‘[Fischer’s] nimble chamber band fields a lean string section that nevertheless isn’t lacking in fire-power at tuttis… Corporate virtuosity is a given and provides immense pleasure at some of Fischer’s agile tempos, not least in the fleet-footed finales of all three works. [Fischer’s] many admirers will be in seventh heaven, and even those more agnostic will revel in the drive and vivacity he unfailingly imparts to whatever he performs.’ – Gramophone

‘The work [1st Symphony], which is characterized by both powerful and deeply lyrical music, is presented here in a very good and exciting interpretation, in which Sinaisky is scrupulously careful not to exaggerate romantic feelings. Vassily Sinaisky conducts [the Second Symphony in E flat major] grippingly to unleash all the energy it contains. At the same time, he also pays attention to the cantabile quality of the melodies and the charm that the music exudes.’ – Pizzicato ★★★★★

Markus Poschner’s acclaimed recordings of Bruckner’s symphonies bring together the versions identified as having significant revisions and changes in the authoritative New Anton Bruckner Complete Edition. It reflects the latest research and the most up-to-date editorial criteria, making this 18-CD set the definitive Bruckner symphonies cycle.

In 1822, the young Donizetti was engaged by La Scala to compose an opera. Chiara e Serafina was the outcome and the librettist was Felice Romani, a refined scholar but a notoriously slow and touchy worker. Consequently, Donizetti had barely twelve days to compose the whole work. Because of the incoherent plot, which concerns Don Meschino and his daughter Chiara who are kidnapped by Algerians, and the villainous Don Fernando who schemes to marry the nobleman’s younger daughter Serafina, the result was a fiasco. Donizetti’s music, however, is characterful and profuse with delightful duets, trios and ensembles.

‘…Christian, Tania Tetzlaff, and the late Lars Vogt, joined harmoniously by violist Barbara Buntrock, impart real expressive weight to every note and deliver an exuberant and masterful lesson in music.’ – Diapason

‘The accompaniment by the Chamber Orchestra of New York is impeccable.’ – Pizzicato

‘The two soloists, Jacek Muzyk and Daniel Kerdelewicz, have unimagined opportunities to show off their skills, ranging from athletic demands, for example in the first movement of Friedrich Witt’s work, to lyrical passages in the slow movement of Pokorny’s work. And they do so excellently. [The Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra] are encouraged by JoAnn Falletta to convey the expression of intensity and sparkling joy and the charm of dance, which both supports and stimulates the soloists and makes listening to the solo parts a great pleasure.’ – Pizzicato ★★★★★

Giovanni Paisiello enjoyed a considerable international reputation during much of his career, with 80 or more operas that presented a challenge to those of Mozart in Vienna. La finta amante was composed during Paisiello’s time at the Russian court of Catherine II and it soon became a triumph throughout Europe for its elegant and luminous music. With just three characters, captured forcefully by Paisiello’s innate sense of theatre, the comedy revolves around Camilletta who, alongside her boyfriend Gelino, deceives the older but wealthy Don Girone in games that inevitably lead to dangerous consequences.

‘Eschenbach and Barto take their time with the music and, with remarkable transparency and many warm colours, create sometimes very mysterious and exciting passages…This new recording is definitely interesting and worth listening to, because it brings out new aspects and gives Bartok a variety of expression that cannot be found anywhere else.’ – Pizzicato ★★★★★

‘This superb recording by the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra led by Vladimir Jurowski includes vocal soloists Svetlana Mamresheva and Martha Jurowski in heartfelt songs from The Stone Guest and A Feast in Time of Plague, respectively, while piano soloist Elisaveta Blumina shines in numbers from Mozart and Salieri that allude to both of these composers.’ – The Flip Side

There are fruitful contrasts in the works for piano and orchestra of these two French composers. Gabriel Fauré’s Ballade in F sharp major is graceful and serene but ends with a Lisztian flourish, whereas his neglected Fantaisie, though modestly orchestrated, is distinctive and characterful. Francis Poulenc, himself a gifted pianist, wrote his Piano Concerto for the Boston Symphony during his second American tour in 1949, full of alluring melodies and seductive orchestral colour. The ballet Aubade was composed for piano and 18 instruments with a scenario by Poulenc himself. It foreshadows the concerto while also revealing a Stravinskian influence.

