All Products
25001 products
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Lauridsen: Lux Aeterna; Runestadt: Earth Symphony
$19.99CDBR Klassik
Jul 04, 2025BRK900355 -
Overtures from the British Isles, Vol. 3
$21.99CDChandos
Feb 06, 2026CHAN 20351 -
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Bruno Walter Edition - Strauss, Barber, Dvorák
--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com
Bernstein Century - Mahler: Symphony No 8, Kindertotenlieder
Pugni: The Pharaoh's Daughter / Sotnikov, Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra
Bel Air Classiques presents Petipa's extravaganza ''The Pharaoh's Daughter'', in a stunning production by Pierre Lacotte. Recreating the spectacular sumptuousness of the original, the ballet tells the tale of a young Englishman who dreams he elopes with a Pharaoh's daugher. Despite a desert storm, a lion hunt and an attempted suicide, the couple finally wins the Pharaoh's blessing to their marriage. From its creation in 1862, Petipa's grandiose ballet was a sensational success; its stupendous costumes and striking scenery, its exotica, romanticism and drama appealing to audiences as much as the virtuoso choreography. The Bolshoi Ballet and the two soloists Svetlana Zakharova and Serguei Filin are at their best in spite of the difficulty of Pierre Lacotte's choreography.
Rodrigo: Concierto De Aranjuez; Fantasia Gentilhombre
Liszt: Symphonic Poems / Michael Halász, New Zealand So
Ce qu'on entend sur la montagne also goes very well. The natural sonics capture the atmospheric opening (with its then-novel bass drum rolls) very effectively. If you know your Sibelius, you will recognize these first few minutes as the conceptual forebear of the Finnish composer's En Saga. Yes, the work's various sections tend to lie side by side rather than flow inevitably into one another, but it's a lovely piece that doesn't deserve its current neglect in the concert hall. Hunnenschlacht is just plain fun: a noisy battle followed by an organ-led apotheosis. Once again Halász and company deliver the goods, with fine playing and a vivid sense of drama. Also, to their credit, they don't linger over the less-interesting music representing the "good guys". In short, these are intelligent and effective performances that deliver maximum bang for your buck. Give them a shot.
--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com
PRESTIGE & IMPULSE COLLECTION
Shakespeare: A Midsummer Night's Dream
Marschner: Overtures & Stage Music, Vol. 2 / Salvi, Hradec Králové Philharmonic
Dario Salvi continues his exploration of Marschner’s overtures and stage music in this second volume in an ongoing series. Salvi conducts the Hradec Králové Philharmonic Orchestra in its first recording on the Naxos label. Volume 1 is available on 8574449. Discover the missing link in the German Romantic opera tradition, between Weber and Wagner, via this album of world premiere recordings.
Daugherty: Blue Electra / Meyers, Miller, Albany Symphony
Lauridsen: Lux Aeterna; Runestadt: Earth Symphony
Overtures from the British Isles, Vol. 3
Hollywood Soundstage / Wilson, Sinfonia of London
New York Times Best (Classical Tracks) of 2022 - Korngold: ‘The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex’ Overture
Gramophone Magazine's Editors Choice - Awards Issue 2022
Sinfonia of London and John Wilson present an album that celebrates the golden age of Hollywood. Sinfonia of London rose to fame in the 1950s as the leading recording orchestra of the day, appearing in the musical credits of more than 300 films, including the 1958 soundtrack by Bernard Herrmann for Hitchcock’s Vertigo. Reformed by John Wilson in 2018 as a recording orchestra, and made-up of some of London’s finest orchestral musicians, their first recording of Korngold’s Symphony in F# won the orchestral award from BBC music magazine, and drew critical acclaim worldwide. Korngold’s Overture from the private lives of Elizabeth and Essex which opens the program is an excellent demonstration of his rich, chromatic sound-world that set a blue-print for the Hollywood sound and so many composers that followed. Although the songs were written by Harold Arlen, it was Herbert Stothart’s score for The Wizard of Oz that won the Oscar, and it is his suite from the movie that features here. There are also suites from Max Steiner’s Now, Voyager and Franz Waxman’s Rebecca (receiving here it’s premiere recording). Shorter pieces from David Raksin, Frederick Lowe, Johnny Mandel and Alfred Newman complete this rewarding program.
