Polish rdio Chorus iof Krakow, Polish Radio National Symphony Orchestra,Jerzy Semkow [ Warner Classics Home of Opera / 3 CD Box Set - released 18/Mar/2013 ] "It has many virtues, not least the great Talvela in a role tailor-made for his massive bass. He gives us a deeply felt Boris without resorting to the admittedly effective but increasingly unfashionable histrionics typical of his predecessors; his... |
EDWARD ELGAR
Elgar: Violin Concerto / Polonia / Crown of India: Interlude Tasmin Little (violin) / Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Sir Andrew Davis [ Chandos SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 1/Nov/2010 ] "Little...finds an element of wit in the fast-moving figuration [of the finale], leading to a more tender treatment of the lyrical contrasting sections." Editor's Choice Gramophone Magazine Dec 2010 |
TCHAIKOVSKY
Hamlet (incidental music) / Romeo and Juliet (original version) Tatiana Monogarova (soprano) Maxim Mikhailov (bass) / Russian National Orchestra / Vladimir Jurowski [ Pentatone SACD / SACD - released 26/Jan/2009 ] MARBECKS STAFF PICK: CD OF THE YEAR 2009 - "Two Shakspearean fantasy overtures - but, excitingly, not as we know them." - Gramophone Recording of the Month March 2009 |
SHOSTAKOVICH
Symphony No. 9 Op.70 / The Adventures of Korzinkina / Piano Concerto No. 1, Op. 35 / etc Tatiana Polyanskaya (piano) Vladimir Goncharov (trumpet) / Royal Scottish National Orchestra / Neeme Jarvi [ Chandos Classics / CD - released 10/Aug/2007 ] 'This CD centres on the lighter side of Shostakovich - or, more accurately, his lighter sides, since the styles range from the pointed neo-Classical wit of the Ninth Symphony to the Keystone Kops mayhem of the First Piano Concerto to the more genial... |
DE FALLA
El Amor Brujo etc Teresa Berganza / Gonzalo Soriano / Orchestre National de la Radiodiffusion / Francaise / Ataulfo Argenta [ Medici Arts / CD - released 12/Apr/2008 ] This Falla collection recorded live in Paris in 1957 is very highly regarded in Spain as representing the very best of Argenta in his compatriot's music. |
EDWARD ELGAR
Elgar: Coronation Ode, Op.44 / The Spirit of England, Op.80 Teresa Cahill (sop) Anne Collins (alto) Anthony Rolfe Johnson (tenor) Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Sir Alexander Gibson [ Chandos / CD - released 1/Sep/1992 ] "Gibson's performances combine fire and panache, and the recorded sound has an ideal Elgarian expansiveness, the choral tone rich and well focused, the orchestral brass given plenty of weight." Penguin Guide |
Thibaudet/Lyon National Orch/M
Debussy: Fantaisie For Piano & [ Naxos / CD - released 21/Nov/2011 ] |
WILLIAM SHELLER / RICHARD GALLIANO / MICHEL COLOMBIER
3eme Souffle - works for trumpet and orchestra Thierry Caens (trumpet) / Orchestre National de Lyon / Michel Plasson (direction) / with Richard Galliano (accordion) [ ETCETERA / CD ] |
JULES MASSENET
Massenet: Werther (complete opera recorded in 1931) Paul Milliet, Edouard Blau, Georges Hartmann / Paris National Opera Orchestra & Chorus, Elie Cohen [ Naxos Great Opera Recordings / 2 CD - released 6/Nov/2000 ] "This first recording of Werther is still the best. There have been many others in up-to-date stereo sound with starry international casts, but none so idiomatic, well conducted, and beautifully sung." ClassicsToday |
SIBELIUS
Sibelius: Finlandia Thomas Søndergård, BBC National Orchestra of Wales [ Linn / CD - released 22/Jun/2018 ] Described as 'one of the great new Sibelian teams' (The Herald), Thomas Søndergård and BBC National Orchestra of Wales continue their shared fascination with the orchestral music of Sibelius. Released one month after BBC NOW celebrates its ninetieth... |
JEAN SIBELIUS
Sibelius: Symphonies 2 & 7 Thomas Søndergård BBC National Orchestra of Wales [ Linn / CD - released 22/Jun/2018 ] Since Thomas Søndergård's opening concert with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, this partnership has cultivated a special relationship with the music of Sibelius, resulting in three recordings of the composer's music. In 2017 they performed... |
JEAN SIBELIUS
Sibelius: Symphonies 2 & 7 BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Thomas Søndergård [ Linn SACD / Hybrid SACD - released 20/May/2015 ] "The playing of BBC NOW, in line with its conductor's evident vision, is astonishing in its sophistication. Their flawless performance of the Seventh Symphony, if you love this music, will break your heart." The Herald (Glasgow), March 2015 |
ERNESTO LECUONA
The Complete Piano Music Volume 3 Thomas Tirino (piano) / Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra / Michael Bartos (conductor) [ BIS / CD - released 1/Sep/1996 ] |