Benjamin Britten Centenary

BBC Music magazine gets in early for the Britten centenary year with the free cover disc featuring his War Requiem. Murphy's Law for me since I only recently purchased another recording of the piece and would not have bothered had I known this was upcoming. This is a perectly respectable performance of the work by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Paragon Ensemble, Edinburgh Festival Chorus and National Youth Choir of Scotland conducted by Ilan Volkov and Garry Walker. A live recording from the Edinburgh Festival, the soloists are Olga Guryakova soprano, Mark Padmore tenor and Christian Gerhaher baritone.

Suk It And See

Josef Suk A Summer's Tale, Prague. Symphonic poems for large orchestra. Performers : BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Jiri Belohlavek Wonderful orchestral showpieces.

Poland Asserts Itself

Lutoslawski Orchestral Works III Mala Suite, Concerto for Cello and Orchestra, Grave for cello and string orchestra, Symphony No 2 Performers : Paul Watkins cello, BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Edward Gardner Getting the attention the music deserves as a centenary approaches.

Oriental Meets Pastoral

Paul Patterson Phoenix, Vaughan Williams Oboe Concerto, Howells Sonata for Oboe and Piano ( arranged for oboe and string orchestra by Benjamin Wallfisch ) Performers : Emily Pailthorpe oboe, English Chamber Orchestra conducted by Benjamin Wallfisch Eastern influences for the Patterson, expansive Englishness from VW and Howells.

It's His Forte

Mozart Piano Concertos Nos 17 and 22 plus Rondo in A major Performers Kristian Bezuidenhout piano, Freiburger Barockorchester directed by Petra Mullejans Fortepiano performance and period ensemble playing at the top of the range.

Romance Of Its' Time

Reger : Eine Romantische Suite, Bocklin-Suite, Eine Ballet-Suite Performers : SWR Symphony Orchestra Baden-Baden and Freiburg conducted by Hans Zender The ballet suite is perhaps a bit of a routine affair but the other two suites are excellent late romantic tone poems to rate with Strauss.

Psalm Like It Baroque

Heinrich Schutz : Psalmen Davids Performers : Cantus Colln, Concerto Paladino, directed by Konrad Junghanel Double cd set of the complete psalm settings by Schutz. On the cusp between Renaissance and Baroque.

What key Is It ?

Terry Riley, In C. Performers : Terry Riley with Members of the Centre of the Creative and Performing Arts in the State University of New York at Buffalo. Pioneering minimalism in the form it was premiered, though performance practice has evolved and varied since this time.

Time Removes The Edge

The New Tristano : Lennie Tristano piano. Like Monk, looked upon as a bit of an off kilter maverick back in the day but now it does not seem especially radical but simply superbly realised improvisatory jazz.

Ding dong

The free disc with the Christmas edition of BBC Music magazine. Silent Night, Christmas Choral Music. Performers : Laudibus conducted by Robert Isaacs. Not as saccharine as last year's offering but still veering a bit too close to that for my taste. Maybe next year they can take a more leftfield approach to Christmas music.

Anatomy Of Melancholy

Severn Meadows : Songs By Ivor Gurney Performers : Paul Agnew tenor, Julius Drake piano. One has to be in a certain mood to sit through the entire recital. Maybe best sampled in smaller chunks or mix 'n' matched with another composer.