Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

"I’m convinced that Perlemuter’s Ravel is the best of him in [his] Nimbus recordings, more even than the raft of Chopin performances. Miroirs is a delight; Noctuelles is full of evocative precision, and the poetic sensitivity he evinces is propelled with unselfconscious control in these early, 1973 recordings made in the studio. Textual control radiates outwards from these traversals. As for Gaspard there’s a total lack of fuss in Ondine – but the avoidance of artifice is a function of the poetic hauteur that gives such meaning to his playing. His Sonatine is crisp, the Valses animated by an especially witty Vif whilst Le Tombeau de Couperin moves with grace and deft accentuation, a notch slower than the BBC 1970 broadcast that has circulated. Seeking an analogue, this is the kind of pointillist playing George Copeland brought to Debussy, in contradistinction to Gieseking’s Turneresque wash; both wonderful but both very different. Perlemuter’s Ravel is a breath of fresh air."

-- Jonathan Woolf, MusicWeb International

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

This very full compilation of Eric Coates’ most popular works is drawn from a seven-album set ‘The Definitive Eric Coates,’ containing all of Eric Coates’ commercially released recordings. In addition to a full discography the liner notes have a 1000 word article on Coates relationship with the Gramophone by Michael Payne. Eric Coates was an excellent conductor of his own music. Not only did he conduct many performances up and down the land during his lifetime and made many broadcasts with the BBC’s orchestras, he also made many fine commercial records. It is difficult to think of another composer of Coates’ generation, especially a light music composer, who left such a sizable legacy of recordings of their own compositions. Recalling Coates in the 1980s, Stanford Robinson spoke of Coates’ qualities as a conductor; these qualities can also sum up his recorded legacy: “He was always neat and immaculate and… did not bully the orchestra; but was always in control.”

The operatic overture is the composers “hook” to enthrall the audience immediately as the house lights dim and the first notes sound from the orchestra pit. Some of the most popular overtures are featured here, and come from powerhouse composers like Strauss, Smetana, and Verdi. William Boughton conducts the Philharmonia Orchestra for this recording. He has been with the ESO since he founded the ensemble in 1980. Since its inception, the ensemble has built an extensive discography with Nimbus Records.

Classical Music

Classical Music

It is hoped that this selection of suites from Boyvin’s two important livres d’orgue will go some way to redressing the lack of awareness of the quality of Boyvin’s music. It is certainly different from the livres d’orgue of André Raison, François Couperin and Nicolas de Grigny, and it is wonderfully lively and attractive music, especially when heard on this historic organ. David Ponsford has spent much of his career studying this repertoire, resulting in his book ‘French Organ Music in the Reign of Louis XIV’ (Cambridge University Press 2011). The present series of recordings on the most important historical organs in France, including the music of Guillaume-Gabriel Nivers, Louis Couperin, Nicolas-Antoine Lebegue, Andre Raison, Jacques Boyvin, and others up to the composers of the Revolution such as Balbastre, Beauvarlet Charpentier and Lasceux, is therefore the fruit of many years of research by a seasoned performer whose aim is to combine technical brilliance with intellectual understanding, to bring the music alive with authority and meaning.

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music

Classical Music