This very fine collection offers Alexander Gibson's enthusiastic and seriously underrated performances of Stravinsky's three orchestral symphonies and Ode. More to the point, these are among the finest-sounding discs in the Chandos catalogue, on a par with that fabulous collection of Elgar overtures that put Gibson, his orchestra, and Chandos on the musical map, at least in this country. The Elgar disc seems to be out of print at present, but these vibrant renditions of the Stravinsky symphonies help to make up for that deficiency. The complete ballet The Fairy's Kiss, based on the music of Tchaikovsky, and the Symphonies of Wind Instruments conducted by the young Simon Rattle, generously round out a program that offers exceptional value for the money. A fine reissue.

--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

Classical Music

Classical Music

Recorded in: St Jude on the Hill, Hampstead, London 11-17 January 1991 Producer(s) Tim Oldham Sound Engineer(s) Richard Lee Peter Sheldon (Assistant)

Classical Music

Classical Music

Recorded in: St Silas The Martyr, Kentish Town, London 1-2 April 1998 Producer(s) Brian Couzens Sound Engineer(s) Jonathan Cooper Richard Smoker (Assistant)

Extraordinary, deeply expressive, bassoon playing.

Karen Geoghegan, runner-up in the BBC’s recent Classical Star programme is on a mission to promote the bassoon repertoire. This, her debut CD, is an ideal starting point. From the opening bars, the quality of the recording is self-evident, with a well balanced and excellently produced orchestral sound. By the time the bassoon enters, one is already immersed in quality, and it is easy to question whether a young performer such as Geoghegan can match those standards.

Not only does she match them, she surpasses them. Her sound quality is extraordinary, proving her argument that the bassoon is deeply expressive, worthy of being taken seriously as a solo instrument. The Hummel concerto is the work that brought her to Chandos’s attention initially, during the final of Classical Star, and this recording leaves no doubt about the artistry of this exciting young performer. The faultless technical work is never a burden - something often expected from this notoriously cumbersome instrument - and in Geoghegan’s hands, the bassoon is agile and flexible. The slow movement is breathtaking, with her depth of sound something that should be experienced by all. The cadenza is particularly stunning, with some beautifully resonant low notes contrasted against a singing high register. She has an instinctive feel for phrasing and spacing, using silence to give extra weight to the notes she plays. The orchestral playing is also impressive, with Wallfisch capably handling the impressive Orchestra of Opera North. The finale has charm and personality, and a sense of youthful enjoyment. This is a fresh, exuberant performance, which is captivating from beginning to end.

The Weber that follows is mysteriously dark in its opening Andante, and the subsequent variations are expertly performed. The Hungarian Rondo has a charming appeal, with its light-hearted nature and strong rhythms. The accompaniment from the orchestra is poised and contained, giving a perfectly balanced accompaniment, which features well-presented solo moments from various wind players. Geoghegan once again performs with style and understanding, and a maturity of musicality which one would not expect from somebody her age. Her command of her instrument is truly remarkable, in both the fast paced moments, such as the dramatic end of the work, and in the slower, more expressive passages.

Berwald’s Concert Piece follows, composed in 1827 and first performed in the composer’s native Sweden in the following year. There is a strong operatic influence in the writing, and the bassoon takes on the role of a resonant tenor voice. The Andante, with its surprising setting of a famous British tune - listen to the CD to find out which one! - is exquisite, performed with deep-felt expression. The wide leaps and technical display in the following variations are equally impressive, further displaying this young performer’s breadth of ability.

Not many will have previously encountered Jacobi. Born in Germany in 1791, he was a prolific composer of works for bassoon. Karen Geoghegan has often spoken about the multitude of bassoon works which are not often heard by the general public, and Jacobi’s works are a prime example of this. The Introduction and Polonaise is well constructed and is more usually heard in a version for bassoon and piano. This is the world premiere recording of the orchestral version, with the sleeve-notes explaining that the orchestration was copied by bassoonist William Bailey from an unknown source in the early twentieth century. The version works well, and the orchestration seems natural and carefully balanced. The piece makes considerable technical demands of the soloist, played here with typical evenness and sense of ease. She proves that the concept of a virtuoso bassoonist is certainly not a myth.

Forming a very obvious contrast, Elgar’s compositional style suits the bassoon equally well. Composed later than the other works, in 1910, it makes use of the expressive qualities of the instrument, with Geoghegan’s luxurious sound showing the music off at its best.