‘…splendid recording.’ – Diapason

‘Pirgu sings with heroic tone and a truly overwhelming intensity. This is a comprehensive recital with a lot of brilliant heroic singing and some which is subtle and lyrical, too.’ – MusicWeb International

ChromaDuo, one of the world’s finest guitar duos, have greatly expanded the repertoire through friendships with leading composers. The five works featured on this album, four of which were written specifically for ChromaDuo, are all composed by renowned classical guitarists. Simone Iannarelli contributes a promenade to seven iconic pictures by the artist Frida Kahlo, whereas the writer Margaret Atwood offers the creative spur to Leo Brouwer. Dušan Bogdanović has created a stylistic hybrid in his Sonata No. 2, Dale Kavanagh has fashioned a marine ghost story, and Sérgio Assad fuses Brazilian and French elements in his moving tribute to Roland Dyens.

‘Overall…this is a beautiful and interesting work that transports the listener into a Chinese atmosphere without snubbing them. Excellent interpretations and spatially transparent recordings reinforce the good impression.’ – Pizzicato

Little is known of Vincenzo Bonizzi’s life, but he lived and worked mostly in Parma, and is remembered by music historians for writing the last work for the viola bastarda published in 1626. The viola bastarda was described as ‘the queen of instruments’ – it stands midway between tenor and bass viols in terms of size and tuning. Bonizzi’s Alcune opere di diversi auttori is a mixture of original music and pieces drawn from numerous sources, all of which are of high musical value and technical difficulty.

The three concertante works for flute and orchestra on this album are by composers who lived and worked in East Germany during the four decades of its existence. Günter Kochan, best known for his symphonic compositions, wrote an admired Concertino in 1964 that fuses succinctness with neo-Classical influence. Inspired by soloist Claudia Stein, Gisbert Näther’s Concerto from 2007 is characterised by teasing, fugitive gestures of a stylistically and technically diverse yet coherent nature. Composed in 1978, Siegfried Matthus’s Concerto is a striking example of his mature idiom in its use of serial elements and sonic innovations in the course of what proves to be an eventful and ever-changing relationship between soloist and orchestra.

This festive album showcases a variety of traditional Christmas songs from Sweden, Finland, Norway and Iceland. These recordings are heartily recommended to anyone interested in hearing traditional Christmas melodies from Scandinavia. The selection includes a mixture of unknown songs with one or two familiar carols translated into a variety of languages. The unmistakable, typical Scandinavian melancholic tones are almost meditative and provide a relaxed and contemplative listening experience.

‘Two orchestral pieces with striking horn passages from the musical comedy Mercury the Matchmaker lead to the Symphony in C major… It is a very good and beautifully orchestrated work, whose expressive music comes across very well in this lively and elegant interpretation, which is very energetic in the final rondo. Special praise is due to the wind players of the Pardubice Orchestra.’ – Pizzicato ★★★★★

These Christmas songs from the Alps dispense with stylization encountered in the ‘high’ art. The Latin-German language mix dominating in the midnight Christmas liturgy, with alternate voices of priests and laymen, was replaced by the familiar local dialect. Texts and melodies were passed down by word of mouth and underwent many different changes during their wanderings through Alpine valleys.

Although it is known that Schubert did not often dance, he willingly played the piano for dances and parties, being only too keen to provide examples that fuelled the Viennese Waltz craze of the time. These light dances – including Waltzes and Ländler – are the focus of this album which features his masterful small-scaled Valses sentimentales. Including some earlier versions of the same works, this selection of 99 tracks contains many rare Schubert gems. All the waltzes here are beautifully balanced, attentive to key changes, and technically accessible to pianists. Also included is the Kupelwieser-Walzer transcribed in 1943 by Richard Strauss.

