Friday, 11 September 2015

Nordic Pastoral

BBC music magazine free cover disc with familiar Grieg extracts from Peer Gynt suite and much less familiar fare with Stenhammar's 2nd symphony. Sweden's answer to Sibelius, Nielsen and Greig and very Sibelian in feel.

Performers : BBC Scottish SO conducted by Hannu Lintu.

Thursday, 13 August 2015

Birthday Part Songs

BBC Music magazine free cover disc to celebrate Arvo Part's 75th birthday.

Cantus in memoriam Benjamin Britten
Adam's Lament
The Beatitudes
Trivium
Summa
Which was the son of...

Performers; BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Edward Gardner. Tallinn chamber Orchestra and Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir conducted by Kristjan Jarvi. BBC Singers conducted by Paul Brough. Iain Farrington organ.

All pieces that do not feature the BBC Singers are excellent.

Friday, 31 July 2015

Better To Travel Than To Arrive

The Beethoven Journey : Piano Concertos nos 2 and 4.

Performers : Mahler Chamber Orchestra, Leif Ove Andsnes piano and director.

Ignoring the tedious "journey" aspect ( made even more tedious by the increasingly hysterical BBC Radio 3 proms coverage ) this is extremely fine playing of repertoire I am so familiar with but didn't actually have in my collection.


Soulful Wanderings

Janacek Orchestral works Volume 2

Pieces : Jealousy, Violin Concerto The Wandering of a Little Soul", The Ballad of Blanik, The Fiddler's Child, The Danube, Taras Bulba.

Performers : Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Edward Gardner, Susanna Andersson soprano, James Ehnes violin, Melina Mandozzi violin.

Thursday, 30 July 2015

Evolution Of A Form

Haydn piano sonatas nos 38, 39, 47, 59

Performer : Denis Kozhukhin piano.

Underrated and underappreciated section of Haydn's output, here put convincingly back into the spotlight. Showing the way onto Mozart and Beethoven and not completely alien from their worlds.

The "Other" Danish Symphonist

Niels Wilhelm Gade Symphonies Volume 3

Echoes of Ossian Op 1,
Andante, discarded first movement from symphony no 3.
Symphony No 3
Symphony No 6

Performers : Danish National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Christopher Hogwood

Heir to Mendelssohn, predecessor of Nielsen, worthy of consideration in his own right.

Wednesday, 29 July 2015

Czech plays Czech

Smetana  String Quartets nos 1 and 2.

Performers : Pavel Haas Quartet.

About time I had one commercial recording by this prolific and consistently well reviewed quartet.