REVIEWS:
It would be easy to argue that a track from any of the five sensational recordings John Wilson and his elite Sinfonia of London have released this year should be on this list, but every time I play this Korngold, I find it hard to move on to anything else. The virtuosity Wilson lavishes on a composer he is determined to restore to stature is stunning, no matter how many times you hear it.
-- New York Times
Wilson has listened long and hard to the way the Hollywood studio orchestras played this music and has recreated it to the manner born for our technologically advanced times.
-- Gramophone
The recognizable yet well-curated repertoire, along with the instrumentalists’ enthusiastic performances will certainly elicit a sense of nostalgia—and maybe a desire to rewatch—the films themselves. A refreshing album that makes for a delightful listen.”
-- The Classic Review
I enjoyed this album very much indeed. The playing is superb from start to finish…But it’s the composers who must take the final bow. This programme demonstrates in spades the invention and craftsmanship of some of the composers – and arrangers – who were at the musical heart of the Golden Age of Hollywood. The music sounds superb on this disc. Treat yourself to an hour of pure musical pleasure.”
-- MusicWeb International
Few film soundtracks these days can compare with Hollywood’s heyday, and few soundtrack albums have ever sounded as good as this. Anyone with even the slightest interest in the period needs this magnificent recording.”
-- Limelight (Editor’s Choice)
An exercise in unapologetic nostalgia, this lovely celebration of classic Hollywood film scores is delivered with deep care and affection by Wilson and his dependably excellent players…
-- Times of London
Dvořák: The Complete Piano Trios / Jarušková, Jarušek, Giltburg
Piano Trio No. 4, “Dumky”, ranking among Antonín Dvořák’s most celebrated works, is one of the most frequently recorded chamber pieces in existence. After attending a performance, with the composer on the piano, Leoš Janáček summed up his impressions succinctly: “A new source of light has flashed.” When it comes to Piano Trio No. 3, the renowned Vienna-based critic Eduard Hanslick called it a gem, demonstrating that Dvořák was “one of the best modern masters”. Piano Trios No. 1 and 2, however, have been scarcely performed. In this light, the complete recording of Dvořák’s piano trios is a project richly deserving attention. All the more so due to the artists who have made it: Boris Giltburg, winner of the Queen Elisabeth Competition and one of the world’s most distinguished contemporary pianists, alongside Veronika Jarušková and Peter Jarušek, members of the globally celebrated Pavel Haas Quartet, who have earned great recognition for performing Dvořák’s music – Gramophone Recording of the Year (quartets) and Gramophone Chamber Award (quintets, together with Giltburg).
The three musicians featured on the album manifest an incredible chime. Possessing the uttermost technical brilliance, they breathe as one. The album was made at the studios in the picturesque Wye Valley, straddling the border between England and Wales, under the supervision of the legendary producer Andrew Keener while London was celebrating the coronation of Charles III. Exceptional moments for Dvořák’s exceptional music... Giltburg – Jarušková – Jarušek: A truly one-of-a-kind Dvořák festivity.
REVIEWS:
Make no mistake, this is Dvořák playing of the highest order and – even against some strong competition – these performances as a whole set a new benchmark in this marvellous quartet of works. Urgently recommended!
-- Europadisc
Happily, the present ensemble is equal to the demands of these fine works. The string players have a wealth of experience in the Czech repertoire as long-standing members of the celebrated Pavel Haas Quartet. Indeed, one of the most immediately striking aspects in these performances is the sheer beauty of the string sound. They are ably matched by pianist Boris Giltburg whose care over articulation and unfussy, nuanced playing is a constant delight. Among highlights, the conclusion of the development of the first movement of the B flat trio is quite magical and the entire F minor trio is powerfully focussed while resisting the hectoring tendency that mars even some committed renditions.”