The final track is an orchestration of Gershwin’s Summertime, in an arrangement by David Arnold. This is one of the highlights of the disc, showing an entirely different aspect to the bassoon in a way which reaches out to the listener. Geoghegan’s sound is ideally suited to this music, and she has a relaxed jazzy feel, capturing the essence of the work and rivalling many jazz singers. The bassoon has a wonderful vocal quality in its higher registers, which is unmissable here. It is perhaps difficult to include such a well-known and popular track on a disc such as this, but it balances nicely with the rest of the programme and shows the bassoon in its best possible light.

Despite the obvious criticisms of reality TV and a culture of people who try to achieve fame overnight without the hard work that goes with it, it is evident that Classical Star found some real talent. It is clear that Geoghegan has spent her life so far working hard and nurturing her abilities, under the careful guidance of some excellent teachers, such as Janet Bloxwich and John Orford. With a disc such as this, it is impossible not to take the bassoon, and Karen Geoghegan, seriously.

-- Carla Rees, MusicWeb International

Another ravishing release from Jean-Efflam Bavouzet – so what are you waiting for?

A momentum has been building throughout Jean-Efflam Bavouzet’s superb Debussy exploration and there is a sense of culmination in this, the fourth volume. With one still to go, the mind boggles as to how he will top this.

In fact, more of the same would be achievement enough. The fascinating thing about Bavouzet’s Debussy is the way he upsets notions of how this composer should go, while still giving more than a nod to tradition. So here are the Images and 12 Etudes firm of hand, projected with a strength and sense of line that one might expect could dull the music’s hazy brilliance. Yet there is never any danger of shifting sands congealed, as along with forward propulsion we get any number of miraculous, nearly hidden details. Imagination is never the slave of clarity, but clarity there is – the better to appreciate the richness of the prize.

Few pianists can have done all of these things at once in this repertoire so adeptly, so naturally. For anyone looking for the must-have Debussy collection, Bavouzet is surely the leading contender. Volume 2 of this series was pipped to the post in this year’s Gramophone Awards by Paul Lewis’s Beethoven (which went on to claim the Record of the Year prize). It would be no surprise if, after this release, the Frenchman is in the running again.

-- Gramophone [12/2008]


This outstanding Debussy series has been praised vigorously by my colleagues Jed Distler and Christophe Huss, and I can only second their enthusiasm. Bavouzet's Debussy offers the epitome of style, virtuosity, taste, and interpretive intelligence. His touch is miraculous. In the second book of Images, listen to Et la lune descend sur le temple qui fut: each layer of harmony has its own independent dynamics and phrasing, making the piano sound like a miniature orchestra being played by far more than a mere two hands. In Mouvement (from Set I) Bavouzet's choice of tempo is perfect, his rhythmic inflections infectious but never mechanical. Listening to him is a joy.

If the Études remain Debussy's least popular set of piano pieces, this performance should go a long way toward easing their passage into the pianistic mainstream. It's not just the humor that Bavouzet projects in the first piece ("pour les cing doigts"), or his natural flexibility and brilliance in the octave study--there is also his sensitivity to texture and sonority. Indeed, the chromatic study in Book 2 makes some amazing sounds that look forward to Conlon Nancarrow's player piano studies. Like the other releases in this series, the entire recital is perfectly recorded. There's also a bonus in the form of a completion by Roy Howat of Debussy's first sketches for the arpeggio study. It's nice to have, if hardly necessary, but the entire series remains an essential acquisition for pianophiles and Debussy fans alike.

-- David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

This is a hybrid Super Audio CD playable on both regular and Super Audio CD players.

Norway is a gorgeous country, and it’s no surprise that Delius found much of his inspiration there. The pieces on this intelligently planned program run from 1889-1917, and are programmed in roughly chronological order. They range from the charming orchestration of good friend Edvard Grieg’s Norwegian Bridal Procession to Delius’ first major works for orchestra (Paa Vidderne) and for the theatre (the incidental music to Folkeraadet), taking in a couple of orchestral songs along the way.