‘…the recordings are excellent. …It is a clean, balanced sound without extremes of any sort, and are a fit for these clean, balanced readings by Comissiona, a Romanian conductor who did a wonderful job of orchestral training with the Baltimore Symphony. They make a very nice sound on this release, and the sound overall is a good fit for these lithe readings.’ – Classical Music Sentinel

‘…Natalia Osipova is, along with Marianela Núñez, one of [the Royal Ballet’s] very finest dancers. Her fine technique is, moreover, augmented by a spirit of physical adventurousness and risk-taking that particularly suits her to the highly dramatic roles into which she unrestrainedly – and often quite literally – throws herself…’ – MusicWeb International

Guided by his idol George Balanchine, Hans van Manen has striven all his life to create meaning in his choreography. Alongside conversations with colleagues and collaborators, in the documentary Moving to Music, van Manen talks about his life and work, and from where his inspiration came in ballets that are charged with drama and eroticism. Also included are three complete works from Dutch National Ballet – the early Metaforen; Adagio Hammerklavier, which presents the slow movement of Beethoven’s Op. 106 sonata performed live on stage with three couples in various configurations; and Frank Bridge Variations, a late masterpiece that plays with balance and counterpoint to music by Benjamin Britten.

Initially composed for performance during the season of Lent, Donizetti’s Il diluvio universale (The Great Flood) takes a Biblical story and mixes it with the human nature of the main characters, creating a uniquely intense drama. Performed here with a stellar cast in its acclaimed 2023 revival at the Festival Donizetti in Bergamo, this production transports Donizetti’s opera into the present day. In this staging, collective and individual destinies are interwoven, urging us to reflect on issues such as the environmental crisis and climate change.

‘…the current Royal Ballet company has immense strength in depth and there are no weak links in this performance… Prokofiev’s score is very well served by experienced ballet conductor Kessels and the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House.’ – MusicWeb International

‘Laurent Pelly’s production, already regarded as a reference, is a true triumph… A top-notch cast, let us reiterate. The arias, duets, and trios are delightful; the dazzling performance of the choruses, which animate many scenes with their spontaneity, adds to the experience, along with the balanced direction of Roman conductor Sesto Quatrini (b. 1984), who leads a London orchestra capable of fine nuances and varied colours. An exhilarating success, this performance claims a top spot in the videography of this brilliant Elisir d’amore.’ – Crescendo

‘Devieilhe actually makes Lakme believable, a real human being whom we care about. Her singing is effortless and beautiful with none of the shrillness often heard in this music. The Pygmalion ensemble plays extremely well for Pichon who shows he knows exactly how this type of music should be performed.’ – American Record Guide

‘…Marianela Nuñez manages so perfectly in Liam Scarlett’s new staging for the Royal Ballet. Her Odette is dreamily danced and touching, down to every vulnerable flutter by the lake, while, by contrast, her Odile flashes a steely smile, digging into her fouettés like daggers in the coda of the Act 3 pas de deux.’ – Gramophone

Royal Ballet Artistic Associate Christopher Wheeldon magically captured the twists and turns of Lewis Carroll’s classic story, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, in his 2011 ballet. Bob Crowley’s vivid sets and costumes take us down the rabbit hole into a colourful world full of curious creatures and captivating characters. Joby Talbot’s original score is full of sweeping melodies and contemporary sounds.

A passionate lover of the human voice, Francis Poulenc composed the Dialogues des Carmélites in 1953, using a libretto he himself had written from a screenplay by Georges Bernanos. The work had never been performed in Munich and this rendering was entrusted to Dmitri Tcherniakov, whose worldwide reputation is underpinned by productions like Eugene Onegin and Macbeth at the Paris Opera and Don Giovanni at the Aix-en-Provence Festival.

‘Fresh and reinvigorated – Nutcrackers come and Nutcrackers go but the Royal Ballet’s version is a hardy perennial.’ – The Stage