-- BBC Music Magazine, November 2023
These performers bring out the rustic elements in this music; they connect with the childlike stargazers that we all are at heart, and that is a good part of Dvořák’s appeal. I suppose you could call it the ultimate in authentic performance, and that’s fine by me. Great sound, too (Wyastone Concert Hall, 2022 23, producer Andrew Keener). Strongly recommended.
-- Gramophone, Awards Issue 2023
The ‘Dumky’ trio is a delight here, as it should be; but I found myself drawn more to the others, enjoying the way they bring the folk rhythms and Dvorak’s lyrical gifts together, and the sense of effortless virtuosity and power Giltburg brings, even though a lot of the time he isn’t unleashing it.
-- BBC Radio 3, 30th September 2023
What a marvellous disc. Jaruskova and Jarusek of the Pavel Haas Quartet and the renowned pianist Giltburg are so at home in the four piano trios they might almost be tearing the freshly finished pages from Dvorak’s hands. Superbly recorded by Andrew Kenner, this is a total delight.
-- The Sunday Times, 8th October 2023
I found this disc an example of chamber musicianship at its best: the excellent sound engineering balances and blends parts, which underscores the ensemble’s successful delivery of Dvořák’s most sensitive nuances and extroverted peaks. Listening to all the selections in succession, we are treated to a vibrant experience indeed—but one in which the distinctive essence of each trio is aptly captured.
-- The Classic Review, October 2023
Wordsworth: Orchestral Music, Vol. 1 / Gibbons, Liepaja Symphony
The music of London-born William Wordsworth (1908–88) – a great-great-grandson of the poet’s brother Christopher – lies downstream from that of Vaughan Williams and Sibelius; like that of his contemporary Edmund Rubbra, Wordsworth’s music unfolds spontaneously, as a natural process, with a sense of grandeur perhaps enhanced by his move to the Scottish Highlands in 1961. Three of the four works recorded here display the sober dignity of the instinctive symphonist; the Variations on a Scottish Theme reveal a sly sense of humor behind the serious countenance. John Gibbons has conducted most of the major British orchestras. He has been Principal Conductor of Worthing Symphony Orchestra- the professional orchestra of West Sussex- with which he has given many world premieres of neglected works. He studied music at Queens’ College, Cambridge, the Royal Academy of Music and the Royal College of Music, winning numerous awards as conductor, pianist and accompanist. He is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, vice chairman of the British Music Society, and choral director at Clifton Cathedral. His own music has been performed in various abbeys and cathedrals as well as on the South Bank, London.
Weill: Symphony Nos 1 & 2, Quodlibet / Beaumont, Bremen German Chamber Philharmonic
This is a hybrid Super Audio CD playable on both regular and Super Audio CD players.
Haydn: Symphonies 97, 98 & 99 / Szell, Cleveland Orchestra
The reading of 98 (recorded in 1969) has been on CD for some time and should be more familiar. It is generally stylish, but a bit too bland and comfortable, lacking the flair and animation of the magnificent Toscanini and Colin Davis versions. In the main, however, this is a welcome reissue. Exposition repeats are observed in the first movements of 98 and 99, but not in the finale of the former or in the initial movement of 97.
-- Mortimer H. Frank, FANFARE
Bidu Sayao - La Damoiselle Elue, Opera Arias
Bach & Bach-Busoni: Keyboard Works / Colli
REVIEW:
My enthusiasm for this disc is less about Colli’s philosophical ruminations upon the music, however heartfelt they may be, and more about his approach to playing it, which is both compelling and fresh; it combines abundant technical finesse with a visionary grasp of scale and structure, as well as the ability to project extremes of fragility and monumentality (most notably in the Chaconne), and above all to conjure a kaleidoscopic palette of colours and textures from his Steinway. This is an intelligently compiled programme, stunningly performed, in immaculate sound. Do not hesitate.
– Gramophone
Sinfonía No. 4 / Fandangos / Carnaval
Bach: Toccatas
BETWEEN THE BLISS AND ME … SONGS TO POEMS OF EMILY DICKINSON – BACON, E. / COPLAND, A. / DUKE, J. / FARWELL, A. / GENDEL, S. / HOIBY, L. / LAITMAN, L. / THOMAS, R.P.