Paa Vidderne (On the Mountains) is a tone poem obviously of the Wagner/Liszt school, with plenty of hefty brass scoring and way too many cymbal crashes. It does not sound particularly Delian, but curiously the earlier Sleigh Ride’s calm central section clearly foreshadows the composer to come. Few listeners are probably aware that On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring is based on a Norwegian theme, but there it is, while Eventyr, which concludes the program, is a masterpiece of mood and turbulent atmosphere, sort of Delius’ answer to Sibelius’ En Saga.

This is one of those programs in which the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. The selections are nicely varied. Ann-Helen Moen sings the two songs quite beautifully, and Andrew Davis, who recorded some very nice Delius for Teldec back in the day, knows his way around the music. It’s also good to hear non-British orchestras taking on this repertoire. Certainly the Bergen Philharmonic sounds just fine, although curiously, in Eventyr, the second of the two shouts (literally: the plays have to shout) is quite untidy. Not important, though, especially with fine sonics and a very generous nearly eighty minutes of playing time. A very enjoyable and interesting disc.

- ClassicsToday

Classical Music

Recorded in: Potton Hall, Suffolk 21-23 November 1998 Producer(s) Ralph Couzens Sound Engineer(s) Ralph Couzens Richard Smoker (Assistant)

The first Rachmaninoff recording by Gianandrea Noseda and the BBC Philharmonic; 'Francesca da Rimini', received the accolade of 'Classical CD of the Week' from The Daily Telegraph and elicited the comment, 'Noseda sculpts the brooding passions of Rachmaninoff's dramatic score with trhilling intensity', from The Times. They return with three highly charged orchestral works. Noseda writees of his journey with Symphony No.1: 'Having conducted several times the Rachmaninoff second and third symphonies, I've been wondering continuously why the first of his symphonies has been neglected or considered not as good as its later sisters. In the last couple of years the level of my curiousity has increased so much that I've taken seriously the task of studying, learning and finally performing Rachmaninoff's first symphony. The result astonished me greatly: the symphony has such a beauty in the melodic line, the harmony is so refined, the structure is well controlled and yet everything seems naturally fluent.' Regarded as one of the most remarkable composers of the twentieth century, Serge Rachmaninoff wrote three romanticalldy inclined symphonies, two of which are now standard orchestral repertoire. However, the premiere of Symphony No.1 was such a disaster that Rachmaninoff refrained from composing anything more for the next three years. The conductor, Glazunov, is reputed to have been drunk, and Rachmaninoff was unable to attend the entire performance. He reacted by tearing up the score. Thankfully for posterity, the instrumental parts were preserved and rediscoverd in 1945, permitting the work to be restored. It is a work full of youthful fervour, distinctive and sweeping themes, and nationalist sentiments, and is now widely regarded as a vivid example of his early talent. It is complemented here by the 'Youth Symphony', the first movement of a projected but never completed symphony in D minor, composed when Rachmaninoff was only seventeen, and the great symphonic poem 'The Isle of the Dead', inspired by Arnold Böcklin's painting of the same name which Rachmaninoff had seen on display in Paris in 1907. Composed in 1909, it is still a relatively early work, but contains some of the dark Russian spiritual qualities which Rachmaninoff was to develop further in his later compositions. Gianandrea Noseda has a particular affinity for Russian music, which perhaps grew from his time with Gergiev at the Kirov. It is clear from his conducting that Rachmaninoff's music is deeply personal to him. Orchestra and conductor will perform this work at the BBC Proims in summer 2008 and at Manchester's Bridgewater Hall in November. Gianandrea Noseda will also conduct Rachmaninoff with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra in June.

Special Price *4 CDs for the price of 2*. The popular and critically admired Chandos recordings of John Field's expressive cycle of Piano Concertos are brought together for the first time as a limited edition 4-CD set and released at the price of only 2 CDs. A major forerunner of the Romantic school of pianism that culminated in Chopin, Dublin-born pianist and composer John Field had scarcely received his due until Chandos released the performances of the Piano Concertos by fellow countryman, Miceal O'Rourke. As one publication wrote, 'Field's star is currently shining brighter than ever, thanks in no small measure to the partnership of pianist Miceal O'Rourke and the Matthias-led London Mozart Players.' (The Lady) O'Rourke's talent was admired by many other publications with comments such as 'O'Rourke seems to have adopted the style of Field himself; he has a lovely touch and flow.' (American Record Guide) 'O'Rourke's delicate touch is ideal for conveying the charm of Field's music,' (The Times) while Gramophone stated 'all praise to those responsible...'

Classical Music