Latest News: Classical, Recording of the Week
-
Recording of the Week,
Meyerbeer's Le prophète from Mark Elder and the London Symphony Orchestra 28th June 2024This weird and wonderful opera about a Flanders innkeeper who is radicalised into religious extremism really catches fire on a live recording from last year's Aix-en-Provence Festival, with the London Symphony Orchestra on barnstorming form and American tenor John Osborn at the top of his game in the demanding title-role.
-
Recording of the Week,
English Song Recitals from Robin Tritschler and James Gilchrist 21st June 2024Tritschler joins forces with Malcolm Martineau, Sean Shibe and Philip Higham to pay tribute to Peter Pears on Signum, whilst Gilchrist and Anna Tilbrook bring unaffected eloquence to a collection of songs by Roger Quilter on Chandos.
-
Recording of the Week,
Magdalena Kožená performs orchestral songs by Martinů, Dvořák, and Hans Krása 14th June 2024The Czech mezzo presents an enchanting selection of songs in which she demonstrates her impressive range of tone colours, with sumptuous support from the Czech Philharmonic and Simon Rattle.
-
Recording of the Week,
Sibelius and Prokofiev Violin Concertos from Janine Jansen & Klaus Mäkelä 7th June 2024Engaging from the very first notes, these powerful new recordings of much-loved repertoire make for a great introduction if you don’t know these works - and an inspiring new perspective if you do.
-
Recording of the Week,
Beethoven's Triple Concerto from Benjamin Grosvenor, Nicola Benedetti and Sheku Kanneh-Mason 31st May 2024A charming, music-first performance by three young musical stars with a legendary orchestra, and a glimpse of Beethoven's wider influences and capacity for elegance.
-
Recording of the Week,
Rachel Podger and Brecon Baroque: The Muses Restor’d 24th May 2024An exciting exploration of a moment of transition in British music - the glory days of the consort tradition, the emerging Baroque, and beautiful folksong adaptations.
-
Recording of the Week,
Florent Schmitt's ballet, La tragédie de Salomé 17th May 2024Normally only performed as a cut-down symphonic suite, Alain Altinoglu and the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra present the rarely-recorded full-length version of a work much admired by Stravinsky.
-
Recording of the Week,
Four Hands - Alexandre Tharaud & Friends 10th May 2024The French pianist is joined by an array of distinguished guests (including Beatrice Rana, Bertrand Chamayou, Philippe Jaroussky & Víkingur Ólafsson) for a programme ranging from Bach to Piazzolla.
-
Recording of the Week,
Tippett's A Child of Our Time from the late Andrew Davis 3rd May 2024A long-term champion of Tippett's music, the British conductor leads a meticulously-detailed account of his wartime oratorio with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and soloists Pumeza Matshikiza, Dame Sarah Connolly, Joshua Stewart and Ashley Riches.
-
Recording of the Week,
Paul McCreesh conducts Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius 26th April 2024Using instruments from around the time of the work's premiere in 1900, Paul McCreesh and Gabrieli offer an illuminating recording that not only provides great textual clarity but also shows off the fine details of Elgar's orchestration.
-
Recording of the Week,
Chopin Études from Yunchan Lim 19th April 2024The South Korean pianist makes an impressive début with Chopin's Études, combining breathtaking agility with a real sense of musical narrative.
-
Recording of the Week,
Isabelle Faust performs Britten's Violin Concerto 12th April 2024The German violinist yet again demonstrates absolute mastery of her instrument with commanding performances of works by Britten, including the world premiere recording of two pieces written whilst the composer was still a schoolboy.
-
Recording of the Week,
A new Bach cantata project from Les Arts Florissants 5th April 2024Paul Agnew and Les Arts Florissants kick off a new project aimed at retracing the steps of Bach's life - focusing on his early work in Arnstadt and Mühlhausen, still barely out of his teens.
-
Recording of the Week,
Mozart and Strauss Lieder from Sabine Devieilhe & Mathieu Pordoy 29th March 2024The French coloratura soprano and her new recital-partner draw all manner of illuminating parallels between the two composers in a recital which includes Mozart's Das Kinderspiel and Abendempfindung & Strauss's Mädchenblumen, Morgen! and Amor.
-
Recording of the Week,
Paavo Järvi conducts Mendelssohn symphonies 22nd March 2024The Estonian conductor and the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich present stylish, propulsive accounts of Mendelssohn's five symphonies, plus the incidental music to A Midsummer Night's Dream.
-
Recording of the Week,
Chopin and Beethoven from Beatrice Rana 15th March 2024The Italian pianist presents an unusual pairing of sonatas - a sensitive, light performance of Chopin's Piano Sonata No. 2 complemented by a masterful and fearless Hammerklavier.
-
Recording of the Week,
Orchestral Works by Dorothy Howell 8th March 2024Rebecca Miller conducts the BBC Concert Orchestra in world premiere recordings of the Humoresque, The Rock, the Three Divertissements and Koong Shee plus a terrific account of Lamia - the Keats-inspired tone-poem which made the 21-year-old composer an overnight success after its Proms premiere in 1919.
-
Recording of the Week,
In The Shadows with Michael Spyres 1st March 2024The American singer teams up with Les Talens Lyriques and Christophe Rousset to explore some of the operas which influenced Wagner - including works by Méhul, Beethoven, Meyerbeer and Spontini.
-
Recording of the Week,
Janáček's Katya Kabanova from Simon Rattle and the London Symphony Orchestra 23rd February 2024Amanda Majeski is riveting as the doomed heroine grasping for happiness in the face of a loveless marriage (and a monstrous mother-in-law) in provincial Russia, with Rattle expertly balancing the score's elemental power and claustrophobic intensity.
-
Recording of the Week,
A Lifetime of Vivaldi from Théotime Langlois de Swarte 16th February 2024A lively re-telling of Vivaldi's life through a selection of his violin concertos, from perhaps the most exciting young Baroque violinist around - including a number of world premiere recordings, and a gorgeous recent rediscovery.