Dancing Cello
CORONATION OF POPPEA
Hovhaness: Symphonies No 1 & 50 / Schwarz, Seattle
With over 500 works to his name Alan Hovhaness may well be the most prolific American composer as well as one of the most fascinating. His music cannot be pigeonholed since he drew influences from so many varied sources. That said, above all, he insisted on melody, having roundly rejected the path of ‘modernism’ that many others followed in the 20 th century. Among those influences was his Armenian heritage inherited through his father. These are very much to the fore in his First Symphony subtitled Exile which references the plight of Armenians who were forced to flee in their millions in the face of an onslaught by Ottoman Turks during the First World War. Lovers of big tunes will revel in the lush sonorities on display. They’re in evidence right from the first notes. These are given to the clarinet which introduces a plaintive tune taken up by other woodwind with the orchestra continuing the Middle Eastern-sounding scales and the music becoming disturbed and agitated. The second, short movement marked Grazioso is further demonstration of the melodies for which Hovhaness is rightly renowned. Woodwind sings out against a background of pizzicato from strings and harp. This allows for an interlude of calm before the third and final movement brings us back to agitation. Driving strings and winds recall the opening theme in chorale form which then becomes the main focus of the orchestra. The powerfully expressed message is that a whole people cannot be suppressed. Its spirit will reassert itself and prevail against all the odds.
One of the other influences Hovhaness exploits is his love and reverence of the music of the Far East, particularly Japan and Korea, having studied both. The second work, Fantasy on Japanese Woodprints, has a title that allows him to explore his own impressions of the music from this part of the world. It involves extremely creative ways of approximating the sounds of Japan through clever and inventive use of the instruments of a Western orchestra. The marimba is the instrument of choice to carry the main theme against a background of orchestral experimentation creating a convincing and effective ‘Japanese’ sound for Western ears.
Yet another influence which has shown itself in many of Hovhaness’s compositions are mountains. He once wrote “Mountains are symbols, like pyramids, of man’s attempt to know God. Mountains are symbolic meeting places between the mundane and spiritual worlds”. It was a natural thing therefore to have been moved to write a symphony that expresses those ideas following the huge explosion of Mount Saint Helens in Washington State in 1980. The first movement sets the scene and pays reverence to the majesty and mystery of the mountain through use of gorgeous harmonically and melodically rich tunes. These emphasise the mountain’s imperious eminence over its surroundings and its naturally serene nature prior to its being geographically changed by the explosion. The second movement is also calm since it describes the fabulous Spirit Lake in whose waters the mountain was often magically mirrored. Once again Hovhaness uses Japanese-sounding melodies to create the air of mystery and natural beauty of a place which was obliterated by the explosion. The finale opens with an almost hymn-like theme from the strings with tubular bells in the background. A sole flute precedes a representation of the cataclysmic events that rent the mountain asunder, and which continues for much of the movement’s 14 minutes. This musical depiction of the destructive power of nature is extremely potent with plenty of work for bass drums and gong as wave after wave of explosions tear the very fabric of the ground on which the mountain stood. Finally the opening hymn returns to re-establish a measure of calm. Hovhaness doesn’t end the symphony there. Instead he creates a coda to signify the “youthful power and grandeur of the Cascades Mountains” that, as he said, renews the vitality of “our peaceful planet, the living earth, the life-giving force building the majestic Cascades Mountains (,) rising, piercing the clouds of heaven”. This symphony represents an extremely satisfying journey that shows the composer’s unique view of how to use music to describe nature in all its creative as well as destructive power. The disc as a whole is a wonderful introduction to this amazing composer’s music that I for one am only beginning to discover. More of Hovhaness’s works are being recorded all the time. With 67 symphonies alone there’s plenty left to record and to discover and that’s an exciting prospect. Gerard Schwarz is a great advocate of American music and he and his orchestra help do the kind of justice Hovhaness deserves. Ron Johnson does a sterling job on the marimba in the disc’s second work. These recordings were originally made by Delos and they offer an extremely rewarding experience for a whole new audience to discover and revel in.
-- Steve Arloff , MusicWeb International
